ROCK HARDICK is a comedy noir (or noir comedy, or something) with a very dark and depraved sense of humor, written with so little self-restraint I had to use a ridiculous pseudonym just to indicate that "yes, I'm aware of that." Rock Hardick is the protagonist, a detective who gets involved in a plot involving hypnotism, girls with big breasts and ninjas.
It was also one of my favorite writing experiences, as I had immense amounts of fun with it. I could tell I was influenced by the work of Warren Ellis and Luís Fernando Veríssimo. The former wrote the brilliant novel CROOKED LITTLE VEIN, which shares a little of this story's premise, however what Ellis truly influenced me with was his sharp sense of humor that is present in a lot of his work. And the latter is the Brazilian short story writer who created Ed Mort, a private detective whose stories I love. So I dedicate this story to Warren Ellis and Luís Fernando Veríssimo.
MELVIN T. BAGGER'S ROCK HARDICK is published here on the brilliant Weaponizer. (yes I'm linking it a second time on the same post because I have no shame at all.)
Enjoy.
... I hope.
(cross-posted from my website)]]>