Happy Thanksgiving to my Canadian brothers and sisters, and Columbus Day greetings to my fellow statesiders, though this is one of the US holidays I gripe about. With all due respect to Christopher Columbus, I’d much rather receive my Monday mail. I can’t help but wonder how much longer Columbus Day will linger on the American calendar; the supposed discovery of America is a bit far back to look for a country that’s starting to remake movies that were made in the 1970s.
In one of the stranger episodes of my on-again/off-again novel-writing career, my publisher Simon and Schuster has seen fit to make me the subject of a contest. If you search my name on their SimonSays.com website, you will be taken to a page that includes, among other things, the giddy proposition “Win A Phone Call with Tim Lucas!” (The Official Rules page stresses that this prize has no monetary value, but I say that depends on who’s paying for the call.)
The idea is that Book Club members should go to the description page for my novel The Book of Renfield and answer a trivia question on the entry form posted there. But, for the life of me, I can’t find any questions (apart from those of the book’s Reading Guide) nor any entry forms. What with all this obfuscation, and no mention of the contest on the "Simon Says" main page, I’ll be very surprised if anyone enters, much less wins, this competition. But here’s the link, in case any of you dare to brave the labyrinth:
http://www.simonsays.com/content/destination.cfm?sid=33&pid=364950&qid=1&app=poll_quiz
[1:48 PM Update: Upon checking out how this blog link was working, I found a button installed under the "Official Rules" link. It is labelled "Start." This is what you push to gain access to the Renfield question. But be warned: it's a real brain-teaser!]
Check back later in the day because I plan to post some thoughts on Blue Underground's forthcoming deluxe disc of THE BIRD WITH THE CRYSTAL PLUMAGE... but I'd like to confirm a thing or two with the folks at BU first.
This blog received over 300 hits in its first 24 hours – an extraordinary début! Please tell your friends and I’ll keep spinning the plates.
