A Not So Scary Halloween Birthday! 

Oct 28, 2015

  
   I’m a horror writer, and back when there was a horror section in the bookstores, that’s where I was shelved. I’ve been called mixed genre, dark fantasy, urban fantasy, paranormal, paranormal thriller. I’m still shelved in science fiction and fantasy, because thats where horror goes now. We horror writers hang out on the street corners with the science geeks, and the Tolkien fans, teaching them about the darker side of their fantasies. Muhahaha! Because I usually write a darker version of whatever I’m writing, I get invited to a lot of Halloween events. Not as many as I used to get invited to, because I have a reputation for turning them down. I could have made a lot of press and publicity over the years if I’d been wiling to attend more Halloween events on All Hallows Eve, itself, so why refuse?

   When my daughter, Trinity, was three I went to either World Fantasy Con, or World Con in California. I honestly can’t remember which con it was now, but they are both good cons for networking, finding agents, publishers, getting invited into anthologies, interviews, and a host of other things that are good for a writer’s career. If you are starting out as a writer I especially recommend World Fantasy Con for making good business connections. It was a smart business move so my friend and fellow writer, Deborah Millitello and I went. My ex, who was at that time still my husband, stayed at home like many spouses do for their other halves. Trinity was going to be Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz, and her best friend was going to be Glenda the Good Witch. My ex promised to get lots of pictures and our good friends and parents of the Good Witch were going to get video. My ex promised to get video, too. I hated to miss it, but I’d see the pictures and video later, and there would be other Halloweens. I was still searching for enough writing contracts to keep me busy and grow my career and that might not be able to wait for another year until next World Fantasy, so I chose and I went.

   It was a very busy and fun convention in many ways. I had a lot of meetings with editors, publishers, agents, and even had an interview with a new magazine. It was potentially a very productive convention, if any of it panned out. Just like you have to send out a lot of stories to a lot of different markets so you can up your chances of getting a professional sale and getting paid, so the more meetings you have with more publishing professionals the better your odds for new contracts. But it’s a bit like fishing, you put a lot of bait in the water, you don’t always catch a fish.

   As it turned out, not a single meeting turned into an actual paying contract for me. No new book sales, no new series sales, no anthologies that actually took off and became a reality. It was a lot of promise but no follow through, and . . . I’d missed seeing Trinity dressed up as Dorothy with her best friend as Glenda, but there’d be pictures and video.

   Nope, both cameras and both video recorders broke. I had one fuzzy picture in the dark where I could see the ruby gleam of my daughter’s shoes, but that was it. Literally every tech device we had to record that memory malfunctioned. I missed that Halloween and I could never even see it.

   That was my wakeup call from the universe that Halloween with my daughter, my only child, might just trump business even for a horror writer. I made the promise to myself that I would never miss another one with Trinity, and I have kept that promise.

   Her birthday is in October and one of her very favorite holidays is Halloween. She’s always been disappointed that I couldn’t hold out so she could be born on the actual holiday. For her birthday this year she wanted to go to Disney World for Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party. 

   It’s not a typical twenty-first birthday request, but it is very Trinity, so Jon and I went about making it happen. We told her to invite a friend, which she did. Jon, who has been Daddy Jon since she was quite small, and I, plus Spike and Genevieve, the other half of our poly foursome set about making Trinity’s birthday wish come true. 

   If you think that because I write horror and hard boiled mysteries that I don’t enjoy Disney, you would be wrong. In fact, all four of us are the type of adult that will watch our favorite Disney movies without a child as an excuse. Don’t let anyone tell you that you’re too old to enjoy the movies and things that make you happy, because they are killjoys that want to steal the happy-shiny from the world, and the world needs all the happy-shiny it can get. If Disney is one of your happy thoughts, then rock your bad selves! 

   If you go to Disney World for Halloween be absolutely sure you get tickets for Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party. It was awesome! Don’t miss the parade, either! The Headless Horseman rides out first, and the rest of the parade was equally fun. I particularly liked that the dancers from the Haunted Mansion had shovels and caused sparks to fly against the ground; it was a very cool effect. But make sure and get good viewing for the show at the castle, because this year is being hosted by the Sanderson Sisters from the movie, “Hocus Pocus.” It was one of Trinity’s favorite movies and one of Genevieve’s, too. The show is fabulous and the actress they have playing Bette Midler’s part as Winifred is spot on! The other sisters are very good, too, as was the whole cast. I can’t compliment the rest of the cast individually without giving away the surprises so I’ll wait until November to say anymore, but it was amazing! If you can go to this year’s party, do it, because all six of us loved it.

   So, Trinity is twenty-one, and she’s trying to arrange with work so she gets Halloween off because she’d still rather spend it at home with us and the dogs. Someday maybe she’ll grow out of wanting to be with us for the holiday, but until she does, I’m home for Halloween. I learned my lesson, even horror writers should take Halloween off and play with the kids.

15 thoughts on “A Not So Scary Halloween Birthday! ”

  1. Well said, and good for you!! This just makes me respect you all the more…for your talent and as a human being. Rock on!! : )

  2. Parenting is a learning/growing experience and we learn valuable lessons as we teach and help our children to grow up into valuable people. Obviously you are one of the smart ones and paid attention to the lessons that life with your child has offered you.
    I believe that Disney is good for the child in all of us and have no problem going to Disney or other animated releases without a child in tow. I’ve seen a video of the show with the Sanderson sisters and thought it a real ‘Hoot’! May you, your partners and your daughter never lose the magic of the Season! Happy Halloween, Blessed Samhain, and Blessed Be!

  3. So spot on for priorities. Enjoy your family time. Thank you for all your work the rest of the time. Poly households are busy households to keep everyone cared for. I know this personally after20 years. It makes the time you do give to the public all the more appreciated by me. Thanks again.

  4. Happy Belated birthday wish Trinity! Halloween is my favorite holiday as well. My mother bless her soul, was married on that day.

    Hope yours was a blast!

    Christina Carney

  5. Building memories with family and friends are so important. The memories will always be with you, and as you know work was work and not always productive.

  6. Halloween is also my favorite holiday. This year, however, it will be the first time my daughter wont be here. Her brother & I miss her, but her college is to far away. To complicate matters more I just had surgery so this Halloween will be spent watching movies. My 10 year old is not to happy about that yet. I’m hoping to change his mind though.?

  7. I have adored you as a writer and enjoyed your books for a very, very long time. But getting to see blogs like this and some of the more personal tidbits you post on FB and such has really made me grow to adore you as a normal persona as well. You are very much someone to look up to when it comes to showing that it is possible to balance fame and normalcy all in one. Thank you for being such an amazing role model!

  8. Raising children is a learning experience. Sometimes you get it right & sometimes your face meets the pavement. You learned what worked so thatcounts as a positive. As for the rest, no you are nota horror writer. Dark Urban Fantasy maybe. Horror is when the monsters have to be killed/destroyed right down to the very last one. There cannot be any good ones. You have a wereleopard with chef tendencies. You have a necromancer who doesn’t believe in associating ONLY with the dead but rather helps the police sove the crimes that she would be committing if this was horror. Anyway I found you when you were writing the Diana Tregarde stories & it’s been a fun ride since.

  9. Happy belated birthday to Trinity! Kudos to you Laurell, for realizing the missed opportunity and never letting it happen after that once. Also would like to say that yes, I am a Disney movie fan and at the age of 55, I enjoy watching them. I still enjoy being a child at heart! Thank you for sharing.

  10. I find it so totally awesome you put family first. So few people do now days’. I also find it refreshing that you are open about your family.

    The three of us have been together 28 years and in this small town we got some strange looks for awhile but now they just say hi and move on.

    I also find it refreshing that you are as far as I can tell Wiccan/Pagan, for lack of a better word.

  11. How serendipitous to find this post when I just spent the day in Disneyland, during Halloween Time for my 33rd Birthday! No minion or minor in tow. Just good old fashioned Disney Magic. Here is thought I could love you ( as an author & fictional friend more) and you go and trump Sigmund with this. Bravo for always being you, doing you & encouraging others to do the same. Happy Halloween.

  12. Awesome! I’ve never been to Disney and I didn’t realize they did Halloween! Although I have more to admit to, I never thought of your series as horror. Not once, although it did get quite scary from time to time. I never did realize until today why it was filed under the science fiction section. I feel slightly stupid to not have realized it sooner. I’ve been reading horror and not been afraid – Anita makes all the bad things better (by killing them). Who knew! xD

  13. I just discovered the A Nita Blake series a few months ago and havsince read the entire series! Thoroughly was hooked! Best wishes this Halloween! Beginning the newest release. Enjoy your family!

  14. I too love Hocus Pocus and recently saw Bette Midler live, she sang you put a spell on me, it was great. About family, I am older now and my kids have grown up and moved on. When they were young I always had the neighborhood party on Halloween and made the holiday special for everyone. All I can say is, don’t blink, they will be gone so fast, enjoy their childhood while you can. And no, no grandkids.

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