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.
A Good Murder/Mystery Series Made Even Better
My bride and I love detective shows from the UK, and FATHER BROWN is one of our favorites. Starting in 2013, the series has run for ten seasons and over one hundred episodes. Series 10 premiered earlier this year, and we were pleased—maybe even ecstatic—to learn that two of the longest running, most annoying characters had left for…I don’t know, greener pastures?
Throwback Thursday: “Start Writing, No Matter What” – More Quotes From Successful Authors
Wisdom from well-known authors can be inspirational for wannabe writers. Or in some cases they can have the opposite effect. Here are some more gems to ponder from this 2020 post.
Baseball’s Most Shocking Tragedy
Raymond Johnson Chapman played shortstop in the major leagues for nine seasons. His legacy, sadly, is not one that Ray himself would have wished on anyone.
Throwback Thursday: Myths And Legends—The St. Louis Ghost Train
To be clear, we’re not talking about the city in Missouri, but rather a small town in Canada, located in the province of Saskatchewan. This rural burg put itself on the paranormal map a long time ago by virtue of an eerie phenomenon: the lights of a ghostly train that roll down invisible tracks nearly every night.
Myths And Legends: The Sumatran Death Ship
The Dutch vessel was called the SS OURANG MEDAN, which translated from Malay to “Man of Medan,” the latter being a Sumatran island. So much has been written and discussed about the unimaginable incident that brought this ship’s name into the public spectrum. But what might be even more incredible is that this much heralded event…might not have ever happened.
Throwback Thursday: What Is Capgras Delusion?
Is your spouse really your spouse, or a pod person? Is delusional misidentification a real thing? This post first ran in 2020.
Guilty Pleasures: SKYSCRAPER
Our hero “is able to leap tall buildings in a single bound,” right? Uh, no, that’s another guy. In the 2018 action/disaster film, SKYSCRAPER, our hero, Will Sawyer (Dwayne Johnson), can leap his way into the world’s tallest building, which happens to be on fire, while outrunning both the bad guys and the police—and he can do all this on only one leg.
Throwback Thursday: Curious Possessions II
With seven-plus decades in the rearview mirror I’ve had plenty of time to collect a whole lot of “stuff.” Here is a look at some more “Curious Possessions” floating around my domicile. This post first ran in 2020.
Magic In The Stone
Magic is a key component in just about every sword & sorcery novel, be it benevolent or for the darkest of evil. In one of my early stories, THE SWORD OF TYRON (original title: BERBORA), magic is used to transcend time itself. I’ll show you one of those scenes—but first, some backstory.
Throwback Thursday: “The Supreme Excitement Of Our Time!”
THIS ISLAND EARTH has aged rather well, considering it first hit the silver screen nearly seven decades ago. I first presented this post in 2020.
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