Day three of Stokercon was a little more relaxed. I went to a couple of panels, but the highlight of the day was the interview session with George R.R. Martin. During his interview, he said a few things that really stuck out. One, was fortune is great! Fortune improves your quality of life. However, he said fame was a double-edged sword. Before his Song of Ice and Fire series really took off and became a television show, he said he could go to a convention, put on his name tag, and people would recognize his name. But after the convention he could take off the name tag and go across the street to McDonald's and eat his Big Mac in peace. He said nowadays, he can't eat out in public in peace or go anywhere without being bothered (price to pay for all the fortune I suppose). Another interesting thing he said, was that he doesn't outline. That kind of blew my mind given out large and complex his Song of Ice and Fire series is. His advice to aspiring writers was, if you find yourself stuck on a scene, just push forward, or skip it and save it for later. He mentioned he couldn't write the Red Wedding scene, so he skipped it and finished the book. Then he was like, well I finished this damn thing, now I guess I have to go back and kill everyone.

Other highlights of the day included meeting Chuck Wendig who seemed super nice, and seeing S.T. Joshi give a talk. Joshi is considered one of the leading academics with regards to Lovecraft and Weird Fiction. I also sat on a panel to offer insight on how to form a regional HWA chapter (learned some great things to bring back to the Utah Chapter as well), and had a book signing. The signing was kind of a bust, but you can't win them all. Finally, I got to watch my good friend K. Scott Forman read his short story, "Lost at Sea."

Overall, Stokercon was a great experience. Next year they plan on having it in Providence, RI and I hope I can make it. I might even get banquet tickets to the Stoker awards. I wasn't able to attend this time around, and I feel like perhaps I missed out. Next time for sure. Here's to new friends made at Stokercon, and to old friends reacquainted. 

​World Horror Con 2016 came and went in a flash! I have to say this, it was great being around a bunch of folks who share my passion for horror and writing. I was able to meet and reconnect with a lot of great, talented people in the industry such as Jack Ketchum, Brian Keene, Joe McKinney, and Michael Arnzen. I even got to sit on a panel with most of them which was amazing. I was on a panel talking about Utah Horror and how it’s growing; I was also on a panel about short fiction vs novels; and I moderated a panel about graduate degrees and writing. If you missed it and have any questions about any of them, I’d be more than happy to take any questions.

If you’ve never been to a convention, I can’t recommend it enough. Nothing gets the creative fires going faster than three to four days of nothing but horror and writing. Not to mention the networking opportunities alone are worth their weight in gold. There are plenty of conferences and conventions out there, all you need to do is find one that interests you and go to it. Worst thing that could happen is you walk away the same as when you walked in (okay, sure there are plenty of “worst things” especially when dealing with the horror genre, but we’ll assume we’re living in a semi-safe environment…just don’t read that old musty tome out loud, and whatever you do, don’t play with that fun looking puzzle box). Best case, you walk away with some more friends and some education.
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Some highlights of the convention for me were the panels, the gross out competition (can’t mention what happened in this venue, you’re just going to have to attend one, that is if you have the stomach for it), and the crazy noises coming from the film festival. I was manning the Utah Horror Writers Association booth a lot of the time and the film festival was going on right behind us. It’s almost as fun trying to figure out what was happening based off the sounds coming from the films as it was watching them. I’ll definitely be keeping my eye out for next year and where the next World Horror Con is going to take place.

I know I just posted about this...but the new graphic they just built was too cool not to share. I also caught wind of a new guest that might be showing up. You're not going to want to miss this convention. Do what you gotta do to make it!

http://www.whc2016.org/home.html

World Horror Con is coming back to Utah, April 28th - May 1st this year! It will be in Provo, Utah at the Provo Marriott Hotel and Convention Center. This is a great opportunity to meet some famous folks in the horror industry, to include:

• Brian Keene
• Michael R. Collings
• Joe McKinney
• Sara Pinborough
• Darren Shan
• Keith Thompson
• LInda Addison
• Michael Arnzen
• Michaelbrent Collings
• Victoria Price
• Carter Reid
• Dan Wells

There will be plenty of panels, workshops, and other fun events like a Killer Tea and a ghost tours. Several agents, publishing companies and editors will be on site to accept pitches. Join now by going to the event website and buying a membership. This is possibly one of the last times the World Horror Convention will come through Utah, so don't miss out!

http://www.whc2016.org/registration.html

I recently had the pleasure of sitting on a panel at the Life, the Universe, & Everything Symposium. The panel was entitled: "So You Want to Write Horror?" One of the questions was, how much horror should you put in your writing? It was a question that begged a specific answer, but needed to be answered in a fortune-cookie-eqsue manner. So, how much horror should you put in your writing: as much as the piece calls for.

You might be thinking, thanks oh wise one, your answer is about as valuable as a punch to the throat. Let me elaborate before you gasp for air and tear up from my, oh so wise wisdom. Horror covers such a broad swathe with everything from psychological to shock and gore. How much horror, and what type of horror to insert into your story depends on what kind of audience you are writing for. Are you writing visceral, gory, and debauched horror in the same vein of Edward Lee, or are you writing a slow, creeping psychological horror more reminiscent of Edgar Allan Poe? Whatever you are writing, and whomever you are writing for, the story is going to dictate how much is too much, and what's just right.

If you have submitted to different publishers who specialize in the horror genre, you have probably seen the following statement in the submission guidelines; no gore for gore's sake. There's a reason for this, and it's because readers and editors can spot that poor attempt for cheap shock a mile away. Gore has its place in fiction. For example, if I'm writing a book about zombies, I know that there is an expectation for gore. Zombies are gross, they eat the living, and you just need to throw in some juicy bits (pun intended). However, if I'm writing a slow, creeping horror, it doesn't make sense to have a dude in a hockey mask slashing up teenagers who are having sex in a tent every other scene. Your horror has to match your story in the same fashion. Unfortunately, there is no quadratic formula out there to calculate this, and it will change from story to story. I'm going to dip in the vague, mystical pot of advice again and say that it is a feeling that has to match the flow the story. Take the Goldilocks approach and put in the amount that is "just right."

How do you figure out this secret of finding what is just right, and knowing how a good story should flow? You could either go on a lifelong quest of tracking down the Illuminati and raiding their secret, underground library to find the dark spell that would grant you the knowledge, or you could simply read books in the genre. Regardless of what genre you write, you need to read other authors of that genre. Read what came before, read what's happening now. You need to know what is selling, what has sold, what are some of the common tropes of the genre. It will help give you a feel for what some of that great literature looks like, and as well as some examples of bad writing. Don't worry, it's all research and it will all help in the long run.

One of the panelists brought up the point that horror is about fear, and I couldn't agree more. H.P. Lovecraft said, "The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown." Deep down, if you are writing horror, you are trying to tap into that fear of the unknown and present in such a way that it entertains (or at least disturbs) your readers. This is both easy and difficult at the same time (I know, I know, even more worthless Zen-like wisdom). Everyone is different and everyone is afraid of different things. Things that don't necessarily scare me, might immobilize someone else with fear. What does this mean? It means that while you won't scare everyone, you will scare some folks.

To make things easy and fun, (because, let's face it, writing should be fun, otherwise why do it) just write what you find scary and/or enjoyable. If you get caught up in the web of trying to please others, the tentacled god of the industry will drag you down into a dark abyss from which you might not be able to crawl out. Have fun. 

Well guess who's going to be a panelist...this guy. That's right; hide your sanity, leave your common sense at home, and bring some sort of recording device, because I'm going to be sitting on some panels (and not nice wooden ones).

This year I'll be attending the Life, the Universe, & Everything Symposium in Provo, Utah. While there, I'll be on the panel for "So You Want to Write Horror?" on Friday, Feb 13 (fitting, right?), as well as the panel for "The Magic of Minis" on Saturday, Feb 14 (hopefully it's about the use of miniature figurines in role-playing games and not the magic of mini candy bars. Because, let's face it... mini candy bars are not magical). So if you are going to the symposium, come stop by and learn some mystical knowledge (or at least be entertained for an hour or two).

Yesterday ended the three day extravaganza that is Salt Lake Comic Con. Like last year, I attended all three days. However, unlike last year, this time I sat a booth for the majority of the time. That's right! I sat a booth. Earlier this year, I organized and created the Utah Horror Writers, which is the Utah Chapter of the Horror Writers Association. We were lucky enough to jump in on the World Horror Convention's table and help promote that event, as well as our upcoming anthology. We had a raffle, WHC memberships, and a bunch of other stuff to sell to help raise money.

While I always had an idea what it would be like to sit a booth at a con, I never had the actual experience. While this wasn't just me sitting at a table chock full of my own books to sell, nevertheless, it gave me a taste of what's to come. I'm now both excited and terrified.

The first thing I learned, came from an early memory of Roadhouse. Be nice.

That's right, be nice. There were so many times I had to paint a smile on my face and be nice. Times when I'd rather tell someone to shut the hell up, or go away. But, I had to be nice. Now don't get me wrong, it was awesome to sit out there and meet tons of people who were fans of horror. It was great to have the experience of working a convention. It was great to have somewhere to come back and chill after walking the convention floor. But let me tell you something, it's exhausting. Halfway through the last day, I just wanted to go curl up and take a nap somewhere.

The next thing I learned, was body language.

I naturally sit or stand with my arms crossed. However, I realize that comes off a little stand-offish. I wanted to be inviting to people (hence the be nice post), so it was constant battle trying to figure out what to do with my hands. Always smile. Look people in the eye (even if it freaks them out). Listen to what they have to say (even if it's stupid). Be nice.

All in all, it was a great experience, and gave me some lessons learned for sitting a table. Mainly, advertising, organization, and a helpful crew of people who are all on the same page. I can't wait until the next convention to apply these ideas. And I can't wait until I have my own booth with some shiny new books written by C.R. Langille. 

Be nice.