Saturday, August 18, 2018

Storytelling in the Strangest Places

While I was taking a break from writing to get my head straight, one of the things I did to fill my time was catch up on my gaming. Not tabletop, this time, but rather video games. I've been a fan of them for a long, long time, but life prevented me from getting into any good ones lately. Since I had the chance, I decided to try out some of the ones that I'd been hearing lots of good things about. As a result, I found two in particular that really struck me as having some immaculate storytelling that drew me in just as much as any book or movie or television show could.

People have been saying for years that video games are the next generation of immersive home entertainment, perhaps even poised to overtake TV and movies. With storytelling like these two possess, I can definitely see it.

Wednesday, August 8, 2018

Scares That Care V: Healing By Helping

For a horror author, at least one with a similar mindset to my own, there is one event every year that eclipses all others. That event is the Scares That Care Charity Weekend, held for the fifth consecutive year at the Doubletree by Hilton in Williamsburg, VA from August 3-5. Like last year, I went, and since I'm somewhat recovered from it--enough that I can think coherently, at any rate--I figured it was time to recount my experience there, and also to reveal the reasons behind my radio silence for the last few months, and how attending this horror family reunion helped me finish crawling out of a pretty dark place. To make everyone's life easier, I'll save the really personal stuff for the end, so you can skip it if you so choose to.

This was my second time attending Scares That Care, but that didn't mean it felt any less exciting or fun than the first time. Sure, maybe I had more of an idea what to expect this go-around, but that only enhanced my anticipation leading into it. My friend, Joe, who went with me last year, was unable to do so again, but I managed to convince my wife to come along, so I had the added excitement of introducing someone new to the wonderful event that is that convention weekend.