Call it the book that will not die. Four years after publication in the States, “Gods of Aberdeen” finally hits Russian bookstores. And the cover is…well…awesome?

I don’t know who that shirtless guy is, but I think it might be Dio. Holding what looks like a dreamcatcher. Whatever the case, I’m relieved to announce the last overseas incarnation of GOA is complete. Marly’s foreign rights crew worked wonders, and in their honor I’m including various covers of GOA from far-away lands.

In Spain it looked like this:

Italy stayed with Simon & Schuster’s original cover, but Sonzogno’s scarlet insignia made it even better. My blurry focus, however, did not:

And Portugal went for a Moorish Gothic vibe, which I mirrored by photographing the book on a Moorish Gothic side table:

Seeing these covers is like discovering an old shoebox filled with photos of former lovers and friends. Disappointments and triumphs. And on and on….

‘Fraid not. All is quiet, as one would expect in the belly of winter. I’m busy at work on my next book, and busy at work converting my shed to a writing studio. Neighbors threaten to teach me ice skating on the frozen lake at the end of our street, but I resist. I’d rather sled.

Today marks the first official snow here in Holliston, not a dusting but an honest amount requiring shovels and salt. At long last I get to see what the locals have been warning me about. Of course it’s hard to impress a Buffalonian with snow, so if this were the really old days I’d shake my fist at the leaden sky and challenge the winter gods to let loose. But this isn’t the really old days, and I’d much rather take the time to tell you some news.

First, Penny Blood #11 is available at fine bookstores everywhere and just waiting to be brought back to your home for a cozy read by the fire. My essay on John Carpenter’s “Apocalypse Trilogy” is only one reason to make Penny Blood your horror mag of choice. Editor Nick Louras is succeeding in an era where print is in serious trouble, and he does so by sifting through the underbelly of horror and cult entertainment and plucking out only the juiciest bits.

What else. My Throwback Thursdays column on Jetcomx.com continues to grow, courtesy of a steady stream of retrocheese delivered with semi-serious commentary. It could have gone either way, really–pop culture is such an easy target that simply posting ridiculous videos and saying “Look at how ridiculous that is!” might be entertaining but it makes one a cultural voyeur and little else. And since we can all be culture voyeurs whenever we want, I wanted to bring something new. Well, not exactly new, since The Missouri Review posted an interview with Chuck Klosterman where he says his intention is to comment on pop culture rather than simply pointing and laughing. Or something like that.

None of this matters if you never knew Steven Seagal had a music video. So use Throwback Thursdays however you like.

My Facebook author page is up and jogging. Become a fan to hear infrequent updates (for example: the release date of my next book, or the pub. date of my award-nominated short The Love Life of Tigers), which is better than a newsletter. At least that’s what my publicist says.

Anything more? Let me see. Ah, yes. A book recommendation. Kobo Abe’s The Woman in the Dunes. Terrific. Plus, you can tell people it’s Kafkaesque, and rather than being an unsufferable snob, you would be spot on.

It’s been a little under a year with this site in its current incarnation, and the time has come for something new. Easier navigation, a more accessible news section, and an on-deck circle for my next book, Jack the Bastard. Yes, Jack is moving slowly. But it moves. We’re in the pre-marketing marketing phase, which means my publicist and I are laying the plans to take Jack from obscurity to hey-take-a-look-at-this.

Hi Micah:

I picked up your first novel from a friend’s shelf and enjoyed it. Aberdeen reminded me of Colby College, so I’d like to know if you based the college on any real college. Also, why is your author photo so serious? I thought you writer types were supposed to be happy that you sold a book. Or are you playing up stereotypes?

Best,

Aaron Morse

I was happy I sold a book. But I don’t know of many author photos taken the moment we get the nice phonecall. The grinning ear-to-ear is reserved for my readings, which I enjoy immensely. Photo shoots? Not so much. That pensive shot on my homepage is the photographer catching me in the middle of thinking “When is this going to end?”

Aberdeen College is based on every college we ever loved and wish we could return to. I never went away to college–stayed in Buffalo and lived off-campus–so Aberdeen represented the idealized renewal and redefinition of our post-high school years. Nostalgia almost works but saudade is better. And it’s been long enough so I can finally say it: Eric’s search for the Philosopher’s Stone was a MacGuffin (not that many of you didn’t already figure that out). Those of you who wondered where the Stone was and why I didn’t answer if it exists or not…it didn’t matter to the story and it didn’t matter to the real alchemists. On some level the historical alchemists must have known their pursuits were futile. Aren’t all obsessions a way of avoiding life’s harsher realities?

A few items of note: Penny Blood issue #11 is available for pre-order. My essay on John Carpenter is sure to cast new light on the genius of his “Apocalypse Trilogy,” but pick up the mag for its piece on Savoy Books. To wit: “The first insurgence—as Savoy Books—was as mass-market publishers of imaginative fiction and art, the first UK house to cater to non-generic readers like ourselves who did not see a dividing line between high art and popular culture.”

My semi-weekly pop culture column for Jetcomx.com explores Billy Idol’s 1993 concept album Cyberpunk. Perfect for those quiet moments at work when nostalgia is a welcome alternative to browsing through your junkmail folder.

It’s been quiet out here–by “out here” I mean my living room. Work proceeds slowly and obsessively on the next book. The dog needs to be walked. True Blood has me hooked. And I wore a zombie mask for Halloween that scared several children to near-tears. Death Studios sure knows how to scare ‘em. Updates will be scarce until I’ve finished a first draft. Yeah, it’s that kind of book.

1.A purifying or figurative cleansing of the emotions, especially pity and fear.

2. A release of emotional tension, as after an overwhelming experience, that restores or refreshes the spirit.

Excerpted from The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Third Edition Copyright © 1992 by Houghton Mifflin Company.

It’s finally happened–A.O. Scott has deemed Rambo: First Blood Part II a Critics’ Pick. The NYT has an unintentionally hilarous review of the 1985 movie, which proves that genre will always be the whipping boy for critics. Until it’s not.

Scott praises the by-the-numbers action sequences, he name-drops Eastwood and Mifune, and he uses phrases like “classical style” and “exemplary grandeur and gravitas.”

I just liked the exploding arrows.

I can almost laud the NYT for having the guts to put Rambo on the front page of their movie section. Almost were it not for their initial review of the film, in which Camby said:

“…the mayhem is supported only by what appears to be the star’s ego and a large budget for special effects, without even the most primitive logic….”

I don’t disagree with Camby–Rambo is and always will be one of those terrible films that’s fun to watch–but this proves the need for genre-specific criticism. Of course a movie like Rambo has its problems. It’s a Rambo movie. Does this mean it should be held to the same standard as movies without exploding arrows? As action movies go, Rambo is a middling entry in the pantheon of guilty pleasures. But it works. And critics should be comfortable saying it works without artificially elevating it. I saw no exemplary grandeur and gravitas in Rambo. But I did see a shirtless dude with a bandana and a quiver full of exploding arrows, and that’s good enough.

Three items of note: my long-suffering travel essay Buffalo, Redux will be in the October edition of Eclectica. My film essay on the works of horror icon John Carpenter makes its way to Penny Blood Magazine just in time for Halloween, and the limited edition Jack the Bastard broadsides have been completed.

What’s a broadside? It’s a piece of original art usually reserved for advertisements, and in this case I’ve applied it to Jack the Bastard, had it signed and numbered by the artist (the hyper-talented Tyler Edlin), and made it available for pre-ordering. I’ll be shipping 100 of them with the first edition of Jack. The broadsides are printed on hardy matte paper, and are definitely suitable for framing. So far we have two illustrations, and we may add more. A low-res sample:

That pretty lady is Soledad Santanillo, one of the major characters in Jack. And yes, she knows how to use that sword.

I’m trying out the Nabaztag. It’s a wireless rabbit.

Let me explain: a few years ago this French company created a wireless device that was supposed to usher in the era of low-budget smart homes. They called it Nabaztag, which is Armenian for “rabbit.” The Nabaztag looks like something from the Japanese bizarro-kawaii pool:

I’m a quasi-techie, which means I like things like the Nabaztag but can only figure out 50% of their intended functionality. So this wireless rabbit–it can serve as a PA, an email hound, and can read stories to your children–has become my ambient weather center and my talking clock. Sometimes it reads NYT headlines, or moves its ears in semblance of Tai Chi. It also plays hip-hop from Beat Basement. Nabaztag supports dozens of other web radio channels. Some rarely work, like the 70’s soft rock channel. But so what. Do I need to hear The Carpenters?

So yeah, it’s fun. And if by some wild chance you own a Nabaztag, you can send me a message. The name of my–ahem–”rabbit” is Holliston.

The curious can read more at Nabaztag.com.