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John Palisano

Goodreads Author

Born

June 13

Website

http://www.johnpalisano.wordpress.com

Twitter

johnpalisano

Genre

Horror, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Literature & Fiction

Member Since

March 2012

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/johnpalisano

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One evening when I was only a small boy, my father allowed me to stay up late with him and watch NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD on television. He fell asleep, but I waited for the end. I couldn’t believe they’d let the lead guy die after all that. I was horrified. Later that summer we went to the drive-in, which was a big deal in Norwalk, Connecticut in the 1970s. Everyone went. We all piled into the Bomb, our old station wagon, and saw lots of movies there. There was a swing set right up front where a many of the little kids congregated. We got a kick out of that, especially during GREASE, because there was a similar set-up in the movie. One night, though, there was a double-feature that I’ll never forget.

Demon Seed scared me, and the unforgetta One evening when I was only a small boy, my father allowed me to stay up late with him and watch NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD on television. He fell asleep, but I waited for the end. I couldn’t believe they’d let the lead guy die after all that. I was horrified. Later that summer we went to the drive-in, which was a big deal in Norwalk, Connecticut in the 1970s. Everyone went. We all piled into the Bomb, our old station wagon, and saw lots of movies there. There was a swing set right up front where a many of the little kids congregated. We got a kick out of that, especially during GREASE, because there was a similar set-up in the movie. One night, though, there was a double-feature that I’ll never forget.

Demon Seed scared me, and the unforgettable images still haunt me. The film that followed, though, ruined me for good. ALIEN. I don’t think I walked past my attic door after dark that entire summer for fear the alien would snatch me up and away.

Soon I couldn’t even go to the beach. JAWS waited for us. Of course, this was also the time I discovered my father’s treasure trove of old horror comics, most of which I still have safe and sound. My imagination was on fire. We went to some of the early science fiction conventions in New York. I found Fangoria, and used Tom Savini’s Grande Illusions book in an attempt to make my own monsters at home, and experimented with that for several fake-bloodstained years. Eventually, though, I realized my favorite part was in dreaming up the ideas. In all truth, I was better in that regard than in any of my make-ups.

During middle school I put out a xeroxed fanzine Castle Gore that I sold to my classmates for a quarter an issue. Inside, alongside my reviews of whatever movies were coming out, I put some of my own short stories.

By the time I was thirteen I’d completed my first novel . . . novella, really . . . about a time-traveling teenager who saves the world from a monster bred in a Victorian scientist’s lab. He used a flying go-kart to do so.

Songwriting found me. For years I toured with rock n’ roll bands, opening for national acts, and all the while, writing lots of lyrics, poems, and short stories. Winding up at Emerson College, I truly found myself. My short stories were finally professionally published in some of the local academic literary magazines, and also my script He’d Hoped For Mars won the Latent Image Magazine screenwriting contest, but was turned into a successful short film, scored by Aaron Logan at nearby Berklee College of Music.

After college I moved to Los Angeles, taking an internship with Ridley Scott. That was a phenomenal time in my life, and I learned so much. I worked on many big budget films, and got to see how those films I grew up with really came together. Of course, being in that hotbox, I wrote lots of scripts. Had an option or three, and produced a couple of low-budget films while I was at it. Something happened, though.

The movies of the scripts often came out so differently than the original ideas. Budget compromises. With writing stories, well, the only limit is your imagination. You’re not limited to how much money you have, or time, or your location, or the skill of the CG artists on your team.
Shifting gears to prose has not been easy. I had hundreds of rejections from top markets until I began to place my stories. That is not an exaggeration. It was harder to place a pro-level fiction piece than find financing for my first film. I love the challenge, and few things have been as satisfying.

My journey continues, of course. All these years later, we finally have the release of my novel NERVES from Bad Moon Books in the winter of 2012. In the meantime, there’s lots of short stories appearing soon, and several movie projects, too.
Thanks for reading.

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John Palisano ...more

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John Palisano’s books

Average rating: 3.96 · 3,267 ratings · 768 reviews · 103 distinct works • Similar authors

	Requiem 3.31 avg rating — 110 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Dust of the Dead 3.66 avg rating — 50 ratings — published 2012 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Nerves 3.97 avg rating — 35 ratings — published 2012 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Starlight Drive: Four Tales for Halloween 4.12 avg rating — 25 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Ghost Heart 3.45 avg rating — 22 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Unnatural Tales of the Jackalope by John Palisano (Goodreads Author) (Editor, Author), Jeff Strand (Goodreads Author) (contributor), Eric S. Grizzle (contributor) 3.94 avg rating — 17 ratings — published 2012 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Night of 1,000 Beasts really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 16 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	All That Withers 4.50 avg rating — 10 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Try Not to Die: In a Hell Hole: An Alternate Ending Short Story by John Palisano (Goodreads Author), Mark Tullius (Goodreads Author) (Editor) 3.91 avg rating — 11 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Scales & Tales: Finding Forever Homes 3.75 avg rating — 8 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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John Palisano's Blog

’18’ to appear in The Dark Waves of Winter

Thrilled to announce a new short story ’18’ will soon be appearing in The Dark Waves of Winter, edited by David M. Olson.

’18’ tells the story of an early morning swimmer in San Francisco on a mission to help save 18 beagles from a lab. It’s a suspenseful, very different kind of story for me. I hope you’ll check it out. Here’s more on the overall book:

The Dark Waves of Winter is a follow up to th

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Lovecraft Country (Lovecraft Country, #1)

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Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
Goodreads Librari...: Please combine	997	443	Feb 20, 2019 10:10AM
Horror Aficionados : Horror Tag!	1782	1165	Nov 23, 2025 02:54AM
Horror Aficionados : What books are you reading/have you finished: 2025	474	514	Dec 30, 2025 12:32AM

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John’s Quotes

“Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.”
― Steve Jobs

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message 3: by Richard

Apr 28, 2015 10:09PM

John, you are one of the winners! Thanks for adding DISINTEGRATION to your "to-read" list. Send me your mailing address to wickerkat@aol.com, and whether you'd prefer THE NEW BLACK or BURNT TONGUES and I'll drop it in the mail ASAP.

Thanks,
Richard

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message 2: by Simon

Mar 15, 2012 08:40PM

Thanks for seeking me out, John.

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message 1: by Maureen

Mar 13, 2012 03:40PM

Hi John, thanks for adding this author to your circle of friends! I hope you'll consider adding my books What Would Nancy Do?, In the Company of Women, The Christmas to Remember and Finding Normal to your to-read list. I'm looking forward to reading your book reviews and recommendations. Happy reading!

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