Mike Sirota's Blog – Swords, Specters, & Stuff
Welcome to My World
I started this blog in January 2012 for one simple reason: I love to write. I named it “Swords, Specters, & Stuff” because I especially love to write about writing, about books and movies in my favorite genres, about authors that mean a great deal to me. But there’s so much more than that, hence the all-inclusive “Stuff” in the title. It is “Stuff” that gives me carte blanche to write about anything, which is why you’ll see stories about special trips to Cooperstown, Sedona, and other places; about getting older; about baseball; about the otherworldly way in which I met my soul mate; about the loss of good friends, and so much more. Enjoy! And feel free to leave a comment.
Throwback Thursday: Writing Novels Will Make You Rich—And Other Bald-Faced Lies
Advice about the business and the craft of writing seldom gets dated. Let me share some thoughts from what I’ve experienced over the past gazillion years and about thirty novels written, in a post that last ran in 2015.
read more
Myths And Legends: The Girl On Fire
The accident that killed young Condie Cunningham over a century ago was no myth. But what followed would move the needle to the top of the “WEIRD” meter, where it remains to this day.
read more
Throwback Thursday: Myths And Legends—Coyote, The Trickster
The Coyote myth is well known in many Native American cultures, especially out here in the western U.S. In the Creation stories of some tribes he represents the Creator himself, but for the most part Coyote is known as a messenger, a trickster, or a clown. In the latter guise, he may begin by entertaining folks but ultimately tricking them and stealing their stuff.
read more
Films About Writers: Half Light
The 2006 mystery/ghost story, HALF LIGHT, starring Demi Moore, somehow got past me all these years. Well, better late than never. Here is a brief introduction, with absolutely no spoiler alert. I do not want to ruin this compelling film for anyone.
read more
Throwback Thursday: Santa Claus Versus The Mutant Ants
As a mere slip of a lad in the 1950s, I totally enjoyed (and had the crap scared out of me by) the numerous science fiction and horror movies spawned during that decade. Paranoia ruled in the ’50s, folks being worried about—in no particular order—the threat of communism; the fear of alien invasion (seriously); and the long-term effects of being thrust into the atomic age during the previous decade.
read more
New Year’s Eve Redux—The Future: Now Past
As the extremely challenging year 2018 comes to an end, I got to thinking: how in the name of Zeus’s butthole did it pass so quickly?! I guess when a year is 1/72nd of your life, that’s what happens.
read more
Throwback Thursday: Winema And Frank—A Love Story
A few years back I wrote about a remarkable Native American woman named Winema, the “Modoc Woman of the Brave Heart.” She is the main “character” in my award-winning historical novel, STONE WOMAN: WINEMA AND THE MODOCS.
read more
Holiday Redux: “Are There No Prisons? Are There No Workhouses?”
As a Jewish kid growing up in The Bronx—in a neighborhood of mostly other Jews—I had little exposure to Christmas, other than learning it wasn’t “our” holiday. Even so, I enjoyed many of the Christmas movies that played all through December on our 12-inch, black & white television.
read more
Throwback Thursday: “Oh No, Not The Bees!”
In case you don’t know, that line comes from the 2006 horror/thriller flick, THE WICKER MAN, a remake of a 1973 British film of the same name. I could have just as easily gone with the title, “Oh no, not this movie!” and been spot-on.
read more
Guilty Pleasures: 10,000 BC
The 2008 “epic adventure” film, 10,000 BC, would not be a guilty pleasure if judged only by its box office. It made a fair amount of money. But the reviews for its story, which is set in prehistoric times, were uniformly harsh, many citing it as “archaeologically inaccurate.” Give me a break! This is a watchable film, and I intend to view it a few more times before the Mother Ship comes for me.
read moreRecent Releases
