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7th Son: J.C. Hutchins' Podcast Novel Trilogy

The official webspace of J.C. Hutchins, author and podcaster.

2009: The Year Of The FanJanuary 2

It’s a new year, and in this little corner of the world, it’s the most important year of my life. On June 9th, my supernatural thriller, Personal Effects: Dark Art, debuts in bookstores. In the fall, Descent, the first novel in my 7th Son trilogy, will be released. My lifelong dream of being a published novelist will come true. That’s truly spiffy.

I’ve had a long time to think about 2009 — after all, the publishing contracts for both books were signed in 2007 — and how I could celebrate these novel releases. A sliver of myself wanted to reboot my worldview and pretend to be a STAR, a success story, a rock-n-roller ready to kick the world in the balls. Fear me, world. Buy me. Read me. Shamelessly adore me.

What balderdash. I can’t be someone I’m not … and I certainly can’t be what I’ve yet to achieve. And as someone who finds it gravely unwise to forget his roots, I can’t ignore the real reasons why I’ve been given the honor and opportunity to realize this lifelong dream.

2009 can’t about me. 2009 must be abo

The Invitation: A Silver Case updateDecember 30 2008

For those following my Silver Case adventures, here’s an update that’ll tickle you. As many of you know, I’ve been warned by a mysterious fellow named “Case Man,” aka Richard Findes, about the allegedly nefarious deeds of the Armacham corporation.

Armacham has targeted me to apparently participate in a marketing event for the release of the new video game F.E.A.R. 2, the Case Man said. But the company shouldn’t be trusted, he insisted — Armacham is using the event as a ruse to possibly perform genetic testing on me and other Silver Case recipients.

I’ve remained fairly neutral about Case Man’s accusations; after all, he could be spreading misinformation about Armacham. At the same time, I’ve been skeptical about Armacham’s supposed “targeting” of me; why in the the heck would a major conglomerate reach out to me? There’s nothing special about J.C. Hutchins.

But yesterday, I received this letter from A.T. Harman, an employee at Armacham Technology Corporation. (A scan of the letter is beneath my transcript.) Things are getting … interesting.

I’m g

Review: “Contagious” by Scott SiglerDecember 29 2008

For the past three years, horror/sci-fi thriller novelist Scott Sigler and I have remained at DEFCON 1, publicly nuking each other with insults, doing everything we can to ruin the other’s credibility. He blames me for everything wrong in his life; I proudly retort that I’m the sole Junkie (the nickname for Sigler’s fans) who won’t bow to his megalomania. The word “hate” is thrown around. A lot.

Are the venom-filled barbs truly heartfelt? I dare not say. But I will say this: After reading an advance reader’s copy of the author’s latest novel Contagious, I can utter, with truth coursing through my capillaries, that I hate Scott Sigler.

I hate him the way a garage band guitarist might hate Jimi Hendrix, or the way a film school student might hate Steven Spielberg. I hate Scott because he’s damned good at what he does, and he makes it look effortless. The dude’s practically at the starting line of his professional novel-writing career, and he’s already a master storyteller. Contagious is a superb tale — mo

On Podango’s apparent demise, and why I stay indieDecember 28 2008

As I write this, unconfirmed reports are circulating that Podango, a podcasting network, will soon turn out its lights, lock its doors and shut down. If true, this is certainly bad news for Lee, Doug, and other members of the company — and it’s particularly grim for entertainers who relied on Podango’s services. These creators will soon scramble to find new online homes for the content they’ve hosted at Podango. This is a painful process.

It’s also a shame. I’m convinced New Media entertainment and distribution via social media is the way to economically and viably build a body of work that can help propel creators toward more mainstream (or at the very least, more profitable) opportunities. It’s also a helluva way to build an audience, make a crapload of awesome friends, and network with like-minded artists and businessfolk.

Now, I’m just one guy doing this podcasting thing — and while I’ve been in the game for about three years, my opinions of podcast networks haven’t changed much since I started. Which is why I’ve never joined one.

Nearly all podcast networks use the collective clout of their shows (and those shows’ audiences) to attract advertisers. Advertisers, in turn, help fund these companies’ operations. Lucky podcasters can benefit by receiving some of that revenue. Based on anecdotal and personal experience, you have to be a pretty lu

Review: “Kronos” by Jeremy RobinsonDecember 27 2008

Let me tell you something about author Jeremy Robinson. He’s dangerously good at what he does.

The man is also a generous and kind-hearted soul — he recently read my manuscript for Personal Effects: Dark Art and called it “creepy as hell,” which is a big win for a little guy like me — but mostly, I think he was put on this planet to scare the hell out of you.

I had the great privilege to read Robinson’s soon-to-be released seabound thriller, Kronos.  The book, which will be released next January by Variance Publishing (and is available for pre-order now, hint-hint), is an adrenaline-pumping descent into the dangerous waters of the Gulf of Maine. Here, Jeremy spins a blood-soaked story that’s packed with more wily hand-to-hand combat, testosterone and gunplay than a Bruckheimer flick. Oh, and there’s a sea monster, too.

Yep, an honest-to-goodness sea monster.

This is the kind of sea-dweller that makes Jaws look like a tadpole. The kind that might even make Meg turn her carcharodon megalodon tail and head for safer waters. Robinson’s creature effing rocks.

The story: Former Navy SEAL Atticus Young and his teenage daughter Giona have been in an emotional rough patch since Atticus’ wife died two years ago. He’s been drifting; she’s been rebelling. A new chapter awaits them across the country; they’ll soon leave Maine. Father and daughter decide to take one last scuba diving trip in the Gulf … and that’s where things go horribly wrong.

Giona is swallowed whole by an unspeakably large, ancient and dangerous animal; the beast is the size of a jumbo jet. And as Atticus is consumed by revenge — and quickly recruited by morally bankrupt billionaire Trevor Manfred to hunt the monster at sea — he learns that the creature may be more intelligent than he’d ever imagined.

What is the beast Kronos? What does it want? And where did it come from?

The pursuit for those answers leads Atticus and his allies (and more than a few enemies) on a high-stakes adventure filled with betrayal, more than a few “gasp” plot twist moments, and an intriguing origin for Kronos that hints that it might not have been born … it may have been made.

It’s killer fiction, and well worth a read — especially if you dig tales in the vein of Jaws, and Meg – and it’s a helluva follow-up to Robinson’s thriller Antarktos Rising, which I also highly recommend. Book trailer is below.

What is Kronos? On Jan. 20, 2009, discover its secret …

–J.C.