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Cronenberg Smacks Down Kubrick in Article
Stanley Kubrick continues to be a lightning rod of film-industry controversy nearly a decade and a half after his death. This time around it’s coming from one of the most cutting-edge filmmakers in the sci-fi/thriller/horror/weirdness game, David Cronenberg. Here’s what the Canadian director recently told The Toronto Star when asked about how his film…
Read MoreDo Literary Devices Help Us Better Understand our Halloween Experiences?
Christmas and Thanksgiving movies often hinge on the underlying stresses of families getting together and trying to have a happy, peaceful and meaningful family gathering. It’s great tension, and story thrives on tension. But there’s also underlying tension for the Halloween experience, which is usually underutilized because it is, perhaps, just a bit too…
Read MoreHalloween: the Unintentionally Scary Holiday
Halloween parties have already begun and costumes like the sexy nurse has got me thinking about the origins of the holiday, and how far from its original purpose we have come. A basic Wikipedia search tells it pretty well: Halloween was originally a Celtic holiday to celebrate the harvest season, possibly including pagan rituals…
Read MoreFire or Ice? Author Stephen King’s ‘Shining’ Sequel Favors Fire
In 1977, Stephen King wasn’t STEPHEN KING (!!!) yet; he was just a promising young novelist. That’s why he recalls the many details of the morning when the much-celebrated director Stanley Kubrick called his home 36 years ago about adapting King’s novel, “The Shining.” King has told the story a number of times to…
Read MoreHorror/Thriller: One of the Most Inventive Genres?
Now’s the time of year to appreciate the color of fall, namely – blood red! Seriously, save the golds, browns, and evergreens for Thanksgiving, because the fact is that Tim Burton’s “Nightmare Before Christmas,” celebrating its 20-year anniversary, proves that Halloween comes and goes way too fast. People love to be freaked out.…
Read MoreReader Reviews
Just a word of thanks to the many positive reader reviews Dead Light has been receiving. From Goodreads — http://bit.ly/11w1Hbh, to Amazon — http://amzn.to/1bryxhT, you have been very kind in your comments. (I think my favorite was, “It scared the crap out of me!”) Obviously any writer loves to receive professional positive reviews, but at the end…
Read MoreUse of Profanity in Writing Thrillers
The use of profanity is a challenge for all thriller writers. Because thrillers usually involve really bad characters, the temptation is to write dialogue for them which mirrors the way real bad guys talk. Unfortunately, real bad guys (and many real good guys) can season each sentence with a half dozen F-bombs. No reader wants…
Read MoreLaunch Day
Last night I celebrated launch day for Dead Light with friends at a surprise party organized by my amazing wife, Anne. Tonight she and I will open a 27 year old bottle of Amarone I’ve been saving for years, waiting for a special occasion. I’m a little worried about waiting so long on the wine.…
Read MoreTHILLER IDEAS AS CLOSE AS TODAY’S NEWSPAPER
THRILLER IDEAS AS CLOSE AS TODAY’S NEWSPAPER More on the subject of: How do writers get their ideas? The answer is, we look around. To illustrate that ideas are as close as the morning newspaper, I’ve randomly selected the March 25, 2013 edition of the Washington Post. Let’s look for ideas in each…
Read MoreIdea for DEAD LIGHT
With the April 4, 2013 launch date of Dead Light approaching, a number of people have asked how I got the idea for the book. The story began as a screenplay entitled, The Flickering. The germ of the idea for the screenplay came from my Hollywood manager and friend, Rob Kesler. Rob had read about Vicary’s 1957 experiment with…
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