Douglas Smith's blog

Innsmouth Free Press reviews Chimerascope

It just doesn't get old. Here's another great review for Chimerascope, this time from Innsmouth Free Press. Here are the highlights:

"[T]here is not only something here for everyone, but something good for everyone, as Smith consistently displays his comfort and competence, working within multiple genres. ... Smith’s characters tend towards regular men and women caught in desperate situations, often fallible, sometimes likable, but always portrayed with, if not sympathy, then enough clarity that the reader may understand why the characters behave as they do. ... Ultimately, genre fans eager to read work by a talented author, who consistently writes top-notch prose, will be well-pleased to see the strange beasts lurking within Douglas Smith’s Chimerascope."

Read the whole review here, and if you're interested, check out the buying links for Chimerascope here, including both print and ebook editions.

Chimerascope makes a "Best of 2010" list

Cory Redekop, who earlier this year gave my collection a starred review in Quill & Quire, has picked Chimerascope for Best Short Story Collection in his personal "Best of 2010" list. Here's what he has to say:

"A sterling set of tales spanning the triple genres of sci-fi, fantasy, and horror. Echoes of Stephen King, Richard Matheson, and Clive Barker haunt the halls of Smith's work, but the end result is completely original, and always enthralling."

Thanks, Cory! He also includes works by several other ChiZine Publications authors, including:

Before I Wake, by Robert J. Wiersema The World More Full of Weeping, by Robert J. Wiersema The Thief of Broken Toys, by Tim Lebbon

Check out Cory's full "best of" list here.

"By Her Hand..." movie rocks Nerd Remix's "Best of" list

NerdRemix.com has posted its Best Indie Movies of 2010, and the movie adaptation of "By Her Hand, She Draws You Down" swept their short film categories:

Best Short Film “By Her Hand She Draws You Down” Probably the best short I’ve ever seen.Best Actress-Short Film Zoe Daelman Chlanda-“By Her Hand She Draws You Down” Absolutely stunning, ‘nuff said!Best Actor-Short Film Jerry Murdock-“By Her Hand She Draws You Down” Fantastic! Just an awesome, emotional performance.

Best Director-Short Film Anthony G. Sumner-“By Her Hand She Draws You Down” Moody, grim, emotional—this is how it’s done.

Congratulations yet again to Anthony, Zoe, and Jerry, and to producer Alan Rowe Kelly!

"By Her Hand, She Draws You Down" movie review

There's a great review of Anthony Sumner's film adaptation of my short horror story "By Her Hand, She Draws You Down" at the, uh, The Zombie Rights Campaign site.

Now BHH contains no zombies, so I am touched that ZRC would include a review of the movie on their site dedicated to the rights of the living-challenged. Some extracts from the review:

"A couple of things really stand out about this film. One is how close to a two-man (person? actor?) play it feels; the story here isn’t about visceral scares or some abstract concept of monstrous-ness, but rather is about the death of trust and intimacy between two people who have been growing apart for a long time, even as they are bound together by tragedy and secrets.

The other thing that stuck with me is that the film avoids shallow moralizing ... By Her Hand doesn’t give the audience a chance to summarily reject Cath and Joe in favor of the Normal people. This is their story, and good or bad, they’re recognized as human beings, individuals with thoughts and feelings, who are struggling through a very tough time. ...

By Her Hand is reminiscent of the some of the best in independent horror film to explore this territory; if I had to explain it in the old ‘If you liked X, see Y’, standard, X would probably be Let the Right One In, which should tell you how much I liked By Her Hand."

You can read the entire review here.

I'm cycling to support cancer research, and I need your help!

Hi! On June 11-12, 2011, I'll be participating in a 2-day major cycling event called The Enbridge Ride to Conquer Cancer benefiting The Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto, one of the top 5 cancer research hospitals in the world.

Interview at Planet Shifter Magazine: "Dreaming is a Power"

Willi Paul interviews me at Planetshifter.com on the new mythologies, inspirational sources, myth making and innovation, shamanism and alchemy, animal identity, and many other things, in one of the more unusual interviews I've had the pleasure to be part of. Check it out here. As an added bonus, you get to read a small extract from my first novel.

Selling to Foreign Language Markets article in new SFWA Handbook

The 2010 edition of the SFWA Handbook ("The Business Side of of Writing, By Writers, For Writers") has now been published, containing my updated article on "Selling to Foreign Language Markets."

The article contains the same information that I maintain here on my website, outlining my recommended approach for reselling your short fiction to non-English language markets around the world. My approach, of course, leverages the Foreign-language Market List (FML) that I maintain here as well.

SFWA, for those who don't know, is the Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America, an organization that aims at supporting professional SF&F writers. Despite the name, its membership includes writers outside of the US. SFWA membership criteria include at least two sales to professional markets that meet SFWA criteria.

My SFContario schedule

I'm be appearing at the inaugural edition of the brand spanking new SFContario, Toronto's newest annual genre convention, being held in downtown Toronto, Nov 19-21. Here's my schedule of panel appearances, signings, and readings, including a special screening of the indie film based on "By Her Hand, She Draws You Down."

Friday 9 PM – Aurora Pin Ceremony (Ballroom BC) A ceremony to present the new Aurora pins (which are quite spiffy) to all past winners and nominees who are attending SFContario.

4 wins for BY HER HAND movie in Philadelphia

And the wins keep coming for Anthony Sumner's indie film based on my story BY HER HAND, SHE DRAWS YOU DOWN.

The movie won four awards at the Terror Film Festival in Philadelphia last week: Best Actress (Zoe Daelman Chlanda), Best Actor (Jerry Murdock), Best Director of Photography (Bart Mastronardi), Original Musical Score (Gene Hodson), as well as being nominated for Best Short Film and Best Director.

Congratulations to everyone involved!

BY HER HAND wins at Chicago Int'l Reel Shorts Film Festival!

I'm actually having trouble keeping up with the news around the BY HER HAND, SHE DRAWS YOU DOWN movie, but I have to share the latest news.

BY HER HAND has won BEST HORROR SHORT at the Chicago International REEL Shorts Film Festival!!!

Congratulations to everyone involved: producer Alan Rowe Kelly, director Anthony Sumner, actors Zoë Daelman Chlanda and Jerry Murdock, and photographer Bart Mastronardi. And thanks once again for taking such good care of my story!

Pages

Subscribe to RSS - Douglas Smith's blog