I'm back!

I admit it. I abandoned my blog.

It languished here in cyberspace for more time than I care to admit.

I'm sorry, blog. Really!

I've revived it after I had a short story published with Untreed Reads, a great e-publisher I've been working with the past few months. It's really opened my mind to e-stories, as well as the whole e-publishing process. I'm getting a Kindle for Christmas, so I can actually read my story on an e-reader.

I know a TON of people who are getting Kindles for Christmas. I've been doing a lot of research on market trends and publicizing, and I really do think e-readers & stories are the wave of the future. I think we'll still have paper books in our lives, but in a few generations, the e-readers (or whatever slick future version they create) will be the norm.

Here's my new Amazon page:

I had a fun time writing A Mobster's Guide to Cranberry Sauce, and am happy to be included in the anthology The Killer Wore Cranberry. I hope to bring these characters back in other stories.

More Stories Up!

Drops of Crimson (December, 2008 Issue) To Find Another
MysteryAuthors.com (December, 2008 Issue) Dough

Another Story

Another story up on The Foliate Oak...

Train Station made their 2007-2008 Print Edition. And the train moves forward...

Happy Birthday CeCe!

I love watching humanity at its best.

My friend Holly is flying across the world later this week to pick up her daughter CeCe. CeCe is being cared for in an orphanage in a little corner of China, and is just turning a year old. She gazes, unflinching and wide-eyed in her photographs. What have her eyes seen, that she will never be able to remember, let alone share with another human being? Whatever her heritage or background, she has no idea that she's about to be embraced into a loving, generous family. Forever.

May the road rise to meet you all as you travel. And to CeCe, to the start of a wonderful new journey.

Saying Goodbye

My co-worker Helen died today, after a long and brutal struggle with cancer. I'll miss her. Here's an Irish blessing to see her off:

May you see God's light on the path ahead
When the road you walk is dark.
May you always hear,
Even in your hour of sorrow,
The gentle singing of the lark.
When times are hard may hardness
Never turn your heart to stone,
May you always remember
when the shadows fall—
You do not walk alone.

M-O-O-N. That spells moon.

Another Sci Fi story up on 365tomrrows.com. Of course, I only noticed typos after I submitted. A Thin Slice of the Moon.

I had trouble staying awake for Tin Man, but what I saw was complex and dark. Many of the actors gave wooden performances, which was disappointing. Those darn monkeys got both faster and creepier. Zooey D. did give an ineresting performance -- she's got great screen presence. I'm sure we'll see more of her.

OZ

We're not in Kansas any more, Toto... SciFi's new version of The Wizard of Oz

Those creepy monkeys from the original Wizard of Oz still give me the willies. This updated version looks interesting. Movies often reflect the time in which they are created. The original Oz film highligted the still-new Technicolor process, basking in all its cutting-edge cinematic technology. Teenager Dorothy Gale exerts her rebellion by running away from home, then is caught up in a storm that transports her into a land which helps her reset her moral compass. Dorothy is still squeaky clean throughout the film, and reflects the harsh economic times of the day -- one small human being standing up in front of monsterous, monumental forces while trying to retain her integrity.

SciFi's version of Oz has entirely adjusted the characters, including Dorothy Gale's transformation into DG. Should be interesting how it mirrors our own time. The film is supposedly darker, with deeper characters.