Ann-Margret vs. Sqweegel

Okay, those are four words I didn't think I'd be typing.

But it's true: Sqweegel -- or at least, a black-clad version of him -- will be making a special crossover appearance on this week's CSI (airing Thursday night at 9 p.m.)

Sqweegel, for those who are new to this blog, is the main villain from Level 26: Dark Origins, the novel I co-wrote with CSI creator Anthony E. Zuiker. The next Level 26 novel, Dark Prophecy, is out in hardcover this Thursday, and Anthony came up with the mad genius idea to have Sqweegel, a forensic-proof killer, duke it out with Nick Stokes, Catherine Willows and the rest of gang in this release-day episode.

The guest star is Ann-Margret, people. This means Sqweegel has two degrees of separation from Elvis.

I've been a longtime CSI fan, ever since the Bride turned me on to the show back in... geez, 2003? We'd gorge on the box sets, which were perfect for watching between diaper changes and feedings (our son Parker was barely a year old then). I know this sounds like retro-brown-nosing, but really: I've been hooked on CSI long before I spoke word one to my eventual collaborator. I'm not sure Anthony believes this, but it's true.

So to have a character I worked on make his TV debut is more than a little exciting. When the episode airs, I'll be at Bouchercon in San Francisco. I'm hoping to find a bar that will play the episode so I can watch while I hoist a celebratory cocktail. I hope you guys will have a chance to check it out, too. While I haven't seen the episode, my editor has -- and tells me it is scary as shit.

You can check out a preview right here.

And if you're a Level 26 fan, you should definitely order a copy rightthisminute. (The first novel is just out in paperback from Signet.)

(Photo courtesy CBS Broadcasting Inc.)

Sqweegel in Your Pocket

Apple iTunes has just released the App and iTunes Extras version of Level 26: Dark Origins. Now you can enjoy the Digi-Novel the way nature... and by nature, I mean Anthony E. Zuiker... intended.

I downloaded these yesterday and started playing around with them. The app version is pretty fantastic. (Standard disclaimer: I co-wrote the book, so I'm naturally biased. But I had nothing to do with the design of the app.) The text is easy to read, the pages are easy to flip, the backgrounds and sound effects are creepy without being annoying... and best of all, there's no waiting/punching in codes to watch a cyberbridge. It's all perfectly seamless and kind of addictive. This is what Anthony had in mind all along: a way to marry text and video and art and sound and everything else in a truly new format.

(In fact, it's so new, iTunes didn't quite know where to put it. You'll find it in the "movies" section)

And the iTunes Extras version is more or less the same thing, only you don't need an iPod Touch or iPhone. You watch it through your iTunes program, clicking to flip pages, then sit back to enjoy the cyberbridges.

Each cost $12.99. A little more than most Kindle books, but then again, you're receiving the complete text of the novel, plus 20 cyberbridges, plus a slew of extras.

If any of you do check it out, I'd love to hear what you think. So would Anthony, over at www.Level26.com.

Sqweegel's on the Loose...

... but there's no need to keep it secret. Tell everybody: Level 26: Dark Origins, the horror-thriller I co-wrote with CSI creator Anthony E. Zuiker, is finally available in finer bookshops and online book emporiums everywhere. There's also a nifty Kindle version you can download in about a minute flat, and an audiobook version read by John Glover. (I've always had a warm spot in my heart for Glover after his cameo in a faux RoboCop 2 commercial.)

Level 26 can be read straight through in book form. You won't have any trouble following the story. However, I do recommend watching the "cyberbridges" (short film clips available free online) along the way; it's a cool and unique way to experience the story. Sure, maybe the characters look different in your mind's eye. But you really owe it to yourself to see the sick, twisted shit going on in Zuiker's mind's eye...

If you are picking up a copy, I'd love to hear what you think. You can leave comments here, or better yet, join the party over at Level26.com.

"Did He Violate You?"

Here's the official trailer for Level 26: Dark Origins, the suspense novel I co-wrote with CSI creator Anthony Zuiker. There will be more Level 26 madness at San Diego Comic-Con. And yes, before you ask... that is indeed Marshall Flinkman (Kevin Weisman) of Alias fame, as well as legendary big screen badass Michael Ironside, of Scanners, Total Recall and Terminator Salvation fame. Michael Fucking Ironside! The cool, calm co-author in me takes it in stride; the fanboy in me wants to squeal with giddy delight.

Anyway, the novel is out in less than two months. Hope you'll check it out...

On the Level

Well, USA Today outed me. That "collaboration" I've been hinting about for a while now is Level 26: Dark Origins, a "digi-novel" by Anthony Zuiker, the creator of CSI. The story is 100% Zuiker's; I'm the wordslinger he tapped to help tell the tale.

What is a "digi-novel," you ask? Well, it's a hybrid of print and digital video; as Zuiker explained to USA Today, you read about 20 pages of the novel, then have the chance to jump online and watch a three-minute video to enhance the experience. The book does stand on its own, but it's so much better to take the ride as Zuiker intended.

You may also ask: Does this mean the death of print/the twilight of the word, etc.? Of course not. I think it's a cool new way to experience a thriller. Traditionally, a novel will appear, and then sometimes—if the stars are aligned, the pentagrams drawn, the goats slain—a movie version will follow months or years later. Well, this is both experiences slammed together, drawing on the strengths of each to tell a seriously wild, intense and scary-as-shit story. As a guy who loves books, who loves movies, who especially loves scary books and movies... this is a dream project for me.

And finally, you might be asking yourself: What the fuck is that thing under the bed (above)? Ah, see, that's the other thing that drew me to the project: Zuiker's villain. I'm not into spoilers, so you won't get any out of me... but holy God wait until you meet this thing. The moment Zuiker told me about it over the phone last summer was the moment I knew I had to be part of this.

I hope you guys will give it a chance this September. In the meantime, you can go to www.Level26.com and sign up for updates.

(Also, you might want to start checking under your beds.)