I am putting this out as a Bookring.

An enjoyable collection of short stories and a few poems. This book has gore, humour, good twilight zone type plots and in spots could be considered a wee bit graphic for some.
Good creepiness factor! I will never look at snowmen the same way again!!

I also like the idea of Noises Off: Behind the Screams. At the end of the collection the author gives behind the scenes details of each story like the special features on a DVD.


shipping weight: 220 grams

International Bookring: in order.
started May 31 /05, concluded Jan/06
1. GoryDetails – N. H.
2. mellion108 – Michigan
3. Luintaurien – Nebraska
4. DreamSE22- Colorado
5. garnetfairy – Texas
6. vannessave – California
7. juicy-comrade – BC Canada
8. back to Follygirl
9. controlled release to Nighttraine56

One Hand Screaming arrived safely in today's mail; many thanks! Will read and pass it along within the next week or two - looks like a good one!

Whoa - I just noticed the very cool bookmark; illustrated, laminated, and it's got the whole bookring mailing list on it. Very cool!

Some of the stories in this collection were very creepy indeed, with some nightmarish concepts that I hadn't seen before. It's a bit uneven, though; I found the quality of the writing to vary quite a bit from one story to another, with the first story (a wonderfully nightmarish tale that was even more thought-provoking after I read the end notes) having the most awkward writing. [That story - "Browsers" - presents some very intriguing ideas for those of us who would rather read than do just about anything else... But the writing seemed to have a self-consciously wordy style that kept taking me out of the story, which was a shame.]

Of the rest of the collection my favorite tales include "Almost" (a clever spin on a very popular urban myth), and "Ides of March" (in which we see a more chilling [sorry!] side to snowmen). Oh, and the darkly hilarious little poem "Wailin' Jenny", which - if you recognize the original tune and performer - is a nicely groan-worthy pun.

I also enjoyed the "Noises Off" end notes quite a lot; I like to hear how authors get ideas and shape their stories. Thanks for sharing this, follygirl!

The book's now on its way to mellion108 in Michigan. Hope you enjoy it!

Thanks for passing this on to me, GoryDetails, and thanks so much to follygirl for sharing. It looks interesting, and I will read it as quickly as possible in order to pass it along.

As is the case with bookrings, they tend to travel in herds, and this one arrived with 4 friends today. (Me thinks I might have gotten a bit greedy with the rings 'n rays!) But I will get to it soon, I promise!

I finished this one earlier in the evening. It's a quick, enjoyable read with some interesting short stories and poems. I agree with GoryDetails—the writing here is somewhat uneven. Great ideas but not always the tightest writing (of course, I've never been published and can barely string together a coherent sentence, so take this critique with that in mind!). My favorite works were: From Out of the Night; With Apologies to E.P.; Wailin' Jenny; That Old Silk Hat They Found; But Once a Year; and Til Death Do Us Part? (this one especially gave me a chuckle).

Thanks again, follygirl, for sharing this. I'm glad I had the opportunity to read it, and I always like being introduced to new-to-me authors. I have Luintaurien's address and will get this in the mail either July 1 or 2.

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Trade paperback, 155 pages

Got it today. Thank you. Will read ASAP and send on.

This is my next book. I am sorry it has taken me so long to get at.

Great book. I really enjoyed it. Thanks for letting it go out.

RELEASE NOTES:

Received the book today, thanks! Looks like a fun, quick read. I'll be starting it tonight. Great idea with the bookmark, that's really neat! :)

This book was pretty enjoyable, considering I'm not a fan of short stories. It reminded me of an adult version of Alvin Schwartz' Scary Stories trilogy for children. I liked how the stories were abrupt and how each was unique from the other. My favorite story was the first one, "Browsers", because it made me think twice. How horrible would it be to be stuck in a room with the books you never finished reading?! Most of mine would be there because I thought they were boring! Speaking of boring, the only story I couldn't get through was "Erratic Cycles" (the one about the Bush People). All the other poems and stories were fun, but just okay for me. I thought it was neat how the author described some of his stories as potential Twilight Zone episodes, because that's exactly what I was thinking as I read them. Thanks for sharing this book with me!

Sending to garnetfairy tomorrow.

Received in the mail...looks good and short. Should finish by this weekend, one book ahead of it.

Well, I finished the other book I was reading and went ahead and read this one tonight. I did not read the original, well, any journal entries and did not know it was a collection of short stories. This is one of my new favorite genres. I'm not usually an "extras on the DVD" type person but I read the extras on this book. I found them intimate and revealing and enjoyable. The stories were varied and imaginative. I especially liked the poetry.

Thank you for sharing your book with me. Will mail out as soon as I get an address for the next person.

Dec 2/05:I came in to edit my journal entry after receiving the good news that the book arrived safely. Then I thought this is part of the journey and I will leave it as is.

Nov 30/05: "Unfortunately one of the hazzards of a bookring is a book going MIA. It looks like this one has not made it's destination.

I will give it a few more weeks. Then I will contact Mark Leslie ( author) and let him know because he wanted to add a journal entry to all those who have read it."

To anyone who finds this book please journal it so we know it is safe.

I heard a knock at the door and it was the postman with this goodie. It was postmarked Nov. 12 yet received today.

I'm speechless.... I actually went to my neighbors to see if they had picked up a book while I was out of town. I am heading out for the weekend but will definitely start it on Monday.

I'm really looking forward to this ...I like scaring myself

Hi all:

Mark Leslie is mapping out his book through Frappr

http://www.frappr.com/screaminghandsacrossamerica

"I thought it would be really neat to see all the different points on the map of the various readers, since I know it's been read by people throughout the US as well as in Europe and Australia...... "

I have added my BC name & city (no need to open the free account) and I thought it would be fun if you did too. Let's see it's journey.
cheers
Barb

I started the book and I'm halfway through. I do think Browser was the perfect story to start this collection...Sort of a warning not to skip any pages/stories

I am PMing Juicy-Comrade today for her address

My plans to mail it off this weekend didn't work out but it was mailed off today to Juicy-Comrade. I really enjoyed the book. I didn't read the end notes, my son did though he likes that kind of stuff. So I've heard all weekend "hey mom did you notice/know..."

It came in the mail today.

I think short horror is one of the hardest things for people to write, just because there isn't a lot of room for building suspence - but most of these stories came through strongly. I liked the book quite a bit.

The book has arrived home safely. The ring has ended. Thanks so much for everyone taking such good care of this book.
If you haven't already added your town to Mark's Frappr map please feel free to do so. It's fun to see where his book(s) have been read.
http://www.frappr.com/screaminghandsacrossamerica

I will let Mark Leslie know his book has come back to me and I am sure he will add his comments.
thanks again everyone for a successful bookring.

Wow. I'd say I was speechless, but anyone who read the "Noises Off" section of the book knows I can go on forever. I'd like to thank follygirl for organizing the bookring -- I'm honored, thankful and delighted that she went to so much effort to share my book with so many readers across North America. Follygirl, you're a gift to the book industry and to Bookcrossing. :)

I'd also like to thank each reader in the bookring both for joining and giving an unknown author a chance as well as for their comments and notes. I'm truly thankful to everyone. One of the best things about being a writer (apart from the act of actually writing) is feedback from readers. Whether it's hearing what someone enjoyed, perhaps how something creeped them out, or even what they didn't like about the story or writing, it's all good. In fact, it's priceless.

I'm delighted to see how different people enjoyed different things, and how some stories hit home with some folks, but fell flat with others.

A brief self-promo note for those who would like to read more of my stuff for free -- I'm releasing a novella starting January 18, 2006 that will be told in real time in "blog" format at http://this-mortal-coil.blogspot.com. It's a blog told from the POV of a young man who is trying to come to term with people around him dropping dead. The story will unfold over a 3-4 month period. If you can handle adult situations and language as well as a bit of gore, drop by and check it out.

Thanks again, everyone. Several times already, I've returned to these notes you've left when writing new stories. I doubt I can express how useful your comments (both the positive and the not so positive) have been in my ongoing writing projects. I'll likely return to them again in the future.

If I ever write a horror story that involves the act of "bookcrossing" I'll let you all know. (I've got about half a dozen ideas in this realm that haven't germinated into actual stories yet).

I have promised Nighttrain56 I would send this book to her once the ring was complete. It will be on the way to St. Louis shortly.

I have asked Nighttrain56 to WILD release it when she is done reading it.

Received today from Follygirl.Thanks! i will release when I'm done. Thanks for sharing!