Category Archives: Ramblings

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT, Cool stuff, Editing, publishing, Ramblings, SNAFU

SNAFU: LEVEL UP AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT – JUSTIN COATES & PATRICK FREIVALD

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Well, lookee here! It’s a two-for! That’s right, the next in Cohesion Press’ Author Spotlight is a double-whammy with Justin Coates and Patrick Freivald penning us a tale (I’m pretty sure they fought over the pen). Which means this Author Spotlight will be a little longer than all the previous. Still, we are continuing our tour of the States with these two.

So, first up, we’re barging into Justin’s house (he said I could), shoving a mic in his face, and ushering him on stage to do his thang. <flaps hands> Go, go!

The son of a bean farmer and a chupacabra, Justin Coates accidentally joined the U.S. Army in 2008 and spent two years stumbling around Afghanistan. During and since, he’s been writing wild tales of military misadventures in horror and sci-fi, including short stories that have been adapted by Netflix’s Love, Death and Robots and a mysterious Amazon streaming show the NDAs won’t allow him to mention by name (for now). A graduate of the University of Southern California, he works as a trauma therapist and suicide prevention specialist by day (you know what he does at night). He lives in Michigan with his smokeshow wife, two feral sons, and the dumbest orange cat this side of the Sulemain Mountains. He also has a kick ass found-footage horror screenplay, and wants to know whose #@!% he needs to !#%@ to get an agent. 

While Justin sorts out his… let’s go with… sweetner? … (yeah, that works?), Patrick has now taken the stage with an entourage of bees…

Patrick Freivald is a four-time Bram Stoker Award® finalist, the author of ten novels and dozens of short stories for publications such as Weird Tales and Dark Discoveries, a high school teacher (physics, robotics, American Sign Language), and a beekeeper specializing in hot pepper infused honey. He lives in Western New York with his beautiful wife, parrots, dogs, cats, chickens, and several million stinging insects. A member of the Horror Writers Association and the International Thriller Writers, he has a soft spot for slavering monsters of all kinds.

For SNAFU: Level Up, Justin and Patrick dragged over to us the festering corpse of RESPAWN: As a team of misfits battles their way toward the grand prize of a virtual death match, there’s only one question on everyone’s mind: this game is fair, isn’t it?

Right, let’s get on to where you can find these fiends:

Justin is on Facebook (if you dare)

Patrick, you can find on Facebook and Insta.

When it comes to upcoming works, Justin apparently doesn’t have shit coming out (his words, I swear, and yes, I laughed a little… okay, a lot), while Patrick has a spooky tale for tweens coming out real soon – Mitchcraft, Vacation Magic School. Check it out!

Seriously, these two are a menace – what’s not to love?

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT, Cool stuff, Editing, publishing, Ramblings, SNAFU, Writing

SNAFU: LEVEL UP AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT –  CRAIG DILOUIE

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For today’s Author Spotlight from Cohesion Press, we’re stepping out of the great land Down Under, and heading over to the North America (it’s a bitch of a drive…) to knock on Craig DiLouie’s door and invite him to the stage (and by knock, I mean hammer on that door until he lets us in – I need coffee).

While I get my caffeine-fix, I’ll turn over the mic to Craig, and have him wax lyrical about all things him and writing and books and stuff and things. Shh, caffeine hasn’t kicked in yet.

Take it away, Craig! (The talking, not the coffee.)

Craig DiLouie is a USA Today bestselling American-Canadian horror, sci-fi, and military fiction. Notable works include The Summer Fun Massacre, Episode Thirteen, and The Children of Red Peak, all published by Hachette, and Suffer the Children, published by Simon & Schuster.

For SNAFU: Level Up, Craig penned us the high-octane, holy-shit tale THE GREAT INTERDIMENSIONAL KILL RACE: a man and his crazy brother-in-law join forces in a death race across four of the most dangerous dimensions in the multiverse, hoping to win the life-saving grand prize.

You can find Craig on Facebook.

Want to read more of his work (you really should)? In November 2026, The Yule Day Slaughter—the sequel to The Summer Fun Massacre that concludes the duology—releases from Run For It, Hachette’s horror imprint. In June 2027, People with Taste, described as The Bear with cannibalism, also releases from Hachette.

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT, Cool stuff, Editing, publishing, Ramblings, SNAFU, Writing

SNAFU: CONTAGION AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT – RPL JOHNSON

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We’re edging close to halfway with our Author Spotlights, with me wanting to spotlight every two days before print publication (ebook and Audible are already available)… which means I’m gonna have to ramp up the blog frequency – the math just ain’t mathing (if you know me, that will come as no surprise).

So, moving on from my clear lack of numeric aptitude…  We’ve another Aussie stepping onto Cohesion Press’ stage for Author Spotlight #7, and he’s someone you’ve likely read before. Richard has been in a number of SNAFU editions – the man knows how to freak us the fuck out, and his tale for SNAFU: Contagion is no different.

But let him tell you a little about himself while I skulk off and cry into my calculator…

Richard Johnson is an award-winning short story writer and independent novelist. He won the Gold Award at Writers of the Future in 2011 and the Jim Baen Memorial Award in 2012 and has been a finalist in the Aurealis  Awards with one of his many stories for the SNAFU series of military horror anthologies from Cohesion Press.

In addition to his novels and short stories, Richard has also worked closely with Blur Studios in the USA on the Amazon Prime TV show Secret Level, the video game Exodus, and an as yet undisclosed feature for Warner Bros.

He lives in Melbourne, Australia with his wife and two sons.

For SNAFU: Contagion, Richard showed us the fragility of reality with: CONSENSUS BREAK: The hospital wasn’t an asylum, it was a prison for those who—

(See what I did there? 😏)

You can find Richard on his website, Facebook, and Twitter.  

If you want to read more of Richard’s work (you really should!) he has a YA sci-fi novel The View from Infinity Beach (I’ve read it, it’s excellent!), and a short story collection, Skull Candy.

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT, Cool stuff, Editing, publishing, Ramblings, Reading, SNAFU, Uncategorized

SNAFU: CONTAGION AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT – DYLAN DEMASI

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Brrring! Brrring!

Brrring! Brrring!

This is Cohesion Press calling for the next in our SNAFU: Contagion Author Spotlight!

(Stop rolling your eyes. As much as I love onomatopoeia, sometimes it reads ridiculously, but let me have this! There’s method to my madness! I swear.)

Moving on…

Today, we’re up to Author Spotlight #5, and dialling it in with Dylan Demasi! So, rather than me trying to pun my way through the rest of his intro, I’ll hand you over to the man himself…

Dylan Demasi is a US writer and digital marketer based in Los Angeles. A lifelong storyteller, he began his writing career in comics, first as a proofreader, then as a ghostwriter, and eventually as a credited author for Kickstart Entertainment/Kickstart Comics. His professional work includes leading digital marketing campaigns in the entertainment industry for brands such as Fandango, Rotten Tomatoes, HBO, and America’s Funniest Home Videos.

Outside of writing, Dylan is a lifelong horror fan, a frequent visitor and supporter of big cat sanctuaries, and a brief, accidental voice actor in late-night cult favorites like Sharknado 2.

He is currently at work on his debut novel.

Dylan’s most excellent sacrificial offering for SNAFU: Contagion is: THE RED PHONE: The outbreak was a nightmare. The military response was worse.

(The beginning of this post makes sense now, yeah? Doesn’t make it good, just has it make sense… right? Right?)

 You can find Dylan on Facebook and Instagram.

As you noticed at the end of Dylan’s intro, he’s working on his debut novel, and if The Red Phone is anything to go by, then watch that space!

Editing, publishing, Ramblings, Reading, SNAFU

A LITTLE BIT OF SPRUCING AND A TOUCH OF CONTAGION

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<<clears out cobwebs; side-eyes spiders as they pack their bags in a huff (that squeal wasn’t me, I swear…)>>

<<dusts bookshelves, trying not to summon demons (it’s touch and go)>>

<<taps mic, winces at feedback, *sighs*, assesses life choices>>

<<TAKE TWO!! (Shh, that other post was a figment of your imagination…)>>

Well, it’s been a while, folks. Had a crazy-busy year with much happening on the home and work front. Also, how is it almost October already? Someone is most definitely stealing my days (months, they’re stealing my months.)

As someone who is particularly shite at social media, this was one of the easiest things to let slide this past year (gotta say, it did wonders for my stress levels, but that’s a post for another day). That being said, I’ve put on my big-girl pants because SNAFU: Contagion from Cohesion Press is coming out at the end of next month, and I’m immensely proud of the authors and the stories within… not that we’ve trapped the authors inside the pages – I’m pretty sure that’s illegal (and I don’t have the right alchemy).

It’s been quite the ride to get to this point, more so this time around as we had to factor in audio-processing time, and with a slush pile that was filled with plethora of incredible stories, it had the decision-making process one of the most difficult in the SNAFU series to date.

(Oooh, look! Shiny new cover! Like, the right one this time. Shh. It’s been a long day…)

This is reflected in the size of the tome. SNAFU: Contagion is packed with eighteen stories, coming out at over a whopping 400 pages. Yep, you read that right. Over. Four. Hundred. Pages. This baby packs a punch! (And much pew pew pew!)

This is the biggest SNAFU of Cohesion’s flagship series since inception, and we’re extremely chuffed to have a Joe Ledger Adventure Tale from the esteemed Jonathan Maberry, that features the one-and-only Mr Church, and the kick-arse Grace Courtland. Alongside this novella, are amazing stories from authors around the world: Australia, Germany, US, UK, Belgium, India… it truly is global.

In the lead-up to release, we’re going to Author Spotlight our amazing writers so you can get to know them a little better, see what they’re up to on the writerly-front, and have them give you a little somethin’ somethin’ about the SNAFU tale they penned for us. Without our authors, there is no book, and we can’t thank them enough for entrusting their stories to us, and allowing us to present them to you all.

So, starting in October, this blog will get quite the work-out as we introduce you to some new names while getting you reacquainted with a few of our stalwarts.

You can pre-order SNAFU: Contagion here, and if you’re not familiar with the series and want to see what it’s all about, you can go to Cohesion Press’ website, and sign-up for the newsletter (we will not spam you, we understand how that can suck), and you’ll get a free copy of SNAFU: Comms, which is only available on sign-up. No pressure, of course. But… free book!

With that out of the way, all I can say is that with SNAFU: Contagion, you’re in for a hell of a ride. So, lace up your combat boots, prime your weapons, make sure your gas masks are secure and sealed…

…We’re about to breach…

Editing, publishing, Ramblings, SNAFU

SNAFU: PUNK’D AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT: JAMES A MOORE

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And here we are! The last in our SNAFU: PUNK’D author spotlight. Tomorrow is THE. DAY. this edition goes live. We’ve cranked the juice, and will be electrifying this baby to life… not the author, the book. THE. BOOK. I swear.

So, settle in to learn you some stuff for the storyteller rounding out author spotlight for SNAFU: PUNK’D. The very kind sir that is JAMES A MOORE!

James A Moore is a best-selling fantasy and horror author. He has been nominated for the Bram Stoker award four times and won the Shirley Jackson Award with Christopher Golden, for editing The Twisted Book of Shadows anthology. He has written novels for the Aliens franchise, Buffy The Vampire Slayer, and Predator, in addition to writing extensively for the award winning World of Darkness roleplaying games and for Marvel Comics. His original fiction includes the Blood Red series of vampire novels, the Serenity Falls Trilogy with his recurring anti-hero the immortal Jonathan Crowley, the critically acclaimed Seven Forges series of fantasy novels and the grimdark Tides of War trilogy and, with Charles Rutledge, the Griffin & Price series of crime-horror novels, along with multiple standalone novels, including the Lovecraftian Deeper, and weird western Boomtown. He is an active member of the Horror Writers Association, where he was both secretary and vice-president for multiple terms, the International Association of Media Tie- In Writers, the International Thriller Writers Association and Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association. He is the author of over forty novel-length works in horror, fantasy, science fiction, crime and westerns. He writes for adults and young adults.

Jim’s authorly sacrifice for SNAFU: PUNK’D is INFERNAL ENGINES: Who hunts the Hunter?

You can find Jim on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/james.a.moore1/

Jim has just finished work on his latest novel. KORIGAN GRIMN: WARLORD, which is the first in a new series, THE FORGOTTEN. 

Editing, publishing, Ramblings, SNAFU

SNAFU: PUNK’D AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT – KIRSTEN CROSS

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Not long now! That’s right, SNAFU: PUNK’D is just days away from publication, which means we’re closing in on the last of author spotlights. We at Cohesion Press have snagged many a great author here for this edition, and we wanted to give you a gander at abyssal imaginings of our storytellers, a pimp of their tales, and to shoo you over to their other authorly shenanigans.

If you’d just follow us down to the dungeon… er, I mean, the green room… you can find our next author for SNAFU: PUNK’D: KIRSTEN CROSS!

Kirsten (Kes) Cross has reached her fifth decade and hasn’t quite worked out how the hell that even happened yet. She spends her days in a little cottage on Exmoor in Devon with roses around the door (no, really) writing web content to pay the bills while she builds up a bespoke jewellery business.

In between, she writes the occasional scary-as-all-heck stuff and has been a regular contributor to SNAFU from the very first outing. Her story, Sucker of Souls was included in the Emmy award-winning Love, Death & Robots. Again, seriously, no idea how that happened. It was fun being sprinkled by a bit of Hollywood magic for a while, though.

When not writing or making shiny things, she spends the rest of her time travelling around the country on her beloved British Army Armstrong motorcycle, occasionally stopping and pointing at the scenery for no apparent reason.

Kes’ latest offering in SNAFU: PUNK’D is BROKEN SOULS OF THE EMPTY SPACE:  a steampunk extravaganza complete with dirigibles (briefly, they don’t half go bang easily…), cigar-smoking centaurs, and Stonehenge. Sometimes, it’s hard to know who the real monsters are…

You can find Kes on Facebook, over at Instagram if you like shiny things, and on Amazon if you like wordy things.

Keep an eye out for Trading Bullets With The Devil, her first novella created in cahoots with the insanely talented Mark Steensland, coming soon from Cemetery Dance.

Editing, publishing, Ramblings, Reading, SNAFU

SNAFU: PUNK’D AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT – DAMIEN MCKEATING

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SNAFU: PUNK’D is powering toward publication at the end of this month. Yay! Ahem. So, we at Cohesion Press have introductions to make, where we shove (not literally… well, not reeeaaally literally… maybe) into an author spotlight. Take a glimpse into their dark imaginings, pull up a chair for a tease of their tales, and follow the pointy-finger for a look at their other authorly pennings.

Now, before we move on, please sign the form that releases us from any responsibility for where you’re going next. Ta so much!

Right, let’s go!

With a gentle shove into the SNAFU: PUNK’D author spotlight, give a hearty welcome to DAMIEN MCKEATING!

Damien is a UK writer with a life-long love of fantasy and the supernatural. Childhood days were spent reading, writing, playing tabletop roleplaying games, engaging with the popular ball-related sports of the day, and trying to communicate with the dead. He would eventually set aside necromancy and sports, and go onto study film and writing at university. After a stint as a copywriter for radio, he moved into SEN teaching and realised how easy all of his previous employment had been. Over the years he has had short stories published across different magazines and anthologies, for adults and children. He has also written for comics and radio, and the peculiar folk-band Hornswaggle. He’s fond of corvids and is currently the oldest he’s ever been. Sometimes he remembers to blog about writing.  

For SNAFU: PUNK’D, Damien has lit the flares of solarpunk with his tale LIGHTBRINGERS: In a solarpunk apocalypse ravaged by demons, a squad of marines discover the true cost of war and survival.

You can find Damien on his socials below:  

Website: skeletonbutler.wordpress.com

Facebook: Damien Mckeating (Author)

Damien’s debut novel, Tallulah Belle, is a supernatural coming-of-age story set within the walls of a fantasy burlesque theatre, and is due for release in 2024.

Editing, publishing, Ramblings, Reading, SNAFU

SNAFU: PUNK’D AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT: GREG CHAPMAN

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Ooh, the next edition of SNAFU: PUNK’D is so very close to ‘sploding into the world. So, we at Cohesion Press would like to lead you down the horror-filled paths of our storytellers’ dark imaginings with a tease of their tales, a glimpse into their abyssal corners of their grey-matter, and information on their other authorly shenanigans.

Please grab a torch from the table, ensure all your valuables are secured, and for the love of all things unholy, do not pet the authors…

Next up in SNAFU: PUNK’D author spotlight is GREG CHAPMAN!

Two-time international Bram Stoker Award-nominee®*, Greg Chapman is a horror author and artist based in Queensland, Australia.

Greg is the author of several novels, novellas and short stories, including his award-nominated debut novel, Hollow House and collections, Vaudeville and Other Nightmares, and Midnight Masquerade.

He is also a horror artist and his first graphic novel, Witch Hunts: A Graphic History of the Burning Times, (McFarland & Company) written by authors Rocky Wood and Lisa Morton, won the Superior Achievement in a Graphic Novel category at the Bram Stoker Awards® in 2013.

He was also the President of the Australasian Horror Writers Association from 2017-2020.

* Superior Achievement in a First Novel for Hollow House (2016) and

Superior Achievement in Short Fiction, for “The Book of Last Words” (2019)

For SNAFU: PUNK’D, Greg has sprinkled his cyberpunk tale with some biopunk to give us A GLITCH IN THE SYSTEM: When a soldier’s soul is ripped from the Afghan desert into a nightmarish hellscape to entertain a conglomerate, she sets out to tear it all down

You can find Greg on his socials below:  

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GregChapman.Author/

Bluesky: @gregchapman.bsky.social 

Instagram: @gregschapman76

Threads: @gregschapman76@threads.net

Greg’s new collection, Midnight Masquerade is out on October 31 – https://www.amazon.com/Midnight-Masquerade-Greg-Chapman-ebook/dp/B0CDKXQFZ3

Editing, publishing, Ramblings, Reading, SNAFU

SNAFU: PUNK’D AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT: PAMELA JEFFS

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Boom! The next edition of SNAFU: PUNK’D is very close to landing and we’re excited!. To that end, Cohesion Press is laying out the red carpet for our storytellers with an author spotlight where we lead you carefully… or carelessly (it’s a fine line) into their imaginariums (please ignore the creatures in the corners), a tease of their story, and info on their other authorly spawnings.

If you’ll come this way, we’d like to guide you into the lair of our next SNAFU: PUNK’D author: PAMELA JEFFS!

Pamela Jeffs (she/her) is an Australian speculative fiction author with a background in Interior Architecture and Design. She has published five short story collections and has 90+ short stories featured in various publications including Midnight Echo Magazine by the Australian Horror Writers Association and in two SNAFU series books by Cohesion Press. Pamela’s work has shortlisted for multiple awards including nine Aurealis Awards and three Ditmar Awards.

When it comes to SNAFU: PUNK’D, Pamela has stoked the hold with a lil steampunk tale, STOKEHOLD: A young stoker aboard a battleship tries to save his superior officer, but all is not as it seems…

You can find Pamela on her socials below:  

Facebook: @pamelajeffsauthor

Twitter: @Pamela_Jeffs

BlueSky: @pamelajeffs.bsky.social

Website: www.pamelajeffs.com

For more of Pamela’s amazing work, her new book, Precarious Waters and Other Dark Tales, a collection of dark fiction short stories, is due for release early November. (No pre-orders yet)