SQUAD THIRTEEN – THE BOOK LAUNCH

I’m announcing a book launch for SQUAD THIRTEEN, a scary slasher horror novel, for Sunday, November 2, from 2 to 4 pm at the Artspace building, 100 Arthur Street, Winnipeg.
This is a kick ass horror/dark comedy featuring slashers recruited into the army and asks the bold question: “What would happen if Francis Ford Cuppola’s Apocalypse Now met Hungry Hungry Hippos from Mattel.”
I won’t tell you, but a Ferris Wheel is involved.
Recently got a kick ass review in Amazing Stories Online, here’s a quote:
“I’d like to tell (warn?) you that this book is a slasher-splatterpunk-bloody horror book that makes Skipp & Spector look like wussies, and leaves Clive Barker and Steve King in the dust. I loved it! So if you’re not too scared read on!”
In the meantime, here is the draft Agenda, we’ll have a refreshments, a short stage play, a video, some really interesting talks, a question and answer session, and we’ll be bringing copies of Squad Thirteen and my other books.
***
2pm – call to order, MWG introduces DGV

2:10pm – DGV opening statement – The secret history of Slasher movies

2: 15pm – DGV introduces video, Video (5 min). (the video covers the Slashers, so DGV can talk more about other characters)

2:20pm – 2:36 pm DGV discusses book, where it came from, how it got written.

2:35pm – DGV introduces play, Play (10 min)

2:50pm – DGV introduces cast, presents signed copies of books.

2:55pm – DGV wraps up book talk.

3pm – Q & A with DGV

3:15pm – Book signing, mingling.

…and here’s another quote from Amazing Stories online.
“Den has managed a tour-de-force in this genre, and I think it’s a good thing; along the way he’s examined the kinds of brutality humans are capable of, and given a lot of thought to whether there is much good in the world, and what our reactions should be to various evils. In a weird way, it’s a philosophical book, and the gore and inhumanity recede into the background of what the protagonists are feeling throughout the story. But for fans of horror and slasher-type films, you won’t be able to find a book or film to top this one!”
I just might have these quotes tattooed on my body, I love them so much.
And here’s a link, which proves I’m not delusional:
I’ve had my shots and I’m no longer contagious, which means if I bite anyone, they’ll be fine, as long as they get prompt medical attention and/or amputation. It’s all perfectly safe, the Thunder Bay outbreak is officially under control, or will be any day now.
Anyway, if you’re in or near Winnipeg, or have friends or family, or enemies in Winnipeg, consider sending them to my book launch..

When Words Collide – Conference Schedule

Well, I’m attending When Words Collide, a literary festival held in Calgary,  Alberta.  And I’ve volunteered to contribute to programming so I’ve got five sessions up.

Friday, August 15 through Sunday, August 17
Volunteering in the Merchant Room
D.G. Valdron books available
* Squad Thirteen
* Starlost Unauthorized
* Drunk Slutty Elf and Zombies.

 

Friday, August 15
1:00 pm to 1:30, Merchant Room
D.G. Valdron and Arlene Marks
Autograph Session

Friday, August 15
2:00 PM Sheraton West Room
D.G. Valdron – Solo Presentation
A Crash Course in Copyright
Just what it says. I’m a lawyer, I kind of deal with this stuff. A run through on all the basic concepts that a writer needs.

Saturday, August 16
4:00 PM – Barlow Room
MODERATOR – Den Valdron. Panelists -Panelists: Marie Powell, Anna Shannon, David Worsick
Accuracy in History, Science, and General Knowledge
When and when not to have it. How far can you ignore it or exalt it in a story before you either bore readers (too much accuracy) or anger readers (too little accuracy).

Sunday, August 17
9:00 AM – Barlow Room
Moderator: Heather Wilkey
Panelists: Denis Valdron, David Worsick, R. Overwater
Alternate History
Explorations of other paths, what to read, what to write, what to research and what to watch out for.

Sunday, August 17
2:00 PM – Sheraton West Room
D.G. Valdron Solo Presentation
A Crash Course in Contracts for Writers
Just what it says – I’m a lawyer, Contracts are my life. I explain the basics and run through the Important Issues.

https://www.whenwordscollide.org/

https://www.whenwordscollide.org/2025-lineup.html

https://whenwordscollide2025.sched.com/grid

SQUAD THIRTEEN – It’s official

IN THE LAST DECADES OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY, all over America, unstoppable masked killers began to emerge.  Called slashers, and using everything from machetes to chain saws, these figures would appear out of nowhere, slaughter a group of people, and then vanish, leaving traumatized survivors, only to reappear again, months or years later.

LAW ENFORCEMENT WAS HELPLESS against Killers who would not die, who appeared and disappeared out of nowhere, who would not be stopped.  Eventually, the Army was sent in.  They couldn’t stop the slashers.”

SO THEY RECRUITED THEM.

IT WAS PROBABLY A REALLY BAD IDEA. 

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SQUAD THIRTEEN – COMING SOON!

LAUNCHING AUGUST 2025 – AVAILABLE AS A PRE-ORDER EXLCUSIVE EBOOK ON AMAZON

SQUAD THIRTEEN: Worse than Death eBook : Valdron, D.G.: Amazon.ca: Books

ALSO AVAILABLE AS A PAPERBACK, AUGUST 2025,

AMAZON, BARNES & NOBLE, KOBO, APPLE AND MANY OTHER PLATFORMS

ORDER YOUR ADVANCE COPY NOW

***

IN THE MEANTIME – HERE’S A TEASER!  SQUAD THIRTEEN PROLOGUE

SQUAD THIRTEEN, Prologue With a Vampire

CAN’T GET ENOUGH?

Squad Thirteen- The Desert, Chapter One

***

WARNING

POTENTIAL TRIGGER ALERTS

Potential Triggers: Horror, Existential Horror, Absence or negation of God/good, Evil as a default state, slashers, zombies, vampires, religious and ethical crisis, destruction of small town virtue, monsters, wendigo, cannibal god hippopotamus, regular hippopotami, cannibalism, suicide, mass murder, spree murder, serial killers, really graphic murder, Ferris wheel atrocity, rain forests, alien invasion, cocaine-based fuel air explosion, firestorm (Dresden style), magic, sorcery, erosion of the self, ghosts, philosophical horror, b-movie horror, slashers, harsh language, the price is right, runaway forest fire obliterates town, factory farm practices, factory farm of humans, failure to rescue a baby in danger, animal cruelty, allusions to Halloween, Friday the Thirteenth, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Dead-Alive, Black Christmas, African Queen, Apocalypse Now, Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, Phantasm, Mattel’s Hungry Hungry Hippos, 1970s existential horror, B-movies, one sexually explicit scene, depictions of depression, moral compromise, existential powerlessness, futility, hopelessness, pain, suffering, cancer, self-mutilation, mental illness, fascism, Donald Trump, roccocco, Norman Rockwell, chainsaw biological navigation, some minor nudity and references to consensual sex. Free will, determinism. Religion. Ancient religions. Human sacrifice. [Please note – this list is not exhaustive]

 

PAGE  178 is probably safe to read.

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE: A PASSIONATE PERSPECTIVE

There are actually quite a lot of troubling issues around AI which really don’t seem to be discussed, or get discussed in the shallowest way.

The thing that everyone, and I mean everyone overlooks, is that AI is not a public resource. It is private property. It’s owned. And the owners are pouring money into it, with the intention of getting a profit out of it.

In pursuit of their profit, they are literally stealing everyone’s information. The works of artists, the works of writers of books and novels. We’ve seen language inserted everywhere to try and allow AI to take your zoom conversations, your phone calls, your social media posts, all taken without permission or compensation, for the ultimate purpose of the owners of AI and their investors to make a lot of money.

It was recently revealed that one of these AI companies early on considered paying for peoples work, they decided it was too expensive, and they’d just steal it instead. Wow. Well, that’s a completely ethical stance. Decide to steal, and then argue a self serving justification, and throw a bunch of lawyers at it, maybe buy a few judges.

I have to say, I find that viscerally offensive. Let me explain where I’m coming from.

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WRITER’S YEAR, 2024 WRAP UP

Well, here’s my writer’s year in review. What have we got? Another year of nothing much, unfortunately. Another year of spinning the wheels. Six books in all, though I didn’t write one of them, and only partial for another. I’ve been doing this the last few year, trying to keep track of what I’ve been up to and how far along I’ve gotten.  I went back and reviewed the last few roundups. It’s rather distressing – basically, plugging away hard, the same projects slowly advancing or not advancing year by year. Word counts piling up, but an uncertain sense of accomplishment.  Anyway, let’s jump in.

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CONVENTIONS UPDATE

CONVENTION SCHEDULE
Well, even though I’m not able to attend the World Fantasy Convention in Niagara Falls, October 17 – 20, 2024, in person, I will be participating as an online member.
I’m confirmed for two panels:
STOLEN VALOR
World Fantasy Convention – Friday, October 18, 2024 – 10:00 a.m.
* Fiction is about creating believable and/or identifiable characters. But can an author write the “other” successfully without offending those they hope to portray? How has cultural appropriation impacted the genres? Do sensitivity readers help ensure real representation? How do we make sure that actual disenfranchised people get to the table?
Panelists
Maurice Broaddus
P Djeli Clark
Pat Murphy
Vanessa Phin
D.G. Valdron
CROSSING BOUNDARIES: BLENDED GENRES
Saturday, October 19, 2024 – 12:00 p.m.
* Blended genres such as romantasy have extended the boundaries of fantasy and horror. What boundaries are being crossed in today’s genre fiction? What new boundaries loom on the horizon?
Panelists
Casella Brookins, Moderator
Heather Graham, Guest of Honour
A. T. Greenblat
Mica Scotti Kole
D.G. Valdron
Assuming my eyes hold up and travel is permitted, I hope to be attending Can-Con Literary Festival in Ottawa, November 1-3, 2024.
I’m scheduled for one panel there:
TWISTING THE TROPES – OVERDONE?
Sunday, November 3, 2024 at 2:30
For a long time, one frequent piece of writing advice has been to take a common trope and turn it upside down: the chosen one is weak and useless, and their followers are the heroes; the surprise villain; the monster is just misunderstood. Is reversing or twisting a trope still solid advice, or is it rarer now to see a trope played straight? How are writers still using this strategy and standing out? How do we ensure there is still space to play, without excluding authors who haven’t had a chance to do so yet?
Panelists:
Claudie Arsenault
Aysha U Farah
Kari Maaren
D.G. Valdron.
In addition, I’ll be participating in a book launch at McNally Robinson:
TWILIGHT OF ECHELON BOOK LAUNCH
McNally Robinson, Winnipeg,
November 26, 2024, at 7:00 pm
At Bay Press hosts the Launch of the collaborative work based around the Twilight of Echelon painting series by famed artist Robert Pasternak, with collaborating writers Den Valdron, Loverne Kindzierski, Alex Passey and Blaize Moritz.
That should keep me busy. I did drop the ball a little bit, the Winnipeg Comic Con, October 25 to 27 was apparently looking for people to do panels. Sadly, I was distracted by vision problems in September, and a full work schedule, so I let that go by.
Still, I’ve already done 24 panels and workshops so far. This will bring me up to 28. And I have or will have attended six conventions and about eight other professional events. So I think I’m working it pretty hard.

Season 14 Review – Doctor Who Stumbles Along

Well, the verdict is in, at least for this season.

So what have we got?

Disappointment I’m afraid.

So far the Gatwa era consists of an extended cameo in David Tenant’s “The Giggle,” the Christmas Special, “Church on Ruby Road,” and an eight episode season starting with Space Babies and Ending with Empire of Death.

Overall impressions? Deeply uneven. Mostly unsatisfying. Three brilliant episodes, two unfocused sub-par efforts that we’ll generously call mediocre, and an opening and closing set of dumpster fires.

The larger problems?  Gatwa’s overacting masks an underlying lack of commitment or emotional depth. RTD has become a shallow parody of himself. And critically, the show is deeply stagnant and failing to evolve or change.  We’re getting the same old same old, as we got fifteen years ago, just tired and worn out.

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