Dave’s currently in the process of developing a short story course. Before he puts the finishing touches on it, he wants to make sure he hasn’t missed anything. You can give him a hand by answering a simple question: What single, most important element of writing a short story would you like to see in a short story course?

Got something in mind? Send it along to: David Silva

Oh, and for anyone who’s interested in being notified when the short story course becomes available, just drop him a note with your first name and your e-mail address. When the course is ready, he’ll send you an e-mail with all the details. Send to: Short Story Course

Thanks for your help!

I received a copy of Dry Whiskey from Lumanity Productions recently, and though I was incredibly eager to see it, I waited a week to sit down with my sister and husband for a viewing. Robert Budreau has done a great job turning the short story into a 21 minute film. He managed to hold onto all the emotional elements without losing the theme. It was quite beautiful. Wonderfully acted. We watched it twice.

The coordinators of The British Fantasy Society’s FantasyCon have invited Robert to submit Dry Whiskey to the convention’s short film showcase. The convention runs Sept. 22 - 24. It’ll be nice to see what kind of reaction it garners. In addition, the short film has upcoming appearances at:

Yorkton Short Film & Video Festival: May 25 - 28 (Golden Sheaf Nomination - Best Drama)

Winnipeg International Film Festival: June 8 - 12

With a twist that would have movie fans walking out of the theater in disbelief, Hellnotes has gone through a third metamorphosis and is now being delivered as free content through a new blog format.

Hellnotes, a weekly newsletter started by Paul F. Olson and David B. Silva in 1997, was taken over in 2002 by Judi Rohrig. The change came after Paul and Dave achieved combustion after five years of trying to maintain the weekly schedule while keeping the quality high. Judi stepped in, offering to take over the newsletter because she believed in its contribution to the horror genre and didn’t want to see it die. She carried Hellnotes from 2002 until now, doing an unbelievable job and winning a Bram Stoker award for her hard work. Now, Judi’s decided the weekly grind has overtaken other areas of her life and she’s handing the newsletter back to Dave.

What does this mean?

On the negative side, it means Hellnotes will no longer be delivered in either an e-mail format nor a hardcopy format. Readers will have to visit the Hellnotes website (Hellnotes) to find out what’s new in the horror genre. Or, far more practical, they can sign up for the free Hellnotes RSS Feed, which will deliver the latest information directly to their desktop or browser.

On the positive side, Hellnotes will be updated daily instead of weekly, and there is no longer a yearly subscription fee. It’s now available to everyone as a free service.

Stop by and see what you think: Hellnotes