Kevin Hearne: A Niche that Needed Filling

And now, a guest post from certified cool dude, Kevin Hearne:

Okay: Whew. Here in September, things are looking a bit more hopeful. But back in January, I was worried about ruining my shorts because it seemed we were all trapped on a fascist roller coaster and were about to top out and begin our rapid descent into terror. Rights were (and are) being stripped away by right-wing state legislatures and courts, and I found myself looking to escape into stories where fascists were defeated. And I discovered something curious: There were (and are) plenty of anti-authoritarian stories, but not as many explicitly antifascist ones. Why? Maybe because fascists are huge dicks. They attack and keep on attacking because of that thing I just mentioned where they’re huge dicks. (Sorry, should have warned you the circular argument would swing around and hit hard.) History teaches us that appeasement doesn’t work. Neither does negotiation, because you can’t negotiate with folks whose starting position is that large swathes of humanity don’t deserve human rights. Exactly two things work: 1) you make fun of them or 2) all that stuff the Allies did in Europe in WWII.

Thankfully, the Harris/Walz campaign is doing a great job of option 1. And no one wants option 2. But as a stress relief valve—to get me through the election—I wanted to read fiction where fascists got the heckin’ heck kicked out of them. To make sure that happened, I started a little imprint called Horned Lark Press, then reached out to an author who wrote the last explicitly antifascist fiction I read: Lilith Saintcrow. Her novel Afterwar scratched that itch years ago when I read it, and I asked if she would like to write some fascist-stomping sci-fi pulp fiction.

Friends, she did.

And when, months later, I finally got to revel in its profane, violent bloodbath—a story about a border runner who darts into fascist territory in a fractured North America to save someone and incidentally get a bit of revenge—I knew I’d need some pulptastic cover art. I found Phineas X. Jones, who was a delight to work with, and he crafted character sketches to make sure Lilith was happy before crafting the final composition.

So here is the cover for COYOTE RUN—but let me preface it by saying the quoted blurb at the top is entirely fake, and the final cover will have a real blurb from someone whose name isn’t Pisstaker. It’s there because we have to make fun of fascists. So please enjoy this Limited Edition Couchfucker Cover.   

You may notice the badge at the top left that says Amazing Tales of Antifascist Action! Vol. 1. That’s because I dearly hope we get to have many more volumes written by various authors—either fantasy or science fiction—with the same pulpy vibe. And, of course, I’d like to read more adventures featuring Coyote and Marge—those are the women on the cover kicking ass. Here’s the official summary:

---

In the first Amazing Tale of Antifascist Action, New York Times bestselling author Lilith Saintcrow serves up science fiction pulp in a North America fractured by drones, bioweapons, and ideology, giving us a heroine practically made out of violent resistance.

THE RUNNER

Just behind the front lines of a war they call “civil,” the shifter called Coyote is tough, fast, ugly—and known for taking jobs nobody else will.

THE JOB

Marge’s sister is locked in a prison camp civilians shouldn’t know about, deep in enemy territory. Rescuing her will take a plan made of weapons-grade insanity.

THE TRICK

To get in, all Coyote has to do is get caught.

THE PAYOFF

None, unless the satisfaction of killing an old enemy counts. And maybe a few small bounties from murdering fascist clones…

RUN, COYOTE. RUN.

---

Eh? Come on! It’s a deeply satisfying and bloody tale. You want it. You need it. You’ll feel better. And real people, not A.I. techbros, will get paid, because Horned Lark Press will never, ever use A.I. for anything. (Aside from its baked-in plagiarism and the immense environmental damage it’s causing, the people behind A.I. are absolutely backing the fascists in this upcoming election.)

When you preorder COYOTE RUN directly from Horned Lark Press, you’ll get three bucks off the cover price, a bookmark from us, a couple of antifascist stickers, and a postcard featuring the Couchfucker Cover suitable for your office, refrigerator, or mailing to the uncle you argue with at Thanksgiving. It’s a smokin’ hot deal. Preorders from other vendors (and in other formats like ebook and audio) will be coming soon.

Buying direct from Horned Lark will help a small press grow and acquire more stories, of course. While we’re starting out with antifascist action, we plan to publish all kinds of spiffy stuff—just not military sci-fi or copaganda.

If you happen to be a published author who’d like to take a look at an advance copy of COYOTE RUN for possible blurbage—we need to replace that couchfucker quote, after all—hit me up using info@hornedlarkpress.com. Likewise, if you’re an established author who might be interested in writing a novella for the Amazing Tales of Antifascist Action! series (or anything else), please holler.

We’ll be opening up to general submissions in the spring.

Thanks so much for reading, y’all. And for voting.