Clive Owen Wednesday

In an interview at the Apple store in Soho, Clive talks about Sin City and Frank Miller's amazing dialogue.

Cult Books

The Telegraph has a list of the fifty best cult books. Here's their description of how they determined the cult status of a book:

In compiling our list, we were looking for the sort of book that people wear like a leather jacket or carry around like a totem. The book that rewires your head: that turns you on to psychedelics; makes you want to move to Greece; makes you a pacifist; gives you a way of thinking about yourself as a woman, or a voice in your head that makes it feel okay to be a teenager; conjures into being a character who becomes a permanent inhabitant of your mental flophouse.

Of the books on their list that I've read, only one (Chariots of the Gods) reached cult status for me, although I enjoyed a lot of the other titles.

D'oh!

The best part about book signings? The long-lost friends that show up.

The worst part? When the author (that would be me) gets the date wrong and shows up on the wrong night.

News

Just a quick reminder, I'll be signing copies of The Devil's Footprints and The Dollmaker at the Champions Barnes and Noble in Houston, from 7-9 tonight. If you're in the area, I hope you'll stop by.

Are you a member of Shelfari? The Dollmaker is the featured book for May in the Suspense and Thrillers Group, and I'll be leading the discussion starting May 1, so if you're a member, please come join us. If you're not, sign up is painless!

Clive Owen Wednesday

'Nuf said.

Why Phoenix?

More strange lights over Phoenix.

Remember these?

Jordan Dane

I went to a booksigning this weekend for Jordan Dane at Murder by the Book in Houston. Two things struck me at this signing. One, even though Jordan and I had never met in person, it was like seeing an old friend. We first met on MySpace, and she's just one of those people I instantly connected with--possibly because we're both a little warped with a slightly macabre sense of humor. Her book, No One Heard Her Scream, is an excellent read and it has a quote from me on the inside. Avon sent me a copy of the book and a thank you card for my participation. How cool and classy is that.

The second thing that struck me at this autographing was how much I love independent bookstores. They even have a different smell to them (I think the scent is called Books). Murder by the Book is one of the nation's oldest and largest mystery specialty bookstores, and they've had dozens of the hottest mystery and crime authors pass through their doors--Dick Francis, P. D. James, Sue Grafton, Robert Crais, Michael Connelly, Patricia Cornwell, James Lee Burke, Daniel Silva, the list goes on and on. I love strolling around the store, browsing the isles and just soaking up all that inspiration.

The Page 69 Test

I've been seeing this test mentioned all over the blogosphere lately. It's not a new idea, but one I'd forgotten about. In theory, you turn to page 69 of a book and if you like what you read, you buy it.

I'm trying it out on a couple of books that are already within arm's reach (because I'm lazy). I won't retype the whole page, but just the first paragraph or so. You can decide whether or not the book pulls you in.

"Of course it's relevant. They are going to say that Miss Johnson is making up these charges to shake down their clients financially. I'm trying to establish her frame of mind on that night."

"I'll allow," Judge Pierce said.

I repeated the question.

Chamique squirmed a little and it made her look her age.
..............................
Without pause, I rattled off the story Max had come up with. I’d practiced it enough in my head on the way over that it had the ring of truth. At least I hoped it did. “My cousin works at the morgue at Austin General. When the body was being transported to the county medical examiner’s office, he noticed the missing toe. He knew Nevvie, too, so he mentioned it to me.”
.............................
Though Norris had never before met Mr. Pratt of Boston's Night Watch, he had known other men just like him, men too puffed up on authority to ever acknowledge the undeniable fact, recognized by everyone else, that they are stupid.
.............................
This sort of indifference held true for the brokers who tempted him and the buyers who played along, he said. "They could've cared less. They needed the material and they sent me the check. I had plane tickets given to me. Clothing. Cases of wine!" he said. "The money you could make was incredible. It was like putting a mountain of money in a field and no one accounting for it."

News

For anyone in the Houston area, I'll be signing books at the Champions Barnes and Noble on 1960 next Friday at 7:00 p.m. Hope you'll stop by if you get the chance.

5303 FM 1960 West
Houston, TX 77069
281-631-0681

Titlepage.TV

I like this idea. Titlepage is a book-friendly site that presents an hour-long roundtable discussion with a group of authors. The Horror! The Horror! (episode 2) features one of my favorite authors--Mary Roach (Stiff).

Clive Owen Wednesday

Is it summer yet?

Names

I had an aunt named Bertha Missouri Clutter. Now that is a name. As soon as she was old enough, she changed her middle name to May, which is a perfectly fine name and goes well with another old-fashioned moniker, Birdie. Birdie May can be paired with Lady Bird for some very flighty twins, but those names don't have the visual impact of an Ima Hog or the lyrical quality of a Dusty Rhodes or a Misti Rivers.

As a fiction writer, I'm always searching for unusual and memorable names that will serve my characters well. And since I use southern settings, the quirkier the better. I've had a Declan, a Deacon, a Dante and a Darnell. A Doatsie, a Dessie, a Drusie and a Dyantha. Arlette, Arnett, Anette, and Angelette. Billy Bob, Bobby Ray, Ray Dean, Ralene, Racine, and Ray Ann.

If my aunt had been born a few decades later, who knows? Bertha Missouri might have been as acceptable as Hannah Montana.

Chop...chop, Sweet Charlotte

I enjoyed revisiting The Gift so much over the weekend that I decided to go on a long movie trek through the South. Here are some of the places I intend to hit:

Eve's Bayou--a moody, atmospheric film set in 1962 Louisiana. It's the story of dark secrets and simmering resentments. In other words, my kind of story. This is a great example of setting used as character.

Sling Blade--Billy Bob Thornton's portrait of life in a small Arkansas town is dead on, and with good reason. He grew up in a small Arkansas town. So did I. His South is my South, which is to say, no pink teas or white gloves or mint juleps in sight.

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil--"I've only been here three days and it's just a shooting, but give it time, okay. This place (Savannah) is fantastic. It's like Gone With the Wind on Mescalin. I know you're my agent. Listen to me, they walk imaginary pets here, Garland. On a fucking leash. Alright? And they're all heavily armed and drunk. New York is boring!"

Frailty--"There are demons among us." A spine-tingling movie about a widowed father in Texas who believes he and his young sons have been chosen by God to destroy demons.

Cape Fear--A psycho out for revenge never gets old in my book. Add a frustrated wife, her womanizing lawyer husband, their sexually curious teenaged daughter and stick them all in a small Florida town with a storm brewing on the horizon. Good, creepy fun ensues.

The Client--Maybe not the best movie in the world, but I once lived in Memphis and it was great to 'revisit' the city with Tommy Lee Jones.

Night of the Hunter--The story of a demonic preacher who menaces two young children in hopes of extracting the secret of their father's ill-gotten wealth. The children's flight down the Ohio River (West Virginia?) in the middle of the night is a terrifying journey into surrealism. A strange and mysterious film.

Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte--An aging recluse, deluded into a state of dementia by horrible memories and hallucinations, lives in a secluded Louisiana mansion where her married lover was beheaded and mutilated by an unknown assailant thirty-seven years ago.

Chop chop, sweet Charlotte
Chop chop till he's dead
Chop chop, sweet Charlotte
Chop off his hand and head
To meet your lover you ran chop chop
Now everyone understands
Just why you went to meet your love chop chop
To chop off his head and hand.

Which brings us right back where we started...

News

My very generous and talented friend, Axel Machens from Breathe has written a new song called "Did You See My Daughter?" inspired by Ruby from The Dollmaker.

Enjoy.

The Mythical South

I intend to watch The Gift again this weekend. It's one of my favorite movies. Directed by Sam Raimi and written by Billy Boy Thornton and Tom Epperson, this superb thriller, set in the Deep South, stars Cate Blanchett (brilliant), Giovanni Ribisi, Keanu Reeves, Greg Kinnear and Hillary Swank. What a cast!

For those of you who haven’t seen it, here is the IMDB synopsis: When a local woman disappears and the police can't seem to find any leads, her father turns to a local widow with psychic powers. Slowly she starts having visions of the missing woman chained and in a pond. Her visions lead to the body and the arrest of an abusive husband, but did he really do it?

The first time I saw The Gift, it was like a light bulb had gone off in my head. I turned to my husband and said, "That's what I want to write." A creepy, southern thriller. Macabre, moody and atmospheric. And in writing The Dollmaker, I could picture no one but Cate Blanchett in the Annie Wilson role as my protagonist, Claire Doucett (that name was chosen for a reason!).

Lately I’ve been thinking in terms of a ‘chiller’—the blending of reality with just a touch of the supernatural. Dark suspense that stays within the realm of believability. There was a hint of that in The Devil's Footprints, and it's an element that lends itself well to books set in the mythical South.

Clive Owen Wednesday

Check out celebrity morphing on Smosh.com. Obviously some smoshing works out better than others.

Clive Owen and Daniel Craig:












Scarlet Johansson and Michelle Pfeiffer:












Paris Hilton and Gollum:

Spooky MySpace

Okay, I'm all over this. According to Tech Crunch, Hollywood super producer Steven Spielberg is preparing to launch a new social network for those interested in sharing paranormal and extraterrestrial experiences.

As reported in Mysterious Glow, Spielberg supposedly had a supernatural encounter at the Excelsior Hotel in Jefferson, Texas, which frightened him so badly, he packed up his entire staff in the middle of the night and fled to a Holiday Inn twenty miles away.

I love this kind of stuff, hence, my addiction to Coast to Coast. Chupacabra, anyone?

Wanderlust

Here's a preview of the new Bjork video, which looks pretty amazing. According to Pop Candy, there's a 3D version in the works.

Coolest Blogger

Deborah Harry has a blog. Plus, she's the victim of identity theft.

Is no one sacred?

Contest Winners!

Congratulations to Nancy M., Danielle W., Kathy L., Rhonda C., and Janet D. All will be receiving a signed copy of The Devil's Footprints.

Congratulations to Caitlin H., the winner of my Book Faire drawing.

Congratulations to Rosalie K., my Fresh Fiction winner for March and Arlene A., my February winner.

And a big thanks to everyone who entered my contests!

News

I'll be announcing all my contest winners this weekend so stay tuned!

Baby Mama

Want to see what your offspring with a certain someone would look like? Head on over to babymamamaker.com, a new viral site for the movie Baby Mama, starring Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. Enter two photos and let nature take its course.

Here's my result. Can you guess who the daddy is?

Clive Owen Wednesday

Win a walk-on role in Duplicity starring Julia Roberts, Clive Owen and Paul Giamatti! Appear in a scene with Julia and Clive at Grand Central Station in NYC!

Current bid: $6,000. (Dang! Where's my next royalty check?)