When someone insinuates (or outright tells you) that writing isn't a legitimate career or way of life...

...ask them if they like to read the newspaper. Ask them what their favorite song is, their favorite TV show, the last movie they watched, the last book or magazine they read. The last website they browsed. The last instructional manual they used to put something together.

 Then calmly remind them that someone wrote every friggin' bit of that.

Milk for Dead Hamsters [Preview]

For a limited run in October, Killbasa will take over Milk for Dead Hamsters. All comics will star Poland's First (and most delicious) Avenger.

Here is a sausagey taste of what's to come...

For those of you who aren't familiar with Killbasa, he is a six-foot talking kielbasa with strands of sauerkraut for hair. That's about it.

Working on books has taken up most of my free time. I haven't posted a comic in 6 months. I felt that I've been long overdue so I'm going to overcompensate with a flurry of strips. Hope you enjoy it!

New Seefer Elliot title available now!

I'm happy to announce that the release of The Seefer Elliot Continuum: Divergence, is now available for your Kindle or Kindle reader.

"Divergence" follows Seefer soon after the infected agents attacked him at his school. The toll of his now extraordinary life begins to weigh heavy on him as Seefer struggles between truth, duty and vengeance.

"Divergence" is the third of four novelettes in the series. The fourth and final installment will arrive this fall.

I hope you enjoy it!

Yearbook woes

I was thumbing through some old yearbooks to find an appropriate picture for my "about the author" page in the "Egg-Boy" books. This was the best one I could find...

Adolescence sucks.

Giveaways are coming

In the next few weeks, I will be arranging some giveaways for the new paperback edition of Egg-Boy. The first is going on now at Goodreads. Enter below for a chance to win...

Goodreads Book Giveaway

The Reluctant Told Tales of Egg-Boy

by Pat Mallon

Giveaway ends July 31, 2013.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

New Book Series Announcement: Egg-boy has arrived!

Marrying some of my (in)abilities to illustrate and write, Egg-boy culminated from the humor I injected many of my Milk for Dead Hamsters comics with, but toned down for a 3rd grade audience.

With over 100 illustrations and the relatable theme of one's self-justification, The Reluctantly Told Tales of Egg-Boy should be a fun book for your summer reading.

You can pick up a copy on Amazon now...

Lightbulb

In the midst of writing the latest installment of the Seefer Elliot Continuum, I got very frustrated with the direction of the story. I knew how the next episode would end, but not the story after it. Even more so, how that story would lead into the next novel. The whole thing was put on hold until I figured it out. I want the pieces to fit together (a problem I'm starting to realize in my plan to slowly unveil parts of Continuum).

I started finishing the illustrations for another book I shelved for a long time. This turned out to be a good thing. I will be able to send this book to an editor soon. This still did not remedy the problem I was having with Seefer, though.

Then one magical thing happened this week. I mowed the lawn. No writing. No drawing. No anything related to books. I just started up the tractor and cut some grass. About 15 minutes in, I had a Eureka! moment. The missing hook, the essential element, that I had been beating myself up to find came right into my head. Maybe it was the excessive vibrations. Maybe it was the smell of the freshly cut blades tickling my nostrils. Maybe it was my mind being focused on something else entirely. I don't understand the science about it. Whatever it was, I'm glad I mowed the grass that day.

From this, I draw one important conclusion. Mowing your lawn may be the cure for writer's block.