Book Recommendations at the Milwaukee Paranormal Conference 2016

A guide to some titles conference director Tea Krulos has on his shopping list

Hey, Tea here! One thing that really makes me happy about the Milwaukee Paranormal Conference is that it’s also a literary event. As an author myself, I love to geek out about books. We have a lot of talented writers in a variety of genres this year. There’s too many good titles available to even list them all, but I thought I’d give you a rundown of stuff I’d definitely like to see on my bookshelf. A lot of these titles have 2016 release dates and a few are hot off the press just in time for the con!

Remember, the holidays are happening very shortly after the con, so get some shopping done on our vendor floor– a signed book, original art, and the many other unique items on our vendor floor make great gifts! Check out the amazing vendor line up here: milwaukeeparacon.com/activities

Books I want to pick up from Guest Speakers (and all of these speakers will have a table on the vendor floor):

Iceman1. Neanderthal: the Strange Saga of the Minnesota Iceman, by Bernard Heuvelmans, afterword by Loren Coleman

Our guest speaker Loren Coleman has written dozens of books on cryptozoology and all of them are recommended. His reference book Cryptozoology A-Z was a huge help while I worked on my own book Monster Hunters. Loren will have copies of Neanderthal, written by pioneering Belgian cryptozoologist Bernard Heuvelmans, recently translated and published with a new afterword by Coleman. It ties in directly with his Milwaukee Paranormal Conference presentation: milwaukeeparacon.com/2016/07/11/guest-speaker-loren-coleman

 

chadlewis2. Lake Monsters of Wisconsin, by Chad Lewis

Another brand new title that fits directly into an author talk. Chad Lewis is giving a presentation of Lake Monster sightings in Wisconsin, and what better way to supplement his talk than with this book!

More info on his presentation: milwaukeeparacon.com/2016/05/04/guest-speaker-chad-lewis

 

 

97803991762413. Monster Among Us, by Linda S. Godfrey

This brand new book from Linda has an October release date. Linda has written a lot of paranormal classics, including ones of specific interest to Wisconsinites. American Monsters, Real Wolfman, Weird Wisconsin, and The Beast of Bray Road: Tailing Wisconsin’s Werewolf being just a few examples. We gave Linda the “Wisconsin Researcher of the Year” award last year based on her work as a writer, so obviously we’re always excited by a new book from her and her presentation ties directly into the book.

More info on her presentation: milwaukeeparacon.com/tag/linda-s-godfrey

goatman-front-web4. Goatman: Flesh or Folklore? by J.Nathan Couch

I’ve already actually got this one on my shelf, but you might not. J. Nathan had a well received talk on Goatman last year, and for an encore we’ll talk about old Goaty on the “Wisconsin’s Wildest Urban Legends” panel.

Panel info here: milwaukeeparacon.com/2016/07/15/panel-discussion-wisconsins-wildest-urban-legends

 

 

 

roswell5. The Children of Roswell by Donald R. Schmitt and Thomas J. Carey

This new book by Donald R. Schmitt (and co-author Thomas Carey) came out earlier this year and is based on interviews with the children of Roswell witnesses, a follow up to the author’s previous titles like Witness to Roswell. Schmitt is participating in “The Roswell Debate” but we’re not showing favoritism here– his debate rival Mark O’Connell has a book coming out in 2017 that we’re also excited to see.

More on the Roswell Debate: milwaukeeparacon.com/2016/06/03/the-roswell-debate

 

chase6. Admissible: The Field Manual for Investigating UFOs, Paranormal Activity, and Strange Creatures by Chase Kloetzke and Richard Dolan

This manual covers methods for investigating pretty much everything discussed at the Milwaukee Paranormal Conference and is co-authored by our guest speaker Chase Kloetzke. Hey, and a quick update on Chase– she is flying into Milwaukee directly from a case she is investigating in an undisclosed location in Peru!

More info on Chase: milwaukeeparacon.com/2016/07/25/guest-speaker-chase-kloetzke

 

61YG8qt42DL._SX345_BO1,204,203,200_7. Haunted Bachelors Grove by Ursula Bielski

This brand new book by Ursula is part of Arcadia Publishing’s “Haunted America” series, and examines a location Ursula has been researching and investigating for decades– Bachelors Grove cemetery, located outside of Chicago. I’ve had a chance to visit that location during the Chicago Dark Shores Ghost Con, so I’m excited to see this.

More info on Ursula: milwaukeeparacon.com/2016/08/31/guest-speaker-ursula-bielski

 

Book covers8. Murder & Mayhem in Rockford, Illinois by Kathi Kresol

We’re so glad to have Kathi, proprietor of Haunted Rockford, up here for our “Haunted Road Trip” panel and to check out her research into classic crime stories.

More info on the panel: milwaukeeparacon.com/2016/08/08/panel-discussionhaunted-road-trip

 

 

 

sanjay9. Tales of the Night Watchman by Sanjay R. Singhal

Last  but not least, our panel moderator Sanjay (“Searching for Wisconsin’s Sasquatch”) has a new book out collecting short stories of supernatural themed fiction! We know Sanjay has been on some real life hair raising expeditions, which we’re sure he must have tapped into for some of these stories.

More on Sanjay’s panel: milwaukeeparacon.com/2016/08/02/panel-discussion-searching-for-wisconsins-sasquatch/

 

 

And here’s some titles by authors you’ll find out on our vendor floor:

black bells10. Black Bells by Dawn Napier

We’re glad to have Dawn on the floor (Sunday only). She writes fantasy/ horror and all her titles sound great, but this one caught my attention for some reason I can’t quite place my finger on. Books do that sometimes.

 

 

 

 

campfire11. Monsters Around the Campfire by Donovan Scherer

We got to meet Donovan at the Milwaukee Comic Con at Serb Hall a couple months ago and he had a great set up! Donovan writes and illustrates books aimed mostly at children (most with a spooky theme, of course).  I’m going to pick this one up for my nephew.

 

 

 

Adventures in Death & Romance (1)12. Adventures in Death and Romance: Vrykolakas Tales by Monette Bebow-Reinhard

We got a couple signed copies of this book here at MKE Paranormal Central Station, which will be given away as prizes during the con. The book follows the adventures of vampire Arabus Drake and his encounters with the Turk army, pirates, Tories, a vindictive lawman and a wily ghost who stands between him and a woman he thinks can finally love him.

 

FirstContact_w10063_med13. First Contact by Kat Green

Written by authors Kat de Falla and Rachel Green (aka Kat Green) this book is about a real estate agent dealing with the paranormal. Put a SOLD sign on that!

 

 

 

 

Krampus-510x72814. The Krampus and the Old, Dark Christmas: Roots and Rebirth of the Folkloric Devil by Al Ridenour

This book is coming out shortly before the conference and it looks beautiful (in a hideous Krampus kind of way). I was going to say it would be a great Christmas gift, but of course St. Nick’s Day might be better.

Publisher Feral House is a sponsor of our appearance by Minnesota Krampus. Stop by their presentation for a chance to win a free copy of the book! Publisher Feral House also has a table on the vendor floor.
More Minnesota Krampus presentation info:

milwaukeeparacon.com/2016/06/26/guest-speaker-minnesota-krampus/


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Guest Speaker: Ursula Bielski

14194487_10153731049325474_1356456840_n“Haunted Bachelors Grove,” Sunday, Wisconsin Room

Ursula Bielski is the founder of Chicago Hauntings, Inc. and the host of PBS’ The Hauntings of Chicago (WYCC).

An historian, author, and parapsychologist, she has been writing and lecturing about Chicago’s supernatural folklore and the paranormal for nearly 20 years, and is recognized as a leading authority on the Chicago region’s ghostlore and cemetery history. She is the author of five popular and critically acclaimed books on the same subjects, all published by Lake Claremont Press.

Ursula’s interests in Chicago ghost hunting began at a young age. She grew up in a haunted house on Chicago’s north side and received an early education in Chicago history from her father, a Chicago police officer, who introduced Ursula to the ghosts at Graceland Cemetery, Montrose Point and the old lockup at the storied Maxwell Street Police Station. Since that time Ursula has been involved in countless investigations of haunted sites in and around Chicago.

Aside from her writing, Ursula has been featured on numerous television documentaries, including productions by the A&E Network, The History Channel, The Learning Channel, SyFy, The Travel Channel, and PBS. She’s been a judge on “Paranormal Challenge” and a regular guest on “Ghost Adventures” and the “Maury Show,” as well as a favorite lecturer at Darkness Events.

She also appears regularly on local Chicago television and radio and lectures throughout the year at various libraries, historical and professional societies. In addition to her books, Ursula is the author of numerous scholarly articles exploring the links between history and the paranormal, including articles published in the International Journal of Parapsychology. Ursula is a past editor of PA News, the quarterly newsletter of the Parapsychological Association, a past president and board member of the Pi Gamma Chapter of Phi Alpha Theta, the national history honor society, and holds membership in the Society of Midland Authors.

A graduate of St. Benedict High School in Chicago, Ursula holds a B.A. degree in history from Benedictine University and an M.A. in American cultural and intellectual history from Northeastern Illinois University. Her academic explorations include the Spiritualist movement of the 19th century and its transformation into psychical research and parapsychology, and the relationships among belief, experience, science, and religion.

Ursula’s latest book, Haunted Bachelors Grove, parted of the Haunted America series from Arcadia Publishing explores the famous haunted cemetery Ursula has been researching for almost three decades.

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Get your Milwaukee Paranormal Conference tickets today and help support our programming:

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Panel Discussion:Haunted Road Trip

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Sunday, UWM Ballroom West

Supporting sponsor: Fuel Cafe  (show up early to get a free mini-bag of Fuel coffee, while supplies last!)

Moderator
: Mike Huberty (See You on the Other Side podcast, Minneapolis Ghost Walks) Panel:  Mike Hoke (Cedarburg Ghost & Dark History Walking Tours), Lisa Van Buskirk (Madison Ghost Walks), Kathi Kresol (Haunted Rockford, author of Murder & Mayhem in Rockford, Illinois).

Pack a lunch, fill up the ol’ gas tank, and hit the open road in search of ghost stories! Our panel moderator is Mike Huberty, who explores the paranormal on a podcast he co-hosts called See You on the Other Side. He also runs a Minneapolis ghost walking tour and will talk to a panel of tour guides and experts that will tell you about some places you can visit within a couple hours drive of Milwaukee.

You’ll hear the lore behind eerie historical locations in Madison, Cedarburg, and Rockford that are open to the public, so you can plan a fall drive to go take a look and explore for yourself.

MPC Tours

We have three tours associated with this year’s Milwaukee Paranormal Conference and we encourage you to get tickets now as all of these have a very limited capacity.

Milwaukee Ghosts- Tours and Investigations has their Third Ward Walking Tour the night of Sat., Oct. 15 after the con.. Meets outside Milwaukee Public Market, 7:30pm. More info here: www.milwaukeeghosts.com/tours.asp

Forest Home Cemetery Walking Tour, is taking place Sunday morning, 10:30am-noon (meet at cemetery office at 10:15am). Historical tour with guide Robert Giese. Tour is $7, includes a souvenir booklet. Tickets are limited to 30 and can be purchased here: milwaukeeparacon.brownpapertickets.com


Milwaukee Paranormal Conference tickets available here: milwaukeeparacon.brownpapertickets.com

Guest Speaker: Katrina Weidman

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Shepherd Express presents: “Q & A with Katrina Weidman of Paranormal Lockdown,” Saturday, Wisconsin Room

Katrina Weidman became actively involved in paranormal research while attending Penn State University. While pursuing degrees in Integrative Arts and Theater and a minor in music technology, she was also able to pursue her passion for the paranormal by becoming case manager for the famed Paranormal Research Society (originally founded as a Penn State student organization). PRS (and Katrina) became the focus of the A&E channel docudrama Paranormal State, which aired from 2007-2011.

Katrina then served as host to the Chiller channel’s Real Fear: the Truth Behind the Movies, which explored horror movies based on actual events. It has been rated Chiller’s number one original program.

Katrina currently co-stars (along with Nick Groff, of Ghost Adventures) on the hit Destination America show Paranormal Lockdown. The popular and acclaimed first season that aired earlier this year led to a renewal for a second season. A Halloween 2-hour special airs just a couple weeks after our conference, on October 28. That special will document Katrina and Nick (along with Haunted Collector star John Zaffis) on their investigation of the Black Monk House in Yorkshire, England.

At the Milwaukee Paranormal Conference, Katrina will be featured in a special Q and A session facilitated by Mike Huberty and Wendy Lynn Staats, hosts of the podcast See You On The Other Side. They’ll talk about Katrina’s experiences on the first season of Paranormal Lockdown, and what we can expect for season 2. It’ll be followed by a Q and A from the audience, and an autograph session– Katrina will have photos available to sign for $20.

Website: www.katrinaweidman.com 

art592This presentation is made possible by the Shepherd Express, Milwaukee’s weekly alternative. Be a reader, not a follower: www.shepherdexpress.com


VIP tickets, which includes a dinner party with Katrina and other guest speakers are available until Monday, Oct. 10 and are $75. We also have 1-day ($10) 2-day ($15) and Super (both days and Raven’s Ball party, $23) available here: milwaukeeparacon.brownpapertickets.com

Guest Speaker: Allison Jornlin

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Presentation: “Milwaukee Forteana II,” Saturday, Wisconsin Room

Sponsored by: OnMilwaukee.com
Supporting sponsor: Chudnow Museum of Yesteryear

Could Milwaukee be even stranger than it seems? Absolutely! Milwaukee’s Fortean history may surprise you. This presentation features ghost stories and other weird tales from Milwaukee history. Are immortals among us? Can ghosts leave footprints? Do demons possess the souls of those around you? The fascinating answers to these questions and more will be revealed by Allison Jornlin of milwaukeeghosts.com

Allison grew up in a small town in southeastern Wisconsin, reading everything in the school library about UFOs, monsters, ghosts, and psychic phenomena and wondering about the mysteries of the big city.  When she moved to Milwaukee she dug even deeper into the city’s dusty archives and began gathering first hand accounts of encounters with the paranormal.  Finally, inspired by Chicago’s Richard Crowe, who kick started U.S. ghost tourism in 1973, she founded Milwaukee’s first haunted history tour in 2008.

When she’s not teaching fourth graders at a local elementary school, Allison conducts ghost tours in the Third Ward and down Milwaukee’s haunted main street, Wisconsin Avenue.  She assists businesses and paranormal investigation teams with in-depth historical research.  As an admirer of anomalies researcher Charles Fort, she frequently provides expert commentary on a variety of Fortean topics for the podcast, See You on the Other Side (http://othersidepodcast.com).

Allison is currently compiling her more than 10 years of local research into a travel guide featuring 101 of Milwaukee’s public haunts.  If you have a ghost story to share, she’d love to hear from you.

Milwaukee Paranormal Conference tickets available here: milwaukeeparacon.brownpapertickets.com

Guest Speaker: Chase Kloetzke

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Presentation: “Admissible: Is the Burden of Proof Enough?” Sunday, Wisconsin Room

Chase earned her Master Trainer, Master Instructor title while employed with the Department of Defense. Armed with a Bio-mechanical Engineer accreditation, she was responsible for designing specialized programs and the supervision of complete success regarding Force Readiness, unique mission responsibilities and Elite Force Protection. This was achieved by understanding the goals and requirements placed on physical and mental strength assignments that are demanded and expected for today’s Active Duty members and civilian anti-terrorist units. This includes assignments with Homeland Security and Private Sector Security Forces.

Schooled and certified as a Private Investigator, Chase consistently demonstrates the knowledge, technical requirements, legal parameters and the commitment to evidence based investigations using the latest technologies and methodologies deployed by professional Law Enforcement Officials in a modern and forward moving scientific environment.

She joined the Mutual UFO Network in 1996 and was selected as The Star Team Manager and Deputy Director of Investigations through 2011. She was responsible for the program design, protocols and investigation procedures for a national rapid response unit. This included supervision of the most experienced investigators and access to the most sensitive and complex cases reported to MUFON.

In 2015 she accepted the position of Deputy Director of Investigations and Special Case Manager leading a team of high performance and highly skilled investigators to special assignments in MUFON.

Additional MUFON responsibilities include;
  • Deputy Director of Investigations
  • Special Assignment Team Lead
  • National Director of Mexico
  • National Director Cuba
  • Assistant State Director Brazil
  • International CAG
  • MUFON Radio Assistant Producer
Chase is an Author of two popular books; Admissible: The Field Manual for Investigating UFOs, Paranormal Activity, and Strange Creatures (with Richard Dolan) and the first of its kind children’s book, Are Aliens Really Real?. Both can be found on Amazon.com.
As the Fate Magazine Radio Host, Chase features the best of Fate Mag with the true reports of the strange and unknown on the Global Radio Alliance, KGRARADIO.COM.
She also shares the microphone with “The 9”–the hosts of the popular radio talk show, Encounters, that includes, Richard Dolan, Race Hobbs, Micah Hanks, Lee Speigel, John Burroughs, Jill Hansen and Marc D’Antonio and David Mahler.
As a reoccurring guest in the media and a presenter, she is well known for her “Boots on the Ground” dedication to solving mysteries, one case at a time and lively interview exchanges.

Guest speaker: Elizabeth Saint

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Presentation: “Ghostly Gadgets: Engineering the Paranormal,” Sunday, Wisconsin Room

Elizabeth Saint has always demonstrated a sensitivity to the supernatural. The manifestations she first experienced at her childhood home in south Jersey are what initially led her to pursue a life trying to better understand the unexplainable. Six years ago, Elizabeth moved to the Washington D.C. area for an engineering job with the Department of Defense. The increase of activity that escalated in her apartment at that time pushed Elizabeth to deepen her understanding of the paranormal by starting to work with Maryland Paranormal Research® as a Technician and Investigator.

In 2015, Elizabeth was approached through her team along with Nick Groff (Ghost Adventures/ Paranormal Lockdown) and Bill Hartley (Greater Maryland Paranormal Society) by Chief Mike King of Shepherdstown, West Virginia to help aid explanation for the increase of paranormal activity occurring in town. Their experiences were documented and aired in 2016 on Destination America as a six-part series known as Ghosts of Shepherdstown.

Presently, Elizabeth is focusing on her engineered paranormal devices under the name Ghostly Gadgets to be made available to the public in 2017. The E-Box, as seen on season 1 of Paranormal Lockdown, is one of these designs.

Website: ghostlygadgets.com

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Ghosts of Shepherstown cast

Milwaukee Paranormal Conference tickets available here: milwaukeeparacon.brownpapertickets.com

Guest Speaker: Celeste Contreras

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I am Celeste Contreras, I am Mexican-Mexica, Polish-Blackfeet Cherokee. Artist. Activist. Parade maker. Born in Dallas, Texas, raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Founder of Milwaukee’s Dia de los Muertos Parade. Currently working towards a B.A. in Art Education at Alverno College.

Website: www.diadelosmuertosmilwaukee.com

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Milwaukee Paranormal Conference tickets here:  milwaukeeparacon.brownpapertickets.com

Guest Speaker: Loren Coleman

Keynote Speaker 2016. Presentation: “The Minnesota Iceman: the Milwaukee Connection and More,” Saturday, Wisconsin Room

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Loren Coleman has been investigating cryptozoological evidence and folklore since the Abominable Snowmen/Yetis caught his interest in 1960. He is the author, coauthor, editor of, and/or contributor to over 100 popular books on natural history mysteries and the media, including Mysterious America, Bigfoot!: The True Story of Apes in America, Cryptozoology A to ZSuicide ClustersThe Copycat EffectTom Slick and the Search for the Yeti, The Field Guide to Bigfoot and Other Primates, The Field Guide to Lake Monsters and Sea Serpents, and Mothman and Other Curious Encounters. Coleman has been a consultant to television programs, and films, including the Mothman Prophecies movie and documentary in 2002, filling in for John A. Keel (who was ill) during 400 media interviews and televised appearances.

Coleman regularly appears on documentary television programs – including Finding BigfootMysteries at the MuseumMonsters and MysteriesMonsterQuestIn Search OfCBS News Sunday MorningUnsolved MysteriesAnimal XAncient AliensAncient MysteriesUnsolved MysteriesAnimal X, and other media, such as Coast to Coast AM – as an expert on strange creatures and inexplicable phenomena. His investigations have resulted in the coining of some recognized names in cryptozoology, including Dover Demon, Montauk Monster, Napes, Phantom Panthers, Cassie, and other monikers in Fortean cases, such as Phantom Clowns.

Today, as the modern popularizer of cryptozoology, and one who is termed the “world’s leading living cryptozoologist,” Loren Coleman is an honorary member of the British Columbia Scientific Cryptozoology Club and other groups. He was a Life Member of the (now-defunct) International Society of Cryptozoology (ISC). He is the 1999’s Bigfoot Times’ “Bigfooter of the Year,” and is a new inductee in 2015 to the Ohio Bigfoot Conference’s “Hall of Fame.” He travels extensively to continue his fieldwork and lectures, and writes blogs and frequent articles, for example, for Fortean Times, Portland Monthly, and his two blogs.

Coleman is the founder in 2003, and present director of the nonprofit International Cryptozoology Museum, which just moved in July 2016, to a new building at Thompson’s Point, Portland, Maine. The world’s only cryptozoology museum is routinely recognized, as it was in the last few years, as one of Time Magazine’s “Seven Weirdest Museums in the World,” and on the “best of” lists by Indian Times, MSN, Jetsetter Magazine, Huffington Post, ElleDécor, Weirdee, Blog for Lifestyle and Travel, Portland Phoenix, Skyscanner, and Travel + Leisure. In 2016, Coleman and the Board of the International Cryptozoology Museum founded the new International Cryptozoology Society, to continue the work of the ISC.

Websites

CryptoZoo News: cryptozoonews.com

International Cryptozoology Museum: cryptozoologymuseum.com

Iceman

Loren will have copies of the new Neanderthal: The Strange Saga of the Minnesota Iceman available, and getting a signed copy from him will be a nice complimentary item to his talk. The book is by Belgian-French cryptozoology pioneer Bernard Heuvelmans, translated here in English for the first time. Loren wrote the Afterword to this edition, which brings the bizarre story of the Iceman up to date.

Milwaukee Paranormal Conference tickets available here!:  milwaukeeparacon.brownpapertickets.com

Guest Speaker: Minnesota Krampus

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Feral House Publishing presents: “Celebrating Krampusnacht,” Sunday, UWM Union Ballroom West. Krampus parade through the UW Student Union directly before their presentation!

Minnesota Krampus is a traditional Saint Nikolaus and Krampus group (nicknamed “Pig’s Eye Pass”) from the great city of St Paul, Minnesota.  Organized as a 501c3 non-profit, Minnesota Krampus promotes these alpine traditions by attending events around the upper Midwest wearing authentic costuming and hand-carved wooden masks from the Austrian Alps.  Beware the chilling klang of primal bells, the howls of the creatures hunting the mountain passes, and the sting of the whips for the wicked.  Winter is near and Krampus is coming…

Website: www.minnesotakrampus.com

Krampus-510x728Feral House, called by the New York Times, “the most dangerous publisher in America,” has been publishing innovative and celebrated non-fiction books since 1989.Movies have been made, cultural trend influenced and political crimes exposed by our small, independent press.

The new Feral House book The Krampus: And the Old, Dark Christmas Roots and Rebirth of the Folkloric Devil (by Al Ridenour) will be published the week of the conference and you’ll be able to buy a copy at Feral House’s table on the vendor floor. We’ll also be giving a couple free copies away at the Minnesota Krampus presentation!

Get your Milwaukee Paranormal Conference tickets today! igg.me/at/milwaukeeparacon