I once pronounced the word "sentient" like this: cen TEE ent. I'd learned the word by reading it, so I'd never heard it spoken. One day I said it front of my partner's friend, Jim, and he gently corrected me: "SEN chent." Jim Suruda was one of the smartest and quirkiest people I've ever known. … Continue reading Sentient
Nonfiction
Talking about Death’s Garden Revisited
A quick post to let you know that an interview I did to promote the anthology "Death Garden's Revisited" has been published on Cemetery Travel: Your Take-along Guide to Graves & Graveyards Around the World. It's nice and short and you get to find out what I chose as my "favorite song about cemeteries," even … Continue reading Talking about Death’s Garden Revisited
Katie Likes Flowers
This short piece about an experience I had in a nearby abandoned cemetery was originally published in Weird Hauntings (Sterling, 2006). Many abandoned bits of civilization are found in the woods in the part of New Jersey where I live: Towns that simply disappeared off the map for one reason or another. Their remnants include … Continue reading Katie Likes Flowers
When a celebrity jumps your ride claim
It was January 2008 and we'd just arrived in Salt Lake City. Jim and Ted were there to ski in Utah. I was there because I was going to see a bunch of films at Sundance while they skied. We'd had an uneventful flight out from Newark to Salt Lake City. Except there were lots … Continue reading When a celebrity jumps your ride claim
A fear of clowns…
I was no more than two or two-and-a-half years old when I became very aware of the painting on my bedroom wall. It was a portrait of a clown that my dad had painted in 1971, presumably with the intent of using it to decorate my bedroom, because don't all kids like clowns? It hung … Continue reading A fear of clowns…
The Mother of Action Park Stories
In 2014 my local newspaper reported on two different television production companies approaching Action Park about doing a reality TV show. (Chances are this link will be dead or under a subscription wall.) Action Park, if you don't know, is a notorious water park located in the Northwestern NJ town in which I live. The … Continue reading The Mother of Action Park Stories
Lake Monsters of Northern New Jersey
I grew up in what is essentially the "lake district" of New Jersey. Located in the northwestern corner of the state, it consists of tiny lakes, medium-size lakes, and one large lake: Lake Hopatcong. I'm pretty sure that Lake Hopatcong was originally a smaller lake that was expanded at some point to make it the … Continue reading Lake Monsters of Northern New Jersey
joanne m. austin 
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