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INTRODUCTION I’ve made no secret of the fact Stephen King greatly influenced my work, but there was another writer who played an equally important role in my evolution as a writer: Dennis Etchison. In the mid-’80s my friend and coworker… READ MORE
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INTRODUCTION According to my-not-very good publication notes, I wrote “Nightwalk” in 1983. I wonder if that’s true. My recordkeeping back then was spotty. I never thought it necessary to keep track of production dates or publication credits. Now, as you… READ MORE
Nano Banana
INTRODUCTION “Object d’Art” breaks all the rules. It’s the story of a man who takes his press releases too seriously. And it’s the story of a woman who is just as serious about her revenge. Finally, it’s a story about… READ MORE
INTRODUCTION Obviously I wrote this story a looong time ago. I mean, c’mon. A Falcon? The last Falcon rolled off the Ford assembly line in 1970, according to Dr. Google. But that’s OK because the central conceit of “Paradise Café”… READ MORE
Image courtesy of Phillip Pessar by way of a Creative Commons license. https://www.flickr.com/people/25955895@N03
INTRODUCTION I hate writing. I really do. I think my attitude toward writing is similar to that of my friend, Ray Aldridge, who once said (and I think he was quoting yet another writer), “I enjoy having written.” That suits… READ MORE
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INTRODUCTION The Rocket Slide exists! It’s a real thing and I stole it directly from a creepy, hidden-away playground in my old neighborhood. Whether it can be used by a vengeful ex-husband to kidnap his children … that’s another matter…. READ MORE
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INTRODUCTION Does comedic horror exist? The producers of the “Scream” movies would say so, I think. But in fact, is “Scream” funny? Well, it is my studied opinion that within the context of horror, yes, it is funny. I would… READ MORE
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INTRODUCTION The hardest thing you may ever have to do is bury a child. The second-hardest is burying a parent. When my father passed away, only a year after I wrote this story, I felt like an orphan. Worse, I… READ MORE
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INTRODUCTION I’m trying to think back to the first moment I experienced a fear of heights. It has something to do with my father. Lest you believe this sounds like a therapy session, I mean, quite literally my father. I… READ MORE
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INTRODUCTION As I was writing “I Feed the Machine” I did not envision a future America where political criminals and religious fundamentalists might rule the land. Yet here we are, in the summer of 2024. The corrupt Supreme Court has… READ MORE