Copyright © 2019 by Ralph Robert Moore.

Return to lately 2019.

What I did, what others did.

My writings in 2018:

Published:

In November I published my latest novel, The Angry Red Planet. It's received great reviews, and is selling well.

I also published the following stories and novelettes:

How I Beat the System - Night Light, ed. Trevor Denyer
Lam - Crimewave, Issue 13, ed. Andy Cox
Peelers - The Alchemy Press Book of Horrors, ed. Peter Coleborn and Jan Edwards
Monkeys on the Beach - Tales from the Shadow Booth, ed. Dan Coxon
It Could Be Cancer - Uncertainties Vol III, ed. Lynda E. Rucker
China - Black Static, Issue 66, ed. Andy Cox

And the following Into the Woods columns for Black Static:

Disappointing George News - March-April 2018
This Is the Part Where You Start To Say Goodbye - May-June 2018
All Reassurances Can Be Peeled Away - July-August 2018
What Do You Think He Saw - September-October 2018
A Mask for the Bones Beneath - November-December 2018

And the following Lately columns:

For Now These Many Decades
Home Repairs Are Like Zombies
It Can't Be Easy Being an Actor
How Americans Pronounce 'Route'
The Well-Dressed One

And created The Actor Crossovers Project on my website SENTENCE, an art project listing all the actors who have appeared in at least two of the ten TV series Mary and I watch over and over again.

And wrote the following short stories/novelettes:

I Think the One on the Left Just Moved (9,000 words)
Welcome to the World of Men and Women (11,400)
He Put Her Steam First (10,300)
What the Snow Brings (4,600)
Like You (7,500)
The Dirty Part of My Body (12,700)
I Write Your Name (9,900)
Help Me Eat My Monkey (9,750)

The story I wrote last year I probably like the most is "I Write Your Name", followed by "Like You."

My novelette "Do Not Pet" will be in the next issue of Black Static (#67); my short story "The Dead Leave Small Bones" will be in the next issue of Cemetery Dance (#77).

Near the end of the year Mary had cataract surgery on her left eye with spectacular results, and a few days before that surgery, my computer crashed, so that I had to wipe my hard drive clean in order to get my computer functioning again.

What others did:

Favorite TV Shows That First Aired in 2018:

Put in alphabetical order so I don't make any of them jealous.

Better Call Saul (AMC) - Vince Gilligan's expansion of the Breaking Bad story, a prequel showing how Jimmy McGill turned into Saul Goodman. The show does not have as strong a narrative drive as Breaking Bad, since it's basically filling in the pieces before Breaking Bad starts, but it has some great individual scenes.

Escape from Dannemora (SHOWTIME) - A limited series documenting the escape from prison of two convicts aided by a female prison supervisor. Starring Benicio del Toro, Paul Dano, and an unrecognizable Patricia Arquette. All episodes are directed by Ben Stiller, and have a deliberate sordid feel to them. It takes a little time to grow on you.

Get Shorty (EPIX) - Series based in part on the Elmore Leonard novel about a mobster who tries to become a Hollywood producer, starring Chris O'Dodd, Lidia Porto, Sean Bridgers, and Ray Romano. Created by Davey Holmes as a fresh, inventive take on the novel, with some unexpected violent moments, and a stylish, all-percussion soundtrack.

Kidding (SHOWTIME) - Jim Carrey stars in a series created by Dave Holstein about a children's TV show host who's going through a series of tragedies. Takes a lot of narrative risks, and most of them pay off. Probably the most adventurous of the shows listed here.

Patrick Melrose (SHOWTIME) - Limited series adaptation of the Edward St. Aubyn novels starring Benedict Cumberbatch in an extraordinary portrayal of a man fighting addiction throughout his life. First rate.

Ray Donovan (SHOWTIME) - Liev Schreiber returns in the sixth season of this well-made series about a Hollywood fixer who's willing to kill when it's necessary. The series has now moved from California to New York City, boosting the show with a new dynamic as Donovan tries to help manipulate an upcoming mayoral election.

Room 104 (HBO) - A half hour anthology series from The Duplass Brothers, who are doing some of the most interesting movie and TV work currently. As with every anthology show, some episodes are better than others, but overall it's a great presentation well worth watching.

The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story (FX) - Ryan Murphy returns after 2017's terrific dramatization of the OJ Simpson trial with a look at the murder of clothing designer Gianni Versace, with an absolutely brilliant performance by Darrin Criss as Versace's murderer.

The Romanoffs (AMAZON) - Matthew Weiner's return to TV after Mad Men, with an anthology series about people around the world who claim they are descendants of the Romanoffs. Fascinating show, with an extraordinary range of stories, most of them feature film length. The show I most want to be renewed for a new season.

The Walking Dead Season 9 (AMC) - Under new showrunner Angela Kang, this long-running series has regained some of its narrative strength after a weak season 8. I'm excited again to see how the show moves forward.