Books

Adventures in Athletics: On and Off the Bench is a book written by Billy's friend, Markell.   Markell is really nice,  lives in Maryland, is a grammar-nerd, and is NOT that athletic.  She used to be.... sort of athletic?  When she was younger?  But even in her  prime she wasn't exactly all that athletic.

That's why this book is so great!

This  is a 117-page book, full of short stories by Markell.  Like about that  one time she played volleyball, or those few years she went to a bunch of  baseball games.  The stories are short and cute and fun.

How did  Markell choose her favorite basketball team?  She wrote to every single  one of them and waited to see who wrote back!  How about her favorite football team?  Same thing!

This book is about 5" wide and 8"  tall.  Color cover, B&W inside, full of stories.               

After years of releasing this series as a zine, Billy has finally compiled them all into a book!  A real, honest-to-God, glossy cover, perfect bound book!  For those who never read the zine, this book gives simple explanations of how some things are similar, but different.  For example, baking powder and baking soda, Wild Bill and Buffalo Bill, knitting and crocheting....  From places to people to things to activities, this little book explains the difference between things that are some times confusing.

This book is 140 pages long, and the same  size as a pocket-size zine, 4.25" X 5.5".  Fun, sort of silly, but  educational.  Every page is illustrated, with five different friends doing the drawings!      

A 70-page collection of State Flag zines.

This book ranks all  50 American state flags, plus 10 other flags from U.S. territories and Native American tribes.  What does Billy like, what does he hate?  Who has the  best flag in the U.S., and more importantly, WHO HAS THE WORST!?

The zines had color-covers, but were B&W inside. well guess what?  This thing has full-color on every page!  That way you can see each and every flag in full detail.

Special  guest articles by Ed Kemp, Donna Ramone, Markell West, and a forward by  Roman Mars!  Yes, theeeee Roman Mars.  Beautiful cover by Anna Jo Beck.   There are so many OPINIONS ABOUT FLAGS in one book!

Four-Year Depression is about, love, family, and overcoming addiction, with the 2016 U.S. presidential election as a backdrop.  Accepting Trump as President was not easy, and Billy had an underlying sense of depression during every day his presidency.  And those feelings of depression and anger became much more confusing after finding out that members of his family voted for the man.

Four-Year Depression is about hating Trump, but it's also about loving family.  It's about  trying not to let politics ruin family dinners.  It's about how completely divided our country is, and it's about trying to find ways to talk with people  you don't agree with.

Written in the summer of 2019 and released in 2020, it is 8.5" X 5.5", and 96  pages long.  Markell West did the editing and Frank Okay did the cover.   (http://frankokay.com/)

This collected volume contains every story of Billy's first 8 issues of the zine "Last Night at the Casino."

This is a perfect-bound book, with a glossy color cover and black & white pages inside.  It is the same size as the zines, about 5" tall and 4" wide.  Not only does it include the first 8 issues of the zine, but new material as well.  A  few stories were released in other places, a few new stories, a guest  story by Lady Pajama, and a comic by GoBonusSaves!  A whopping 368 pages  of casino-related entertainment!  Color cover, B&W inside.

If you loved the zines, you'll love the book, duh.

The second volume of the collected casino stories!  Volume 1 was a reprint of the first 8 issues of my zine, "Last Night at the Casino."  This volume collects issues 9-17.

Clocking in at 414 pages, this is a hefty book!  Plenty of reading to keep you busy.  Track my casino stories as I work in New Mexico, then travel to Baltimore, then back to New Mexico.  Dice, blackjack, roulette, baccarat...  Even a few stories about dealing at "casino parties," and almost meeting the Baltimore Ravens.

This book is the same size as the first one, which is the same size as a quarter-size zine: 4.25" wide and 5.5" tall.  Glossy, full-color cover, with black and white pages inside.  Along with 9 issues of the zine, every page reprinted in full, you will also get a handful of brand-new material in between each issue. Some new stories from me, 2 new stories from other contributors, and another comic-style interpretation of one of my stories, done by friend and artist Go Bonus Saves.

I am so happy and proud of this book.  Thank you so much to everyone who has supported my writing over the years!

Okay, this isn't a book, but it also isn't zine.  It's a game!

Zine Game is a card game where 2-4 players each try and build the best  zine.  You start with an Idea Card, then add Content, use Supplies, etc.   Good cards, like "Personal Story" will give you points, but there are also bad cards, like "Sexist Story" or "Dull Scissors" that you play on your opponents to make their zines worse.

This game is so fun, seriously.  We've been playing our own home-made version for ten years, so it's awesome to have a real version.

Please email me with any questions -- and that includes after you buy the game.