Well, almost, but you can pre-order it here. Zombie Boy 2: Level Up will be released on September 27th… that’s NEXT Tuesday!

The cover was illustrated by my talented artist/musician friend, Jason Whitt. I think he captured the essence of Zombie Boy perfectly! I can’t wait for you to read it! The synopsis is below, but be warned… if you haven’t finished Zombie Boy: Press Start (book 1), there are SPOILERS ahead!

Synopsis:

Trapped in a video game overrun with zombies, Katie’s life is in jeopardy.

Liam Walker, a now leveled-up zombie hunter, suspects that HoriZon Corp, the virtual reality game developer, is somehow behind it all. Liam must use the experience he gained from the first adventure and return to the video game world that took his best friend. With new foes threatening their plan at every turn, Liam and friends battle mini-bosses, giants, and hordes of zombies across many familiar video game settings in search of Katie.

Can he and his friends escape the zombie apocalypse and get out of the game world alive… once again?

Twice the action, double the adventure!

Don’t forget, you can pre-order your copy today, and it will be automatically delivered to your Kindle or Kindle app on release day!

Val O. Morris

Val O. Morris likes to pretend the monsters aren’t real. She is a filmmaker turned author who writes Urban Fantasy, Horror, and YA. A Monster Kid since birth, she loves all things ghosts, goblins, slashers, demons, monsters, zombies, madmen, werewolves, vampires, and freaky little kids who live in the corn. She invites you to come for the monsters and stay for the story.

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From video game references to the different ways to describe zombie goo, I had a blast writing my third book! Like always, it was a great learning experience. Here are a few things I learned.

1. That setting writing goals is a MUST.
After reading “5000 Words Per Hour“ and “The 8-Minute Writing Habit“, I decided to set a daily writing goal of my own. My initial goal was to meet one of the following every day: either write for 8 minutes OR write 250 words. I basically do my own shorter version of the Pomodoro Technique. Because, honestly, I have no excuse to not write 8 minutes every day. It really is amazing what setting a daily goal did for my productivity. I typically write longer than 8 minutes, and most days I at least double, and sometimes triple, my minimum word count. (And the 1,000 word days are like Heaven!) Using this technique, “Zombie Boy” was written in just shy of two months. Compare that to the seven months for “Monster Girl” and five for its sequel. The takeaway from this is, no matter how small, every little bit adds up. Another good book to read on that very subject is “The Compound Effect“.

2. That I can write first drafts using a keyboard.
When I wrote my first two books, “Monster Girl” 1 and 2, I did so longhand using only pen and paper. For most of my writing life that is how I preferred to write. But I’ll be honest, transcribing from paper to screen is so not fun. It’s such a drab that with “Zombie Boy”, I wanted to learn how to tap into my creative flow using a keyboard the same way I am able to do it with pen/paper. Surprisingly, it was easier than I expected! I even wrote paragraphs using my iPhone but I mostly wrote entire chapters on my iPad since those are two devices that I always have at arm’s length. My MacBook Air was mainly used for editing.

3. That I’m still a total pantser.
For the record, I do outline key events, but it’s usually nothing more than a few sentences. Mainly to get what’s in my head down on paper so that I won’t forget it before I write it. I’ve mentioned before that Stephen King writes using a similar method, but I also recently read another book on the subject that I really liked. Dean Wesley Smith’s “Writing Into the Dark“ is a great read for anyone feeling unsure about your pantsing methods. Not that we need permission to write the way that feels most natural, but it is nice to know we aren’t alone.

4. That there is a fine line between enough and too much.
“Zombie Boy: Press Start” is chock-full of video game references. Some are obvious and others not so obvious. Balancing how many references was tricky. My love of gaming could have lent itself to a reference every other page, but I had to make sure that each one fit the story. I do feel I captured that balancing act, and I promise there will be more fun references in future sequels!

5. Naming characters/places/games/etc. is hard.
You’d think it would be easy, but it’s something I struggle with all the time. Naming stuff can be fun, but when that perfect name eludes me – the one that encapsulates the very essence of that person, place, or thing – it feels like pulling teeth. I have two criteria for naming: 1.) it must sound good, and 2.) it must have meaning, whether apparent to the reader or not. Even coming up with the subtitle for this book was a challenge. The book needed an immediate reference to gaming since it plays a major role in the story, and I think “Press Start” does an excellent job of conveying that. If you’re one of the people I hit up for name ideas, THANK YOU for your ideas and putting up with me!

Thank you for reading!  “Zombie Boy: Press Start” is available at all your favorite online bookstores! I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it!

Available on: Amazon | iBooks | Nook | Kobo

Val O. Morris

Val O. Morris likes to pretend the monsters aren’t real. She is a filmmaker turned author who writes Urban Fantasy, Horror, and YA. A Monster Kid since birth, she loves all things ghosts, goblins, slashers, demons, monsters, zombies, madmen, werewolves, vampires, and freaky little kids who live in the corn. She invites you to come for the monsters and stay for the story.

Get Your FREE Book!

I’ve put an insane number of hours into Fallout 4 since its November 10th release date, and I’ve put an equal number into editing, polishing, and publishing “Zombie Boy” in that same amount of time. To say my brain feels like someone used a Mesmetron on it would be an accurate statement. But, boy, does this feel awesome!

I started “Zombie Boy” in September at the request of my nephew. He loves the “Monster Girl” series and is a HUGE zombie fan, the biggest I know (and I know a few). He asked me, “When are you gonna write the ‘Adventures of Zombie Boy’?” Well, I couldn’t get that title out of my head, not to mention, who’s gonna say ‘no’ to such a request?

On November 11th, I finished the first draft of “Zombie Boy”, just one day after Fallout 4‘s release. What timing! (I wish I could say it was all planned, but it was a total accident. Ok, maybe a little planned.) And now, a month later, I’m happy to share “Zombie Boy” to the world!

Join Liam and his friends on an action packed, zombie-bashing adventure! For a limited time, “Zombie Boy” is on sale for $.99 (ebook). It’s available in Paperback and ebook at Amazon today, but I’m not stopping there. “Zombie Boy” will be available for iBooks and Nook very soon!!

Thank you to everyone who helped make this possible! My editors, Jessica and Susan; cover designer, Craig; to all the advanced readers: Rhonda, Viki, Roger, Tori, Lori, and Lori (that last part sounds like a cool all-girl rock band), and to anyone I may have forgotten (my brain is mush – again, see paragraph one, haha), I couldn’t do this without you!

Thank you!!!

Val O. Morris

Val O. Morris likes to pretend the monsters aren’t real. She is a filmmaker turned author who writes Urban Fantasy, Horror, and YA. A Monster Kid since birth, she loves all things ghosts, goblins, slashers, demons, monsters, zombies, madmen, werewolves, vampires, and freaky little kids who live in the corn. She invites you to come for the monsters and stay for the story.

Get Your FREE Book!

Baseball, video games, and… zombies. What could possibly go wrong?

Liam Walker wants is to be an all-star baseball player, but life has other plans. When his best friend, Katie, lends him a video game, his world literally changes. Transformed from a down on his luck boy next door into a zombie bashing video game character, Liam must learn to deal with bullies, new friends, and loss while attempting to learn the rules of the game and save everyone from a zombie apocalypse.

With time running out, can he navigate his way back to the real world before it’s too late? Or will the appeal of being a zombie slaying hero have him staying in the video game world forever?

“Zombie Boy: Press Start” is my third book and the first in the “Adventures of Zombie Boy” trilogy. It will be available very soon! My nephew is the biggest zombie fan I know and, after reading “Monster Girl”, it was only natural that he encourage me to write, as he called it, ‘The Adventures of Zombie Boy’. How could I say no to that? Combining our mutual love for gaming and his infectious enthusiasm for zombies, the story of “Zombie Boy” was born.

Paperback / Kindle

Val O. Morris

Val O. Morris likes to pretend the monsters aren’t real. She is a filmmaker turned author who writes Urban Fantasy, Horror, and YA. A Monster Kid since birth, she loves all things ghosts, goblins, slashers, demons, monsters, zombies, madmen, werewolves, vampires, and freaky little kids who live in the corn. She invites you to come for the monsters and stay for the story.

Get Your FREE Book!

I suppose they could if they had any muscle control left after decomposition. And speaking of composition, (see what I did there?!), to celebrate the release of  “Zombie Boy: Press Start”, today I begin my second iPhone daily photo challenge of 2015!

Since “Zombie Boy iPhone Daily Photo Challenge” is a mouthful, let’s just call it the “Zombie Boy Photo Challenge”, m’kay? I’ll tag my photos like this: #ZombieBoy #PhotoChallenge.

The first challenge I did was this past April, and it was a lot of fun. Like April’s spring colors and excitement, December should also bring many opportunities to capture unique moments, especially with Christmas just around the corner!

Because nothing goes together better than Christmas and zombies, amirite?

To kick things off, I give you this photo…

“Say Cheese!” – Day one of the #ZombieBoy #PhotoChallenge. Yes, that’s a feral from Fallout.

Don’t forget to follow along on Facebook or Instagram @valmakesmovies for daily photo updates! You can also check out more of my photography – both iPhone and DSLR – at Flickr.

Val O. Morris

Val O. Morris likes to pretend the monsters aren’t real. She is a filmmaker turned author who writes Urban Fantasy, Horror, and YA. A Monster Kid since birth, she loves all things ghosts, goblins, slashers, demons, monsters, zombies, madmen, werewolves, vampires, and freaky little kids who live in the corn. She invites you to come for the monsters and stay for the story.

Get Your FREE Book!