Date: August 6th 2003

We have our winners in the "Snippets of the Strange" contest! Bravo to all who played -- this was a lot of fun for me. In this message, you'll find the lucky winner's list.

The most popular -- but incorrect -- guess was "naked cheese." I can see why you'd think I'd make that up. (The reason? Just so I could shout "Behold the power of cheese!"). But unfortuntely, no. Some sicko out there actually ran a google search for "naked cheese." And I can only imagine why...and wonder what he or she thought (s)he'd find about it at a site called "gorelets."

<Insert drum roll here>

The correct answer was "Crib Death Strategy." And I honestly hope no one in the world has entered that into a google search, ever. Or that someone would put tips for infant murder on a website. But I wouldn't be surprised, after reading the "Disturbing Search Requests" website (brace yourself...it's rated NC17): http://searchrequests.weblogs.com/

Anyway, enough prurience and artificial suspense-building. The winners were:

FIRST PLACE (and very first entry received!):
Cathy Buburuz, who will win a free signed copy of Paratabloids and a $5 gift card to BitPass.

SECOND PLACE:
Pam Kimmell, who wins a $3 gift card to BitPass and a copy of Paratabloids.

THIRD PLACE:
Marge Simon, who also nabs a $3 gift card to BitPass.

Even if you didn't win a prize, I hope you'll still try out BitPass' "micropayment" media. It's easy, cheap, and lots of fun -- and you can start up your account for as little as $3. Heck, that's less than a pack of cigarettes or a bottle of beer in some states. Or even a candy bar at the movies anymore.

To use Bitpass, go to Arnzen's SICKELODEON at http://www.gorelets.com/premium/ and pick any text you'd like. The BitPass sign-up procedure will launch and you'll learn more about using your BitPass to access content all over the internet.

Just today I uploaded the first animated feature: a "microfiction theater" called "Skull Fragments" that you horror fans really might enjoy. To read the stories you have to click on skulls that drop from the sky like hard rain. Dig it.

The contest is now officially closed and further guesses will be, well, pointless. But there >is< another contest for a BitPass gift certificate: a "Giant Monster Battle" which you can learn more about by visiting The Sickelodon. Bring it on!

Thanks again for playing! And congratulations to the winners, who -- uncannily -- must know how strange I really am to have guessed the right choice.

-- Mike Arnzen

*****
THIS JUST IN:

Thanks to Bruce Boston, I just learned about this amazing review of my book, Freakcidents (and a discussion of horror poetry in general) by Mark Rich at Strange Horizon's magazine. Check it out!

"Conversations in Miniature: the Genre Poetry of Ian Watson and Michael A. Arnzen" by Mark Rich:
http://www.strangehorizons.com/ or
http://www.strangehorizons.com/2003/20030804/genre_poetry.shtml

***