Sunday, December 13, 2009

The Year is Coming to a Close...

... and 2009 has been wonderful, for the most part. The third of the Legends of the Mountain State series has been well-received, and the first one is about to go into an unprecedented fifth printing. The success of the series has brought it back from the dead, so to speak, and there will be a fourth volume next year; I am currently working on a story for it now.

Appalachian Holiday Hauntings has also done quite well. I was honored when the organizers of the "One Night Without a Home" sleep out asked me to read "A Soul's Wage" during their program on Magic Island.

Leonard Cohen, You're Our Man has received great reviews and debuted on the Calgary Fiction bestsellers list at #5. It is an honor to be in that collection.

2009 brought rejections to submissions as well. My personal best was two rejections in one day. It's part of the job. There is nothing to do but send the work elsewhere and keep writing.

The lowest point of this year was of course the death of my grandmother. She was the only one of my grandparents to live long enough to see my writing take off, and she encouraged me and my work. I miss here.

2010, what a year it's going to be. I'm excited about the projects I am already involved in, and the opportunities that will present themselves over the coming year. One of them, which I can't talk about just yet, will be a milestone for my career. For this project, I will wearing the editor's hat for the first time. All I can say for now is that it will involve one of my passions:



Yeah, 2010 is gonna be amazing. I can't wait to see what happens next.

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Off To Southbury CT To Find… Magick

Oh, yes, it is that time of year again, and I head out tomorrow to the The Inner Circle of Bizarre Magick's 18th Annual Gathering of the Magi. As many of you who've followed my blog know, this is a yearly tradition I look forward to every November. I enjoy the theatrical aspect to performance magic that bizarre magick teaches, and I learn new things every time I go. I plan to shoot some video and put together a long-overdue addition of Brian With An "Eye".

Part of my insidious plan has always been to incorporate all of my interests and to create pathways for people of similar interests to grow from lessons learned from each other's art. I am beginning to see my labors taking shape and bearing fruit, and I couldn't be happier.

As this is a time of fellowship and learning, I'm not going to be online much while I'm gone. I will try to give occasional updates on my Twitter account, so check there to see what I'm up to.

Monday, November 2, 2009

Brian Keene Must Die

On March 7th, 2008, several authors converged to fulfill one great purpose: to kill Jack Haringa. In story, at least, on their blogs. The best of these efforts were collected in Jack Haringa Must Die! Twenty-Eight Original Tales of Madness, Terror and Strictly Grammatical Murder, the proceeds going to benefit the Shirley Jackson Awards.

I thought about joining in, but Jack was my Necon buddy at my very first Necon, and a good friend, and I couldn't bring myself to kill him, even in jest.

Now, the literary knife has fallen once again, claiming another victim: Brian Keene.

Him, I can do.

So, I hope you enjoy my little tale of vengeance. Check out Brian Keene's website at http://www.briankeene.com/ for other great stories, and please consider contributing by purchasing a copy of Jack Haringa Must Die! or by making a donation.

And now:
Brian.
Keene.
Must.
Die.

...

Special Agent Wallace didn’t need to be a novelist to know exactly how this story would end.

He studied the perp for months, planned the operation, and the deployment went smooth as glass. The ATF agents surrounded the house while Keene was distracted updating his Twitter account. Before he suspected anything, they were in place, and each door and window of the house had no less than three agents with automatic weapons, aimed and ready for the first sign of movement.

If Wallace had his druthers, he’d have kicked in the door and emptied the clip of his .45 into Keene’s face. But trying to justify that to the press would have been a nightmare, even with pictures of Keene’s backyard shooting range to help spin it. Also, Wallace couldn’t be sure who else might be in the house and he didn’t want any innocents caught in the crossfire. The only one he wanted was Keene. So, damn it, he had to play this one by the book.

“Give yourself up,” said Wallace into the bullhorn. Several agents knelt behind vehicles for cover, but he stood out in the open, daring Keene to try something. If only Keene would stick his head out the front door. Just enough for a clear shot.

“Get stuffed, Nazis!” shouted Keene, hidden on the other side of the closed door.

“What are you doing in there, Keene? Building another rocket?”

“For Christ sake, I shut that blog down months ago!”

“Come outside with your hands up.”

“The hell I will. I take two steps out the door and you’ll open fire.”

“No one’s going to open fire,” Wallace said. “We just want to talk.”

“Yeah? Care to explain the seven bullet holes in my front door?”

“Accident.”

“You did sorta jump the gun there,” Agent Starcher said from behind one of the cars. “No pun intended.”

Wallace switched off the bullhorn. “I’m handling this, if you don’t mind.”

Starcher shrugged. “Just saying.”

“Your concerns have been duly noted.” Wallace raised the bullhorn to his mouth. “Keene? Are you coming out or are we coming in?”

“I didn’t do anything!”

“Don’t play dumb. We know all about your private militia.”

“The hell?” asked Keene. “Are you talking about the F.U.K.U. Army? That’s my fanbase, you jackass!”

“What about your little armory? Why do you need so many firearms?”

“Protection.”

“From what?” Wallace asked.

“Guess you’ve never met my fans.”

Behind the barricade of vehicles, a car skidded to a stop. Inside the car sat a woman with a baby strapped in a car seat. Bags of groceries filled the back seat. She got out of the car without shutting off the motor and stared at the ATF agents in stunned silence.

Wallace slipped behind the blockade. “Excuse me,” he said to the woman. “Are you Mrs.--.”

“I’ve never heard the name Brian Keene in my life,” the woman said. She climbed back into her car and drove away.

“Should we stop her?” asked Starcher.

“No,” Wallace said. “The poor woman’s suffered enough.”

Wallace switched the bullhorn back on. “Keene? I’m losing patience with you. You either get out here right now or I'll bring you out. I have a LAW rocket out here. You think I’m kidding you? I am not kidding you.”

“What the hell is your problem?” Keene asked. “I snub you at a con or something?”

“I’m going to start counting.”

“You think I’m keeping you from getting published in Cemetery Dance. ‘Cause I’m pretty sure that’s Nick Mamatas’s fault.”

“You do not want me to start counting.”

“You got something against zombies?”

Wallace gritted his teeth. “You’re the one with something against zombies.”

“You just checked into La-La Land, pal.”

“A zombie whale, you son of a bitch! A God-damned ZOMBIE WHALE!”

“That raping goat monster thing was kinda cool,” said Starcher.

Wallace glared at him. “Shut. The hell. Up.”

At that point, Keene must have figured that if he was going to die, it might as well be a cool, rock star kind of death. He flung open the front door and charged out, whooping and hollering, the pistols in both hands blazing. Wallace tossed the bullhorn and dropped to one knee. The agents behind the vehicles were so taken aback, they had just enough time to draw a bead on him before Wallace scooped the large metal tube onto his shoulder and fired. His aim was true, and the result was spectacular.

“Stupid bastard,” Wallace said under his breath, hoping no one noticed him smiling. “Bringing guns to a LAW rocket fight.”

Friday, October 30, 2009

Monday, October 12, 2009

Book Score at the West Virginia Book Festival

I had a great time last weekend at the WV Book Festival. Did a signing Saturday for Borders and introduced Michael Knost for his discussion of using West Virginia as a backdrop for fiction. Sunday, I signed books at the West Virginia Book Company table.

One of the events I always look forward to is the Used Book Sale. On Saturday, paperbacks are 50¢, softcovers are $1, and hardbacks are $2. On Sunday, it is everything you want to take for $3. For less than the cost of a single hardback, I took home all of the following:

PAPERBACKS
The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett
The Brotherhood of the Rose by David Morrell
Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
'Night, Mother by Marsha Norman

SOFTBACKS
The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 3rd Ed., Vols. 1 & 2
The Outlaw Bible of American Poetry, edited by Alan Kaufman
The Other by Thomas Tryon
Albion's Fatal Tree: Crime and Society in Eighteenth-Century England
The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco
Fiction 100: An Anthology of Short Fiction
Stages of Drama: Classical to Contemporary Theater
Readings in Ancient History

HARDCOVERS
The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux
The Treasury of American Poetry
In the Night Room by Peter Straub
The Years 25 Finest Crime and Mystery Stories, 1st, 2nd and 5th Editions
Alone Against Tomorrow by Harlan Ellison
The Mote in Andrea's Eye by David Niall Wilson
Speaks the Nightbird by Robert McCammon

I also scored the five-volume set of National Geographic Society's leather-bound edition of the Story of Man for $15, and Science Fiction: The Illustrated Encyclopedia for $10. All in all, a productive year for picking up books. I've been wanting to read The Other, and now I have a copy that just got pushed to the top of my TBR pile. Everything else should keep me busy at least until the end of the year.

Friday, October 9, 2009

West Virginia Book Festival This Saturday and Sunday

I will be at the West Virginia Book Festival this weekend. Saturday, I will be introducing editor Michael Knost, who will be discussing "Legends of the Mountain State", using West Virginia as a backdrop for stories, and giving tips to writers and editors. Sunday, I will be at West Virginia Book Company booth from 1 to 4 p.m. on Sunday, signing copies of all three "Legends of the Mountain State" books and the "Writers Workshop of Horror". Stop by and check out all there great programming and great deals this weekend at the Charleston Civic Center.

Wednesday, September 30, 2009

I'm Still Around

I know I haven't put up a blog lately, and a new Brian With An "Eye" is long overdue. Both projects and personal issues have kept me busy. But my plan is to have a new video blog this month, so look out for it. I have a lot of good news to report, with more on the way.

Saturday, September 5, 2009

Come see Writer's Workshop of Horror... Live!

This Saturday, September 5, 2009, The Huntington Mall Borders (Huntington, WV) will host a major book signing and writers panel for Writers Workshop of Horror. From 2:00 to 4:00 p.m.

Among those scheduled to appear will be Gary A. Braunbeck, Lucy Snyder, Elizabeth Massie, Jason Sizemore (Apex Publications), C. Cameron Fuller, Brian J. Hatcher, and Michael Knost.

All the participants will be signing special copies of Writers Workshop of Horror as well as other titles they each have penned, during this gathering.

They will also be available to answer questions from the public during an informal panel forum.

The book signing event is open to the public, and patrons are encouraged to come early to speak with their favorite authors. For additional information, contact Huntington Mall Borders, at Barboursville, at 304-736-6233.

Thursday, August 20, 2009

Rose Marie Hatcher

Rose Marie Hatcher, age 89, of Beckley, passed away at the Bowers Hospice House in Beckley on Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2009, following a long illness.

Born Sept. 2, 1919, at Pineville, W.Va., she was the daughter of the late Rev. Sam Bell and Cora Sizemore Bell.

Mrs. Hatcher was a homemaker who loved to cook, quilt and do gardening. She attended the Cranberry Baptist Church at Cranberry, W.Va.

Other than her parents, she was preceded in death by a son, Jerry Hatcher, in 1983; by her husband, George Hatcher, in 1994; by three sisters, Hazel Lester, Laura Lester and Ellie Blevins; by three brothers, Sam, Ray and Charley Bell; and two infant brothers also preceded her in death, Robert and Jessie Bell.

Survivors include a son, Gene Hatcher of Charleston, W.Va.; a daughter, Lois Peelish and husband, Steve, of Beckley, W.Va.; a son, Dean Hatcher of Oak Island, N.C.; a daughter, Linda Gibbins and husband, Tom, of LaGrange, Ky.; 13 grandchildren and 21 great-grandchildren; several nieces and nephews also survive; three sisters, Gracie Bolen of Rhodell, W.Va., Ruby Garrison of Chicago, Ill., Nellie Thompson and husband, Bruce, of Corinne, W.Va.; one brother, Lawrence Bell and wife, Mary, of Doyles Town, Ohio; special friends, Troy and Charlotte Martin of Beckley, W.Va., Diana Mullins of McGraw, W.Va., the Rev. and Mrs. Roger Pauley of the Cranberry Baptist Church; and also the youth director from the church, Greg Dowdy.

Graveside rites will be conducted at the Blue Ridge Memorial Gardens Mausoleum in Beckley 11 a.m. Friday, Aug. 21, 2009, with Pastor Roger Pauley officiating. Burial will follow at Blue Ridge Memorial Gardens. Grandsons will serve as pallbearers.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Bowers Hospice House, 454 Cranberry Drive, Beckley, WV 25801.

Online condolences may be sent to our guestbook at www.roseandquesenberry.net

Friends may call 9:30 until 10:30 a.m. Friday at the Rose and Quesenberry Funeral Home in Beckley.

Arrangements by Rose and Quesenberry Funeral Home in Beckley.

Sunday, August 9, 2009

Order NOW! Leonard Cohen: You’re Our Man

Book will be available September 1st. From the Public Poetry weblog:

The man has arrived, the book is coming!

75 of the world’s best poets reflect on the poetry of Leonard Cohen.

To receive an order form, send an email to “publicpoetry@gmail.com”

Include “Order” in the subject line.

To receive a bookstore order form, please include “Bookstore Orders” in the subject line.

Include your COMPLETE name, address, postal or zip code and telephone number.

All proceeds go to the Foundation for Public Poetry’s Leonard Cohen Poet-In-Residence program.

Send cheques and order forms to:

Box 23044
5038 Sherbrooke St. West, Montreal, QC.
Canada. H4A 1S7

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Leonard Cohen: You’re Our Man

The Foundation for Public Poetry (Fondation Poésie Publique), in honor of Leonard Cohen's 75th birthday, has collected poetry from around the world (Leonard’s home town of Montreal and from across Canada, the U.S.A., the United Kingdom, Belgium, Australia, South Africa, Portugal, Israel, Cyprus, and France) in a book entitled "Leonard Cohen: You’re Our Man". Proceeds from the book will go to a Leonard Cohen Poet-In-Residence program at Westmount High, his old high school. Here is the Table of Contents:

ALLISON AKGUNGOR: LONGING FOR LEONARD
NICK APPLEYARD: AFTER DARK
MARGARET ATWOOD: SETTING LEONARD TO MUSIC
ELIZABETH BACHINSKY: LADIES AND GENTLEMEN…MR. LEONARD COHEN (II)
KATHARINE BEEMAN: LINEUP
FRANK ALAN BELLA: NOVUS CREDO
ROXANNA BENNETT: SO LONG LEONARD
DENIS BERTHOUD: UNTITLED
SUSAN BORGERSEN: SISTER OF NO MERCY
A. T. (ALISON)BRUNNER: FRUITION
JASON CAMLOT: UNKNOWN LEONARD COHEN
BRIAN CAMPBELL: TWO WENT TO SLEEP
J.R. CARPENTER: SNOW IS FALLING SOMEWHERE
STEVE DALACHINSKY: THE WIRED NUN
MEREDITH DARLING: LADY VAGABOND
RACHEL DELPH: GUIDED TOURS OF HELL
DESI DI NARDO: THE HOLY MAN
JOANNE FARYON: LC PART 1 & PART 2
SUSAN RUTH FITCH: MY LOVE’S ATTITUDE SOME FIND AUSTERE
MARIANNA FOKA: PARCHED WORDS
JOHN FRETZ: LEONARD COHEN’S 75TH BIRTHDAY
LAURIE FUHR: THE SHAPE OF YOUR LOVE TWISTED ME
RODGER GERBERDING: ONE OF ALL, OF MANY
MELISSA A. GODDARD: THE DREAMER
CATHERINE GRAHAM: NOW I WAS NOT IN THIS DREAM
LAURIE D. GRAHAM: REFUGE BAY, FLORIDA
MELISSA HANSEN: THE TINY HORROR
BRIAN J. HATCHER: TOMBSTONE MUSES
GILI HIRSCH: A TALE IN 20
TIFFANY HOWELL: MESSY BONES
HEATHER JESSUP: DEAR BREAVMAN
MYNA LEE JOHNSTONE: THIS AMERICAN MAN
MAARTJE KATZENBAUER : CRY FOR THE MOON
PENN KEMP: THE DREAM PERFORMANCE
MAX LAYTON: IN THE GARDEN OF I AM
KÉVIN LEHÉNAFF: SISTERS OF THE MOON
ANGELA LEUCK: GARDEN HAIKU; PILGRIMAGE; THE LATEST CRUSADE; LAMENT
ANN LLOYD: RESPONSE TO CLOSING TIME
EHAB LOTAYEF: BAGHDAD!
DIANA LOUREIRO: THIS NIGHT I WAS UNDRESSED BY THE SILENCE
JEFFREY MACKIE: RESPONSE TO COHEN
SEAN LABRADOR Y MANZANO: DEMOCRACY
GARTH MARTENS: JEALOUSY
MICHAEL MIROLLA: ALTERNATE UNIVERSES
GRACE MOORE: THE SERIOUS GOVERNANCE OF CANADA
BRIAN NOWLIN: INTELLECTUAL AND EROTIC ADVENTURES
TARN PAINTER-MACARTHUR: ST KILDA 1910
LESLEY PASQUIN: PROPHETESS
LYNN PATMALNEE: ON FIRST READING “CELEBRATION”
ROBERT PRIEST: THE LEONARD KOANS
SHAUNAGH DARLING ROBERTSON: LOOK AT ME, LEONARD
AIN ROOST: NOTES TO SELF: THE LOCATION OF JOY
CHANTEL ROSARIO: DESIRE
RYAN RUDDICK: SORRY ALL OVER
LORI RUNKLE: WHEN THIS AMERICAN MAN
JACOB SCHEIER: YOU’RE THE KIND OF WOMAN
NICOLINE SCHOR: LOVERS ON LOVERS(1)
FINN WHITE: LOVERS ON LOVERS(2)
DAVID W. SEAMAN: WAITING FOR BARBARA
RONA FELDMAN SHEFLER: PEDDLER
GORAN SIMIC: OLD MAN WAITING FOR THE LOST LETTER
SANDRA SJOLLEMA: LOST MY BODY
DAVID SOLWAY: LOVE
MARCEL SOULLIERE: UNTITLED
KAREN ELAINE SPENCER: I DREAMT LEONARD COHEN
ANI KUSMENOGLU TUNA: LIKE A MERMAID
INNA VEYTSMAN: THE FAITHLESS WIFE’S RESPONSE
MARCUS WATNEY: WE, THE GREEK
TOM WAYMAN: LEONARD COHEN DIDN’T GET ME LAID
ANN WEINSTEIN: RITES
ERIKA N. WHITE: I GO FOR NOTHING
LIEVEN WILLEMS: LEONARD’S PAGES
HAZEL WOODWARD: … SELF-INVESTIGATION WITHOUT SELF-INDULGENCE…
DONNA YATES-ADELMAN: BEFORE HE NEEDED ME
ELENI ZISIMATOS: NOT A CARE

More information on the book will available as the publication date gets nearer. Check back here for the latest.

Friday, July 31, 2009

New Rue Morgue

Check out the bottom right-hand corner:



The next issue of Rue Morgue, available August 1st, features an article on Writers Workshop of Horror, which is available now. Thanks to Monica Kuebler and everyone at Rue Morgue for spreading the love.

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Book release party and writer’s contest to be held Saturday

The following is a press release from Woodland Press:

BARBOURSVILLE, WV - A brand new book, Writers Workshop of Horror—chock-full of expert advice from some of the most successful, nationally-known storytellers in the horror/fantasy genre—will be nationally released with a celebration at the Huntington (WV) Mall Borders Bookstore, this Sat., Aug. 1st, from 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. Mountain State author and editor Michael Knost will be signing copies during the event.

Contributors to this project include: Clive Barker, Joe R. Lansdale, F. Paul Wilson, Ramsey Campbell, Thomas F. Monteleone, Deborah LeBlanc, Gary A. Braunbeck, Brian Keene, Elizabeth Massie and others.

In addition to the book-signing activity and release party, a unique writing contest will also be held during the afternoon event.

Michael Knost will be accepting manuscript submissions (5,000 words or less,) preferably regional horror/fantasy/ghost tales—although any genre of fiction will be considered. There is no entry fee, and entries will only be accepted in person during the two-hour event. Each submission must include the author’s name, address, phone number, and email address, if available.

The contest winner will be announced at an upcoming Writers Workshop of Horror event at the Huntington Mall Borders, on Sat., Sept. 5th, at 2:00 p.m., although he/she does not have to be present to win.

If suitable, the winning entry will be published in an upcoming anthology edited by Michael Knost, and the writer will receive payment for the story at the time of publishing, as well as an autographed copy of Writers Workshop of Horror.

Writers Workshop of Horror focuses solely on honing the craft of writing. It includes solid advice—from professionals of every publishing level—on how to improve one’s writing skills. According to the publisher, Woodland Press LLC, the book is not just for horror writers—it contains practical tips for writers of all genres. Anyone who wants to learn the craft can benefit from these articles and interviews.

Contributors include several outstanding West Virginia writers, including Geoff Fuller and Brian J. Hatcher. For additional information, see www.writersworkshopofhorror.com/hatcher.

Saturday, July 25, 2009

An Open Letter To My Friends

This has been and continues to be an exciting time in my career. My name is starting to get out there, and wonderful opportunities present themselves to me constantly. For the first time, I feel that I am starting to earn the title "writer".

I want to keep going forward. To do that means I have to keep writing. I can publish no poems, short stories, or books unless I sit down to write them. The work of a writer is very lonely and requires hours upon hours of dedication. For others, especially non-writers, it may be difficult to understand the sacrifices a writer has to make to hone their craft and grow their career. All they see is a friend who isn't around as much as they used to be, someone who doesn't seem to have time for them anymore.

To my friends who have sent me e-mails and text messages, who have called to see how I am, who have sent me their well-wishes and their love, please know how much that means to me. It would have been so easy to forget about me. I know I'm not as available to hang out as I used to be. That's not going to change. Thank you for understanding and know that as valuable as every scrap of time I have is, I am glad to make time for you when I can and how precious each moment I share with you is to me. Not everyone understands. That you do shows me just how good a friend you truly are, and I can not thank you enough.

Your friend,
Brian J. Hatcher

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

The Reviews Are Coming In

Check out these preliminary reviews for the "Writer's Workshop of Horror":

"A veritable treasure trove of information for aspiring writers-straight from the mouths of today's top horror scribes!" - Rue Morgue Magazine

"Packing more knowledge and sound advice than four years' worth of college courses . . . It's focused on the root of your evil, the writing itself." - Fangoria Magazine

"Entertaining, informative, and also plain old fun, this book will not only make you want to write more, it will give you the tools to write better. This should be mandatory reading in creative writing classes." - Horror World

So, yeah, you should probably preorder your copy.

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

New 'Brian With An Eye' - 6/21/09



NOTE: If you'd like to preorder a copy of the Writers Workshop of Horror, you can click the link below:

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

New 'Brian With An Eye' Coming Soon

This weekend, between writing projects, I'm going to try to have the editing done on the latest 'Brian With An Eye' video blog so I can have it posted. In it, I will talk about my trips to Hypericon and the Stoker Awards, and talk a little about the projects I have coming up.

I need to get this done soon, as apparently Woodland Press has already beaten me to the punch.

Monday, May 25, 2009

New Video Blog

Introducing: Brian, With An Eye

Monday, May 18, 2009

Mo*Con Memories

THE GOOD:

Mo*Con is always full of good. I enjoy hanging out with Maurice Broaddus and my other fellow writers. Pity that Gary Braunbeck and Lucy Snyder couldn't make it this year, but I'll see them both later this year, certainly at Context.

The poetry slam was new this year, and I read three of my pieces, including "The Monster with the Shape of Me", published last year in Weird Tales. I think it went pretty well, but Linda Addison would read first with each go-round. How do you follow Linda Addison? Answer: the best you can.

Also new was the art show, which allowed Grace Welch, AKA Grace the PA, to be Grace the Artist as well. Many happy Mo*Con attendees took home art, and Grace promoted her new website, http://www.rabbitmoonarts.com/.

THE BAD:

The hotel stay was not the best. The room didn't have working air conditioning or heat. A morning bath flooded the bathroom, part of the room, and the hall outside, thanks to a leaky bathtub, and required an early morning move to another room. A room that also didn't have working air conditioning or heat. At least the water stayed in the tub. It just never got above 50°F.

The staff was very understanding and helpful the whole time. I have no complaints with the human element of the hotel, but I don't believe I'll be staying there next year.

THE UGLY:

Doug Warrick and Kyle Johnson brought to Mo*Con a self-published book they found in the basement of a used bookstore. The fame of this tome spread, and various passages were read aloud over the course of the weekend. I can't bring myself to say more about this than the book was blatantly premeditated and therefore no plea of temporary insanity is possible, except by those of us who experienced it for ourselves. I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. So I did both.

***

Thanks go to Maurice and the gang for another great Mo*Con, and I'm looking forward to attending next year as well.

Friday, May 15, 2009

Legends 3 & Mo*Con

1. News on Legends of the Mountain State 3, the last of the series, can be found online at the Huntington News website: http://www.huntingtonnews.net/columns/090514-kinchen-columnsbooknotes.html

2. I head out tomorrow morning to Indianapolis and to Mo*Con. I had a great time last year, and I look forward to seeing old friends and making new ones, as always. See you when I get back!

Friday, April 24, 2009

Book Signing

I will be at the Borders in Barboursville WV on Saturday. from 2 to 4 pm, signing copies of Legends of the Mountain State vols. 1 & 2. If you're nearby, stop in and say hi:

Borders
120 Huntington Mall
Barboursville, WV 25504

Sunday, April 19, 2009

Get Me Cheap

My poem, "The Monster with the Shape of Me" was published in Weird Tales #351. This year, for the first time in its long history, Weird Tales has been nominated and is on the final ballot for the Hugo Award. Coincidence?

Well, yeah, actually. :)

Still, Wildside Press has decided to celebrate. Until April 30th, everything in their store is available at 25%, if you purchase two or more items. You can pick up Weird Tales #351, along with any of the other issues of the magazine, Wildside Press classics, Prime Books anthologies, and Juno Books novels. Just go to WildsidePress.com or WildsideBooks.com, place your order, then enter the coupon code "april" at checkout. You're all set.

Congratulations to Weird Tales and Wildside Press. It was an honor to be a part of their best year ever.

Sunday, March 29, 2009

My First Video Blog

Thursday, February 26, 2009

Brian J. Hatcher goes Radio Free

Thanks to Rudy Panucci of Radio Free Charleston for making me a part of the show: http://media.cnpapers.com/rfc061/

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Coming soon...

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Into the Heart of the Beast


This is what I've been up to for the last few weeks. Them's a whole lotta novel critiques. Tomorrow I go to Towson and the Borderlands Press Novel Boot Camp. I deliver these critiques and receive a few of my own, from all the "grunts" and the four instructors. Then, after I lick my wounds, I come home and get back to the work of writing.

More news when I get back home.