Read my Little Story "Lacey's Kisses" Online...

...over at 52 Stitches this week. Leave a comment over there, too, if you're so inclined.

You can also pick up the anthology in print from Amazon (and other places, I'm sure, it's just quick and easy for me to do one link!).

Reviews, Reviews, and Some More Reviews

Specusphere #11, the Nov-Dec issue, is aliiiiive and can be found here.

Heaps of reviews and other stuff as always. Here's the TOC:

Editorial:

It's a load of science fiction! by Stephen Thompson

Features:

Conflux 6 by Alan Baxter
The stars my destination by Stephen Thompson

Writing and Publishing:

A Few Badman (things) by Damien Kane
Hero's Journey: Threshold Guardians by Stephen Turner
Writing: the Malaysian experience by Yusuf Martin

Fiction:

Serial: Melvin the Bomoh by Yusuf Martin
Words in white by RJ Astruc

Up and Coming:

Allen & Unwin by Astrid Cooper
Ford Street Publishing by Astrid Cooper
Hachette Livre by Astrid Cooper
HarperCollins by Astrid Cooper


Book Reviews:

Australian Dark Fantasy & Horror Volume 3 (Angela Challis, ed) reviewed by Felicity Dowker
Black Cathedral by LH Maynard and MPN Sims reviewed by Bobbi Sinha-Morey
Halfhead by Stuart B MacBride reviewed by Ian Banks
Heart's Blood by Juliet Marillier reviewed by Carol Neist
Immortal Outlaw by Lisa Hendrix reviewed by Bobbi Sinha-Morey
Midnight Echo Issues 1 and 2 (Cummings and Challis, eds) reviewed by Damien Smith
Obsidian Prey by Jayne Castle reviewed by Bobbi Sinha-Morey
Shadow Box 2 edited by Shane Jiraiya Cummings reviewed by Ross Murray
Shards by Shane Jiraiya Cummings reviewed by Felicity Dowker
Slice of Life by Paul Haines reviewed by Felicity Dowker
State of Emergency by Sam Fisher reviewed by Amanda Greenslade
Subversive Activity by Dave Luckett reviewed by Carol Neist
The Awakening by Kelley Armstrong reviewed by Bobbi Sinha-Morey
The Poison Throne by Celine Kiernan reviewed by Helen Venn
The Raw Shark Texts by Steven Hall reviewed by Felicity Dowker
The Road to Camelot (Sophie Masson, ed) reviewed by Carol Neist
The Routledge Companion to Science Fiction (Bold, Butler, Roberts and Vint, eds) reviewed by Ross Murray
Under the Dome by Stephen King reviewed by Rocky Wood
Windfollower by Carole McDonnell reviewed by Carol Neist

And I seem to have received a couple of nice review mentions for one of my pieces in the flash horror anthology 52 Stitches, at the Book Smugglers and on Amazon. Quick extract:-

Finally, in “The Homeless Situation” by Felicity Dowker, we see a future where human empathy is a disease, and the homeless litter the streets. Of all the stories in Fifty-Two Stitches, this was probably my favorite. I’m a sucker for dystopian stories, and “The Homeless Situation” puts a terrifying new spin on a dreary future.

Transcript of the AHWA's Halloween Chat With Clive Barker

...can be found here, also HorrorScope have done a little write up on it here, and an extract is posted on Clive's own website here (squee!).

It was ridiculously great fun, the best possible way to spend Halloween (I mean, really...could there be any better Halloween pasttime than chatting with Clive Barker?!). Some fabulous questions were asked and Clive was, of course, brilliant. Some of his answers were like wonderful little stories in their own right.

Ah. Lovely. Thanks, Clive.

Happy Halloween!

Because life really is no fun without a good scare:-



And if you're clueless, crotchety, or curious about all this Halloween guff, Alan Baxter has made an excellent post about it and saved me the usual trouble.

What're you doing for Halloween?

Me, I'll be chatting with Clive Barker in, oh, about two hours or so...

AHWA Clive Barker Chat - TIME CHANGE!

Please note that the AHWA members chat event with Clive Barker will take place at 1pm - 2pm AEST (not noon - 1pm AEST as previously advertised).

No change to the day or anything else (it'll still be Saturday 31st October, Halloween), just that one hour shift forward in time.

Again: the chat event will take place Saturday 31st October from 1pm to 2pm AEST.

Please pass this onto your networks.

AHWA Announces Halloween Chat With Clive Barker!

The AHWA is delighted to announce a special members-only Halloween chat with one of the greatest imaginers of our time, the legendary Clive Barker!

Date: Saturday, 31st October (Halloween)

Time: Noon to 1pm (AEST)

Venue: AHWA Member’s Chat Room

Clive is the author of The Books of Blood, The Hellbound Heart, the Books of the Art, Imajica, the Abarat Quintet, and Mister B Gone, amongst many others. Clive has written, directed, and produced numerous movies including Hellraiser, Nightbreed, Candyman, and Midnight Meat Train. Clive is an accomplished visual artist, known for his spectacular paintings and photography. Not restricted to any one medium, Clive has also turned his formidable talent toward comic books and computer games. To explore Clive’s work and philosophy, please visit his official site Revelations.

If you are a member and you wish to participate, please RSVP to ahwa@australianhorror.com.

Members can join in the chat simply by logging into the members area of the AHWA site and from there accessing the member chatroom. (Please note that the chatroom is currently being upgraded, so don't panic if you see odd things there within the next day or so. Everything will be up and running shortly. We recommend that all members planning to take part familiarise themselves with the chatroom before the actual event.) The chat will be moderated to ensure it runs as smoothly as possible, and every effort will be made to ensure as many members as possible get their chance to ask Clive a question.

If you're not yet an AHWA member, but don't want to miss out on this once in a lifetime event, please visit the Membership section of the AHWA site.

Queries can be directed to the AHWA chatroom manager...me. (felicitydowker@hotmail.com).

Come and chat with Clive...if you dare.

Cool Horror Photography

I love these pieces by horror photographer Joshua Hoffine (heaps more awesome photos at his website and/or blog):-