public appearances

Novel Nights starts this Friday

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This Friday, October 2, at 5 PM Pacific Time, I’ll be making a remote appearance as part of Novel Nights, a fundraiser to support Seattle’s Hugo House. This is the first of six Novel Nights events that will be taking place over the next two weeks:

Tickets to individual events are $25 each, or $75 if you would like a signed copy of that author’s book. You can also get a full series pass to all six Novel Nights, with or without signed books.

For All Nerds

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Last week I was a guest on the For All Nerds podcast with Tatiana King and DJ Benhameen, talking about Lovecraft Country (my appearance starts at the 33:30 mark). This was my second visit to the ‘cast—I was previously a guest back in 2017, when they were known as the Fan Bros Show—and just like last time, I really enjoyed myself. For more Lovecraft Country conversation, be sure and check out the weekly “Safe Negro Podcast” editions of For All Nerds, where they go in-depth on each episode of the HBO series (starting with “Sundown,” here).

In other news:

* I am still answering reader questions over at Goodreads.

* On October 2 at 5 PM Pacific Time, I’ll be making a remote appearance as part of Novel Nights, a fundraiser to support Seattle’s Hugo House. If you’d like to contribute, you can buy tickets to individual events—other featured authors are Erik Larsen, Pramila Jayapal, Jess Walter, Sharyn Skeeter, and Neal Bascomb—or get a full series pass to all six Novel Nights.

* As of today, Lovecraft Country is on the New York Times bestseller list for the fourth week in a row!

Chatting with Christopher Moore at Powell’s Virtual City of Books

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Here’s the video of my conversation with Christopher Moore last Thursday, hosted on Zoom by Powell’s City of Books. Thanks to Chris and Powell’s for a fun time.

You’ll have another chance to catch me live online this Saturday, July 25, at 5:30 PM Pacific Time, when I do a solo Zoom appearance for Sunriver Books & Music. For details on how to sign up for this event, contact the bookstore by calling 541-593-2525 or email them at sunriverbooks@sunriverbooks.com.

Second Life Book Club video

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Here’s the video of my recent appearance on the Second Life Book Club. My host, Draxtor Despres, came up with the idea of having me read a short passage from each of my seven novels, to create a sort of “tasting menu” of the Matt Ruff canon. I thought it worked out pretty well, and the discussion was a lot of fun, too.

Also, just a reminder, if you’re interested in catching me live, there’s still time to register for this evening’s Zoom event hosted by Powell’s City of Books. My friend Christopher Moore and I will be chatting about 88 Names. The event starts at 5 PM Pacific Time and you can sign up here.

And if you’re busy this evening, you’ll have another chance to see me on Zoom when I do a solo appearance for Sunriver Books & Music on Saturday, July 25 at 5:30 PM Pacific. Details here.

Powell’s online event with me and Christopher Moore this Thursday, 7/16, at 5 PM Pacific Time

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This Thursday, July 16, at 5 PM Pacific, I’ll be appearing on a Zoom event hosted by Powell’s City of Books in Portland, Oregon. Joining me online will be my friend, the author Christopher Moore (Shakespeare for Squirrels). We’ll talk about 88 Names and whatever else comes to mind, and then take questions from the audience.

You can register for the event here.

Second Life Book Club this Wednesday, June 24 at Noon Pacific [POSTPONED]

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This Wednesday, June 24, I will be the featured guest on the Second Life Book Club, chatting with host Draxtor from noon to 1 PM Pacific Time. If you want to (virtually) attend the event, you will need to sign up for a (free) Second Life account and create an avatar—click the “Join Now” button on the Book Club page to get started.

The event will also be livestreamed on Facebook, YouTube and Twitter, and the video will be posted to YouTube afterwards.

[ETA: This event has been postponed to July 1.]

Rocket Feather podcast

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This week I am a guest on the Rocket Feather podcast, which is hosted by my old college buddy Charles Matheus and his partner in crime, Kelly Roberge. Our conversation was originally planned to last about an hour, but we were having so much fun it stretched to nearly two (and might have gone longer, if Charles and Kelly’s cats hadn’t been so insistent on having their dinnertime respected). We take a trip down memory lane to our days at Cornell, recap what I’ve been up to for the last 35 years, and then do a couple of deep dives into my novels Set This House in Order and Lovecraft Country. (Note to my publicist, if she’s reading this: I’m pretty sure I managed to work in a plug for 88 Names somewhere along the way.)

You can listen to the podcast by clicking on the player above, or visit the Rocket Feather website for additional options. Many thanks to Charles and Kelly for having me on the show!

A couple programming notes while I’ve got your attention:

  • On July 16, starting at 5 PM Pacific, I will be doing a virtual 88 Names event (via Zoom) for Powell’s City of Books of Portland, OR. My friend and fellow novelist Christopher Moore has graciously agreed to act as moderator.
  • On July 25, starting at 5:30 PM Pacific, I will be doing another virtual 88 Names event (also via Zoom) for Sunriver Books & Music of Sunriver, OR. This event will be hosted by the bookstore’s owner, Deon Stonehouse.

Both of these events are open to the public, and you don’t need to be in Oregon to participate. I’ll post details on how you can join as we get closer to the event dates.

88 Names podcast: reading and Q&A in AltspaceVR

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In conjunction with the 88 Names podcast, I did a live reading from the novel in virtual reality last month, on Microsoft’s AltspaceVR platform. The video, courtesy of our floating cameraman Shahab Zargari and producer Darryl Armstrong, is now available to share. (There’s also an audio-only version, which you can find here.)

Like my other virtual events, this was a lot of fun. As I told Suzanne Lee, who did a write-up about the reading, what I especially love is the degree of spontaneity this allows for. In the real world, setting up a bookstore appearance or an author panel can take weeks of advance planning, but on Altspace or Second Life, you can throw an event together in a matter of hours and have people logging in from all over the world. And this will only get easier as the hardware and software improve.

88 Names reading and Q&A in AltspaceVR this Friday

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This Friday, March 17, I’ll be reading from 88 Names and taking questions on Microsoft’s AltspaceVR platform. The virtual venue opens to the public at 5:30 Pacific Time and the reading will start at 6:00.

Although Altspace supports virtual reality headsets, you don’t need one to attend the reading—there’s a “2D mode” that lets you log in using a regular PC and keyboard. All you need to do is download the app from the AltspaceVR homepage, sign up for a (free) account, and go through a brief set-up process/tutorial to create your avatar and learn how to move around on the site. Once that’s taken care of, you can RSVP for the event here.

See you on Friday!