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Regular readers of this blog are no strangers to the Lovecraft eZine.  Not only has the Zine published my stuff, but Mike Davis, one of the co-founders of the site, has had nothing but praise for That Which Should Not Be.  What a lot of people don’t know is that Mike struggles with a severe case of Fibromyalgia and is regularly in debilitating pain.  Now Mike faces some pretty steep medical bills, and he needs our help.

Mike works tirelessly to help bring to light the works of H.P. Lovecraft and to support those artists who are working with the Mythos today.  He doesn’t make any money from it.  His is a work of love, and normally he doesn’t ask for a dime.  He needs our help now, and I hope you will join me in giving it.  Go check out the Lovecraft eZine and give what you can.  There’s no amount too small, and it will go to a great cause.

Stumbled upon this post today.  The Paranormal About.com site has cataloged the best ghost photos ever taken.  Have a look, and see if you can debunk any of them.  Let us know in the comments if you can!

Got some great news today.  The publishers have reviewed the manuscript for my next novel, The Void, and we are set for a summer release!  I don’t want to give too much away about the book, but suffice it to say that it’s definitely horror, it’s definitely scary, and it’s definitely set in the future.  Of course, if you are interested in learning more about the book, you could always pick up a copy of my award-winning short story, The Substance of Shadow . . . .

Anniversaries are funny things.  Nothing happened on September 11, 2011.  It was just another day.  And yet, and yet.  I suppose it is how the mind works, how we deal with time and memory.  Does a man love his wife any less on the day before their 25^th wedding anniversary?  Was the pain of loss any less on September 10, 2011?  Certainly not.  Maybe it’s just that in the hustle and bustle of our daily lives, we often fail to find time to think on such things.  And so they simmer below the surface, waiting to burst forth.

Today is an anniversary of a death.  It will go unnoticed by most, and being the 75^th such anniversary, I seriously doubt that anyone feels the pain of loss that those who knew him must have felt in the days and the years that followed March 15, 1937, the day that H.P. Lovecraft succumbed to cancer of the small intestine at the age of 46.  In life, Lovecraft never received the praise he deserved, and even with the benefit of his massive influence on popular culture, he is still relatively unknown.

But that influence is massive.  The debt I owe him is obvious, but I’ll be bold—you’ve never read a horror novel or seen a horror movie that was produced after 1950 that was not influenced by H.P. Lovecraft.  He is the Edgar Allen Poe of the last century, and his ideas rest at the heart of modern horror.

I could say more, but the fact is others have said it first and said it better.  Rest in Peace, Howard.  Perhaps we will see you again when the stars come round right once more.

“Heaven knows where I’ll end up – but it’s a safe bet that I’ll never be at the top of anything! Nor do I particularly care to be.”  –H. P. Lovecraft

Occasionally I put out a plea for reviews.  This is that occasion again.  Fact is, you may love a book, but if you don’t let the world know, then your silent love and affection is all the author ever sees.  And we appreciate that, no doubt.  But what we appreciate even more is for you to let your little light shine.  Shine on, you crazy diamond, and give That Which Should Not Be your feedback here.

Writing a book is sorta like running for president; you’ve got to be a little bit full of yourself to do it.  I mean seriously, how much of an egomaniac do you have to be to think anybody cares what you think about much of anything?

Oh no! How ever will I tell what kind of book this is?!

Yesterday I noticed something that seems to really exemplify this tendency.  I was in a book store, buying a guide for monster hunting.  I happened to glance at a table of “literary fiction.”  Written on every book was the phrase, “A Novel.”  So for instance, you might have a book called, The Pretension of the Novelist.  And then, somewhere randomly on the cover it would say,  A Novel. 

A novel?  What, am I stupid?  Are you concerned that I thought The Art of Fielding was actually an instructional guide on defensive baseball?  I don’t know, maybe I’m overreacting.  What do you think?

One of my favorite websites, the Lovecraft eZine, announced the themes they’ll be publishing this year.  They are:

• Halloween themes for the October issue.
• Christmas themes for the December issue.
• Lovecraftian Sherlock Holmes stories for an issue sometime this year.
• Deep Ones/Dagon/Innsmouth stories for an issue sometime this year.
• AND, I want to do an “Woman-theme” issue, for lack of a better term.  For this issue, I want female writers only.

Sounds pretty interesting.  I may try my hand at some of these, though the last one might be kinda difficult. . .

So Runs the World Away, Josh Ritter’s latest album, is a tour de force of musical talent and lyricism.  Each song is a gem unto itself, but the album is a diamond.  “Folk Bloodbath” is the pinnacle of the album, with Ritter seamlessly combining the Gothic quality of traditional American folk music with the melodic beauty of Ritter’s work.  I present to you “Folk Bloodbath.”

My novel, That Which Should Not Be, is in the top 100 on Kindle’s horror sales list. If you have a kindle and you haven’t picked it up but have been meaning to, do so now. Let’s get that sucker to number 1!

Check out my collection of three short stories on Smashwords.  I call it Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mewed.  Catchy title, huh?  Three stories for .99.  Here’s the description.

From the mind that brought you the award winning Lovecraftian novel, That Which Should Not Be, comes three tales of creeping terror. A preacher learns that dead really is better in “Death Comes Late.” The hot wind scours L0s Angeles in “The Wind Passes Like A Fire.” A doctor learns how to control the minds of men in “Freedom of Speech.” Read them if you dare, but beware the evil that lurks in the darkness, for something wicked this way comes!