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 more to it than that, which is why I included “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.
Mark Spitz Revisited
The 2012 Olympic Games get underway in London this week. Many are wondering if Michael Phelps will come close to his amazing eight-gold-medal performance in the 2008 Beijing games, especially with tough competition from his good friend, Ryan Lochte. Phelps broke the...
A Quixotic Struggle
The word “quixotic” has its roots in—what else?—Don Quixote, the subject of my last post. By definition the word means, “Foolishly impractical, especially in the pursuit of ideals; marked by rash, lofty romantic ideas or extravagantly chivalrous action.” Yep, that...
Tilting At Windmills
It may surprise you to know that my favorite literary character is not John Carter of Mars, or Conan the Barbarian, or even Frodo Baggins. That distinction goes to a rather odd, middle-aged, seventeenth century Spaniard named Alonso Quijano. If that name doesn’t ring...
Celebrating A Friend
Jeff Sherratt is a Newport Beach, CA mystery writer with three published novels among his credits. Jeff is also my friend. In recent years the younger (and even older) generation has overused the slang word “bro” to the point of meaninglessness, even referring to...
Guilty Pleasures: Anaconda
I gotta say, when it comes to guilty-pleasure horror movies I’m a sucker for anything BIG. Give me giant arachnids, rats, bugs of any kind, reptiles, dogs, cats, lions, tigers, and bears—even Fifty-Foot Women or Amazing Colossal Men—and I’m as happy as a clam. (Good...
A Frazetta Cover? For Me?
These days, I get to play the “age card” for all manner of brain farts and such. It comes in pretty handy when I walk into my office and totally forget why I did, or worse, when I leave my car keys in the refrigerator. But since what I’m about to tell you has a shelf...
Writing Novels For Fun And—Fun?
Did you expect to see the word “profit” in that title? Not likely. Let me share some thoughts from what I’ve experienced over the past gazillion years and nearly thirty novels written. First though, an update on my previous post about John Carter, the supposed...
John Carter: The Movie Wasn’t So Bad
Okay, if you read this blog you must know how I feel about Edgar Rice Burroughs—my muse, the author whose works inspired me to start writing back at the dawn of time. So do I have an opinion about John Carter, the 2012 overhyped movie named for ERB’s second most...
Guilty Pleasures: Conan The Barbarian
The thundering drums from Basil Poledouris’s awesome score tell me that, for perhaps the hundredth time, I’m about to immerse myself in the 1982 screen exploits of author Robert E. Howard’s most famous character, Conan the Barbarian. What can I say? I love this film,...
Ray Bradbury: “Everyone Must Leave Something Behind…”
For many years now, Ray Bradbury was often referred to as “the world’s greatest living science fiction writer.” Not many people would dispute that statement. Sadly, this giant of science fiction and fantasy passed away earlier in the week at the age of ninety-one. But...
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