Dreidel of Dread: The Very Cthulhu Hanukkah

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A hilarious and heartwarming Lovecraftian holiday special for kids & adults. A perfect Hanukkah gift for your favorite SF/fantasy fan!

dreidel of dread spread cover

Hanukkah Henry must face off against Cthulhu, prevent an apocalypse from starting during the Festival of Lights, and prove himself to his parents.

DREIDEL OF DREAD is a funny, irreverent, and heartwarming story that melds the celebration of Hanukkah with the Lovecraftian mythos.

There are so many Christmas stories, and so many “nerdy gifts” out there that make for wonderful stocking stuffers. But your options are far more limited when searching for a Hanukkah gift that will appeal to someone who loves science fiction/fantasy/horror books and movies. This 18-page hardcover board book will make for a perfect gift and a fun read all year long!

Also, Cthulhu and ̶C̶h̶a̶n̶u̶k̶a̶h̶ ̶H̶a̶n̶u̶k̶a̶ Hanukkah are a perfect mash-up since no one is exactly sure how to spell either one of those things!

Spread page from the book featuring an Oldsmobile driven by a pack of shoggoths

Fun for all ages!

Dreidel of Dread features illustrations that are cute rather than scary, with a story that will amuse kids and entertain adult readers.

Sleepy Cthulhu

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Bios for author and illustrator

Announcing the Dreidel of Dread Board Book!

DREIDEL OF DREAD is a funny, irreverent, and heartwarming story that melds the celebration of Hanukkah with the Lovecraftian mythos. Read or listen to the complete short story here. There are so many Christmas stories, and so many “nerdy gifts” out there that make for wonderful stocking stuffers. But your options are far more limited when searching for a Hanukkah gift that will appeal to someone who loves science fiction/fantasy/horror books and movies. This board book will make for a perfect gift and a fun read all year long! Also, Cthulhu and  ̶C̶h̶a̶n̶u̶k̶a̶h̶ ̶H̶a̶n̶u̶k̶a̶ Hanukkah are a perfect mash-up since no one is exactly sure how to spell either one of those things!
Written by Alex Shvartsman and illustrated by Tomeu Riera, this hardcover board book will feature 11 spreads (22 pages including cover and backcover) and will be released on November 26, 2024. A Kickstarter campaign will launch in mid- to late July. To preview a lot more wonderful artwork, snag exclusive extras, and get your copy early please click the link below and sign up to be notified of the launch. Click here to be notified of the launch.

Eridani’s Crown

Our next forthcoming title is Eridani’s Crown by Alex Shvartsman, forthcoming October 22, 2019. Preorders for this title will open in August.

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CURSED BY PROPHECY. CORRUPTED BY POWER.

When Eridani’s parents are murdered and their kingdom is seized by a traitorous duke, she plans to run. After she suffers yet another unendurable loss, the lure of revenge pulls her back.

Eridani’s brilliance as a strategist offers her a path to vengeance and the throne, but success may mean becoming everything she hates. To survive, she must sway religious zealots, outwit ambitious politicians, and confront bloodthirsty warlords, all with few allies and fewer resources. Yet the most menacing obstacle she must overcome is the prophecy uttered by a powerful sorceress:

Everyone you know and trust will come to betray you.

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Paperback: $15.99
E-book: $6.99

Fire Sale on UFO Paperbacks

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There’s a major blizzard crawling along the East Coast this weekend, and what better way to fight snow and ice than with fire?

Until end of day Sunday, Jan 24, UFO Publishing is offering 25% off all paperbacks (including the brand-new Funny Science Fiction which will begin shipping as of January 29!)

Click here to browse the selection of books. Enter the discount code FIRE at checkout to activate the 25% off discount. Shipping is always free on all orders within the United States.

Funny Science Fiction

FunnySciFi_coverClick here to buy on Amazon

Funny Science Fiction is a spin-off anthology from the Unidentified Funny Objects (UFO) annual anthology series of humorous SF/F. While UFO attempts to collect some of the best speculative humor being written today, Funny SF gathers seventeen from among the best funny science fiction stories published in the last decade.

Whereas UFO covers both genres, Funny SF collected science fiction stories specifically. There are tentative plans for a Funny Fantasy reprint anthology to follow in 2016.

Cover art is by the talented Flavio Greco Paglia. Cover design is by UFO’s amazing graphics specialist-in-residence and game designer Emerson Matsuuchi.

Funny SF will be published on Amazon on September 1, 2015. It will become available on other e-book platforms in 2016.

Table of Contents:

Foreword by Alex Shvartsman

“Observation Post” by Mike Resnick (Beyond the Sun, Fairwood Press, 2013)

“Flying on My Hatred of My Neighbor’s Dog” by Shaenon Garrity (Drabblecast, 2013)

“Wikihistory” by Desmond Warzel (Abyss & Apex, 2007)

“Distant Gates of Eden Gleam” by Brian Trent (Crossed Genres, 2015)

“Half a Conversation, Overheard While Inside an Enormous Sentient Slug” by Oliver Buckram (F&SF, 2013)

“Hark! Listen to the Animals” by Ken Liu and Lisa Tang Liu (Galaxy’s Edge, 2014)

“Whaliens” by Lavie Tidhar (Analog, 2014)

“See Dangerous Earth-Possibles!” by Tina Connolly (Lightspeed Women Destroy Science Fiction, 2014)

“Kallakak’s Cousins” by Cat Rambo (Asimov’s, 2008)

“Kulturkampf” by Anatoly Belilovsky (Immersion Book of Steampunk, Immersion Press, 2011)

“Let Us Now Praise Awesome Dinosaurs” by Leonard Richardson (Strange Horizons, 2009)

“Miss Darcy’s First Intergalactic Ballet Class” by Dantzel Cherry (Galaxy’s Edge, 2015)

“Pidgin” by Lawrence M. Schoen (Aliens and A.I., Eggplant Literary Productions, 2005)

“Nothing, Ventured” by James Beamon (AE: The Canadian Science Fiction Review, 2013)

“Last Thursday at Supervillain Supply Depot” by Sarah Pinsker (Daily Science Fiction, 2015)

“Chicka-Chicka-Bow-Wow” by Mike Rimar (Cucurbital 2, Paper Golem Press, 2011)

“Troublesolver” by Tim Pratt (Subterranean Press, 2009)

Unidentified Funny Objects Becomes SFWA’s First Anthology Qualifying Market

Copying the Science Fiction Writers of America press release verbatim below. You can also see UFO listed here.

August 3, 2015

For Immediate Release

Unidentified Funny Objects Becomes SFWA’s First Anthology Qualifying Market

The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America is pleased to announce that Unidentified Funny Objects, edited and published by Alex Shvartsman, is the first anthology series to join the SFWA list of Qualifying Professional Markets, which holds markets that have been qualified by the SFWA Membership Committee as meeting the SFWA bylaws and other membership criteria. More information can be found on the Membership Requirement page: http://www.sfwa.org/about/join-us/sfwa-membership-requirements/.

Maintaining the list is one way SFWA tries to make the qualification process easier for its members by pre-vetting markets where it can. Unidentified Funny Objects is an annual anthology of humorous SF currently in its fourth year. Past contributors to the anthologies have included George R.R. Martin, Neil Gaiman, and Esther Friesner.

Shvartsman said, “I’m extraordinarily proud for the Unidentified Funny Objects series to join the ranks of the fine publishers and magazines on the qualifying market list. I view our admission both as a valuable service to those authors we’ve published who are in the early stages of their careers, as well as a personal milestone, akin to the moment I was able to join SFWA as a member myself.”

“I’m pleased to see SFWA starting to work out the nuts and bolts of how independently published authors qualify,” said SFWA President Cat Rambo. “As the publishing industry changes, SFWA needs to shift with it, recognizing the various paths to professional success and helping members with whichever they’ve chosen.”

Unidentified Funny Objects 4 cover and table of contents

 

The fourth annual Unidentified Funny Objects anthology will contain 23 stories totaling approximately 86,000 words. Cover art by Tomasz Maronski. Interior illustrations by Barry Munden.

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“We Can Get Them for You Wholesale” by Neil Gaiman

“The Time-Traveling Ghost Machine of Professor Jaime Peligrosa” by Andrew Kaye

“Please Approve the Dissertation Research of Angtor” by Caroline M. Yoachim

“Match Game” by Esther Friesner

“The Transformation of Prince Humphrey” by Brent C. Smith

“In the End, You Get Clarity” by Laura Pearlman

“Project Disaster” by Tim Pratt

“Hello Hotel” by Piers Anthony

“Bob’s No Kill Monster Shelter” by Ian Creasey

“Board Meeting Minutes” by Oliver Buckram

“Armed for You” by Anaea Lay

“The Unfortunate Problem of Grandma’s Head” by Karen Haber

“My Mother Loves Her Robot More than Me and I Feel Bad” by Eric Kaplan

“The Worm that Turned” by Jody Lynn Nye

“Department of Death Predictions, Final Notice” by Tina Gower

“Champions of Breakfast” by Zach Shephard

“Keeping Ahead” by Mike Resnick

“So You’ve Metamorphosed into a Giant Insect. Now What?” by James Aquilone

“Confessions of an Interplanetary Art Fraud” by Michael J. Martinez

“Texts from My Mother about an Alien Invasion” by Tina Connolly

“Support Your Local Alien” by Gini Koch

“Topics to Avoid on a First Date with Yourself” by Jonathan Ems

“The Monkey Treatment” by George R. R. Martin