Where There's Smoke...

The blanket of smoke from the Canadian wildfires has begun to seep over southern Virginia and even farther south, enough to be seen and smelled from our house. The view above is looking down toward Lake Lanier, our neighborhood lake; below that is a shot Ms. B. took from the far end of the lake on her early afternoon walk; a clip from a video of the Mackinac Bridge between Michigan's upper and lower peninsulas; and a shot of U.S. 10, in Ms. B.'s hometown. I understand the smoke should be clearing up fairly shortly, and I hope so, as a trip to visit her parents is soon on the docket.

I do feel awful for all the people who are experiencing the worst of these fires. The residue we're seeing here is nothing compared to the damage being done farther north. Let us hope for lots of rain in the coming days.

A Deep Background Interview at the Lovecraft Ezine Podcast

Yesterday, Mike Davis — the brains and brawn behind the Lovecraft Ezine Podcast conducted a super-fun Deep Background interview with me for his Patreon subscribers (you can get a free sample at the Patreon site here). If you're into cosmic horror, or scary stuff in general, please consider subscribing. There are tons of benefits at every level, and Mike — along with the rest of the Ezine crew — are sharp as hell, nicer than almost any extra-dimensional entities I've ever met, and always downright fun.

Another Horror Collection — Obsidian Edition

KJK Publishing has announced another in its long-running The Horror Collection series, and this time, it's the Obsidian Edition, to be released later this year, most likely in the fall (ebook and trade paperback editions). This one will feature my story, "Willow Bend," along with 16 other tales of stone-cold terror (see the table of contents below).

"Willow Bend" was originally slated to appear in 2018, in an anthology titled Voices in the Darkness from Ulthar Press, but following the sad, untimely passing of Ulthar's owner, Sam Gafford, the book never happened. So, I'm mighty pleased that the story will at last see the light of day in an awesome new anthology. As always, I will post additional details and ordering information when those become available.

I still have more fiction forthcoming from KJK Publishing, so... beware the future, my friends!

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TABLE OF CONTENTS:
• "The Pale Mother" by Mladen Stanisavljević
• "A Demon in Bed" by Tom Blicq
• "Lips Beneath the Ice" by Nenad Mitrović
• "The Reunion" by J. Rocky Colavito
• "984" by Željko Obrenović
• "Buried at Sea" by C L Raven
• "Purity Ball" by Cody Goodfellow
• "The Gauntlet" by Mark Towse
• "Fix the Problem, Doctor" by Viggy Parr Hampton
• "Servile" by Jeffrey Thomas
• "Gashapon" by Ryan Colley
• "Willow Bend" by Stephen Mark Rainey
• "At the Water’s Edge" by Richard Clive
• "Offspring" by Brian Moreland
• "Appetite for Life" by David O’Mahony
• "Heartsick" by Brian Hodge
• "The Confression" by Shaun Hutson

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IN THE MEANTIME, The Horror Collection: Crystal Edition, which includes my story, "Magic Eye," is currently available, and you can pick it up here.

A Happy 250th

Kim, Mark, Kim, Mark

For Ms. B. and me, our social calendar for the July 4 weekend was pretty full. On Friday, we met our friends, the "Other Mark & Kim," at Gioia dell'Amore Cellars (formerly Autumn Creek) a short distance down the road in North Carolina. The winery and tasting room is beautiful, though the wine is mostly kind of meh. Their Meritage is pretty good. Kimberly and I have hung out many times with Mark & Kim in the company of several of our other NC friends, but I believe this was the first time we've gotten together as couples. We did have a great time.

Yesterday morning, on the Fourth, we met friends Bob & Yvonne at the Forest Park Country Club swimming pool, where I spent many days as a youngster, especially on Fourths of July. Also a lot fun, and we fortunately had a tent to protect us from the sun, as it was 100°F out there. We all spent a lot of our time in the water. To keep ourselves refreshed, we drank — brace yourselves — Claw Tails (a variant of the ubiquitous White Claw). You know, the stuff that is often described as "drinking TV static while someone yells the name of a fruit from another room." Yeah, that. I'm kind of embarrassed to say that I liked it. And so did Brugger. My God, what have we become? Anyway, the club provided burgers and hot dogs fresh off the grill, and I had a really tasty burger for lunch.

 

We spent the afternoon back home, largely de-sweating ourselves (this took some effort). Then late in the day, we headed back over to Bob & Yvonne's for a very enjoyable Fourth of July party. Lots of nice folks in attendance, all of whom we'd met on other occasions, including friends Scott & Jamie, with whom we sometimes do karaoke at one venue or another. We managed to drink a bit more without getting too toasted. Not Claw Tails this time.

Anyhoo, it was all good company, with good food and good drinks. So, here it is — Happy 250th to the USA, and fuck anyone, inside or outside (especially on the inside), who tries to hijack our ideals and our heritage. I have spoken.

Yvonne, Bob, Brugger, Old Dude

Fred, Bob, Jamie, Scott

Yvonne, Brugger

Magda, Old Dude, Stefan

Coming Soon — The Horror Collection: Fear Edition

I reckon this is something to look forward to in the new few weeks: the release of KJK Publishing's The Horror Collection: Fear Edition, edited by Kevin J. Kennedy. New entries in The Horror Collection series hit the streets about once a month, and this one includes my story, "Awakening," along with 18 other fearsome tales. The list of authors with stories in this one tells me I'll be in damned fine literary company. I will, of course, post any additional relevant details, as well as ordering links, when the book is available. In the meantime, you can shrink from this cover in fear and awe. Despite the fact I've overcome the arachnophobia that has afflicted me for most off my life, this thing pretty much gives the creeps. I like that.

I'll have stories in other upcoming editions of The Horror Collection series, and yes, these will surely make you shake and quake (or least squirm a little). Keep your eyes open!

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TABLE OF CONTENTS: 

• "The Nipples in Dad's Toolbox" by Ronald Kelly

• "Intruder Alert" by Devin Cabrera

• "Prey Drive" by Andreas Hort

• "Just a Spider" by Anthony Leibs

• "Grillfingers" by Bray Mattheson

• "Like A Good Family Should" by Josh Davis

• "Hunting in the Badlands" by A.M. Symes

• "J is for Jesusphobia" by William Meikle

• "Anniversary" by John Everson

• "Wailing Mona" by Tom Deady

• "Flagellum Dei" by Nenad Mitrović

• "Lost and Found" by Mark Morris

• "Voices" by Željko Obrenović

• "Awakening" by Stephen Mark Rainey

• "Pluck A Silken String" by Matthew R. Davis

• "Before It Comes Again" by Graham Masterton & Karolina Mogielska

• "Let the Sego Lilies Bleed" by Bryan Stubbles

• "Lost in Shinjuku Station" by Ryan Colley

• "Our Turn Too Will One Day Come" by Brian Hodge

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Todd Keisling's THE SUNDOWNER'S DANCE

Todd Keisling's The Sundowner's Dance is one of the best audiobooks I've listened to in ages. It's nice to have "mature" characters as the key players, and the characterizations feel spot-on. Malcolm Hillgartner's narration is also perfect — his voice captures each character believably and consistently, without ridiculous affectations that can ruin an otherwise good storyline. The plot unfolds slowly but with increasing tension, so it never feels bogged down — and the creep factor moves gradually from subtle to off the charts. A wonderful example of character-driven cosmic horror, and highly recommended.

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Todd Keisling's The Sundowner's Dance at Amazon.com

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Vivid Expressions

 

Every year, Piedmont Arts Association, our local arts center, features an exhibit called "Expressions," which showcases the work of local artists, and this is the second year that Ms. B. has entered some of her work. This year, both of her pieces — "Scarlet Elf Cups" and "Lake Superior" (shown above) — won purchase awards, meaning that one of the show's sponsors purchased the works prior to the show's opening. (In the left-hand photo, we see friend/artist Charles Hill's "Statue of Liberty" below her painting.)

 

"Expressions" typically has a theme, and this year's is the United States's 250th birthday. The exhibit showcases 150 works by 80 local artists, so receiving purchases awards for both of her entries is pretty damned impressive in my book. Kimberly has really devoted herself to her art in the past few years, especially since she joined Piedmont Arts a couple of years ago, so I love seeing her creative efforts so nicely rewarded.

 

In the early 1980s, after I graduated college with a Bachelor of Fine Art degree, I was an active member of Piedmont Arts, where I frequently exhibited and taught classes. I don't do much in the way of fine art anymore, but I very much enjoy revisiting my artistic roots at Piedmont Arts. And I'm sure Ms. B. will do plenty more exhibiting (and hopefully selling her work). "Expressions" will be up for the month of July, so if you're local, you should stop in and check out some truly excellent art.

L: "Scarlet Elf Cups" (pen & ink, watercolor); R: "Lake Superior" (mixed media); click to enlarge