For as long as he can remember, Stephen has had a 
fascination with the dark side of the human soul.
   He explores that by writing fiction, drawing, hiring 
illustrators, and -- like the creators of the original Warren 
"Vampirella" Magazine in the 1970s -- hiring a model now and 
then to give his ideas a bit more verisimilitude. 
   To date, he's written two books and launched four Web sites 
(not including MySpace and Facebook pages). In 2008, he 
started his own publishing division, Mazz Press. 
   His personality is a strange mix of comic and goofy, 
passionate and determined, right-brained, artistic and edgy. He's
somewhat enigmatic. Why he's dedicated much of his private life 
to writing stories about low-rent mercenaries, vicious 
psychopaths and lost souls on the fringes is open to speculation. 
   Ask him and he'll tell you it's something he enjoys, or that he 
likes being weird and standing out in a crowd. Go figure. 
   He grew up in a tiny, nearly forgotten village in Eastern 
Pennsylvania. Even it's name suggests it's from some other 
dimension: Lost Creek.
   His best childhood memories involve horror movies and novels, 
monster magazines and comic books. He dreamed about 
becoming a make-up artist, until he directed his first Super-8 
movie in 1987. Then he wanted to become a film director.
   He enrolled as a film major at Point Park College, Pittsburgh, 
Pa. Unsure if he'd be able to put bread on the table by pursuing 
a dream to make independent fear flicks, he decided to enroll 
in the journalism program and strengthened his writing and 
photography skills. He graduated with a degree in print in 1992.
   Since then, Stephen has worked as a reporter for newspapers 
in Schuylkill County, Pa.
   During the 1990s, Stephen wrote four screenplays. Unable to 
find an agent, he decided to start writing novels. HIs first, a dark-
action fantasy called "The .40 Caliber Mouse," was released by an 
independent publisher in 2004. It's about suicidal mercenaries who 
use  the Internet to advertise their services. A death-wish story like
no other, it pulls readers into a world where vengeance is user-

Author Stephen Pytak

friendly. The book is available through this Web site.  Just click on the CATALOG.
   Determined to bring his visions to life on the printed page his way, Stephen decided to start his own publishing 
division. Named after one of his most notorious characters, Mazz Press is dedicated to producing thrillers about 
gothic realms with terrifying turns.
   In November 2008, Stephen plans to relaunch "The .40 Caliber Mouse" series with  "The .40 Caliber Mousehunt." It's a 
savage tale in which our heroes face the consequences of their actions.   
   Meanwhile, he's thinking about future projects. While writing "The Wild Damned," he's keeping a journal, writing down 
ideas for a third book in "The .40 Caliber Mouse" series. And one of his long-term goals is to find the financing to 
create a graphic novel. 
   "It's easy to get discouraged, when you think of doing something like that. It's not the page design or the amount of 
work involved. That's something I'd really like to do. Problem is, projects like this aren't cheap," he said. 
    Norm Breyfogle, the legendary comic book artist popular for his work on DC's "Batman" in the '80s and '90s, drew  the 
dynamic artwork for Stephen's second novel. When they talked about the cost of putting together a graphic novel, Norm 
encouraged Stephen to keep his chin up.
    In an April 2008 e-mail, Norm said: "Hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die, life is a broken-winged bird which cannot fly."