I just received word that my suburban tale “Street Lamps and Carbaryl” has been accepted by Bards and Sages Quarterly for their April 2012 issue. Those who were raised in the suburbs might find “Street Lamps and Carbaryl” hitting a little too close to home.

More good news came today in the form of a wolf. According to reports, the first grey wolf since 1924 has appeared in California. So cool. Truly a historic day. The wolf traveled at least a thousand miles from Idaho to reach the Golden State. Here’s hoping to a long and healthy life for the first California wolf in almost a hundred years.

A photo from Northern California to celebrate the wolf’s return:

Lassen Peak frames Manzanita Lake in Lassen Volcanic National Park, California.

I’m pleased to announce that my short story “Big, Blue Steel” has been accepted for Earthbound Fiction’s Standout Fantasy Anthology. Earthbound Fiction does high quality work and I’m glad to be onboard for this anthology.

Hey folks, it’s been a hectic month. I’m busy working on the final draft of my suspense novel, with plans to start a new novel in November.

If interested, check out the interview I did for the October 2011 issue of Something Wicked Magazine:

Interview

They’ve also put up my short story, “The Watcher in the Corner”:

The Watcher in the Corner

I wrote the story in first person, which is something I do about one percent of the time. The story fits well with the Halloween vibe that’s going around the country.

Something Wicked is a great mag, one of my favorites (if not the favorite). They have a knack for filtering out the more contrived stories (writing to market, etc), which some mags have trouble with.

I’m happy to note that I’ve also been interviewed for the magazine, and I go into a bit of detail concerning how the piece was developed.  The interview will appear on their website on October 18th, and is already included in the Kindle edition on Amazon, which you can get for a great price here:

Something Wicked October 2011

“The Watcher in the Corner” is probably one of my more unusual stories. It’s also crafted in first person, which is rare for me.

All revisions to my novel INVASIVE are complete and the manuscript is in my agent’s hands.  I’m not one to sit back and chill though (at least when it comes to writing).  I’ve just finished a 6,000 word thriller titled, “Lost Planes, Lost River”.  It feels good to write a first draft again.  I’ve got a couple other short stories out there in the final rounds of consideration, so we’ll see how that goes in the next few weeks.

I’m expecting a busy fall. A bunch of my work is set for publication, and I’ll be doing at least two interviews. And of course there’s the matter of my other novel (AKA “my baby”), which is in its fifth draft. It should be polished within two months. The beta responses have been excellent, and that’s always a good feeling.  I’m lucky to have a doctor in the mix as well in order to verify medical jargon/situations.

Stay tuned for updates, including news on a killer hardcover version of an anthology due in October.

Wait…did someone say “bears”? Why yes, they did:

This healthy Glacier National Park black bear popped up on the trail next to me at about twenty feet. Click the image for a huge version.