My Performance at THE MOTH – Blue in the Face: Stories About Smoke

Back by popular demand (I think) is the story I performed for The Moth almost 10 years ago. Time flies and flutters like moths. If you don’t know The Moth it’s an amazing not-for-profit organization dedicated to the art and craft of storytelling that has been in existence since 1997. They recruited me to tell my story, a true one,  part of a theme, “Blue in the Face: Stories About Smoke.” Though the Moth works with you and rehearses you, I was still incredibly nervous though I hope it doesn’t show in this video.  

The Marijuana Chronicles Launch at St. Mark’s Bookstore

The launch for THE MARIJUANA CHRONICLES is just around the corner. (Why does that sound like you’re meeting your dealer?) How about… The launch is in the bag? Or… The launch will be a mellow affair. OK, I’ll stop. But come. Details are in the link but to recap: What: Marijuana Chronicles Launch Party When: June 25th, 7pm Where: St. Mark’s Bookshop, 31 Third Ave. (East Village) Many of the contributors will be there. Come meet Lee Child, Linda Yablonsky, Amanda Stern, me, and several others. Bring your friends, your family, your pot-smoking uncle and stoned nephew. Get a book signed by all of us then go down the block and get a tattoo, or just hang out (the store is open till midnight). With THE MARIJUANA CHRONICLES tucked under your arm your cool quotient has just gone up so who knows who you might meet. No question it’s going to an interesting night. http://www.akashicbooks.com/events/the-marijuana-chronicles-st-marks-bookshop-new-york-ny/ … Read more

The Plight of Crime Fiction Or Why Crime Fiction Writers Always Feel Bad

People often ask me why I choose to write crime fiction and I say it’s because it encompasses all the big human emotions – love, hate, greed, revenge, fear — as well as the basic moral questions of good and evil, and that’s more than enough for me. When people say, “I don’t read crime fiction at all,” as if they would not deign to waste their time or intelligence on something so trivial and clearly beneath them (it’s interesting to note that they have no problem saying this to me, a crime fiction writer), I say, “So, you’ve never read Crime & Punishment or An American Tragedy or Lolita or Poe or Chandler or Hammett or contemporary novels like Donna Tartt’s The Secret History or Richard Ford’s Canada or almost anything by Joyce Carol Oates, the “literary” list of crime fiction novels goes on and on. Frankly, I’m hard pressed to think of a … Read more

The Kiss Print Series – A New Edition of Artwork

I have a 8 piece series of prints titled “Kiss”.  They have been produced in editions of 40 each.  Contact me if you are interested in purchasing a set. You can view the prints here: “Marilyn and Elvis” “Picasso/Brancusi” “Superman/Lichtenstein “Times Square Rodin” “Couples” “Courbet/Eternity” “Desire” “Liz and Monty/Brokeback”      

Let’s Lunch “The Munchies”

The wonderful writer and cook Cheryl Tan invited me to contribute a recipe to her “Let’s Lunch” group in honor of The Marijuana Chronicles. So here goes, a recipe with a little commentary… With the publication of THE MARIJUANA CHRONICLES I think I’m getting a bad reputation. But hey, it’s better than no reputation. And putting that book together was so much fun. I mean Singapore stoners via Cheryl Tan? What could be better or more exotic? Or Lee Child’s stoner preparing for his drug trial by doing what else: getting stoned. Or Joyce Carol Oates’s middle class widow rushing head first into danger in pursuit of the weed or Linda Yablonsky’s cross-dressing, gun-toting hero or Amanda Stern’s touching coming of age pot story or 60s radical Raymond Mungo in pursuit of medical marijuana or Maggie Estep’s stoned zombie hookers. Yeah, you heard that right. I could go on, but let’s get to the munchies. … Read more

I’m Back! The Marijuana Chronicles, Inherit the Dead and more…

I’m back. Not that I was ever away, not from my life that is. (Though I sometimes dream of escaping, buying some secluded island like Marlon Brando did, but would I have to ruin my career and gain 200 pounds? First, I’d have to get a career like Brando’s, then make enough money to buy an island, two things that are highly unlikely, so… never mind.). What I meant was that I was away from my website, but now that it’s been rebuilt I’m going to stay current and I hope you’ll follow me. I’ll be updating my activities as a writer and artist, things I believe you will find interesting as opposed to what I’m having for breakfast or my afternoon snack (though you can ask if you really want to know). So, this past year, where to start? Maybe with the books I recently put together. The first, for Akashic Books, “The Marijuana … Read more

Celebrity Crime Files Intro

Check this out! It’s a combination of computer generated animation and my art.  I made the drawings that were used in this sequence for the television show Celebrity Crime Files on TV One network.  If you watch the sequence all the way through you will see my drawing of an unfortunate fellow who caught the business end of the bullet trajectory at the very end.  

Val McDermid Interviewed by Jonathan Santlofer at the Center for Fiction

The Scottish writer, Val McDermid is a dream interview, fast, funny, and filled with great stories. Frankly, I could listen to her beautiful lilting accent for hours and her advice about writing is just as beautiful. Like all of the terrific writers who come to Crime Fiction Academy this interview was only the 1st half of a great evening. The 2nd half continued upstairs with the CFA students only and was even more inspiring and more personal.