A Writer's Tale

June 22-27 I worked on the short story, “Slit,” for the Ed Gorman/Martin Greenberg anthology which at that time was supposed to be called Slashers. The anthology came out in 1993 with the title, Predators.

June 28 I started a novel with the working title, Ouija. It would be published as Darkness, Tell Us.

Aug. 17-20 I wrote the short story, “Invitation to Murder” for the Gorman/Greenberg anthology, Invitation to Murder.

Aug. 28 I signed the St. Martin’s contract for The Stake.

Sept. 8-13 Though still working on Ouija, I spent a few days on notes for a new novel, The Cage. This didn’t develop into a novel, but the idea was later used for my novella, “The Good Deed,” which was published in my Deadline Press collection, A Good, Secret Place.

Oct. 7 My first book signing took place, given by Don Cannon at Aladdin Books in Fullerton. The signing was for Night Visions VII, but I was shocked and delighted to find a crowd of fans waiting in line with bags and boxes of my older books.

Oct. 13 We had a flat tire before dawn on the freeway as we headed north for a book signing given by John Scoleri at a B. Dai-ton in Santa Clara. But we eventually arrived safely. That night, we went to a party at Dark Carnival in Berkeley, where we met Joan Parsons and Larry Mori, who would become close friends. Lany would later do the artwork for A Good, Secret Place.

Oct. 14 We went to the signing at the B. Dalton, and met John Scoleri. John would later be a publisher of A Good, Secret Place as well as THIS book.

Oct. 17 A major earthquake hit the San Francisco area, and an overhead section of road collapsed onto the same stretch of highway that we’d driven four days earlier on our way to Dark Carnival Bookstore. By this time, however, we were safely home in Los Angeles.

Oct. 31 I wrote a piece about Funland for Ed Gorman’s Mystery Scene. Later, we went trick or treating.

Nov. 4-7 I wrote short story, “The Tub,” for Hot Blood.

Nov. 18 I started a new novel, working title Breakdown (never finished), then returned to work on Ouija.

1990

Jan. 3-15 I worked on a new novel, The Stillness, but only wrote about 40 pages before abandoning it temporarily, at least and returning to Ouija.

Jan. 22 Mike Baker came to the house and taped an interview of me for the magazine, Afraid.

Jan. 30 I received the alarming news that my British publisher, W.H. Allen, was going out of business. I was terrified that this might be the beginning of the end for my career in the U.K.

Feb. 6 I finished writing Ouija, which would be published as Darkness, Tell Us.

Feb. 6 ANOTHER BIG DAY! In telephone conversations with Dean Koontz, Bob Tanner and Ralph Vicinanza, I learned that a major British publishing company, Headline House, intended to take over the contracts of a few W.H. Allen authors including Dean and me. Headline would become my regular publisher. I was vastly relieved and delighted.

Feb. 7 Mark Ziesing and I made a deal for his special limited edition of my novel, Alarms. He would be paying me the advance in much-needed installments of $500 per week. Upon making this deal, I re-read the novel, written in 1985, and wrote a major revision.

Feb. 20 Bob Tanner called to tell me that Headline bought Out Are the Lights (which had originally been published in U.K. by New English Library).

Feb. 20-26 I wrote the short story, “Special” for Under the Fang, the HWA anthology edited by Robert McCammon.

March 6 I began a new novel, Daring Young Maids. It would be published as Blood Games.

March 28 Headline sent an “on-acceptance” payment for One Rainy Night.

April 17 I started work on material for an ill-fated, Screamplay stage play. (Not to be confused with the Screamplay collection of screenplays in which The Hunt would be published.)

April 22-25 I wrote the short story, “Saving Grace,” for Richard Chizmar’s anthology, Cold Blood.

April 26 I sent an article on novel outlining to Mystery Scene.

April 27-29 I worked on a “Mess Hall” stage play for Screamplay (the stage play that never materialized).

May 1 YES! Bob Tanner called with the news that Headline had offered me a three-book contract for approximately $135,000. At last, we’d really made it!

May 18-23 I spent time communicating with a U.S. editor (then at Bantam) trying to come up with an idea for a book that she might find acceptable. I came up with ideas and sent off outlines, then got back to Blood Games.

May 31 I had lunch here in Los Angeles with Bob Tanner. He suggested that, since my main success was taking place in Great Britain, I should try to come up with a novel having a British background.