Yes, it has been a long time since my last update.  It’s not for lack of content either.  I’ve been very busy, and I’ve done things that would have made good blog entries.  I’ve just been lazy, overwhelmed with work, and beaten down by holiday obligations.  I promise to do better after the new year.

So, what have I been up to?  I gave a guest lecture at University of Texas where my books were assigned for a course on the history of capitalism.  I also visited Penn State as part of the Josephine Berry Weiss Interdisciplinary Humanities Seminar, which was a cool thing to be asked to participate in.  Shout out to Sean X. Goudie, the professor who brought me in for this, and bought me dinner at a very nice Thai restaurant in University Park, PA.  

More and more frequently I hear about my books being assigned in university courses, which I find especially gratifying.  Always nice to warp young minds.  One guy at Oberlin was talking about designing an entire course around my books, but I never heard back from him.  Maybe he thought better of it.

What else?  I have finally nailed down the script for the first issue of my new project with Marvel.  I am almost finished with the penultimate draft of my next novel.  I have my agent negotiating a deal for me to write an “illustrated novel” set in the 12^th century.  I’ve got another comics project I’m trying to get off the ground.  The film option for The Ethical Assassin expired, only to be replaced by a new film option for The Ethical Assassin, this one for money!  Getting money for movie rights?  Maybe the recession is over.

Oh, and the forthcoming zombie anthology in which I have a story was reviewed in Publishers Weekly today.  Dig who gets a nice mention.  Nice to see my swell pal Jonathan Maberry get singled out too. 

The New Dead Edited by Christopher Golden. St. Martin’s Griffin, $14.99 paper (400p) ISBN 978-0-312-55971-7

The 19 provocative, haunting, and genuinely unsettling original stories in this zombie anthology move the genre beyond its usual apocalyptic wastelands. David Liss’s novelette “What Maisie Knew” is a stunning and gruesome meditation on the banality of capitalism and evil. Mike Carey’s “Second Wind” is a haunting tale of an undead stockbroker who comes to question whether he ever truly lived. Lovers of more traditional zombie fare will also not be disappointed. Joe Hill’s ingenious “Twittering from the Circus of the Dead” tells a classic slasher film story through Twitter posts, while Jonathan Maberry’s heartbreaking “Family Business” describes a ruined America populated by kindly monks and zombie hunters. This powerful anthology shines a bright and unflinching light on the fears of death, decay, and loss that underpin America’s longstanding obsession with the undead. (Feb.)

Don't sell tainted milk!

I’ve been thinking a lot about the two men, a dairy farmer and a milk salesman, who were executed on Tuesday for their role in the tainted milk scandal in China.  You may recall that 30,000 people were sickened, and six died, from milk tainted with melamine – an industrial chemical none of us had ever heard of before.

Here’s the thing: we tend to look on these executions with distaste, a sign that China, despite its vibrant role in global capitalism, is still out of touch with Western ideas.  There can be no doubt that these executions, however, are in the service of capitalism.  They are indented as a sign that China takes its regulatory role seriously.  But still – executing people because of their business decisions doesn’t sit well with us here in the west.  It seems cruel and oppressive.  

Personally, I’m not a big fan of the death penalty.  I don’t know that I have anything against it on principle, but I tend to think it is deployed unjustly and haphazardly in the US.  Yet here, we would never think of executing businessmen for their decisions, even if those decisions resulted in death.  We punish businesses, not people, for these sorts of things.  No one went to jail for passing off Vioxx as a safe pain reliever, did they?  Yet the decision to do harm on a grand scale, in the service of profit, is made not by corporations but by people – people who make amoral decisions because they want to enrich themselves and their interests. 

I know what Shang-Chi would do.

In the US, we see killing another human being out of passion or malice or for that particular person’s wealth is reprehensible, but killing lots of people in order to promote the riches of a company, while certainly not good, is nowhere near as bad.  It is possible, however, that we may have it backwards.  Most people who commit murder are those who are emotionally out of control or who have adopted a lifestyle which takes them outside the law.  A deterrent isn’t gong to have much of an impact on such people.  On the other hand, those who commit industrial or corporate murder do so only because they believe they opportunity for profit outweighs the consequence of exposure.  Maybe the specter of lethal injection would make these guys think twice.

Me and a big star. I bask in his glory.

For almost ten years I have been in touch with a film producer named Tom Hodges (also an actor – fan boys and girls might remember him from his guest appearance on Deep Space Nine, season 5, episode 24; one of the best seasons, no?) about the prospect of adapting one of my novels. This book has been in and out of option – mostly in – during these years, but the rights have just reverted back to me after another producer crapped out. By freaky conincidence, Tom emailed me a couple of weeks ago to check in and to say that if I should happen to be in Ann Arbor in the next few weeks I should visit the set of a film he’s working on. As it happens, I was in Ann Arbor last week, so on a very cold Friday morning I hung out for a few hours of the set of Trust, starring Clive Owen and Catherine Keener, and directed by David Schwimmer.

Some of you might associate Schwimmer with his role on one of those big ‘90s sitcoms, which I never saw myself (though I recall fondly his stirring performance as Greenzo on 30 Rock, among many other things), but this film is no comedy. It’s a gritty drama about a man trying to track down the sexual predator who raped his daughter, and the one scene I witnessed was pretty powerful stuff. Hats off to Schwim (possibly “Schwimm”), says I, for making such a gutsy film.

Me and Clive Owen's Chair in a high school parking lot.

It turns out that neither Clive Owen nor Catherine Keener like to be photographed while on the set, lest their souls be stolen. They also don’t like to make chitchat with strangers, so I did not get to raise my charisma score by talking to them (though my ability to brave the Michigan cold speaks to my strong rolling in the constitution category, but I took a -1 penalty to wisdom). Still, I got to meet the director, who struck me as an all around good guy, and Tom himself, who was also a great guy and a pleasure to hang out with after ten years of emailing. Will this lead to a film deal? We’re talking the movie business here, so the answer is maybe. I may also start perspiring liquid gold. Still, you never know.  Gotta be in it to win it.  And all that.

Some pre-airport blogging.  I’m off within the hour for Michigan, where I’ll be speaking at the Jewish book fairs in Detroit and Ann Arbor.  I may also be visiting a film set there and talking to some people who may have some ideas about something I may have written.  I’m being vague.  In any case, I’m hoping at the very least to have some cool pictures to post when I get back.

It is also my hope that I’ll soon have some exciting news to hint at, but not actually reveal, regarding a new comics project.

And, finally, one of my readers complained that I never post updates on my writing.  The writing is going fine.  Thank you so much for asking.  The book in progress, The Darkening Green (all titles subject to alteration) is due in mid February for a spring, 2011 publication.  Right now everything is on track.

The Texas Book Festival went well, in case you were wondering.  My panel was a discussion with historian Jacqueline Jones, author of (most recently) Saving Savannah: The City and the Civil War, and we were to talk about different approaches to history.  Frankly, I was a little uptight about this.   First of all, it’s always tough to be in a public discussion with a historian, because most people have this idea in their heads that they are supposed to value non-fiction over fiction, and therefore the historian will always get more questions in the Q&A.  Plus, there are a few kinds of books you never want to share panel time with: primarily those on the Civil War, Word War II, or baseball.  And sometimes dogs.  You get the enthusiasts who come out, and the guy who writes about economic history ends up looking like a loser.  Fortunately, that did not happen.  The audience was pretty well packed with fiction people who had no particular interest in the Civil War, which is how I like them.  I always avoid novels on the Civil War, by the way, and World War II.  I like baseball books just fine.

Perfectly manicured female hand not included.

In other news, The Copper Bracelet, the audio-only multi-author thriller in which I was involved, is now the number one selling book on Audible.  I should do projects with Jeffrey Deaver more often.

And finally, some of my readers are suggesting I stop begging for a Kindle and start begging for the Barnes and Noble ebook reader, the Nook – which some say will be a Kindle killer.  What’s my move here?

If any of you, my beloved readers, are among the 1.7 million who live in the greater Austin, TX area, I hope you’ll come out to the Texas Book Festival this Saturday morning to hear my panel.  Historian Jacqueline Jones and I will be talking about different approaches to recreating history.  My session is at the same time as Richard Russo’s, so come on out and help me punk his turnout. 

Speaking of audiobooks, which is what I am now doing, today is the official release date of The Copper Bracelet.  This is (for the time being) an audio-only multi-author thriller which includes a chapter by this humble blogger.  It’s a sequel to a multi-author thriller called The Chopin Manuscript, which you don’t have to listen to first because (a) it is not a necessary prerequisite; and (b) I didn’t have a chapter in that one, so why bother?  The way it works is swell pal Jeffrey Deaver wrote the opening chapter, and then it got passed from author to author, each of us having two weeks to write our part and then pass it along to the next sucker.  At the end it goes back to Deaver for the final chapter.  Other contributors include many of my friends, friendly acquaintances, and people I’ve heard of, including Joseph Finder, Lee Child, John Gilstrap, Jim Fusilli and plenty more.  Head on over to Audible to find out more, listen to the first chapter for free, and slap down your hard earned cash.  It’s also available at the iTunes store.

This is the ’04, which looks a lot like the ’05 except for one small detail. Can you guess what it is?

And it’s been a while since I’d done a wine review, so I’m happy to report that good values in ’05 Bordeaux are still trickling in to Costco.  I picked up the Château Haut-Faugeres St. Émilion Grand Cru the other day for $20.99, and I’m here to say that this is an excellent value.  Those of you know me know that my inclination is usually toward Margaux and St.-Estephe, but if you’ve got a hankering for some beautifully structured, right bank action, this is your pup.  A big, enticing nose of blueberry, vanilla and cream.  Blueberry also dominates the taste, with undertones of prune, black cherry, cedar and floral and mineral notes.  I decanted for an hour before drinking, and at first sip I was impressed with great structure and balance.  Medium-bodied, good length.  I give it 90 points.  As always, my wine reviews and habits can be voyeuristically observed via my CellarTracker page.

Also, I’m having dinner with Junot Diaz tonight.

I'm blogging about my cat. That makes me cool!

My efforts to write a thoughtful blog entry are being squashed this new kitten we’ve adopted.  She’s very cute, which is nature’s way of keep me from killing her for walking all over my keyboard while I’m typing or biting my glasses while I’m trying to read. 

The New York Times also tells us that the Battle of Agincourt wasn’t really such a big deal, thus crushing your belief that Shakespeare always told the truth.  On top of that, it turns out that women who dress like men aren’t fooling anyone, and if men are deceived by them, they’re unlikely to marry these women once the secret is out.  Also, Flute and Bottom were probably gay.

It's a puzzlement.

Since shortly after my first novel was published, I’ve received occasional emails from people who want me to send them free books because they are sick or disabled or their child is sick or disabled.  At first I always did so, thinking I must be some kind of monster not to send a sick kid a wheelchair a novel about Jews in early modern Europe.  Lately I’ve taken to ignoring these emails.  I always wonder if it’s just a scam.  Even if it’s not, I don’t understand the impulse to ask strangers for free things,.  Plus it’s not like I have a mail room or a personal assistant or anything.  It’s not like asking for a free book from, I don’t know, Levi Johnston or something.  He can just have one of his peeps take care of it for him.  I, as I may have mentioned, have to haul my ass over to the post office.  That’s not nothing.

In the last week I’ve received two pleading emails from a man who says he’s undergoing massive cancer surgery, has no money, and wants me to send him books.  Something about it doesn’t feel quite right.  Still, I can’t help but feel it would be crappy not to send this guy books on the off chance he is telling the truth.  But even if he is telling the truth, he’s still some stranger who is asking me to haul my ass over to the post office and mail him some of my stuff for free.  I’d welcome your opinions on this.  What’s my move?

One concern is that if I don’t send this man books, he may curse me like Alison Lohman is cursed in Drag Me to Hell, which I watched last night. Like everyone out there who owns a Y chromosome, I love Sam Raimi’s films, and this was a good one.  Raimi is a guy whose projects so often radiate the sheer exuberant joy of telling a basic story in broad, effective strokes.  So, if you are wondering if you should see this movie, then you should, but some spoilers are coming, so be warned.

Surely we can all agree that profit and individual gain cannot be principles upon which a decent society are to be based. Let’s ask her.

Drag Me to Hell is essentially a gussied up B horror movie, of the sort that Raimi obviously loves so well, but it is also very smart and thoughtful take on our current economic situation.  Lohman plays a bank loan officer to whom an elderly Roma woman begs for a third extension on her mortgage.  Lohman can either help this woman or she can prove to her manager she’s tough enough to make nasty decisions.  She’s hoping for a promotion, so she refuses to grant the extension, the old woman goes apeshit, curses Lohman, and supernatural mayhem ensues.  Good stuff.

But here’s the thing.  The film goes out of its way to show that Lohman has the choice between doing the right thing and advancing her career.  Throughout the rest of the film, Lohman insists that it wasn’t her decision – that she was doing what her boss told her to do or that she did not have a choice.  Interestingly, toward the end of the film, she has the opportunity to save herself by cursing someone else, even someone who has done her harm, and she can’t bring herself to do it.  In other words, she still sees herself as a basically decent person, and on some level she is a basically decent person.  At the same time, it’s very easy to make horrible decisions when there is money in the balance rather than morality.  Yes, it’s an entertaining horror movie, but it’s also an interesting a subtle meditation on the dehumanizing effects of capitalism.  Also, it’s got eyeballs flying around everywhere and goats being sacrificed.  Cool.

So, Bouchercon is over, and a good time was had by all, even me, despite not winning the Macavity Award for best historical – probably because they didn’t want to give it to a Jew.  That’s my running theory.  I also somehow didn’t get handed a free Kindle by anyone.  I can’t tell you how many conferences I’ve gone to without someone giving me a free Kindle.  It is beginning to get me down.  And while I’m complaining, how about the fact that they spelled my name wrong on my panel.  All of which makes me wonder if I didn’t win the Macavity because they don’t like to give it to complainers. 

I bet they didn't spell Sue Grafton's name wrong.

But, there are lots of things to cheer about, including the fact that I caught up with many friends, including Joseph Finder, Mark T. Sullivan, Kenneth Wishnea, Kelli Stanley, John Gilstrap, and lots of others I’m probably forgetting.  Highlights included getting to chat with comics great Brian Azzarello and finally, after more than a year of email correspondence, getting to know Jonathan Maberry, a truly excellent, guy who writes first-rate novels and comics, and knows how to kill a man with a straw, though he probably wouldn’t unless pushed. 

A volatile and unpredictable crowd of violent readers patiently wait to get their books signed – by me!

My big fear was that no one would come to my Saturday morning panel, since we were up against another panel with both Sue Grafton and Michael Connelly, but we had standing room only, and I had a nice line of people to get books signed. 

In the end, a pleasant and productive weekend in which no one, as far as I know, did anything they’d want to conceal from the media.  I was hoping to come back with embarrassing stories about someone, but it just didn’t pan out this time. 

I’m off tomorrow morning for Bouchercon — it’s a mystery convention, as if you didn’t know.  I hope to return with photos, good stories, and a new tote bag. It’s been a number of years since by last Bouchercon, so I now have far more Thrillerfest totes.

Speaking of vicious competitions, we’ll find out this weekend if I will win the Macvaity Award for best historical mystery.  I’ve been nominated for The Whiskey Rebels, and I very much deserve to win, despite The Whiskey Rebels not really being a mystery at all. I just hope the award doesn’t go to some Romanian, like the Nobel. I’m still bitter. I thought this was my year.  

She's laughing at me.

The nominees are:  

• Rhys Bowen: A Royal Pain (Berkley)
• Ward Larsen: Stealing Trinity (Oceanview)
• David Liss: The Whiskey Rebels (Thorndike/ Random House UK)
• Jeri Westerson: Veil of Lies (Minotaur)
• Karen Maitland: Company of Liars (Michael Joseph/ Delacorte)
• Kelli Stanley: Nox Dormienda (Five Star)

I won’t mind if Kelli Stanley wins, since she’s my swell pal. If I win, however, I plan to point at her and laugh triumphantly.