For Those About to Pulp Rock!

Find it Here!

This has been a long time coming, but the release of Pulp Rock is finally upon us today! This is the weirdest anthology to come around in some time, so buckle in.

Essentially, the idea came from author Alexander Hellene to create a collection centered on the theme of rock n roll music. But not just a random set of stories about music: he wanted tales that embodied the mythical, larger-than-life attitude that erupted out of the genre way back in the 1950s and went strong for near half a century since. So what you get is an anthology in the tradition of both a musical genre and a literary tradition of adventure storytelling that's even older. There isn't a whole lot like this one, and that's no exaggeration.

Originally crowdfunded in 2020, now it comes to all readers for easy access. 10 authors, 12 stories, all pure adventure and weird tales.

This is what you'll get in Pulp Rock:

ADVENTURE ROCKS

Space pirates and superspies, ghostly singers and half-orc bards, lost cities and deals with the devil . . . all this awaits and more in Pulp Rock: Twelve musically inspired tales of adventure, excitement, and horror by some of the most exciting voices in science-fiction and fantasy. Come explore the nexus between music and the written word, and get ready to rock.

Altered Egos by Patrick Walts Glam-metal juggernauts Slamurai were past their prime, until a surprise new album and tour thrust them back into center stage . . . but is the band who it claims to be?

Mad Wind by JD Cowan On a distant colony world, a young student sets out to discover the secret of ancient ruins none have returned from . . . and music may be his only weapon against the Mad Wind.

Doom Chord by Ryan Williamson A half-orc bard and his gnome companion seek knowledge of the legendary chord required to play a song so epic even denizens of the netherworld long to hear it.

Keep It Burning Bright by Alexander Hellene An aging explorer with nothing to live for embarks on one final expedition to a frozen city to discover the one song said to be the source of all life . . . if he can make it past the city’s deadly guardians.

The Devil’s Harp by David J. West Her performance was magical . . . diabolically magical. Now a big-city reporter and a rough-and-ready lawman must track down the secrets of an occult instrument to save a woman’s soul from eternal damnation.

Farewell to Once and Future Kings by David V. Stewart They’re a band on tour in the far reaches of interstellar civilization with a secret mission: find the mole that threatens to upend the delicate balance of powers . . . even if it risks true love.

The Crying Girl by Alexander Nader She’s done it! She’s created a drug that allows its users to see and feel music. But even she doesn’t understand its side-effects during a powerful metal show for the ages.

Entomocronicity by Alexandru Constantin In the deserts of Afghanistan, a Marine hears a ghostly recording from the forgotten past that sets him on an obsessive, destructive quest to find the singer . . . and the malevolent intelligence behind her song.

Master of Puppets by Jon Del Arroz All he wanted was for his puppet show to be given respect it deserves! And when a blood ritual brings his marionettes to life, he will have his revenge.

Princess of the Night by Paul McKesley On an interstellar cruise, an undercover bandleader plots to recover his birthright from rival nobles . . . if scheming aliens out for revenge don’t steal it first!

A Song for Melienope by Alexandru Constantin A traveling bard gets more than he bargains for when his wanderings bring him to the doorstep of an ancient forest spirit. Now he must play the song of his life or forfeit his immortal soul.

Kentucky Mothers by Alexander Hellene What is the connection between a country music superstar and a spate of dead journalists? One imprisoned music reporter knows the secret . . .but will anyone believe him?

Once again, you can find Pulp Rock here!

As you can see, there is quite a lot of fun to be had in this collection, with many different takes on the subject of music mixed with the weird. I'm sure I can speak for the other writers when I say just how fun much of this was to write. It definitely comes off in the final version of the anthology.

As for my story, Mad Wind was an idea that came to me before I wrote the other two band stories (Black Dog Bend and Living Land) that released first. You can probably see how they'll relate by reading them for yourself. Nonetheless, Mad Wind was slightly different than those two. For one, it's a lot more explicit about the overall setting of the stories that I didn't have room to delve in before it. For the other, it has a much clearer link to stories that inspired its writing.

Since I first read Who Fears the Devil? by Manly Wade Wellman, I was inspired to create stories using the rock n roll mythos and overblown legacy and how it would affect a future generation, much like Wellman used his older legends for a different time and place in a changing world. What you end up with is a band that more or less lives their music.

The setup is easy enough to understand. The band is called Three Wolves, and the rockabilly trio travel across the land with their manager/driver running into strange occurrences of things that shouldn't be in a world no one really understands. Where does this group come from and what is their destination? Who knows. But they are here to put on a good show and chase away the blues for the suffering they come across in their journey. Sometimes that's all you need.

There will be future stories featuring Jordan, Edward (not Eddie, you punk!), and Daniel, but I thought it paramount to get the first three each featuring one band member out there as soon as possible. As you can tell, they're all quite a bit different from each other, except when it comes to taking action when it's needed. You will also notice that Mad Wind has a reveal about the setting that the other two didn't really delve into, for many reasons. I promise that all ties in together. Leaning in on that in the other two stories would have posed too many questions for the time, but future stories will be much more explicit about this alien place.

Either way, enjoy Pulp Rock! It was a fun time writing and Alexander did a great job managing this entire project. You're gonna have a blast reading this unique anthology.

Dig in to Pulp Rock today!

Another story of a band member trapped in the weird!