The Mob, Vegas, and Tea

Thank you, Las Vegas

2008-11-11T19:53:00.000-08:00

Dear hometown and the participants in the Vegas Valley Book Festival,
Thank you for coming out celebrate books and all that is literary.

A special thanks to all those who came to the Noir panel on November 7th. Hopefully, we entertained you.

An even more special thanks to my fellow panelists: Jarret Keene, Tod Goldberg, Todd James Pierce, and Vu Tran (who wasn't on the panel, but should have been up there with us).

Las Vegas always opens my eyes to something new.

Thank you for the love and support.

xo,
Lori

This week: Vegas Valley Book Festival!

2008-11-02T22:00:00.000-08:00

Hi, all,
The Vegas Valley Book Festival is coming up next week. From November 6-8, poets will read, music will play, art will be shared.

I'll be speaking on a panel called "Vegas Noir," along with Jarret Keene, Tod Goldberg, and Todd James Pierce. Steve Grogan will moderate. We'll be discussing the book Las Vegas Noir and the topic of the "Great American Las Vegas Novel." Who will write it? What will it be about?

My panel is Friday, November 7 at 3:30 p.m. at the Fifth Street School in Downtown Las Vegas.

I am very excited about this event, as well as Jarret's "Operation Desert Word Storm" that will make Vegas' First Friday Art Walk more literary than ever--lots of performers and warrior poets to watch and love.

We'll get a chance to dance around Downtown Las Vegas and have a Noir-inspired drink or two.

I would be beyond delighted to see everyone at the Noir panel.

Lots of love and hope,

Lori

p.s. Here's the Vegas Valley Book Festival schedule.

p.p.s. The photograph above is one I snapped in Los Angeles at Union Station. I recently found out that this picture was chosen to be the cover of a book. The Southern California Review will don my art, when it comes out in November 2008.

Vegas Valley Book Festival

2008-08-12T19:17:00.000-07:00

Hey, readers, writers, friends, and fam,
Some new news for you. I will be at the Vegas Valley Book Festival from November 6-8.

I will be sitting on the panel called "Vegas Noir" with my fellow Las Vegas Noir writer Tod Goldberg and editor Jarret Keene. The panel is on Friday, November 7th at 3:30 p.m. at the Fifth Street School in Downtown Las Vegas (located at Fourth Street and Lewis Avenue).

Tod, Jarret, and I will talk, read, answer your questions, maybe tell a joke or two, and generally entertain you. If you are interested in Noir, this would be an excellent talk to see, while at the Festival. Afterward, we will sign copies of Las Vegas Noir.

The Festival is Las Vegas' largest annual literary event, and I am thrilled to be a part of it.

I really hope to see you there.

xo,

Lori

A killer time

2008-06-29T09:46:00.000-07:00

Last night was the big Night of Noir here in L.A., and the event was superb. So many people to thank for making this happen.

Imix Bookstore: Located in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Eagle Rock, this colorful and eclectic little shop opened its doors and heart to us. Thank you for your support and for the fantastic gallery space, in which we read, sang, and talked Noir.

Laura Ellis: Jazz singer/femme fatale, thank you for putting on a show that made men blush. You were fantastic!

Glen Golightly: Thank you for being a super Master of Ceremonies and keeping the audience entertained.

The USC Master of Professional Writing Alumni Association: Thank you for supporting us writers, as we schooled Los Angeles on what Noir is all about.

Thank you to my fellow Noir writers in crime: Los Angeles Noir Editor Denise Hamilton, Emory Holmes II, Christine McKellar, and Tod Goldberg. You are all such fine artists.

Jethro Nededog: My friend and producer of this fabulous event. You are a talent in every way. This whole thing was all you--cool, coordinated, classy, and community-oriented. Thank you for making this happen.

To friends and readers and patrons, who came out to see us, thanks for your support.

Celebrate the Dark Art: Night of Noir in L.A. This Saturday

2008-06-24T23:05:00.000-07:00

Come out this Saturday night to Imix Bookstore in L.A. (neighborhood of Eagle Rock, to be exact) to hear writers celebrate the dark art of Noir.

Writers Denise Hamilton, Tod Goldberg, Emory Holmes, Jim Pascoe, Christine McKellar, Gary Phillips, and I will read from our respective Noir stories.

We will see which city produces darker crime fiction--Los Angeles or Las Vegas? The birthplace of Noir or Sin City?

In case you didn't know, the Akashic Books Noir series started in Brooklyn, where the publisher asked local writers to whip up dark tales from around their block. The anthology was so popular that Akashic moved on to other bouroughs of New York City, and then out-of-state and around the nation.

Of course, the series eventually made it out west, and now here we are in L.A. with quality crime fiction about the very neighborhoods that you live in. Of course, not to be overlooked, there's Las Vegas Noir, which paints a very lively, very full picture of just how dark life can be--even off the Strip.

So, if you like fiction, and you like dark tales, see your way over to Imix on Saturday. Live jazz chanteuse and wine bar not to be missed.

Saturday, June 28
6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Imix Bookstore

A Night of Noir

2008-05-29T20:17:00.000-07:00

In case you couldn't get enough of the Akashic Noir series, and you live in L.A. (or visit often), you're in great luck.

My friend Jethro Nededog, the USC Master of Professional Writing Alumni Association, and I are putting on "A Night of Noir." At a little local Los Angeles bookstore, writers from Los Angeles Noir and Las Vegas Noir will meet up to read their work, sign books, and generally have a great time.

Please join us! Here's the details...
Who: Amazing writers such as Tod Goldberg, Denise Hamilton, Christine McKellar, Gary Phillips, Emory Holmes III, Jim Pascoe and other writers (including me!) will read from their work. And sign books.

What: This summer's ultimate in Noir literary events.

When: Saturday, June 28, 2008 from 6pm to 8pm

Where: Imix Bookstore, 5052 Eagle Rock Blvd., Los Angeles, CA (323) 257-2512

Why: Noir writers are generally very cool. Jazz singer Laura Ellis will perform selections from her show "Femme Fatale: The Music of Film Noir." And the event includes a no-host wine bar.

Hope to see you there,

Lori

A Million Thanks

2008-05-26T17:01:00.000-07:00

Made my last Noir trip to Vegas this past Memorial Day weekend to sign books at Cheesecake and Crime, a quaint mystery bookstore.

The turn out was great. Thank you to family, friends, readers, and noir fans, who all turned up to say hello and get their books signed.

Big thanks go to Joe and Pam of Cheesecake and Crime, who really opened up their shop to us and curated a great event.

Las Vegas Noir has been a big success so far. And I have loved talking with readers about writing, Noir, the stories in the book, and Vegas.

My month of May has been stellar. Thank you again to all for the love and support.

Yours,

Lori

p.s. If you live in Vegas, I highly recommend Cheesecake and Crime. Their book selection is excellent and the homemade cheesecake is even better.

Cheesecake & Crime

2008-05-22T21:15:00.000-07:00

Is sugar-free cheescake a crime?

I'm not sure, but I plan on finding out this Saturday, as I take my last trip to Vegas this month to honor Las Vegas Noir. The book came out May 1, 2008.

This Saturday (5/24), I'll be at a sweet little bookshop called
Cheesecake & Crime in Las Vegas to read and sign books. The place is awesome....they have tons of noir books and a full service cheesecake shop put right together. What a dream.

Hope to see lots of pretty faces. It's sure to be a killer (and yummy) time. ;)

Here are the details:
----Sat., May 24, 3pm, Cheesecake & Crime 10545 S.Eastern Ave. 100 (Eastern Commons Shopping Centerbehind the Colonial Bank), Henderson, NV.
*Featuringthe editors and select contributors.

Las Vegas: Thank you!

2008-05-11T13:01:00.000-07:00

Hey, all,
Just wanted to say thank you to family, friends, and readers who came out to the launch party of Las Vegas Noir on this past Thursday night 5/8.

Thanks to the venue The Freakin' Frog, the wicked cool band Love Pentagon, and organizing parties editor Jarret Keene, and booksellers from Cheesecake and Crime Pam and Joe.

A great start to making this book a super success.

If you want something to read this summer, while you are lounging by the pool, check this little anthology out. Sure to scare you just a little...

Thanks again for everyone's support and love, love, love.

xo,

Lori

There's No Place Like Home: Las Vegas Noir Dates

2008-04-29T23:38:00.000-07:00

Las Vegas Noir will be in bookstores everywhere on this Thursday, May 1!

Several reading/signing events will be held in Vegas, in honor of the book.
Below are the confirmed dates that I will be in Las Vegas to toast this fine collection. Yay for champagne and red wine and dark tales about my hometown:

----Thurs., May 8, 7pm The Freakin' Frog 4700 Maryland Parkway, Las Vegas, NV. ***Launch party for Las Vegas Noir featuring both editors and all contributors. Cash bar and live music by local Vegas rock band to follow reading/signing.

----Sat., May 17, 2pm, Borders 1445 W. Sunset Rd. (at corner of Stephanie), Henderson, NV. *Featuring the editors and select contributors.

----Sat., May 24, 3pm, Cheesecake & Crime 10545 S. Eastern Ave. #100 (Eastern Commons Shopping Center behind the Colonial Bank), Henderson, NV. *Featuring the editors and select contributors.

You can order the book on the Akashic Books website at http://www.akashicbooks.com/lasvegasnoir.htm. Or on http://www.amazon.com/.

I would love to see you.

xo,
Lori

Come up and see me sometime: Las Vegas Noir events

2008-03-18T19:26:00.000-07:00

Las Vegas Noir is coming out May 1!

Several reading/signing events will be held in Vegas, in honor of the book's completion. The first one (aka the big launch party!) will be Thursday, May 8 at the Freakin' Frog.

Check out the signing schedule below. I just got it from my editor Jarret Keene. All of these events will be super fun and a chance to hang out with Noir aficionados. You might even hear me read my story "Three Times a Night, Every Other Night."

----Thurs., May 8, 7pm The Freakin' Frog 4700 Maryland Parkway, Las Vegas, NV. ***Launch party for Las Vegas Noir featuring both editors and all contributors. Cash bar and live music by local Vegas rock band to follow reading/signing.

----Thurs., May 15, 7pm Clark County Library 1401 E. Flamingo Rd., Las Vegas, NV. *Featuring the editors and select contributors.

----Sat., May 17, 2pm, Borders 1445 W. Sunset Rd. (at corner of Stephanie), Henderson, NV. *Featuring the editors and select contributors.

----Fri., May 23, Time TBA, Borders McCarran Airport Las Vegas, NV. *Featuring the editors and select contributors.

----Sat., May 24, 3pm, Cheesecake & Crime 10545 S. Eastern Ave. #100 (Eastern Commons Shopping Center behind the Colonial Bank), Henderson, NV. *Featuring the editors and select contributors.

(You can pre-order the book on the Akashic Books website at http://www.akashicbooks.com/lasvegasnoir.htm. Or on http://www.amazon.com/.)

Leaving for Las Vegas

2008-03-11T22:56:00.000-07:00

I am headed out to Vegas this weekend for a wedding. Though I chose to fly this time (for the sake of time), I am thinking of the long desert stretch that connects L.A. and Vegas, and how I wrote a travel piece about that drive once.

All swirled together, you could call the drive something mystic. A reminder that the desert is uncharted and untamed. A foreshadowing that you are about to enter the world's largest adult playground. A detox from L.A.'s Hollywood, and a preparation for something even more gaudy.

Listed all together, I see it in postcards:
The 1950s diner, the Joshua Trees, the abandoned waterpark, sweltering heat and a dry cold blistering the roadkill, all the billboards, the World's Largest Thermometer, the Alien Jerky stand, and the big rollercoasters near stateline, right after you are welcomed to Nevada.

There's nothing like that drive, a Led Zeppelin cd, and caffeine.

Tapped

2008-02-10T21:27:00.000-08:00

Two things that tap into L.A.:

1) Saturday night I went to see a fabulous tap dance performance at UCLA. Basically these ten to twelve dancers make up the best tap dancers in the universe, and they were all here together in L.A. What a wonderful performance, goes to show at 80, you can still be light on your feet and full of energy. Check out dance writer Rachel Levin's keen review of Women in Tap, printed in the L.A. Times this past week. Click here.

2) Sometimes I read articles that just get to the heart of things. Scott Gold's warm writing about Los Angeles neighborhood, Los Feliz, really highlights what is local in this big city, what brings people together. Leaving secret messages inside a chess board table in a restaurant? Doesn't get much sweeter. In his article "An urban conversation in Los Feliz" he begins his writing with: "I am sitting with Stephanie. Three days in a row now we have met. We click together like Legos. Her lips taste like strawberries."

Urban love notes? I dig it. Click here to read the rest.

Las Vegas Noir

2008-02-06T22:06:00.000-08:00

I'm super excited to say Las Vegas Noir, which includes my short story
"Three Times a Night, Every Other Night," is coming out May 1, 2008.

Check it out on the Akashic Books website. Click here

Or on Amazon.com. Click here

Cover is pretty, no?

Reading events will be held in Las Vegas this spring.

A little something about L.A....

2008-02-04T22:57:00.001-08:00

The other day, I was driving home on the freeway, swerving up the 110. So many red taillights were in front of me, I pictured them as little hearts moving closer and closer to me.

The other side of the freeway was filled with sparkling white headlights, zooming past like a flash.

This daily experience of tangling around this city on these long roads of mass transit is an experience unique to L.A.

The freeways are these frustrating ribbons that bind us together.

I pictured all of us on the freeway that night spelling out a long message with our headlights and taillights. Loopy cursive that could only be read from space. And the message said....

If the L.A. freeways could shout, what would they say?

A little something about my hometown...

2008-02-03T21:49:00.000-08:00

Joan Didion once wrote about Las Vegas, calling it:
"the most extreme and allegorical of American settlements, bizarre and beautiful in its venality and in its devotion to immediate gratification, a place the tone of which is set by mobsters and call girls and ladies' room attendants with amyl nitrite poppers in their uniform pockets."

Bizarre and beautiful, no doubt. Vegas keeps people coming back by stunning them with the amount of ways one can have a good time.

Sometimes I look back and wonder if what she describes is the same town I grew up in. To me, as a child, it was always just a peaceful piece of desert land.

Hello, Big World

2007-10-19T23:35:00.000-07:00

Hi to all-
Thank you to everyone who has visited my site. I appreciate your feedback, fodder, and friendship.

Also, big thanks to all my friends and colleagues and lovers of books who made it to the very first Writers In Residence in Long Beach, CA on October 13th at Open Books. Fellow writer Jethro Nededog and I had a fantastic time talking to so many patrons and poets. We did improptu readings and even got to hear the wonderful work of many other writers, who came in to share.

Will write more soon.

Love,

Lori