The Von Bliss Dish

Mr. Clean called, and he is pissed.

July 10, 2007 1:23 pm

Steve Brewer – the man behind the wickedly funny Bubba Mabry mysteries, and future Hollywood bigwig – is poised to release his next standalone novel. Cutthroat is the tale of Solomon Gage, an imposing hitman who bears a striking resemblance to everyone’s favorite corporate soap spokesman.

We’re very happy with how the cover has turned out, and so is Steve.

Have a look at the dustjacket, in all its full-spread glory:

Cutthroat Dustjacket

Dadgum Cussin’ Gets Mah Dander Up

June 21, 2007 9:55 pm

Expletive Deleted – the family not-friendly collection of stories deconstructing the mother of all cursewords brought to you by editor Jen Jordan and the great minds at Bleak House Books – is officially off to the printers in ARC form, and we’re happy to give you, dear reader (sorry, googling ‘Paris Hilton, penis’ has never yielded more confusing results) a glimpse at our unbridled awesomeness.

So go ahead, click it.

Or are ya yella?

Y’aint yella, are ya?

Expletive Deleted ARC covers

Oh, and the book? It’s awesome. Killer stories abound, but anything featuring the work of Nathan Singer should be required reading for crusty, jaded folk with a penchant for speed metal and zombie flicks. Yes mid-America, I’m lookin’ at you. Most of the stories in here make me titillated, nervous, and/or nauseous, and that’s saying something, friend.
< /shill >

Maiden Rawks

June 13, 2007 5:09 pm

We put together three prototypes for the cover of Mary Logue’s newest entry in the Claire Watkins Mysteries – Maiden Rock. It’s the story of a gang of meth-addled biker grannies who overrun a small town in rural Wisconsin, and then learn a very special lesson. No wait… That’s was a nightmare I had last night…

Maiden Rock sees a small town dealing with the gruesome death of a teenage girl. There’s meth in there too, though.

We think they’re the prettiest damn covers this side of the Rio Grande, and you, dear reader(s) are the very first to get a gander:

Maiden Rock - Cover Concept #1 Maiden Rock - Cover Concept #2 Maiden Rock - Cover Concept #3

Urine, surprisingly, can be a blessing

June 5, 2007 12:46 pm

I’m not sure what’s with all the scatological stuff lately, but here’s a good Kurt Vonnegut story from Randall Peffer, author of Provincetown Follies, Bangkok Blues:

In other words, BEA took place last weekend, and was apparently a rowdy, rootin’ good time.

I spent a very rainy weekend watching The Godfather trilogy and cookin’ up my homemade neopolitan sauce with veggie meatballs.

There was also red wine, I’m fairly certain.

Next up for Von Bliss – the Maiden Rock ARC – the text of which we expect to receive today.

On Book Signings, Paris Hilton and Giant Phalli

May 24, 2007 2:45 pm

Bill Bryan kicked off a whirling dervish of a book signing for KEEP IT REAL at Book Soup with the aid of a giant penis. (mildly NSFW photos)

Lawyers are dicks. Nyuk, nyuk.

Can someone get me some viagra? My back is killing me. (Ha HA!)

The dick walked in, presented Bill with a summons on behalf of Donald Trump, and then probably danced a happy little jig.

And they said our original cover drafts were too provocative:

Keep It Real - Original Cover Concepts

Oh, and I guess some young socialite by the name of Paris Hilton showed up.

I’m not familiar with who she is or what she does, but it’s clear that she’s devoutly religious, and not at all into giant penises spouting legalese.

See the tender video of Bill Bryan adjusting the jockeys of a man in a huge penis costume, while this Paris character enjoys the benefits of celebrity.

Launched and Loaded

May 23, 2007 12:08 am

VonBliss.com is now officially up and runnin’, and therefore we’ll waste no more precious blog space with pithy updates regarding its progress.

You should (and by you, I mean the four random people who accidentally stumble upon this page through some Howard The Duck-ian wormhole) definitely go check it out, as it is truly writ large in the HTMLs.

In other news, the Runoff ARC is approved and en route to the good folk at Bookmobile.

Behold, this heady amalgam of Chinatown intrigue and election fraud!

Runoff ARC

Tweak’d

May 21, 2007 3:06 pm

Puttin’ the finishing touches on good ole vonbliss.com, and on the ARC for the fourth book in Mark Coggins’s August Riordan series, Runoff.

Also, I’m nearly finished reading Günter Grass’s The Flounder.

I suddenly have the urge to cook up a variety of peppery dishes, most notably hasenpfeffer.

If anyone has a good recipe for lamb’s lung, well, I’d be very surprised.

- k

Where’dya go VB?

May 20, 2007 11:36 am

The intricate system of tubes of which our internets is composed was attacked, most cold-bloodedly and without warning, by a rogue streak of lightning.

Luckily, no one was harmed in the attack.

Actually, I guess the tower that was struck by lightning probably felt a little sting, but our compassion only extends to the world of the animate.

Regardless, we’re back online and ready to go, and we’re still on target for launch between the 21st and 28th.

- k

Whistle whilst you grind away…

May 14, 2007 11:06 am

Os Mutantes – probably the best music by which to design?

Who is Von Bliss?

May 13, 2007 9:28 pm

VON BLISS DESIGN is a graphic design studio founded in 2005 by native Ohioan/bibliophile Kevin Glidden, with a focus on print design for independent publishing houses.

Currently, our main office is located in Managua, Nicaragua, where the sun shines bright and marimba-accompanied protest rock rings out through the streets.