Looking for work? Do you code?

Bookworm Computing, the folks who host Schlock Mercenary, as well as several Blank Label Comics sites, is looking for contract programmers, PHP/CGI scripters, and web/graphics designers.

Fill out this form so they can contact you, and you’re off and running. I don’t know much beyond that. I will say that Bookworm Computing has been very good to me in the two-plus years I’ve been with them. They take uptime as seriously as I take my buffer.

Schlock Mercenary: Under New Management and Schlock Mercenary: The Blackness Between are now available through Amazon.com. If you want to write a review, you can. If you’ve been waiting to buy from a big online bookstore, now you can. If you’ve been hoping to inflate my Amazon rank by blogging the book, now you can.

In unrelated news, it’s still my birthday. I wonder what nice thing you could do for me today [insert fiendish grin here].

Seriously, this is a big step for us. We take about a 50% revenue hit selling the books this way, but we know that this is a required first step to put them in front of a wider audience. I would LOVE to see Amazon placing regular monthly orders for a few dozen books, because that’s a lot less work for Sandra than shipping them out ourselves. That said, we’ll still be shipping books from store.schlockmercenary.com, and that’s the only way to get a signed copy (other than bringing your book to a convention where I am.)

–Howard

My brother (randytayler) loves me.

He offered to take me to lunch for my birthday, and when I told him I was still low-carbing, he took me to Tuacanos, a very tasty (and trendy, and popular) brazilian-style grill in the Riverwoods in Provo.

I overate, but at least I did it on protein rather than empty carbs. Ahhh, bacon-wrapped turkey breast. And bacon-wrapped pork. And rare sirloin, and brisket, and garlic something-or-other… I lost track of what exactly I was eating. In the “how much” category, I think I put away about two pounds of meat.

Happy Gluttony to me!

In other news, I’m currently locked in my office while Sandra and the kids wrap stuff for my birthday.

Ooops! They just unlocked my door!

Bye!

Today I scripted and a week of strips, and they arrived at a very powerful cliff-hanger. Then I pencilled them, and the cliff-hanger was even MORE powerful. It had ME anxious about what came next.

I was so very anxious that after I got home, I had to sit down and script the next strip. Wow, that one was a perfect resolution… dramatic, poignant, and yet still delivering the funny that I have to deliver day after day. Writing it gave me chills to the point that I had to take a hot bath to relax afterwards.

But if I tell you any more about any of these strips, I’ll ruin ’em for you.

Let’s just say that I know it’s a good story when I can’t wait to write what happens next.