Night #3 of nothing but Fela Kuti.

Some dude on Facebook mansplained publishing to me today. His explanation included the line “I don’t believe in editing.” Gotta love it.

Here’s some (more, I shared his work in January and September of 2023) Samuel Araya art to make your Tuesday a little better.

If you’re in town on June 14th, come hang out!

Slowly approaching 1000 subscribers. As soon as it hits 1000, I’m bringing back Show Me Your Shelves!

Your monthly reminder:

Keep writing. When no one cares, persist. When things appear to be crumbling, keep at it. When it's difficult, push through. When you feel alone, listen to the stories in your blood. Just write. The world needs you to tell your truth through your words.

The hardest part of the New York Times gig is the same every month: picking the books. There are a lot of awesome horror books published every month. It’s a great moment to be a horror reader. Our genre is better than ever.

Vanity presses are scammers. Paying upfront for anything is called “bullshit,” not a “hybrid contract.” Money flows to the writer, not the other way around. Wanna spend money? Publish your own stuff and pay for an editor and a cover artist. Fuck vanity presses.

Half a dozen folks turned me down when I asked for blurbs for House of Bone and Rain. Half a dozen said yes. That’s how this thing goes. I turned around and blurbed a bunch of stuff. That’s also how this thing goes. Always pay it forward.

It’s an Oceano kinda morning.

Hey folks! Got a new “Murder In The First” article over at Mystery Tribune! This one is about the author and book that made me want to write crime fiction: Charlie Huston’s CAUGHT STEALING

mysterytribune.com/murder-in-the-…

Your monthly reminder:

Keep writing. When no one cares, persist. When things appear to be crumbling, keep at it. When it's difficult, push through. When you feel alone, listen to the stories in your blood. Just write. The world needs you to tell your truth through your words.

Afternoon mood brought to you by Julia Soboleva.

Two weeks ago I was talking about the thousands of times I’ve watched the Zapruder film. The same goes for the Patterson–Gimlin film, obviously. Anyway, today I was watching something and…yeah, this is a solid second on the “seen too many times” list:

Night #2 of nothing but Fela Kuti.

Sometimes I find a few seconds to reply to bots if I’m at the grocery store or something.

One thing I do for my mental health is look for/share art. When I get here and something or someone makes me feel stabby, I turn the music louder and go look for cool art.

Here’s some Dariusz Kieliszek art to make your Monday a little better.

Yeah…no.