Princess Alethea Kontis

"The Monster & Mrs. Blake" now live at The Story Station

2009-11-10T00:15:35Z

Drop on by The Story Station and check out one of my very favorite short stories -- "The Monster & Mrs. Blake."

I was one of those kids with monsters under her bed (they looked a lot like the little guys in Critters), so I empathize with Jeremy. I also wrote it while my best friend Casey was pregnant with her first child and craving apples for no apparent reason...

This was meant to be read aloud, so if you have the time -- and the children-- I encourage you to do so. And please...let me know what they think!

And yes, the rumors are true -- this story has been optioned by Bamfer Productions. I get to see a screenplay soon. Saying I'm a little excited about it is like saying there's a little sand on the beach.

Enjoy!

Call for Pannell Award Nominees

2009-11-04T12:21:56Z

Spread the word!!

The Women's National Book Association wants to know about bookstores in the United States that excel at inspiring interest in reading, as well as creatively bringing books and young people together. They will present the annual WNBA Pannell Award to two bookstores--one a general bookstore and one a children's speciality bookstore--at the 2010 BookExpo America. Each recipient will receive a check for $1,000 and a framed piece of original art by a noted children's book illustrator. Nominated stores have the option of making their submissions to the Pannell jury electronically or by sending hard copy materials by mail.

To nominate your favorite bookstore (even your own!) that works within the community to instill the love of reading in young people, please provide the following:

1) Name of store

2) Address and phone number of the store

3) Contact person at the store, including email address (most important!)

4) A brief reason (just a sentence or two) of why you believe the store is deserving of this award

5) Your name and affiliation to the nominated store.

Please send your nomination to mgjames@eastwestliteraryagency.com. Deadline for nominations is Jan. 15, 2010.

The Pannell Award was established in 1981 by WNBA, a century-old national organization of women and men who work to promote reading and to support the role of women in the book community.

Feliz Dia de los Muertos!

2009-11-02T18:12:01Z

His bones hit the stones with a crack as the guard shoved him to his knees. They weren't normal playing cards; they all had strange metric road signs on them. And they spoke French.

"Brian Keene," said a terrible voice. A familiar voice.

The burlap sack was ripped from his head. On the throne before him sat the most beautiful woman in the world. Her blood-chestnut hair fell in a shimmering cascade below her generous breasts. Her short red skirt revealed several miles of leg encased in several miles of black-and-white striped tights. The ruby platform slippers matched her dress, the four-inch heels of which he knew masked the blood of men's hearts exceptionally well. Her glistening diamond tiara reflected the bright sunlight and scattered rainbows around her, complimenting the fire in her eyes and the glittery flames that decorated her face, surrounding them. Her crimson lips parted in a gorgeous smile he couldn't help but reciprocate, and he damned himself for his lack of willpower at her feet. Those perfect teeth had fed on many a meager soul before his own, and they would feed on many more when his time on Earth was finished. Which he imagined would be about five minutes from now, give or take.

She was the Good Fairy who had given him life. She was the Muse who'd ruined it when he'd asked her to. And now she was the Reaper, here to claim what was rightfully hers.

Five minutes or no, Keene decided to spend the rest of his life being true to himself. "You remind me of a princess I know," he said without being spoken to.

"I get that a lot," she said, sotto voce, and then, "My little Bunny Foo Foo. Whatever am I going to do with you?"

Keene winced. He hated when she called him that. He also hated rhetorical questions.

"Off I sent you, skipping along through the forest, with one warning. Do you remember what that was?"

"Something about field mice?" he asked.

The right shoe shot out and kicked him square in the jaw, the rubies on the toes scraping deep into the skin of his cheek. With his hands bound behind him he couldn't assess the damage, but he could already feel the wetness, taste the blood. As suspected, her shoe still looked perfect, unmarred, and hotter than hell. "I said, 'NO MORE ZOMBIES.'"

"Is that what it was? I'm so bad with French." Expecting the shoe this time, he managed to peek up her skirt before his face hit the stones. Skull panties. The guards propped him back up on his knees.

"I should turn you into a goon," she said.

Keene spat out a mouthful of blood; it shaped itself into a heart on the stones at her feet. "I believe that is the established method."

"And yet, my dearest bunnykins, something about you compels me to go old school." She rapped her emerald scepter three times and bellowed, "OFF WITH HIS HEAD!"

It all happened with a quickness that commanded respect. A playing card obliged and bent himself in half like a table so that Keene's head could be pushed down upon him. He saw the giant shadow of the executioner behind him and had not even the time to wince as the sharp blade bit into his neck, snicker snack. Ninety seconds, he knew. Ninety seconds before he lost consciousness forever. Forever. She smelled like forever.

His head rolled in the pool of blood at her feet and he looked up at her, his new vantage point affording him quite the view, and with his last breath he did the one thing he knew she'd hate, the one thing that grated her nerves more than anything ever had. He'd miss that damn cat.

"Why are you smiling?" she asked Keene's head. "WHY ARE YOU SMILING?!?"

He loved that it was a question she'd never have the answer to. As it happened, he did know a princess, one who had placed his name in a bag with salt and herbs and planted it at the base of her ivory tower by the light of the full moon. She knew a thing or two about magic. And he knew a thing or two about zombies.

He thought about that princess in his last 140 characters before the world went black. Now if only all her father's horses and all her father's men hurried up and got to him before he bled out completely he'd be home in time f--

********************************************************

Today is Brian Keene Must Die day. Brian will be killed in dozens of horrifying ways in blogs across the blogosphere for a very good cause. If you enjoyed this humorous little vignette, please consider making a donation to the Shirley Jackson Awards.

Genre Chicks: Sarah Pinborough

2009-10-29T20:34:25Z

Sarah Pinborough, the British Grace Kelly of the horror genre, is riding high--having just won a British Fantasy Award for her short story “Do You See”--and in a few weeks she is up for the World Fantasy Award for her short “Our Man in the Sudan.” Anyone who follows her on Twitter knows that she’s a jet-setting wine connoisseur who’s not afraid of getting down and dirty and telling it like it is.

Sarah is completely adorable...and can scare the ever-living daylights out of you. I sent a “little birdy” Sarah’s way with a few fun questions about her life recently, and this is what came back.

Read our interview here.

HCH on Fictionwise

2009-10-28T00:22:34Z

For those savvy tech people, Harlan County Horros is now available on Fictionwise. And they're having a big sale on horror right now, so it's only like three bucks. What are you waiting for? Go for it.

What better way to get in the mood for Halloween?

Lora Innes Interview @ Fantasy Magazine

2009-10-16T14:24:36Z

I got a copy of THE DREAMER graphic novel from IDW and immediately fell in love (Click on the banner above -- you can check it all out online!). So much so that I contacted Lora Innes -- the comic's dynamic and fabulously talented writer/illustrator -- to see if I could do an interview with her. She said yes.

And then Cat over at Fantasy Magazine mentioned that she'd like to be the one to run it. So I said yes.
We're all such a bunch of affable people.
Hey -- wanna read it?
(You don't even have to say "yes." Just click right here.)

Happy Friday!

Happy Anniversary, Soteria & Charles!

2009-10-14T14:58:08Z

Soteria & Charles have been married two years today -- hooray!

The rest of us remember what was one of the coolest weddings in history -- held at the Charleston Aquarium, my father officiating, Soteria walking down the steps in her customized designer gown to a string-version of The Pixies' "Where is My Mind?", my nephew cracking us all up during the "speak now or forever hold your peace", Monica's amazing flower arrangements complete with fish in the vases, and the dancing. All the wonderful dancing. Including this one. Remember this?

The song is "Burning Down the House" -- the demo tape got yanked off YouTube, but the tutorial is still there:

And here is a clip from the actual dance being performed at the wedding, complete with some of us jokers wearing masks like the tutorial taught us:

The best part, though, was never captured on video -- like most truly best moments are. But those of us who were there remember someone handing the wedding soundtrack to the bartender at the after party, and someone else pushing the tables aside so we could all jump up and do an impromptu recreation of the dance right then and there.

Because all the best people's lives include impromptu musical numbers.

Happy anniversary, Soteria & Charles. Here's to many more awesome years. xox

(Want to wish them happiness yourself? Stop by the Dixie Dunbar Facebook page and send your love!)

The Fairest of Them All

2009-10-12T20:36:57Z

Dude...of course I'm totally talking about me. Yeah. That goober there in the picture with the chibi eyes and the face of a Muppet. The one and only Alethea Madeleine Kontis, a.k.a Princess Alethea. Moi.

Yes, Alethea is my real, mom-and-dad given name. The Princess title was inevitable...like a freight train down the track, it was simply a long time coming. Contrary to popular belief, I never wanted to be a princess growing up. I wanted to be an actress and a writer...both of whom were free to dress like a gypsy and run around the yard speaking in a British accent.

Mostly I blame my current Princesshood on Jill Conner Browne who, during a visit to Ingram in March of 2007, bestowed upon me a Big Ass Tiara and proclaimed me Princess of Ingram. When I signed up for LJ they told me I couldn't use my own name as someone had already syndicated it, so I had to come up with something else. BAM. At my best friend Devin's wedding a year later, I made up nametags for Devin's sister, my sister, and myself, declaring that we were Princess Megan, Princess Soteria, and Princess Alethea. I left it stuck on my laptop for a very long time. When I was asked to come up with a title for my review column at Orson Scott Card's Intergalactic Medicine Show, what name could have been better than Princess Alethea's Magical Elixir? Similarly, when the sideshow idea for Dragon*Con sprang to life like Athena from my cranium...well, you see where this insanity has led.

Type in www.princessalethea.com. Yeah, I went there. Figured if I was gonna do it, I was gonna own it. I took physics -- that freight train has a lot more inertia than I do, and it would be futile to stop it. A lot less fun, too.

Ultimately, I've found it's easier for people to call me "Princess" than remember how to pronounce Uh-LEE-thee-uh, and I'm totally okay with that. If we only see each other at the odd convention, you really shouldn't have to work that hard. We're there to have fun, not embarrass each other.

Now, according to my magic mirror (which I sometimes refer to as "Google Alert"), there are two other Princess Aletheas on these here intarwebs. One is a Princess in the SCA (Alethea Eastriding, Crown Princess and one-time Queen of the East), and the other is a fan fiction writer. I should not be confused with either of these women -- who I'm sure are very much fabulous in their own special ways.

But let's be clear -- like it says up there at the top -- all the ways about here belong to me.

2009 Southern Festival of Books (with pics)

2009-10-12T13:08:40Z

The Young, Fanged, & Undead panel -- David MacInnis Gill, Daniel Waters, Melissa de la Cruz, and me. We had a TON of fun. I love making new friends (barring David, whom I've known like forever). There are a few more pics here.

BFFs: The Soul-Seller, the Necromancer, the Vampiress, and the Princess

Been feeling a bit like this lately

2009-10-11T02:24:39Z

..like a rainbow caught in a storm.

Also, I'm in the thick of novel revisions/rewrites. Your regularly scheduled blog will return...um...yeah. And it's not like I'm not constantly on Twitter or anything. I'm still alive and kicking. And beautiful. And caught in a storm...

IGMS: New Princess Alethea Reviews

2009-10-06T18:37:44Z

The new Princess Alethea's Magical Elixir reviews are up over at Orson Scott Card's Intergalactic Medicine Show! This month I discuss:

Title: Rogue Angel: Destiny (audiobook)
Author: Alex Archer
Publisher: GraphicAudio
EAN: 9781599502052

Title: Bad Moon Rising
Author: Sherrilyn Kenyon
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
EAN: 9780312369491

Title: Ophelia Joins the Group Maidens Who Don't Float: Classic Lit Signs on to Facebook
Author: Sarah Schmelling
Publisher: Plume
EAN: 9780452295735

(If you happen to see that last one in the bookstore, pick it up and have a giggle.)

"A Poor Man's Roses" now up at Apex

2009-10-06T09:42:52Z

Excerpt:

At first, she sang to remember. It was a way to pass the long, dark time, a way to drown out the buzz in her head when the earth shook and the bunker rattled, a way to live outside the bars of her cage, to be a woman who smoked and drank, flirted and pined, flipped her pin curls and married a man for his car. Eventually, Patsy Cline became Kerri’s reason for living. In five years, she hadn’t found a better one.

“Good morning,” said Stella. It was the only clue Kerri ever had to the time of day, or the notion that days passed at all. Stella opened the cage hatch and slid the food through. “I have a surprise for you today.” She smiled. “You’ll like it.”

Let’s see…what would she like? Kerri would have welcomed a hot poker in the eye, an asteroid hitting the earth, or the blast from that damned super volcano the world had been holding its collective breath about for the past decade. It would be ironic, Kerri mused, if all three suddenly happened at once. About as ironic as someone surviving cancer just to live out the rest of her days in a prison.

Read the rest of "A Poor Man's Roses" over at Apex Magazine. Or just make me look popular and click on the link.

Fiction Sale -- "Diary of a Ghost's Mistress" to Shroud

2009-10-01T20:23:01Z

When it rains it pours, and I've got my umbrella flipped upside-down to catch it all!

On the heels of Horrorfind comes this sale to the awesome Michael Knost at Shroud Magazine. Look for it in the very next issue!

This story is based on the legend of Beilstein castle in Germany (pictured right).

Excerpt:

April 12, 1946

You left me here, you bastard. Left me in this picturesque burg on a riverbend strewn with wretched Nazi refuse, left me weeping in this tower--the only part of this rotting castle that's still in one piece. Godforsaken, as Mama would say. This country, this town, this pile of crumbling rocks, me. I miss Mama. I hear her sometimes, in the back of my head. Sit up straight. Don't overcook the chicken. Chew your food. Smell the roses. Smile into the sunshine.

I hear you too. Telling me to be strong; telling me I'm going to be all right; telling me I'm your princess. I wake up to your voice every morning, whispering "Maddie" in my ear, and every morning I open my eyes to nothing. I know I'm depressed, and I understand that you're never coming back, but I want you to be there in that second--just for a second--so I can yell at you.

Hey!

2009-10-01T14:16:59Z

Happy October! I have a book out today!
You should go buy a copy.

Table of Contents:

“The Witch of Black Mountain” – Alethea Kontis
“The Power of Moonlight” – Debbie Kuhn
“Hiding Mountain: Our Future in Apples” – Earl Dean
“Psychomachia” – Geoffrey Girard
“Yellow Warbler” – Jason Sizemore
“Kingdom Come” – Jeremy C. Shipp
“Trouble Among the Yearlings” – Maurice Broaddus
“Spirit Fire” – Robby Sparks
“The Thing at the Side of the Road” – Ronald Kelly
“Inheritance” – Stephanie Lenz
“Greater of Two Evils” – Steven Shrewsbury
“Harlan Moon” – TL Trevaskis

Horrorfind 2009 Pics

2009-09-29T20:26:09Z

The pictures from Horrorfind Weekend are up! I'll be posting them to Facebook too, but if you want the captions & tags, you'll have to check out the official Picasa album. Just click on the big happy family.

Fiction Sale -- "The Monster & Mrs. Blake" to Story Station

2009-09-29T11:19:55Z

Hooray! Just got notified that "The Monster & Mrs. Blake" has sold to The Story Station! (bev_vincent has a story up there now.) I'm super-excited about this one, because it's one of my absolute favorite stories...and it's for kids!!

Summary: Jeremy Blake has a big imagination. He's eleven years old. He has a monster under his bed. And the monster's getting bigger. He's too ashamed to tell any of his friends or his father about it, but he finally confesses the details to his mother...who knows a lot more about dealing with monsters than Jeremy ever dreamed.

I liked Story Station because their guidelines said they wanted "stories like Goonies," and that's just awesome. No details yet on when the story will go live -- I'll let you know as soon as I hear. Squee!!! I really can't wait. You guys are going to LOVE this one.

Horrorfind Weekend 2009

2009-09-29T02:51:18Z

I'm home, finally, and I have got to get to bed. Tomorrow expect lots of updates and tons of pictures. In the meantime, please enjoy the BEST PICTURE OF THE WEEKEND, which I believe epitomizes everything about Horrorfind.

What would YOU caption this?

2009 Southern Festival of Books

2009-09-24T13:12:29Z

What? You haven't heard about Southern Festival of Books?

The Southern Festival of Books: A Celebration of the Written Word is a three-day literary Festival celebrated each year during the second full weekend of October. It is free and open to the public. No advance registration or tickets are required. All seating is on a first-come basis.

Come one, come all, October 9-11 To War Memorial Plaza in lovely downtown Nashville. Go to the website to check out the amazingly long ilst of horribly famous authors you've known for years, and new blood you might want to check out. Follow them on Twitter (@SoFestofBooks) -- they're doing fun author trivia contests and giving away free books every Friday. For sure you should come see me host the Young, Fanged, and Undead panel. It will take place on Sunday, October 11 from 2:30-4:00 and features Melissa de la Cruz's The Van Alen Legacy, Daniel Waters' Kiss of Life, and David Macinnis Gill's Soul Enchilada. (David and I go waaaaaay back -- we were Orson Scott Card Boot Campmates together in 2003. Expect there to be some ribbing.)

And check out this official 2009 poster! It's one of the best ones yet. The one on my wall starts out red at the top left and fades to purple by the bottom right...it's really super lovely. A lot of people get the poster and then hang out all weekend, trying to get signatures from every single one of the guest authors. It's a pretty classy idea. I'm tempted to try it myself!

Fiction Sale -- "Poor Man's Roses" to Apex Magazine

2009-09-24T02:16:47Z

Yay! I sold a story to Jason Sizemore at Apex Magazine called "Poor Man's Roses." It's a 2400-word dark science fiction tale set in the near-apocalyptic far future. It's also a total homage to Patsy Cline.

I dedicate it to my fellow author and BFF Kelli Dunlap, who inspired me to come up with the idea (the woman being bled by her husband stuff, not the Patsy Cline stuff. I take full responsibility for that part).

I should have a contest to see how many Patsy Cline references people can guess. Of course, by now I've forgotten how many I actually crammed in.

Turns out, Jason was so excited about this story, he's going to run it in the October issue. I'll be sure to post a link when it's out!

The Princess and the Dragon*Con (3 of 10)

2009-09-23T20:03:56Z

Number Three of my Dragon*Con Top Ten:
Meeting Paul McGillion
(or: Earth to Atlantis; come in Atlantis)
I mentioned earlier that due to my busy schedule I didn’t have many celebrity sightings this year – celebrity, of course, being someone of esteem that I don’t already have in my phone or on my Christmas card list. The two folks I caught a glimpse of who qualified were Anthony Daniels (C3PO from Star Wars) and Paul McGillion (from Stargate: Atlantis).
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Now, there’s a whole story that revolves around the crew of Stargate: Atlantis, a story I promise to tell on the day I meet Jason Momoa and not before. Suffice it to say that it culminated in Janet’s and my hard & fast goal to introduce ourselves to every celebrity within arm’s length, no matter how intimidated, scared, or fangirl we might be.

So there we were in the Green Room. It was late. I was getting punchy. Everyone else was well on their way to being several sheets into the wind. Carl--the Green Room’s very tall bouncer whose job it is to bellow “Last call!” to no objections—offered me some high-octane vanilla cognac from his private flask. Not sure what Mike Lee was drinking, but he was loving the world and tipping well, so it must have been good...but not so good he wasn’t jealous of Carl’s favoritism toward women in low-cut dresses.

I had befriended a fabulous artist named Marrus (pictured right), whose friend explained how creeped out he was that I looked just like Marrus twenty years ago...and still looked quite a bit like her now, plus a few pounds and inches, and minus the frosted hair. We laughed and joked and carried on and yelled plans for the future in each other’s ears. See, once it gets packed and the evening wears on, the Green Room isn’t so much a haven as it is a really crowded bar with great snacks and free drinks. At first you only have to talk above the background music, the beer pong game, and the masquerade...later you have to yell above all the other people trying to be heard above all those other things too.

I followed Mike to the bar the first time as an excuse to walk by Paul McGillion. After like the sixth or seventh time, as folks were starting to head to other parties in anticipation of getting kicked out, I hooked Mike’s arm and dragged him slowly toward the door. I swear he said goodbye to everyone—which included bestowing a giant hug on Paul McGillion. Now, I had no idea Mike knew Paul. For all I know he probably doesn’t. But I stood there and smiled, and courteously after Mike said goodbye, Paul turned to me. And this is what happened.

Lee: (sticks out her hand & shouts) I’m Alethea Kontis! It’s nice to meet you!
Paul: (cups his ear) What!?
Lee: (leans in) ALETHEA KONTIS!
Paul: (smiles) Thank you! Thank you very much!

I tried to say something else just as he tried to say something else, and we both leaned in to scream it again in each other’s ears only to stand there in awkward silence. Paul then kissed me on both cheeks and said, “Have a good night!” Embarrassed, and feeling like I had just had a conversation with someone via tin can and string, I dragged Mike out the door after Janet, Leanna, and Chris.

WHAT had just happened? I touched my cheek. Paul McGillion had kissed me. Does it matter what happened?

The next day I stopped by the Sherrilyn Kenyon booth to tell my story to Eddie and Erin. They were just as confused as I was abou8t what had transpired. “What exactly did you say again?” Eddie asked.

“I just introduced myself,” I said, “and he said ‘Thank you.’”

“What exactly did you say?” said Eddie.

“I’m Alethea Kontis,” I said slowly, enunciating every syllable. There was a pause, and then we all started laughing. My cheeks flushed all over again. “He thought I was saying, ‘I love you,’ didn’t he?”

“That, and he probably thought you were very drunk,” said Erin.

I sighed. Not exactly that ‘meeting of soul mates’ moment that everyone wishes to have when introducing themselves to celebrities they admire. Then again—what is it I say?—some things are meant to be, and some things are meant to be great stories.

The next time we meet, I have a feeling Paul will get a kick out of this one.

Smyrna Library Reading Rally

2009-09-23T14:12:56Z

In which I am billed as "other special guests" because I don't wear a big furry suit:

Join us for our annual Reading Rally, a midday festival to celebrate the written word, following a day of reading in all the schools in Rutherford County. This free festival will be held 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on September 25 at Linebaugh Library, Smyrna Library, and LaVergne Library. We'll have visits from storybook character Clifford the Big Red Dog, Snowbird, Corey Fleming (former football player at UT and in the NFL), and other special guests. Plus: storytelling, magic, music, crafts and activities for children, face painting, free snacks and $1 pizza, and door prizes. Co-sponsored by Read to Succeed.

The Smyrna Public Library is located at 400 Enon Springs Road W., Smyrna, TN 37167.

Phone: 615-459-4884 FAX: 615-459-2370

My reading time slot is 11:40 am.

I'll bring AlphaOops, but chances are I might not read it. See...I *love* reading books, but reading AlphaOops every time is like Pat Benetar always having to sing "Love is a Battlefield." My two default read-alouds are AlphaOops and The Monster at the End of This Book. But it has occurred to me to beef up my reading shelf. Per a coworker's suggestion, I will be bring Bark, George with me to the Reading Rally. I'm excited!

What are your favorite read-alouds? I need some books for my shelf. New, old, classics...suggest away. And thanks!

My Grueling Commute to Work

2009-09-23T12:29:02Z

Takes me about 20 minutes every day to get to the other side of that rainbow. Music helps pass the time.

Genre Chick Interview: Cherie Priest

2009-09-22T19:26:03Z

Cherie Priest is a displaced Tennessee Gal--she may live in Seattle now, but she was born & raised in the South, so we still claim her as one of our own. Similarly, the setting for her new steampunk novel Boneshaker is the Pacific Northwest, as opposed to the Southern settings of Four and Twenty Blackbirds and Fathom (Tennessee and Florida, respectively). We're also super excited about Cherie's new ventures in the shared world of the Wild Cards series, edited by George R.R. Martin. I saw Cherie recently at Penguicon in Detroit--she's a beauty, a ball of energy, and looks great in costume. I took the opportunity to open her skull and pick her brains a bit, just to see what makes her tick. You know...like I usually do.

Corsets and Goggles and Superheroes, oh my! Click here to check out our interview.

One, Two--Princes Who Adore You

2009-09-21T19:47:26Z

Know what's awesome?
Jamie & Bobby Deen.

Paula Deen's sons, in case you're not familiar. They were late for their visit here, but they were worth every minute. Such kind, jovial, down-to-earth Southern gentlemen--they made you want to pull up a rocking chair and offer them some sweet tea. The folks here could have talked to them all day...and I had the sense that they wouldn't have minded one bit.

As soon as Jamie mentioned he had a three-year-old son, I made a mental note. I made a beeline to the front of the autograph line so I could hightail it back to my desk and personalize a copy of AlphaOops for him. I like being able to give the house authors who come here a gift for their children. I know--as authors themselves--they really, really appreciate it. And they did. Before my staff meeting I snuck back in to the signing while Bobby was between books and slipped them my offering so as not to interrupt the flow of other folks who deserved their attention. I was thanked with appreciative smiles.

So yeah. Know what's awesome?
Jamie & Bobby Deen.
Know what's even more awesome?
Getting pulled out of a staff meeting for a personal thank-you hug from Jamie. He told me he'd be looking for the sequel next year.
I believe him.

PS -- if you want to catch Jamie & Bobby -- they're signing tonight at the Davis-Kidd in Nashville!

What I Did Last Night

2009-09-21T13:01:18Z

I bought the masks at Michaels almost a month ago 'cause I thought they were cool, but I didn't know what to do with them. I blame Janet Lee (papillon_enrage ) for putting Wonderland on my brain. I am really, really happy with how cool and creepy they came out.

Next, of course, will be Glinda and the Wicked Witch.

Edit: Just to be clear, I painted and decorated these. The original masks were simply plain papier mache.