Musings & News

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In light of my recent adventure, I feel compelled to point out that the story in this reading is fiction. It’s not based on any of the stories I told myself about my birth parents as I was growing up, or as a young woman, or even recently. The story is from a writing prompt, and I allowed myself to be silly. Sillier than usual, that is.

But wait, what recent adventure? you ask. Oh, friends. Big adventure.

I shall have more to say about it later. For now, let me say simply: I met my family. My birth family. My biological family. The people whose genes I share, the people I look like, walk like, laugh like, and am like in some very important ways.

The additional footage in this reading is all of Lake Michigan, but it’s from both the east and west shores. From Sheboygan, Wisconsin, where I spent some time with my sister on my father’s side, and with my amazing nieces and even grand-nieces, and with my brother-in-law. These are some strong women, and artistic, and kind, and my sister is possibly worse than I am about making a beeline across a parking lot or beach to pet a dog.

There are also scenes from Escanaba and Manistique in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. We drove north from Sheboygan, through the bottom of the U.P., over the Mackinac Bridge, and into Up North Michigan to meet for the first time my siblings on my mother’s side, and to visit with a cousin on that side I’d met previously.

So much talking and laughing! So many stories! And questions, some of which even were answered—on all sides. I met two brothers and two sisters, and have one brother yet to meet.

I’m still processing it all. But I do know I am blessed. Adoption stories are complicated, and emotional, and often involve secrecy and mystery and half-truths. The investigation is an emotional rollercoaster. In my case, it’s truly a blessing. I’m grateful.

So for now, please enjoy this story. It first appeared in Third Point Press, and was anthologized in Best Microfiction 2020.

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I missed getting this book in the Night Worms book subscription, which would have been really cool because it would have come with fun add-ons like stickers and bookmarks. Still, I got it within the first week or two after release.

101 Horror Books To Read Before You’re Murdered by Sadie “Mother Horror” Hartmann isn’t a list of the greatest horror books of all time. It’s not a list of favorite horror books. It deliberately leaves out Stephen King (because it goes without saying, if you know modern horror, you know Stephen King!). It is a dissertation on modern horror. And it is amazing. Cue the chorus: “You’ve left off a favorite of mine!” Yeah, that’s not really a valid point here. This is a survey of the last 20 years in horror, with an eye to presenting some of the very best, and to do so over a chainsaw-sweep of sub-genres. If you read all of these books (before you are murdered) you will be an educated horror reader, a scholar of modern horror. And you’ll still be behind Sadie Hartmann, who is still reading and researching and compiling and reviewing. It’s not just the depth, though. It’s the insight. The first pages of this book give you an At a Glance reference guide which offers keen details on sub-genre, tone and style. I’ve made it sound easy. It’s clear that every book included in this guide has been thoroughly read, considered and studied. It’s already a classic.

The drink is a King Ale, a cream-style beer created in cooperation with Ravinia Brew Works and SIU Carbondale’s Saluki Brew Works. Enjoying at The Underground Public House. A couple patrons good naturedly moved over to let me get this photo.

This book now—I haven’t seen a description of The String Diaries by Stephen Lloyd Jones that does it justice, and I won’t do it justice either. The plot basics: The villain, Jakob, is a man from a long-lived, aristocratic race of people gifted with, among other things, the ability to shift into any other person’s likeness. The hero—the final girl, if you will—is an altogether likeable young wife and mother whose entire life has been shadowed by the generations-long obsession of Jakob to possess a descendent of his long-ago love. That his advances aren’t wanted is not part of his consideration. The story sweeps across Europe and over a century, beginning in a frenzy and, building from there. Beautifully written, with vivid characters, mystery, secret societies, and an obvious love for scholarship.



The wine is a peach lavender sangria at the Peachbarn Winery & Café.
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What are you reading? And what are you reading it with?

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I had a quiet weekend, so I fell into this book headfirst and barely looked up until it was finished. Rachel Harrison’s Such Sharp Teeth is a blast. It’s got great characters, witty dialogue, low-key drama, high-stakes drama, werewolves… obviously. I mean this in a good way—it’s like Vampire Diaries but with werewolves and for adults who’ve paid off at least one car.

But this book also has its serious side, and that what makes it hard to put down. Aurora “Rory” Morris (how’s that for a cool nickname from a cool name?) is back in her hometown (from NYC) to help out her twin, Scarlet, who is very pregnant and not very sure how she feels about it. Rory is barely settling in when, yep, she gets attacked by a werewolf, and yep, becomes one. That’s not a spoiler. But I will tell you, the way Rory comes around to the realization of what has happened to her is good stuff. Even better is how everything comes together in a perfect whirlwind — Rory glimpsing for the first time how different her life could be with a little domesticity — and how different it could be as a truly wild thing. Can’t say more, read it yourself.

The drink is one of the many microbrews on tap at the Underground Public House. It’s from B. Nektar Meadery in Michigan—it’s their Orange Cream Delight, a mead with orange and vanilla. Delish.

Coolest American Stories 2023, edited by Mark Wish and Elizabeth Coffey is an eclectic, exciting collection of stories. It’s their second of what’s becoming an annual anthology—they are accepting stories for the 2024 version as I’m writing this. Read their About section to understand fully what they’ve got going on with this book, but basically, they want stories that make you say, “Wow, that was a cool story,” when you finish it. They are literary stories, but accessible literary stories.

So, meet a celebrity stalker who knows how to take advantage of a situation, a woman trying to fulfill her mother’s puzzling last wish, a high school girl trying to stay true to herself in the face of deception and jealousy, and (the story that probably hit me most personally), a woman thrust into the role of grandmother, and then confronted with a devastating choice. It’s a fantastic collection.

The drink is a nice dry Chardonel at Feather Hills Vineyard & Winery. Check out the cypress tree in the background.

What are you reading, and where are you reading it?
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This is my second reading for the Best Microfiction 2023 virtual launch. I love seeing the different approaches all the writers take to presenting their stories. I like to hear how a writer presents a story, how they placed the emphasis in a sentence or how they read a bit of dialogue. It can make me consider a story a whole new way.

This reading is from a bluff favored by rappelers in Giant City State Park. It’s a great place for a micro-hike, as it only takes a few minutes to get to the top of the bluff. Also, the meadow at the bottom really shows off the height of the bluff nicely. It’s not mountains, but it sure is beautiful.

The story first appeared in 805 Lit + Art. I’m so grateful for it’s first home, and also that they nominated the story for Best Microfiction—and of course that the Best Microfiction editors chose it!

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About three times a day, the dogs go bonkers and, as soon as they are let outside, they rush down to the creek. Sometimes they go charging down into it and come back wet and muddy. Sometimes they run up the side of it into the field. Sometimes they bark, sometimes they just race. Usually it’s because of a squirrel. But occasionally, it’s one of these guys. I’ve busted coyotes out in our yard several times. I yell at them to go away, and if the chickens are out, they just barely comply. I love them anyway.

The bobcat we don’t see so much. A neighbor says the bobcat had kits last summer for sure. So maybe we have more than one in the area. Again, I love them, even if they, too, take a chicken now and then.

Coyotes and Bobcat

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Happy Best Microfiction 2023 Virtual Book Launch Day! Find the event on Facebook. It’s going on all day and will be archived. Here’s one of mine!

Everything Depends on the Potato – Ghost Parachute

This story started in one of my writing groups, and used a newspaper story as inspiration. I read at Giant City State Park, which is part of the Shawnee National Forest. This is the Post Oak Trail, which is the most accessible trail in the park. That wooden railing behind me is built over a bluff. There are four playgrounds in Giant City. I used to bring my son there when he was little.

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It shouldn’t be so fun to read about a vengeful spouse stalking her family from beyond the grave. But it is. A ghost seeks revenge, zombie curse, whodunit all rolled into one novella. I’ve called JG Faherty the Master of the Mashup before this, and it’s an appropriate title. Don’t ever think one of his books will be simple and straightforward—there’s always a surprise. Death Do Us Part is a fun read. For true terror, turn to his latest three novels.

That’s a flight of semi-dry wines from Von Jakob Winery & Brewery, and that beautiful vista is from their large back deck.

The Last Werewolf by Glen Duncan is the first book of a trilogy—which I didn’t know when I nabbed this one from the local Barnes & Noble. Glad to see it, though, because of course I want to know what happens next! I’ve seen this one compared to Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire and I get that. The Last Werewolf  takes a philosophical approach, as we understand that we are reading Jake Marlowe’s journal and following along as he faces the extinction of his species at the hands of The Hunt—and what that means for him personally. Wait till you meet Talulla and Cloquet! These two breathe a new vitality into the story, as they are meant to. Nothing in this book is a mistake, read it closely. Don’t worry, you’ll love it.

When I could tear my eyes away from that beautiful Pope County scenery at Shotgun Eddys, and when I wasn’t listening to my beloved, favorite singer-songwriter Tim Crosby, I was knocking back a couple of Stags and reading about Marlowe’s wild world. A good combination.

#nerdinabarwithabook Share yours!

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I use the phrase “The veil is thin,” on my social media. It’s a common enough phrase. But it sums up how I feel about the world around me. I feel that there is always something beyond what we see, that we sometimes perceive—maybe quietly, maybe with a sudden rush, breathtaking awe. For me, that happens often in nature. Not exclusively. But often.

Coyote Creek borders our home on the west and south, with a section of the Shawnee National Forest across the road to the north, and a dense patch of woods to the east. (Coyote Creek may have another, more official name, but that’s what I call it when it is so near Underhill.)

The creek runs fully only after a good rain. Most of the time, most of it is dry. The creek bed is a highway for wildlife. When I step down into the creek bed and walk along, the outside world is hushed. I hear the thud of a black walnut hitting the ground as a squirrel scampers above in the branches, chucking at me for trespassing. Insects buzz, and frogs plop-jump into the still pools that are watering hole and community center for the birds, raccoons, deer, possums, and other animals. Everything else holds its breath.

My husband, singer-songwriter Tim Crosby, gifted me a couple trail cameras for my birthday. From the footage I check every day or so, I can see how many animals come and go in the creek bed, how much wildlife goes about daily life just a few feet away from the house, and we only see them when they come out of the creek. It’s humbling.

And even though this it’s all part of the physical world, it’s another reminder: the veil is thin.

Enjoy the doe and fawn here. I’ve got lots more deer, but also some exciting coyote and bobcat footage to share soon. This is from two days of video in late May.

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The Bell Witch by John F. D. Taff is far more than a telling of the folk legend of Tennessee’s Bell Witch. It’s also a contemplation on the psychology of being haunted, and a philosophical musing on the essence of haunting and being haunted. It’s the kind of book you can have a conversation with, a story to think about while you are watching a camp fire jump and blaze, or when you hear something thud on the roof of your house at night. Taff keeps true to what happened in the Bell Witch legend, and stretches enough to ask “Why did it happen?” Intriguing read.

I don’t usually try to match what I’m drinking with what I’m reading. Check out Jo Kaplan’s excellent newsletter for that kind of alchemy. However, in this case, I couldn’t resist an old-fashioned made with locally foraged shagbark syrup. At Ebb & Flow Fermentations, the charms of which I have previously sung here. If you are in Cape Girardeau, make sure you stop at Ebb & Flow.

The Witch Hunter by Finnish author Max Seeck, (translated by Kristian London) was a whole different critter. A police procedural noir crime novel, this grim and occult-dusted story introduces Jessica Niemi, a cop without the usual foibles (alcoholism, history of insubordination, you know the routine) but with plenty of her own secrets. I carried this book with me everywhere because whenever I had 30 seconds, I was reading it. That kind of stop/start reading doesn’t always work so well with a book in this genre—the plots are usually far too complex. And this one is complex! But it’s so gracefully written that falling back into it is easily done. No spoilers here, just read it. And if you are a beautiful brunette, treat yourself to a chic black evening gown. Wink.

I’m at Blue Sky Vineyard for this one, and that’s a glass of their estate-grown rosé, one of my favorite local wines. It’s always a hard choice at Blue Sky because I like so many of their dry and semi-dry wines, but rosé is always a good choice.

What are you reading in a bar (winery / microbrew) these days?

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