Tag Archives: smart rhino publications

Blog, New Releases

Harvester of Sorrow by Weldon Burge

Harvester of Sorrow by Weldon BurgeHarvester of Sorrow (An Ezekiel Marrs Thriller: #1)
Weldon Burge

Paperback and  Digital Release  $15.95/$4.99
(ISBN: 978-0-578-95444-8)
November 16, 2021 

A whirlwind of tragic, terrifying events …

A vodoun priest is brutally slain in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

On American soil, a man stands atop his car—naked from the waist down—and suddenly succumbs to a mysterious death.

Within the silence of a state park, an abducted child is found dead, yet another in a series of similar slayings.

In the small city of New Warfield, ODs have skyrocketed from the use of cocaine laced with an undetermined substance.

Detective Ezekiel Marrs may just have the wealth of strength and skills needed to fight these dark forces, to uncover the facts behind these hideous cases and how they relate to one another. With his team, Ezekiel takes on the immense task of putting the pieces together, making the connections that will hopefully solve this puzzle and stop the seemingly endless death and destruction.

But when Ezekiel and his fellow police officers find themselves facing two of the most vicious adversaries they’ve ever encountered, more lives hang in the balance as they battle to survive a deadly, inevitable confrontation with unimaginable evil.

Harvester of Sorrow by Weldon Burge

For publicity information, please contact John Raab at editor@suspensemagazine.com

“Burge’s debut thriller kicks down the door and comes at you with both barrels blasting.” — Ronald Malfi, award-winning author of Come With Me and December Park

“Harvester of Sorrow is an impressive debut novel from Weldon Burge, and an exciting first installment in what will undoubtedly be a successful series featuring Detective Ezekiel Marrs. Assured, gritty, expertly paced, and sleek as a bullet, Burge’s eerie and intense tale of grizzled detectives frantically searching for a ritual killer who may be far more than he seems is not to be missed. I could not put it down!” — Greg F. Gifune, best-selling author of The Bleeding Season and Midnight Solitaire

“Rich in description and tension, with a colorful cast of characters, Harvester of Sorrow starts with a bang and never lets up. Weldon Burge has done a masterful job of creating an exciting, entertaining tale. Highly recommended.” — Joseph Badal, Award winning author of The Carnevale Conspiracy

“Welcome, Ezekiel Marrs, to the hall of great detective heroes. In HARVESTER OF SORROW, we get a front-row seat as Marrs confronts a sadistic, unforgettable killer with a rare and terrifying background: the bloody, dark arts of voodoo. It’s a no-holds-barred run to the explosive climax where it’s not a sure thing that Marrs will even survive. Grab a drink and find a comfortable chair to enjoy this new thriller from Weldon Burge … but leave the light on until you finish.” — Matthew Iden, best-selling author of the Marty Singer detective series

“This story drew me in and built speed with plenty of twists and turns. A great ride!” — J. Gregory Smith, author of Final Price, Quick Fix, and Short Cut

“Harvester of Sorrow is one hell of a ride. Great pacing, well-drawn characters that positively jump off the pages! Move over, Stephen King!” — Carson Buckingham, author of Gothic Revival, Noble Rot, and Home

“Burge has successfully brokered an unlikely—and happy—marriage between police procedural and supernaturally tinged thriller that will keep you turning pages ‘til the end.” — Dana King, two-time Shamus Award nominee and author of the Penns River procedurals

WELDON BURGE

Author of the Ezekiel Marrs thriller, HARVESTER OF SORROW

Weldon Burge, a native of Delaware, is the debut author of the thriller Harvester of Sorrow, the first in the Ezekiel Marrs series published by Suspense Publishing. He is also a publisher and full-time editor. Weldon’s short fiction has appeared in many publications, including various magazines and anthologies (such as Crimeucopia, The Best of the Horror Society 2013, Pellucid Lunacy: An Anthology of Psychological Horror, Ghosts and Demons, Beach Pulp, and Scary Stuff, just to name a few). His stories have been adapted for podcast presentation by Drabblecast. Weldon is also a frequent writer for Suspense Magazine, often writing author interviews.

On November 16, 2021, Suspense Publishing will release Weldon’s debut thriller, Harvester of Sorrow, the first in the Ezekiel Marrs series. He is also currently writing a paranormal suspense novel that may also be the start of another series (but he hasn’t determined that yet). He intends to stay on the novel-writing rollercoaster for the future.

In 2012, Weldon and his wife, Cindy, founded Smart Rhino Publications, an indie publishing company focusing primarily on horror and suspense/thriller books, many of them anthologies. To date, the company has published 15 books, including Zippered Flesh: Tales of Body Enhancements Gone Bad, Insidious Assassins, Asinine Assassins, A Plague of Shadows, The Box Jumper, Broken: Stories of Damaged Psyches, and Green Tsunami.

Weldon Burge

Contact Information

Weldon Burge – contact@weldonburge.com

Website: http://www.weldonburge.com

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Weldon-Burge/e/B001KIVSDY

Bookbub Author Page: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/weldon-burge

Goodreads Author Page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/321854.Weldon_Burge

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/weldon.burge

Twitter: https://twitter.com/weldonburge

Blog, New Releases, Upcoming Projects, Works in Progress

What I’ve Done and What’s in the Works…

It’s been too long since I wrote a blog post that wasn’t merely a catalog of interesting articles about writing and publishing.

We’re over the midway point of 2021 and while this year has been nowhere near as miserable as its predecessor, the past six and a half months have served up generous portions of stress and change. I lost two dear friends, turned 50, started a new full-time job, and finished a few home renovations and landscaping projects.

Love on the EdgeJust to recap events on the writing front, the first quarter was marvelous. In January, my story, “Where It’s Needed Most,” was published in the Mindful Writers anthology, Love on the Edge, by Year of the Book Press. For some unexplained reason, the anthology briefly went missing from Amazon in June but was quickly re-released using Ingram Spark.  Proceeds from the anthology benefit Allegheny Children’s Initiative-Partners For Quality, Inc.  As a sample, you can read my story for free on Wattpad.

In that same month, my South Korean ghost story, “Before She’s Gone Forever,” was accepted by Gravelight Press for the next volume of their Halloween Party anthology series to be published in September. More details on that soon.

A Plague of ShadowsAnother of my ghost stories, “Bottom of the Hour,” reached the quaterfinals in the Screencraft Cinematic Short Story Competition and to this day remains in the top 35% of discoverable works on Coverfly.  “Bottom of the Hour” was originally published in A Plague of Shadows (Smart Rhino Publications, October 2018).

Meanwhile in the Middle of Eternity CoverMarch saw the publication of Meanwhile in the Middle of Eternity, the final book in the Middle of Eternity anthology series that I created and edited for Firebringer Press. It’s available in all formats except for Kindle, which has been delayed but should be out eventually. In keeping with tradition, three of my stories were included. You can read two of them for free here on my website: “Take a Cue from the Canine” and “So Hungry…” The third is a Finnish fantasy tale called “The Forest for the Trees.”

Writes of Passage CoverAlso in March, the Greater Lehigh Valley Writers Group released their latest biennial anthology, Writes of Passage. First in that book is “Help Me Rise,” my tale of a female rock star and recovering alcoholic who struggles to resurrect her career following the death of her husband. It’s the first of two general, or “mainstream,” fiction stories I wrote this year.

The second was “Where Do I Begin?” in which a middle-aged man moves to Rehoboth Beach, Delaware to start a new life only to be tormented by voices from his past. This story was submitted to the annual Rehoboth Beach Reads short story contest, sponsored by Cat & Mouse Press and Browseabout Books. The theme this year is Beach Secrets and the winners will be revealed during the first week of August. Stay tuned!

Speaking of (writing of?) Rehoboth Beach, on July 1, I submitted a detective story, set in that town, to Hawkshaw Press for their 2022 anthology, Hardboiled and Loaded with Sin. They accepted the story within two days! If you’re a writer of detective noir tales and 40 years of age or older, check them out. The deadline for submissions is December 31, 2021.

Of course, no writer’s life would be complete without rejections and I received about a half dozen of them this year. There’s an old adage in this business—if you’re not getting rejections, you’re not submitting enough. I’m shopping around two SF adventure stories and a dark horror tale while working on draft three of a science fiction novel.

That about sums it up for the first half of 2021. I’m immensely grateful for the successes and hopeful about the future. Later this year, I plan to submit several short stories, and one of my novels, to various contests. I’ll post details in the months to come.

Enjoy the rest of summer and stay safe.

 

Blog, Book Launch, New Releases

Recap: A Plague of Shadows Book Launch

A marvelous time was had by all yesterday evening at the book launch party for A Plague of Shadows, the latest paranormal fiction anthology by Smart Rhino Publications. The launch was graciously hosted by the Newark Arts Alliance in Newark, DE.

A special thank you to editors Joanne M. Reinbold (Director of the Written Remains Writers Guild) and Weldon Burge (owner of Smart Rhino Publications) and to emcee and fellow contributor Maria Masington who kept the evening on track. Approximately half of the contributing authors were on hand and some read excerpts not only from their own stories, but from stories of contributors who could not attend.

I had a wonderful time reading my story, “Bottom of the Hour” and signing several copies of the book in addition to asking my fellow writers to do the same for my own copy and for some of my friends who donated to the Kickstarter that helped fund the publication. I now have a few books to hand deliver.

There were door prizes and yes, there was cake! Check out pictures from the event below. There were a few writers that I missed including Jacob Jones-Goldstein, Shannon Connor Winward, and Gail Husch (who also arranged all of the food and beverages for the launch).

Plague of Shadows Table
Plague of Shadows Table
Plague of Shadows Cake
And there was cake!
Plague of Shadows Cake
Close up of the cake.
Plague of Shadows Box of Books
My box of books!
Phil Giunta at A Plague of Shadows Book Launch
Some guy named Phil reading his story.
Weldon Burge at A Plague of Shadows Book Launch
Weldon Burge, editor and owner of Smart Rhino Publications.
J Gregory Smith at A Plague of Shadows book launch
Fellow contributor, J. Gregory Smith
Patrick Derrickson at A Plague of Shadows Book Launch
Fellow contributor Patrick Derrickson reads Billie Sue Mosiman’s story. He returned in the next session to read his own.
Maria Masington at A Plague of Shadows Book Launch
Maria Masington, our master of ceremonies, adorable punster, and fellow contributor to A Plague of Shadows.
Joanne Reinhold cuts the cake at A Plague of Shadows Book Launch
Joanne M. Reinbold prepares to cuts the cake at A Plague of Shadows book launch.
JM Reinbold at A Plague of Shadows Book Launch
Joanne M. Reinbold, editor and director of the Written Remains Writers Guild.
Jane Miller at A Plague of Shadows Book Launch
Jane Miller reads her poem from the anthology.
J Patrick Conlon at A Plague of Shadows Book Launch
Fellow contributor, J. Patrick Conlon.
Blog, Upcoming Projects, Writing and Publishing

The Plague is Coming!

Received an update this morning from Delaware-based Smart Rhino Publications about their upcoming horror anthology, A PLAGUE OF SHADOWS. This collection will include my paranormal tale, “Bottom of the Hour” about a young man, cursed with the ability to hear death approaching, who is talked into buying a haunted Camaro.

From Smart Rhino Publications Executive Editor Weldon Burge:

We’re now pulling together A PLAGUE OF SHADOWS: A WRITTEN REMAINS ANTHOLOGY. Smart Rhino Publications collaborated with the Written Remains Writers Guild to publish SOMEONE WICKED a few years ago. PLAGUE is our second collaboration. We intend to have a Kickstarter campaign to defray some of the costs.

Here are the current writers in the TOC:

Jane Miller
Maria Masington
Billie Sue Mosiman
Carson Buckingham
Phil Giunta
Greg Smith
Graham Masterton
Patrick Derrickson
Jeff Strand
JM Joanne M Reinbold
Jacob Jones-Goldstein
Gail Husch
Jasper E. Bark
Shannon Connor Winward
Jeff Markowitz
Patrick Conlon
Jennifer Loring
Justynn Tyme
Weldon Burge
Stephanie M. Wytovich

As with SOMEONE WICKED, we’re juxtaposing WR members with guest writers–and the content of the anthology so far is astounding!

A Plague of Shadows

 

Blog, Works in Progress, Writing and Publishing

Short Story Acceptance: A Plague of Shadows

2 Comments
Now it can be told! I am beyond ecstatic to report that my short story, “Bottom of the Hour” has been accepted by Smart Rhino Publications for their 2018 paranormal anthology A PLAGUE OF SHADOWS edited by Weldon Burge and JM Reinbold.
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About “Bottom of the Hour”— After surviving a car accident that killed his parents twenty years ago, Victor Orologio has the ability to hear death approaching… yet he has never been able to save any of its victims. When he buys a used Camaro that turns out to be haunted by a vengeful ghost, Victor eventually begins to fear that the next death knell he hears might be his own.
 
For more information on A PLAGUE OF SHADOWS, check out the Written Remains website by clicking HERE  or on the cover image below.
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A Plague of Shadows