I signed copies of I Am The River at the one and only Dark Delicacies this last Saturday, November 10th. Joining me at the table were Jeremy Wagner, Steve Niles, and Glen Hirshberg – a stellar collection of horror creators, which made the night incredibly fun.

The crowd as impressive, as was the hospitality displayed by Del and Sue, who have been running Dark Delicacies for decades, through three locations (with a new one coming soon), establishing their shop as the West Coast’s ground zero for all things horror in every medium fathomable, while anchoring the cool and offbeat vibe of what’s known as the Magnolia Park district of Burbank.

Fellow Angelino horror scribes Peter Atkins, Philip Fracassi, and Dino Parenti came through, which was lovely, and adding the cherry to the sundae was Ferndale’s own Josh Malerman, who showed up while in town for the premiere of the motion picture adaptation of his exceptional novel Bird Box. Directed by Susanne Bier, the film stars Sandra Bullock, Sarah Paulson, John Malkovich, Tom Hollander, BD Wong, and even goddamn Machine Gun Kelly. With that cast, and backing by Universal and Netflix, I’m hoping the film blows up the box office, and the cinema rains Malerman stories well into the future.

With parts of the county ablaze, smoke turning the moon to a blood sliver, and ash dusting the city like a flurry of gray snow, the Saturday night signing acted as a secure pocket of comfort and the familiar. Truly, it was great night for friends and horror and friends in horror, and another reminder of how lucky I am to be writing in such a scene, surrounded by such people, allowed to gather at places like Dark Delicacies to celebrate the beauty, wonder, and limitless possibilities of Horror and the fantastic. Long may it live, and much may it prosper.