Books
The Gutterpunk Express
Steve B. Howard
In 1990 Boge a 17 year old former Hollywood teen TV star has lost his agent, his role on the TV show Tweenie Bopper Parade, and his home after his mom kicks him out Boge and his best friend Benny decide to abandon high school, Benny’s apartment, and almost any shot they might have of getting back into the film industry, to try and make it on their own as buskers. They hit the road in Boge’s ’66 Studebaker with little more than their acoustic guitars, a sandwich bag full of drugs, a battered old green tent, some camping equipment, and long shot dreams of making it as punk folk superstars. They quickly learn though that the gutter punk lifestyle and busking up and down the west coast of America is much more perilous than they could have imagined. The brutal reality of street life soon begins to slice them apart physically and emotionally. A few bright spots appear as they meet a studio musician wizard named Pork who believes their raw sound can be channeled into something great, but this proves to be tragically short lived and they spiral deeper into addiction, panhandling, and even prison. Having hit rock bottom, Boge must try and find a way to bring his friend Benny out of his heroin addiction, deal with his own alcohol and crystal meth addiction, all while still holding on feverishly to his dream to make it as a musician just as the Seattle Sound and Alternative Rock are blowing up in the early 90’s.
Mystical Meat Machines
Steve B. Howard
New Interpol officer Cantor Silva continues tracking a murderous AI through the Dark Net. Using here primary paid informant Gamma, she tries to find the mysterious genius Korpa Blythe to determine what he is connection to the AI might be. Despite her efforts the AI continues its murder spree even extending its reach to include Cantor and her associates as well.
A gripping Blade Runner like Cyber Punk series that will appeal to fans of Neuromancer, Altered Carbon, and other Cyberpunk classics.
Satori in the Slipstream
Steve B. Howard
Satori in the Slipstream is a collection of dark flash fiction and short stories. Many of the stories are set in Japan and deal with challenges young adults face. There are also several stories about soldiers dealing with the aftermath of war. Homeless and the brutality of living on the streets is also a major theme in this collection.
something gaijin this way comes
Steve B. Howard
Broken, blistered, and busted tales about life in Japan. Take a look into the darker seedier side, an old woman waits to die in the summer heat, a homeless man flees Japan rather do prison time, an old man argues with his wife and things go really bad. These stories and many more.
The Nor Cal Crash Stories
Steve B. Howard
This is a work of Tricktion, some truth and a lot of fiction Also, it is some truth and some fiction that has been tricked out to make it a more interesting read. Some of these stories I experienced firsthand, many of them I heard second, third, and even fourth hand, if there is such a thing. All of them have been altered if for no other reason than to preempt any potential lawsuits or even attempted murders if revealing some of them happens to really piss off those that were involved. Most of these stories happened well over twenty years ago, so I have to rely on my far from perfect memory to dredge them back up and fill in the blanks creatively in the places where the wiring in my brain is far too burnt out to produce the truth. I’m pulling roughly from about 1984 (a nod to Orwell) to around 1994 (in sad memory of Cobain).