Monster Spotting and Other Questionable Pastimes

Book mentioned on writing blog

2008-09-09T05:36:00.000-07:00

Hi Spotters,

Sorry for the lapse in postings... my day job has been keeping me really busy (I'll spare you the woes of my department restructuring...or spare myself, rather, as it sucks the energy out of me to even talk about it).

Check out this nice mention of Monster Spotter's Guide on the Writer's Rainbow, a blog for creative writers.

Bigfoot Hoax

2008-08-19T09:22:00.000-07:00

Well, the Georgia Bigfoot body turned out to be a hoax. Shocking, I know. This article tells pretty much the whole story.

But, in happier news... the Mothman festival in Point Pleasant, WV is going strong.

The Bigfoot Saga Continues

2008-08-18T09:45:00.000-07:00

If you've been following the story about the Bigfoot corpse that was "revealed" at a press conference on Friday (or even if you haven't), then you're probably not surprised to hear that there's a lot of controversy over the findings.

At present, there are claims that the DNA evidence fails to prove the body found by hunters in Georgia is actually a sasquatch. Human and oppossum DNA is pointed at as matches for the 2 samples tested (which leads one to wonder how the samples were collected...).

Anyway. The hunters still claim the corpse is real, even though they sort of admit to maybe faking some online videos for fun. The more I read about this the more crazy it all sounds. See for yourself:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080817/sc_nm/bigfoot_dc_1

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/08/15/bigfoot.body/?iref=hpmostpop

Bigfoot, UFOs and Chupacabras

2008-08-14T05:35:00.000-07:00

Hi Spotters,

Here's a few cool stories for you this morning... some of my friends have been sending me some links.

First, here's a couple from Tom Nguyen (Tom and I met at Comic Con--he's an awesome comic artist, check out his work and his fun instructional book):

Another story about Friday's Bigfoot press conference
A thread on the Stephenville, TX UFO reports

And here's one from my pal Justin:

Video of a live Chupacabra almost exactly a year after the big "Chupacabra in the freezer" story in Cuero, TX.

BIG NEWS! Bigfoot Evidence to Be Revealed This Friday

2008-08-13T09:20:00.000-07:00

So, there's a claim that a Bigfoot corpse that was discovered in northern Georgia. There's going to be a press conference in Palo Alto, CA on Friday Aug 15. Read the story here

Lapse

2008-08-08T18:15:00.000-07:00

Sorry, sorry, sorry.

I've totally been a bad blogger. My post Comic Con work catch up has kept me so busy with my day job worky-work that I haven't had time to even think, it seems.

I also took a few days of vacation... the wife and I went to Chicago to see She and Him. It was a really cool show, albeit a little strange. If you haven't listened to them, you should... it's kind of an alt-country meets the 60s kind of thing. Like if Patsy Cline was playing with the Partridge Family or something. Zooey Deschanel has a freaking amazing voice.

I'm gonna get back on my game soon, I promise. This weekend we have some company visiting from out of town, but next week...

Anyway, sorry.

Back in the Office

2008-07-30T05:04:00.000-07:00

Hey spotters,

I've been out of town for a few days, so sorry for the lapse in reporting (I was attending San Diego Comic Con--I've got some cool pics to share soon).

For now, here's a few monster headlines from while I was out:

http://www.buzzfeed.com/peggy/dead-monster-washes-ashore

http://www.oxfordmail.net/news/headlines/display.var.2408905.0.yeti_hairs_examined.php

Bigfoot Theory

2008-07-21T07:42:00.000-07:00

Bigfoot sightings often coincide with reports of UFOs, and many paranormal researchers have suggested a possible connection. Here's an interesting article about the sasquatch/alien connection.

"I Was a Teenage Chupacabra"

2008-07-18T05:39:00.000-07:00

Oh man, have I got a perfect story for your Friday morning ('cause I know the first thing everyone does when they get to work is check my Monster Spottin' blog).

Anyway check out this story from a paranormal reporter who encountered some wild characters, particularly one from a guy who told a very detailed story about being an alien hybrid.

Monsters, monsters everywhere...

2008-07-17T05:38:00.000-07:00

It's no surprise that people in WA love their Bigfoot, but this article about Sasquatch chalk art prooves it.

Here's further proof that Oklahoma loves them some Bigfoot too. (Yes, yes, Oklahoma... I know... I should have said more about you in the book... there, I admit it.)

And in San Jose, CA a Private Investigator is on the case...

Finally, here's a story about a chupacabra... in Michigan?

Videos

2008-07-15T09:43:00.000-07:00

Hi spotters,

After watching that crazy trailer for Zombie Haiku, I thought I'd re-post the videos I created last year for Monster Spotter's Guide.

Here's one about a taxidermied monster head that my sister and brother-in-law came across when they were vacationing in Kentucky. The video was meant to be funny, but the story is true. They really met a guy who had this thing in his house. We keep talking about going back to check it out... one of these days.

Monday Headlines

2008-07-14T05:23:00.000-07:00

Hi Spotters,
I had a very busy weekend... my family has a whole slew of summer birthdays, so it involved a lot of over eating and getting sunburned. Here's some headlines for your monday:

Here's a very scientific blog post about globsters (sea monster carcasses)

Last month there was a notable Sasquatch sighting in British Columbia

An astrophysicist claims to know the secret behind a Phoenix, AZ UFO sighting from 11 years ago... he claims the lights to have been made by secret man-made technology and plans to tell his story this weekend. Read the article here

Friday Headlines

2008-07-11T05:37:00.000-07:00

Holy bat-pants, Bat-Man
http://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/viewnews.php?id=130394

River monster escapades
http://paranormal.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?zi=1/XJ&sdn=paranormal&cdn=newsissues&tm=4&gps=76_62_1020_595&f=22&su=p504.1.336.ip_&tt=2&bt=0&bts=0&zu=http%3A//www.medwaymessenger.co.uk/news/default.asp%3Farticle_id%3D44267%26newspage%3D1

Crystal skulls found to be fakes (Indy movie found to be lame)
http://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/viewnews.php?id=130397

Zombie Haiku

2008-07-10T05:52:00.000-07:00

I posted about this book earlier (it's a must-read for fans of zombie movies). Check out this video promo for the book that is up on YouTube. Hilarious... and impressive.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pd1Ws9QnmZY

White Giraffe

2008-07-09T05:34:00.000-07:00

Not exactly a monster, but a legendary creature nonetheless (and one of my favorite animals, btw)... check out this story about an elusive white giraffe in Tanzania.

You CAN Go Home Again

2008-07-07T09:54:00.000-07:00

Hope everyone had nice 4th of July weekend. I went to visit my dad and my grandfather who live in Waynesville, NC, which is nestled in the Appalachian Mountains. I always dig getting to visit my dad, who loves telling stories and was one of the motivations for writing my book. He started telling stories about "painter" cats living in the mountains, which is a popular area legend that panthers live in the mountains even though large cats supposedly no longer populate the region.

Phantom felines that appear in places they do not belong or possess some sort of attribute that makes them seem almost supernatural are one of the most enduring and likely real scenarios that fall under the watchful eye of cryptozoologists.

My dad always tells a story about using a can and a leather string coated in bees wax to make panther sounds to frighten his neighbors. As a monster enthusiast you might think I'd be annoyed that he would be responsible for such a hoax, but I mostly think it adds to the legend giving it a very folklorish quality. I've asked my dad, who was a game warden for about 15 years, if he thought large cats might still live in the mountains and he agreed it was possible. Appalachia is full of remote areas where a small population of cats might still be able to evade frequent contact with humans.

It's always good to visit back home.

Here's a couple of headlines from the weekend for you:

A gorilla type creature has been terrorizing the Phillipines

Here's a recent posting about some UFO sightings that occurred in Cuba throughout history

Bigfoot & UFOs... Oh My...

2008-07-03T05:15:00.000-07:00

Right after my book came out an Oklahoma reporter grilled me because I didn't write about Bigfoot as an Oklahoma monster, instead covering giant octopii in their lakes (the article is reprinted here in this blog called "Boy In the Machine"). I told him that Bigfoot wasn't exclusive to any state and was pretty much a worldwide phenomenon.

So... um... here's another report of Bigfoot in Oklahoma...

http://www.tahlequahdailypress.com/features/local_story_183104454.html

And since Bigfoot and UFOs are such good buddies... here's a UFO story:

http://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/viewnews.php?id=129628

A Monster Read

2008-07-02T09:36:00.000-07:00

If you like zombies you should check out this book: Zombie Haiku by Ryan Mecum

It's a fun as a horror film... pretty twisted, quite cinematic with polaroids of the undead swarming across town, and at times very funny. Like a Romero movie in scope, this book takes you from the early days of a zombie plague to the inevitable grim conclusion-- and does it all in the 5-7-5 haiku syllable structure. Crazy or genius? You be the judge. Either way I bet you'll be entertained.

Making Friends with Authors

2008-07-01T05:13:00.000-07:00

One of the fun things about having written a book is that I get to occasionally sign books at book festivals and meet other authors. A couple of months ago I was at a book festival in Lexington, KY and met a very nice young woman named Jennette Fulda who wrote an amazing, funny weightloss memoire titled Half Assed. Check out her blog at http://www.pastaqueen.com/

We are still keeping in touch and she had a recent booksigning in South Bend, Indiana and sent me this photo of my book on display "right by the cash register". (And right beside a couple of Max Brooks books... pretty cool).Very nice of her, don't you think?

2008-06-30T07:03:00.000-07:00

Want a zombie makeover?

http://www.zombieportraits.com/

Monday News Roundup

2008-06-30T05:22:00.000-07:00

Hey Spotters,

Monday mornings I try to check the news and see what kind of monster stuff got posted over the weekend. Here's the latest:

It was a big week for globsters ("monster" carcasses washed up on beaches). Giant squid near Santa Cruz and some weird thing reported washed up in Russia (but one comment posted says this is simply a resurfaced photo of whale remains).

A UFO sighting occurred in an Australian town yesterday. Read report here.

2008-06-27T07:18:00.000-07:00

This morning I've been watching videos on the monster quest site. Check them out:
http://www.history.com/video.do?name=monsterquest

Also, here's some recent news about Bigfoot and an Indian version of Yeti known as Mande Barung (or forest man)

http://www.freshnews.in/large-footprints-discovered-on-borneo-may-belong-to-bigfoot-28985

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7457894.stm

Gator Captured in Chicago River

2008-06-26T05:46:00.001-07:00

Heard about this one? The stuff of urban legend... but for real.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=IbsSQM3MYwg&feature=related

2008-06-25T10:20:00.000-07:00

Dear Spotters,

Welcome to my old/new blog site.

Ahem... so when I first started my Monster Spotting blog I started it here on Blogger. Then my publisher built a website, so I started blogging on MySpace with the idea that my Myspace page and my website would work together as friends. Well, now my website is gone, and I decided to resurrect the blog site. It should be more interesting anyway because I'll be able to update more often (which is my goal).

Some background: After my book came out I did a fair amount of blogging in tandem with some book events and so forth. Well I'm not doing as many events now and I wanted to turn my focus back toward Monster Spotting and letting folks know about cryptozoology news and trivia.

If you want to read a backlog of my blog posts check out my MySpace site www.myspace.com/monsterspotter

Otherwise, look at this site as a fresh start/a clean slate. That's the way I'm looking at it. Hope you enjoy.

Just ignore the two way old posts below. Or not. But they are really old. Seriously.

Monster Book Progress

2007-01-17T13:30:00.000-08:00

It's been a while since my last post... I've been working on my monster book (the Monster Spotter's Guide to North America due in stores August 2007). I'm reviewing the manuscript after my editor (Amy) went through it and am making the requested changes. I have to say that I'm a bit surprised (and pleased) at how little is being changed. You always expect your work to be picked apart (at least I do) and overall Amy said there were very few things she felt compelled to change.

The art for the book is also coming together... very exciting. The designer (Grace) has created little monster icons to signify the different classifications of monsters throughout the book.
So basically, I'm doing the last bit of work I need to do before the book goes to layout. I can't wait to see how the actual designed pages look.

First posting

2006-12-28T13:23:00.000-08:00

Hi. My name is Scott.

Welcome to my blog. It's about monsters. It all started with a book about monsters that I just finished writing. My regret in starting this blog is that I didn't begin it sooner (but, on the other hand I was in the middle of writing the book).

My intention for the blog is more than just talking about my book. I'm planning to include stories and annecdotes from my own research as well as any monster legends or reportings that people pass along to me. Since I began writing the book I've been told about all kinds of crazy beasts from folklore and urban legends.

The book is titled The Monster Spotter's Guide to North America. It is basically a birdwatching guide for people who like monsters. The book should come out in August. It's meant to be a campy and fun (but informative) look at legendary monsters and related folk lore of North America and covers all the major monsters (as well as some lesser known beasts) that have been reported throughout history, ask some thought-provoking questions leading readers to form their own theories about possible explanations for the phenomena, and finally approach the subject with a humorous edge that will appeal not only to people interested in monsters, but to science fiction and pop culture enthusiasts as well.

Today I saw the scans for the art for the book. It's illustrated by a friend of mine named Ben Patrick. The art looks amazing... I looked at it and started to feel a swell of pride (then I reminded myself that I didn't draw anything... I'm the writer). But it was awesome to see the project start to come together.

Spoke with the designer (Grace) today... she had some questions about some confusing instructions that I wrote on the mock up of the gate fold map (just one of the book's many features). I'm sure after talking to Grace that my editor (Amy) will have some questions for me and may want me to change a few things. The book is currently being line edited, and I can't wait to get a chance to re-read it. I have some additional ideas, so I hope I can make a few last minute adjustments.

All in all the book seems to be on schedule and there should be no problem with seeing it finished in August. It's quite exciting to be this close.

As for the blog. I'm just getting started here. Please check regularly for news about the book, stuff about monsters and I'd love to hear any comments or monster stories anyone out there might have.

Best,

Scott