Down Low-Dead

by Giovanni Gelati

Vincent Zandri, one of the hottest selling authors of today, and blogger/radio show host Giovanni Gelati ,his mentor and greatest fan (or is it the other way around ,it is hard to tell at times), have collaborated on an intensely funny, violent, hard-boiled, action packed extravaganza that is sure to be one of the best, if not the best ,digital short story reads you have ever had. Laugh at loud , but please don’t drop your ereader.

So what is the deal? Why is one of the best, most downloaded authors on the planet, nay I say the universe, doing collaborating with a lowly blogger? Here is the deal for those of you not following things, don’t grind your teeth or bite your nails wondering why you don’t know about this, I mean you should know this by now but what the hey, get out from under the rock and smell the toast burning here. A Facebook friend of mine and Master’s Degree student at The West Virginia University, Katherine, was a caller into my blogtalk radio show The G-ZONE, when I had on the esteemed author and un –overnight sensation the one and only Vincent Zandri. She drops the bomb on us that her classmates have been following and discussing our respective blogs and work. She goes on to ask us to do something together, write a digital short story together, after all she is in a creative writing class, how more creative could that be. So I joke with Zandri for a few minutes and then BOOM, the game is one, we are knee deep in the doodoo and decide okay, we will do this, and then I will have the class on the blogtalk show and we will go over the whole nine yards.The “Down Low-Dead”. Good stuff, we start to roll. I start it off, the way this is going to happen is that we will exchange parts back and forth going at about 500 to 1,000 words at a clip. It got heated and hairy but the finished product is funny, intense, hard-boiled, violent, thrilling and suspenseful. Throw in some mayhem and a pinch of frivolity and you have about 6,000 words that are worthy of the $.99 to find out how this experiment went.
There are now seven of The Author's Lab/Collaboration short
"The Jersey Shore Has Eyes" with Big Daddy Abel
"G.S.I. Gelati Scoop Investigations Psychotic Detectives" with Thomas White
"Who Whacked The Blogger" with Benjamin Sobieck
"Thad and The G-Man's Most Awesome Adventure" with Thad Brown
"Hotel Beaumont" With B.R. Stateham
and "Bring Us Your Dead...Now!" with HR Toye

16 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 21, 2011

About the author

Thanks For stopping by my Goodreads Page. I asked for advice a while back and one of the suggestions was for me to have an “About” tab-“Explain what you have going here”, they said.
I thought not a bad idea, makes sense. The problem is, I can’t really define what I have going here. The blog takes in all manner of books, novel, novellas and short stories. The only thing I don’t really have here is erotic fiction; it makes me blush, sorry.
Basically the idea then is to have fun; read just about anything by anyone, and help as many authors as I can: Traditionally published, Indie authors, and those that Self-Pub. I love them all.
If you can, and want to, kick back, relax, go through my reading lists & posts. I think that you will find something here that may grab your attention, pique your interest, and spur you on to try a new author, maybe someone that you may not have tried otherwise.
That would make me extremely happy. Helping readers to find new authors to read was my first goal in starting to do this. I love it when I hold a new find in my hands, a new world to be thrust into, and a new character to latch onto.
Thanks for taking the time and stopping by. I love making new friends.

Reviews

[Tabitha Turnbow · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fantastic read, a blogger and a big time author. Intense, fun, hard-boiled and incredibly funny. Giovanni "The G-Man" Gelati made me laugh out loud so many times it was hard to tell who was the big time writer.I am hoping the G-man puts out more work like this, I am definitely a fan now.Download this does of fun, it will definately cure the blahs, and all for less than a buck at $.99.

[Giovanni Gelati · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yeah, that is my name along that of one of the hottest authors on the planet today; make no mistake about it. Read it and weep, make fun of me if you will, have a laugh at my expense, did this actually work? I think it did. We are probably one of the greatest foils in the universe. A team not unlike some of the greatest duo’s of all time. No I am not talking about Batman and Robin; Zandri can’t pull of the Robin costume, way too tight and not his colors. No I am talking about Abbott and Costello, Bing and Bob, Jagger and Bowie, Rowan and Martin, or Dean and Jerry. Can I be big in France and knock over the Eiffel tower next? Do I get to host my own telethon? Maybe not, I don’t think the French can handle me to be honest. I think in the modern era we are more like George Clooney and Brad Pitt in the Oceans movies. Mr. Zandri spends part of his year in Italy ala Clooney, my wife and I have a few more kids than the Pitt/Jolie’s and if you give me better hair and don’t look at my face, well I could pass for Brad Pitt, maybe.
So what is the deal? Why is one of the best, most downloaded authors on the planet, nay I say the universe, collaborating with a lowly blogger? Here is the deal for those of you not following things, don’t grind your teeth or bite your nails wondering why you don’t know about this. I mean you should know this by now but what the hey, get out from under the rock and smell the toast burning here. A Facebook friend of mine and Master’s Degree candidate at The West Virginia University, Kat L., was a caller into my blogtalk radio show The G-ZONE, when I had on the esteemed author, an un–overnight sensation, the one and only, Vincent Zandri. She drops the bomb on us that her classmates have been following and discussing our respective blogs and work. She goes on to ask us to do something together, write a digital short story together, after all she is in a creative writing class, how much more creative could that be. So I joke with Zandri for a few minutes and then BOOM, the game is on; we are knee deep in doodoo and decide okay, we will do this, and then I will have the class on the blogtalk show and we will go over the whole nine yards. Good stuff, we start to roll. I start it off, the way this is going to happen is that we will exchange parts back and forth going at about 500 to 1,000 words at a clip. It got heated and hairy but the finished product is funny, intense, hard-boiled, violent, thrilling and suspenseful. Throw in some mayhem and a pinch of frivolity and you have about 6,000 words that are worthy of the $.99 to find out how this experiment went.
Do I mind being a straight man to one of the universe’s most downloaded authors? Seriously, does anyone need to ask that question? Do I mind playing Curly to his Moe? Will the students laugh or cry? Can I do this again and again and again? Will Zandri ever talk to me again? Will Brad Pitt read this post and have his profile pic changed to look like mine? Will Pitt/Jolie try to have more kids and match our eight just to keep up? Can this digital short story be one of the MOST downloaded short stories in the history of mankind? Tune in for further updates, same G-Man channel same G- Man time.
Just a word before I go. What we just did is going to be part of a new series of things I am going to be doing here on Gelati’s Scoop the blog and The G-ZONE the blogtalk radio show. I am calling it The Author’s Lab. This part of it is called: The Author’s Lab/Collaboration. In May I will be paired up with the hot Kindle humorist Big Daddy Abel. We will be doing a horror/zombie thing called “The Jersey Shore Has Eyes”. Be wary and prepared zombie freaks; we are about to put the genre on its head, hahaha.
What are you reading today? Have you checked out our new blogtalk radio show The G-ZONE? Check us out and become our friend on Shelfari, The Novel Spot &Twitter. Go to Goodreads and become our friend there and suggest books for us to read and post on. Did you know you can shop directly on Amazon by clicking the Amazon Banner on our blog? Thanks for stopping by today; We will see you tomorrow. Have a great day. http://www.gelatisscoop.blogspot.com

[Jayde Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm usually not into novellas or short stories, nor am I particularly into collaborations, so I picked this up with mixed feelings, not really expecting to enjoy myself that much. I'm glad I did.
I had no idea what the background of the authors was or who they were (I had to Google them), but they sure can spin a hilarious story. And by 'hilarious' I don't mean a few giggles; I mean full-blown laughter that will drive tears in your eyes. I expected bad taste and rude jokes, but they never came. Instead, it reminded me a bit of stand-up comedy with an actual plotline that ran throughout the story. Now that's hard to find.
The story at heart was simple yet great. There he is, Mr Gelati, promising Mrs Gelati a nice time out on the town since he had to work on their wedding anniversary. So where would a romantic Italian guy take the Missus? No, I won't tell you. Read it for yourselves. I'll just say one word: hilarious.
On the way there, the story switches back and forth between Mr Gelati and Mr Zandri. The transitions are smooth, with both authors telling their own story until they merge into a great climax. The voices are distinct, bringing their own humour to the table. I absolutely loved the way one writer passed the story on to the other. To me, a twenty-something novel reader, the concept is beyond original. What I probably liked best was the name joke. So funny.
I recommend this to anyone who's looking for a good laugh. You won't be disappointed.

[April · Rating 4 out of 5]

Had a bad day? Want to relax, throw your cares away and laugh out loud? The perfect prescription for anything that ails you is to grab a copy of Down Low-Dead, settle in and enter the crazy, insane and highly complex (*snicker*) world created by Vincent Zandri and Giovanni Gelati. This compilation is the first in a series of digital shorts being released by Trestle Press for The Author's Lab/Collaboration series. In this series, Giovanni Gelati hooks up with other excellent authors, and together they weave unique and clever stories.

Down Low-Dead is the by-product when two insanely crazy guys come together - one with a DEEP obsession and love affair with his Kindle (sadly, I can totally relate to this...) and the other set on a bit of revenge (oh, yes, and the inclusion of one innocent and unsuspecting spouse, my sympathies, Dear!). Just how far will Mr. Harry Balz go for revenge? Will Mrs. G ever be the same again? Will Mr. Gelati recover from his Kindle's violation? The only way to find out is to grab yourself a copy of Down Low-Dead (come on, you can splurge .99 for a piece of American classic lit - well, okay, for a good laugh and a great story).

This was actually my first digital short that I have read and I have to admit that it was tons of fun. It was a quick read and the perfect antidote to an oncoming episode of manic insanity caused my beloved children who insist on trying to kill one another - bless their little hearts. Highly recommend! Be sure to check back for my review of the next installment of this series: The Jersey Shore Has Eyes by Big Daddy Abel and Giovanni Gelati!

[Al · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you’ve ever played the game where one person starts a story and after a minute or two passes off to the other, you’ll have the spirit of this collaboration. You’re never sure where the story is going to end up. Each participant has the challenge of taking the story the direction they want it to go, while staying consistent with what has come before. In many ways this book is like that, except one of the participants has proven his storytelling ability and the other has only shown he can put words together.

All right, I’ll resist the urge to bust Gelati’s chops and admit he can tell a good story too.

"Down Low Dead" is fun, just like that game because you don’t know where they’re going to end up; neither did they. It’s full of laughs (unless you’re Mrs. Gelati who takes a little lighthearted abuse). I’d have had a fun time reading it even if I didn’t know how it was produced.

Collaborations like this have a second level of entertainment value beyond the story. This second level allows one to see the seams. Knowing the concept, and being able to tell which section each author wrote, allows you to admire the gamesmanship as each maneuvers the other to make himself look good and the other not, as each of the dueling writers take the story the direction they want it to go. Well played, gentlemen.

**Originally written for "Books and Pals" book blog.**

[Chantal Boudreau · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is another action-packed multiple-authored digital short from Trestle Press, but this one comes with a hearty dose of humour. I especially appreciate writing that is original, which is why I generally like Trestle Press’s offerings, and this one is very much a story imitating real life – the foundation of the tale, that is, and not the story itself (at least I certainly hope this was fiction...) I can view this story from both sides, as a writer facing critique which can be frustrating and disheartening at times, and as a reviewer, inclined to say it as they see it, even if the honesty may hurt at times.

[Benjamin Sobieck · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm always a bit hesitant to check out an author mash-up. They're usually contrived, meandering and pushed forward without a concise vision. "Down Low Dead" is none of these things. It's fun from start to finish.

I didn't care that I could tell where one author stopped and another started, as with other mashups. That was just part of the fun. The authors swap semi-biographical portions like two guys playing beer pong. Their straight-up Jersey black humor is the sizzle to the tough guy steak.

[B.R. Stateham · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great idea! Take two writers and have them interact on a specific writing theme. And what do you get? A kind of Three Stooges revenge/family reunion story. Minus Larry. Definitely Curly and Moe are on board here. I know both writers, so you can say I have a vested interest. Nethereless the story came out far better than anyone anticipated. It will be a fun read for anyone.