I received the Crowmother tees from The Bag and The Crow and I’m going to give them away to one lucky male and one lucky female. These shirts are very special, not only are they a limited batch, but my buddy Jassen made them in honor of his mother who introduced him to horror (and she now has cancer so send good energy their way. They can use that.)
All you have to do to enter is leave a comment about your biggest influence (whether a writer, parent, friend, make-believe pal, whatever). What about them has helped you so much? What have they done that’s brought you smiles and joy and enriched your life?
I’ll run the contest for two weeks from today then choose my favorite male and female answers (though I’m certain all of them will be touching, and funny and insightful.)
Don’t forget… Cool people spread the word. Good luck!
Also received my author copies for NURSERY RHYMES 4 DEAD CHILDREN. Here’s a pic of me holding my baby on my lap. Sweetness. I think there are 19 copies left. Let’s sell this thing out, yeah? It’s going to be worth money because I’m going to end up infamous.
The digital and paperback versions will be out soon as well! Hot damn. Buy one. You’ll love it or hate it. A huge thank you to those who have already snagged one of the collector copies! Party!
I also received my first 3 copies of Dark Discoveries 18which has one of my stories in it. Very neat. Here are a cover pic and the fiction TOC. Looking forward to reading this issue especially! I love being surrounded by stunning company.
Also, I set a world record for being annoying.
Cate Gardner also sold a novella to Delirium Books and I can’t wait to read it! That chica can seriously write some fantastic stories.
And my buddy Ben Eads has a story in Shroud 11 you should cuddle (it’ll grow hair on your chest.)
Now enter the contest! These tees are awesome! And you can share some love about someone who’s touched your life.
Mine would be my dad because he used to be a royal asshole but now he’s a damn fine man. Seldom do people make changes like that. He’s a good inspiration, has a good heart, and I’m proud of him. He does a lot of little things that mean a lot and he’s such a dork he makes me laugh.
11 comments:
Love that TOC in Dark Discoveries.
Thanks, Ms. Cate! Enter the contest!
My biggest influence would have to be my best friend. We've been super close for 20 years. We've gone through everything together and been there for eachother like no one else. Some of my fondest memories are our teenage sleepovers, which always included horror movies, Faces Of Death, and way too much junk food.
Congrats on your successes, Lee!
My biggest influence... that would be my husband. For nearly 30 years he's coped with my attention-deficit tendencies and hasn't traded me in for a more efficient model. I've accidentally dropped juggling balls on his head when he's been peacefully snoozing by the TV - and he's still talking to me! He manages to stay serene in most situations. I've only managed that a few times, but I'm learning.
This may sound hella cheesy, but I'm going to go with my mother. My father left us when I was relatively young, and she worked so hard to raise her 5 kids. She sacrificed many of her own wants and desires to make sure we didn't do without. We didn't have much, but she always made sure we had what we needed. She has been incredibly supportive of me, when I came out of the closet she was understanding and treats my partner like a full-fledged son-in-law, and she is very encouraging of my writing and reads everything I publish, even when it isn't exactly her cup of tea. She has my eternal gratitude and respect, and I hope I can one day be half the human being she is.
I would have to give my Sophomore year English teacher a lot credit for influencing me when it came to reading and writing. He used to laugh at my antic's in class and always encouraged me to read different things. One time a bunch of us sat behind him at a football game and really gave him a hard time, to tell the truth, we were pretty rude and disrespectful.
When we came back to school that next monday he ordered me to write a paper on what we did to him. I wrote the paper and then, in front of the whole class, he read it out loud all the while reenacting what I wrote. He made it funny and he made me feel good about my writing.
As an aside, I saw him maybe 15 years after I graduated and asked him if he remembered me. He looked at me and said that he had a lot of students over those last 15 years, but he had to admit, that not only did he recognize me, but that he had even thought of me once in a while during that time.
T. T. Zuma
Not cheesy, Mark, because I have the same answer. Well, not your mother. My mother. I don't know your mother. She sounds great, though.
Not to turn this into a sob story, but my mom became a single mom when I was 5. I had a 7 y/o brother and a 4 y/o sister. So for the next 14 years, until all of us were out of the house and in college (yes, she found a way for all 3 of us to go to college on a 26K per year salary), she was a single mom of three pretty damn difficult children. (Well, except my older brother. He was annoyingly easy to take care of, but that's another story.)
She worked her ass off, getting up every morning to see us off to school, going to her 9 to 5, coming home to make our lunches and cook us dinner. Every single day. Never complained. Took the belt to our butts when we needed it, and I'm so glad she did. Supported every ridiculous idea we had. Allowed us to play sports and join extracurricular activitites in school even though that meant more money out of the bank account and less time for her in the day.
So now, she is retired and living in the hill country like she deserves, although it sucks to be so far from my mommy. (Yes, I'm 38 and said "mommy," deal with it.) She supports my writing wholeheartedly, although she asked me if I had a happy childhood after reading my collection. She's a great grandmother to my 3 rugrats, and when I think back on all she had to deal with, from cheating husbands to her kids being brought home by the cops in the middle of the night (by kids I mean me), never having any money ro time to herself, all that shit single moms have to go through, I am in awe of her strength, and when things get rough for me and I start to whine about my life, all I do is think about her and I seem to absorb some of that strength for myself. She has more than enough to share.
My biggest influence is the culmination of past loves and heartache, longing and loss. Those people I wanted to be, stingily possess, have what they had. But these things were always just out of reach for a million different reasons.
This jumble of humanity rolling into and out of my life – some for keeps – are the stars of my writing because I now have the power to bring them up close for examination, change a lifetime of tunnel vision, and in the process learn the truth about myself.
My biggest influence is the culmination of past loves and heartache, longing and loss. Those people I wanted to be, stingily possess, have what they had. But these things were always just out of reach for a million different reasons.
This jumble of humanity rolling into and out of my life – some for keeps – are the stars of my writing because I now have the power to bring them up close for examination, change a lifetime of tunnel vision, and in the process learn the truth about myself.
One of my greatest influences was my grandmother, Mom-Mom. She was a reading teacher, helping those with learning disabilities and encouraging them to try their hardest to get ahead.
I got my passion for reading from her; she taught me to read when I was only four and I haven't stopped since. She was also my biggest cheerleader when I started writing.
She's been gone almost ten years now, but I think of her every day, and hope that I can live up to the loving expectations she had of me.
I can't help but notice that pic with your book on your lap. It's eerily similar to what I did with your book when it arrived. Seems you have written a book that's good at giving lap dances. :-P
-Neal
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