Behind the scenes video launched for Dark Axis comic

A BEHIND the scenes video for Greg Mclean’s Dark Axis comic series has been released.

The video, which can be viewed on You Tube, includes discussions by Mclean and artist Xavier Irvine on the Dark Axis project, creatures and features a sneak peek at artwork from upcoming issues.

The comic series Dark Axis – Secret Battles of WW2 is a four part comic book series that follows a US military team which stumble across an abandoned Nazi scientific facility full of blood thirsty creatures.

Issue 1 is available now.

Aurealis Awards closing soon

AUTHORS and publishers have until December 31 to enter the 2011 Aurealis Awards.

The awards are Australia's premier awards for speculative fiction and open to works written by an Australian citizen or permanent resident and published for the first time this calendar year.

Categories include best fantasy, horror, and science fiction novel and short story as well young adult and children’s speculative fiction and illustrated works.

To enter go to the awards' website and fill in the online form.

Copies of entered works must be received by the judges by December 31.

Finalists will be announced in late March, 2012 and winners announced at an awards evening in Sydney in May.

AHWA board announced

THE Australian Horror Writers Association’s 2011/2012 committee has been voted in at its AGM at the weekend and is as follows:

President: Geoff Brown

Vice President: Daniel I. Russell

Secretary: Mark Smith-Briggs

Treasurer: Carl Schaller

Membership Officer: Amanda Spedding

Ordinary Members: Andrew J. McKiernan, Scott Tyson, James Doig.

Brown replaces Leigh Blackmore who has stepped down from the role of president, while Russell has stepped into the vice president’s position vacated by Brown.

Fantastic Asia Film Festival hits Melbourne

VIEW the latest horror, science-fiction, thriller and fantasy films from Japan, South Korea, China, Hong Kong and the Philippines at the inaugural Fantastic Asia Film Festival in Melbourne this week.

Run by Melbourne film distributors Monster Pictures and Cinema Nova the festival features 20 of the most bizarre and extreme offerings from the region’s filmmakers.

It runs from November 10 to 13 at Cinema Nova,

380 Lygon St, Carlton

.

Opening night includes a screening of Yoshihiro Nishimura’s Helldriver, which will include an introduction of the film and question and answer session by the director.

Nishimura’s previous films include such fare as Tokyo Gore Police, while he worked as a special effects artist on The Machine Girl.

Attendees can also attend the opening night after party with the Nishimura at Luwow Bar in Fitzroy.

Tickets are $27.

Online tour planned for Noctuary release

QUEENSLAND author Greg Chapman has announced an online book tour to promote the release of his forthcoming novella The Noctuary.

The Noctuary blog tour will run from December 5 to 16 and involves author appearances and chats with fans on selected blogs.

A limited number of ebooks for review are available here for bloggers who want to host Chapman on his tour.

It is sponsored by Pump Up Your Book.

The book is due to be released in December through Damnation Books.

Chapman’s debut novella Torment was released through the publisher in March.

Conyers releases cosmic horror novella

DAVID Conyers new novella The Eye of Infinity is out now through Perilous Press.

The novella is a cosmic horror which tells the story of an army major who investigates the suicide of an astrophysicist who contracted a hideous mutative plague.

It is available from Perilous Press for $US15.50 plus shipping.

Autopsy trilogy announced

LEGUMEMAN Books has picked up Melbourne author Steve Gerlach’s new novella Autopsy.

According to Gerlach’s website, the novella is book one of a planned trilogy and will be released by Christmas.

It will be released as both a paperback and ebook.

Details on the plot and price are still under wraps but are expected to be released via Gerlach’s website in the next few weeks.

Also on release is The Tumours Made Me Interesting by fellow Melbourne scribe Matthew Revert.

The book follows his 2009 collection A Million Versions of Right and is available in paperback and ebook formats for $19.95 including postage.

Aurealis #46 released

AUREALIS #46 has been released through smashwords and features new fiction by Greg Mellor and Andrew J. McKiernan.

The issue is available free as an ebook download and is the publication’s second release since it transformed from a print publication into a monthly online format.

The issue also contains an interview with Felicity Pullman as well as news and reviews.

The magazine is published by Chimaera Publications.

Surviving the End available for pre-order

DARK Prints Press is taking pre-orders for its debut anthology Surviving the End.

The anthology features stories told by a small band of survivors in a post apocalyptic world.

Authors include Jason Nahrung, Martin Livings, Amanda J. Spedding, Joseph D’Lacey and Michael Bailey.

It has been edited by Craig Bezant.

The anthology is available for $19.95 plus postage and will be released in April, 2012.