Witches' Almanac #34: Three New Articles

The table of contents for the 2015-2016 Witches’ Almanac has been revealed. This issue won't officially be released until September 1, but you can pre-order it from Amazon.com, which lists it as being available in both Paperback and Kindle versions.

This year's edition contains an article about the late Margot Adler who died on July 28, 2014. (And lest you think that the folks at the Witches' Almanac were just jumping on the bandwagon, the Almanac was already at the printer when Adler passed.)

I have three articles in this edition:

• “Picking Things Up”  — Do you pick up a penny when you see it on the ground? This article reveals the origin of and some variations on this tradition.
• “Walpurgisnacht”  — This article describes the German legend surrounding The Brocken and a recent visit there. According to the legend, on Walpurgisnacht (May Eve), witches gathered from the four corners of the world to attend the Witches’ Sabbat. Riding brooms and goats, they flew to a mist-shrouded mountain peak called the Brocken, or Blocksberg.
• “Fireflies”  — On a hot summer night, just as dusk descends, at the edge of a wood or marsh, something magickal happens. As the sunlight fades, small twinkles of light, faint at first, pulse in the growing shadows. As night overtakes the twilight, more flashes appear, glowing brighter against the contrast of the deepening dark. This article recounts some of the legends associated with these bioluminescent cuties.

Publishing since 1971, the Almanac is famous not just for its astrological predictions by astrologer Dikki-Jo Mullen, but also on the articles about all subjects mysterious and interesting.

Another Interview Podcast: Gordon Linzner

In this episode, I interview writer Gordon Linzner, who currently lives in New York, where he sometimes functions as a tour guide.

For many years the editor and publisher of Space and Time magazine, he also found the time to write short stories and four novels: The Spy Who Drank Blood (1984), The Oni (1986), The Troupe (1988), and The Hounds of Hell (2008, with Ron Fortier).

You can listen to the podcast directly at www.vampireswitchesandgeeks.com or download it from iTunes.

This episode concludes the series of short interviews conducted at Necon 2012, where I asked established writers about their vampire fiction. Many of them had written vampire fiction that I hadn't heard about because I was busy with work, night school, or life at the time of publication.

Previous interviewees in this series are writer F. Paul Wilson, who has been writing bestsellers for over thirty years; Heather Graham, guest of honor, New York Times bestselling author of over 150 novels and novellas; Jeff Strand, also guest of honor, who exquisitely mixes comedy and terror, Hal Bodner, witty writer and bon vivant; and Scott Goudsward.

Another Interview Podcast: Scott Goudsward

In this episode I interview writer Scott Goudsward.

Scott's love of vampires began at an early age watching Bela Lugosi, Christopher Lee, and Peter Cushing on Creature Double Feature on Saturday afternoons. 

Scott always said he was going to write the massive vampire epic novel.  Trailer Trash was not it.  His first published story, also called “Trailer Trash,” appeared in the anthology The Darkest Thirst.  The novel was based on that story. 

Since then he has penned the screenplay for the short film “Granite Voice” and co-written two non-fiction books with his brother, David (Shadows Over New England and Shadows Over Florida). 

Currently he’s co-editing two anthologies for Chaosium with Rachel Kenley, Once Upon an Apocalypse, volume 1 and 2.  Scott's short fiction has most recently appeared in the Stoker Award-nominated anthology Epitaphs, and the forthcoming Carnival of the Damned and Atomic Age Cthulhu.

You can listen to the podcast directly at www.vampireswitchesandgeeks.com or download it from iTunes.

This series of short interviews are the result of me asking established writers about their vampire fiction. Many of them had written vampire fiction that I hadn't heard about because I was busy with work, night school, or life at the time of publication.

Previous interviewees in this series are writer F. Paul Wilson, who has been writing bestsellers for over thirty years; Heather Graham, guest of honor, New York Times bestselling author of over 150 novels and novellas; Jeff Strand, also guest of honor, who exquisitely mixes comedy and terror, and Hal Bodner, witty writer and bon vivant.

The next interview should be the one with writer Gordon Linzner, editor emeritus of Space and Time magazine.

Interview with Writer Jeff Strand

I've restarted my podcast Vampires, Witches, and Geeks with an enticing series of interviews recorded live at a small gathering of horror writers in Bristol, Rhode Island. Officially named the Northeastern Writers' Conference, most people know it as Necon, and those who know it intimately sometimes call it Camp Necon.

My first interviewee is Necon Guest of Honor Jeff Strand. Jeff Strand is a really nice guy – and funny as hell. You’d notice the funny bit, even if you never had the pleasure of meeting him in person. Just look at the titles of his books: Graverobbers Wanted (No Experience Necessary), Single White Psychopath Seeks Same, Lost Homicidal Maniac (Answers to "Shirley"), and Casket for Sale (Only Used Once). What I wanted to interview him about, though, was the novel Draculas, a collaboration with authors F. Paul Wilson (who I also interview in this series), Jack Kilborn (J. A. Konrath), and Blake Crouch.

So, here's the first in the series, my Interview with Writer Jeff Strand. As always, I try to keep the podcasts short and sweet. Hope this brief introduction is enough to entice you to sample Jeff's works.

Podcast interview with author & witch Dorothy Morrison

I posted the first part of my podcast interview with author & witch Dorothy Morrison a couple of days ago. We had a lot of fun doing it, too.

If you're not familiar with Dorothy, here's some background info.

Dorothy Morrison is the author of over a dozen non-fiction books on paganism and Wicca including

Everyday Magic
The Craft: A Witch's Book of Shadows
Magical Needlework
Utterly Wicked

With Kristen Madden, she co-wrote Dancing the Goddess Incarnate and is the creator of The Whimsical Tarot.

In the first half of the interview, I talked to Dorothy about storytelling, her first novel (Lucinda's Web), and the woes and wackiness of book touring.

A native Texan, Dorothy lives in Virginia with her husband.

Interview in Paper Dragon Ink

Hope you're staying warm and dry. We've had quite a bit of cold and snow up here in the northeast. Yesterday I saw two cars spun out on two different highways while trying to make it home after the latest storm. :-(

Want some good news for a change? I've been interviewed in the December 2007 issue of Pandora's Gate, published by Paper Dragon Ink, "an online publishing company dedicated to providing entertainment and resources for creative independents with coverage of movies, novels, comic books, games and music." You can read the interview on page 3 at

http://www.paperdragonink.com/december07issue.pdf

Not a bad interview, if I say so myself. It covers the usual -- my two vampire novels (Darksome Thirst and The Old Power Returns), but also a little bit on writing. The magazine is laid out in landscape mode, with photos and illustrations on the right-hand side, a very pleasing layout for this magazine.

In addition to interviews with Jim Balent, Michelle St. Martin, Anastasia Rabiyah, Wendy Potter, and artist Niki Browning, this edition contains an introduction to the SCA by Jennifer Rhea. Check it out.

Morven