Ninja News, Monstrous Monday Blogfest, Cassa Update, Thanks, Movie Trivia Answers, and Major Announcement Coming!

Ninja News

Jeff Hargett has a story in the soon-to-be-released anthology, Spells: Ten Tales of Magic, and revealed the cover last week. Congratulations, Jeff!

Michael Malone just released his latest, Carnegie’s Call – Developing the Success Habit. Congratulations, Michael!

Have you enjoyed the great sports overlap this past week? Football season, the World Series, basketball preseason, and… Oh wait, hockey is still on strike. That sucks.

Hurricane Sandy is past us (although still causing high winds) but pray for those still in her path.

And in movie news…

Skyfall is at 94% on Rotten Tomatoes and is already out in the UK and two dozen other foreign countries. Hits the USA on November 8. Can't wait!

Box office reports for the weekend reveal that Argo is still number one. (Go see it – awesome movie!) The two new releases tanked (Silent Hill and Cloud Atlas) and number two is the surprise moneymaker of the month – Hotel Transylvania. (Did anyone predict that one?)

Monstrous Monday Blogfest

Hosted by Tim at The Other Side.


It’s all about the monsters today!



I decided to go with my favorite monster as a kid - Godzilla.

Nothing was cooler than the Saturday afternoon monster movie featuring Godzilla. He’s ingrained in my childhood forever. He began as a terrifying creature and over the years became more of a protector and almost loveable. Godzilla changed the way I looked at monsters. And he still has the coolest roar.

Yes, he was a guy in a rubber suit! But I’ll take a guy in a rubber suit over the monstrosity that was Emmerich and Devlin’s Godzilla.
(And here’s hoping Gareth Edwards of Monsters fame can do better in 2014.)

Visit The Other Side for other participants or to join this blogfest!

Cassa Update

I am now working on edits after receiving my manuscript back from one of my critique partners. Again, I’ve been blessed with great critique partners! I’ll have to share some of the snarky comments from Cassie with you guys. If you've found humor in her blog posts, beware - those were only teasers! Wait until you hear her thoughts on CassaStorm...

Guest Post Response - Thanks

Thanks everyone for your response last Friday to my guest post controversy. Glad everyone thought the rules were fair – blogger buddies first. Cindy’s comment said it best – “That’s called loyalty.”

And since that post prompted several requests this weekend, I now have only two spots open in March, and already working on May! (April is the A to Z Challenge, so not guests during that month.)

Movie Trivia Answers

1 – Which actress is known as “The Scream Queen?” Jamie Lee Curtis
2 – The category of Best Makeup began in 1981 and was won by this film. An American Werewolf in London
3 – Who did the music for Dario Argento’s Suspiria? Goblin
4 – What actor has been in almost every single Sam Raimi film? Ted Raimi (Bruce Campbell is second)
5 – What horror/thriller won five of the biggest Oscars in 1991? Silence of the Lambs

Any book or movie news catch your attention today? Did you participate in the Monstrous Blogfest? Eager to hear more about Cassie’s critique comments? Need to comment me soon about a guest post? Did you get any trivia correct? And what IS your favorite monster?

Special announcement going out tomorrow and you’ll see it here on Wednesday. Get ready – you won’t believe it!

Ninja News, iPad 4, Guest Post Controversy, and Movie Trivia

Ninja News

Thanks to everyone who signed up for the I Miss You Blogfest on November 16!

Ciara Knight’s final book in the Battle for Souls series is now out - Ascension of Evil. Congratulations, Ciara!

Next Monday is Tim Brannan’s Monstrous Monday Blogfest

Siv Maria’s short story was accepted for the anthology, OPEN DOORS-Fractured Fairy Tales and she revealed the cover this week!

White Cat Magazine is introducing a mystery magazine soon! Plus they have science fiction and fantasy magazines in the works. Good stuff, Rick!

Next Wednesday is Budd’s Scare Me Blogfest – just in time for Halloween!

Rachel Morgan has just released An A to Z of Creepy Hollow Fae. Those of you who’ve enjoyed her series will want to pick this one up!

And for those of you who read my guest post earlier this week, Jamie posted the answers to my music-movie questions at Mithril Wisdom.

The iPad 4

Yes, the next generation of iPad will be available soon! It’s twice as fast as the iPad 3, with improvements to camera, Wi-Fi, and LTE. While games and graphics won’t be noticeably faster, if you live in a city with LTE access, the Internet will be much faster. This is the tablet Apple wanted to release last spring but it wasn’t ready. It also brings the iPad up to speed with the latest iPhone.

Will I get one? I’ll probably skip this upgrade and just wait for the iPad 5. Yes, my goal is an iPad in every room of the house, but I have my eye on a new guitar right now and that purchase comes first. (Soon I’ll have a guitar in every room in the house, which is just as cool!) And who knows? There’s always Christmas…

Guest Post Controversy and Update

Two reasons for this topic!

First, I adjusted my guidelines one more time. A request a couple weeks ago clued me in to the fact it still wasn’t clear enough:

Due to the high volume of requests I receive, guest posts are reserved for my regular blogger buddies ONLY. (Most of whom are listed in my sidebar.) Other followers I will mention in a Ninja News update.

The controversy? I’m really sorry if that offends anyone! But my blogger buddies are the ones who visit and support me (and I them) on a regular basis, and since I only post eleven to thirteen times a month, they deserve first consideration. I am more than happy to do a shout-out in the Ninja News for anyone else.

Second reason – my calendar is full through February right now. (I still have one opening in January.) So, if any of my blogger buddies have a book coming out next spring or want to do a guest post at that time, please contact me soon!

Any questions? Am I being unfair? Do you need to contact me really soon?!

Movie Trivia

With Halloween right around the corner, these questions all have a horror slant:

1 – Which actress is known as “The Scream Queen?”

2 – The category of Best Makeup began in 1981 and was won by this film.

3 – Who did the music for Dario Argento’s Suspiria?

4 – What actor has been in almost every single Sam Raimi film?

5 – What horror/thriller won five of the biggest Oscars in 1991?

Are you ready for the upcoming blogfests? Excited about the new releases? Getting an iPad 4? Are my guest post guidelines clear and fair? Care to share your guidelines? And do you know any of today’s trivia?

Movie Reviews - Lockout & YellowBrickRoad, Ninja News, Celebrating Bloggers Blog Hop, Music Answers, and Movie Quotes Trivia!

Movie Reviews!

Feels like I haven’t done one of these in ages. So I’ll give you two!

Lockout - 2012

Officially the worst film of 2012! Mystery Science Theater 3000 would have a field day with this movie.
It’s similar to Escape From New York, only much, much worse. In the first five minutes, the special effects are on par with early 80’s films. The dialogue is cheesy. The plot’s convoluted. The movie is badly edited. It’s a total mess.
There’s only one reason I made it to the end – Guy Pearce. His character was snarky as hell and stole the show. Drop Pearce in that character into any other film, and he would’ve been brilliant.
You’ve been warned!!!

YellowBrickRoad - 2010
In 1940, the entire population of Friar, NH walked up a winding mountain trail – some froze to death, some were slaughtered, and the rest vanished. This movie follows a group of explorers trying to solve the mystery of the Yellow Brick Road.
Part psychological thriller, part horror (a.k.a. Blair Witch) this freaky little movie gets under your skin. (It’s not a found footage film though.) It’s disturbing on many levels with a vibe similar to Valhalla Rising. Ending is really odd, but everything in between is even odder, especially the music. If you need satisfaction in your movies, look elsewhere. Want a weird ride that’s not too extreme? This is your movie.

Ninja News!

Rick announced that the first issue of Nain Rouge Magazine, a Journal of Art, Poetry and Prose is up over at White Cat Publications, LLC!

Tim Brannan at The Other Side is hosting the Monstrous Monday Blogfest on October 29 – blog about your favorite monster. Just in time for Halloween!

Donna K. Weaver just signed a contract with Rhemalda Publishing. Congratulations, Donna!

Celebrating Bloggers Blog Hop

Caught this over at Jennifer Lane’s blog. (And she was gracious enough to list me!) It’s the Celebrating Bloggers Blog Hop, hosted by Terri Giuliano Long.

I’d like to celebrate the following bloggers:

Patrick Tillett Extreme traveler and expert photographer. Pat goes to those out of the way places so we don’t have to. Thanks pat – you rock!

Kathy at Imagine Today - She’s a writer, a reader, and a very sweet person. Her profile says it all “I am passionate about living life and giving back to our world.” Amen, Kathy!

Gary and Penny at Klahanie - master of snark and much coveted blog comments. Gary is both amusing and devoted. We all know Penny is in charge though!

Medeia Sharif - Young adult author, major goal achiever, and a super supporter. You are super cool in my book, Medeia!

Johanna at Losing Sanity - Author and mother extraordinaire, she has a great grip on life and family. And I’d take her traveling anytime, because she knows all the good spots!

Music Trivia Answers!

1 – Three singers have fronted Van Halen – name them. David Lee Roth, Sammy Hagar, and Gary Cherone (formerly of Extreme)
2 – Joe Satriani, one of the best guitarists in the world, is known for his guitar instrumental albums, but he actually sang lead vocals for several songs on which of his albums? Flying in a Blue Dream
3 – Care to take a stab at naming all the lead singers for the band Rainbow? Ronnie James Dio, Graham Bonnet, Joe Lynn Turner, and Doogie White
4 – In 1999 the band Fear Factory did a cover of the 1980 song, Cars, and it featured a guest appearance by the original singer/songwriter – name him. Gary Numan
5 – And now here’s an easy one! Name the lead singer of Rush. Geddy Lee

Comedy Movie Quotes Trivia!

You can blame Jeremy at Retro-Zombie. We’ve had a banter of movie quotes going on the past couple weeks. Name the comedy!

1 – “Go that way really fast. If something gets in your way, turn.”

2 – “Maybe you’re the plucky comic relief.”

3 – “Ray, next time someone asks you if you’re a god, say yes!”

4 – “Take this quarter, go downtown, and have a rat gnaw that thing off your face!”

5 – “You idiot! These are not them. You’ve captured their stunt doubles!”

Seen either of the movies I reviewed? (If you saw Lockout in the theater, my condolences.) Any news spark your interest? Who would you celebrate in the blog hop? Get any of the music trivia right? Know any of the movie quotes? Think the Ninja spends too much time watching movies? Nah – never!