"Some people say I've done alright for a girl, oh, oh."

Awake, but sort of dreamsick. That slinging, almost wet, heavy, slight nauseous sensation of having been ripped from one reality and schplopped* down in another. Ugh. But, I have the Bastard Fairies! Yes, and a new video, and a new album I can download for free:

*By the way, I just invented "schplopped." It's a Pig Yiddish neologism, I think.

"Who killed Mr. Moonlight?"

Still trying to shake off the dreamsickness. There was a lot. Of the dream, I mean. Too much to put down here. Towards the end, I was trying to mount a Triceratops skeleton (minds out of gutters NOW), and a lot of the bones were aready on the welded armature. But then I realized that all the vertebrae were missing (even though the ribs were mounted), and I couldn't remember where in the Dream Museum they'd been stored. All I had was one badly weathered vertebra. Normal people dream about showing up for class naked, or going on stage and forgetting the lines. Me, I get Triceratops anxiety.

Anyway, there's a nice (short) review of The Red Tree up at LibraryJournal.com. And I quote: "With its intelligent blend of folklore, horror, and dark fantasy, Kiernan's latest appeals well beyond urban fantasy fans; readers who enjoy Neil Gaiman, Poppy Z. Brite, and Keith Donohue may want to check it out. Lost fans mourning the lack of new episodes will appreciate the similar themes and intricate puzzles here." Booya! Thank you, LibraryJournal.com. I'll even forgive the comparison with Donohue. Mostly, I love the "well beyond urban fantasy" and "intricate puzzles" parts.

Yesterday, I wrote 1,357 words and finished "Vicaria Draconis." Go me. I rather like how it turned out, though it's yet another "not very me" story. I want to write a "very me" vignette next. Anyway, it's been sent away to Vince to be illustrated, and will appear in Sirenia Digest #44 later this month.

Let's see. Other news. My whole life seems to have been swallowed by promotional stuff for The Red Tree. For various reasons, I've made the executive decision not to release the "book trailer" until August 14th, ten days after the book's street date. This email (behind a cut, but you should read it), part of an exchange between readingthedark and me, will help to explain the decision (it's rather long, but enlightening):

( Read more... )

So, better to do it right, than to do it fast. Which has always been my motto. Well, one of my mottoes. I have a lot. Like "Never drive a car when you're dead," which I stole from Tom Waits.

Last night, we finished Max Brooks' World War Z, and Spooky and I thought it was really brilliant. I don't read much of what could be called "genre horror," despite how I may be perceived as an author. When I do read a "horror" novel, I'm looking for a visceral, but very intelligent reading experience. And that's what WWZ delivers. Intelligent, horrific, awful (original meaning), poignant, gut-wrenching (literally), deeply moving, truly apocalyptic. One I wish to fuck I'd written. I have been told the audio book is very good, and Spooky and I are now tracking down a copy of it. Most of the rest of the world likely read this book two years ago, but if you haven't, I strongly recommend it. I tend to find zombie films dull and predictable and dumb. There are notable exceptions: Romero's original Night of the Living Dead, Zack Snyder's Dawn of the Dead remake, and Danny Boyle's 28 Days Later. And that's the sort of punch Brooks delivers.

Okay. There's a bunch of stuff to do. I don't even have a list....but, there are the ongoing eBay auctions, and please, please visit the website today, and spread the URL. Feed the Tree!

Whatever (redux)

Know I must have posted this at some point in the not too distant past, but...whatever. New FREE Bastard Fairies, damn it! And it's been a long and utterly bizarre day, with too much of this and that and not enough of the other. So, whatever.

Cause, you know. Whatever.