Muhahahaha!

I love October. The air is that perfect sleeping temperature. Darkness reigns long, but not so long it causes depression. The breeze holds the promise of change..and just the slightest taste of decay. And I love Halloween most of all.

Christmas is nice, but has become so stressful. My birthday is fine, but there's a reaper pointing at a watch every time it rolls around.

All Hallow's Eve though, is magic. Kids love it, adults love it, no stress and all joy. No need to even decorate, throw some candy in a bucket and you're part of the fun.

I was always Zorro or Darth Vader growing up, both my heroes and villains had to be guys dressed in black swinging a sword around (I'm partial to ninjas as well). These days I'm too big around the gut to do them justice, but I do fine as a shambling zombie. The picture above is my new wallpaper; it's The Headless Horseman Pursuing Ichabod Crane (1858) by John Quidor

Honorable Mention

Stewart Sternberg and I had our names mentioned a couple of times in The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror. We were both given honorable mentions for our stories in High Seas Cthulhu. Other writers in the anthology whose work interested editor Ellen Datlow were: Matthew Baugh, Tim Curran, John Shire, and Lee Clark Zumpe. Congratulations to everyone involved.

Black Glass

I recently copy edited John Shirley's latest cyberpunk novel Black Glass for Elder Signs Press. I haven't had a good dose of 'punk in a while and this one delivers the goods. Bleeding edge tech; a corrupt, dystopian society; balls-out, in your face attitude; and crisp, tear through the chapters writing.

Here's the back copy, for those interested in the storyline:

Taking the fall for his younger brother, Richard Candle went from being cyber cop to condemned criminal. After four years of UnMinding–, his mind suppressed, his body enslaved–he’s released to discover his brother has slipped back into the underworld of the V-Rat, the virtual reality addict.

Meanwhile, Candle’s harried by the murderous Grist, the head of the world’s biggest multinational. But his real enemy is something else: a conscious program, the Multisemblant, a meld of copied personalities, the dark side of five powerful people, with its own brutal agenda.

Human society is sinking ever deeper a mire of escapism–but Richard Candle, looking for his missing brother, fights his way through the real world of underground stock markets, flying guns, the trash-walled labyrinth of Rooftown and the fringe of the fringe….

My ConClave 33 Experience

I had a wonderful time at ConClave 33, both watching the other panelists and speaking on a few of my own. The RPG panel flew by, the Lovecraft panel was fun, but I really liked being on the zombie panel, it seemed to have the most give and take with the audience. Rick Moore astounded me with the skill evinced during his panels, I aspire to one day work a room like him, truly a marvel to behold. William Jones was informative and enjoyable to listen to as always, and Stewart Sternberg-taking the dais for the first time-was charismatic and knowledgeable.

The guiltiest pleasure, I must confess, was listening to the "writers widows" panel, in which Deborah Jones and two other writer's wives dished on the inner lives of their spouses. I cannot relate the sidesplittingly funny things revealed that evening because I was sworn to secrecy...well, actually, I was threatened with acts so heinous they bordered on crimes against humanity. Funny, funny stuff.

Kudos to Jody Harrow, Freon and the other unsung heroes behind the scenes who made this such a wonderful evening.

Bibliography

I was surfing a website where writers and fans interact and there was a discussion about what people wanted to see on a writer's website. The item that garnered the most responses was a bibliography. People like to see a writer's "bonafides" and it helps to track down his or her work.

Short fiction:
"Jedediah Smith and the Undying Chinaman," Frontier Cthulhu, 2007, Chaosium

"The Isle of Dreams," High Seas Cthulhu, 2007, Elder Signs Press

Role-playing games:
"Mythos ex Machina," Keeper's Companion II, 2002, Chaosium

"Occult Books," Keeper's Companion, 2000, Chaosium

ConClave 33

I've been making the rounds at local (and not so local) cons for the past couple years and this year I decided to do a bit more than sign autographs and peddle my wares. I'll be taking part in the discussion for the following panels at ConClave 33:

Games to Fiction and Fiction to Games: Where to start, with the role-playing game or the fiction
Sat 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM Room: Br 7
Fellow panelists: William Jones, M. Keaton, Richard Tucholka

H.P. Lovecraft Today: How Lovecraft's ideas and fiction have become larger than Lovecraft
Sat 6:00 PM - 7:00 PM Room: Atlantis 5
Fellow panelists: William Jones, Ferrel "Rick" Moore, Stewart Sternberg

Zombies and Survival Fiction: It seems like the undead are becoming more popular with every passing decade. Discover the thrill behind zombies and apocalyptic fiction
Sat 10:00 PM - 11:00 PM Room: Atlantis 3
Fellow panelists: William Jones, Ferrel "Rick" Moore

I'm also a part of their Writer's Workshop. I'll be giving advice to fledgling writers and proofing their work.

Please come down if you are able, the more the merrier. Also, do yourself a favor, check out the various panels Rick Moore will be on. Rick is always enlightening, thought provoking, and entertaining; you will not be disappointed.

High Seas Cthulhu: Below Decks

William Jones has extended an invitation to the writers of HSC to share tales about how their stories came to be and their thoughts on the process. Several writers have stepped up to the challenge, including myself, and you can find the results here. Please feel free to visit and share your thoughts there or here.

High Seas Cthulhu: Table of Contents

Well folks, here's the final table of contents for High Seas Cthulhu. I'm honored to be in such wonderful company. Run out and buy a copy. Hell, buy ten, I get royalties for this one. : )

The Idol in His Hand -- Darrell Schweitzer
The Tip of the Iceberg -- John Shire
Passage to Oblivion -- Lee Clark Zumpe
Dark Blue -- Alan Dean Foster
The Isle of Dreams -- Charles P. Zaglanis
Ensnared -- Paul Melniczek
A Kind of Fear -- C.J. Henderson
La Armada Invencible -- Michael McBride
The Others -- Stewart Sternberg
Signals -- Stephen Mark Rainey
The Havenhome -- William Meikle
The Bedlamite -- Ferrel Moore
The Star of Istanbul -- Chris and Linda L. Donahue
High Seas -- Michael Penncavage
Those Who Came to Dagon -- John Shirley
Clown Fish -- Matthew Baugh
Ice -- Heather Hatch
The Wreck of the Ghost -- Tim Curran
The Stars, in Their Dreaming -- Gerard Houarner
The Depth of Darkness -- William Jones

High Seas Cthulhu: Contest

Hi all,

There's a contest at Shoggoth.net and the prize is a copy of High Seas Cthulhu. Details below:


Shoggoth.net, in conjunction with William Jones and Elder Signs Press, is proud to announce a new contest to win one of three copies of High Seas Cthulhu, a new fiction collection being released soon by Elder Signs Press.

Contest Rules

Entering the contest is easy.

To enter the contest, register for the forums, and post a witty, silly, or serious comment on this story by clicking the "Reply in the Forums" link at the bottom of this story.

Entries must be posted no later than NOON Eastern Time on 7/27/2007, at which time Shoggoth.net Staff will randomly select THREE winners. We will contact the winners by email, so please use a valid email address in your registration. We will also post the forum name of the winners on the forum and on the Shoggoth.net website.

Only one entry/forum account per person. No need to re-register; if you've already got an account just make a post. Shoggoth.net Staff (basically, me and the Trollboy) may not enter. We reserve the right to delete accounts we suspect have conspired to enter multiple times. We can Tell. We reserve the right to change the contest rules at any time without warning. Though, we probably won't need to. We will ship your prizes via whichever method we choose. It will likely be a slow moving gypsy caravan for domestic shipping or strapped to the back of sea anemones for trans-Atlantic shipping. So, if it takes a while, don't blame us. We are not responsible for any taxes or customs fees you'll need to pay as a result of receiving such a wonderful prize. We reserve the right to shout ia! ia! at passing strangers, if we want.