Monday, September 30, 2013

My Author Appearance at Monster Fest in Chesapeake, Virginia This Saturday


I'll be at Monster Fest this Saturday, October 5th, 20 am to 4:30 pm. It will be held at the Chesapeake Central Library, 298 Cedar Rd. Chesapeake, Virginia. The one-day mini horror convention is free and open to the public. adults and children. It's their tenth anniversary.
Besides selling and signing my books and Paranormal World Seeker DVDs, I will also be doing two panels, both at the BAY WINDOW AREA:

11 AM - Getting Your Scare On: Panel discussion of what types of techniques writers use to scare the reader
Moderator: Tony Ruggiero
Panelists: Pamela K. Kinney, Tina Glasneck, & Betsy Riley

2 PM - Paranormal Investigating: From doing it to making it on DVD
Panelists: Pamela K. Kinney & Mark Layne

As says on the website: Begun in 2003 by Rob Floyd and artist Clayton Sayre, Monster Fest is a day of vendors, panel discussions, special guests, a costume contest, trick-or-treating for all kids in costume, and a horror movie marathon!

All community-minded boils and ghouls should bring a donation for the FoodBank of Southeastern Virginia!

Then the library will close its doors at 5pm and re-open at 7pm. In honor of Monster Fest's 10th anniversary, for the double feature shock show we are showing two movies that we showed at the very first Monster Fest: "Frankenstein meets the Wolf Man" and "Horror of Dracula"
Before the movies, thrill to live music by "The Sons of Frankenstein"!!!


For more information: MONSTER FEST




Friday, September 27, 2013

Supernatural Friday: Interview With the Creator of Monster Fest!










 Today, I decided to interview the man behind Monster Fest, a really great horror one-day convention held every October for the past ten years at the Chesapeake Central Library, 298 Cedar Rd. in Chesapeake, Virginia. It's tenth year will be next week, on Saturday, October 5th. See the man behind the Monster....MONSTER FEST that is!



1. What made you decide to do Monster Fest? My love for all things classic horror and to everyone in the area that also love classic horror a place to meet and get together.

2. What do you hope others will get out of Monster Fest? I just hope everyone has fun! Monster Fest has really developed a sense of community over the years. And it's always great to see when someone discovers a classic horror film that we show that they have never seen before. Like I did growing up watching Dr. Madblood.

3. Who is your favorite horror actor? What is your favorite film? And what classic monster was and always will be your favorite? Favorite scary book? Too many to have one favorite horror actor , but I love Karloff, and Chaney Jr., Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee. the Wolf Man is probably my favorite film with Frankenstein running a clos esecond. but Frankenstein meets the Wolf Man will always be special to me as it was the first one that I ever watched( on Dr. Madblood around 76 or 77).

4 Do you see Monster Fest celebrating its 29th anniversary, and why do you believe that? Ha! Let me just get through the 10th first!

5. What was your first monster movie? On TV : Frankenstein meets the Wolf Man. In the theater: the '76 remake of King Kong.

6. Are liking monsters your passion, a hobby, or do you incorporate it as a job of sorts? Passion and hobby.

7. What horror host did you watch when you were younger? I was( and still am) a hardcore Dr. Madblood fan from '76 on.

8. What really scares you? Politics.

9. Give us Monster Fest’s link, is it free or does it costs, and what people will see there when they come. MONSTER FEST  is FREE! We have over 70 dealer tables this year. Dr. Madblood will be there, along with the Bowman Body, and Penny Dreadful! Life size monster displays  and great panels all day long! The Cemetery Boys will be playing outside all day, and the Sons of Frankenstein will play inside before the classic horror double feature of "Frankenstein meets the Wolf Man" and " Horror of Dracula " that night.


Sunday, September 22, 2013

Williamsburg Book Festival

Yesterday, September 21, 2013,  I was signing at the Williamsburg Book Festival in Williamsburg, Virginia. Held in the Williamsburg Community Building on N. Boundary Street, it was a day of book signings by me and other authors and also some free workshops for writers.

Authors were were there included
Warren Bell Cindy L. Freeman Greg Lilly Ronald G. Munro
John Broadwater James J. Frey Narielle Living Frederick W. Siegel
Marie Chu Barry Jordan, Jr. Robert J. Mandala Mary Montague Sikes
Robert A. Fiacco Baine Kelly Jake McKenzie L.B. Taylor, Jr.
Henrietta F. Ford Pamela K. Kinney Frank Milligan Maureen Wlodarczyk
      Chesapeake Bay Writers


Here are some photos from the event.




Thursday, September 19, 2013

Supernatural Friday: The Devil in Folklore





The Devil is one of two main characters in my newly released short story, “Devil in the Details”  in the anthology, Harboring Secrets. The protagonist for ages against God and his angels, he has been known as Lucifer, a fallen angel, Satan, the Great Horned God, Mammon, dragon, Father of Lies, Abaddon, Accuser, Apollyon, Cloven Hoof, Beast, Beelzebub,  and Belial, to even name more names. The Devil is believed in many religions, myths and cultures to be a supernatural entity that is the personification of evil. The nature of the role varies greatly, ranging from being an effective opposite force to the creator god, locked in an eons long struggle for human souls on what may seem even terms to being a comical figure of fun or an abstract aspect of the individual human condition.

While mainstream Judaism contains no overt concept of a devil, Christianity and Islam have variously regarded the Devil as a rebellious fallen angel or demon that tempts humans to sin, if not commit evil deeds himself. In these religions, the Devil has assumed more of a dualistic status commonly associated with heretics, infidels, and other unbelievers.
In mainstream Christianity, God and the Devil are usually portrayed as fighting over the souls of humans, with the Devil seeking to lure people away from God and into Hell. The Devil commands a force of evil spirits, commonly known as demons. The Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) describes the Adversary as an angel who instigates tests upon humankind. Many other religions have a trickster or tempter figure that is similar to the Devil. One of these is Loki in the Norse mythology.

In one legend from Colonial America, the lawyer Daniel Webster goes up against the Devil and wins. There’s even a well know rock country song, 'Devil Down in Georgia,' where the fiddler in the story out fiddles the Devil. Another is folklore about a real person in history, Colonel Philip Lightfoot must danced against the Devil to save his land  at what is known as Dancing Point today. The legend says that the Devil caused the barrenness in the land and remarked that it was his, not Lightfoot’s. Colonel Lightfoot agreed to a contest between the two of them. They would see who was the best dancer and could last the longest, with the land as the prize. They marched to Dancing Point at dusk and shed their coats and tricorns. After building a large fire, both proceeded to dance their hearts out. Around and around a tree stump they whirled. Lightfoot had claims to being an accomplished dancer and he proved it that night. The Devil didn’t give up, as he was determined to win, but when the first rays of dawn painted the morning sky, the Devil knew he had lost. He limped away in humiliation, crossing the James River to Surry County. The old-timers report that he still lives there. This tale is in chapters in my Haunted Virginia: Legends, Myths and True Tales and Virginia's Haunted Historic Triangle: Williamsburg, Yorktown, Jamestown, and Other Haunted Locations

Another tale is about the Blues singer Robert Johnson who is supposed to have met the Devil at a crossroads in Mississippi, the Devil took his guitar off of him, tuned it, played a few songs and gave it back, from then on Robert Johnson could play the Blues better then anyone alive.


But most times, the human doesn’t win and loses his/her soul. Just as what happens to my heroine in “Devil in the Details.” Another such folklore where the mortal lost concerns a girl rushing to a dance. Her mother forbids her to go, saying the preacher said the dance was going to the devil. The girl goes anyway and ends up dancing with this handsome young man. He whiles her around ad around until she vanishes. He then bows to others at the dance and vanishes. The girl is winging her way to Hell.

There is also one from Devon England that in the 1800's a set of footprints in the shape of hoofs appeared over night in the snow going for hundreds of miles appearing to go straight over the roofs of houses and barns.

There are tons of stories of the devil in southern folklore. One told of how the devil would hide among goat herds in the form of a large billy goat. When a prospective sinner drew near, the devil stood on his hind legs and follow him until the person came to a crossroads. If the sinner would turn to confront the devil before he/she reached the crossroads, the devil took his/her soul. If not, then the sinner had best get to church as soon as possible and confesses his sins before he pass those same crossroads again. In the French-Canadian folktales of the 19th century argues that the legends involving the Devil can be categorized according to a trinity of basic tale types. The first type is the “beautiful dancer,” the second is the “builder of bridges and churches” and the final is the “instigator of pacts.”

Devil be or not, one should never sell their soul to strangers, for after all, the Devil is the Prince of Lies after all.




Here is short excerpt from "Devil in the Details."

They say the devil is in the details. Most especially when one sold their soul to the Devil in a literal sense. Then life and death becomes extremely important. 

I should have read that contract better before I signed it in blood ten years ago. 

Jenna tossed back the glass of scotch she held. The amber liquid burned a path down her throat to her stomach. The glass clinked loud as she set it down next to the empty bottle. It toppled over and spilled the scotch across the table’s surface. 

A giggle escaped her. Who gave a damn about a mess on one measly table? Or that she never been so drunk in her life. Not with her soul in trouble. Hell put things into perspective.

Buy Harboring Secrets in print at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Books A Million and at your local independent bookstore. It is also available  on Kindle and as a Nookbook on BarnesandNoble.com. 



 

Williamsburg Book Festival in Williamsburg, VA. Sept. 21st-Free

I'll be signing with other authors at the Williamsburg Book Festival this Saturday, September 21st, from 9:30 am to 4 pm. It will be held at  the Williamsburg Community Building 401 N Boundary Street Williamsburg, VA 23185. The event is free and open to the public. The College of William an Mary is the official bookseller for the book festival. Besides authors signing, there will be workshops for aspiring writers that are free to take.
http://www.williamsburgbookfestival.com/attend.html
I will have a limited number of ghostly book thongs (one per person who has a book signed by me).

Harboring Secrets Now as eBook on Amazon and Barnes and Noble!




Harboring Secrets anthology is now available on Kindle: http://is.gd/3dKeY7  and on Nook: http://is.gd/98WQ5b  This has my dark fantasy short story, "Devil in the Details."  If you prefer print, it is available in trade paperback at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Books A  Million and can be ordered through your local independent bookstore, too.

Friday, September 13, 2013

Supernatural Friday: Got Your Rabbit's Foot? It's Friday the 13th!




Do you believe in bad or good luck? Do you think there are bad connotations to the number 13? For me, I have used it and won over the years at contest, cake walks, etc....

Friday the 13th has for years been considered a day to watch out for. A 1993 study done by authors in the British Medical Journal have proven more car accidents are higher on the 13th than on normal Fridays.

Both the number 13 and the sixth day of the week have foreboding reputations since ancient times. Those who fear something bad will happen on the 13th, will not go to work, eat, etc...

The number 13 is also connected with a legend. It is said, that if thirteen people sit down to dinner, one of them will die within the year. Many cities do not have a 13th Street or Avenue. There are buildings without a thirteen floor. Having thirteen letters in your name means you will have the devil's luck. People with 13 letters include Jack the Ripper, Jeffrey Dahmer, Charles Manson, Theodore Bundy, Albert De Slavo, to name a few.

Turks have a dislike so much for the number that it is almost stricken from their vocabulary. And of course, everyone knows there are thirteen witches in a coven!

To give the argument from the other side: Chinese consider the number to be a sign of luck. Egyptians used this for spiritual ascension--twelve in their life and thirteenth beyond, meant to be eternal afterlife.

It is thought that western civilization reviled the number as it is considered feminine--used by prehistoric goddess-worshipping cultures. It corresponded to the lunar (menstrual) cycles in a year.

Whatever or however you believe Friday the 13th to be, it's just another day--right?

OR IS IT?




Friday, September 06, 2013

Supernatural Friday: "A Ghost By Any Other Name is a GHOST!"







(Enjoy my original poem today. Do share the link and not the poem itself with friends.)

"A Ghost By Any Other Name is a GHOST!" 



Slithering through the ether

A breath of cool breeze,

Or something else.

It haunts corners of deserted buildings

A lost soul, or demonic thing.

Sometimes, they are like radio,

Repeating endlessly over and over.

Other times, they communicate.

Move objects and appear to us.

Ghosts, specters, phantoms,

Orbs, apparitions, revenant,

Haint, shade, shadow person,

So many descriptions, so many names.

Doesn’t matter;

Haunting is what they do!