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 Sword & Planet…Mystery?
I am happy to report that Book Three in my “World After Death” series, Dark Seas of Maldrinium, has just been published. The story is a “revised-the-living-crap-out-of-it” version of a book that first came out in the late 1970s. It is also the first half of a strange tale that will be concluded later this year in the series’ final book, Slaves of Maldrinium.
The Incredible Shrinking Man—Me??!!
I scored my first driver’s license as a teen in New York City, shortly after they invented the automobile. It listed my height at 5’10”, and it still says that today. Tell the truth, I don’t think I was ever actually 5’10”, but at 5’9¾” I guess that was close enough.
Blacklisted Writer Dalton Trumbo Stuck To His Convictions
Some critics—predictably—knocked the 2015 biographical drama, Trumbo, for its “historical inaccuracies.” Still, this excellent film, starring Bryan Cranston as Dalton Trumbo and Helen Mirren as gossip columnist Hedda Hopper, served to open the eyes of many who might otherwise not have been aware of the dark period in the 1940s and ’50s known as the Hollywood Blacklist.
Films About Writers: Crimson Peak
In the 2015 Gothic thriller, Crimson Peak, director Guillermo del Toro has crafted an atmospheric period piece designed to scare the living crap out of viewers. Young, aspiring novelist Edith Cushing (Mia Wasikowska) likes to write ghost stories, but I doubt if she planned on living one.
Seventeen Years And 3,242 Miles
I had lunch last week with a horror writer from Maine. (No, not THAT horror writer.) Hank Garfield and his wonderful girlfriend, Lisa, were in San Diego for a vacation, as well as to visit some of Hank’s family. I hadn’t seen my old friend since he moved back to Maine in 1999, but we’ve never let the years, or the 3,242 miles between Oceanside and his home in Bangor, keep us from staying in touch.
A Taut Thriller From Down Under
I’m a sucker for “creature features” and I always keep an eye out (ouch!) for ones that I might’ve missed. When Netflix recommended Rogue, a 2007 indy thriller from Australia with some familiar names in the cast and—amazingly, for this genre—a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, I just had to see it. Glad I did.
Oh No! Seven-Oh!!!
In the classic musical Oliver! Fagin muses, “What happens when I’m seventy?” Well, Fagin, my dear, I don’t have to “muse” about it anymore, because in a few days—Sunday, to be exact—I officially become a septuagenarian. Holy crap, how did that happen!?!?
Films About Books: The Book Of Eli
It is not easy to watch this 2010 post-apocalyptic drama. Really, who wants to see the scorched earth of our own country? But given that the star of The Book of Eli is Denzel Washington, I’m there! As an actor he is, IMHO, simply the best.
Native American Film Gems: Smoke Signals
Given my great love and respect for all things Native American, I am introducing what will be an occasional series that addresses some of the finest films in that genre. And what better one to begin with than the 1998 comedy-drama, Smoke Signals? Based on a short story by Sherman Alexie, who also co-produced and wrote the screenplay, Smoke Signals is among my all-time favorite films in any genre, and is greatly admired by critics and viewers alike.
Mugs, Pugs, Thugs, And Nitwits: More Great Movie Lines
I’ve seen some of my favorite movies so many times that I can recite much of the dialogue in a lot of them. Here are some more of my favorites.
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