Monthly Archives: January 2015
Come Conbust It this March!
It’s official — I’ve just registered for Conbust 2015 at Smith College in Northampton, MA!
Me with members of the Salem Trayend Band, who presented a Civil War era bayonet fencing drill practiced by the Salem Zouaves. To learn more, visit http://salemtraynedband.org/
Conbust isn’t just an anime con — it covers everything from Read the rest of this entry
Pilimancy’s just one thing on tap in ANTHOLOGY YEAR THREE: DISTANT DYING EMBER
Anthology Year Three: A Distant Dying Ember, published by The Four Horsemen — who have produced AnthoCon in Portsmouth, New Hampshire since 2011 — is now available in Kindle format (print edition is forthcoming). It features my flash fiction piece “skin&hair teeth&bones.” Although I’d written it as an assignment in the J. Eckleburg Workshops’ Magical Realism course in December 2013, the inspiration for the story came from a jar of baby teeth Read the rest of this entry
The Power of Setting
A view of Gillette castle from the path.
I’ve just finished stage managing a production of Ken Ludwig’s The Game’s Afoot or Holmes for the Holidays at Theatreworks New Milford in Connecticut. This murder mystery is set in Gillette Castle, which was the real-life home of William Gillette (who brought Sherlock Holmes to the stage) in nearby East Haddam.
It’s open to the public, so some of the cast and crew field tripped it. Our experience walking through the rooms brought a new level of realism to our performance; at the castle, we could see where the scenes take place; on the set, we could imagine the true backdrop as we worked.
Writers want to do the same for readers — we want to bring the world alive for them; make it three-dimensional and real. While it’s often noted the secret to success in this area is the use of the five senses, I find it’s more specific than that. Here are the five keys to creating a vivid setting (in no particular order): Read the rest of this entry
“Shitty Almonds” now available in BUGS — Teaser & TOC here!
What happens when a jealous bridesmaid is Read the rest of this entry
Short Story Sunday: Short stories that’ll haunt me forever
Lately I’ve been working on the overwhelming task of thinning out my book collection; it’s something no book lover likes to do, but let’s face it, every once in a while it has to be done, either to clear clutter or make room for more.
It’s no surprise that a good portion of my collection is devoted to short story collections. I’ve read my share of Read the rest of this entry
