Deep Freeze Blues

White House of the Confederacy - Wikipedia

I have a ton of field work that keeps getting pushed back because of snow and ice and I'm getting really restless to get out there. My current list of "to-do" locations for paranormal investigations is 23, and those are spread across all of Virginia. Over the next few weeks, regardless of weather, I plan to hit those that are close to home like the White House of the Confederacy and Fort Jackson.

Lots of things have changed since I last blogged about "More Haunted Battlefields". First of all, the title has changed to who-knows-what (the publisher ultimately decides that) to allow the book to include all kinds of Civil War sites, not just battlefields. Honestly, this is the best thing they could have done for both me and the readers! Another big change is the pushing back of the deadline to Summer '10 to allow for research and writing time of all these new locations. (Did you hear that sigh of relief?)

Oh, did I mention that there's talk now that the book may be full-color?? WoOt!

Since I'm stuck indoors today, I'll be working on a new feature submission for GhostVillage.com about a very ugly and controversial topic in paranormal research. Sorry, no spoilers here! If Jeff decides to accept the article for his site, I will keep you posted.

Confessions of a Blog-Neglector

I'm embarrassed to admit that it has been nearly four months since my last post. This is the way things roll when I'm working on a new book, or in this case, TWO. My thoughts and composition energy get so wrapped up in crafting a first or second draft that it feels like I've been tapped dry when I sit down to blog.

Don't worry - I have a plan. (Whenever someone says they have a plan, you SHOULD worry!)

For the past few years, I've been writing "Morning Pages" thanks to my friend Anne and author Julia Cameron. These are three pages of longhand, stream of consciousness style writing thought to help creative types achieve better focus. My plan is to scale back my morning pages to two per day instead of three, saving some of that writing juice to share a bit of this and that here at my blog.

I can't promise that I'll be providing something of value to all, but I do promise to keep you updated on current investigations, teasers of sites visited for inclusion in the current book project, and odds and ends that I hope will help amateur historians and paranormal explorers alike.

Also, the blog will get a new, improved look and organization. My goal is to make the "useful" posts easier to find and maybe even attract a few new readers!

Thanks for sticking around despite my neglect <3

A Great Day to be in Fredericksburg!

I don't even know where to begin with all of the fun I had visiting the Griffin Bookshop in Old Town Fredericksburg, Virginia. I was a bit shocked to find out when I arrived that Oktoberfest had taken over Caroline Street - but the festival really added to the excitement of the day. The sidewalks were filled with jubilant travelers, some from as far as England and Holland, and everyone wore a smile!

The folks who turned out for my reading were fantastic and had lots of really great questions. I found out afterward that one participant, Emma, even had the nearby museum she works for (Weems-Botts) close early just so she could attend. Talk about a compliment!



The book store was one of the coziest I've ever visited and had the BEST coffee! They must have gotten word of my love for Halloween because they had me set up for the signing in front of this gorgeous display:



For the last hour of the event, we took the fun outdoors and wrapped up the signing on the sidewalk to enjoy the best kind of Fall weather Virginia has to offer. Festival goers were stopping and chatting and sharing fantastic ghost stories from the Fredericksburg area. How often do I get the chance to sign books for folks in lederhosen? Not often enough!



Many thanks to the Griffin Bookshop for their warm hospitality. This was the perfect way to kick off an October FULL of ghostly events in my home state.

New Stuff in the Works...

I'm still plugging away at the second volume of Haunted Battlefields, but have just signed on for a new book with The History Press! This one takes a step away from the paranormal and looks at the seedy and salacious past of Virginia's capitol city - Richmond.

Keep an eye out for updates about this exciting project as research is already underway...

Ghostbusters 1954

Ghostbusters Fan Ivan Guerrero has put together this hilarious spoof of what it would be like if Ghostbusters had been made in 1954 instead of 1984. The video splices together a ton of old clips from Ghost Breakers and Flubber (amongst others) to recreate scenes and themes from Ghostbusters.

Get a FREE Copy of "Haunted Plantations of Virginia"

That's right - I'm going to give away my very own advance copy of Haunted Plantations of Virginia, personalized and autographed, to one lucky winner on July 1st, 2009. That's a FULL MONTH before you can buy them online and nearly SIX WEEKS before they hit bookstore shelves!

What do you need to do to be part of the contest? Simply write a short, sweet, and positive review of Haunted Battlefields: Virginia's Civil War Ghosts at Amazon.com. One reviewer will be selected at random (okay, their name will be pointed to by my three-year old...) and notified of their status through Amazon. Make sure your email on file there is current! The winner will have seven days to reply before defaulting and another winner is selected.

So far the list of reviewers is short - that means your chances are GREAT!

Review Haunted Battlefields now for a chance to win a FREE BOOK.

TONS of News!

Sorry to be out of touch, but to say things have been busy around here lately would be an understatement! Don't worry, there's lots of exciting stuff to catch up on:

Aside from working on More Haunted Battlefields and starting the marketing ball rolling for the July release of Haunted Plantations of Virginia, I have joined the fantastic lineup of programming at CBS Psychic Radio with "The Paranormal View". The show will be moving to Saturdays from 8-10 PM EST starting June 20th. This transition to CBS has also provided me the opportunity to participate in the paranormal event at Ft. Mifflin (with the TAPS team and John Zaffis) on June 26th and 27th and to broadcast on-site. Be sure to tune in - it will be a fun show!

In other news, I am thrilled to have recently signed with Para Rock Productions, the amazing talent agency that represents paranormal entertainment favorites Shannon Sylvia, Keith Age, and Patrick Burns! This new relationship means that I'll be traveling to and presenting at events across the country instead of only the East Coast. Spread the word (especially if your friends are organizing paranormal conferences for 2010 - wink,wink) and keep your eyes and ears open for more updates to come.

I somehow lost a few weeks...

Cavalry reenactments are the best!

Life has been a whirlwind lately! Renovations are still going on. Yes, you read that correctly. That's the downside to doing it yourself - pressing deadlines come up, spouses companies merge with other companies, kids get crazy in the Spring, you know the stuff. You can bet though that in two weeks I'll be working in a new studio!

The renovations have been the least of my concerns, really, what with the second battlefields book moving right along. A good friend called me up last week and invited me to come to a major reenactment and encampment at a haunted location I'll be including in the book to SPEND THE NIGHT. How could I say no to that? I'll be attending the event as a guest author on Saturday and Sunday, meeting J.E.B. Stuart IV, and conducting a paranormal investigation Saturday night. I'm so excited I can hardly stand it.

If you're in central Virginia and you're looking for something fun to do this weekend, come out to Fort Pocahontas and see me. The Fort is open from 10 AM to 4 PM with the reenactment beginning at 1 PM each day. This is an extremely rare cavalry event that will prove entertaining for the whole family.

For event details and directions to the site, visit www.fortpocahontas.org.

House Guts, Ghosts, and Headless Baby Dolls

The renovation to the second floor of our little Cape Cod has finally begun. I should say the demolition rather, since that's as far as we've come so far.

I'm overwhelmed and restless about the whole thing. We've been working like dogs for three days and have only now reached the halfway point. Bob (the house ghost and home's original owner) has at least been taking it easy on us and has avoided any tomfoolery that would slow us down. He's not been totally quiet, mind you. More on that later.

Here's a look at what gutting part of a 1940 house looks like:





I can't believe how invasive all that loose insulation can be. I truly think it has permeated EVERY inch of the house now that we've freed it from its little prison between the walls. My lungs will be glad when this is all finished.





The work has come with a few rewards, though. Take these cool finds as an example: a neat 1940s tin dollhouse (with furniture - in the box at the top left of the photo) and a CREEPY headless doll complete with a bassinet. I hope that these discoveries don't open any paranormal worm cans that we aren't prepared for...

Someone really should have thought this through...

I saw a van today on my way downtown that was from GHOST Medical Transport. I don't know about you, but a name like that doesn't seem like it would be a good choice in healthcare transportation...