A Far Out Fantastic Site

Credit: Pixabay.com I’ll admit that I have not read a lot of Graham Masterton’s horror fiction as great as a writer he is. One of the few works I’ve read by him was his novel The Manitou. I read it a few years back and would be willing to read it again. It’s a really neat and well-written book that utilizes Native American myth, particularly that of the book’s title. A manitou is a medicine man spirit in which the one in this book is not near as much a healer as he is a destroyer. The novel was made into a movie in 1979 which, although not as good as the book, was really good with plenty of terrifying scenes. I’ll have to do a Book-To-Movie review of it here someday. Anyway, one of the best modern horror authors, Masterton has been chosen by the Horror Writers Association as a recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award . This award is presented annually to writers and other artists whose work has significantly influenced the horror genre. The award will be pres...

Credit: Pixabay.com I meant to post about Sinister Creature Con a couple weeks ago but several other events came up . This convention for all things of the horror genre occurred Saturday and Sunday the weekend of June 16 th at the Scottish Rite Center in Sacramento. I only attended Saturday and was preparing swag up to the minute I had to leave the house for the con. Although this con that occurs twice a year in Sacramento--once in the summer, once in the fall--honours both mainstream and indie horror artists, it caters to the latter most of all. It’s an event where indie writers and artists like myself can find support and encouragement that we often don’t get elsewhere. In the Dealers’ Room Sinister Creature’s dealers’ room on Saturday was mostly filled with the arts and crafts of indie creators, most of who work in the horror genre. The work on display and for sale included everything from paintings of famous movie monsters to handmade goth jewelry to horror au...

Credit: Wizard World I apologise for missing last week’s post. I was busy with a special writing project that was due any day and so I didn’t have time to post anything except to my Facebook page. You can visit my Facebook page for any updates in between blog posts.  I promised you a fuller report of Wizard World Comic Con Sacramento in my last post and so that’s what I have here for you today. However, I don’t have enough time to go over all three days of the con in one post, so I’m going to break up the coverage into three parts. The con offered a lot of great events such as cosplays and panels on comic book creation, including art and writing. I’m not a costumer but I just dug seeing the people who are and that go way, way out with their apparel! And that’s a great thing. To see what I mean, check out the photos in my last post if you haven’t done so yet.  But my favourite part about sci fi and fantasy conventions is talking to the other artists an...

A while back, I talked about how interviews of some of my favourite authors motivateme to write better, especially during those times that I don’t feel like writing for whatever reason. Well I thought I would put together a short list of documentaries about four of the world’s most famous horror authors since we’re nearing Halloween. Below are documentaries and bio films of Mary Shelley, Edgar Allen Poe, H.P. Lovecraft, and Stephen King. All four of these can be viewed for free on YouTube, and one is also at Biography.com. Frankenstein: Birth of a Monster : This is a dramatisation of Mary Shelley’s life as a writer. Originally aired on the BBC network in 2003. They Mystery ofEdgar Allen Poe : This was a Biography channel presentation. You can watch either on YouTube or at Biography.com, but I strongly suggest you watch it at the latter; the YouTube version cuts off the introduction and opening credits (probably to prevent potential infringement issues). ...

Credit: Pixabay.com This is one of my favourite times of the year. A time when the darker weather comes (though it hasn’t come enough here in Sacramento yet), the days grow shorter, and a post-harvest haze permeates the air filtering out the sunlight by a few layers and giving off a burnt aroma . Darker days (literally darker, that is) call for darker stories and events that grow out of the horror genre. We like to take on the forms of our favourite creatures of darkness through costuming. Well, as much as I love the season of the witch, more commonly known as Halloween, I couldn’t come up with anything relevant to write about for this post. Yet it’s still early in the season but it will fly by faster than a witch on her broom or a vampire bat fleeing the oncoming dawn. So I dug up this list of six phantastic blog finds for your horror-reading zombie appetite. But there will be a special Halloween treat for you (and maybe even a trick) by the weekend of Halloween as there h...

Well, “Circa Sixty Years Dead” is one week old today, and my previous book, The Fool’s Illusion, will be three years old later this month! Several of you took advantage of the free giveaway of “Circa” last weekend , and so I want to thank you all. When you finish reading it, I ask that you leave a review at the book’s Amazon page at your earliest convenience, even if it’s just one or two sentences. For those of you who missed the freebies, you can still get “Circa” at the low price of 99 cents . I’m not sure when or if there will be another free giveaway for my newest short horror story. However, I am planning some more promotions where you can get a discount or even win a free copy. Watch out for promotions like these as we get closer to Halloween, the time to celebrate the horror genre! Also, I have an online book tour in the plans so watch out for updates on that, too. "Circa Sixty Years Dead" Now Available for Purchase! Photo Credit: Steven Arellano Rose, Jr. S...