I’m thankful for a lot of things this year… it’s been a twisted but fulfilling ride in so many ways. I’ve been so many places and gained so many things. I’m thankful for those gains and adventures, but most of all, I’m thankful for the love of my wife, my son, my family and my friends. And I’m thankful too for the support of so many people who have touched my life even if they live hundreds or thousands of miles away.

I cooked Thanksgiving Dinner today for both sides of the family, so it was a long day by the stove, but a fulfilling one. There’s nothing quite like beating the stuffing into a bird! Actually, there’s nothing quite like showing your son for the first time how to pick the sage leaves and garlic chives from the garden to use in making the stuffing. Those are the simple moments that you remember years later.

The new theater style popcorn maker that I set up in the basement was a hit with the kids (if you’re reading this, thanks for introducing us to those, Lon — you’ll never have to truck yours here again!) and my “famous” secret recipe Everson mashed potatoes seemed to satisfy once again. At one point we had over a dozen people milling about the kitchen, and even pulled out the laptop and made dad a Facebook page (now let’s see if he ever logs in!)

But all the family is gone now, and all the tables cleaned and extra chairs put away. I’m in my office now listening to Roseanne Cash’s The List – an album she recorded because of a list of truly “great songs” her dad, Johnny Cash, once made for her.   He meant the list as a guide for her in her music career, and she filed that list away for many years before stumbling upon it again  after her dad was dead… she recorded some of its contents as a homage to him. Family love flowing both ways, across a divide of decades. Some things — songs and sentiments — last forever.

I’m lucky to have so many good people around me, and today I’m thinking of all of you who have been a part of my life this year. There’s nothing more to really say but… Thanks.

DEADLY NIGHTLUSTS Now Available!

DEADLY NIGHTLUSTS
A Collection of Forbidden Magic
(Blasphemous Books, November 2010)
$2.99 (e-book short fiction collection)

y fifth short fiction collection has just launched the new imprint Blasphemous Books!

This collection began as a quick ebook “two-fer” download of a couple of my older stories that I really liked but had never previously been collected. Somehow it grew to become a seven-story collection with a brand new tale, “Green Apples, Red Nails” written specifically for the book, inspired by the cover art. The reprints include “Pumpkin Head,” “A Lack of Signs,” “Star on the Beach,” “To Earn His Love,” “Sacrificing Virgins,” and “Body & Blood.”

“Pumpkin Head” has turned out to be one of my most popular short stories and has seen multiple printings, but the story “To Earn His Love” has never been reprinted outside of its original appearance in the small digest-sized magazine Crossroads in 1995. Likewise with “Body & Blood,” which appeared in the one-off ‘zine Lords of the Abyss that same year. I’d be surprised if more than 100 people ever saw either story before now. And I know only a couple hundred people have saw “Sacrificing Virgins,” which was part of the very limited Delirium Books anthology The Dead Inn back in 2001. I’m excited that some of these stories will reach a much wider audience now via this new collection!

Here’s the back cover description of the collection:
Lust has a powerful hold on us. It can be a beautiful thing, but also quite dangerous. With this collection from John Everson, author of Covenant (winner of the Bram Stoker award), and Siren,  you’ll meet those who have succumbed to lust through black magic and deals with the Devil. You’ll read six treats from the vault of John’s early years as an author, plus a brand new story.

Lust consumes us all, but what depths would you go to satiate it? Start with a green apple, lick your lips, and add a pinch (or more) of Deadly Nightlusts.

• Download a copy from The Merchant’s Keep.

People sure do love a sale!

To capitalize on the Halloween season, my publisher, Leisure Books put the e-book edition of my latest novel SIREN up for sale for a few days at $2.99 over at Barnes & Noble. That book took an instant vault in sales and just missed breaking into the Top 100 list there last week.

This week, Leisure has the e-book version of my first novel COVENANT on sale for $0.99 at all of the key outlets — Amazon, Borders, Barnes & Noble…. And hell yeah, price makes the difference — on Halloween the book had hit the Top 10 on Amazon, and when I woke up this morning, it had cracked the Top 100 on Barnes & Noble. By lunchtime it was hovering around the Top 50 at B&N and I sent out a few notices on Twitter (and thanks for all my friends who reposted those!) to hopefully help “nudge” another sale or two to get it into the Top 40.

It worked! Just a little while ago I took a look at it had reached #27 — the highest any of my books in any format have ever gotten on Barnes & Noble. I don’t know if it will ultimately crack the Top 20… but hey, I can say now that for a day at least, I had a “Top 40 Hit.” And I just looked and see that it’s also ranking at #30 on Borders.com too.

How cool is that? You can see where it stands now here: Amazon, Borders, Barnes & Noble.