A scientist with a US military preventive medicine unit in South Korea dies in a minefield while collecting mosquitoes in the DMZ. His supervisor, the unit’s newly appointed executive officer, takes over the position, only to find out that this was not the first such death. He will have to fight against his unit’s dark history if he is to not repeat it.
“The Mosquito Hunters of Korea” is coming soon, both in English and in Korean, in the anthology A City of Han: stories by expat writers in South Korea.
Maureen and Bill had a good marriage, or so it seemed, until one full moon when he became a wolf man. Their bonds of matrimony are put to the test by his newfound appetite for eating neighborhood cats and rolling in fresh poop.
Three of my erasure poems, “Plate XVI. B. suturalis,” “Plate VI. L. fulvicauda,” and “No satisfactory explanation” are in the Februrary 2020 print issue of Inverted Syntax. These are erasures of classic entomological texts, revealing the hidden lives of insects and the people who study them.
A magical journal is an unexpected ritual partner for the practitioner of the esoteric arts. Many of us keep grimoires or Books of Shadow – but the magical journal is not the same. Within the magical journal, the practitioner finds a sacred space of transmutation. Learn how to use your journal for self-discovery in my article in the latest issue of NILVX. Read NILVX here.
Ancestor simulations, such as the matrix simulation in the eponymous movie trilogy, are a recurring form of technology within speculative fiction; however, science fiction critics have largely overlooked their importance to the genre. This paper examines how ancestor simulations function as a plot device and how this changes over time from the 1980s to today. The relationship between characters and ancestor simulations parallels the growing dependency upon computers during this time period and, disturbingly, suggests a willingness to give up agency for a freedom mediated by computers and technology. Read my article on this topic, ”Ancestor Simulations: A Past, Revisited,” at NewMyths.com.
Publications
Publications
Fiction
“The Mosquito Hunters of Korea.” A City of Han: stories by expat writers in South Korea. Coming soon.
A scientist with a US military preventive medicine unit in South Korea dies in a minefield while collecting mosquitoes in the DMZ. His supervisor, the unit’s newly appointed executive officer, takes over the position, only to find out that this was not the first such death. He will have to fight against his unit’s dark history if he is to not repeat it.
Maureen and Bill had a good marriage, or so it seemed, until one full moon when he became a wolf man. Their bonds of matrimony are put to the test by his newfound appeitite for eating neighborhood cats and rolling in fresh poop.
“The Camphorwood Statue.” Leaping Clear. Fall 2018. Read online.
A monk in medieval Japan has a vision of the Bodhisattva Kannon and must travel to a distant camphorwood forest to fulfill it. His journey leads not only into the heart of the forest, but into the nature of suffering.
Non-Fiction
“Journaling as a Ritual Practice.” NILVX. Volume 2, Issue 3, Fall 2019. Purchase NILVX here.
A magical journal is an unexpected ritual partner for the practitioner of the esoteric arts. Many of us keep grimoires or Books of Shadow – but the magical journal is not the same. Within the magical journal, the practitioner finds a sacred space of transmutation. Learn how to use your journal for self-discovery in my article in the Fall 2019 issue of NILVX.
”Ancestor Simulations: A Past, Revisited.” NewMyths.com, Winter 2019. Read online.
Ancestor simulations, such as the matrix simulation in the eponymous movie trilogy, are a recurring form of technology within speculative fiction; however, science fiction critics have largely overlooked their importance to the genre. This paper examines how ancestor simulations function as a plot device and how this changes over time from the 1980s to today. The relationship between characters and ancestor simulations parallels the growing dependency upon computers during this time period and, disturbingly, suggests a willingness to give up agency for a freedom mediated by computers and technology.
Narrative Poetry
“The Descent of Ancient Night Upon Heav’n: An Addition to John Milton’s Paradise Lost, Book Three.” The Mythic Circle 41, Summer 2019. Purchase The Mythic Circle here.
John Milton’s Paradise Lost is a classic of the English language, but it is also mired in a patriarchal view on women in Christianity – the titular Paradise is lost through the indiscretions of a woman.
My addition takes a minor character in Paradise Lost, Night, and empowers her as a goddess, redefining the original and reclaiming the feminine in Christianity.
Erasure Poetry
“Plate XVI. B. suturalis, a Mountain Butterfly.” Inverted Syntax. Print Issue Two, February 2020. Purchase here.
“Plate VI. L. fulvicauda, a Robber Fly.” Inverted Syntax. Print Issue Two, February 2020. Purchase here.
“Plate V. B. spinosus, a Bug.” Split Rock Review. Issue 9, Fall 2017. Read online.
“Plate VI. C. formosa, a Tiger Beetle.” Split Rock Review. Issue 9, Fall 2017. Read online.
Lyric Poetry
“Postcards from the Abyss.” Mosaic. University of California, Riverside. 1993.
“Blood & Water Blood & Sand.” Mosaic. University of California, Riverside. 1993.
“Drinking from a Dry Well.” Mosaic. University of California, Riverside. 1993.
“I, Attis.” Mosaic. University of California, Riverside. 1992.
Pest Control Publications
Ted has also published extensively on how to safely and effectively control pests in and around homes and businesses. Known for his down-to-earth writing style and practical insights, his philosophy is that the science and technology in an article should complement the reader’s understanding of the material, not undermine it. Show Entomology and Pest Control Publications
Q&A: Finding Small Flies in the Bathroom. Cabin Life Magazine. August 2015.
Tooling Around: Protecting Log Cabins and Wood Siding From Pests. Cabin Life Magazine. May 2015.
Q&A: Finding Mice in the Cabin After Building an Addition. Cabin Life Magazine. April 2015.
Tooling Around: Closing Up Your Cabin for the Winter and Keeping Critters Out. Cabin Life Magazine. October 2014.
Tooling Around: Dealing with Critters at the Cabin. Cabin Life Magazine. April 2014.
Auditing Your Pest Control Supplier’s Work. Food Safety Magazine. December 2012 / January 2013.
Using Public Speaking for Sales. Pest Control Technology Magazine. December 2012.
Rapid Identification of Challenging Insects. Pest Control Technology Magazine. April 2012.
Evicting Insects and Pests from the Cabin. Cabin Life Magazine. May 2012.
Is Your Training Mistake Free? Developing a Performance Based Training Program. Pest Control Technology Magazine, February 2012.
The Small Carpenter Ant. Pest Control Technology, February 2011.
The Lady is a Tramp. Executive Housekeeping Today, June 2010.
The Secret Code of Pest Management. Executive Housekeeping Today, November 2009.
Roach Baiting: Feast or Famine? NPMA Commercial Division e-Newsletter, 2007.
Creating a Teaching Pest Collection. Pest Control Technology, December 2005.
Stick it to Them: Insect Espionage. Pest Control Technology, July 2005.
The Little Ant That Could. Pest Control Technology, April 2005.
Subslab Ant Infestations. NPMA Commercial Division e-Newsletter, 2005.
Ants in Warehouses. NPMA Commercial Division e-Newsletter, 2005.
Exclusion as Part of an Integrated Pest Management Program. NPMA Commercial Division e-Newsletter, 2005.
Web Removal Works. Pest Control Magazine, August 2001.
What to Do When Ants Call for Improved Pest Management. Pest Control Magazine, May 2001.
Doing Pest Management in a Vacuum: Using This Tool Can Make Yellowjacket Control More Simple and Less Risky. Pest Control Magazine, June 2000.
Make a Clean Sweep of Old Methods: Using a Vacuum Cleaner can Enhance an IPM Program. Pest Control Magazine, May 2000.
About Ted
About Ted Snyder
Ted at Bodai-ji Temple, Osore-zan, Japan
Entomologist
Vincent Dethier once wrote, "...there has never seemed to be a taboo against pulling off the legs or wings of flies. Most children eventually outgrow this behavior. Those who do not either come to a bad end or become biologists."
Three decades ago, Ted took the latter of the Dethier's two paths, and ended up as a Board Certified Entomologist with a Master's Degree in urban entomology. Along the way he has worked as the senior manager responsible for training at a large, regional pest control company, and served as an entomology officer in the US Army. He has worked in the United States, Haiti, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, and the British Indian Ocean Territory (Diego Garcia).
Writer
When Darwin traveled to the Galapagos Islands, he didn't have a camera to document the new species he discovered. He had to draw pictures of them. Once, scientists were trained in the arts; now those in STEM and those in the humanities compete for university funding and eye each other suspiciously, to everyone's loss.
Ted is a poet, with publications in Mosaic and Split Rock Review, and a fiction writer, with a short story in Leaping Clear. He has studied creative writing at the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, where he has tried to bridge the gap between science and the humanities.
He has also published extensively in popular and trade magazines, offering insights on how to safely and effectively control pests in and around homes and businesses.
