Hey, I wrote a novel. It’s called Hangman’s Jam, and it’s awesome, probably the best book ever written, and definitely the best book you will ever read. It’s packed with love, sex, death, murder, music, mayhem, and cosmic monsters. Check it out for yourself. But first, let me tell you what blows about my debut… Continue reading Sex, Drugs, Rock ‘n Roll, and Tentacles! or Why My Debut Novel Sucks
I published this feel-good, self improvement piece in January 2009. I thought it was pretty schmaltzy, but people seemed to like it, so here it is. The advice is still sound, and will work just as well for you in 2013 as it did in 2009…probably even better! (Your results may vary.) Happy New Year… Continue reading A New Year, A New Attitude, A New You — 5 Easy Steps
This column was published in December 2006, but my feelings haven’t changed —you gotta hang your own Christmas lights. What is it about holiday home decorations that I find so appealing? Maybe it’s that for a month or so out of every year, a month when trees and foliage are at their most dull, a… Continue reading Holiday Home Decorating: Say No To Pros
This novel doesn’t have the same bare-knuckled emotional wallop of The Road, but it still qualifies as a modern masterpiece. Blood Meridian or the Evening Redness in the West is an old West cowboy novel, full of strange-yet-authentic language and characters. Like good concrete poetry, McCarthy’s work reflects the world he creates. A long ride… Continue reading Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy
The Road humbles me with its greatness. It is one of the most amazing novels I’ve ever had the uncomfortable pleasure of experiencing. McCarthy creates a post-apocalyptic wasteland that is as desolate and terrifying as any ever imagined. The hardships and tribulations faced by the nomadic father/son team in the novel (The Man/The Boy) are … Continue reading The Road by Cormac McCarthy
Joe Konrath (aka Jack Kilborn, aka J.A. Konrath) is a kind of folk hero to struggling authors everywhere. His blog, A Newbie’s Guide To Publishing, outlines his success as a self-published novelist, and encourages others to follow a similar path. He makes a compelling argument for DIY book publishing, and the demise of the industry’s… Continue reading Afraid by Jack Kilborn
My son unearthed a bunch of my old newspaper clippings recently, so I used an ImageToText app on my iPhone to scan this one from February 28, 1996. The app worked pretty well, and idea of the government selling your mailing address (not to mention email) to marketers is as frightening and relevant today as… Continue reading “Big Sister” Is Selling Your Name
Just in time for Turkey Day comes this cheerful little ditty from November 2005. Happy Thanksgiving! Feeling bloated with turkey and burnt-out on football? Well, sit back, relax, and allow me to acquaint you with the real story of Thanksgiving, the one you probably weren’t taught in grade school. The traditional history of Thanksgiving goes… Continue reading True History of Thanksgiving Will Turn Your Stomach
While Garton and Lansdale bring lighthearted EC-style chills to their Halloween tales, Stewart O’Nan takes it to a deeper and darker place in his coming-of-age tale, Monsters. O’Nan gives us some meat to chew on in this short tale—the lost of innocence, the power of guilt, the purpose and function of religion and prayer, and… Continue reading Monsters: A Halloween Short Story by Stewart O’Nan
Will Castleton is US Marshall with psychic abilities, and David Bain is the community college English professor who created him. Both seem like interesting characters; Castleton with his sometimes-too-late “visions” of crime victims, and Bain with his ability to carve out a niche for himself in the self-pubbed crime fiction genre. Island Ghosts is a… Continue reading Island Ghosts: A Will Castleton Adventure by David Bain
