I’ve been given the honor of moderating the Godzilla panel at Philcon in two weeks. I was just grateful to be included, wow. My passion for Godzilla came from my mom, who is a big King Green fan herself and first introduced me to the 1954 original as a kid. It was to the point with our shared love of Godzilla I saw Minus One without her the first time I went, then took her to my second viewing out of guilt. What a wonderful time we had when I told her they’d finally made a work of art Godzilla film and she was started clapping and going “Whhhooooooa!” whenever he showed up during Minus One.
I could hear the pride in her voice when I gave her this news. Meanwhile, TJ is not only sucking it up while I pound through Hedorah, Biollante, Gigan, Final Wars, Return of Godzilla ’84, Destroy All Monsters, Shin Godzilla and the marathon three anime films on Netflix last night beginning with Godzilla: Planet of the Monsters. She’s there smiling and taking pictures of me prepping my panel questions instead of face palming at me.
There’s only one word to sum up how I feel right now:
Happy Godzilla Day, baby! Did I mention I’m on the Godzilla panel at this year’s Philcon in a few weeks? Of course I did. Toho just announced the next film will be Godzilla: Minus Zero, again spearheaded by Yamazaki Takashi, who delivered us the (thus far) GOAT Minus One. Let’s go! SKREEEEOOOONK!
I am STOKED to announce I am returning to Philcon this month as a guest panelist. I will be there all weekend long on six panels, a reading session and a signing hour from November 21st to the 23rd at the Doubletree Hilton in Cherry Hill, NJ. I’ll be talking horror, comics and GODZILLA! Everyone here who knows me know I am geeking right now. SKREEEEEEEONK! I’m so excited I ordered a special edition Godzilla Day 2025 shirt I hope to have in time for this panel. Uber rad, the back has every Godzilla film in history by Japanese titling.
National Author’s Day. This is cool. Let me tell you a little story involving a couple of authors. I first met TJ in 1999 working together. We had instant chemistry even then. Instant friends. A pair of close goofballs who we could also vent to about our personal lives. We were both struggling writers. I coached her, she beta read me. We pushed one another, we cheered each other on. Eventually we landed Darth Maul stories together at a Star Wars fan fiction site. We kept talking then about one day getting published in something bigger together.
Flash forward many years and other jobs we had together that wasn’t the same mojo we’d enjoyed as our personal lives tailspun. Eventually, we just lost contact with one another. Four and a half years ago, only a few months after separation from my first wife, TJ spots me and my kid in a Panera. She asks me out on the spot. Of course I said yes. You all know what happened afterwards.
For all the success I enjoyed 16 years as a music and film journalist, I was still subversively miserable despite a fruitful three year stint dogging open mikes in Maryland and building a family within who eased some of my angst. My fiction writing was ghastly and it reflected who I was then. It was getting together with TJ when my fiction began to build. I grew stronger. I grew more motivated. I wanted to reclaim what had died inside of me. I wanted to write and I wanted to matter again.
She restored my wherewithal and the happy smiles you see on my face in photos or at a book signing or on the open mike these days is because I have a spitfire author for a wife who isn’t afraid to call me out if I lambaste and lament, chastising myself as a pretender. I know many of you feel me.
We are there to back one another at many of our individual book signings, but the true bliss for me is when we have joint signings. Fulfilling something we only gave voice to and dreamed about in ’99. There is no competition between us. No ego. Only love.
I have begun a gradual acceleration these past few months similar to how I rose covering metal, punk and horror. Those were glorious times which I feel beginning to restack with my new endeavors.
I fearlessly reach out and network to established pros and celebrities in the writing world, because it worked for me in my old life. I know it can happen again. It’s extra special this time, because I have an exceptional woman at my side, another author who deserves to bask in today’s laudatory theme.
To all of my brothers and sisters of the word, no matter your level of success, bask and be awesome, today and evermore. You are awesome for even trying.
Roads Lesser Traveled 