Midnight in the Moonlit Ruins

Stoker Awards Weekend 2009

2009-07-12T00:25:00.000-07:00

The Stoker Awards Weekend was the best that I've ever seen this year. Organizers Lisa Morton and John Little arranged for so many extra events that it made the weekend incredible. They had workshops, kaffeeklatches, and great panels.

The night before the Stokers began, I signed books at the incredible horror bookstore Dark Delicacies in Burbank. On Friday I attended HWA President Deborah LeBlanc's workshop on book promotion, which was incredibly helpful.

The Slush Pile Players performed Friday night at the Gory Ghoul Ball. Made up of horror writers, the band featured Heather Graham, Dave Simms, Alexandra Sokoloff, Nathan Walpow, Harley Jane Kozak, Tracy Carbone, Rhodi Hawk, Shayne Pozzessere and Juan Roca.

On Saturday I was on a panel about "Breaking Into The Mass Market," with fellow writers Hank Schwaeble, John Skipp, and Cody Goodfellow, and editor David Hartwell.

John Skipp, David Hartwell, Cody Goodfellow, Alice Henderson, Hank Schwaeble

Saturday night was the Stoker Awards event, a posh banquet followed by the announcements of the awards. Many amazing writers won for their work. Afterward we all gathered and talked. It was fantastic to catch up with my fellow writers.

Alice Henderson and Lucy Snyder

Alice Henderson, Lynne Hansen, Jeff Strand

Screenwriter Courtney Joyner and Alice Henderson

Dark Scribe Interview

2009-07-02T18:08:00.001-07:00

I'm thrilled to appear in the latest issue of Dark Scribe Magazine, in an interview by Vince A. Liaguno. We talk about adventure in the outdoors and the roots of my fascination with mythology and folklore!

Check it out here.

Join Me At The Creature Features Event This Saturday, June 27th!

2009-06-24T15:15:00.000-07:00

This Saturday, June 27th, I'm going to be at an awesome Creature Features event at the Comic Book Box in Rohnert Park.

Joining me will be Tom Wyrsch, the producer of Watch Horror Films, Keep America Strong. Tom will be showing classic interviews by Bob Wilkins and John Stanley. Science fiction author Ann Wilkes will also be in attendance!

Come by and see us!

I'll start signing at 11:30 am, and the Creature Features section begins at 1 pm and goes until 4 pm at the Comic Book Box, 1451 Southwest Blvd #103, Rohnert Park, CA.

Upcoming Appearance at the Bram Stoker Awards!

2009-06-08T19:42:00.000-07:00

I'm pleased to announce I'll be attending the Bram Stoker Awards this weekend. I'll be signing at Dark Delicacies in Burbank on Thursday night, June 11, at 7 pm, along with Richard Christian Matheson, Mick Garris, Chelsea Quinn Yabro, Lisa Morton, Lucy Snyder, Gary Braunbeck, and many others!

On Saturday at 11 a.m., I'll be on a panel on Breaking Into The Mass Market.

The Stokers look like they are going to be amazing this year, and I'm excited and honored to be part of the programming.

Museum of Waxwings

2009-05-16T18:47:00.000-07:00

As late spring arrives, so do a whole new set of birds! I've always loved the names given to groups of animals, such as an "obstinacy of bison."

Here are my recent visitors:

a museum of cedar waxwings

a ubiquity of juncos

a teapot of towhees

a development of house finches

a banditry of chickadees

a worm of robins

Mysterious Galaxy Birthday Bash

2009-05-13T19:05:00.000-07:00

The celebration of the 16th birthday of Mysterious Galaxy Books went incredibly well! It was my first visit to this amazing store, and the staff did a great job with the entire event.

Fellow writer Jeff Mariotte and I gave an author talk and had a great audience with some excellent questions. Afterward we signed many copies of our books.

Thank you to all who attended!

Upcoming Appearance at Mysterious Galaxy!

2009-04-27T06:50:00.001-07:00

I'm very excited to report that I'll be talking/signing at the upcoming sixteenth anniversary celebration at Mysterious Galaxy in San Diego on Saturday, May 9th.

The all day celebration will include authors, special bargains and even cake!

I will be there to sign copies of my new novel Voracious. Other authors include Jeff Mariotte, who will be signing his new novel Cold Black Hearts, Jim Butcher, Kage Baker, Shannon Butcher, Samantha Sommersby, PJ Haarsma, and Kris Saknussemm.

Jeff Mariotte and I will be giving a talk at noon.

Come down and celebrate at the store!

Click here for more info on the birthday bash itself, and here for more information on Jeff's and my time slot.

Horror World Review!

2009-04-16T16:21:00.001-07:00

My novel Voracious just received an amazing review on Horror World, written by Dave Simms.

Check it out here! (The review is partway down the page.)

Bear at the Merced River

2009-04-09T04:36:00.000-07:00

While in Yosemite, I hiked along the valley floor, something I've never done before in the park. It can get quite crowded in the summer months, and so, finding myself a mid-week visitor in the spring, I decided to hike the Yosemite Valley Trail.
Along the way I hiked past the famous Camp 4, home to rock climbers who gather to scale the highest freestanding cliff in the world -- El Capitan. I saw deer grouse and acorn woodpeckers. On the banks of the Merced River I stopped to eat a sandwich, and as I sat out on a boulder, a cinnamon-colored black bear emerged from the tree line and approached the shore on the opposite bank. He lifted his nose, spotting me across the river. We watched each other for a time and then he backtracked a little, dove into the water and swam across the river to my side, a bit farther up the trail. He meandered away, moving up to a boulder field. It was my first bear sighting of the year!

Snowshoeing The Glacier Point Road

2009-04-07T16:41:00.001-07:00

I snowshoed out Glacier Point Road, which is closed in Yosemite every winter to vehicle travel. But you can still snowshoe and ski its 10.5 mile stretch out to the stunning view of Half Dome and Yosemite Valley below.
On the way back, I stopped at the stunning Tunnel View of the valley below. El Cap had a cap of its own, a shelf of clouds hanging over the summit.

Snowshoes on the Mountain Meadow

2009-04-05T01:27:00.000-07:00

Despite the ice spiders, I snowshoed around the glorious meadow, with meandering streams and the blue, blue sky above the white snow. It was a gorgeous day, quite warm, and a pileated woodpecker even appeared! I could hear it drumming deeper in the forest later on.
Before long, however, storm clouds moved in quickly, the sky turning grey with billowing clouds. The cloud layer sank lower, becoming a dreamy haze in the upper tree-covered slopes.

Ice Spiders

2009-04-01T14:11:00.000-07:00

Not long ago, I watched the scintillating cinematic feature Ice Spiders for the horror movie guide I'm writing. Helmed by one of my favorite directors, Tibor Takacs, this film terrified the viewer with a cautionary tale of experimental spiders gone wrong in the snowy forests near a ski lodge. After seeing the film, I brushed it off as a work of fiction. Hah! How naive I am. While snowshoeing near Crane Flat, I came across dozens of ice spiders, crawling across the snowy surface in search of prey. Okay, so maybe they were only a centimeter long instead of eight feet, but still...they were ice spiders!
Also in residence on the snowy meadow that day were predatory leeches. Streams ran through the meadow and on an unusually warm day, the leeches were out, hunting for prey in the icy expanse of the flat. How ever did I survive this hike, you ask? By being prepared by the fine film of Tibor Takacs, and knowing not to get worried until next winter, after the spiders and leeches have been experimented on by a team of mad scientists.

Firefall

2009-03-28T16:24:00.001-07:00

For decades until 1968, visitors to Yosemite Valley could witness the Firefall, in which a stream of glowing embers was pushed off the soaring heights of Glacier Point into the valley below. This fiery cascade of thousands of feet would be seen by huge groups of onlookers, who would gather in the meadows below to watch the glowing spectacle of light. During the event down at Camp Curry, the audience would gather in front of a piano and sing "Indian Love Call," with the performers. A caller on stage would shout up to Glacier Point, some thirty-two hundred feet above the camp, “Hello Glacier Point!” and from Glacier Point the fire-builder would call back, “Hello Camp Curry!” and the caller would respond with “Let the fire fall!” The fire builder far above would then tumble the embers over the point, creating the Firefall.

The park service discontinued this practice in 1968 for a number of reasons, the foremost being that it attracted so many spectators that the meadows were getting trampled and damaged, and also because the park service was leaning toward wilderness values and returning the park to a more natural state.

But while the Firefall may no longer be seen, a natural firefall occurs every late winter and spring near El Capitan. From the immense heights of this 3000-foot granite monolith falls the wispy, magical Horse Tail Falls. At sunset at certain times during the spring melt off, this ethereal waterfall catches the fiery rays of the setting sun and glows an enrapturing orange and red.
I hiked beneath the falls to see them at sunset, and while they did indeed glow with the silver light of the sun, clouds swept in before sunset, obscuring the alpen glow that causes the falls to glow with fiery colors. Next time. Next time.

Poopenauts?

2009-03-25T20:58:00.001-07:00

While hiking in Hetch Hetchy Valley, I came across the traihead for Poopenaut Valley. I've heard of Jason and the Argonauts and their search for the Golden Fleece. But I've not heard of the Poopenauts, and their proximity to the drinking water of San Francisco makes me leery.

A Visit To Hetch Hetchy

2009-03-24T14:05:00.000-07:00

Hetch Hetchy has been called the sister valley to Yosemite, and it's no wonder why. Though I've been to Yosemite National Park many times, I've never visited this valley located on the north side of the park. With its tremendous granite edifices, domes and roaring waterfalls, it is indeed a sister to the magnificent Yosemite Valley.
After the earthquake of 1906, water supplies in San Francisco were pushed to the limit. A solution was proposed to dam Hetch Hetchy for a reservoir. The dam had many opponents, including John Muir.

The battle to save Hetch Hetchy was lost, and the valley dammed in 1923. Not only does it now provide drinking water for San Francisco, but it also provides renewable energy in the form of hydro-electric power.

I hiked along the edge of the reservoir to Tueeulala Falls. The sun sparkled in the cascade of water.
I sat out on a boulder among blooming manzanita bushes, and an Anna's hummingbird came by, its scarlet head and green iridescent body gleaming in the sun.
Plant border bugs, with their black bodies and striking orange lines, climbed all over the ground, hunting for leaf matter to eat.

Yosemite National Park In Snow

2009-03-23T20:32:00.001-07:00

I'm currently visiting the magnificent Yosemite National Park to snowshoe, hike, write and watch wildlife. The day of my arrival had deep blue skies with a few clouds hanging high over the stunning valley.

Water from spring run-off made Bridalveil Falls roar down from its hanging valley.
El Capitan, the tallest free-standing cliff in the world, towered above the valley, clouds hanging over its top.
Yosemite Falls thundered from down into the valley, casting off clouds of mist in its wake.
It was gorgeous.

Voracious Hits The Stands Today!

2009-02-24T00:11:00.000-08:00

Today is a very exciting day for me -- my novel Voracious, set in the wilds of Glacier National Park, hits the stands! It's being published by the Jove imprint of Penguin Group. I recently got my first author's copy of it, and it looks gorgeous! Needless to say, I am doing the dance of joy here in lovely, rainy San Francisco!

Here's a synopsis of the plot:

Madeline Keye's gift -- to touch someone or something and see flashes of the past -- has helped her track missing people. It has also set her apart from her family and most of the people in her hometown.

So Madeline, already alone, turns to the wilderness for sanctuary. In the backcountry of Glacier National Park, she was always found peace and solace, away from all human contact. Until the day she is caught in a flash flood and almost dies. But she is rescued by a handsome stranger, and should feel safe once again.

Yet she doesn't. She can't shake the feeling of being watched, of being hunted. Something is out there in the shadows. Something hungry. Something...not human.

And it wants Madeline.

Click here to see the publisher's page for it.

Click here to see a list of places carrying it. It's available in retail and online bookstores, such as Amazon, Borders, Barnes and Noble, etc. I hope you'll check it out!

The Salmon's Trek

2008-12-23T15:36:00.000-08:00

I walked down to Rearguard Falls in Mt. Robson Provincial Park. A gorgeous series of roaring waterfalls, this spot marks the end of the Chinook salmon's inland trek.
The Fraser River thunders away from this spot, winding over polished rocks and snaking between steep pine-covered slopes.

Tallest Peak in the Canadian Rockies

2008-12-21T13:37:00.000-08:00

I ventured west into Mt. Robson Provincial Park, British Columbia, to visit the tallest peak in the Canadian Rockies.
The staggeringly huge Mt. Robson loomed over the scenery, glaciers clinging to its steep slopes.
Bitterly cold winds gusted through the area, and at times the sun streamed down on Robson's face, warming the browns there to the color of chocolate.

Moon over Medicine Lake

2008-12-02T17:06:00.001-08:00

My breath frosting in the chilly air, I watched the moon rise over Medicine Lake, bathing the entire scene in a magical, otherworldly blue.

Snowy Maligne Lake

2008-11-24T14:54:00.000-08:00

I ventured out to Maligne Lake in Jasper National Park to walk along the lakeshore. The snow was much deeper out here, and the lake lay enshrouded in grey mist. Snowflakes blew horizontally in the bitterly cold wind.

Above me the Maligne Range rose grandly, its grey, jagged peaks catching the sun when it occasionally peeked out from behind a roiling mass of storm clouds.

Mysterious Medicine Lake

2008-11-19T20:44:00.000-08:00

I arrived in Jasper in the midst of a snowstorm. The familiar town stretched out before me.

Excited to see my favorite spots blanketed with snow, I drove out the Maligne Road and visited mysterious Medicine Lake. For years Medicine Lake puzzled visitors because it completely disappears in the winter. With the discovery of subterranean caverns that empty into Maligne Canyon, the mystery was at last solved.
I've seen this lake many times in the summer, when it brims full with water. But this was my first visit to see it at its emptier stage. The bright blue lake had been replaced with little creeks and winding rivulets of water. Ice covered what standing water remained.

Tracks meandered across the lake's snowy surfaces.
The southern end of the lake is all rivers and ice right now.

Raven at Athabasca Falls

2008-11-18T15:17:00.000-08:00

Ever get the feeling someone wants your attention?

Columbia Icefields

2008-11-10T18:50:00.000-08:00

I crossed the Sunwapta Pass, arriving the Athabasca Glacier. A bitterly cold wind gusted down from the Columbia Icefield, and I climbed a lateral moraine and peered out onto the vast expanse of the glacier. The peaks lay dusted in fresh snow and the scene carried that eerie stillness and quiet that snowfall ushers in.
The pale blue of a huge crevasse in the ice stood out against the white of snow.

Icefields Parkway

2008-11-09T22:10:00.000-08:00

From Banff I headed north along the Icefields Parkway toward Jasper National Park. Snow flurries fell almost continuously, and the peaks rising on both sides of the road where enshrouded in low hanging clouds. It was utterly gorgeous. The Crowfoot Glacier was barely visible through the grey and white swirling mists.
I stopped and hiked down to Mistaya Canyon, a narrow slot canyon roaring with teal and white churning water. The thunder of the cascade roared up through the canyon, filling the air around me.