Black Quill Awards Nomination--Woohoo!







Grateful for Your Vote!
The talented and dedicated folks at Dark Scribe Magazine have recently announced their nominees for the highly sought after Black Quill Awards. I'm very proud to tell you that my collection, Mama's Boy and Other Dark Tales, has been nominated for the BQ award in the Best Dark Genre Fiction category.

If you've recovered from the recent voting spree in the US elections and around the planet, I'd be grateful if you'd consider voting for my collection. It's a popular vote, so no electoral stuff to muddle the mind. It requires a quick registration (if you're not already signed-up as a subscriber - FREE) for the Dark Scribe site, which is well worth the effort because it's a fantastic magazine.

For the list of nominees and the voting info (bottom of the page): Click Here

OR

Register Here - Click
Ballot Page and Login - Click

Category: Best Dark Genre Fiction Collection
My Book: Mama's Boy and Other Dark Tales

If you have any trouble voting, let me know and I'll try to help.

I can't thank you enough for your support! *fingers crossed*

Wickedly Yours,
Fran Friel



CONTEST - Horror Library Vol 3 and DRP 10 Holiday Debut

Note I'm running this contest for my friends at CBP and DRP. Enjoy!


















HL V3 and DRP #10 Debut Contest


The dark geniuses at Cutting Block Press and Dark Recesses Press have been busy gathering some fine reading for their fans. Just a few of the names you'll find in these two volumes of dark goodness: Bentley Little, Clive Barker, Gary Braunbeck, Jack Ketchum, Jeff Strand, Michael Arnzen, Kealan Patrick Burke, Cody Goodfellow and many more. Whether you are a new fan or an old one, you're going to love this contest!

How to Play: All you have to do is post a comment here on this blog and you'll automatically be entered into the contest.

For an extra entry: Just post a link to this contest on your blog and leave a comment here with the link to your blog. Here's the main contest link: http://horrorlibrary.blogspot.com/2008/12/horror-library-vol-3-and-drp-10-holiday.html

Yup, it's that easy. But what do you win?

First Prize

One Copy of Horror Library Vol. 3
One Copy of Dark Recesses Press #10
$10 Gift Certificate to the Horror Mall

Second Prize
One Copy of Horror Library Vol. 3
One Copy Dark Recesses Press #10

Third Prize

One Copy of Horror Library Vol. 2

Fourth Prize

One Copy of Horror Library Vol. 1

Deadline for the contest: December 14th at Midnight, Eastern US Time

Winners will be announced the following weekend.

So there you have it, a great way to win some holiday gifts for your friends or for yourself. Good luck!

Wickedly Yours,
Cutting Block Press & Dark Recesses Press

Mama's Boy collection on Ebay - Cheap!

Ebay!
Hey, gang, just in case anyone is looking for an excellent bargain on a signed, limited edition hardcover of Mama's Boy and Other Dark Tales, here's one for you. Right now, it's listed a $5.00 with only 10 hours to go in the sale (ends around 9:30am, Wednesday, EST). The hardcover is normally $35.

It's not my listing, but it's a great deal so I thought I'd share it with you. Here's the ebay auction link:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=230308795638&ssPageName=ADME:B:WNA:US:1123

In case I don't "see" you before Thursday, to you Yanks, have a marvelous Thanksgiving. To everyone else, have a great week!

Wickedly Yours,
Fran Friel

His, Theirs and Mine - News!


















HIS
I'm always thrilled when my friends do great things, so I thought I'd share a little greatness with you today. My dear friend, Edmund Schubert, has written something wonderful for us--his novel, Dreaming Creek from LBF books. I just ordered it today and I can't wait to have a great read by one of my favorite writers. Ed not only writes up a storm, he's also a very busy editor for a number of publications, including the fabulous Intergalactic Medicine Show. It's always a fantastic read if you haven't yet had the pleasure.

So support a fine writer and an excellent editor and stop by for a copy of Ed's latest at LBF Books or Amazon.com.

THEIRS
Oh yes, there's more goodness. The masters of madness and the publishers of Horror Library Volume 1 and Volume 2 are at it again. Horror Library Volume 3 has just been unleashed...er, released! This book just gets better with each generation. The latest has stories by Bentley Little, Gary Braunbeck, Michael Arnzen, Jeff Strand to name a few of the biggies, as well as some great up-and-comers such as Kurt Dinan, Sunil Sadanand and C. Michael Cook. For a look at the complete Table of Contents that will wow you--Click Here.

The Horror Library anthologies are truly events not to be missed. Get a copy of your own at Cutting Block Press!

MINE
A couple of new folks have gotten their hands on Mama's Boy and Other Dark Tales and have a few very nice things to say about it.

Carol Reid reviews the MB collection at The Short Review. This site is absolutely a must for the short story lover in you. Short story collections are their passion, so be sure to browse the list while you're there checking out Carol's thoughts on "Mama's Boy".

A few words from The Short Review:
Fran Friel is a generous, spellbinding storyteller. Her love of a well-told tale is clear, from the first words of the opening story, Beach of Dreams: "With dawn still hours away, the storm howled in the cavernous spaces between the carcasses on the beach."

Michele Lee reviews the MB collection at The Fix. I had the pleasure of meeting Michele at Context 21 in Columbus, Ohio this past September. It was a delight to meet her in person, and of course, I'm thrilled that she enjoyed the collection.

Here's an excerpt from Michele's review:
Don’t let the first story in Fran Friel’s collection, Mama’s Boy and Other Dark Tales, deceive you into thinking this is some sort of “Horror Lite” book. The first story, “Beach of Dreams,” is a surreal, exotic tale of a man visiting a native tribe who is one day privy to examining strange things that wash up on their shores...Full of visceral imagery and summed up with a sad-sweet ending, this tale might make readers think Friel doesn’t have the balls to do more than flirt with horror.Perhaps purposefully deceptive, or perhaps just showing her versatility, Friel shatters that perception with her next offering, “Gravy Pursuits.”

Now, if I haven't snoozed you too much just yet, The Short Review also requested a short interview. If you have a few more moments to indulge in my yammerage, you can find the The Short Review Interview Here.

Thanks so much for reading the news, gang. I hope you found it helpful. Oh, and by the way, DO NOT MISS the annual Apex Raffle going on right now. You can win some incredible goodies over there, plus there's a signed and personally doodled copy of Mama's Boy and Other Dark Tales up for grabs, as well. The tickets start at just $1.00 or $25 for a chance to win EVERYTHING!

See you soon, my friends.

Wickedly Yours,
Fran Friel

Realistically Hopeful and Fabulous Tunage

Hopefully Hopeful With You
I try hard to keep my working life and my political views separate, but dang, I just love this tune and wanted to share it with you. I'm a realist and I don't expect miracles, but I sure am ready for a new day. No matter what your politics may be, let's rock the hope together, baby!




Have a magnificent week!

Wickedly Yours,
Fran Friel

A Halloween Treat - Gaiman Style- FREE!


















The Wonderful Mister Gaiman
Happy Halloween, my friends! Have I got an absolutely delicious treat for you, especially if you're a Gaiman fan.

As many of you know, I adore Neil Gaiman. He was "the straw that broke the camel's back inspiration" for me to start writing after many years of pining about it. Hence, I'll always be grateful to him. In addition to the writing, he's inspired me by the kind of person he is. By all accounts, he's a sweetheart of a guy and extraordinarily kind to his fans. His latest project proves that he posses a generosity of spirit--the kind that I love and aspire to.

On tour with his latest release, The Graveyard Book, he read a full chapter at each stop of his book tour. BUT if you missed it like I did (dang!), not only did he read a chapter at each stop, his readings were video taped. You'll find his video tour, in its entirety, at Mr. Bobo's Remarkable Mouse Circus website!

If you want a little background on the project, in his remarkable way, Neil talks about how The Graveyard Book came about:


The Treat
No tricks here, kids. Just a great Halloween feast, so go visit Neil (one of my favorite storytellers) at the Mouse Circus for a delicious treat of storytelling and wonder:

Click HERE for The Graveyard Book at Mr. Bobo's Remarkable Mouse Circus

Have a marvelous night full of sweets and shadows, my friends. Happy Halloween!

Wickedly Yours,
Fran Friel