Music on the Blog

You will notice I have added music to my blog. I decided to share with all of you some of the music I listened to while I wrote Shadow House. Admittedly the playlist I listened to while writing is considerably longer, and I wanted to share more of that music, but many of the music tracks I listened to while I wrote are not available on the various playlist services I looked through. Perhaps I will find a way to put more music on the blog later, but for now enjoy what I could find. Hopefully this will give you a taste for my inspiration for Shadow House.

Is the Publishing Industry Out of Touch?

Do you ever frequent national bookstore chains such as Barnes & Noble or Borders Books? Are you amazed by the variety of books housed in these stores? I used to be, until I have started to really dig into the publishing industry. Lat summer I stopped at a larger Barnes & Noble with my family. I was amazed at how many vampire books were prominently displayed throughout the store. We aren't talking about just one small table, but table after table and several end cap displays worth of vampire novels. Most of these vampire novels were about vampires going to school with human teens or young adults. How original.

What many average people do not realize is when they set foot into a national bookstore such as Barnes & Noble or Borders Books, they walk into a store that features books really only from only six publishers, called the Six Sisters in the industry. These six publishers are Random House, Penguin Putnam, HarperCollins, Holtzbrinck Publishing Holdings, Time Warner, and Simon & Schuster. It looks like there are more publishers represented in the stores because of the imprint labels that are ran by the Six Sisters. Don't be fooled by the differing names on the spines of the books.

When I was shopping my first book, I had a lot of agents and others in the publishing industry tell me it was good, but. The "but" was that it was not following the trends of the industry. You see, at the time the big six publishers decided what readers wanted to read, and that was about zombies and fallen angels. I seem to remember something in my college marketing class about the old school of thought that "we tell the customer what they want" attitude.

I know a lot of people who like to read, but find much of what the publishing industry is churning out these days trashy, boring, or repetitive. These big publishers, like the big Hollywood studios, are very risk adverse. They want sure-shot hit books. How many have chased after "the next Harry Potter" or "the next Twilight"? The fact of the matter is you sometimes have to take risks to win big. Many good books have been shut out of the publishing world in the past because someone sitting in their Manhattan high rise did not think it was very good.

With modern technology, namely the internet, the publishing world playing ground is flattening. Suddenly the Six Sisters are finding viable competition from smaller publishers and self-published authors. Yes, that's right, self-published authors have appeared on best seller lists in the past few years. The publishing industry - the big guys, that is - is in a period of lean sales. Yet, a few months ago I ran across a report that general book sales in the U.S. are way up. Those of us on the supposed fringes of the publishing world are closer to the people, living in the real world amongst real people, are we are giving the people what they really want instead of trying to tell them what they want.

NBC Overhaul Includes New Paranormal Show

After giving up Medium, NBC seems to be going back to the paranormal with a new series called The Event. The Event will be part of NBC's new Monday night lineup. Not much is known about the show's plot so far, but this is what NBC has on its website:

"The Event" is an emotional high-octane conspiracy thriller that follows Sean Walker (Jason Ritter, "The Class"), an Everyman who investigates the mysterious disappearance of his fiancée, Leila (Sarah Roemer, "Disturbia"), and unwittingly begins to expose the biggest cover-up in U.S. history. Sean's quest will send ripples through the lives of an eclectic band of strangers, including: newly elected U.S. President Martinez (Blair Underwood, "Dirty Sexy Money"); Sophia (Emmy Award nominee Laura Innes, "ER"), who is the leader of a mysterious group of detainees; and Sean's shadowy father-in-law (Scott Patterson, "Gilmore Girls"). Their futures are on a collision course in a global conspiracy that could ultimately change the fate of mankind.

 Will this series sink into convoluted ridiculousness like the series Lost? Only time will tell. Will this show be any good, or will it follow the trend of so many other NBC series? Only time will tell. Am I excited for this series? No, in all honesty not really. I struggle with the episodic story cycle of shows like Heroes (which is getting the boot in favor of The Event) or Lost. I have the suspicion many of the ridiculous plot elements that are inserted into series after the first season or two are pushed by executives rubbing their hands, who may not appreciate the finer points of storytelling as much as they do ratings. Funny thing is good storytelling could draw in more fans, but then again what do I know? I am just a writer.

Another "Real" Paranormal Movie

First there was the Blair Witch, then Paranormal Activity and The Fourth Kind. Now another "real" paranormal movie is coming to the big screen, called Last Exorcism. This one is about a revered who goes to a farm to exorcise the demons from a girl (not a familiar plot at all) and of course gets more than her bargains for. Will this movie go far? It's probably too soon to tell, but the danger of it slipping into the cliche abyss is high. Still, those who are obsessed with exorcisms and gratuitous violence will probably flock to it.

On a side note, I enjoyed The Exorcism of Emily Rose since it was so much more than just a movie about an exorcism. The story went out on a limb and actually had a point to it, and the mainstream horror movie audiences hated it. Obviously the movie was punished for not having dismembered arms flying through the air, or torture scenes, or full frontal nudity, or any of the other garbage that fills many horror movies these days. Sorry, but I prefer my horror be more like the classics such as Hitchcock or Poe. Psycho didn't have anything graphic; it didn't, until someone decided to remake it that way. Yeah, that movie was a must-miss.

Writer's Block

I don't believe in writer's block. I used to, when I was younger and less experienced, but a couple of my college professors convinced me writer's block is a fictional disease. I'm sure I have made some writers' blood boil, but that is my honest viewpoint.

Now, I'm not saying that ideas always flow like water. Sometimes the ideas come in fits and starts, and sometimes they dry out like a car running on empty. Unlike a car running on empty, though, your brain is never empty (unless you are one of the unfortunate brain donors I see in the news from time to time).

If the subject you are writing on is just not "clicking" in your brain, write something else. What should you write? I don't know, write a blog post like me, or write about what you did over the weekend, or maybe about something that happened to you in your childhood. In all honesty, it doesn't matter what you write, just as long as you keep writing.

Try this exercise any time you feel "writer's block" coming on. Keep writing. The worst thing you can do is abandon your computer, your notebook, or whatever you use to write and "collect your thoughts." There are other things you can do to stimulate brain activity, but you must not abandon writing, no matter how hard things are or how tempting it is to do other things.

The Devil's Nightmare

Here is a sneak peak of my book which is coming out in 2011, called The Devil's Nightmare. Stay tuned to this blog for more information. Here is your sneak peak:

The love of a mother knows no bounds. After her son is taken by the nightmarish figure known only as the Purple Man, Christine Ellington realizes she is the police's only suspect. With no other options, Christine must seek out the Purple Man's secretive society in a desperate attempt to get her son back. Guided by a homeless man and the journal Christine's husband kept shortly before his suicide, Christine is forced to navigate a strange underworld populated by dangerous psychic warriors and frightening creatures. Christine's search makes her the target of an organization that would see her dead before she can uncover the truth about the Purple Man and his connection to Christine's late husband.

Can't Please Everyone

There is an old adage that you can't please everyone all of the time. There is a lot of truth in this old saying, and it especially applies to writing. Writers who get bent out of shape because some people don't like what they've written, how they've written it, etc just don't get it. If I get a strong emotional reaction from someone because of something I have written, then I consider that writing piece a success.

Think about it: some of the most interesting books written today are hotly criticized by a number of people. Why? Well, for one, some people are bitter their books are not selling as much. On another point, though, these books often contain something that makes them a little controversial. As Stephen King (who is no stranger to controversy) once wrote, you should never lie in your writing.

I'm not advocating becoming the Marilyn Manson of the writing world. What I am saying, though, is to not be afraid to be yourself and stop worrying if someone won't like what you write. I write horror, and I know some people who are horrified by this fact (pun intended). Seriously, though, words should be moving. Stories should stir up emotions. Some people are uncomfortable with certain emotions, mostly because they are insecure, and so they will have a negative reaction.

If you are out there trying to make everyone love you, your writing will suck. Yes, suck. That's not a word I use a lot, mostly because it is so overdone in our society, but in this context I think it 100% sums up what I mean. Good writing doesn't come from being the overly-eager-to-please-everyone-wallflower. By trying to please everyone your writing will be boring, bland, flat, uninteresting.

It seems, though, that many fellow writers think they have some God-given right to tear apart other peoples' beliefs, to trample on what they hold sacred, and to shove the dirty laundry in everyone's face. This all started with confession poetry way back, and it has gotten old and tired. One reason I think TV shows like Medium do so well is the characters are real, not completely twisted and incredibly screwed up. Joe Dubois is not cheating on Allison while he sells heroin on the side. The daughters are not involved in gangs, government conspiracies, or the like. They are real people with real flaws who in general are just trying to live life. People connect with that, but again there are the haters of the show. You just can't please everyone.

Be yourself, write what you feel, don't be a freak show or too bland. Yeah, it's not as easy as it sounds. You have to figure out for yourself how to accomplish all of that. Good luck.

Child Abductions

Today a child was reported missing here in Utah, only later for it to be revealed his mother and step father had murdered him and dumped the body in the mountains. I can't even imagine what the boy's father must be going through.

I am currently writing a book that revolves around a fictional case of child abduction. Though the subject is unpleasant, I think it is important for people to understand to a degree what goes through the mind of a parent whose child has been taken.

Perhaps most frustrating about cases like today's is the fact that people who kill their child, etc then report them missing or kidnapped really take away from cases where a child really has been abducted. Unfortunately, I think there are many people who automatically look to the parents first, and unfortunately these people are often justified. What about those cases where the family really does not know anything?

I think of the Elizabeth Smarts of the world, the children whose family is implicated when they have nothing to do with their child's disappearance. If others who did do something to their children did not file false police reports about a missing child, a lot of time would not be wasted in actual child abduction cases. It is tragic that there are those who violate society's trust, which ends up costing others who have a genuine need for help looking for their child. Unfortunately, I don't think the people who kill their own child have any conscience at all, so they don't care about the harm they indirectly inflict on suffering families.

Skinwalker Ranch

Recently I wrote a two-part story on Examiner about a place here in Utah called Skinwalker Ranch. You can read the first part here and the second part here. The reported facts surrounding the story of Skinwalker Ranch is admittedly extremely bizarre. I was not able to find any conclusive evidence that the Ute Tribe has a directive for members to avoid the land due to some curse from the Navajos, so I did not focus too much on that aspect of the story. I also was not able to find any information about why the Navajos would place such a curse on another tribe.

Perhaps most strange to me is the involvement of scientists in the case, at the bidding of a billionaire who has great interest in space tourism and colonization. The more I dig into Skinwalker Ranch the more unbelievable the whole thing becomes. It is very rare indeed that anyone claims poltergeist activity, cryptid sightings, and extraterrestrial sightings all in the same area, especially in a short amount of time. So there are some who think the Chupacabra is an alien, but this is on a whole other plane...

What do I think of Skinwalker Ranch? Is it an elaborate hoax or is something else going on? A part of me always remains skeptical about paranormal events, not because I don't believe in them but because there are so many hoaxes out there. The ol' Bigfoot-in-the-freezer has been about the most enraging -- and stupid -- hoaxes of recent history. I know of websites that proudly declare things like 5,000 people in southern Belgium saw an alien craft land and aliens come out of it or other completely ridiculous things. Sadly, there are those who believe anything presented to them, and there are those who prey on that.

So did any of those reported events at Skinwalker Ranch actually happen? I have no idea, but the stuff seems almost too strange to have been made up. Still, a part of me remains healthfully skeptical.

Shadow House Has Gone International

 
Word has been spreading about my horror novel Shadow House, and the book is now for sale on several international bookseller websites. I was not too surprised to see that the book is for sale in the United Kingdom, but some of the other countries where it is for sale really surprised me. If you are an international fan and have been looking to buy Shadow House in paper form, check this list to see if you country is covered by one of these sellers, many of whom ship to nearby countries.

- Australian website Holistic Page is selling Shadow House here.
- Odyssey 360 is selling Shadow House here. The company is based out of Adyar, India.
- One of the British booksellers, called Langton Info Services, has Shadow House listed on its website here.
- Another Australian bookseller, called Emporium Books, lists Shadow House for sale here.
- If you are in the United Kingdom, check out Amazon's UK site's listing for Shadow House here.
- Another bookseller from India, Infinibeam, is selling Shadow House here to over a dozen countries, including China, United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, the Netherlands, and Russia.
- Yet another British website, an all-things-entertainment store called cdWow!, is selling Shadow House here.
- The New Zealand version of cdWow! has Shadow House here.  
- Not to leave the Canadians out, Amazon's Canada website has Shadow House here for my neighbors to the north.
- Yet another Indian bookseller, called Flipkart, has Shadow House on its online store here.
- And finally another bookstore based in England, called Eruditor, has Shadow House posted on its site here.