When I Was Up In Canberra.

Last week was insanely busy.

I finished the school term, and then had three days in which to write two assignments for university, and prepare three stories for submission.

I finished writing one story, rewrote both it and another, then tweaked a third - subbing them all before the deadline.  The assignments were also submitted just in time.  And then I was able to relax.

It rained the entire eight hour drive up to Conflux, but we had a great time - taking it in turns to choose CDs and talking crap. It was dark by the time we got here, and the map we had wasn't ideal. But we found our hotel and the room is fine, and pretty soon we were catching up with familiar faces in the lounge.

So far the con has been a lot of fun. I attended a writing workshop which just confirmed my current practices, and introduced me to a few new ideas as well.

I also picked up a copy of the Year's Best Australian Horror and Fantasy, in which I am listed on the Recommended Reading List, and name-checked on page 22. The paragraph describes Festive Fear as being a macho collection, which is something I can see and agree with. I would like to point out, however, that I don't believe my story, Ghost of the Heart, fits that label.

No major problems so far, apart from the lousy service in one restaurant. If you're ever there, make sure they have the ingredients before they take your order. Not only were they delivering the meals of people who placed their orders well after mine, but it took another twenty minutes before they told me I couldn't have what I wanted.

Still, if that's the biggest problem I have in my life, then I don't really have much to worry about.

You Never Know...

As a teacher, you have to be careful in what you say and do.  The kids are always watching, and they'll comment on your clothes, your shoes, your hair.  They'll mention that they saw you in shops, buying certain products, looking at particular items. They'll tell you that they noticed you with certain people, going into the movies, at restaurants.

One day, a couple of years ago, I had an idea. So I wrote a story around it - a kind of Beatles influenced, Christmas, 1969, romantic ghost story set in Australia where December can be 40 degrees celcius.

And then I needed a title.

I stole Ghost of the Heart from a song by Daniel Amos. And then the story sold, after a few rejections, and was published in Festive Fear, a limited edition anthology from a small press.

But someone must have seen it. I'm still thrilled to be included in the Recommended Reading list for 2010.

Since that happened, I've had emails and texts from people - some I never expected.

As I said, you never know who's watching.

Year’s Best Australian Fantasy And Horror: Recommended Reading List.

Liz Grzyb and Talie Helene have compiled a list of the year's recommended reading - and I'm included!

I'm over the moon, and honoured to be listed among these writers.
 

Gitte Christensen's story made it into the anthology - always great to see friends do well.

I must mention Steve Clark at Tasmaniac Publications who bought my story. Two of the stories from Festive Fear (Michael Radburn being the other) are included on the list. Congratulations to all these writers.

Year’s Best Australian Fantasy and Horror: Recommended Reading List: 2010

Deborah Biancotti, “Home Turf” Baggage
Jenny Blackford, “Adam” Kaleidotrope #9
Simon Brown, “Sweep” Sprawl
Mary Elizabeth Burroughs, “The Flinchfield Dance” Black Static #17
Steve Cameron, “Ghost Of The Heart” Festive Fear
Stephanie Campisi, “Seven” Scenes From The Second Storey
Matthew Chrulew, “The Nullabor Wave” World’s Next Door
Bill Congreve, “The Traps of Tumut” Souls Along The Meridian
Rjurik Davidson, “The Cinema Of Coming Attractions” The Library of Forgotten Books
Stephen Dedman, “For Those In Peril On The Sea” Haunted Legends
Felicity Dowker, “From Little Things” Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine #43
Felicity Dowker, “The House On Juniper Road” Worlds Next Door
Felicity Dowker, “Bread And Circuses” Scary Kisses
Will Elliott, “Dhayban” Macabre: A Journey Through Australia’s Darkest Fears
Mark Farrugia, “A Bag Full Of Arrows” Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine #48
Jason Fischer, “The House Of Nameless” Writers of the Future Vol. xxvi
Bob Franklin, “Take The Free Tour” Under Stones
Christopher Green, “Jumbuck” Aurealis #44
Paul Haines, “Her Gallant Needs” Sprawl
Lisa L Hannett, “Singing Breath Into The Dead” Music For Another World
Lisa L Hannett, “Commonplace Sacrifices” On Spec
Lisa L Hannett, “Tiny Drops” Midnight Echo #4
Richard Harland, “Shakti” Tales of the Talisman
Richard Harland, “The Fear” Macabre: A Journey Through Australia’s Darkest Fears
Narrelle M Harris, “The Truth About Brains” Best New Zombie Tales: Volume 2
Robert Hood, “Wasting Matilda” The Mammoth Book Of The Zombie Apocalypse
George Ivanoff, “Trees” Short & Scary
Trent Jamieson, “The Driver’s Assistant” Ticon4
Pete Kempshall, “Dead Letter Drop” Close Encounters of the Urban Kind
Pete Kempshall, “Signature Walk” Sprawl
Martin Livings, “Lollo” Close Encounters of the Urban Kind
Penelope Love, “Border Crossing” Belong
Geoffrey Maloney & Andrew Bakery, “Sleeping Dogs” Midnight Echo #4
Tracie McBride, “Lest We Forget” (audio) Spectrum Collection
Kirstyn McDermott, “Monsters Among Us” Macabre: A Journey Through Australia’s Darkest Fears
Andrew J McKiernan, “All The Clowns In Clown Town” Macabre: A Journey Through Australia’s Darkest Fears
Simon Petrie, “Running Lizard” Rare Unsigned Copy: tales of Rocketry, Ineptitude, and Giant Mutant Vegetables
Michael Radburn, “They Own The Night” Festive Fear
Janeen Samuel, “My Brother Quentin” Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine #44
Angela Slatter, “A Porcelain Soul” Sourdough and other stories
Angela Slatter, “Gallowberries” Sourdough and other stories
Angela Slatter, “The Dead Ones Don’t Hurt You” The Girl With No Hands and other tales
Cat Sparks, “All the Love in the World” Sprawl
Grant Stone, “Dead Air” (poem) Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine #46
Lucy Sussex, “Albert & Victoria/Slow Dreams” Baggage
Anna Tambour, “Gnawer Of The Moon Seeks Summit Of Paradise” Sprawl
Kaaron Warren, “Sins Of The Ancestors” Dead Sea Fruit
Kaaron Warren, “The Coral Gatherer” Dead Sea Fruit
Kaaron Warren, “Hive Of Glass” Baggage
David Witteveen, “Perfect Skin” Cthulhu’s Dark Cults




And those in the Anthology:


RJ Astruc: “Johnny and Babushka”
Peter M Ball: “L’esprit de L’escalier”
Alan Baxter: “The King’s Accord”
Jenny Blackford: “Mirror”
Gitte Christensen: “A Sweet Story”
Matthew Chrulew: “Schubert By Candlelight”
Bill Congreve: “Ghia Likes Food”
Rjurik Davidson: “Lovers In Caeli-Amur”
Felicity Dowker: “After the Jump”
Dale Elvy: “Night Shift”
Jason Fischer: “The School Bus”
Dirk Flinthart: “Walker”
Bob Franklin: “Children’s Story”
Christopher Green: “Where We Go To Be Made Lighter”
Paul Haines: “High Tide At Hot Water Beach”
L.L. Hannett: “Soil From My Fingers”
Stephen Irwin: “Hive”
Gary Kemble: “Feast Or Famine”
Pete Kempshall: “Brave Face”
Tessa Kum: “Acception”
Martin Livings: “Home”
Maxine McArthur: “A Pearling Tale”
Kirstyn McDermott: “She Said”
Andrew McKiernan: “The Memory Of Water”
Ben Peek: “White Crocodile Jazz”
Simon Petrie: “Dark Rendezvous”
Lezli Robyn: “Anne-droid of Green Gables”
Angela Rega: “Slow Cookin’ ”
Angela Slatter: “The Bone Mother”
Angela Slatter & LL Hannett: “The February Dragon”
Grant Stone: “Wood”
Kaaron Warren: “That Girl”
Janeen Webb: “Manifest Destiny”

Daniel Amos On Tour.

Daniel Amos, my favourite band (after The Beatles) are touring for the first time in around twenty years. They've regularly recorded (in various guises) since they formed in the early 70s. I've been a huge fan of theirs since the late 70s. And now they're touring! With merchandise and everything!

They've never been to Australia, and probably never will. And so I came very close to flying to the U.S. for a show or two.

I've been faithful, bought everything they've ever released over all those years, and loved  most of it  (and at least appreciated what they were trying to do with the rest.) Heck, the first story I ever sold, Ghost of the Heart (in Festive Fear) is named after one of their songs.

But they just aren't big enough to ever come here to me. Which means I'd have to go to them.

How not big are they? The bass player, Tim Chandler, is a highly respected session musician who is currently not going on tour with them because he can't get away from his day job.  Their guitarist, Greg Flesch, is a scientist at NASA who plays guitar when he's not nudging rockets around, and their main man, Terry Taylor, barely makes a living from music.

And as for Ed McTaggart? Well, no-one seems really sure what he does when he's not parked behind his drums. Ed seems to take vacations, though.

As I said, I seriously considered flying over to see a few shows of this legendary band. I figure it may be my last ever opportunity to see them. My wife even suggested I do it. But how can I justify all that money to go for a couple of concerts.

Sigh. I live in hope that one day circumstances will allow me to see and hear them live.

Where's Steve?

Normal Programming Will Resume Shortly.

It’s been a busy couple of weeks. I survived Christmas and the New Year and I’ve travelled around half the state and had a great time.

Here's what I've read so far this year. (Well, the Keith Richards one I started just after Christmas.) I'll have a real post soon.

Life                                        Keith Richards

Travels in Nihilon                    Alan Sillitoe

Looking For Jake                    China Mieville

Unicorn Variations                   Roger Zelazny

The Virgin and the Gypsy         D.H. Lawrence

Festive Fear: Global Edition:     Edited by: Steve Clark

Currently Reading:

The New Nature of the Catastrophe           
                  Edited by: Michael Moorcock

An Evening of Long Goodbyes                  
                  Paul Murray

They're Here...

During morning tea on Friday, my copies of Festive Fear: Global Edition arrived. Of course my colleagues had a look and a few even asked about where to buy a copy. It is sold out, and so I had to advise them to look at a few overseas sellers who still have limited copies in stock.

I must say the book looks beautiful - fabulous artwork and layouts. Steve Clark at Tasmaniac has done a wonderful job. Congratulations on maintaining the already high standard and reputation Tasmaniac Publications holds.

It was a real thrill to open it and find my story inside. I now look forward to reading it, within the context of the stories surrounding it.

Turn Me On, Dead Man...

I love conspiracy theories.  Not that I actually believe them, but I find them a lot of fun. And my favourite one would have to be the whole 'Paul is Dead' one.  You know, Paul McCartney supposedly died in a car crash on 9th November, 1966 and was replaced by Williams Campbell (Billy Shear - Billy's Here - geddit?) so that thousands of fans worldwide wouldn't kill themselves.  Of course, the remaining three (as well as all those others who would have to know about it) kept quiet about it forever, and even went so far as filling their albums and songs with clues for us.

It makes no sense at all, but it sure is fun.

I watched a DVD yesterday, in which a tape purporting to be George Harrison (but actually sounded like a talentless American actor doing an impression of what he thought a Liverpudlian should sound like) confesses to his involvement in the cover-up. It even went so far as to claim the only witness to the accident was a woman named Rita who was bought off.  Later, she survived an assassination attempt by MI5, but lost her leg. She blackmailed McCartney into marrying her or she was going to reveal the whole story.  Somehow the producers didn't figure out that Heather Mills wasn't even born in 1966 when the accident supposedly took place.

Oh yeah, ignore that one at all costs - but do check out the books and webpages surrounding the story. And if you're interested, check out The Beatle zombie retelling, Paul is Undead.

Festive Fear 2 will soon be released by Tasmaniac Publications, and I have my story, Ghost of the Heart, included.  What you don't know is that my story includes a good dose of the whole Paul is Dead theory. And boy, was that fun to write.  Keep an eye out for it, and find a copy if you can.  I believe it's already sold out.

Just finished rewriting another story of mine. My mentor, Paul Haines, (under the Australian Horror Writers Association) made a number of recommendations which I spent a few weeks considering. A few ideas finally fermented and ended up on paper.  I've just sent the rewrite back, so I'll have to wait and see what Guru Paul thinks of it.

And apart from that? Life goes on and work is busy.  My friend and colleague even announced my forthcoming publication at work last week. I plan to kill him for that at some point.

Maybe I'll replace him with a double named William Campbell.

Wow, What's That Splinter In Your Eye?

For many years I've told people that I don't particularly like horror. I don't read it and don't watch horror films. A couple of years ago someone lent me a Stephen King book and told me I had to read it, and although I enjoyed it (and he does write great dialogue), it didn't thrill me. So I find it rather ironic that my first publication will be in a horror anthology.

I didn't mean for it to happen like that. It happened by accident. You see, I tend to write SF - although I've written a couple of stories that were slightly supernatural based. In fact one of them, a ghost story, I didn't consider to be horror at all - but it did seem to fit into the Festive Fear format. And so before I submitted it to Tasmaniac, I e-mailed and queried to ensure I wasn't wasting the publisher's time. What I've slowly come to realise over the past six months is that my definition of horror was all wrong.  All the time I was telling people I didn't like horror, I was actually reading a lot of it.

One day I suddenly realised half the Twilight Zone and X-Files shows I've seen are horror and, of course, Buffy spends all her time battling demons and vampires. As for all those Jonathan Carroll books I've been reading and loving for 25 years? Turns out they're horror. (I just figured they were weird fantasy with a dark edge.)

I've just finished reading a few anthologies of horror stories - and most of them turned out to be not what I expected. What I realised I meant is I don't like the blood and gore horror - slasher stuff. And although I'm still not huge on the evil supernatural horror, one of my best friends has been working on me, making me watch old Hammer Horror films with him. Yeah, I know - they're pretty lame by modern standards, but it's a start.

So here I was accusing people of pigeonholing genre, saying they don't like SF while praising Avatar and so on - only to find I was doing it myself.

I promise to be more open to different genres from now on, OK? (Mills & Boon is still out, though!)