Posts Tagged ‘Vampires’
Another lovely, warm evening greeted the Bloomington Writers Guild’s “Last Sunday Poetry Reading & Open Mic” (see February 25, et al. — a March “Last Sunday” having been pre-empted by Easter), including this time sun!, at Morgenstern Books. The opening featured reader was Writers Guild founder Patsy Rahn, with nonfiction and poetry publications both in the US and England as well as being 2021’s recipient of the People’s Choice Award from the 5th Open Eurasian Literary Festival of Festivals (LIFT), with — with an eye toward Gaza-related protests on the local IU campus, including incidents spurred by IU and state police — a series of poems from both her 2018 collection, THE GRAINY WET SOUL, and a new collection currently in press, based loosely on the idea of “humanity.”
She was followed by Zionsville resident Rosaleen Crowley, a graduate from University College Cork, Ireland; past president/interest group leader of the Writing Group, International Women Indiana; and a current Creative Writing-Poetry MFA student at Butler University with, first, a group of poems written in and about Ireland coupled with many reminiscences, and finally some poems from the most recent of her six poetry books, BE PREPARED TO BE LUMINOUS, written in and about Indiana.
This was followed by an open-mic session with a record eleven people signed up of which, due to strict time constraints given the session’s 7 to 8:30 p.m. time slot (that is, running up to the bookstore’s closing), only nine were able to be heard. Of these I came sixth with, noting May’s upcoming Second Thursday Spoken Word where poems originally selected to be published in THE RYDER’s spring poetry edition (up in the air at this moment due to the untimely death of its de facto Editor-in-Chief/general firebrand Peter LoPilato) are to be presented, and as a sort of preview of mine, three brief poems that THE RYDER had rejected: two shadormas, “The Health-Conscious Vampiress Reflects Upon Her Most Recent Meal” and “Error in Judgement,” and a more conventional “Pas de Dead.”
April’s Bloomington Writers Guild “First Sunday Prose and Open Mic” (see March 3, et al.), at the Juniper Gallery on West Kirkwood Ave., deviated from the usual pattern of two featured readers, a break, and an open session for walk-on participants. In view of a soon-ending spring school semester, coordinator Molly Gleeson opted instead for a special program honoring local students and teachers. Thus seven readers (truncated from nine, as two were unable to make it) with short presentations comprised the first part, with (as it turned out, due to limited time) a segue, sans break, to three audience readers.
Thus the program began with Writers Guild member Tonia Matthew discussing her role with Bloomington’s VITAL– Volunteers In Tutoring Adult Learners — program at the Monroe County Public Library; followed by three high school students, Percy Patterson, Maci Day, and Allister Farrell, with poetry; Guild member Erin Strole on her path to becoming a teacher at Bloomington North and on teaching in general; another high school poet, Mya Coleman; and “70-year-old Ivy Tech student” Andre Deloney on, among other things, his work with county jail staff on helping inmates improve reading skills.
This then was followed, as noted, by we three walk-ons, with me coming last with a very short story combining the theme of teaching and learning with one of darkness, the latter in view of tomorrow’s upcoming solar eclipse (participants also found eclipse glasses on their chairs when they came in, courtesy of MC Gleeson), “School Nights,” originally published in Gothic Blue Book, October 2014, on the journey of a possibly naive young girl to her realization that she was a vampire.
Well I don’t know if everyone, reader or listener, was necessarily a signed-up member of the Bloomington Writers Guild — poets can turn up in all kinds of places! — but credit, at least, for the organization goes to Guild Chair April Ridge. As well as kudos to The Monroe, a frighteningly large apartment complex on Bloomington’s east side, for hosting the event.
Plus nice snacks too.
The call had gone out a month before from April: [W]ould you like to read at the World Poetry Day Open Mic at the Monroe on 3/21/24? There’s a 10 minute spot with your name on it if you want it! And Tony or I can give you a ride to and back as well. Tony being Writers Guild past officer and all around firebrand Tony Brewer who also led off and MCd the event. And some twenty-two poets, give or take, took the bait — for the reading, that is, if not for the ride — to fill three hours of five and ten minute individual sessions.
And so, surprisingly, it came off last night only about five minutes out from the precise 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. listed schedule, granted with a few blank spots written in that allowed some adjustment. Most poets read five minutes, though with me one of eight tagged for ten minute sessions. So, natch, I read horror poetry, “vampire and vampire adjacent,” cut down from a reading I’d done last Halloween-ish for “Last Sunday Poetry” (cf. October 29), at roughly half-way through the listed lineup.
It seemed to go over well, as did the whole event!
This the dedication, on p. 11:
To the woman pushed to the edge by a world so cold,
Wielding power, not for grace, but to break the mold.
Amidst the allure & indifference, your strength unfolds —
A testiment to the fire in your souls, untold.
The book, FEMME FATALE FLASHES (see March 4, February 24, et al.), published by Wicked Shadow Press, in West Bengal, India. Yes, it did take awhile to arrive. But today, March 4, it arrived in my mailbox, some 280 pages, with 56 stories, including my “Dinner Date,” starting on p. 144.
And as the title implies, these are all flash-length stories, all under about 1000-words each, brief snapshot-like glances at women to . . . well, watch out for, mine unsurprisingly one of those feisty New Orleanian vampiresses, les filles à les caissettes, the normally shy and retiring Hélène.
To quote the blurb (this from Lulu, not Amazon — so it goes): _Welcome to the shadowed corners of intrigue and peril. Wicked Shadow Press presents “Femme Fatale Flashes”, a captivating anthology of flash fictions, each one casting the spotlight on the elusive femme fatale, a figure at once dangerously seductive and imbued with an undeniable strength.
Dive into narratives where mystery and malice dance closely, as these women tread the fine line between morality and desire. From the straightforward journeys of beguiling yet sinister characters whose beginnings are as veiled as their intentions, to the intricate tales of those sculpted by the harshness of society, the sting of betrayal, or the tumultuous twists of love, this collection delves into the myriad hues of what it means to embody the femme fatale.
“Femme Fatale Flashes” beckons you to explore the complex realm of these mesmerising women through stories that are as concise as they are profound. Brace yourself to be captivated by the lethal allure of the femme fatale, in a collection that promises to enchant, entangle, and ultimately, redefine your perception of power, vengeance, and seduction.
For more, see post for February 24 for separate paperback and ebook links.
Not necessarily because of a temporary 7-8:30 p.m. evening time at Morgenstern Books, but because I had the flu (so you get your fall shot, a new kind comes along . . . lucky me!) I missed February’s Bloomington Writers Guild’s “First Sunday Prose and Open Mic” (cf. January 7 2024, et al.). So today was this year’s first, excepting January’s which in some ways seemed more a holdover from last year, and at an all new, hopefully more or less permanent time and place, from 2-3:30 p.m. at the Juniper Gallery on West Kirkwood Avenue just off downtown. A small gallery this, it was more or less packed at maybe a tad over 20 attendees (including some at snack bar tables, a sort of holdover from the original Morgenstern’s ambience as well), and enjoyed, it seemed, by all.
The first featured reader was IU Professor Emerita, storyteller, actor, researcher, writer, and theatrical producer Gladys DeVane, with a moving passage from her book COME SIT WITH ME: MY LIFE IN POETRY, PROSE, AND PLAYS, in part in the voice of major champion for the right to vote for Blacks in 1960s Mississippi — as well as survivor of beatings and worse — Fannie Lou Hamer, and ending on a note for present-day America, a “country still in need of spiritual healing.” She was followed by retired art-museum worker and IU education teacher and present-day tour guide for the Exotic Feline Rescue Center, whose “writing has gotten quite free-wheeling since she’s no longer writing for professional journals,” Beau Vallance, with three short essays: the first “kind of serious,” “Reading for the Incarcerated”; a self-described “lighter” second, “Prom Dresses”; and a “silly” third, a eulogy for a “Yellow Fit,” a much-loved Honda sub-compact that, victim of a crash, had finally had to be given up as being too far damaged to be repaired.
After the break, seven readers lined up for the “open mic” session, with me number six with a piece just published in FEMME FATALE FLASHES (see February 24), “Dinner Date,” about one of the shyer of the New Orleanian vampiresses, the Casket Girls, and how she was able to find a way, when the chips were down, to act as her idol, Aimée, would.
Then, speaking of vampires, harking back to the post just below, February 29, METASTELLAR has officially published the non-Casket Girl Christmas story, “Naughty or Nice,” today as promised. To read it, press here.
Another fun little “femme fatale,” or sometimes things do move fast (see, e.g., February 24). In this case the call was exactly one week back, February 22: Our editors are looking for previously published flash fiction and short stories that fall into the genres of science fiction, fantasy, and horror. Flash fiction should be up to 1,200 words, . . . Brownie points if your work can make us chuckle.
The magazine was METASTELLAR and reprint flash doesn’t pay, but [a]ll reprints are eligible for inclusion in our “best of the year” anthologies and are considered for our You Tube story time channel, and you will be contacted if your story is selected. Well, no results on the latter possibilities quite yet (the story, however, takes place on Christmas so there’s still plenty of time), but this word came today: Your short story “Naughty or Nice?” is scheduled to be published on Mar. 3, 202. [I’m assuming that final number is meant to be “2024.”] A link which will be live then was included along with a very nice illustration for my approval (which it got, and is reprinted here), plus bio information and links — again all done quite well — and a contract, that last signed and sent back this afternoon.
The story itself is one I’m fond of, the second (I think) that I’d sold to a then very respected ezine, DAILY SCIENCE FICTION, and published December 21 2011. The story title is “Naughty or Nice” and the femme, noted above, a lady who calls herself Mignonette, an immigrant to Paris from a land farther east who is just getting used to Western customs — in this case that of sending a wish list for Christmas to Saint Nick. (But the setting out of milk and cookies too? . . . so many details!)
And in three days the link I was sent will go live, so stay tuned to be able to read it yourself this Sunday!
Some things move fast (one might say, in a flash?). Two months from submission to acceptance of a story is fairly common (cf. February 18), but from there to publication in just under a week?
Apparently so. The word came this evening from Editor Parth Sarathi Chakraborty: In the luminous glow of anticipation, woven with a sense of thrill, we are delighted to unveil FEMME FATALE FLASHES, now gracing the catalog of Wicked Shadow Press.
Enclosed, you will discover a print replica PDF, an invitation to peer into the anthology that has blossomed from stories of captivating danger, narrated in succinct, powerful flashes. This journey, rich with the fruits of our collective labor, finds its roots in the depth of your imagination, for which we remain eternally grateful.
But . . . (ah now, the catch) the replica PDF is for me, as one of 43 contributing authors (of 56 stories — some of us authors more busy than others), but for others the book can be ordered via Lulu. And judging by the blurb (and, yes, the PDF too), it looks like a winner: Welcome to the shadowed corners of intrigue and peril. Wicked Shadow Press presents FEMME FATALE FLASHES, a captivating anthology of flash fictions, each one casting the spotlight on the elusive femme fatale, a figure at once dangerously seductive and imbued with an undeniable strength.
Dive into narratives where mystery and malice dance closely, as these women tread the fine line between morality and desire. From the straightforward journeys of beguiling yet sinister characters whose beginnings are as veiled as their intentions, to the intricate tales of those sculpted by the harshness of society, the sting of betrayal, or the tumultuous twists of love, this collection delves into the myriad hues of what it means to embody the femme fatale.
FEMME FATALE FLASHES beckons you to explore the complex realm of these mesmerising women through stories that are as concise as they are profound. Brace yourself to be captivated by the lethal allure of the femme fatale, in a collection that promises to enchant, entangle, and ultimately, redefine your perception of power, vengeance, and seduction.
Of which my lady, not least of the lot (ah, now), is the “Casket Girl” Hélène of the vampiresses of New Orleans, les filles à les caissettes, arrived in the year 1728 and taking a bite out of history since then. The story, “Dinner Date,” a brief romantic adventure.
But for the whole bunch one can see for oneself, for information and possible ordering, by pressing here (for paper) or for ePub here.
It seemed like a fun little project. No money to speak of, but cash isn’t everything.
FEMME FATALE FLASHES headlined the call: All genres are invited, with the only stipulation that the story feature a femme fatale.
Flash Fiction: (between 50-1500 words) Please send no more than TWO flash fictions per submission.
We are considering TRANSLATED WORKS as well. Submission of translated works must be accompanied by a statement declaring that the translator has obtained the author’s permission and their publisher’s, if required.
And on. But it sounded, did it not, a bit like a job for those irrepressible New Orleanian misses, les filles à les caissettes, and to my ear one who we have not heard overly much of before, the shy, restrained Hélène, who perhaps conceals her vampiric nature too well? Might this not be a chance for her to shine?
And so suppose on a sort of first date with a man who knows of the “Casket Girls” urban legend and, to be sure, doesn’t realize parts of it are real, she finds he will still not let the legend go. He keeps coming back to it, dwelling on vampires and how, if they existed, they would personify evil. Who goes on and on, raking the subject over, not just making Hélène feel quite uncomfortable with all this chatter, but worried he might blunder onto some kind of truth. What would Aimée do, the Casket Girls’ founder and leader? she wonders.
In “Dinner Date” she may discover an answer.
In just over two months, in any event, the reply came from publisher Wicked Shadow Press: We hope this message finds you well and brimming with creative energy! It brings us immense pleasure to reach out to you today with some great news. We are delighted to inform you that your story “Dinner Date” has been accepted for inclusion in our upcoming anthology, “FEMME FATALE FLASHES.”
More here as it’s revealed.
It’s from the January 2024 WINNING WRITERS NEWSLETTER, a useful listing of “the best free literary contests” that writers might enter each month, plus a few things more. So I’d let them know specifically about AVOID SEEING A MOUSE AND OTHER TALES OF THE REAL AND SURREAL, and a few other matters, for their Subscriber News section. And there it was, a listing with my name amongst others, and a link two paragraphs down labeled “Learn about our subscribers’ achievements and see links to samples of their work.”
So plunk the magic twanger and then, under the aegis “Recent Honors and Publication Credits for Our Subscribers,” there IT was: Congratulations to James Dorr. His story collection Avoid Seeing a Mouse: And Other Tales of the Real and Surreal will be published this month by Alien Buddha Press. In other news, his poems “The Worm in the Wood” and “The Westfarer” were included in the anthology Speculative Poetry and the Modern Alliterative Revival, edited by Dennis Wilson Wise and published by Fairleigh Dickinson University Press. Visit Dorr’s website for more information about his many books.
Of course, you’ve read it here before (see January 8, et al.; and December 15 2023, et al.) but all publicity helps. And the listing has live links too under the books’ two titles, the one for MOUSE leading to its Goodreads listing, as well as the word “website” which, if pressed, will lead you back here.
So go ahead, try it. To see “Recent Honors” etc. click here. And then, if you wish, explore around WINNING WRITERS itself. The newsletter can be subscribed to free, and you may find it worthwhile.
And then one more announcement: as of last notice, two of three reviews of AVOID SEEING A MOUSE on Goodreads have also migrated to its Amazon listing. But they would like company (or, as noted above, all publicity helps — and that even includes less than five-star ratings)! So to all readers, please check the book out for yourself — it can be found on Amazon by pressing here — and consider a purchase. It’s good for gifts too and, at $12.99, it’s modestly priced. But buy, beg, or steal it (or borrow it from your quicker-to-buy friend), if you’ve read the book please consider reviewing it, even if it’s just a sentence or two, and sending it to Amazon and Goodreads both.
It would really help.
Embark on a mesmerizing journey through the realms where reality intertwines with the surreal in “AVOID SEEING A MOUSE: AND OTHER TALES OF THE REAL AND SURREAL” by James Dorr.
So begins the blurb for my latest book, officially published and listed on Amazon as of today. In paperback form it’s available for $12.99, an ultra-low price in view of today’s post-inflation standards. It is, to be sure, a shortish collection with just twelve stories (by contrast, my 2013 Stoker® nominated THE TEARS OF ISIS had seventeen plus a poem), but with a purposeful hoped-for effect of piling skewed images, one atop another, inviting readers to see the whole as one prolonged vision — a kaleidoscope of dream reaching toward madness.
Or, quoting the blurb further: From the enigmatic landscapes of ancient Memphis to the mysterious dreams that blur the lines between waking and slumber, Dorr weaves a tapestry of stories that defy conventional boundaries.
Delve into the secrets of an otherworldly love, the apocalyptic visions that haunt the corners of our minds, and the strange encounters that shape the destiny of characters on the brink of revelation.
Dorr’s prose, rich with symbolism and mysticism, invites readers to explore the intricate dance between the tangible and the fantastical. In this collection, the ordinary becomes extraordinary, and the surreal whispers the hidden truths of existence.
“AVOID SEEING A MOUSE” beckons you to step into a world where dreams and reality converge, inviting you to question what you thought you knew about the nature of the universe.
And thus it goes. It can be found on Amazon for additional information, or — hopefully — ordering, by pressing here. And that isn’t all, there’s even a sample story offered through the publisher, Alien Buddha Press, which can be found here.
And one more item: If you should read AVOID SEEING A MOUSE and find it worthwhile, please consider reviewing it — even if only a single sentence on why you enjoyed or didn’t enjoy it — and posting it on sites like Amazon and Goodreads, along with your own blog and any other place you think appropriate. Or just tell your friends. With so much available on the internet, it’s the personal touch like that that’s the lifeblood of writers, helping a work stand out through the confusion.
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