There is a very cool poster put out by the Douglas County Library system announcing our event tonight. Unfortunately, I couldn't get it to load so you'll have to take my word for it--Here are the details. I do believe we’ll have some fun!! And there will be food and prizes so guys and ghouls, come on down.

Fang You Very Much: Three Local Vampire Writers Go For The Neck
What: Douglas County Library Program
Who: Mario Acevedo, Lynda Hilburn, Jeanne Stein
Where: Highlands Ranch Library: 9292 Ridgeline Blvd. Highlands Ranch
When: October 29, 7 – 9 pm
For more details:
www.douglascountylibraries.org/Locations/HighlandsRanchLibrary




Sad Note: Mystery writer Tony Hillerman passed away on Sunday. From Shelf Awareness this blurb: Tony Hillerman, a former newspaperman whose evocative mystery novels set among the Navajos of the Southwest took the American detective story in new directions and made him a best-selling author, died Sunday in Albuquerque, where he lived. He was 83.

The NYT obit is here.

To my way of thinking, that now leaves Colorado’s own Margaret Coel to carry on the tradition.




What was Oprah’s favorite new gadget for the year? Check it out here.



And from Mark Henry—our favorite zombie author: It's come to my attention that Pushing Daisies, the most consistently entertaining, visually stunning and wholly magical show on television, in my not-so-humble opinion, has taken a tragic dip in the ratings. I'm mortified.

You should be, too.

Please be mortified. Enough to tune in. I'm begging here.

Me, too. Locally, it’s tonight at 7 PM on ABC.

FINALLY—brought the first chapter of book six (CHOSEN) to writers group last night. It’s good to be back in the game.  ¶ posted by Jeanne Stein @ 7:11 AM  2 comments

  post MileHiCon Mario here:

MileHiCon 40 is history. What a great time.

Here are our own Jeanne Stein and Warren Hammond gassing on, I mean, expounding with great erudition about something literary.


The highlight on Friday night was our favorite werewolf author (and Con toastmaster), Carrie Vaughn, doing a talk show skit where she fielded calls from werewolves about their love problems. (Carrie's advice: Since werewolves don't have opposable thumbs, make sure you uncap the Viagra before you get change into a were.)


Jeanne held her own with the Guests of Honor: from left, Patricia Briggs, Tim Powers, Ed Bryant, Jim Butcher, and JS.


Meanwhile, Dogmata Denver 3 played on.


Here's the crew hanging the art at City Bark. Since I was at MileHiCon, I'll post the show pictures as I get them.


On the subject of art, my friend Eldon Warren is doing a step-by-step presentation of his impressive plein air oil landscapes.  ¶ posted by Mario Acevedo @ 7:04 PM  1 comments

  If you’ve followed this blog at all, you know that I’m a Buffybud—a follower (read devotee, true believer) of all things Joss Whedon. I even slip little references into my books, like this one of page 188 of Legacy:

It takes us exactly fifteen minutes to get back to the hotel, find Tamara’s bike and prepare to head out again. In the car I told her where we were going so I swing behind her on the Harley, watch while she slips on her helmet and ask if she has one for me. Now safety is not a concern for me. If we crashed, it’d take my landing on a wooden fence post to hurt me but there are helmet laws in California and getting stopped by a cop would be one more delay.

When I mention that to Tamara, she reaches into a saddlebag and hands me an orange knit cap, hand knit it appears, with head flaps. Along with a headset. “So we can talk on the way,” she says.

No kidding. I slip on the headset and adjust the microphone, eyeing the cap. “Jayne’s mom know you have this?”

Imagine my delight this week to discover Ma Cobb’s Hat Shoppe and this blog entry:

A friend of mine (Magie) is a huge James Marsters afficionado. She's met him several times at different conventions over the years, and she was planning to see him again at Atlanta's Dragon*Con in August. She decided that she wanted to commission a Jayne hat to give to him for his birthday, so I knit one up special just for him.... and here is the result. One of the MOST awesome pics that Magie could have sent me is this one of James Marsters in one of my Jayne hats.

For all of you readers who looked at me with a blank stare when I’ve read that passage at signings, here is a Jayne hat modeled by none other than James Marsters (or Spike to those of us who follow the canon.)




From my good friend Carol Malcolm—It looks like The Terminator—SCC will be renewed after all—at least the full season will be filmed.

Nice.



From Shelf Awareness and MSN.com.

Cool Idea of the Day: human "books" on a variety of subjects. According to the Associated Press (via MSNBC), patrons of the Santa Monica, Calif., Public Library were encouraged last weekend to borrow one of 14 experts on hand for a 30-minute conversation. The library's hope was that participants would "learn something about the culture and beliefs of other people, erasing stereotypes in the process."

But there are rules: "The reader must return the book in the same mental and physical condition as borrowed. It is forbidden to cause damage to the book, tear out or bend pages, get food or drink spilled over the book or hurt her or his dignity in any other way."

Reassuring to the “living books” I’m sure.

Looking for us at MileHiCon this weekend? Here’s my schedule:

FRI: 6 PM What Gives Genre TV Legs - Wind River A
SAT: 11 AM What a Fan Girl Wants - Wind River B
SAT: NOON Signing
SAT: I PM Reading - Mesa Verde C
SAT: 9 PM Written in Blood - Mesa Verde B
SUN: 4 PM Urban Fantasy: There Goes the Neighborhood -
Mesa Verde B


And Mario’s:

FRI: 9PM Bartender’s Guide to the Universe - Mesa Verde B
SAT: 3PM Gumshoes in SF, F and H - Grand Mesa B-C
SAT: 9PM Written in Blood - Mesa Verde B
SAT: 10PM Late Night Reading - Mesa Verde C
SUN: 1PM Signing

Note Mario’s first panel? Wonder how he was chosen for that? And if you really want a treat, be sure to catch Written in Blood—Mario and me together….double trouble.

PS Mario's Undead Kama Sutra is a Fresh Pick on Fresh Fiction...Check it out here.  ¶ posted by Jeanne Stein @ 6:36 AM  3 comments

  47 Rules

Mario here:

Great news to share. My friend and fellow mystery author, Troy Cook, announced that his debut novel, 47 Rules of Highly Effective Bank Robbers, is in movie production by Richard Gladstein, whose credits as a producer include Bourne Identity and Reservoir Dogs. Here's a picture of Troy back when (in Madison, WI, for the 2006 BoucherCon to be precise).

On the home front, my art buddies are sponsoring another Yappy Hour HOWL-O-WEEN DogmataDenver art benefit. We created this collaborative piece of our interpretation of the classic, Dogs Playing Poker.

The black dog in the lower right is my son's pointer, Midnight, looking surprised at all the aces in play. The show will be Friday, October 24, at City Bark Lodo in Denver. While I have paintings in the show, instead I'll be at MileHiCon.  ¶ posted by Mario Acevedo @ 6:10 PM  3 comments

  Hi all—posted a day late to let bleary-eyed Mario get his blog done. When I saw him at Warren Hammond’s signing (see Mario’s post below), he looked beat (Mario, not Warren, who looked splendid.) A sure sign Mario had a good time at Bouchercon.

Not much to report this week. A cool video below from James Gunn’s PG Porn web series. This one stars Nathan Fillion. But not to worry—this website’s tag is “For people who like everything about porn except the sex…” It’s pretty cool.

I picked this up last week—Terminator SCC TV series is all but canceled. But I’ve heard other stuff since then that it’s been given the green light to film a few more episodes. Maybe all is not lost. I like this season so much better than last.

BSP: a link from Mysterious Galaxy in San Diego. Guess which book was Numero Uno for September? Legacy! Thanks to all who attended the signing and bought books before, during and after.




November 3 is the release date for At The Scene of the Crime—an anthology with a CSI theme described thusly on Amazon:

With the long-term success of procedural shows dominating prime-time television, the readership for a forensic anthology extends well beyond traditional mystery readers.

Collected by Martin H. Greenberg—the King of Anthologists—this volume features the following contributors:

Brendan DuBois
Edward D. Hoch
Michael A. Black
Max Allan Collins and Matthew Clemens
Jeremiah Healy
Kristine Kathryn Rusch
Julie Hyzy, John Lutz
Maynard Thomson
Noreen Ayres
Loren D. Estleman
Jeanne C. Stein

About the Editor:
Dana Stabenow is the Edgar Award-winning writer of numerous mystery, science fiction, and thriller novels. Her most popular series are set in Alaska, where she grew up. She has edited other mystery anthologies such as Powers of Detection, Wild Crimes, and The Mysterious North. She has been named Artist of the Year by the governor of Alaska. She lives in Alaska. Please visit her at www.stabenow.com.

It’s my first published non-paranormal mystery story. Watch for it.

Coming up MileHiCon next week. Mario, Warren Hammond (one of our critique partners) and I will be featured on several panels. Looking forward to fun. If you're in Denver and attending, please stop by and say hello.  ¶ posted by Jeanne Stein @ 6:19 AM  2 comments

  Charmed to Death Mario here:

Late post because I came back yesterday from Bouchercon.

For those of you familiar with Laura Lippman's books, you'll recognize this Baltimore landmark:

The conference was great. A fantastic crowd. Here's the view from my chair before the start of my panel, Weasels Ripped My Flesh, mixing mystery and horror. I wrote an article about the panel for the Baltimore Sun Read Street blog.

I finally got the chance to meet Charliane Harris. As part of the marketing campaign for her HBO series, True Blood, you can order the synthetic TruBlood.

My publisher HarperCollins treated their authors to a private dinner at a nearby swanky restaurant. Here's a picture of the place setting for me. I hobnobbed with big name authors and VIPs from the media. I managed to not get thrown out.

Like other Bouchercons, the best action happened in the bar. Here is Lori Armstrong trying to convince Marcus Sakey to buy her yet another drink.

As great as the conference was, we got cabin fever and took a short walking tour of the Charmed City to include Edgar Allan Poe's grave (with a detour for fabulous crab cakes).

In local news:

Fellow mystery writer Manuel Ramos had a short story published in the Rocky Mountain News as part of their celebrating Denver's 150th birthday.

Last night, Warren Hammond signed books for his newest book, ex-KOP, at the fabulous Colfax Tattered Cover.

Buy many copies.  ¶ posted by Mario Acevedo @ 7:26 AM  3 comments

  Today is a black day.

No, not because of the sliding stock market.

No, not because the economy is in such a mess.

No, not even because I don’t like either presidential candidate and can’t decide who to vote for.

No. It’s a black day because today I removed the lightweight spread from my bed and replaced it with a comforter….

A COMFORTER!!!!

Means the nights are cold. Winter is right around the corner.

Woe is me.

Back to the regularly scheduled program.



Another banned book display courtesy of Shelf Awareness. This one at the Twin Hickory Public Library in Glen Allen, VA. “Matt Phillips, a librarian at the…library, and his daughter Sydney read Where's Waldo by Martin Handford (No. 88 on the ALA's top 100 banned and challenged books 1990-2000) in the library's Banned Books Weeks window.”

Where’s Waldo??? Number 88??? The world really is doomed….

From Forbes—annual estimates of what the ten most successful authors’ earned from June 2007 to June 2008:

1. J.K. Rowling, $300 million
2. James Patterson, $50 million
3. Stephen King, $45 million
4. Tom Clancy, $35 million
5. Danielle Steel, $30 million
6. John Grisham, $25 million
6. Dean Koontz, $25 million
8. Ken Follett, $20 million
9. Janet Evanovich, $17 million
10. Nicholas Sparks, $16 million

Full article here.

On October 29, Mario, Linda Hilburn and I are doing a program at the Highlands Ranch Douglas County Library: Fang You Very Much - Vampire Authors Go For The Neck. It’s free, but advance registration is required. If you’re in the area, here’s the link to register. I can promise fun and prizes… Maybe even a devil duck.

Speaking of Linda, the second in her Vampire Shrink series is out…Dark Harvest. Check it out.





Linda and I participated in AuthorFest last weekend in Manitou Springs. We were on a panel with Esri Rose whose book, Bound to Love Her, was recently released.




AuthorFest is a small but enthusiastically attended con that managed to attract a NYT bestselling author, Margaret Coel, to be its keynote speaker. Margaret, as always, was gracious and funny and entertaining. Her newest book, Blood Memory, is a standalone, but she’s best known for the Wind River Father John and Vicky Holden series.

Let’s see—next up? MileHiCon in a couple of weeks.

Check out Richelle Mead’s blog entry for Oct. 4th…Seems we here in Team Denver have an infiltrator in Team Seattle. When she went to the podium to do her reading at a signing last weekend instead of her book, Succubus Dreams:



here's what she found:



All I can say (after thank you) is: Bring It ON!!! ☺

On a serious note, though, Richelle, I hope your dad is doing better. My thoughts are with you.

From my friend, Kris Bochum: Find out the reason that commands you to write; see whether it has spread its roots into the very depth of your heart; confess to yourself you would have to die if you were forbidden to write.
-- Rainer Maria Rilke

Nice.  ¶ posted by Jeanne Stein @ 8:48 AM  7 comments

  Get your buzz on Last week, fellow mystery scribe Laura Benedict ran my October article on her blog. She’s running a contest so drop by and comment to be eligible to win.

Saturday evening, I attended a mead tasting and garden art party hosted by my friends Jennifer Mosquera and her partner Eric. Mead in case you don’t know, is a honey wine. The mead was provided by Medovina winery of Niwot, Colorado. Coincidentally enough, Medovina was mentioned this month’s Sunset magazine in their feature about Niwot.

Here is Mark Beran, owner of the winery, explaining his mead products and the importance of those industrious honeybees (that are under so much environmental stress. The bees disappear and we disappear as well.) Mark provided five different wines, which he served with food pairings and introduced by tinkling a bell. That bell would ring and we would line up like lab rats. Only one of the wines was particularly sweet, and none were heavy or syrupy like you’d think a honey wine would be.

The wines: Stinging Rose, Harvest Cyser, Summer Solstice, Classic Mead, and Sweet Melissa (all paired with gourmet foods)

Besides the wine, we had art in the garden, hence the name, garden art, like this cool stuff by Jennifer.

The other artsy draw of the evening was a reading by me. Go figure. The guests were probably expecting prose offering great insight into the human condition. I read them a passage about vampire karaoke. Here I am striking an especially literary pose though I imagine what I was really trying to do was get rid of a persistent wedgie.

This fall, the Aurora Public Library hosts the Power of One Perspectives lecture series, featuring mystery. Sunday I was on a panel with Lt Tim DuFour of the Aurora Police Department where we discussed Colorado true crime and forensics. Here is Lt DuFour and librarian Carol Foreman.

This week I’m off to Baltimore for the BoucherCon mystery writer’s conference. I’ll be on the road until Monday so next week’s blog will be a day late. Don’t forget to tune in.  ¶ posted by Mario Acevedo @ 6:15 PM  0 comments

  October 1 – Ack! Where did the summer go? Why didn’t I have one? Okay, I can answer that. Family stuff and book launch. But the trees are already turning and the nights grow cold—I’m not ready for fall, let alone winter.








Speaking of book launch- thanks to the reviewers at Paranormal Romance in general and Amber in particular for making Legacy a top September pick.

Thanks to the folks at B & N book clubs, too, for featuring Legacy during the month of September. It’s all appreciated.





From Shelf Awareness and The Daily Camera:

Congratulations to Boulder Book Store, Boulder, Colo., which is celebrating its 35th anniversary, beginning today, with two weeks of events and promotions (and)…discounts of 20% for loyalty program members on most products in the store October 10-12. The store is also honoring Banned Books Week with a large window display... (above) and in-store displays.

35 years is quite a milestone for any independent. Congratulations.

Which leads me into a couple more pics taken during my recent signing trip:








Dusty Howard a new acquaintance met at MG and Suzanne and my youngest fan at M&I—Elizabeth loves the covers. I love Elizabeth. It was great fun meeting her. And Dusty and all who turned out during my SoCal junket. And a special thanks to my sis, Connie, who treated me to an afternoon of hair and make-up at Robert's Coiffures of Del Cerro before the San Diego signing. What a great treat!

Good news—True Blood has already been picked up for a second season.

Over at Patricia’s Vampire Notes during my guest blog Emma Bull was mentioned as a pioneer of UF. From Dear Author: War for the Oaks by Emma Bull is now available for free as an e-book from Tor. A chance to read one of the first Urban Fantasy’s for free.

A bit of vampire fun: a video from Forgetting Sarah Marshall—A Taste of Blood.




Munch’s Vampire, a painting deemed to “degenerate” by the Nazis (!), will be sold at Sotheby's in London on 2 October. Value listed: $31 million.

Last but not least, for a really different interview by a really different interviewer, follow the link to Mark Henry’s League of Reluctant Adults. Hmmm..this was interesting. But there is a great prize involved so check it out!

PS Be sure to take a look at all the great new books out this week-- Mario did a splendid job of listing them below.  ¶ posted by Jeanne Stein @ 7:30 AM  5 comments