And Readings:
Because of the SoCal Fires, the Oct 12th Reading at the Open Book in Santa Clarita has been rescheduled to December. But you can still catch me in Northridge this Saturday, the 19th and next Saturday, the 26th.
Imagine being haunted by all your exes at once!
A little less horrifying is being visited by all the women you’ve loved and lost.
After attempting an overdose by opium, that’s exactly what happens to Eddy. Based on the true event of an attempted suicide, the events that follow are a twisting, shadowy melee with spirit after spirit.
Eddy is the fictional account of Edgar Allan Poe’s 1848 brush with death. It’ll get you in the Halloween Spirit!
Other spooky reads: $1.00 Stories, The Gold Tooth, Psychic Surprise Party.
If you’re local, come on by and hear me read.
I had the unfortunate displeasure of spending time with people I’m not fond of. I am barely able to tolerate negative people. I can’t stand people who are so mired in their own sense of self importance or righteousness that they can’t see beyond their own bullshit.
I came away regretting my decision to go and feeling very nasty inside, as if a piece of my soul had been burned away. I sat with it all night, no television, no radio, nothing to drown out or distract myself from the boiling nastiness of an impression they left on me.
Then I thought – I’ve never written anything about them. And I can see why. I never want to deal with them or be around them or even think about them ever, ever again.
But that inspired something. One woman has a big round face that appears to be growing from another face. Her husband stared at me as if he was planning the perfect recipe for my kidneys, liver, heart. “A slaw, soaked in buttermilk and vinegar.” I’m pretty sure I heard him say as he passed by.
And then the keepers of the whole chud-like crew.
I’ve been known to write some pretty dark things. People like this are the reason why.
Untitled, but begun.
I will give these soul sucking people a different life. I’m sure they won’t like – if they bother to recognize – themselves.
This will give that scent of madness, the sickly feeling of food poisoning filling my bodily cavities, some place to go and rest.
Use it, ladies and gentlemen, use all the things and people and places you don’t like to fuel your writing.
Hanging out with people who are serious about their writing feeds a writer’s soul.
Here’s me with Dan Rhys, author of The Lone Escapist. Where’s my book?! I need to start carrying a copy with me!
The celebration of Poe’s birth date does not go unrecognized. The Poe Museum in Virginia, as well as many others, will be throwing an Edgar Allan Poe Birthday Bash.
And, rightfully so, Poe is an important figure in American literature. For my friend who said the other day, “like, what’s the big deal?!” LET ME TELL YOU THE IMPORTANCE OF POE.
In the early 1800s, the American government called on writers to create a true American Literature to differentiate and separate ourselves from all things Great Britain. Remember, America had just gained it’s official independence from the mother land. By the time Edgar and his contemporaries were born, we were only a generation out from under British rule. There were still loyalists, still people very attached to the “old ways”.
Literature affects society just as society affects literature. By creating a true and distinct American Literature, we could become a true and distinct nation. And while Hawthorne, Emerson, and Thoreau were definitely refining our style, Poe made waves. The stories he published made people sit up and take notice. His style was not always taken seriously here in the states, but authors and critics abroad were giving him credit.
Sometimes it takes someone to shake up the status quo, to capture the deeper, darker parts of our soul individually and collectively to make us look at ourselves and see us for who we are. I think Poe did that. He had a lasting effect that artists, authors, musicians, and readers are still inspired by.
The Poe Museum will be celebrating his birthday on Saturday, January 20th.
If you can’t be there, you can still take part in the birthday bash. Buy yourself a cupcake, throw your own Poe party, join an online group and celebrate with the members.
You might notice a familiar name on the list!
I’ve attended before. The first time, I did my own Poe Tour.
I’m looking forward to attending the event, talking Eddy with Poe fans, and CAKE!!!
I’ll be reading, discussing, and signing my new book, Eddy.
The inspiration, the facts, the conjecture.
The reviews for Eddy are kind and generous! Thank you. Thank you.
Described as:
“Poignant and piercing!”
“Creative and very Poe-like.”
“Equally as enthralling as it is tragic”
“Edgar would be proud!”
Have a lovely new year! Be kind to one another.
Noreen Lace 
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