As a freelancer, my work is rarely submitted for awards, much less wins one. However…
From the press release: The International Labor Communications Association (ILCA) today announced its … labor communications contest winners. Annually, the organization hosts what is now the largest competition exclusively for labor journalists and communicators. Thousands of entries that tell the story of the global labor movement are judged by experts in the field across the industry.
The awards are open to all ILCA members and organizations and are given in two different classes: national/international unions, federations, councils, and allied organizations; and local/regional/state federations, central/area labor councils, and allied organizations. ILCA award categories are in general excellence, visual communications, best multimedia campaign, writing, electronic media, best use of earned media, political action, and organizing.
In the writing category, I received second place under “news analysis” for an examination of how the explosive growth in union membership still lags behind in union density. Even as nearly 140,000 people joined unions in 2023, only about 10 percent of the U.S. workforce is represented by a union. In the 1950s, it was about one-third of the workforce.
It was quite a surprise and a great honor to be recognized for the work I’ve been doing with the St. Louis Labor Tribune. I am very grateful for the paper’s support and to the ILCA. Funny enough, tonight I have a union meeting…
Cribbing term papers is not a new invention; since the first teacher scratched out the first assignment on a stone tablet, Krog and Ug were sneaking peeks at each other’s slate. But AI has taken avoiding the work of writing to a new, shiny level, and for the first time we are seeing fellow academics hopping on board with enthusiasm because no one wants to get caught behind the 8-ball like we all were with, um, practically everything involving the internet.
Because this newsletter is again stupid late, I am fresh back from Archon, where I was on not one but two panels about AI and the creative arts, which also delved into AI and journalism and AI in academia and the Terminator is stalking me through the mall as we speak. Quite often I feel like the lone voice crying in the wilderness about the dangers of AI, not just in terms of its ethics but what it portends for critical thinking skills and the linguistic arts. But then I spend some time with fellow writers, the majority of whom walk on my side of the street.
I think I will be writing more about this as I move forward. It’s an odd feeling to be able to take a stand on divisive issues, after spending most of my professional life compartmentalizing my opinions to avoid the appearance of bias. But there are some subjects on which I can and should speak, including AI and book banning, which was the other topic on which I ran my mouth in Archon panels.
I wore my T-shirt that reads “I survived reading banned books and all I got was smarter.” I think I need an equivalent shirt for AI.
Publicity/Appearances
Of course, Archon is the big one this month, but it just ended! And it was a barrel of monkeys, folks. We had so much fun. We had seven Literary Underlords on site – almost eight, but one had a family emergency and couldn’t join us. Between the Underlords and our assorted Minions, the booth was well-staffed and did brisk business. In fact, it was the best-selling Archon we’ve had since I started keeping detailed records a decade ago.
Of course, we also brought the Literary Underworld Traveling Bar. “But wait, I thought you couldn’t get a hotel room??” Yes, as of a week before the event we didn’t have a room, but thanks to the intervention of Important People, we were able to get a room and bring the bar. We are very grateful to the concom and to the other room party people who made multiple efforts to help us out.
The Traveling Bar is always a popular feature, and our fans were asking about it at the booth from the moment we opened up shop on Friday afternoon. On Friday night, we opened our doors at 9 p,m, and I began serving drinks. My poor arm did not stop moving until 12:30, when I declared a five-minute union break and rested… so that I could get back to work and pour more drinks. One visitor said, “You’re the hardest-working person at Archon,” and this is demonstrably not true as the concom does far, far more work than me. But I appreciated the sentiment (and the tips).
Also: When I did the pre-con shopping for the very best in bottom-shelf Wal-mart liquor, I discovered this abomination:
I just took a picture of it because I thought it was funny. But 70-odd Facebook comments later, I dispatched The Man back to buy it (under his vehement protest) and stocked it on the bar.
They drank the whole bloody thing, folks. There was a succession of “dare you to” and lineups of people bolting shots with revolted expressions, but they drank it. Videos will be forthcoming when I catch up on my sleep (so, November?).
Also this past month: We hosted the Society of Professional Journalists Boot Camp, where I spoke on the practical application of the SPJ Code of Ethics and on freelancing for fun and profit. It was a highly successful Boot Camp with a great batch of young journos meeting with our terrific pros.
Coming up later in October: I’ll be speaking at The Bewitching Hours in Granite City, Ill. on Oct. 12, hosted by the Friends of Six-Mile Library. I’ll be doing a short reading and Q&A along with a handful of other spooooky authors, and we’ll all have our books for sale. I still haven’t figured out what I will read that is safe for all ages, as there possibly will be youngsters in the room and I do not wish to be responsible for their therapy bills.
(Now am I mystery, mayhem or mischief? Don’t answer that.)
Finally: Contra in Kansas City will be Oct. 25-27. I’m a tad nervous about this one as I am minion-less, and books are heavy. But Contra is always a great time, the people are friendly, and I get to run my mouth about book banning and the First Amendment. Rawr.
Added to the schedule: I’m delighted that the proposal for a caucus panel on adjunct teaching was accepted for the Association of Writers and Writing Programs conference for next spring. This will be my third AWP and my first as a presenter, and I am so glad to be able to participate. It also means a trip to Los Angeles in March, which is always a fun time and a healthy dose of nostalgia for me, as many of my family lived there when I was young.
As you can see, bookings for 2025 are starting to swarm. I am open to speaking engagements and conventions, but I book well in advance, so if you want me to come to your library, book club, literary festival or convention, contact kyates@donaldmedia.com.
2024 calendar: • The Mill, Granite City, Ill. Oct. 12 • ContraKC, Kansas City, Mo. Oct. 25-27
2025 calendar: • Writers of the Riverbend, Alton, Ill. Feb. 8 (tent.) • Conflation, St. Louis, Mo. Feb. 21-23 • Midsouthcon, Memphis, Tenn. March 21-23 • AWP Los Angeles, March 26-30 • SPJ Regional Conference, Milwaukee, April 11-13 (tent.) • ConCarolinas, Charlotte, N.C. May 30-June 1 (tent.) • Imaginarium, Louisville, Ky. July 18-20
Journalism
This section is thinner while I’m in the teaching marathon, but it looks like spring will be lighter and I’ll be able to do more nonfiction after the new year.
Note: Not all articles are available online, and some may be behind paywalls.
Fiction
We have a tentative release date for Blackfire Rising, which is the compendium of all the Blackfire stories to date and some new ones as we relaunch the series with Falstaff Books! I’m delighted to be part of the Falstaff Misfits, as our Fearless Leader likes to call us, and I am looking forward to inflicting Major Sara Harvey and her band of miscreants on new readers. Blackfire Rising compiles all the previously published novels, novellas and short stories in the series into one volume, including The Cold Ones, Blackfire, Yanaguana and more. Think of it as the author’s preferred edition, and I can’t wait for you to meet the new characters joining Sara on her misadventures. It looks like Blackfire Rising will hit the shelves in March, so more on this one as we confirm dates, get cover art and begin preorders!
The ebook for Dreadmire was a freebie for paid Patreon subscribers, and I recently found that some folks didn’t get their ebook. All Patreon subscribers should have received a message from me, but just in case: if you are a Patreon subscriber and didn’t get your ebook, message me ASAP and I’ll get it to you. Dreadmire is, of course, available on Amazon and Literary Underworld in ebook and dead-tree versions, the latter of which is especially apropos if you’ve read it.
I also have a limited supply of the 2024 St. Louis Writers Guild Member Anthology and the December 2023 edition of parABnormal Magazine, both of which have pieces by me, so snag them while you can!
Patreon/Medium/Blogs
Did you know that Patreon subscribers not only get at least one free ebook a year, but you get a 10 percent discount from me and The Literary Underworld? For the latter, that applies to all books, not just mine! For a dollar a month, you really can’t beat it. Just be sure to remind us at the booth as we do not have the subscriber list memorized. If you’re not a subscriber, the base level is $1 a month! You should totally join.
Note: Patreon entries are indexed going back to its launch in 2018. I wanted new Patrons to be able to easily find the work that they’ve missed, and hopefully seeing how much work is on the Patreon might encourage some good folks to subscribe. (Hint, hint.) Seriously, subscriptions start at $1 a month, and I truly believe some of the best work I’ve ever done is on the Patreon. Check out the index here.
Photography
News photography was mostly the Labor Day parade slated above, and the cosplay at Archon that will be featured on the Literary Underworld and Elizabeth Donald blogs when I get my act together.
Almost all of the images in the galleries are available for purchase, so if you see something you like that isn’t in the store, email kyates@donaldmedia.com and we’ll get you a quote. A few might not be available for purchase due to copyright issues.
Holy late newsletters, Batman! Remember when I told you folks that I was a tad overcommitted for the fall? I wasn’t kidding. I ended up with nine classes at three universities for the fall, and that’s at least three to four more classes than any sane person should try to teach and four to five more than a full-time professor would teach.
Thus I am now deeply embroiled in 12-14-hour days, seven days a week, spinning plates to keep up all my classes and do right by my students. I’m also still freelancing, running my volunteer programs and doing fiction in the wee hours, though they’ve kind of taken a back seat to this glut of work. I’m hopeful that next spring, I’ll be able to achieve a bit more equilibrium.
Also, buy stock in coffee.
Publicity/Appearances
The big event was Dragoncon, which was a blast and chronicled on the Patreon. The most popular cosplays were Beetlejuice and Deadpool/Wolverine, but there were still plenty of Barbies, a startling number of Indiana Jones and even Olympics cosplay, which I found hysterical. The nonchalant shooting Olympian was the most popular among those, and kudos to the guy who used a banana instead of a fake gun.
(The Jedi Musketeers)
My panels included “Igniting the Horror Muse,” where horror authors reveal how we get in the right mindset to scare you pantsless; an urban-fantasy panel on vampire fun; “The Adventure Begins,” a writing craft panel on developing ideas and getting started; “101 Fascinating Ways to Kill Off a Character” (no idea how I ended up on that one… *halo*); another horror panel, this time focused on craft; a panel on writing from myths and legends; and of course a reading and a signing. The reading was unintentionally hilarious as I had about five people and then in the last five minutes, this huge legion of people came in. No, they were not there to hear the end of “Azrael“; I was apparently the warmup act for John Scalzi. Dangit.
Coming up: We have still been unable to snag a hotel room for Archon. A dozen attempts and pleas to the management and the convention have been unsuccessful. (We know there is construction going on, there’s no blame, to be clear. According to the hotel management, the room block sold out in two hours.) We will be there and the Literary Underworld will have our usual booth, so drop by there if you’d like to see us. Alas, no room party with the Traveling Bar unless a miracle happens.
Also pending: The Society of Professional Journalists Boot Camp, where I’ll be presenting on the SPJ Code of Ethics. That’ll happen on Sept. 21, and it’s always a highlight of the year for St. Louis SPJ.
Added to the schedule: I’ll be speaking at The Bewitching Hours in Granite City, Ill. on Oct. 12, hosted by the Friends of Six-Mile Library. I’ll be doing a short reading and Q&A along with a handful of other spooooky authors, and we’ll all have our books for sale. Now I have to think of something to read that is safe for all ages… something about bunnies and unicorns…
(Now am I mystery, mayhem or mischief? Don’t answer that.)
Also note that Contra in Kansas City has changed weekends and hotels. This actually makes it slightly more convenient for me, as I have a lot going on in early November. Follow their Facebook page for further details.
As you can see, bookings for 2025 are starting to fill. I am open to speaking engagements and conventions, but I book well in advance, so if you want me to come speak, contact kyates@donaldmedia.com.
2024 calendar: • SPJ Boot Camp, Edwardsville, Ill. Sept. 21 • Archon, Collinsville, Ill. Oct. 4-6 • The Mill, Granite City, Ill. Oct. 12 • ContraKC, Kansas City, Mo. Oct. 25-27
2025 calendar: • Conflation, St. Louis, Mo. Feb. 21-23 • Midsouthcon, Memphis, Tenn. March 21-23 • AWP Los Angeles, March 26-30 (tent.) • ConCarolinas, Charlotte, N.C. May 30-June 1 (tent.) • Imaginarium, Louisville, Ky. July 18-20
Journalism
Note that after this month, this section may get thinner while I’m in the teaching marathon.
Dreadmire is live and roaming the earth! Click the image to buy the book, and if you’re interested in a free sample from my dark romp through the swamp, click here!
The ebook for Dreadmire was a freebie for paid Patreon subscribers, and I recently found that some folks didn’t get their ebook. All Patreon subscribers should have received a message from me, but just in case: if you are a Patreon subscriber and didn’t get your ebook, message me ASAP and I’ll get it to you.
I also have a limited supply of the 2024 St. Louis Writers Guild Member Anthology and the December edition of parABnormal Magazine, both of which have pieces by me, so snag them while you can!
• “Run Rabbit Run,” a short story on Patreon • “Azrael,” a short story on Patreon
I will have something else to announce shortly, but until it’s confirmed, mum’s the word. #vaguenewslettering #isthataword #itisnow #hashtagsoutofcontrol
Patreon/Medium
Did you know that Patreon subscribers not only get at least one free ebook a year, but you get a 10 percent discount from me and The Literary Underworld? For the latter, that applies to all books, not just mine! For a dollar a month, you really can’t beat it. Just be sure to remind us at the booth as we do not have the subscriber list memorized. If you’re not a subscriber, the base level is $1 a month! You should totally join.
• Recovering Journalist (Medium) • Bookworm (Medium) • Labor Day (Patreon) • Review: You Like It Darker by Stephen King (Patreon) • Reading: Adults only, and only what we say (Patreon) • The second shift (Patreon) • Dragoncon Day 1 (Patreon) • Dragoncon Day 2 (Patreon) • Dragoncon Day 3 (Patreon) • Draggin-con Day 4 (Patreon)
Note: Patreon entries are indexed going back to its launch in 2018. I wanted new Patrons to be able to easily find the work that they’ve missed, and hopefully seeing how much work is on the Patreon might encourage some good folks to subscribe. (Hint, hint.) Seriously, subscriptions start at $1 a month, and I truly believe some of the best work I’ve ever done is on the Patreon. Check out the index here.
Photography
This month’s photography was mostly cosplay at Dragoncon! It was quite a challenge to catch people with a cell phone camera while driving a scooter, as chronicled on Patreon.
Almost all of the images in the galleries are available for purchase, so if you see something you like that isn’t in the store, email kyates@donaldmedia.com and we’ll get you a quote. A few might not be available for purchase due to copyright issues.
That’s it for this month! Tune in next time, same Bat-time, same Bat-channel.
I wish I could just sail through Dragoncon reveling in the mass creative energy and joyful nerdery on display in Atlanta this weekend, as 100,000 people celebrate the art and artists that bring joy to their lives.
But that joy isn’t coming to Christian County, Mo. this week. Any book with LGBTQ+ content will be labeled with a warning, as will books with violence and sexual content. Apparently the simple fact of being gay qualifies as equal to pornography or violence in Christian County.
And yes, being labeled qualifies as censorship, as Book Riot details this month. With labeling comes “anyone under 18 can’t access this,” and so on. The argument for book banning in schools has often been, “it’s not banned when you can go get it in the library.” Even more obtuse is “it’s not banned, you can go buy it at a bookstore or Amazon.” Setting aside the number of extremists pushing for booksellers to be prosecuted for selling suspicious books, that also keeps a large swath of literature in the hands of the wealthier American. If you’re poor and want to read Sula, you’re out of luck.
Greenville County S.C. is killing the school book fairs because they can’t figure out how to censor them properly and the public library is moving all books that mention transgender to the adult section. Katy, Texas has banned all books about gender fluidity from school libraries. Fort Bend, Texas has granted the superintendent unilateral authority to ban books. Dubuque, Iowa has banned 50 more books, including I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou.
Rutherford County, Tenn. has a list of challenges to consider this week, including some of the usual suspects. Their proposed bans are Beloved by Toni Morrison, The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, Wicked by Gregory Maguire, Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi, Skin and Bones by Sherry Shahan, and Queen of Shadows and Tower of Dawn by Sara J. Maas. At least they’re determined to actually read the books before they ban them, unlike the ones relying on AI and a list compiled by far-right activists to decide their “local standards.” Also considering bans are Oshkosh Public Schools in Wisconsin and the Arkansas State Library Board.
St. Joseph, Mo. opted not to ban The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison, and the banners are big mad. El Paso, Colo. students now have to have parents opt in to letting them use the library at all. Moms for Liberty (yeah, they’re still here) is suing Clyde-Savannah Central School district for not banning books they don’t like.
Ketchikan Public Schools in Alaska have banned What Girls Are Made Of, another Alaska library board member literally said “burn it” when opting to remove Identical by Ellen Hopkins from the library, and an Oklahoma teacher lost her teaching license for giving students a QR code to allow them to borrow banned books from the Brooklyn Public Library. And the Baltimore city school board ended its meeting when a so-called “book-banning pastor” from North Carolina showed up to speak.
But the winner this month is the library in Monroe County, Ga., which is moving all LGBTQ books to the adult section, so you have to be 18 or older to read the picture book Heather Has Two Mommies.
What makes them special? They shared this gem from a local op-ed: “On what planet could you say that LGBT books in the kids’ area are ‘neutral,’ or morally equal to Christian books? I mean, if you put LGBT books in the youth section, you’re necessarily, by definition, an anti-Christian library. No serious believer in the Bible would ever allow such.”
Now, they didn’t write it, but they shared it. This, by the way, is a PUBLIC library. Not a school. The op-ed comes from the Monroe County Reporter, and was literally titled “Some books need burning.” I could not get the whole text, since I’d have to sign up for the Monroe County Reporter and I am not in that headspace, thanks. Book Riot’s Literary Activism newsletter handled that so I don’t have to.
Extra credit goes to Virginia state Sen. Chris Head, who is “deeply troubled” by some books in the Botetourt County Library – not school, public. He subscribes to the “it’s not banned if you can buy it online” school, and is deeply troubled by a book about menstruation. Horrors!
Finally, no roundup would be complete without Florida. Many thanks to Book Riot for finding this gem: “A woman complained to Brevard Public Schools that a graphic novel’s depiction of a gay relationship could cause compulsive masturbation in middle schoolers.” The book, by the way, was found not to violate Florida’s statutes but was banned anyway.
And New College of Floridadecided to dump every book from the newly-disbanded Gender and Diversity Center into a dumpster. Everything from Jewish folk tales to a history text on same-sex unions in pre-modern Europe went into the trash.
This is only a selection of book-censorship items crossing my inbox this week, and that’s just the stuff I see. Imagine how much more is out there that I missed, or that Book Riot missed, or that didn’t get wider news coverage because the drumbeat is so constant now. I want to run through the halls shouting, “They’re coming for the books!” But I’m not sure anyone would look up.
Below is the schedule set for me at Dragoncon this year. I am deep in the creepy-crawlies this time, with lots of fun among the horror writers. Friday is my busiest day, spending most of the day at the Westin hotel, then the author Gather that evening. Meetups will probably be on Saturday, as I apparently have much of the daytime free! That never happens…
I will have books with me at my reading, signing and Gather. I am also happy to meet up with folks, but advance notice helps! I am flying to Dragoncon and can only bring a limited supply, so if you want to get something in particular from me, contact me in advance and I’ll reserve it for you.
See you in Atlanta!
Title: Igniting the Horror Muse Description: Authors are always asked where they get their ideas from. Join us as we pick the brains of our horror author panelists to learn how they get in the right mind to craft their fiction and unleash their chilling tales. Panelists: Jessi Ann York(M), Darrell Z. Grizzle, Elizabeth Donald, Brent Abell, Trisha J. Wooldridge Time: Fri 10:00 am Location: Peachtree 1-2 Westin (Length: 1 Hour)
Title: Creatures of the Night or Your Next Door Neighbors? Vampires in Urban Fantasy Description: Vampire characters in urban fantasy vary from those that seek to blend in with human society to the scary monsters everyone fears. Our panel of authors will discuss the depictions they use in their work and why they chose that type over another. Panelists: J.D. Monroe, Elizabeth Donald, Clay Shepard Griffith, Jeaniene Frost, Drew Hayes, Jennifer Morris(M) Time: Fri 01:00 pm Location: Chastain 1-2 Westin (Length: 1 Hour)
Title: Author Signing Authors: Z W Taylor, D.R. Perry, Kim Harrison, Drew Hayes, Elizabeth Donald Time: Fri 04:00 pm Location: Overlook Westin (Length: 1 Hour)
Authors Gather!
Hyatt International Ballroom
Time: Fri 08:00 pm to midnight
Title: The Adventure Begins Description: New writers always ask “Where do you get your ideas?” Or “How do I get started writing a book or story?” The years of experience racked up by our panel discussion will answer some of these questions–and more. Panelists: Bill Fawcett(M), D.B. Jackson, Elizabeth Donald, Richard Fierce, James Palmer, Todd McCaffrey Time: Sat 05:30 pm Location: Embassy EF Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
Title: 101 Fascinating Ways to Kill off a Character. Description: Readers love a good killin’–if it’s done in an interesting way. Panelists discuss some not-so-common ways they’ve killed characters or favorite authors have killed characters. Panelists: John Robinson(M), L. Marie Wood, Darin Kennedy, Darrell Z. Grizzle, Bob McGough, Elizabeth Donald Time: Sat 10:00 pm Location: Embassy EF Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
Title: Thrills and Chills Just Keep on Comin’ Description: Everybody (almost) loves a good scare. What can writers do to make their thriller and horror novels more scary? Are readers tired of the same old stuff? Where does your inspiration come from? How do you get it written down? Panelists: Nancy Knight(M), Ernest Dempsey, Richard Lee Byers, Rachel A. Brune, James A. Hunter, Elizabeth Donald Time: Sun 11:30 am Location: Embassy EF Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
Title: Reading Session Description: Hmmm, what shall I read… Panelists: Elizabeth Donald Time: Sun 01:00 pm Location: Marietta Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
Title: From Myth to Magic in Fiction Description: Where do your novels/stories come from? Many come from myths or legends. Explore how tapping into this rich source can elevate your fiction. Panelists: DL Wainright, Jody Lynn Nye, Elizabeth Donald, Nancy Northcott, Bill Fawcett(M), Kaitlin Bevis Time: Mon 11:30 am Location: Embassy EF Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
When I was a kid in Massachusetts, school started after Labor Day. I was floored when my family moved to Baltimore, where classes began at the end of August, and then to Tennessee, where school inexplicably opened by the middle of August and where did my summer go?
I have friends whose kids are now starting school in the first week of August, and it’s so hot here in the sunny Midwest that I can’t imagine trying to pay attention to algebra while ducking those ugly sunbeams. Then again, I can’t really imagine paying attention to algebra in the first place, as my junior-high report cards will indicate.
Being out of grad school and also not having any kids in school anymore, I still find that back-to-school mentality settling in, and I’m not just talking about the terror of developing a syllabus for eight (8) separate English comp classes. Look out, freshmen: apparently I am teaching all of you this year.
Walmart aisles are filled with black-and-white composition books, glue sticks and No. 2 pencils. (Has anyone ever seen a No. 1 pencil? Okay, Google says it’s a soft lead more often used by artists and this is what happens when you set a reporter on a simple essay…) My inbox is full of “fun lunch ideas” from the cooking sites that look like they’d take more time to prepare than a full dinner with sides. Ads are full of folders and highlighters and notebooks and calendars and planners and a plethora of other objects that make us think we can learn something and organize our lives.
One of the most fun activities of the year for me and my son was the annual trip to buy school supplies. He always wanted superheroes on his lunchbox and notebook covers, and he acquired a mystifying fondness for mechanical pencils that has lasted into his adulthood. I could throw no stones, however, because I fell in love with the PaperMate Write Bros. pen at my first newsroom and have stocked it to the exclusion of all else throughout my career.
It’s funny, the things we latch on to.
As school looms (too early!) and panicked professors put away their research and knitting to drag out the syllabus again, I find myself wanting to buy school supplies. With three (3) offices and potentially four, I have no shortage of supply closets to raid, and yet I find myself cruising for the particular cubicle calendar, that one notebook that is going to be the saving grace of the Fall Chaos and make sense of the schedule, the lecture, the pile of grading lying in wait.
Recently, when cruising through Walmart’s endless cardboard display bins of big fat toddler crayons and erasable markers, I was hit with a wave of nostalgia for shopping with the excited little boy who needed that Blue’s Clues pencil holder and a multicolored nap mat for kindergarten.
As I searched through the pens, a mother with three little ones was trying to corral the herd to pick out their notebooks, and the kids darted in front of my scooter. She apologized and I assured her it was fine.
She gave me a harried mother’s smile and said, “Can you tell we’re really over this?”
I smiled back and said, “And here I was just thinking, I wish I could be doing it again.”
“Oh god, really?” the poor mom exclaimed. To be fair, I never had three at once.
“Yup. You’ll miss it one day, believe it or not,” I said, and wished them well as I got out of their way.
Publicity/Appearances
It was a busy month for going places and talking, which is pretty much my full-time life these days. In July, I spoke to TechWrite STL about learning as a lifelong endeavor, not only for us as writers but as human beings and citizens. It went very well, considering that many of them already have multiple degrees and understand the psychological benefits of continuing education beyond the career implications.
I also spoke to the St. Louis Writer’s Guild at their community partners fair, presenting on the Eville Writers and the Literary Underworld. It’s my honor to run both groups, and I was warmly welcomed by the Writers Guild, of which I have been a member for a few years but hadn’t yet made an in-person meeting. It was great to meet them in person and talk shop with people who understand the creative life.
Of course, the big event of the month was Imaginarium. Jim and I sojourned to Louisville, and Jim was primarily booth babe this year because he forgot to fill out his guest author paperwork. We had a few laughs over that, but since I was doing a lot of panels and workshops, it worked out for the better. I presented a workshop on taxes and money management for freelance writers, another workshop on “The Art of Legal Prostitution: Selling Your Books at Cons and Shows,” and a literary lecture on Edgar Allan Poe and “The Raven,” which was surprisingly popular as a much more academic subject than we usually see. I also appeared on a panel about AI and ethics – I behaved myself – and another on literary fiction, which meant that I got to trot out the MS in media theory AND the MFA in the same weekend. Spoiler alert: I did not win the screenplay competition, but I had a great time nonetheless! A full write-up is linked below on Patreon.
As I’m running a tad late, the first event of August has already happened: I spoke to the Glen Carbon Public Library’s writing group about the MFA and its benefits for writers. There’s a lot of misconceptions about the MFA and the process, and I enjoyed sharing my experience with the group.
Also coming up shortly: Dragoncon! I’ve had the wrong dates on the newsletter for the last um seven months or so, but they’ve been corrected and my flights are for the right weekend, thank Zod. I’m looking forward to a return to Hotlanta and will be participating in the author Gather on Friday night, if you’d like to pick up some books from me. I will also have a reading and signing (TBA) and would be glad to meet you!
For other events in the fall: We have still been unable to snag a hotel room for Archon. We will still be there and the Literary Underworld will have our usual booth, but unless we can book a room in the host hotel, there will be no room party. We are as disappointed as you are! But we will still be there.
Also note that Contra in Kansas City has changed weekends and hotels. This actually makes it slightly more convenient for me, as I have a lot going on in early November. Follow their Facebook page for further details.
2024 calendar: • Plethora of Pens, Glen Carbon Public Library, Aug. 5 • Dragoncon, Atlanta, Ga. Aug. 29-Sept. 2 • SPJ Boot Camp, Edwardsville, Ill. Sept. 21 • Archon, Collinsville, Ill. Oct. 4-6 • ContraKC, Kansas City, Mo. Oct. 25-27
2025 calendar: • Conflation, St. Louis, Mo. Feb. 21-23 • Midsouthcon, Memphis, Tenn. March 21-23 (tent.) • AWP Los Angeles, March 26-30 (tent.)
Journalism
• Illinois and Missouri have vastly different approaches to child labor (St. Louis Labor Tribune) • Highland car crashes have doubled in a year. What police are doing about it (Highland News Leader) • Senators, steelworkers join to voice concerns over U.S. Steel purchase (St. Louis Labor Tribune) • National Police Association asking you for donations? Don’t fall for it (Yahoo News) • IFT names new political director to go after Tier 2 pension reform (St. Louis Labor Tribune) • Roadwork requires boil order for Highland neighborhood (Highland News Leader) • Gov. Pritzker, Labor leaders cut ribbon on Emerson Park safety center (St. Louis Labor Tribune) • Madison County workers’ memorial spared by giant sinkhole (St. Louis Labor Tribune) • Sinkhole reroutes Labor Day parade and picnic (St. Louis Labor Tribune) • A new Zen garden arises in Glik Park (Highland News Leader) • $21 million in new construction projects coming to Edwardsville (St. Louis Labor Tribune) • Korte Rec Center temporarily closes for renovations (Highland News Leader) • Labor, family and friends mourn Labor activist and steelworker David Dowling (St. Louis Labor Tribune)
Note: Not all articles are available online, and some may be behind paywalls.
Dreadmire is live and roaming the earth! Click the image to buy the book, and if you’re interested in a free sample from my dark romp through the swamp, click here!
I also have a limited supply of the 2024 St. Louis Writers Guild Member Anthology and the December edition of parABnormal Magazine, both of which have pieces by me, so snag them while you can!
Patreon/Medium
• Indiana Jones and the Real Blasphemy (Medium and Patreon) • The second shift (Patreon) • Freedom Day 2024 (Patreon) • It’s an honor just to be nominated (Patreon) • Imaginarium ahoy (Patreon) • Uber explorer (Patreon) • Recovering journalist (Patreon) • Bookworm (Patreon)
Note: Patreon entries are indexed going back to its launch in 2018. I wanted new Patrons to be able to easily find the work that they’ve missed, and hopefully seeing how much work is on the Patreon might encourage some good folks to subscribe. (Hint, hint.) Seriously, subscriptions start at $1 a month, and I truly believe some of the best work I’ve ever done is on the Patreon. Check out the index here.
Photography
As has been the last few months, most of my shoots have been on assignment for my freelance clients. Pending is a photo essay on Jefferson Barracks, as well as whatever I snag at Dragoncon…
Almost all of the images in the galleries are available for purchase, so if you see something you like that isn’t in the store, email kyates@donaldmedia.com and we’ll get you a quote. A few might not be available for purchase due to copyright issues.
This weekend, Jim and I will be heading to Louisville, Ky. for Imaginarium. We are looking forward to seeing old friends and meeting new folks, talking up the craft and hopefully selling some books.
Jim is booth babe this time around, plus or minus a crop top. I, however, have a solid schedule, listed below:
The Art of Legal Prostitution: Selling Your Stuff at Cons and Festivals (solo workshop, 12p Friday)
AI and Ethics in Every Medium (panel, 8p Friday)
Death, Taxes and Freelancing: Managing Money for Working Writers (solo workshop, 11:30a Saturday)
Nevermore: Edgar Allan Poe and The Raven (solo lecture, 4p Saturday)
Literary Fiction (panel, 11:30a Sunday)
In addition, my screenplay based on “The Train” is one of 15 finalists for the Imadjinn Film Festival Awards. We opted not to get banquet tickets since we are flat broke this year, but will definitely attend the awards part of the ceremony to see if I win.
I promise to behave myself on the AI panel.
Seriously, I’m looking forward to chatting about these topics, and excited that I get to give the MFA a workout with some of these presentations.
Of course, we are bringing the Literary Underworld Traveling Bar. We’ll be open Friday and Saturday nights, with me on the bar and Jim as the bouncer. He’s tough, so behave yourselves. I mean, as much as you ever do. Weirdos.
After the convention, we’re taking a side trip up to Cincinnati to meet our new grandbaby, so don’t expect too much in the way of intelligent posting for the next several days. Don’t burn down the internet while we’re gone or I will turn this van around so help me.
You know you’re in The Hill the moment you get off the major roads and enter the Italian-heritage neighborhood of St. Louis. Suddenly all the restaurants and other businesses have Italian names, the crosswalks and fire hydrants are painted red-white-green in the colors of the Italian flag, and you are suddenly aware that everywhere around you is good food.
In the middle of this is Shaw’s Coffee, a charming little coffeehouse in what used to be the Riggio Bank, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. There’s even a private room with comfy chairs for four in the former safe deposit box. The ceiling is either the original restored tin ceiling with starred imprints or a very nice facsimile, and a few items on the menu reflect the Italian ambience of the neighborhood.
The rest is very much coffeehouse, with greenery (including full trees) more reflective of the tropical regions from which the coffee comes. I’ve rarely seen such a wide variety of coffee origins: you can get a whole bean bag from all across the Americas, the Pacific Rim and Africa, and the menu lists them by country of origin.
The drinks themselves are fairly standard, with a caffe mocha made with Ghiradelli catching my attention because I’m a sucker for an afternoon mocha. They have the usual Americanos, macchiatos and so on, with matcha and chai featured on the tea menu. But the beans make it special: they roast their own in the dark European style, and if you’re adventurous enough to roast your own, you can get green beans from them.
The regular menu is supplemented with Italian and French sodas, smoothies, and frozen coffee drinks. Actual food options are pretty slight: there’s quiche and kolaches (from St. Louis Kolache) on the menu and a few pastries, but it’s definitely not a lunch place. There are pastries provided by Sugaree, including scones and muffins, bagels from Companion and the cannoli are made fresh in house.
I chose a cannoli, in deference to the neighborhood, and an iced mocha that really hit the spot on a warm summer afternoon. The cannoli was lightly chilled but not frozen, which has been the case for many coffeehouse cannoli in the past. The ricotta was perfectly balanced in sweetness, though without the cherries and mini chocolate chips I prefer for my cannoli. One side of the shell was coated in chocolate, and of course it fell apart when I ate it because cannoli.
So as a coffeehouse where you might meet to chat, it gets great marks. But what about for writers?
Seating was available despite an inexplicable amount of dining room space taken up with a huge display of coffee bags and what looks like an older counter – perhaps for the whole bean sales? It’s hard to say. There’s also a nifty display of a giant coffee roaster, which looks too old-fashioned to be of use, but what do I know?
At first I was dismayed at the seating, as the tables clustered near the barista counter were those dreadful cafe-height glass tables. Now honestly: I know some people are more capable of perching on those stools than others, but does anyone actually prefer them? I can’t sit in them with my joint issues, but even when I was young and spry, I always disliked them. My nightmare scenario is showing up for a reading or signing and facing one of those damned stools on which I must perch like a damned bird.
Fortunately, that was only a handful of the tables. The other half of the coffeehouse was very pleasant, with a plethora of small tables and comfortable chairs. There are two booths in the front windows with padded benches, for those who want to look out on the neighborhood while they sip their coffee.
The wifi is free and mostly reliable, and the music was low and unobtrusive, but also familiar: Billy Joel, Meat Loaf, songs of my youth. You will definitely get to hear every detail of the next table’s conversation, but it’s low-key enough that it’s not overly distracting (and that’s why God invented earbuds).
In all, I enjoyed Shaw’s Coffee and got actual work done. It might lose a few points if those cafe-height tables were the only seating available, but gains them back for the other side of the room and the nifty vault room. It does lose a few more for closing at 4 p.m. in my ongoing search for non-Starbucks coffee available after sundown. But it gains a lot of points for ambience and energy, for a startling variety of coffee choices, and being the only coffeehouse i’ve visited yet to have cannoli. Bene!
With the spring conferences done and the summer tour looming, it’s been kind of quiet here in the Tower. I’ve enjoyed this uncharacteristic spell of Not Traveling, being able to settle in and bake things and write things and… cough my lungs out?
Stupid bronchitis. This is why we can’t have nice things.
Fortunately that’s over with, though my singing voice is still a bit more Froggy the Gremlin than I care for. Summer has begun here in sunny Illinois, with the song of cicadas and the mugginess of a swamp. It could just be that I have swamps on the brain, as the anniversary release of Dreadmire will take place on June 18. Check the Fiction section below for more details, but if you planned to pre-order a signed copy, do so this week! I really love the cover and my book designer, Kody Boye, did such a fantastic job on this special edition. I hope you like it as much as I do! You’ll never look at mosquitoes the same way again…
Meanwhile, I am happy to report that my Relay for Life team has exceeded our goal of raising $3,000 for the American Cancer Society. Our local Relay celebration will take place this coming weekend, and we are looking forward to celebrating another year of birthdays for our cancer survivors. Click here if you would like to donate to my campaign. Together we can beat the Beast.
Publicity/Appearances Unfortunately I had to cancel my appearance on May 9 to discuss the evils of A.I. in news and publishing, thanks to the bronchitis. Rest assured that when I’m not sick, I will happily rant away about how A.I. is threatening democracy and the ability of writers to make a living.
Coming up this month is a return to the Collinsville Public Library, which is always one of my favorite locations. When I was a young reporter working for the Belleville News-Democrat, the Collinsville Library was just up the street a few blocks from my newsroom. There were many lunch breaks I spent in its quiet, cool lower level writing penny dreadfuls, and indeed some of my early novels were begun in that library. Thus it’s always a pleasant nostalgia to participate in their author and artist fairs. I’ll also be speaking to the National Federation of Professional Women this month, discussing opportunities and pitfalls in publishing.
I am hopeful to be able to set up an event or two in late June, as I will be traveling to Georgia and back and what is travel for if not to sell books? The details are still being worked out, so keep an eye on my Facebook and website. Meanwhile, I’m chagrined to find that the Edwardsville Book Festival, Archon, and AuthorCon St. Louis are all happening the same bloody weekend in October! I have not yet managed to perfect cloning myself, so we’ll see how that sorts itself out.
2024 calendar: • Collinsville Author and Artist Fair, Collinsville, Ill. June 15 • National Federation of Professional Women, St. Louis, Mo. June 20-22 • CAFE at Spine Books, St. Louis, Mo. July 7 • TechWrite STL, St. Louis, Mo. July 10 • St. Louis Writers Guild, St. Louis, Mo. July 13 • Imaginarium, Louisville, Ky. July 19-21 • Plethora of Pens, Glen Carbon Public Library, Aug. 5 • Dragoncon, Atlanta, Ga. Sept. 5-9 • Archon, Collinsville, Ill. Oct. 4-6
Journalism I was happy to add new client Hearst Corp. to my roster this month with my first byline in the Edwardsville Intelligencer, which is kind of funny since I’ve been living in and covering Edwardsville for nearly a quarter century. This means I officially do some level of work for all three major news chains in our area: Hearst, Lee, and McClatchy. One more and I get bingo!
Fiction A reminder that preorders are about to close for the re-release of Dreadmire in its 15th anniversary edition! Read here to find out more.And if you’re interested in a free sample from my dark romp through the swamp, click here!
I also have received a limited supply of the 2024 St. Louis Writers Guild Member Anthology and the December edition of parABnormal Magazine, both of which have pieces by me, so snag them while you can!
Patreon/Medium • Nevermore (Medium) • Words that lead us into mystery (Medium) • Review: The First Omen (Patreon) • Review: The Thing Around Your Neck by Chimamanda Adichie (Patreon) • Poem: Once I was a girl (Patreon) • Panic, caffeine and spite (Patreon)
Note: Patreon entries are indexed going back to its launch in 2018. I wanted new Patrons to be able to easily find the work that they’ve missed, and hopefully seeing how much work is on the Patreon might encourage some good folks to subscribe. (Hint, hint.) Seriously, subscriptions start at $1 a month, and I truly believe some of the best work I’ve ever done is on the Patreon. Check out the index here.
Photography As has been the last few months, most of my shoots have been on assignment for my freelance clients. But I do occasionally get to go see pretty things…
• Sculpture roll: Laumeier Sculpture Park (Patreon)
Almost all of the images in the galleries are available for purchase, so if you see something you like that isn’t in the store, email kyates@donaldmedia.com and we’ll get you a quote. A few might not be available for purchase due to copyright issues.
Photograph of the Month
This is Loretta Williams, a reenactor portraying labor leader Mother Jones at the annual Mother Jones Festival in Mt. Olive, Ill. The original Mother Jones insisted on celebrating her birthday on May Day (the original Labor Day) rather than August when she was actually born, and requested to be buried in Mt. Olive next to the miners who were killed in the Virden Massacre after the mine owners retaliated against their strike. Mother Jones was a fascinating person, and I was delighted to write a historical feature about her that will appear in the coming weeks.
While Politifact rates acts of fiction by public officials on a scale of True to Pants on Fire, WashPo uses the Pinocchios: how many wooden noses does it rank?
U.S. Sen. Katie Britt’s rebuttal to the State of the Union ranked four Pinocchios for bizarrely conflating a sex trafficking horror story with the policies of President Biden. WashPo dug in and found that the woman whose story she told – and who was brave enough to testify about the horrors she endured before Congress – was trafficked in Mexico, not over the border; had nothing to do with immigration but of a woman being tricked into sex slavery by a man she loved; and it took place in 2004-2008, which was during President George W. Bush’s tenure. It also had nothing to do with cartels, despite Britt’s later protestations that basically amounted to, “Facts? What facts?” Politifact also rated the claim false, with a great deal of detail.
Biden’s speech took a few hits from the fact-checkers. One I find a tad nitpicky: WashPo points out that Biden was comparing the massive job creation in his first three years to the full four years of his predecessors; “he has no idea what will happen in his fourth year!” Okay, but I think we all get that he’s not psychic. However, his inflation numbers are a tad… inflated? (sorry.) And there are a few other Pinocchios in the numbers on the wealthy and taxes because corporate/millionaire taxes are complex. The poor poor dears. Here’s the roundup from WashPo.
Elsewhere this week, ProPublica dove into railroad safety and how the Federal Railroad Administration…. er, doesn’t. More than 130 deaths of workers never even reported, with no consequences.
Reuters found the darker side of OnlyFans: more than 120 cases of people being featured in explicit videos without consent, including a woman who was raped and the video sold on the site. Cases of stalkers and revenge porn are on the rise on the site. What makes this different than YouTube or other places where human monsters post this kind of material? OnlyFans’ paywall makes it nearly impossible for law enforcement to do anything.
Government: A.I. could pose an extinction-level threat to people who aren’t writers. Writers are already there.
The Detroit Free Press found that the people of Flint, Mich. may have clean water now, but still haven’t received a dime of the $600m+ they were awarded in the lawsuits.
Editor and Publisher dug into the upcoming merger between Mother Jones and the Center for Investigative Reporting/Reveal.
The two McClatchy papers in the Seattle area are moving to printing only three days a week. I wish people would stop seeing these moves as death knells. In an era where more than 80 percent of readers get their news from a device, continuing print editions is clinging to nostalgia. The best explanation I ever heard for it came from a newspaper editor and colleague, who was asked the question by my students a few semesters ago. He told them that we all know the print edition is going the way of movable type, not that any of them knew what that is. But there is a generation that still prefers paper newspapers, and it would unethical to leave them without news at all. But not to put too fine a point on it, that generation won’t be around forever. One interesting legal point: can you be the paper of record if your publication is online only? Some lawyers and scholars say no, but what will they do for legal ads when everyone is online?
Sadly, the Online News Association is making major programming cuts, including its Student Newsroom and Innovation Lab. They point out that there are fewer journalists in the U.S. and fewer still with time and money for professional organizations. As one who has been deeply involved with the venerable Society of Professional Journalists throughout her career, I know this one well. Of ONA’s 51 chapters, 35 are inactive and only four have held an in-person event in the last year.
Meta is decommissioning CrowdTangle and replacing it with a similar tool that will only be available to academic and nonprofit researchers. Journalists not allowed. CrowdTangle has been widely used to follow viral spread of content, including misinformation and conspiracy theories, as well as figuring out what people are clicking so we can give them more of it.
Speaking of misinformation…. to the surprise of *checks notes* absolutely no one, OpenAI is completely ramping up election-year fakery with AI-generated robocalls, deepfake videos and images that are already making inroads overseas and in the U.S.
And now, This Week in Total Bullshit:
• U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene did NOT retweet and support allegations that satellites are intercepting prayer to Jesus. That was a spoof account.
• No, non-citizens still can’t vote, and you can’t bring in busfuls of undocumented immigrants to make them vote for you, which former President Trump has declared often over the past four years. How anyone can believe this staggers me. It’s worth noting that in other countries, non-citizens can vote if they own property, because taxation without representation is kind of a bad thing. We fought a teeny little revolution over it. But not here. Also, there are no ballot drop boxes along the U.S. border.
• The Texas wildfires were not started by a mysterious green laser. Insert your own alien attack meme here.
• No, the CDC did NOT declare that “COVID is just the flu” and I am so, so tired. Also, when your ranting uncle declares at Easter that the CDC found 99 percent of COVID deaths were due to other causes, that’s also total bullshit.
