You use up all the glue on purpose!

So, here I am more than a month later after promising my 2 readers that I would keep up with this more often. My crazy life has made a liar out of me! Seriously, I have to keep going all day because when I sit in my recliner for a second, I pass out cold. I have to make sure EVERYTHING is done and the kids are in bed before I do that or I am in big trouble.

Good news! I have a 12 year old and a 10 year old now! Why is that good news? I have managed to keep them alive! A wise older woman I used to know once told me that after you have kids, you spend the next 18 years trying to keep them from getting killed. That makes sense seeing as that I sometimes make them go to their room and shut the door for their own safety. But seriously folks, you know I love my boys...they are just a handful sometimes, especially that little clone of my husband! What to do with a hormonal 12 year old with a cell phone and an infatuation with a little girl who looks like Ginny Weasley? Don't gripe at me about the cell phone; I like being able to know where he is at all times - especially since Daddy is leaving for Iraq soon. It's peace of mind and I am willing to deal with consequences to get it. I am even thinking about adding a line for Sammy.

Now it's Christmastime again and all of the wonderful stress of the holidays! Well, I am thankful that the National Guard is giving my husband a 2 week leave and that I have a wonderful boss who is pretty much letting me take 2 weeks off to spend it with my family. I am looking forward to sleeping in until 10 am and rolling over in the bed to see his face, because it won't be like that for long. A whole year of a lonely bed - I hate that. I guess Sammy will have to start sleeping with me again. He didn't mind last time Daddy was deployed; he was 4 years old! I hope he doesn't mind now because having him sleep in the bed with me sometimes just makes me feel better. Am I weird for that?

I am trying to come up with things to keep me occupied - well, my brain occupied - while the husband is gone. It's not like I don't have enough things to do already; work, taking the boys to kung fu and Renzi, volunteering enormous amounts of time with Cub Scouts and various other things I always seem to get myself into. I just need an itellectual thing to do. I have decided to TRY my best to write my first book in 2010 or enough stories to fill a book. Okay, maybe a novella length book. I have written lots of short stories and I need to cross that line and go more than 10k words, people. I think that after "Dead Set" is released and I see that "editor" mark on my list of accomplishments, I will get motivated. Plus, I have another scheme cooking up in the ol' brain here.

Another thing I keep thinking about is Texas Frightmare in April. I REALLY want to go - George Romero will be there and I will get to meet him if I attend! It just won't be as much fun without my Mikey there. We went to Pittsburgh in Sept. to our first horror convention and he was so awesome. I know he is not as much into the horror and zombie genre as I am - but he did so much for me and just for me. I really appreciated that and love him so much for it. Plus, he knows who Bruce Campbell is now and that rocks! I hope to attend; I just want to wait a little longer before making plans. Lots of my friends are already talking about Horror Realm in Sept 2010 in Pittsburgh again so that is another thing to think about. Do I really want to go that far without Mikey? If not, should I go by myself - or can I find someone to go with me? I guess we shall see when it gets closer.

Fun times tomorrow night! Mikey, the boys and I are going to see "Gremlins" in the theater at the Robinson Film Center - one of my favorite places in Shreveport! I think I saw it in the theater as a kid but can't really remember for sure. I do know that Peanut and Sammy LOVE that movie and it will be a great family outing! I wish I had a Gizmo shirt to wear - dang it!

Okay, that is enough of my rambling for now. I hope that my 2 readers have a Merry Christmas, Happy Channukah, Happy Kwanzaa, or whatever they celebrate, and most definitely and Happy New Year! I will try my best to make it good even though I will spend 2010 without my better half. Wah.

Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes....

It's been a really busy few months for me and I just realized I haven't blogged in awhile! So much to catch my 2 readers up on! (LOL)

I took a wonderful trip with my husband to Pittsburgh in September. We attended the Horror Realm convention, where I got to meet so many good friends and fellow zombie authors, not to mention some horror movie icons! Ken Foree, Tony Todd, Bill Mosley, and lots of zombies from the original Dawn of the Dead movie were there, and I got pics and autographs! I also ate my dinner in the hotel restaurant while sitting at a table right next to THE Tom Savini! How cool is that?
The best part was finally meeting all the Permuted and Library of the Living Dead authors and fans who I have been friends with online now for almost 2 years! It was great to hug Dr. Pus, give Zombie Zak a cookie and and put a face to the "user name" of everyone else! And man, Jacob & Matthew from Permuted are TALL! Mikey and I went to the Monroeville Mall and the Evans City Cemetery, must see places for zombie movie fans!

After all that, it was rehearsals every night for a month and a half for the "Night of the Living Dead" play where I played the part of Barbara! It was my first ever acting experience and I loved it! We had 3 shows at the end of October; it was probably one of the most fun and different experiences of my life.

October 11th was the Shreveport Zombie Walk, of which I am the coordinator! It was such a huge success this year; we had almost 200 zombies in attendance and we raised 734 pounds of food for the local food bank! The local indie theater, Robinson Film Center, also did a "Zombie Weekend" in conjunction with the walk. They showed on the big screen Dawn of the Dead (the original), Shaun of the Dead and Night of the Living Dead. The whole weekend was an absolute blast and made significantly better by the fact that my cousin Sara and her kids came in and stayed with us the whole weekend!

So, now I am just working part time and writing when I can. I am still reading submissions for "Dead Set" which is the zombie anthology I am co-editing with author Joe McKinney. It's coming in Spring 2010 from 23 House Publishing. Man, the stories that will be in it are awesome! We got a couple of big names and lots of other great new authors - it will be sure to please! I will also have a story in it called "Pierre and Remy Hatch a Plan," and let's just say.....it's about LSU, redneck Cajuns and zombies!

Mikey is getting ready to deploy to Iraq (again) on Jan. 5 (his birthday - BOO!) It seems like I forgot what it was like to do this and it is starting to all come back to me - and hitting me pretty hard with today being Veterans Day. I am so going to miss him. Please keep him in your prayers; please keep all service members in your prayers. I just worry so much about him coming home safe. We had a REALLY close call last time and I will not take his safety for granted.

Anyhow, that's about all for now. I hope to update this more regularly, especially when he is gone. It will give me something more to do and maybe take my mind off of things sometimes. Oh, and that fact that I have a hormonal pre-teen living in my house now who will become a teenager while his dad is deployed. Yay me. God, help me.

Journey still rocks.

I took my 9 year old son, Sammy, to see Journey tonight. When I say he is Journey fan, it is probably the biggest understatement of the year. We had very good seats right near the stage, but not on the floor (I didn't want Sammy's view to be blocked.) We had an awesome time and my ears are ringing voraciously. A roadie and a police officer thought Sammy was something special, I suppose, banging his head and rocking out, so they both brought him some band guitar picks for a total of seven! Night Ranger opened and they were pretty good! Sammy chatted with one of the guitar players for Night Ranger, telling him he did a good job on guitar. He shook Sammy's hand and said "Thanks for saying that!" All in all, we had a blast. Sammy got a tour shirt and tour bandanna as souvenirs (as well as the picks.)

Dead Set:: A Zombie Anthology

Great news! I am now co-editing a new zombie anthology called "Dead Set" from 23 House Publishing! My co-editor is the great Joe McKinney, a fellow author, and surprisingly, a homicide detective with the San Antonio Police Department. I have a well-worn copy of his novel "Dead City" on my bookshelf. We have started getting submissions and are reading and reviewing them. Want to submit? Go to http://www.23house.com/zombie
for the guidelines and submission information.
I also contacted author Steve Alten about submitting, and he said that he would! Well, we will see how that goes! It's not a paying publication, so he might change his mind once he reads that on the submission page...let's hope not...I would love to get him in there!
We have a submission by David Dunwoody, another excellent author!
Things are getting great and I am having a blast with this!

On a personal note, we got a little dog and named him Fang! He is the best dog ever!

Great News!

After selling a copy of "Zombology" to the senior editor at 23 House Publishing (one Mitchel Whitington) he contacted me about sending me a complimentary copy of "Night of Blood 2," a vampire anthology. Well, I received it in the mail along with a proposal to co-edit an anthology of zombie short stories with author Joe McKinney! Imagine my surprise! After reading over the guidelines and expectations, I accepted! So, in the next few weeks, I will begin putting out the call for submissions. Joe and I will also have stories in the anthology. I am VERY excited about this and feel like doors are opening faster than I ever expected. I have been writing more, and just submitted a short story titled "River Runs True" to the Ladies of Horror Anthology that Library of the Living Dead Press will be publsihing. I am very glad to be writing; it give me a creative outlet, and it lets me tell my stories to whoever will read them.

None of this would be possible without Michael West, aka "Dr. Pus." What a great guy - don't let the nick name fool ya!

www.libraryofthelivingdead.com
www.23house.com
www.permutedpress.com

The Festival!

I had a great time today, met Charlaine Harris and lots of other GREAT authors! The Author! Author! Festival was really awesome! There will be one next year, so keep a look out!

My Shameless Self Promotion....ugh....

Okay, here it is:
PLEASE come to the Author! Author! Festival on June 13th if you are in the Shreveport area!
www.authorauthorshreveport.com is the website. It's at the Municipal Auditorium from 9 am to 7 pm.
I will have a table set up and will be selling copies of "Zombology," which has my story "Every Rose" in it. I will also be promoting myself (har har) and Library of the Living Dead!
Also, from 5:00 till 5:25 PM, I will be featured in the "Reading Alcove," where I can chat and answer questions to my many fans that have yet to exist! (hee hee!)
If that's not enough to get you there, author Charlaine Harris will be there and will sign books and do a panel, etc...if you don't know who she is, I have two words for you: True Blood! She is the author of the books that the HBO series is based on (which takes place in Northern Louisiana and a lot about Shreveport!)
SO....friends, family, countrymen....can I count on you to stop by and see me? You can get free tickets from the website, so money isn't an issue. It lasts almost all day, so can you squeeze in a little of time for your best zombie-lovin' and writing girl?
I will have freebies at my table, and so will a lot of the other authors...so come by, won't you?

Author! Author! Festival

Check out the website: http://www.authorauthorshreveport.com
Click on the "Authors" link and see that.....
I will be one of the featured authors! I will have a table and will be selling copies of "Zombology" and, if anyone is actually interested....signing books. LOL! That just cracks me up.
I am REALLY excited about this, and I hope all you locals out there can make it. I am also excited about getting to meet so many other authors! One of my favorite ones, Charlaine Harris author of the Sookie Stackhouse series among other things, will be in attendance. I can't wait to meet her and get an autographed book. Even though I love to write, deep down, I am still just a huge bookworm/fan girl!

NONE of this would be possible without Dr. Pus (aka Mike West) and his press, Library of the Living Dead. I owe him so many thanks for all the support and kindness he has given, not to mention for publishing me! Rebecca May, you are an AWESOME editor and I owe you thanks!!!
Check out the website! www.libraryofthelivingdead.com The website is undergoing a makeover, but you can still link to the forum and find out about the awesome Podcast!

Oh, and I also should thanks all my forum buddies over at Permuted Press. Matthew, Doug, Robin, Zombie Zak, Buttertup, Rhia, Kody, JJ, BBM, Victorya and many others I am forgetting but not on purpose!.....I'm just a fangirl there, but everyone is so kind and supportive, and the owner/forum admin/THE BOSS, Jacob, is just as nice as they come! Check out the website to order books and join the forum! www.permutedpress.com

My friends and close family....you know who you are and what you have done. I so appreciate your love and support, and putting up with my "unhealthy obsession with the undead."
; )
You know I'm weird, but you love me anyways!

Coming Soon from....me.

I have been on a kick lately. I punched out a story and sent it in to Dr. P at Library of the Living Dead Press for Zombology 3, and he accepted, so I am thoroughly excited about that! So, maybe for my own vain purposes (because I just can't believe it, maybe?) I wanted to post what stories will be coming out soon that were written by me.
In Zombology 2, my story titled "Release" will be printed. It's written from first person, which is new to me. I have trouble figuring out if I am any good at that, so if you read it, let me know what you think.
In Zombology 3, my just accepted story will be "Urgent Matters." I wrote this one from the heart - let's just say it's about a common problem that I face....and those of you who know me know this. : )
I can't remember which Zombology will have only flash fiction (which is 500 words or less) but it is either 4 or 5. I will have a story in it titled "The Neighborhood."
I submitted a poem for the Poetry Anthology, but I am not sure what's happening with that.
Anyhow, I really need to get cracking on a novel. A few people have shown interest in me fleshing out "Every Rose" and continuing Rose's "adventures," so to speak. That is definitely an option, I am just waiting on that inspiration bug to bite me in the butt, I guess! So, hopefully when school is out for my kids this summer, I will have a little more free time in the evenings to work on my writing.

On another note, we recently found out that my oldest son, Michael -
was accepted into Caddo Middle Magnet, which is the BEST middle school in the state of Louisiana. Just to brag for a second...he is definitely a smart-ASS, but he is also VERY smart-brained! He scored in the 95% percentile on the admission test. Wow. I am very proud of him.

Second, my Sammy -
is going to be a Munchkin in "Oz the Musical" on June 2 at The Strand Theatre here in Shreveport! He is super excited about getting to sing and dance on stage. This is the kid who knows every word to every Journey song. He also likes Rocky movies, walks in the woods, and farting.

Also a note for me as a proud mama....both of my boys will be performing their own kung fu duo demonstration called "Big Trouble in Little China" next week in our local Artbreak Talent Show. They had to audition to be in it, and of over 80 groups of kids who tried out, only about 20 were picked. So I am defintely proud of them. They will be doing a traditional Chinese Lion Dance (in this:and then will do a choreographed (sp?) fight sequence, and then Sammy will do his sabre form, and Michael will follow up with his staff form. I will be video-taping, so I will probably post somewhere and let everyone know. I am so proud of them for sticking with kung fu for 5 years now. It takes a good 10 -12 years for someone to get a black belt in kung fu, and Michael is already halfway there. Sammy is trucking along and getting ready to test for his green belt. (proud mama moment) I would much rather be a kung fu mom than a soccer mom ANY day of the week!

So, that is enough of my gushing over my kids. I have tried not to on this blog, but I can't help it, they are my life!
Ciao!

"Zombology" now available for purchase.

The anthology "Zombology" by Library of the Living Dead Press, with my short story "Every Rose..." in it, is now available for purchase at Amazon! Here is the link: Zombology@Amazon
From what I have read so far, everyone's stories are just awesome! I am impressed. It is very exciting to see my name and story in print. Please go purchase if you can!

Getting paid!

I just found out that Dr. Pus will be able to pay all of the authors for their stories being published in the Zombology books! I am having 3 published! Although it's not much, in my mind, being a PAID author is a bigger deal than being an unpaid author! Wow!!! The first Zombology book will be out the end of March, says Dr. Pus, so I will keep everyone updated on when it's available! YAY!!!

Update!!

Dr. Pus accepted my flash fiction submission "The Neighborhood" for Zombology IV - The Quick and the Undead! YAY!!! That will be 3 of my stories published my LotLD! YAY!

The Scribbler
Thanks to my friend, Matthew Baugh for awarding me a Superior Scribbler Award! I get the honor of passing this on to five deserving folks, so I have picked these:

1. Matthew Baugh! Right back at ya, buddy! Matthew is so nice and so encouraging! He is one of my new 'net friends and I think I am better for knowing him! Go read his blog "Fantasic Frontiers!" It's...fantastic!

2. Jorge Garcia from Lost and his blog "Dispatches from the Island!" Jorge is a great, funny, down to earth guy. Plus, he sent my two kiddos autographed pics! That just made our day.

3. Dark Wing Mantis and his blog: http://hiveofhorror.vox.com/library/posts/page/1/

I love reading his opinions and thoughts on all kinds of things, and especially horror!

4. Robert R. Best - author of some of my favorite short stories, "All Kinds of Things Kill." He is such a great writer, and I had the privelege of having him write a short story about me, "Kill Dead Mama!"

5. Patrick Rutigliano - also known as "Prutig" at Permuted forums! He and I are appearing in Library of the Living Dead's "Zombology" anthology soon, so I had to give him props!

Of course, as with every Bloggy Award, there are A Few Rules. They are, forthwith:
Each Superior Scribbler must in turn pass The Award on to 5 most-deserving Bloggy Friends.
Each Superior Scribbler must link to the author & the name of the blog from whom he/she has received The Award.
Each Superior Scribbler must display The Award on his/her blog, and link to This Post, which explains The Award.
Each Blogger who wins The Superior Scribbler Award must visit this post and add his/her name to the Mr. Linky List. That way, we'll be able to keep up-to-date on everyone who receives This Prestigious Honor!
Each Superior Scribbler must post these rules on his/her blog.

Waiting...

I submitted a flash fiction zombie story to Dr. Pus at Library of the Living Dead yesterday, for the soon to be published "Zombology IV" which is nothing but flash fiction. That means 500 words or less. It was a lot harder than I thought it would be! I had to do some MAJOR editing!!!! So, I am just waiting to hear back on whether or not he accepts it....nervous nail biting here, people.

On another note, I am in the process of reading Volumes 1-9 of "The Walking Dead" comics again, for the third time! They are just awesomely (new word there) good and well written! I have never bought the single issues as they come out, I just wait for the Volumes, which is hard to do! Volume 10 comes out in August, so that's my month, I guess. If you have never read them, drop what you are doing and go to the local comic store and get them, now! Be prepared to sequester yourself for about a day to get them read, if not more than that to re-read them again immediately after!

Geekin' Out

I am still totally hyped about getting a couple of my short stories published. One of my ambitions in life has always been to get something published. Now that is happening, I feel the need to bump it up a notch and start working on a book. I am just waiting for that idea or inspiration to come along. A lot of my ideas, as silly as it may sound, come to me in dreams! It's like my subconscious imagination works while I sleep and plants these seeds in my mind. Sometimes I forget them, so I am keeping a journal on my nightstand - just in case.
The thing is, I really need to devote time to writing. I mostly do it in spurts, just whenever I feel like it. I need to set aside time from my already horrendously busy schedule and just focus on writing. I also need to exercise, so ha ha, let's see how that goes!
Anyhow, I had a great busy weekend. I love living in Louisiana - Mardi Gras parades are so awesome! It's an all day party just to act crazy for 2 hours to try to get people to bean you with cheap pieces of plastic! Where else can you do that? You tell me.

Zombology!!!!

Be on the lookout for "Zombology" from Library of the Living Dead Press, in late March/early April 2009! It will be available on Amazon.com as well as some other online booksellers! Not only will there be lots of great zombie short stories, yours truly will have one in there! Yep, Dr. P decided to put "Every Rose..." in it! He will also be releasing a "Zombology 2" later, and that will have "Release" in it, which is another short story I wrote.
I am super-duper excited about this - my first published work! It's really motivating me to write more.
I don't know what kind of response I will get, because it is my first published work and probably not all that great. I can already hear the criticisms....I guess I am just being a pessimist. Ugh!