Marscon 2010 this past weekend was a blast — go check out my new photo albums either at FaceBook or MySpace about it!

Here’s my initial programming sign up for Convergence:

SF934 The Monsters of H. P. Lovecraft

SF834 Writing in Other People’s Worlds (and seeing as I’ve got book contracts to do just that…)

SF828 Writing for Different Mediums (again, duh!)

SF944 Steampunk on the Page

More probably to follow after I confer with the missus on what she wants to sign up for.

A film script written by John F. Mollard and myself, an adaptation of R. Thomas Riley’s apocalyptic dark fantasy short story “The Day Lufberry Won It All” (from his collection THE MONSTER WITHIN IDEA, Apex Publications) will be filmed late this spring by Frosty Moon Omnimedia, the same people behind the Sportsman Channel TV shows The Nebraska Experience, Wolfpack Bowhunting with Eddie Duncan, and the soon-to-premiere Tagged Out.

More details TBA.

Stygian Publications will be publishing a collection/anthology of four previously published horror/comedy short stories from their flagship publication, NECROTIC TISSUE, all to be adapted into play script form by yours truly.

Adapted works will include riveting tales by poet/novelist Steve Barber of Ann Arbor, MI; short story writer Eric R. Lowther of “Northeastern Ohio;” writer Nicky Drayden of Austin, TX; and a piece by Justin Pilon, a Canadian ESL teacher in Tainan City, Taiwan, and, as always, various media productions for certain scripts are already under discussion. Scripts will run in size from 10-Minute to possibly Full Length.

No set release date, but we’re shooting for the book launching to take place at either Convergence, Diversicon, or Arcana, where we also plan to do a short production of one of the plays in question. The plays will then be immediately available for royalty performance as well.

Filmed Sunday, January 24 at Visioncon 2010, Springfield, MO.

Catch all four parts of Cynthia and myself on YouTube doing brief readings of our work, discussing playwrighting/theatre in general, the Visioncon experience, and much more. (By this time in the con my voice is incredibly ragged, so my apologies if it is hard to understand me at times.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QiQxQdcyzo

Also includes readings from TWO WIVES AND A DEAD GUY (www.samuelfrench), a short chapter excerpt from the horror novella “Oh, Baby” (by Rachael Saltzman and myself), commentary on the soon-to-be published kaiju comedy RODRIGO GETS THE POST MODERN BLUES (www.hitplays.com), a plug for PAIRING ENERGY (w/. Mitch Berntson, www.originalworksonline.com), why the Bemidji Chamber of Commerce should put me on salary, and more!

Again, special thanks to David Stanfield and the Visioncon staff and crew for flying Cynthia and myself down to their fantastic convention, it was a BLAST.

I’ve been contacted by the “Ostensibles e. V.” English-speaking theatre troupe of Osnabruek, Germany with regards to their producing CAFE A LA IONESCO for three performances in June. (And, yes, this is the award-winning comedy w/. the giant squid in it…) Absolutely made my day!

www.originalworksonline.com/cafeionesco2.htm

Someone is trying to auction off the following in the UK:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/BRIAN-KEENE-Termin..al:-The-Play-official-programme-RARE!_W0..QQitemZ140379255150QQcmdZViewItemQQimsxq..20100131?IMSfp=TL100131175001r17067
BRIAN KEENE Terminal: The Play official programme RARE! on eBay (end time 06-Feb-10 16:52:13 GMT)
cgi.ebay.co.uk
Find BRIAN KEENE Terminal: The Play official programme RARE! in Books, Comics Magazines, Fiction Books category on eBay.co.uk.

So, the big question now is this: how did it get from Bemidji to the UK? (We did have two fans out there receive copies, one in England, the other in Scotland, but they were CLEARLY signed in heavy marker on the front cover by both Brian and myself…)

GRANDPA JIM IS DEAD… in Utah, courtesy of Tabiona High School, Tabiona. The Booth/Paslawski juggernaut keeps rumbling along.

https://www.hitplays.com/default.aspx?pg..=sd&st=GRANDPA+JIM+IS+DEAD

According to my records this will be the play’s 30th known production overall, and my 2nd in Utah. The grand total is now set at 645.

Speaking of Heuer, had a great talk with Steve the owner/publisher today about where Heuer is heading, filming stuff, and their brand new printer, which means they will now be offering do-it-yourself choose-and-pick anthologies — which also means (at least) more unit royalty sales for moi as well. They will be offering standard anthologies as well, and I have to admit I am excited to find out which plays get into how many.

Check ‘em out over at my MySpace and Facebook accounts.

We’re both back home safe and sound from Springfield — more later, but we’d both like to thank David Stanfield and his top notch staff for  such a wonderful good time!

Now to crash.

My editor at Heuer has informed me that MARRIAGE… AFTER DEATH by Abbey Ferrier and myself, a zombie-themed one-act comedy, will be published in the following months after RODRIGO… The play is Abbey’s first to be published, my 49th.

MARRIAGE… AFTER DEATH was first performed at The Cabin in Bemidji, MN on November 2, 2009. The original cast and crew were as follows:

Director: Roy C. Booth
Stage Manager: Howard Preston
Set Designer: Roy C. Booth
Lights & Sound: Jake Baggenstoss
House Manager: Neomi Ayelsworth

LENORE: Cynthia Booth
VINCENT: Andor Lofthus
JEZEBEL: Erica Johnson