'Ghost Amusement' & the Spirits of the Season

I'm scared--that's right, scared!--of William S. Pumpkin-Burroughs; of Halloween Bible book burnings; of loss-leader pricing specters and an innocent child whispering, "I see dead books."

Well, no, not really. I'm just trying to get into the spirit of the season with a shout out (scream out) to neglected ghosts in contemporary fiction and to present the first annual Halloween Book Spirits Awards.

First, I believe ghosts need some new PR. I mentioned on Twitter and Facebook earlier this week that, in a publishing world gone mad for vampires, zombies and werewolves, ghosts seem to be getting short-sheeted (even Anne Rice said recently that angels are the new vampires in the book trade). Those of you familiar with spectral vengeance know that we disrespect wraiths at our peril.

What made me think about ghosts was a visit last weekend to the Metropolitan Museum Art in New York to see an extraordinary exhibition, Eccentric Visions: The Worlds of Luo Ping. Although I knew something about his work, I hadn't realized that during the late 18th century, he painted "Ghost Amusement," a scroll depicting "a mélange of ghosts," as the exhibition catalogue so delicately puts it. "The conflation of two seemingly different worlds--evidential scholarship and fanciful supernatural narratives--is one reason why this painting continues to fascinate viewers today."

In 1772, on the day, appropriately enough, of the Ghost Festival, Luo Ping showed this scroll to his friend Zhang Xun, who added a "layer of interpretation" by observing that "ghosts were often vengeful or malevolent spirits and as such were feared by the living. But since Luo had the unusual gift of blue-green eyes, he was able to see and pacify these spirits by painting them. At the same time, through his depictions of ghosts, Luo was able to reflect on the misdeeds of humans and reveal the truth of their nature," according to the catalogue.

And where, the book guy in me wondered, is that book series? Where is the Stephenie Meyer of the ghost world lurking, and wouldn't this be an appropriate week for his or her manuscript to emerge from a slush pile graveyard somewhere? When I was a kid, becoming a ghost was as easy as cutting eyeholes in a white sheet. Perhaps there's a page-turning novel about a "mélange of ghosts" nested in those memories. Bestseller lists and loss-leader tables here I come.

And now to the awards ceremony. As the fates would have it, one category winner for this year's purely subjective and hastily organized Halloween Book Spirits Awards appeared just as I was pondering these questions.

Best Facebook Comment on My Post About Absent Ghosts in Contemporary Fiction

Rich Rennicks of Malaprop's Bookstore, Asheville, N.C., and Unbridled Books: "I'm reading a manuscript of a kinda creepy historical fiction about seances, hauntings and skeletons of murdered peddlers buried in cellars (Captivity by Deb Noyes, due in May from UB). Maybe ghosts and mediums will be the big thing next year. They're due a resurgence."

Best Halloween Bookstore Event Promo Copy

McNally Jackson Books, New York, N.Y. for the McNally Jackson Halloween Embarrassment: "This Halloween we hope book nerds of all sorts will join us to act like costumed fools amid our stacks. We're hosting our annual Halloween party, and that means it's time to dust off your spats and clichés, grab those fangs and poorly executed allegories. We're inviting all attendees to draw on their bookish lore to dress up as a favorite character. Or theme. Or setting? Even a title will do. Anyhow, we expect you to impress us with your book-themed costume. Uncostumed book nerds are welcome, too, they just won't have a shot to win fabulous prizes. Even our friends at The Desk Set, those nerdiest of hip librarians, will be here to get in on the action."

Best Bookstore E-newsletter Subject Line

Cornerstone Books, Salem, Mass., for the subject line to Wednesday's bookstore e-newsletter: "Fantasy Freaks Costume Party and Bernie Madoff Finish Off A Very Scary October!" If I had ever done these awards before, Cornerstone would probably be a perennial favorite due to their location in a village renowned for its witchery. But this year they earn kudos for that line promoting a pair of Thursday night events at separate venues featuring Ethan Gilsdorf, author of Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks: An Epic Quest for Reality Among Role Players, Online Gamers, and Other Dwellers of Imaginary Realms; and Erin Arvedlund, author of Too Good to be True: The Rise and Fall of Bernie Madoff.

Congratulations to the winners (and the ghosts, of course) and Happy Halloween!--Published in Shelf Awareness, issue #1043.