POLL ~ Preferred Days to Read Blogs?

So, like, it seems that Monday is, by far, the most heavily saturated blogging day of the week (which is to say, lots and lotsa folks'll post a blog on a Monday). I'm not bitching about it; I've been posting on Mondays (and Thursdays) since roughly June of this year. But I'm wondering if, perhaps, these ain't the best days of the week to post, and by "best days," I mean days in which the blogosphere isn't quite so bizzy and folks have a bit more head space to get around the joint and check stuff out, knowhatahmsayin?

So if y'all'd do me a solid, I'd love it if you answered my poll question over on the upper right-hand side of the page (and this time, you can select more than one option). And if you'd spread the word by pimping this post, I'll love you just that little bit more than I'd otherwise love you. (Just see the video below, iffin ye dinnae believe me.)

Resurrection Blogfest Honorable Mention #9

When I announced the finalists for my Resurrection Blogfest, I mentioned I'd be posting "Honorable Mentions," of entries that caught my attention and I wanted to bring to yours, Dear Reader. For the next week or so, I'll be doing just that. If you haven't yet read these entries, please give them a lookie-look!

In the order in which folks signed up, my ninth and final Resurrection Blogfest Honorable Mention goes to The Ranting Monkey. Mr. Monkey resurrected a post from Wednesday, October 17, 2007 entitled Inappropriate. Now, I wouldn't call it inappropriate (it's his blog, after all; he sets the rules for it), though I would say it focuses on very adult subject matter. Mr. Monkey satisfied one of the blogfest's rules, in that he put several warnings before readers saw the resurrected post, so that the "easily offended" might cease reading, if they wished. Therefore, if you're not comfortable reading about an intimate moment between two consenting adults, don't go there. But if you want to laugh/wince, you'd bloody better well read it, and I wholeheartedly agree with his conclusion about what's worse than a woman scorned. For realz.

Go on, now; check it out! And Mr. Monkey, please feel free to take the above badge for your blog and link it back to this post, if you like. Thanks again for participating in my first annual blogfest!

Resurrection Blogfest Honorable Mention #8

When I announced the finalists for my Resurrection Blogfest, I mentioned I'd be posting "Honorable Mentions," of entries that caught my attention and I wanted to bring to yours, Dear Reader. For the next week or so, I'll be doing just that. If you haven't yet read these entries, please give them a lookie-look!

In the order in which folks signed up, my eighth Resurrection Blogfest Honorable Mention goes to Elise Fallson. Elise resurrected a post from Friday, 10 February 2012, entitled Flamenco Dancing is to a Man's Buns as Water is to a Cup of Tea – HOT*. I don't think this requires any further explanation, as the title alone makes it a worthy read. Trust me; you'll thank me.

Go on, now; check it out! And Elise, please feel free to take the above badge for your blog and link it back to this post, if you like. Thanks again for participating in my first annual blogfest!

Resurrection Blogfest Honorable Mention #7

When I announced the finalists for my Resurrection Blogfest, I mentioned I'd be posting "Honorable Mentions," of entries that caught my attention and I wanted to bring to yours, Dear Reader. For the next week or so, I'll be doing just that. If you haven't yet read these entries, please give them a lookie-look!

In the order in which folks signed up, my seventh Resurrection Blogfest Honorable Mention goes to Sylvia van Bruggen at Playful Creative. Sylvia resurrected a post from Tuesday, April 5, 2011 entitled Declare Yourself! Now, as a rule, I think feel-good-affirmations are about as useful as Jack Handey's Deep Thoughts (though far less entertaining). Sylvia, however, proposes an exercise which I found inspiring and empowering—perhaps you will, too.

Go on, now; check it out! And Sylvia, please feel free to take the above badge for your blog and link it back to this post, if you like. Thanks again for participating in my first annual blogfest!

Resurrection Blogfest Honorable Mention #6

When I announced the finalists for my Resurrection Blogfest, I mentioned I'd be posting "Honorable Mentions," of entries that caught my attention and I wanted to bring to yours, Dear Reader. For the next week or so, I'll be doing just that. If you haven't yet read these entries, please give them a lookie-look!

In the order in which folks signed up, my sixth Resurrection Blogfest Honorable Mention goes to Michael Offutt: Speculative Fiction Author. Michael resurrected a post from Monday, January 31, 2011 entitled The Misunderstood Exclamation Point!, an amusing exploration of the many and varied uses of this larger-than-life punctuation mark. He helpfully tossed in a menorah-like chart showing the ratio of exclamation points to the stupidity of their abuser. Word up, My Dude!!!1!

Go on, now; check it out! And Michael, please feel free to take the above badge for your blog and link it back to this post, if you like. Thanks again for participating in my first annual blogfest!

Resurrection Blogfest Honorable Mention #5

When I announced the finalists for my Resurrection Blogfest, I mentioned I'd be posting "Honorable Mentions," of entries that caught my attention and I wanted to bring to yours, Dear Reader. For the next week or so, I'll be doing just that. If you haven't yet read these entries, please give them a lookie-look!

In the order in which folks signed up, my fifth Resurrection Blogfest Honorable Mention goes to Trisha at Word + Stuff. Trisha resurrected her very first blog post ever, entitled NaNoWriMo - Is It Evil? For those who're not familiar with this, NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month, a mad November event in which participants aim to write a 50K word novel in exactly 30 days. I gave it a shot in 2008 and crapped out mid-month. I may try it again in future but, for now, I'm demented enough as it is, thank you. :-)

Go on, now; check it out! And Trisha, please feel free to take the above badge for your blog and link it back to this post, if you like. Thanks again for participating in my first annual blogfest!

Resurrection Blogfest Honorable Mention #4

When I announced the finalists for my Resurrection Blogfest, I mentioned I'd be posting "Honorable Mentions," of entries that caught my attention and I wanted to bring to yours, Dear Reader. For the next week or so, I'll be doing just that. If you haven't yet read these entries, please give them a lookie-look!

In the order in which folks signed up, my fourth Resurrection Blogfest Honorable Mention goes to Elizabeth Twist: Writer, Plague Enthusiast. Elizabeth resurrected a post from November 10, 2008, entitled, How Do You Free Yourself? In it, she details her journey "down the rabbit hole" of self-recreation and the ups and downs of forgoing one career path to live an authentic life as a writer. My Dudes, I'm sure many of you can relate. I know I sure can, except I can't slide down the rabbit hole till my kid's done with college. (3.5 years to go, W00T!)

Go on, now; check it out! And Elizabeth, please feel free to take the above badge for your blog and link it back to this post, if you like. Thanks again for participating in my first annual blogfest!

Gobble Gobble, Y'all!

Resurrection Blogfest Honorable Mention #3

When I announced the finalists for my Resurrection Blogfest, I mentioned I'd be posting "Honorable Mentions," of entries that caught my attention and I wanted to bring to yours, Dear Reader. For the next week or so, I'll be doing just that. If you haven't yet read these entries, please give them a lookie-look!

In the order in which folks signed up, my third Resurrection Blogfest Honorable Mention goes to Laura Wise of Laura + the Voices. Laura resurrected a post from Saturday, September 11, 2010 called Demonic Phone, which she tells us is a true story about...well, a phone that seems to be, um...POSSESSED!!!!! (Gaaaaah!). I read this entry late one night whilst alone in my otherwise empty office, seeing as I still don't have proper Interwebs at home, and really worried about the possibility of my office phone ringing, causing me to soil myself. It didn't happen. That time.

Go on, now; check it out! And Laura, please feel free to take the above badge for your blog and link it back to this post, if you like. Thanks again for participating in my first annual blogfest!

Resurrection Blogfest Honorable Mention #2

When I announced the finalists for my Resurrection Blogfest, I mentioned I'd be posting "Honorable Mentions," of entries that caught my attention and I wanted to bring to yours, Dear Reader. For the next week or so, I'll be doing just that. If you haven't yet read these entries, please give them a lookie-look!

In the order in which folks signed up, my second Resurrection Blogfest Honorable Mention goes to Juli at Surviving Boys. Juli resurrected a post from Thursday, March 11, 2010 called The Tooth Fairy Doesn't Work on Valentine's Day, which features that among many other hideous lies we tell our children. The shame, the shame!!!

Go on, now; check it out! And Juli, please feel free to take the above badge for your blog and link it back to this post, if you like. Thanks again for participating in my first annual blogfest!

Resurrection Blogfest Honorable Mention #1

When I announced the finalists for my Resurrection Blogfest, I mentioned I'd be posting "Honorable Mentions," of entries that caught my attention and I wanted to bring to yours, Dear Reader. For the next week or so, I'll be doing just that. If you haven't yet read these entries, please give them a lookie-look!

In the order in which folks signed up, my first Resurrection Blogfest Honorable Mention goes to Siv Maria at Been There Done That.

She resurrected a post from Friday, March 18, 2011 called Lost in Translation. In this post, she explores some wildly amusing (and occasionally disturbing) translations. If for no other reason, you should read it to learn what precisely is meant by the phrase, "There is a whore in my food."

Go on, now; check it out! And Siv Maria, please feel free to take the above badge for your blog and link it back to this post, if you like. Thanks again for participating in my first annual blogfest!

U Got The Look! Meme

L.G. Keltner of Writing Off the Edge tagged me with the "U Got The Look!" meme. It doesn't have a pic associated with it, but I found this one and it just felt "right," you know? ;-)

Anyway—here's whatcha gots to do: go to your current WIP, find the word "look," and post the section which includes it, as well as the surrounding paragraphs. Then tag 5 other poor bastards with the meme.

So I give you an excerpt from my as-yet-unpublished Greek mythological romance, That Fatal Kiss. It's from a section at the very beginning, in which Hades, Lord of the Underworld coerces asks Zeus, King of the Gods, to help him snatch up the lovely immortal goddess, Persephone.

*       *       *

Hades sat back in his throne.  "Will you aid me in this endeavor?" 

Cagily playing for time, Zeus asked, "Why her?  Why the daughter of Demeter?" 

"Why not?” Hades snapped back.  “Look about you, Zeus; do you not see the darkness that pervades my kingdom?  Do you think it a pleasure to rule these fluttering shades, which have barely more substance than the air the mortals breathe above?"  Hades turned his face from the Olympian’s suddenly penetrating stare as he added, "Try mating with them." 

At that, Zeus' laugh shook through the glistening walls of the throne room once again. "Forgive me, Hades, I was not thinking of that."

Hades' face darkened with contempt.  "For an unprecedented change."

The Thunderer bristled at the continued insolence.  “Is that all you want her for, then? For the purpose of assuaging your lust?  Is a daughter of mine to serve merely as your receptacle, is she to be nothing more than your concubine?” he cried indignantly.

“I do not want her for my concubine, but for my lawful wife!”

“Your wife!”

“Yes, confound you, my wife!”

"But why her?"

“Are you blind, too, that you have to ask?"

Under different circumstances, and with another god, Zeus might have chuckled with appreciation.  But he could not afford to laugh now, the situation as volatile as it was. 

“Of course you want Persephone.”  He thought for a moment before asking, “But what if she does not want you?”

Hades’ lips twisted and he turned away from Zeus.  “Since when did a female’s wishes ever matter?  You know the customs.  If you, as her father, give her to me, then she is lawfully mine.”

“But why do you not court her properly, ask her if she would be your queen?”

The sullen god’s eyes flickered back to the Cloud Gatherer.  “Court her?  The way you courted your bride?  Did you prostrate yourself before Hera, begging her to have you?  No; you wanted her, Cronus was in no position to challenge you, and so you took her.”

“I had Rhea’s consent.”

“And I would have yours.  What is your point?”

"My point is that Demeter will not be pleased to lose her only child to the Lord of the Dead," said Zeus, getting to the true crux of the matter, as he saw it.  That ought to put a stop to things before they progressed any further.

Hades shrugged.  "She is herself a goddess of the Earth, a prolific creator.  Surely she can have another."

*       *       *

And I hereby tag:

Georgina Morales at the newly revamped Epitaphs and Headstones

Chris Fries at A Writer's Expanding and Slightly-Warped Universe

Damon Peter Rallis at The Six-Fingered Monkey

Elizabeth Twist, Writer, Plague Enthusiast

Steampunk Princess

Rock and roll it, kids.

So...

...a weird thing happened last night.

A little after midnight I checked the Resurrection Blogfest poll and saw a tied score for the 1st prize offering. I Tweeted that news and went to bed, thinking I'd use some site like random.org to break the tie. I didn't feel good about this; life is already so random, I'd have preferred that the 1st prize winner be voted for and not be selected by chance.

As it happens, the poll didn't close.

This morning, I saw that two more votes got in after I went to bed, leaving a clear 1st prize winner.

I don't know what happened with the poll. I'm confident that I set the closing time for 11:59pm on Monday, November 12. No other votes should've gone through after that, but they did.

So I was on the horns of an ethical dilemma: the decisive votes were cast after the stop time I'd published in all of the blogfest announcements. However, if they hadn't been, I'd have had to do the equivalent of flipping a coin to determine a first prize winner.

I'm not happy about the poll not closing on time, and I'm sorry for it. But I'm not going to discount two votes in favor of someone's work. So I will let the results stand. For next year's blogfest, I'll seek a new polling tool and will do some trial runs in advance to make sure it works as intended.

And now, without further ado...

The winners of my first annual

Resurrection Blogfest

are...

1st Prize ($20 Amazon Gift Card): Beyond, original fiction by Tamara at One Magic Bean Buyer

2nd Prize ($15 Amazon Gift Card): Boundless, sci-fi poetry by L.G. Keltner at Writing Off the Edge

3rd Prize ($10 Amazon Gift Card): The Metropolis of Tomorrow, music video by Kristina Perez

Congratulations!!!

If you haven't already done so, please e-mail me so I can get them gift cards on their way to youse guys! Feel free to stick the above badge on your blogs, too.

Thanks to all finalists, and indeed, all participants, for making my first ever blogfest a grand success! I hope you enjoyed reading folks' resurrected posts and making new pals all up in the blogosphere as much as I did.

Over the next week or so I anticipate posting links to my Honorable Mentions (the folks I'd have nominated as finalists except for my danged "only 7 finalists" rule). Dear Readers, if you've not yet checked them out, I reckon you oughta!

Thanks again to all; it's been such a pleasure for me. Hope it was for y'all, too.

<3

Last Day to Vote for Your Fave Resurrected Post!

OK, peeps, this is your last day to cast your vote! Our 7 Resurrection Blogfest finalists are:

Beyond, original fiction by Tamara at One Magic Bean Buyer. This sci-fi/horror/fantasy is flavored with a super-sweet love story (and y’all know how romantical I can get, and whatnot). Tamara combined the post with a monthly blog hop event, Insecure Writer's Support Group, so you'll have to scroll down the page to read this story. DO IT, IT'S AWESOME!

Snapshot arrives…the birth of “EvilDM,” creative non-fiction/memoir by Mark at The DM’s Screen. Mark humorously revists a long ago Christmas and that fateful moment in which his imagination was sparked to pursue gaming and writing. (I dearly heart stories set at Christmas-time.)

The Last Days of School, creative non-fiction/memoir by David at Brits in the USA. Another humorous look back, this time at David’s self-described, “…pathetically short career as a teacher.” (To which I can really relate, having served exactly one year as a general music/chorus teacher at the elementary school level, some time before the discovery of fire.)

I Am Going To Write Today, creative non-fiction by Andrea at The Enchanted Writer. True to her blog’s name, Andrea’s expression of that joyful anticipation which can fill you when you’re fixing to do some writing enchanted the hell out of me. A sunny, inspirational read.

Boundless, sci-fi poetry by L.G. Keltner at Writing Off the Edge. Yes, you read that correctly; it’s a sci-fi poem. Who the hell knew? (Not I.) Where the above entry rises like the sun at dawn, L.G.’s heart-felt rhymes express her love for exploring the mystery of unknown (and unknowable?) worlds beyond the starry night skies. L.G. goes boldly, y’all, for which I am very glad, indeed.

What Is It Without Honesty?, creative non-fiction by Nikki at Absconditus Creations. Nikki’s a visual artist but her essay addresses just about every creative endeavor. She touches on themes of honesty in one’s art and living authentically as a creator, not only for one’s own benefit but to connect with those who examine one’s work. Her words zapped bits of my soul with their aching exhortations, that I now feel I must bare myself to the world in my writing and music-making. (Blame Nikki, it’s all her fault.) ;-)

The Metropolis of Tomorrow, music video by Kristina Perez, Writer and Photographer. Kristina got me where I live (well, where I work) with her entry. It’s a “video homage” to New York City, with a groovy cover of New York, New York, by Cat Powers. I don’t even really like that damned song, but this version of it slithered into my veins and snaked its way to my…again, never mind. In short, I totally dig it.

Anyway, please rock the vote (click here and scroll down to the bottom of the post to cast your vote) and spread the news so others can come check out all of the above fabulousness. You’ve got till 11:59pm EST on Monday, November 12 before the poll closes.

Finalists, please encourage your readers to check out the other finalists’ entries, comment upon them on their respective blogs, and then return here to cast their votes.

Visitors, please Tweet, Gmail, Blogger, Facebook, and/or Google Plus this post by clicking the little "T" icon underneath this post's tag: "Posted by Mina Lobo at 12:00 AM," toward the bottom left of the post.

I’ll post the three prize-winners’ names by high noon EST on Tuesday, November 13, (God willing!) and if the winners have their e-mails visible somewhere on their blogs (or e-mail me ASAP), they will receive their Amazon gift cards electronically before I leave town for my west coast conference.

You've Got Today & Tomorrow to Vote for Your Fave Resurrected Post!

We're down to 7 finalists in my Resurrection Blogfest, and they are:

Beyond, original fiction by Tamara at One Magic Bean Buyer. This sci-fi/horror/fantasy is flavored with a super-sweet love story (and y’all know how romantical I can get, and whatnot). Tamara combined the post with a monthly blog hop event, Insecure Writer's Support Group, so you'll have to scroll down the page to read this story. DO IT, IT'S AWESOME!

Snapshot arrives…the birth of “EvilDM,” creative non-fiction/memoir by Mark at The DM’s Screen. Mark humorously revists a long ago Christmas and that fateful moment in which his imagination was sparked to pursue gaming and writing. (I dearly heart stories set at Christmas-time.)

The Last Days of School, creative non-fiction/memoir by David at Brits in the USA. Another humorous look back, this time at David’s self-described, “…pathetically short career as a teacher.” (To which I can really relate, having served exactly one year as a general music/chorus teacher at the elementary school level, some time before the discovery of fire.)

I Am Going To Write Today, creative non-fiction by Andrea at The Enchanted Writer. True to her blog’s name, Andrea’s expression of that joyful anticipation which can fill you when you’re fixing to do some writing enchanted the hell out of me. A sunny, inspirational read.

Boundless, sci-fi poetry by L.G. Keltner at Writing Off the Edge. Yes, you read that correctly; it’s a sci-fi poem. Who the hell knew? (Not I.) Where the above entry rises like the sun at dawn, L.G.’s heart-felt rhymes express her love for exploring the mystery of unknown (and unknowable?) worlds beyond the starry night skies. L.G. goes boldly, y’all, for which I am very glad, indeed.

What Is It Without Honesty?, creative non-fiction by Nikki at Absconditus Creations. Nikki’s a visual artist but her essay addresses just about every creative endeavor. She touches on themes of honesty in one’s art and living authentically as a creator, not only for one’s own benefit but to connect with those who examine one’s work. Her words zapped bits of my soul with their aching exhortations, that I now feel I must bare myself to the world in my writing and music-making. (Blame Nikki, it’s all her fault.) ;-)

The Metropolis of Tomorrow, music video by Kristina Perez, Writer and Photographer. Kristina got me where I live (well, where I work) with her entry. It’s a “video homage” to New York City, with a groovy cover of New York, New York, by Cat Powers. I don’t even really like that damned song, but this version of it slithered into my veins and snaked its way to my…again, never mind. In short, I totally dig it.

Anyway, please rock the vote (click here and scroll down to the bottom of the post to cast your vote) and spread the news so others can come check out all of the above fabulousness. You’ve got till 11:59pm EST on Monday, November 12 before the poll closes.

Finalists, please encourage your readers to check out the other finalists’ entries, comment upon them on their respective blogs, and then return here to cast their votes.

Visitors, please Tweet, Gmail, Blogger, Facebook, and/or Google Plus this post by clicking the little "T" icon underneath this post's tag: "Posted by Mina Lobo at 12:00 AM," toward the bottom left of the post.

I’ll post the three prize-winners’ names by high noon EST on Tuesday, November 13, (God willing!) and if the winners have their e-mails visible somewhere on their blogs (or e-mail me ASAP), they will receive their Amazon gift cards electronically before I leave town for my west coast conference.

Don't just stand there, let's get to it! Cast your vote, there's nothing to it—VOTE!

Here are the Resurrection Blogfest Finalists!

My Dudes! I am so, so, sorry to keep y'all waiting for finalist results for so long today. It was not my intent but you know the old saying, "Man proposes, God disposes." So again, I'm sorry to be so late. I hope to do things more betterer for next year's blogfest. (Assuming we survive my birthday this year.)
 
Here's the thing: I planned for only 7 winners finalists (sorry, just noticed this goof!). I settled on 7 because my bloggiversary is on the 7th. Made sense to me, at the time. Only, it’s actually le suck because, out of nearly 50 entries, I found way more than 7 that I wanted to bump up to finalist status. But I’d said there’d be 7 finalists, and I’m a gal of my word. Curse these morals of mine.

So to get down to 7, I had to go with the entries that grabbed me on some visceral, instinctual level. Some made me laugh, some made me think, some simply made me feel deeply…whichever of these, the attraction was an instantaneous moment of something within me saying, “Yes!”  KnowhatImean? It was chemistry. Sorta like dating. (I’m guessing. I haven’t had a date since…Never mind, I’ve said too much. Somebody wanna pass me the cake-flavored vodka?)

Meanwhile, those other entries that came this close to becoming finalists will receive “Honorable Mentions” in upcoming posts. It’s the least I can do, and they are so totally worth it.

Right, so—here are the 7 finalists:

Beyond, original fiction by Tamara at One Magic Bean Buyer. This sci-fi/horror/fantasy is flavored with a super-sweet love story (and y’all know how romantical I can get, and whatnot). Tamara combined the post with a monthly blog hop event, Insecure Writer's Support Group, so you'll have to scroll down the page to read this story. DO IT, IT'S AWESOME!

Snapshot arrives…the birth of “EvilDM,” creative non-fiction/memoir by Mark at The DM’s Screen. Mark humorously revists a long ago Christmas and that fateful moment in which his imagination was sparked to pursue gaming and writing. (I dearly heart stories set at Christmas-time.)

The Last Days of School, creative non-fiction/memoir by David at Brits in the USA. Another humorous look back, this time at David’s self-described, “…pathetically short career as a teacher.” (To which I can really relate, having served exactly one year as a general music/chorus teacher at the elementary school level, some time before the discovery of fire.)

I Am Going To Write Today, creative non-fiction by Andrea at The Enchanted Writer. True to her blog’s name, Andrea’s expression of that joyful anticipation which can fill you when you’re fixing to do some writing enchanted the hell out of me. A sunny, inspirational read.

Boundless, sci-fi poetry by L.G. Keltner at Writing Off the Edge. Yes, you read that correctly; it’s a sci-fi poem. Who the hell knew? (Not I.) Where the above entry rises like the sun at dawn, L.G.’s heart-felt rhymes express her love for exploring the mystery of unknown (and unknowable?) worlds beyond the starry night skies. L.G. goes boldly, y’all, for which I am very glad, indeed.

What Is It Without Honesty?, creative non-fiction by Nikki at Absconditus Creations. Nikki’s a visual artist but her essay addresses just about every creative endeavor. She touches on themes of honesty in one’s art and living authentically as a creator, not only for one’s own benefit but to connect with those who examine one’s work. Her words zapped bits of my soul with their aching exhortations, that I now feel I must bare myself to the world in my writing and music-making. (Blame Nikki, it’s all her fault.) ;-)

The Metropolis of Tomorrow, music video by Kristina Perez, Writer and Photographer. Kristina got me where I live (well, where I work) with her entry. It’s a “video homage” to New York City, with a groovy cover of New York, New York, by Cat Powers. I don’t even really like that damned song, but this version of it slithered into my veins and snaked its way to my…again, never mind. In short, I totally dig it.

OK, so, I encourage all who land here to click the above links, check out the finalists’ entries, and then return here to vote for one of them. I know, that you can vote for only one is also le suck. Hey, I don’t make the rules…well, actually, in this instance, I do.

Anyway, please rock the vote and spread the news so others can come check out all of the above fabulousness. You’ve got till 11:59pm EST on Monday, November 12 and then the poll will close.

Finalists, if it didn’t occur to you to pimp your finalist status on all the social media to which you’re connected, well, then you’re daft. Please do so and encourage your readers to check out the other finalists’ entries, comment upon them on their respective blogs, and then return here to cast their votes.

I’ll post the three prize-winners’ names by high noon EST on Tuesday, November 13, (God willing!) and if the winners have their e-mails visible somewhere on their blogs (or e-mail me ASAP), they will receive their Amazon gift cards electronically before I leave town for my west coast conference.

OK, then. Get to reading/pimping/voting, y’all!

Vote for your favorite resurrected blog post!

Final Blogfest Reminder, Y’all!

So, my Resurrection Blogfest is coming up this Wednesday, November 7—have you selected the blog post you want to bring back from the dead? (So to speak.) Click here if you need a refresher on all the details. Please note that I’ve slightly tweaked dates for:

• the posting of the 7 semi-finalists (should now be up by Saturday, November 10)
• voting (will now run from November 10 through to/including Monday, November 12)
• announcement of 1st, 2nd, and 3rd prize winners (by noon on Tuesday, November 13)

I had to adjust the dates due to a stupid-early flight I had to book for a conference on Thursday of that week, so I want to be sure to get the Amazon gift certificates e-mailed to the prize winners before my trip, if possible. (Participants, it'd be super helpful if your e-mail addresses are shown somewhere on your blog!)

The following participants have requested reminder e-mails, which I anticipate sending out on Nov. 6:

Trisha (WORD + STUFF)
Wayne Assiratti
David Macaulay
Andrea Teagan

If you’d like to get an e-mail reminder (or if I missed ya), e-mail me before noon on Nov. 6, otherwise, I can't guarantee I'll be able to get the reminder out to ya in time.

And, hey—do a Goth Mom (Lite!) a solid and Tweet* this post by clicking the little "T" icon underneath this post's tag: "Posted by Mina Lobo at 12:00 AM," toward the bottom left of the post. (You know, if you’re on The Twitter, of course.) (Don’t sign up just to Tweet this.) (Unless you really, really want to.)

*You could also Gmail, Blogger, Facebook, and/or Google Plus it!

She rocked us...

Pic courtesy de moi.

...like a damn hurricane.

Tuesday, October 30
I'll not bore you with the minutiae of the havoc wreaked by Hurricane Sandy in my neck of the woods, as I imagine you've either heard stories aplenty or lived your own personal nightmare. But I will note that I've been without Internet, electricity, or hot water since just before 8pm on Monday, October 29. Commuter rails into Manhattan have been suspended since Sunday night, so I've also not been in to work.

I hand wrote this post on Tuesday, having spent two fairly quiet days at home with the 'rents. Monday was ok, as I'd had power for most of the day, but going without light has been rather surreal. I never knew how very dark one's home can feel. Add to that the fact that I've been passing the time re-reading the very gothic Lasher by Anne Rice (sequel to The Witching Hour, which I scribbled about here), and the gloom only deepens.

Strange as this enforced quiet feels, it's served as a much needed respite. Midway through October, I came down with bronchitis. Due to an inordinately full and heavy plate at work, I couldn't take any time off to recover (indeed, I've worked at least two hours past my normal quitting time, every day, for the past couple of weeks). Now, I've no choice but to relax. I hesitate to say I'm glad of it...perhaps it's best to note simply that my body and mind needed this break.

Readers, if you and/or your loved ones have been similarly stricken by Sandy, I hope things soon turn around for you and yours.

And to Sandy, I cordially extend an invitation to self-procreate. Self-procreate into a stupor, you heartless cow.

:-)

BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE!

Wednesday, October 31
Happy Halloween, all youse ghouls and goblins out there! Still no power/hot water, Internet access is being paid for at a local Kinko's type place (where the fella on the PC to my left is talking to someone on his cell phone in fluently sexy French - Le swoon!). Commuter rails to start up again on a limited basis this afternoon, so it looks like I'm bound for work tomorrow morning.

I'm bummed about the continued lack of electricity, especially since it means I may possibly miss American Horror Story: Asylum tonight, but I'll cross my fingers and maybe leave an offering out for The Great Pumpkin, you know, to cover all my bases.

I did get some amazingly excellent news today, though...

I'M JACKIE FELGER'S WINNING PICK FOR SPOOKTOBERFEST!!!!!

W00T, W00T, and a thousand times W00T!!!!!!!!!!

It's the first time my writing's been publicly recognized since I started scribbilng (lo, so many moons ago), so W00000T!!!!! Thanks again to Jackie of Bouquet of Books and Dani of Entertaining Interests for hosting this blogfest and for the honor!

If you've not yet read my flash-fic submission, you can check it out here*. To read my co-winner's piece, Randomness by Von L Cid, click here. He was also a runner up for Dani, so kudos, Dude! Your story freaked me out!

Runners up are:

Carving by L.G. Keltner (Truly chilling!)

Veil Hill by Tamara (Raised the hairs on my arms, for realz!)

The Dare by Tiffany Price (Haunting! Literally!)

(*Hmmm...maybe y'all had better read these other cats' stories first and then read mine for a giggle.)

So yay, yay, and yay again, verily! I reckon sometimes good things do come to those who wait in the dark...

Edited on Thursday, Nov. 1 to add: We got electricity/hot water back Wednesday night, I WAS able to catch AHS:Asylum, and I made it in to the office today. Baby steps to normalcy, y'all! ;-)