I was recently given the opportunity to take a crack at legendary “Mojo” author Joe R Lansdale’s latest books, a new collected short stories anthology and a newly collected version of all three “At the Drive in” series-featuring never before seen art from the un-produced film of the same title and on top of that, I got a wonderful Email from Matt asking if I would like a chance to interview Mr. Lansdale for Flames Rising, well of course I jumped at the chance so here, without further ado and good sense, is the interview.

Flames Rising recently had the chance to talk to Editor & Developer Cam Banks from Margaret Weis Productions about the Supernatural RPG, as well as upcoming games like Leverage and Smallville. Cam told us about some of the recent products like Supernatural’s Guide to the Hunted and we talked a little about some of the more interested elements of working on licensed properties as RPGs.

FlamesRising.com is pleased to present an interview with Filip Sablik, publisher from Top Cow Productions, Inc. In this round of questions, we offer you an inside look into this unique comic book company by discussing WANTED, their upcoming ARTIFACTS series and more!

How has the movie WANTED changed your visibility as a comic book company?

Derek Gunn lives in Dublin, Ireland with his wife and three children and is the author of the post-apocalyptic thriller series, Vampire Apocalypse, widely praised on both sides of the Atlantic. Indie US comic publisher, New Baby Productions have licensed Vampire Apocalypse for graphic novel adaptation. The first graphic novel is due out early 2011. Derek is also the author of THE ESTUARY, A 2009 release from Permuted Press.

Eric Pollarine had the chance to talk to Derek briefly about his novels, the upcoming comic and more…

A series of bizarre deaths leaves the victims unnaturally desiccated and decaying, sending Jason Dark into the dangerous world of the London dockyards in search of a supernatural murderer. But is the paranormal investigator prepared to duel a full-fledged demon on a Hell-bent mission to create chaos and catastrophe throughout the earth, a fiend determined to wreak more death and destruction than his even more ominous Master?

Steven Dawes had recently come across the new gothic horror series “Jason Dark” available now in paper and e-book format. After taking the time to read the first two volumes of the “Jason Dark” e-series, Steven Dawes was fortunate enough to have a great conversation and interview with Jason Dark author Guido Henkel about his new series.

FlamesRising.com is pleased to present you with an interview with David Petersen, the creator of the Mouse Guard graphic novel series. Published by Archaia Entertainment, Mouse Guard tells the story of a few brave mice dedicated to protecting their fellow mice from dangerous predators and other threats.

The graphic novels are widely popular; just Last summer we learned that Mouse Guard: Winter 1152 hit the New York Times Best Seller List. Because of the comic’s popularity, Archaia Entertainment recently announced that Mouse Guard: Fall 1152 hardcover is going into a third printing. The series is also a big hit among hobby gamers, too, who enjoy playing the Mouse Guard RPG.

We had the chance to ask David a few questions about the Mouse Guard series, including his upcoming Mouse Guard-related titles like Black Axe and Legends of the Guard.

FlamesRising.com is proud to present you with an in-depth look into A DARK MATTER. Written by New York Times bestselling author Peter Straub, this novel is already getting rave reviews from places like Publisher’s Weekly well before its official release date of February 9, 2010. Over the next, few weeks we’re going to share with you more about this modern horror novel which has been billed as “powerful” and “brilliantly terrifying.”

To kick off our in-depth look at this new horror novel, we’d like to share with you Peter’s answers to a few of our questions.

I recently spoke with A.P. Fuchs of Coscom Entertainment about the mix of comics and fiction available for fans of zombies, super-heroes and other dark, twisted tales.

Call you tell us a little about Axiom-Man?

Again, this will have to be another “long story short.” Axiom-man–the concept, anyway–was a superhero I invented while delivering newspapers as a kid, something to keep my mind busy while I went door to door. I’d daydream adventures, create story arcs, etc. Then, I created the version you know in high school. In 2005, I was inspired by the surge of independent superhero fiction being published and in January of 2006 began work on the first installment in the series. Here we are, three years later and the character has four books and one comic to his credit with more to come.

FlamesRising.com is pleased to present an exclusive interview with Bob Salvatore and his son, Geno. R.A. Salvatore has written dozens of best-selling books such as The Ghost King, Road of the Patriarch and Highwayman. The Stowaway, the first in the Stone of Tymora series, is Geno Salvatore’s debut novel.

In this interview, we discuss the young adult series entitled Stone of Tymora which is co-written by Geno and R.A. Salvatore.

FlamesRising.com is pleased to present an interview with author Thomas Sniegoski. Tom is a veteran author who has written for dozens of comics titles (BONE, THE SISTERHOOD), media tie-in novels (HELLBOY, ANGEL) and his original fiction (The Remy Chandler Series). Fans of Christopher Golden might recognize Tom’s work; the two have collaborated on a number of projects. Our first Girls of Gore article highlighted their character named Eve from The Menagerie.

In this interview, Tom Sniegoski discusses what he enjoys writing, monkeys and some of the challenges he faces.

In this interview, Flames Rising is pleased to feature urban fantasy author, Anton Strout. Anton is the author of a series of books called the “Simon Canderous series.” Set in modern-day Manhattan, Simon, the main character, has a power called psychometry.

We’d like to share with you Anton’s thoughts on urban fantasy, what inspires him as an author, and his perspective on his Simon Canderous series of books. If you’re a fan of Anton’s work, you can also touch base with him throughout the year at several conventions including New York Comic Con, GenCon and more!

FlamesRising.com is pleased to present you with our interview featuring author and editor, Kerrie Hughes. Kerrie has worked on several short story anthologies including the newly-released ZOMBIE RACCOONS KILLER BUNNIES and GAMER FANTASTIC.

We’d like to share with you Kerrie’s thoughts on editing short stories, what she likes about the format, and her take on the current market.

This is an APB to horror movie buffs within range of Madison, WI. The Madison Horror Film Fest invades Market Square Cinema at 6604 Odana Rd in Madison WI this weekend and yours truly will be there.

The fest kicks off at noon on Saturday, Oct. 3^rd and goes through Sunday night. You can expect an onslaught of indie horror shorts, features, vendors and guests including Debbie Rochon, and Bill Rebane. Highlights will include a screening of Re-Animator followed by a Q&A with director Stuart Gordon and a “Women in Horror” presentation hosted by Elske McCain and Scarlet Salem. Check back next week for my full recap of Saturday’s events and if you see me at the fest feel free to say hi.

In the meantime, check out this short Q&A with Fest director Rich Peterson:

City in the Sand is a new Mind’s Eye Theatre product from White Wolf using the Storytelling Adventure System. This is the first MET product using the SAS format and I was immediately curious about how the format would work in a live-action environment. Let’s just say I was impressed with the overall quality of City in the Sand and at the amount of cool stuff that was included in this product.

I contacted the folks at White Wolf and had the chance to talk to the authors (Eddy Webb, Kelley Barnes and Jess Hartley) about the design of the product and a bit about Mind’s Eye Theatre in general.

Recently, we had the chance to sit down with industry veteran Kenneth Hite, who is a horror game designer, author and columnist. You may have read some of Ken Hite’s columns through Weird Tales or Out of the Box at Indie Press Revolution. In this interview, we talk a little bit about the Origins-award winning title Tour de Lovecraft and the recent release of The Day After Ragnarok, horror as a genre versus mood, the Windy City, his upcoming projects and much, much more!

It is the dawn of a new age in the Multiverse. The balance of power is shifting and Agents of Artifice brings readers to the heart of a planeswalker struggle.

In Agents of Artifice, Ari Marmell re-imagines Planeswalkers, taking fans deeper than ever into the lives of the Multiverse’s most powerful beings.

In this interview Ari tells us a little about the creative process that went into the writing of Agents of Artifice and what it was like exploring the worlds of Magic: the Gathering. We also ask him about the Ravenloft serial novel Black Crusade and even get a question or two about some upcoming Dungeons & Dragons books in before we wrap things up.

We have a special treat for all you Neil Gaiman fans out there! From comic books to best-selling novels, Gaiman has wowed fans with his mythical tales and endless imagination. Now for the first time on the big screen, the animated film Coraline is set to debut in just a few weeks. Fans of The Nightmare Before Christmas will want to go see this film; Coraline has the same talented director, Henry Selick.

What is Coraline about? The film is based on a novella first published in 2002 entitled Coraline, about a young girl who avoids a warning and goes through that fateful door. Once inside, Coraline faces a world similar to her own with marked differences: her mother is no longer recognizable, the cat can talk, and the doddering old ladies Miss Spink and Miss Forcible are more than they appear. Winding through other twists and turns, you’ll watch as Coraline attempts to emerge victorious, rescuing more than just herself.

Jeff Preston has been working in the RPG industry as a freelance illustrator and concept artist for several years. His art has been featured in products released by Chaosium, Atlas Games, Catalyst Game Labs and many others.

Recently Jeff was one of the featured artists in the Halloween Horror series here at Flames Rising. Jeff has also been busy working on some of the Shroud products with the folks at One Bad Egg.

I recently had the chance to ask Jeff a few questions about his work…

David Wellington is the author of several successful horror novels, short stories and web serials. The Monster Island zombie series and 13 Bullets vampire fiction are very popular with horror fans, who can’t wait to see what happens next.

Vampire Zero, the third book featuring Laura Caxton and Jameson Arkeley was recently released. I had the chance to talk to David a bit about the story and some of his other projects.

Jaleigh Johnson’s second Forgotten Realms novel, Mistshore, opens with a letter from a grandfather to his infant granddaughter. “Someday,” the letter concludes, “you will go forth into the world and find your own adventure waiting. I want this for you, above all things, granddaughter. The world is spread out before you, and life is meant to be lived. Be well, and be happy…”

Mistshore tells the story of the granddaughter, Icelin, as she flees into Mistshore, a district of Waterdeep built upon the wreckage of sunken ships, warped planks, and violent crime. Mistshore is, as Ed Greenwood, the creator of the Forgotten Realms, says in his introduction to the book, “a corner of Waterdeep much whispered about by the fearful, who believe all manner of sinister half-sea-monsters, half-humans lurk in its sagging riggings and rotten cabins. Creatures with webbed fingers, gills hidden under high-collared robes, and sly, stealthy tentacles waiting to throttle or snatch.”

Interview by Jeremy Jones