Hello all,

It's been a few months since I've said anything bloggish. Most of the time, I'm so deep into facebook that there's nothing left to talk about here. That's still the case, really. I just felt like updating. So if you're curious about my latest neighbor woes, facebook is still the best place to find that information. For those who are unaware and are simultaneously curious, I do have a few new projects that I can tell you about.

Recently I have joined another show and started yet another. The different aspect of  these shows is that they are both LIVE. That means I am working without a net (no editing). The odd thing is, I tend to screw up less knowing I'm live. Who knew?

The first is Direct to Video Connoisseur. This show was started by Matt Poirer of the already established (and awesome) DtVC site which can be found at MattMovieGuy.com. Matt discusses mostly action films. He started his live show and invited me to be his first guest. We clicked so well and I had so much fun that I was thrilled to accept when he asked me join him full time. The exciting thing about this is that it gives me the opportunity to do a number of things that my previous shows never allowed. For one, I can interact with listeners while the show is going. Since it's live, listeners have the opportunity to drop comments in the chat room during the show. Also, it's because of this show that my appreciation for direct to video action films (okay, there really was none before) has grown. It also helped me find my newest movie crush and favorite action guy, Scott Adkins. (Thank you, Matt, for choosing Ninja 2). You can catch DtVC every Wednesday night at 8 PM Eastern as part of the 2nd Unit Broadcast Network on Mixlr.com.

The second, The Insomniac's Playlist, is a show that I've had in my mind for a little while, even before I dived into the world of live Internet broadcasting on a regular basis. This is basically a music show that allows me to spin some records of my choosing based on what my little heart desires to hear at the time. So far, I've only had one episode, but folks seemed to get a kick out of it. I certainly did. It was horror themed and whole lot of fun to put together. That show is scheduled to air Tuesday nights at 11 PM Eastern and you can catch the archived episodes at LegionPodcasts.com. (see below)

Other than that, I can now make the announcement that I have a story being published in an anthology, coming soon from Chaosium, Inc., called The Summer of Lovecraft. That book is a collection of Mythos tales which take place during the 1960s. I'm so excited for this book to be released and I'm anticipating it to hit sometime after the new year. The Summer of Lovecraft was co-edited by Brian M. Sammons and Glynn Owen Barass and it promises to be incredible. Every book they put out is nothing less. I cannot express how wonderful it is to be a part of something that I respect so much.

Also, Devour the Podcast recently celebrated its 100th episode with an interactive Google hangout, complete with alcohol. Oh yes, the drinks were flying that night, It was an amazing celebration. We had a much larger turnout than I expected and I was overjoyed to find that our listeners care so much to spend time with us even if we (okay, mostly me) were being that chick who hangs all over you at the party proclaiming her love. I mean, a few more and I would have been Hasselhoffing a cheeseburger on YouTube before you know it. But it was fun and full of love and laughs and I'm happy to report that I was quite hangover free the next day. Yeah, I still got it.

Lastly, The Skeleton Crew is moving into its final episodes. We've been saying for a while that we'll be quitting once the show hits 100. The plan is for that to happen in October, coinciding with Halloween. As much as I enjoy that show, and truly love and adore all of our devoted listeners, I guess it was just time. That show has been a troubled youth from the beginning. It's that kid that just won't stay out of detention: the class clown. As charming and entertaining as it can be, sometimes you're ready to promote the son of a bitch so he can be someone else's problem next year. Honestly, I'd love to keep going. I really have fun with the irreverent, sometimes sophomoric content of that show. It's different from anything else I do. So it's with a heavy heart that I accept that the end is near. But I know that we will never lose each other. We'll work together again. And I can't wait for that.

I guess that wraps up what's new for the moment. I'll toss some link in here if you'd like to keep up with my various projects. Until next time, let's keep the gore gushing.

xxx
Jamie

Creator/Co-host Lycan It! Podcast

Co-host Devour the Podcast

Co-host Evil Episodes Podcast

Co-host The Skeleton Crew Podcast

Co-host Direct to Video Connoisseur

Creator/Host The Insomniac's Playlist

Contact Me Via twitter or facebook

It's Never Too Late

Today is the day after I got the news I was being published. To many of you out there, it would be no big deal, old hat, nothing new. For me, it's the thing I've been working toward my whole life. The problem, however, is that I've been working toward it only in my head.  I've been a writer for ages, most of my life. I was always throwing something down on paper or typing. I would write about nonsensical things, I would write non-fiction, I would write stories that would never be seen by anyone other than the one holding the pages in their hands, which usually meant me. All of these things I would do, with the silent hope that I would, one day, see my name on a book jacket. Well, it's pretty hard to do that if you never submit anything for consideration.

I suppose a part of me was okay with that failure (which it was) because I never did anything to change the circumstances. Instead, I pushed the author in me down, told her to stifle it, and settled on being a writer. And that's okay. There is nothing wrong with writing for yourself, as long as it makes you happy. But I wasn't happy with that. On occasion I'd feel a twinge of guilt. Perhaps I'd pick up Stephen King's On Writing, one of my favorite books, and it would send me spiraling into a depression when I realized I'd failed myself, again. It could be something as simple as watching a film about an author, like Misery. That always got me.

Since I was a child I had wanted to be an author, to see my name on a book that was on my shelf. In the many years since childhood, I've done everything else. I have written and directed my own film, I've acted in others' films, I've acted on stage, I've sung on stage, I have written editorials, interviewed some of my favorite people in the industry, reviewed more films than I care to count, worked on a film festival, lectured to a film class, worked on four regular podcasts (still do), recorded audio stories, voice acted, edited two websites (wrangling other writers), painted, sculpted, knitted, crocheted, played competitive darts and won trophies (hey, it's a thing), but this continued to hang over my head. This one accomplishment that I'd, at this point, assumed would never come to fruition, mocked me.

Then I met Brian. Brian is an author. He saw something in me that he thought was being wasted. He couldn't understand why I'd never pursued the one thing I'd craved more than anything. When asked, I had no answer. I had no idea. Even now I have no idea what I was doing. I was content to put my energy into everything else under the sun, why not into getting published? All I had to do was submit something somewhere. Even if I was rejected, at least I was doing something. You can't complain about not accomplishing your goal if you never attempt it. To be fair, I didn't complain. I don't even think people were aware this was a desire that I harbored. But I was sad on the inside. If I died anytime soon, my epitaph would read "Well, she almost did what she wanted." As much as I am proud of my other accomplishments, they are all a part of me, let's face it, at eight years old I never said, "when I grow up I want to talk about vaginas on stage." I wanted to write.

Receiving the news yesterday that something I had written would appear in print, on paper, in a BOOK, was one of the biggest bits of news I've ever received. Like I said, to some of you it will be no big deal, and that's okay. But to me, it means that the one thing I've chastised myself for not completing my whole life, is now done. Of course I'd like to do it more.  But even if I never get accepted again, my epitaph can now read, "Whew!"

The moral of this story is simple.  Go after what you want. It won't come to you. And even if you feel that point has passed you by, if you think you've missed the opportunity, do it anyway. If you never attempt anything, you'll never achieve anything. That's not me being proverbial, that's freakin' Science. Live so you can punctuate your epitaph with an exclamation point.