I have barred owls that live in the woods behind my house. I hear them off and on all year and enjoy knowing they’re there (though I’m sure the rabbits, mice, squirrels, and chipmunks feel a bit more concerned about it!).
Recently I heard a different kind of owl. A very simple one-note hoo-hoo-hoo, not like the one from the barred, which is a chattering and repetitive conversation about what’s for dinner (if you know, you know).
After going through a bunch of owl call files online, I discovered this one to be a Northern screech owl, not particularly rare around here but new to my ears, at least at this residence.
I’ve always admired owls, so I was surprised some years ago when I found out that people associated them with bad luck or even death. Really? For me, they are smart, majestic introverts. I also did an animal guide reading this summer with Jeff Bell at Asonea coaching and learned that owl is one of my besties.*
I mean, it makes sense.
I’m bookish like an owl, I have flying dreams on the regular, and I can be hyperfocused when I’m in my creative zone.
I recall drawing lots of owls as a kid (enough that my mom called me the “owl girl”), making owl sculptures, even writing papers about owls in school.
Living in the Pacific Northwest and camping all my life, I’ve heard the calls of nearly every kind of owl in the region. I’ve also seen huge owls in my headlights while driving at night and found owl pellets in the greenbelt behind my house (these, if you don’t know, are the leftovers from digested prey from an owl—tiny little packets of bones).
Flying is such a joy. You just want to hoot. —Cathy Rigby
With the shifting of the seasons, I’m finding myself moving inward, craving less social time and wanting more of a hermit’s solitude. I have become, again, the owl girl (well, at my age… maybe not a girl!).
(Not gonna lie… October is going to be rough because I have a lot of events planned for “spooky season,” but you can bet that I’ll be holed up in my nest when I’m not out in the limelight every chance I can get.)
It feels good to be back in this more reclusive state of mind after months of being “on” for readings, sales events, conventions, and the like.
It’s not that I mind those things—I’m an extroverted introvert, after all—but with the cooling nights, harvest season, the return of rain, and the greening up of the grass, my impulse is toward quiet, reflective living.
There’s a nudge toward fall cleaning (as opposed to spring cleaning), an impulse for self-care, and the kitchen gardener’s call to pack away food for the winter (so many tomatoes and peppers to process right now!).
But I’m dreaming, not only of flying, but of details I realize should go into my novel manuscript—the one I put away this year to focus on my shortform fiction. The novel, with a working title of Eminent Domain, is calling me back with the same, gently insistent song that the Northern screech owl is singing outside my window.
You’ll discover the influence of my dreams next month when I release a short film for my Ask Me Anything column to answer a reader’s question about my influences… stay tuned.
I’m writing this on my 59th birthday. Today I’ll be doing a round of deep cleaning in the house, then processing my latest culling from the garden, but only after I sneak in a much-needed manicure. So there you go.
I’ll be thinking about my new owl friend tonight, listening with windows still cracked at night to let in cool air, and with any luck, I’ll dream I have wings.
*If you have an animal bestie story, I’d love to hear it!
My techno-horror short story, “Lather, Rinse, Repeat,” appears in the newly released anthology, Lurking (A Dark Decades Anthology Series) by Inky Bones Press, edited by Robin Knabel.
Readers have described my short story as
"a contemporary morality tale, taking cyber-stalking to its inevitable conclusion. A lot of people will relate to this story."
Also:
"Such a drain-the-color-from-your-face type of story (in the best way possible!!) ...You're not always so safe on social media as you think you are, and this short story perfectly captured that essence!"
The e-book is currently available, but a print edition is also forthcoming.
“What was your first publication?”
Answer: “Well, if we’re going to use the basic definition of publication as in ‘a work that has been produced for public consumption,’ then it would have to be the school newsletter, which came out monthly on mimeograph, from Brookwood Elementary in Hillsboro, OR. I was in second grade at the time, which logs in at around 1972-73! They published a poem I wrote about butterflies getting into the butter at a picnic as well as a little elephant sketch I shared. … I write across forms, so I have several firsts to fondly recall. More officially…” READ MORE at: Ask Me Anything for September
MS Stories: “Eat your medicine?” [link]
From this month’s column: “It turns out that there are potential neuroprotective properties to Lion's Mane mushrooms that may be of benefit to people living with MS.”
SUBSTACK FINDS
What I found while reading my morning paper (Substack)
September Substack Finds [September 29, 2024]
Awe FTW! || Let's...go? || heroes protecting trees || reclaiming your soul from socials
THE SELLMAN SHELF AWAITS YOUR BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS
The Sellman Shelf in BookShop features work by my PNW author peers (poetry, fiction, nonfiction) and some of my favorite speculative work.
I just added three fiction titles from the following PNW authors:
Leif Enger
Jaq Evans
Eileen Garvin
Might you have titles to suggest? Send them my way! Might you have already read and enjoyed these books? Why not give their authors a nice review in BookShop? It really helps them to be found and appreciated by readers.
OCTOBER: WHAT’S HAPPENING
Oct 1: Beneath the Rain Shadow October episode drops, Tamara on the hot seat! [link]
Oct 12: The Haunted Salon, with guest Clay Vermulm, hosted by Evan J. Peterson, Kirkland [link]
Oct 12: Artisans Horror House with HWA panelists JP Barnett, KL Grady, Kino McFarland, Tamara Kaye Sellman, GG Silverman and Clay Vermulm [link]
Oct 19: Stalker Farms Fall Festival Campfire Stories event with HWA [link]
Nov 8-10: Port Gamble Ghost Conference author panel and HWA sales and signing table [link]
Nov 21: Seattle Public Library horror writers event featuring Cascade Writers and the Seattle chapter of the HWA [SAVE THE DATE; link forthcoming]
Nov 23: Kitsap county author reading with Tamara Kaye Sellman and Kat Richardson, Saltwater Books, Kingston [SAVE THE DATE; link forthcoming]
Check out my detailed calendar
LINK LOVE
In case you missed it: Western SFA reviews Cul de Sac Stories! [link]
Beneath the Rain Shadow podcast
Jan: Meet Tamara & Clay
Feb: “Nurse Log” by Tamara Sellman
Mar: “Gåva” by Clay Vermulm
Apr: “Meow Meow” by Tamara Sellman
May: “Problem Child” by Clay Vermulm
Jun: “Hellmark” by Tamara Sellman
Jul: “The Mystical Menagerie” by Clay Vermulm
Aug: “Leave No Trace” by Tamara Sellman
Sept: “Welcome Aboard” by Clay Vermulm
Oct: “Shanghai” by Tamara Sellman
Find me in Social media [link]
PNW GALLERY
Signal Boost, September 2024
[ Top L to R ] Everett Poetry Night reading at The Sisters’ Restaurant September 9; “Beetle” reading at Everett Poetry Night; I’m 59!; signage along one of my Kingston walks
[ Row 2 L to R ] Two Hour Transport reading online; lighting a candle for friends in need
[ Row 3 L to R ] Centrum 50th anniversary yearbook written by Bill Ransom; gardening in zone 8b by the light of the moon; Port Townsend Film Festival
[ Bottom L to R ] Signage along one of my Kingston walks; Sam Mostovoy and Ean Tallent at the Hallow Ian Horror Hour season 2 premiere watch party; Hallow Ian Horror Hour
GARDEN TO KITCHEN
PUMPKIN ZUCCHINI COWBOY BARS
I’m not a big-time baker, but when I get hit with so many zucchini from the garden I have to find things to do with it.
I’m still using up zucchini in the freezer from last summer, and have so many more coming off the plant this year that I need to drop off a load at the food bank this week with whatever I can’t stash myself.
Mixing it into sweet bread batters is the best way to use up a lot of it at a time beyond roasting and cooking it down into soup (which I’ve also done quite a bit already).
I call these “cowboy bars” because, like cowboy cookies, they include a lot of add-on ingredients. In this case, you’re getting chocolate chips, toasted pecans, and coconut. They lend a nice texture and sweetness to an otherwise not-overly-sweet snack bar that’s good for breakfast or dessert.
Note: If using fresh shredded zucchini, squeeze and blot dry first before using; if frozen, thaw first and drain in colander in sink to remove excess liquid.
Click here to access this recipe through my new dedicated Garden to Table recipe page.
May I ask a favor?
These days, social media is, by itself, of little help for those trying to get their books into readers’ hands, owing mostly to the highly charged political landscape we have all found ourselves in.
The best ways I can find my readers are through hand-selling (face to face with potential readers; I love it, but it has its limits) and by word of mouth from readers like you.
If you have read my books (Cul de Sac Stories and/or Intention Tremor), I urge you to help promote them through any of the following channels you’re most comfortable with (see options in graphic below).
If you do so, please send me a link! Have a question? Hit the message button below.
I appreciate the feedback, the thumbs up, the encouragement, and the boost your review will give my books for anyone thinking about buying them or ordering them for the local library.
Thank you!
Hey gang, I made a bunch of mini book trailers for y’all to enjoy when you get a moment. They’ll be floating around in social media between now and November.
If you run across one, feel free to share it, leave a comment, or tell me where you saw it (and of course, I hope you’ll watch it!).
I’ll be traveling to Chicago this October to visit my old stomping grounds, and that includes a meetup with my early morning write-in buddies. I’ll post photos in an upcoming blog post. There’s so much more happening in October, besides… bookstore readings and an appearance at a hay maze scary storyteller event, among other things. I’m stoked to be in the early stages of spooky season and look forward to Halloween and all the fun that brings!
Finally, here’s a shot of me visiting my favorite tree, Auntie. Happy Spooky Season, everybody!
Tamara