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.
August McLaughlin: Out Of Her Shadow
August McLaughlin is “one of my writers”. More important, she is also a great friend. We met at a writers’ conference some years back—perhaps fortuitously, or even inevitably, as she had come to the conference on a quest to find a writing coach and mentor. Seems she...
What’s Left On The Bucket List?
The term “bucket list” is defined as a list of things that one must do before he or she…well, kicks the bucket. The Bucket List is also a bittersweet comedy starring Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman, about two terminally ill men who skip the cancer ward and head out...
Guilty Pleasures: Darkness Falls
AN EYE FOR AN EYE. YOUR LIFE FOR A TOOTH. That’s one of the taglines for the 2003 horror flick, Darkness Falls—a double entendre title if ever there was one. In this case, Darkness Falls is the name of a small New England town. Here, the storied and seemingly innocent...
Why’d It Have To Be Snakes…?
Like Indiana Jones, I too have asked that question many times of late. I finally decided to stop trying to figure it out and accept the fact that—to use one of my least favorite clichés—it is what it is. (At the end of the day, of course.) Okay, the backstory: last...
Go Ahead, Mate, Make My G’Day
File this story under the heading, “Why I Do What I Do.” Prior to the holidays I received an email from a delightful lady named Celeste in Australia. Her note read, in part: Please give me a moment of your time, as I wish to create a special Christmas gift for a...
Always “Acknowledge” Your Writing Coach
Happy New Year! Here is a fun and meaningful story for you writers out there. I first presented it a few years back in my writers’ newsletter, so there are some dated references, but also a number of updates. Enjoy! So, why should you “acknowledge” your writing...
Plumbing The Depths
BENEATH HEAVEN LIES HELL. BENEATH HELL LIES… The Cave. Actually, I probably could’ve designated this claustrophobic 2005 horror flick as a Guilty Pleasure, even though I’ve always enjoyed watching it. Not so others, apparently. Research revealed that it barely broke...
Ghostly Legends Of The Whaley House
There are some human beings who are dimly aware of their own deaths, yet have chosen to stay on in what used to be their homes, to be close to surroundings they once held dear. - Hans Holzer Few houses in San Diego are as historically important as the Whaley House. In...
Guilty Pleasures: Tremors
THE ULTIMATE UNDERGROUND MOVIE. IT WILL LEAVE YOU LEGLESS! Yep, that was a tagline for the 1990 horror/comedy flick, Tremors. It didn’t bother me one bit, because—heck, they had me at its main protagonist, Kevin Bacon, one of my favorites. (Factoid: he played in the...
A Memorable Date
I made it through December 3rd yesterday. December 3rd? It comes after Thanksgiving and before Christmas, Kwanza, and (most of the time) Chanukah. This year it falls on a Tuesday, an innocuous day of the week at best. So what’s the big deal? Three years ago, on...
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