Michael Offutt

Conor Maynard owns Rihanna in this jaw-dropping cover of her song

2012-02-27T00:01:00.000-07:00

So I found a video on YouTube put out by three people that covers "I love the way you lie, part 2" as featured on Rihanna's most recent album. In order of appearance, they are Nike Jemiyo, Conor Maynard, and Anth (rapping for Eminem's part and not as good as Eminem). I love Rihanna, and I think that the woman has an incredible voice. Yes, I own a bunch of her music.

Conor is the white guy that sings the second verse of this ballad starting at 1:22 if you just want to slide over and take a listen. I love all the faces he makes, sticking his tongue out and stuff...it caught my attention.

Conor's vocals gave me CHILLS. This 19-year-old has one hell of a gift, and from the research I did on him, I guess he's becoming a star and his first actual single is out (he was discovered by Ne-yo). I actually enjoy Conor singing Rihanna's second verse MORE than Rihanna. I hardly ever say that. There's so many covers of Beyonce's "Single Ladies" including the one done on Glee, and I have never thought anyone did that song better than Beyonce. Ever.

I'm pretty much blown away. Listen for yourself.

When writing goes too far

2012-02-24T07:27:00.001-07:00

There is graffiti where I live, but none as daring as what I've seen in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Here, we have had these people scale over the interstate at night to paint the green signs that provide directions to commuters.or color the underside of bridges with markings that I don't understand. But for the most part, Salt Lake City doesn't suffer from it like Sao Paulo.

Sao Paulo by night. It's beautiful, isn't it? Click to make bigger.

A city of 20 million people, Sao Paulo is a reflection of Brazil. It's going through class warfare much more severe than what we are seeing in the United States, and the angry, disenfranchised, and decidedly athletic are taking out their anger by using graffiti. I say "decidedly athletic" because there's no way an out-of-shape guy like me would ever attempt to do this kind of work. It blows my mind that they do it at night. And for the record, I don't admire it. I think graffiti is ugly.

A building completely defaced by graffiti

In Sao Paulo they are defacing things with more than just spray cans. We're talking buckets of black paint, rollers, and the daring to scale skyscrapers all the way to the top to vandalize enormous buildings. It makes my eyes swim because I would find that to be just terrifying.

The most daring climbers of "Pixação" will stop at nothing to get to the top of the tallest structures and some of them fall to their deaths. They don't use safety lines at all, and the higher the mark is on a building, I guess the more prestige that they earn among their peers.

When I look at something like "Pixação", I have to ask, why does it seem that only men engage in this kind of activity? Is it testosterone? Or are men just stupider than women?

Be sure to check out at least a minute of the video below. It shows some of the people who engage in this activity climbing up the sides of these huge buildings in night vision. It's pretty incredible. According to the New York Times, Pixação translates into "cover with tar" and is supposed to reflect the urban decay and deep class divisions that now define Brazil.

In my opinion, the people doing this are criminals. Any who say differently...that say they are doing this for a cause are just liars. I don't understand how any sane person would think that defacing public landmarks with graffiti could in any way be a positive statement. It's more like poetic terrorism. In other words..."I will destroy the value of something you own by putting my 'poetry' on it UNLESS you cave-in to my demand." Income inequality sucks. But destroying things because you are angry is no way to solve anything. It just makes things worse, and I hope that this kind of graffiti doesn't become popular in the United States.

What about you? Do you like graffiti?

The Majesty of the Human Condition in The Artist

2012-02-23T00:02:00.001-07:00

The Artist is about George Valentin. A silent film star who is at the top of his career. The side effect of this is that he is vain. Vain of how handsome he is, vain of how successful he is, and vain of his position as a superstar. Then comes the invention of sound, and just like yesterday's garbage, he is out with the trash.

The studio replaces him with a young woman who the world wants to hear speak. And her career starts to take off even as George blows most of his money on one last silent film that tanks at the box office. Why does he do this? Vanity/pride. He thinks that all that he has accomplished is because he has something that others don't have. I draw this conclusion from one specific line in the film that George says as he anoints Peppy Miller (the young starlet) with a single beauty mark that seems to make all the difference.

But maybe that's just it. Maybe that's all the difference there is between a nobody and someone that is a star. A single beauty mark drawn in with a makeup pencil to distinguish her from other girls. Would Suzanne Collins be the star that she is if Scholastic hadn't made her one? I sometimes wonder.

George ends up going broke and drinks himself almost to death. The film ends when he almost commits suicide and Peppy saves him. "Why won't you let me help you, George?" she asks him. And then it just clicks. She understands that she needs to work around his pride, his vanity, which is suffocating him. So they invent a dancing vaudeville act and become a smashing success together. "Out with the old in with the new" becomes "the new reinvents and gives purpose to the old", which is probably a much better saying, and one that we can take to heart.

I left the theater after having seen this movie and thought to myself how closely this movie is a reflection of our society. I know that in the gay community in particular, many older gay men become invisible to younger men simply because they are the old black and white silent pictures, and now everyone wants "sound". The same can be said for the straight community.

I also see this in ebooks. Printed books are under siege from the onslaught of e-readers, iPads, Nooks, Kindles, and tablets galore (the new). But just like in The Artist, there is still value in the old. You just need to know how to find it with an appreciative eye.

The Artist is an expose of the overall human condition that I see everywhere in America right now. The old get put into nursing homes seemingly at younger and younger ages because families don't want to care for them. I've seen many parents reach an age where there children dismiss them as a bother and probably secretly wish that they'd just die off because they've gotten so busy with their lives that they just can't spare the time. Fade to black. Invisible. When at one time you ruled the world or at least your family. Now...no one cares.

What a remarkable film. To capture all of that about our society in a short silent black and white movie.

The Artist is you. The Artist is me. The Artist is a film that is for anyone that is an artist or who fancies themselves to be creative. As writers, we DO fit into this category. How many of you out there are so proud that you will only accept being traditionally published by the Big Six? How many of you desire the fame and adulation of Stephanie Meyer and keep it hidden just under the surface so that no one can tell how much you feel you deserve to be a star? How many of you are vain? That secretly think that your writing is so much better than another authors when you haven't even read what they've written? You just visit their website, look at their book, and think, "Someday I'll be famous and there's no way this person would have ever gotten signed to an agent anyway...it's good they self-published." How many of you feel contempt for another person as you walk or drive by them on the street just because they are fat, a different race, or smelly?

The Artist is a film that warns against vanity. At the end of the film, George finally loses his vanity and is saved. He achieves happiness and love. I think that's the key. If you depend on the adulation of others to give your life meaning, then you are going to crash and burn.

I haven't seen all the best picture nominees. But The Artist blows Hugo away. Martin Scorsese, in my opinion, doesn't stand a chance.

Blizzard is anti-marketing Diablo 3. Why?

2012-02-22T00:03:00.000-07:00

Is there a reason not to like hype? In what may arguably be the most anticipated game of the year, Blizzard Entertainment's community manager who goes by the name Bashiok on the Diablo 3 forums said, "I too worry that we won't be able to meet the expectations people have built up for themselves. Part of my job is managing people's expectations, so... eh... stop it. Stop thinking about how awesome this game could be. Just imagine it's a new M. Night Shyamalan movie. Sure Sixth Sense was amazing and Unbreakable had its moments, but this right here is the sequel to The Village ... or The Happening ... or Signs ... or any of the movies besides the two I first mentioned. So just like, lower those expectations, but still definitely buy the game please, and everything will be just fine. K?"

Do you think this is weird? Whacko? That the guy has gone insane?

Why would anyone tell their audience to lower expectations?

All I can say is that I have always loved games by Blizzard and the thing that appeals to me so much about the Diablo world is that it is so incredibly dark. Cindy Borgne probably said it best when she reviewed my upcoming book and said that it was a "dark urban fantasy." It was like she had this x-ray vision into the kind of things I like to read and pulled it out in one sentence.

The Diablo world is a no holds barred dark fantasy almost (but not quite) without hope. It's a sword and sorcery but with an epic storyline. Demons are everywhere doing terrible things. It has great blood and destruction animations. The kind that make the hairs on your arms stand on end. And when certain sounds play over your speakers, you actually feel scared. And no matter who you play, your character always looks incredibly hot.

I remember playing the first one and kicking down the door to a room filled with corpses of townsfolk that had been flayed by a demon called the Butcher. He uttered "FRESH MEAT!" and chased after me with a cleaver. I was totally not expecting it and he was really hard to defeat.

Diablo 3 comes out sometime between April thru June depending on the rumors. For me, it can't be soon enough.

My question to you is, are you going to play? And do you think that there is ever a time that hype is bad? Please watch the trailer below. It's pretty amazing for a video game and is the opening cinematic sequence.

I'm being interviewed by the amazing Donna Hole

2012-02-21T07:47:00.003-07:00

Hello and good Tuesday morning to all of you. Today I've got a guest post and a review of my book up at Donna Hole's blog<<<CLICK. Please go and visit if you don't already follow Donna. She's amazing. I also talk about my writing.

Today, I'm going to share one of my deepest fears:

What do you fear?

Have a great Tuesday.

Moral ambiguity in the zombie apocalypse

2012-02-20T00:02:00.000-07:00

I'm really loving the second half of the second season of the Walking Dead and last night's show was no exception. One of the things that I like about the show was brought up in the talk show that airs late in the evening. One of the guests pointed out that the awful moral choices that characters are making in the name of love is fascinating. I agree with that and it's the hook that brings me back.

Okay...so here's the real reason for my post. Last night's "question" was about whether or not you would save someone from zombies if they had previously been trying to kill you.

Here's the situation. Guy was on a roof shooting at you with his rifle, he fell off the roof and got his leg impaled. Zombies are coming out of the woods everywhere, and you are low on ammunition. The guy that fell off the roof though is just a teenager. He could have been just doing what someone told him to do and his buddies left him to die. Do you shoot him to spare him the agony of being eaten alive? Do you try and save him by unimpaling his leg off of the fence that he fell on? Or do you not even shoot him but leave him to be eaten?

Myself...I would have tried to save him despite the fact that zombies are coming at me, and I have only like 30 seconds before they start munching on me. I just don't think I could leave a teenage boy to die to zombies...not when I could do something. In a zombie apocalypse, humans are almost extinct, and I would hold onto the hope that people could survive if they just chose to help one another. This attitude probably means I would not live very long in a zombie apocalypse. However, what is being human if we lose hold of our humanity?

What would your choice be?

Can you help me with my book blurb?

2012-02-17T00:14:00.000-07:00

So I recently posted a snippet of my writing and got some fantastic feedback. Despite Rusty's comment that said "boy you must have a thick skin to post some writing here," or something like that (not a direct quote) I actually do have a thick skin and am rather proud of that fact. But honestly, I think that I was able to improve that scene that I posted so much from the feedback that if I could, I would totally want that on every page. That of course isn't possible.

But I do feel comfortable in asking one other small favor.

I've been working on OCULUS, which is the sequel to SLIPSTREAM, and I want to get the blurb for the book solidified. Think of this as kinda similar to a query letter I think...only without all the Dear Agent and this book has so and so word count and all that jazz. Or, think of it as an extremely short synopsis. Maybe that's a better word. But it needs to grab or be interesting or have zing!

I know it doesn't have that yet.

So I'd like to post it here for you to look at and tell me what I should do to make it better. It's 250~ words right now. Here it is:

Fallsemester has arrived for the Ivy League, and Jordan Pendragon attends his firstclasses as a freshman at Cornell. Bornwith a brilliant mathematical mind, he strives to balance a life as a researchassistant with that of a student athlete playing ice hockey for the Big Red.

Armedwith the university’s particle collider, Jordan is tasked with fluoroscopingAntarctic ice cores to identify the elements they contain. The data he collects will be used by Dr.Wolfson, head of the climate-change project, to assemble the world’s firstatmospheric model reflecting a million years of Earth’s history.

ButJordan has another agenda. He combs thedata strings for a specific signature belonging to the rare earth element neodymium. Used to make essential magnets in all electronics,the presence of neodymium will give Jordan a search area to begin his quest for theBlack Tower, a monolithic edifice housing a thing that defines the verystructure of the universe. As large as amountain, Jordan believes it is buried somewhere in Antarctica under milesof prehistoric ice.

October finds Jordan earning a starting position with the team. But a dark cloud gathers overhis rookie season. Unexplaineddeaths, whispers of a cannibal cult, and a stone known only as the Oculus casta shadow over his athletic dreams. It is the start of a terrifying journey down a path of betrayal, murder, and to an Evil more ancient than the stars.

Frog and Smartphone

2012-02-16T07:00:00.001-07:00

I got this funny video sent to me, and I laughed so hard that I wanted to show you.

Have a great Thursday!

An uncanny resemblance across generations in Chronicle

2012-02-15T07:45:00.002-07:00

I recently saw Chronicle and thought it was pretty good. It's the latest in a string of movies Hollywood exploits with a low budget (probably because Hollywood attendance is on the ropes for any number of reasons, and they want to continue to enjoy being rich).

Anyway, the film's star is this guy named Dane DeHaan. Here's a picture of him:

And here's Leonardo diCaprio when he was young:

Did anyone else that saw this film think...wow...this guy looks like Leo did 15-20 years ago? Maybe Hollywood just looks for the same kind of pretty boy guy to make into a movie star. Thoughts? Am I off my trolley?

My writing troubles and my book got reviewed

2012-02-14T00:00:00.002-07:00

My book was reviewed by Shelly at her fantastic book blog. It's posted on >>> Shelly's LGBT Book Review blog <<<in case you would like to take a peek. :))) As writers, I can give you some reasons to do so:

1) Shelly is an amazing book reviewer.

2) Someday you may want to have your own book reviewed (I hear this is a good thing for authors). Also, by visiting her blog, you could maybe open a door to a new market. LGBT people buy and read books. Ayep.

I've been working hard on the sequel to SLIPSTREAM after letting it rest for about four months. I am amazed at all the things that I'm spotting. What makes me roll my eyes is this phenomenon that takes place where I'm reaching for a word or a way to say something, but I don't know that I'm reaching for a word or way to say something.

EXAMPLE: He gasped for air and tried to catch his breath so that he could convey the message. BECOMES: Short of breath, he eventually delivered the message.

This isn't an exact example from my book, but it illustrates my point. I was "reaching" for the phrase "short of breath" but couldn't come up with those three words the first time I wrote the sentence.

Anyway...I've been pleased that by distancing myself from my work-in-progress and just reading all winter, I've been able to refocus my mind to get more out of my writing.

Do you ever stumble for words? "He put his key into the odd-shaped hole on the side of the steering wheel"... "Oh you mean...'he put his key into the ignition.'"

Yeah (snapping fingers) "ignition". Exactly. I needed that word it just wasn't coming to mind!

It happens to me all the time.

Have a great Tuesday.

What is your writing origin story?

2012-02-13T00:17:00.000-07:00

Today I'm participating in the Origin's blogfest. The question for this one is pretty easy. When did your writing dream begin?

It probably began a long time ago in high school. I took a creative writing class and Mrs. Fife had us write a short story, and I enjoyed it. I penned my first novella that school year using a typewriter. It ended up being 80-pages and it sure was fun. But oh boy...was it awful lol. If it were animated...it would be some horrible Japanese anime with melodramatic acting, huge swords, and silly sexual tropes that would come across to an adult as being childish.

Then I tried again in college. I worked on a fantasy that involved a Dungeons and Dragons character that I must have kept plugging away at for about four years. I never ever finished it but it was probably 500 pages of typed garbage. Seriously...I had so many pages of taverns and just random monsters and meaningless sword fights, and some dragon showed up once but not for any reason really. Then I made up some twin guy who was evil and somehow the brother of the protagonist. Why? I have no clue. It just seemed like he should have an evil twin. I never plotted anything...I just wrote for the sake of writing which I realize now is called pantsing. Anyway...pantsing is a terrible way for me to write. There's just no structure and a story can balloon to 500,000 words with no end in sight.

All in all, I have five novels/novellas that should never ever see the light of day. And that's my "Origins" story.

Are you afraid of the dark?

2012-02-10T00:09:00.002-07:00

This is the last day of the I'm Hearing Voices blogfest. My flash fiction below is supposed to invoke an emotion. I want you to feel fear.

Onceon the main floor, he checked the front door, and found it still locked andbolted. He moved through the livingroom, past the grand piano, toward a light in the kitchen. He saw Mrs. H. standing with her back to him,making a sandwich. She had on a flimsywhite night gown.

Hetapped lightly on the door with his left knuckle to get her attention so as notto startle her. She still jumped andthen put the knife down and looked over at him. Jordan folded his arms across his smooth bare chest and leaned againstthe door frame. “Thank God it’s justyou,” she said, going back to her sandwich. “You hungry?”

“No,”he stated. “I thought I heard a noise soI came up to look.”

“Wellthat’s why I came down the stairs. Iheard someone walking across the floor. Whatwere you looking for anyway?”

“Itwasn’t me,” Jordan said. “I just came upthe stairs a second before I knocked on the door here, and Rob’s asleep on the bed.”

Sheset her knife down on the counter. “Ifit wasn’t you and it wasn’t Rob and it wasn’t me…there’s no one else in thehouse Jordan,” she said.

Jordanglanced around in the dark, looking a bit uneasy. She did too, moving her eyes from off of himand into the shadows that lay beyond the halo of light emanating from the undercabinet fixtures.

Excerpt from SLIPSTREAM

Have a great weekend.

A snippet from some of my writing

2012-02-09T00:09:00.000-07:00

I've had a lot of fun showing some of my writing this week, and talking about my characters. So much so, that I wanted to solicit some feedback on one scene in the sequel to SLIPSTREAM. I hope you don't mind. Please don't feel obligated to read it. If you do, I ask that you please press play on the embedded video first because the music of Chopin really inspired me to write this piece, and it's classical music so you can read and listen at the same time. :)

Jordan checked behind him and saw no one. “Myd?” he whispered, not wishing to make toomuch noise. His eyes darted in everydirection from underneath the shadow cast by the bill from the hockey cap. He strained to hear anything, but he heard nofootfalls. A wind chime sounded itsghostly music on the far side of an open window.

He turned around and admired the baby grand;it called to him. He’d never playedanything other than a guitar and most of that had been done on a game for theSony Playstation 3. He didn’t understandthe compulsion that he felt to touch it; to run his fingers over the whitelacquer, to press its keys. His Adam’sapple bobbed under the smooth white skin of his throat, and he walked over,reached out with the fingers of his right hand, and gently stroked the tops ofthem. He caressed them like he would alover. Wordlessly, Jordan moved thebench out, took a seat, and started pressing the keys as musical notes tookroot in his mind. He played Nocturne Opus 9 No. 2 by FredericChopin. He’d heard it before but hadnever played it, never dreamed of playing it, and suddenly he was able to do soas if he’d practiced it all of his life.

His fingers flew over the keys, pressing themin tune as if directed by a ghostly consciousness. He closed his eyes, feeling the music risearound him like a warm, soothing blanket. On the ephemeral wings of the Nocturne’s slow and exquisite rhythm,Jordan saw the sun drenched parlor of the home as it appeared in all seasons ofthe year. In the sparkling clear notesfrom the piano, he saw a man that looked much like him playing at the exquisiteinstrument. He was in his mid-twenties,blond, slender of build, wearing a blue denim jacket almost identical to theone he wore now.

Jordan lost track of time, playing the keys,long narrow fingers flying over them, eyes flitting back and forth as ifreading invisible sheet music. Behindhim, Myddrin entered the room, observing him at the piano. Next to her, stood a tall man whose age laybetween sixty and seventy. He wore plaidpants, leather shoes, and his hair appeared as white as new snow. He had a mustache and pale green eyes. He looked on Jordan with fascination as theteenager played the piano, fingers finding keys that had been neglected foryears. It was haunting and beautiful tohear the music once again, for he’d heard it before…played from a heart thatcherished the sound in the same way that Chopin had cherished Nocturne. And then the strangest thing happened—Jordanbegan to cry. Tears welled up andstreamed down his cheeks but he continued unfaltering, fingers guided by aghost from his past—by someone that loved him more than his own life.

When he finished, Jordan sat there in completesilence, blond eyelashes restrained tears with nothing but surface tension,fully aware that Myd and a stranger watched him. But he couldn’t move as his mind raced. Jordan thought the unthinkable. A single tear fell from his chin and broke onthe piano. “My father played this,” hesaid. “My dad played this every singleday, right here, in this spot.”

“—Jordan,” the man said at last. His voice fell upon his ears like thicksyrup.

He turned and looked at the speaker standingthere next to Myddrin. He respectfullystood and removed his hockey cap and held it in his hands. “I’m sorry, sir,” he said. “I don’t know what came over me—.”

“It’s all right, son” the man stated. “I haven’t heard Chopin played like thatsince your father played it for me—as you’d guessed already—almost eighteenyears ago.”

I have always had a fondness for Chopin. I hope you liked this snippet.

An intro to character using only dialogue

2012-02-08T07:38:00.000-07:00

Today is the second day of the I'm Hearing Voices blogfest. We are supposed to use only dialogue, but I couldn't figure out how to do that. So I hope mostly dialogue works. Anyway, here's my less than 250-word attempt at it:

“Sorry. So, why does warm water freeze faster than cold?” Brianna asked him.

“It’s spread over a huge surface area;this causes it to experience intense evaporation which creates an endothermic chemicalreaction. Think rapid cooling thatforces a bond with the existing surface area.”

She turned to the counter, “I’ll takeone ‘Eggs Melissa’ and I’ll pay for whatever he’s having.”

“—oh, you don’t have to do that,” Jordansaid. “I’ve got money.”

“I know—I just want to.”

The clerk rolledhis eyes. “Want the Sunrise again, Jordan?”

He nodded yes.

Brianna passed over a $20 bill and whileshe waited for her change, she glanced over at him. “Is that a good sandwich?”

“Yes. W-well…I’ve tasted it before andit’s delicious, but it really isn’t for me. I buy one for my boyfriend so he’ll have something to eat when he wakesup.”

Brianna raised her left eyebrow. “You—have—a—boyfriend?”

“Yes.”

She nodded her head in slow motion andmuttered, “Awkward…” They stepped off to the side to wait for their orderswhich were being freshly prepared. Hethought he should have said something but was at a loss for words. “So…,” she said, beginning again, “would youlike to trade phone numbers with me? Cornell is a gargantuan campus and it can be difficult to meet peoplewhen you’re on a busy schedule. Ithought maybe we could catch a snack sometime…you know…on the quad?”

I'm pretty sure I failed this exercise because I included non-dialogue tags to give me direction. But, without those, it just became talking heads. And I can't stand talking heads. But, I think you can tell a lot by the characters from the dialog which may have been the point. I have no idea actually.

Announcing the Fourth Writers' Platform-Building Campaign

2012-02-07T07:42:00.000-07:00

Sign-ups have already started for Rachael Harrie's brainchild. This is a huge blogfest filled with fun and prizes. If you are a writer and are interested in legitimately connecting with others out there who share your interests, then I suggest you hop on board. Please visit her blog here and sign up. My own experience with it has been wonderful. This is what I think you get from an increased following:

1) You get support. This means that when you are down, the blogosphere can help you feel better. When your family doesn't understand why you write or when your friends are not interested at all in reading anything penned by you because they only want to talk about themselves...you will never be alone.

2) It's not what you know it's who you know. Yes...you connect with people from all kinds of backgrounds who know all kinds of people. When the time comes to market your book, they will spread the word for you. They will retweet your tweets. They will post pictures of your book on their sidebars. They can even do reviews, mark your book "to read" on Goodreads so that other people that don't blog, think "hmmm...there's a lot of interest in this book...I wonder if it is good."

3) They will keep you informed. You will see from reading their blogs what the hot thing is...where they heard that a certain agent is looking for a certain kind of manuscript...who is paying for what, etc.

4) Never do this campaign to pick-up customers. I think the percentage of people that could possibly buy your book because they followed you is really low...maybe less than 5%.

5) Networking is a two-way street. People will visit your blog once and then click follow. But if you don't follow back, they will never visit you again. Plus, you need to read their blog so that they will reciprocate. To expect someone to only read what you write is VERY arrogant. I don't want to burst your bubble...but nothing you write or say is more important than what anyone else has to write or say. You ARE NOT A CELEBRITY if you are reading my words. I hope that doesn't make you mad, but it is the truth. I'm not one either. Mediocrity is my middle name. So an ounce of humility will really give you the best tool to get the most out of this blogfest.

The list of campaigners closes on Wednesday, February 15th. Come and get connected. I hope to see everyone spreading the word and having fun.

I'm Hearing Voices Day One

2012-02-06T07:15:00.001-07:00

It's time for day one of the I'm Hearing Voices blogfest. Go here for details. I will be interviewing my main character from my upcoming book.

SLIPSTREAM is on Goodreads and shall be published in May.

Please go HERE and mark the book "to read".

Have a great Monday.

I Hope Good crushes Evil

2012-02-03T01:05:00.000-07:00

Today I am participating in the "This Stupid Pineapple" blogfest that is being held by Briane Pagel, Esquire over at his blog located here. To participate, all you have to do is write a post that begins with the words "This Stupid Pineapple..." and go from there. Please visit his blog so that he can generate more ad revenue and so that he'll have someone reading his 100,000 word blog posts.

Now...off to my entry of this illustrious contest.

This stupid pineapple makes me think of football. Can you blame me? Afterall, the shape seems to be of similar size. ===>

And because I'm thinking of football, I've decided to pick a side for the Superbowl. This is the first year that I've really done so, and I blame Tim Tebow who got me deeply interested in a sport that I otherwise could have cared less about. And I'm serious. I really had no interest in football two months ago. And now I've made three bets with people at work, mostly because my father said that the only way a game is interesting is if you have something at stake. To test out his theory, I made several wagers from people who were more than willing to take my money because they think that the Patriots will win (that also makes them supporters of Evil).

I'm not scientific (is there science to picking a winner) when it comes to this exciting game. I merely read everything I could about the two teams and went with my gut judgement. In short, here is what I've decided upon.

EVIL = TOM BRADY

Tom Brady as you can see here is evil. He's like an angry angry upset
inhuman robot that hates anyone that isn't perfect like he is. If he were
a scientist he would clearly support Eugenics and widespread culling
of imperfect humans and genetically inferior offspring in his search to
conquer all of mankind.

If you don't believe me take a look at the next picture.

The juxtaposition of evil in fiction and in real life is easy to make.

GOOD = ELI MANNING

This is the guy that I hope wins. He is filled with the force
of good. He has triumphed over evil before so I hope that
he has the power to do it again. I have to say, the expression
on his face is pretty adorable. I just don't see how you people
out there can not root for him.

Again...how can you not root for
a guy that has a smile like this?

So that is my "scientific" analysis, and I did follow my father's advice in order to make my television watching more enjoyable. I hope that the adorable Mr. Manning crushes the Patriots and their evil Dark Side empire into the dirt for they seek only to suck all of the joy out of the world.

For you Patriots fans out there that are screaming revenge for the 2008 loss, I hope you lose again. But no hard feelings, okay? If there are...just remember, Briane Pagel made me say these horrible words for his blogfest. Go blame him.

Perspective is everything

2012-02-02T07:39:00.001-07:00

What you see really does depend on your perspective. Take a look at the shadow art below and decide for yourself:

What can all of these pictures tell us about our writing? Sometimes we just need the right light and everything becomes clear.

Happy Thursday!

When something is wrong and something is right

2012-02-01T00:09:00.001-07:00

First off is the something right. My book SLIPSTREAM got reviewed by Jeff Adams over at his blog. He's a New Yorker that I made friends with via twitter, plays ice hockey, and he writes books for Dreamspinner Press. I really liked the review I got so if you would, please go check it out (warning there are some details that could be considered spoilers).

It's February 1st and it's Wednesday. It's time for Alex's IWSG from the man that may not have invented blogging, but has certainly defined it.

Because Valentine's Day is almost upon us, this month's insecurity is about love...loving your characters and/or secondary characters too much. My editor finished with my sequel (called Oculus) and remarked that my pacing seemed "off" in it. However, she couldn't pinpoint exactly what made her think this (and a pacing comment can be as general as they come). It's like referring to something as "interesting". So yeah...this is the "something wrong" hinted at in the title above. Meaning that I know something IS wrong, but have no clue on how to go about finding it.

"That's so...interesting...hmmm." <== what exactly

does this mean?

So, I've had some serious pondering to do. And I've been doing this brain crunching for months while I've completely avoided writing anything other than blog posts and preoccupying my mind with television, movies, and books. Unrelated segue...you should watch the "Touch" pilot because it's amazing.

So now that it's almost spring, have I come up with anything?

Well, maybe.

I think that it has to do with two or even three characters that I stuck into the book that probably take up 5,000 words in the overall story and really have no purpose other than to irritate my protagonist (he finds them annoying). Why would I want extraneous characters? Well the intent is to have them available so that I can explore their potential in sequels. In other words...I have no official plan for them in the book I wrote right now. But having them there with no real plan is possibly behind the derailment of the pacing.

Maybe. That at least is my "idea".

But, I don't want to get rid of them. I like them. I find myself feeling repulsed with the thought of unmaking these fictional people. Especially if I'm wrong. Could I be wrong?

It's always possible.

I wish she was my editor right now but she

probably would charge thousands of

dollars of which neither I or my publisher

could possibly afford. My publisher hires

people with barely a high school education

after they pass a grammar test. I imagine it's the

same with most small pubs (with few exceptions).

So anyway, it has me insecure and apathetic at the same time which is why I sit around watching television and reading books. I think I may start to tinker with it, and see if I can more closely identify what she "sensed" when she herself couldn't precisely identify what was at issue. To clarify a little, my editor is what I call "decent". This is the same word I would use to describe the food at 7-Eleven. You go in, drop a few bucks, get a slice of pizza and some wings and you are good to go.

I honestly wish I didn't have a "decent" editor right now. I wish I had a no holds barred kick-ass one. A stellar one. One that could eviscerate a manuscript and identify everything that isn't working and wouldn't care about tact. I imagine this glorious person looking like Elektra from Marvel comics, only with huge sharp fountain pens rather than a pair of oriental sais.

To use a food analogy, how would this compare to food from 7-ELEVEN?

Well for one, it wouldn't. That's like comparing frozen dinners to eating at a four-star restaurant.

The kind of help that I imagine Big Six authors get with their books is something akin to a dining experience at Ruth's Chris Steakhouse. It's fine dining, you get a wonderful experience, blow a few hours with a date, and eat healthy food that doesn't make your skin greasy and has no chance of making you sick. I'm a poor bastard that simply doesn't have access to that and my publisher doesn't have the money to hire that level of talent.

But that is just how the cookie crumbles, and that, ladies and gentlemen, is my insecurity of the month.

My expectations for Game of Thrones Season 2

2012-01-31T00:52:00.000-07:00

The second season of "A Game of Thrones" that was brought to the screen last year by HBO pictures in conjunction with the genius that is George R.R. Martin will soon be upon us. They just released the second trailer that gives us a more in-depth look into the upcoming season. The name isn't changing but the story will be taken directly from A Clash of Kings as the first season exhausted the plot from that book. Here are the things that I'm looking forward to seeing:

1) The arrival of Jojen and Meera Reed at Winterfell. They are influential in taking Bran north of the wall and to awakening the powers that reside within him.

2) Melisandre of Asshai. This witch is able to "birth" a demon from you know where (completely nude in the process). It literally crawls out of her birth canal when she summons it. I'm wondering how they are going to do this one.

Carice Van Houten plays the priestess Melisandre

3) Tyrion as Hand of the King. His lines are the best written so there will be much conniving going at King's Landing between Tyrion, Cersei, and Varis.

4) North of the wall we see Craster's keep. This is a guy that has twenty or so wives, and they are all his kin (daughters). He's a complete and utter pig. Any boys that are born (he doesn't want competition) are given to the White Walkers as a sacrifice of sorts. It's about as disgusting an act as I've seen in an epic fantasy.

Robert Pugh plays Craster. He doesn't look so bad here, but in the book, he
was pretty ignorant and vile.

5) Battle at the Fist of the First Men. The White Walkers a.k.a. the Others attack the Night's Watch in a battle that should raise the goosebumps on anyone watching. This is one of the most hair-raising moments in the book.

This is an artist rendition of the Fist of the First Men.

The Wisdom or Madness of Haruki Murakami

2012-01-30T00:09:00.000-07:00

I just finished book one of Haruki Murakami's 1Q84 (he was a contender for the Nobel Prize in literature in 2011). I'm really enjoying this science-fiction novel (a big one when you consider that there are three books in one and thus over 1000 pages total), even though the "science-fiction" aspect of it seems to be at this point, specifically limited to two moons in the sky for one of the main characters, while the other, a writer, appears to be firmly rooted in the "real" world.

One of the characters, Tengo, is a writer, and he participates in publishing fraud by rewriting a brilliantly plotted novel whose idea originated in the mind of a girl who is illiterate. The other main character is a woman named Aomame who reveres her body as a temple, is bisexual, and has the skill to kill evil men with an icepick so that the deaths look natural. The story revolves around a bit of philosophy: If our collective memory is taken from us--is rewritten--we lose the ability to sustain our true selves. So Tengo rewrites a story of a teenage girl's and inadvertently she loses the ability to sustain herself.

Now, the story goes back and forth chapter by chapter between Aomame and Tengo. I have no idea if Aomame is the character being written about by Tengo (she seems just as real as Tengo to me but is living in a world with two moons), or how she ended up in the world with two moons other than the conscious decision to leave a taxi during a rush hour (a world with one moon), to climb down a utility ladder from the elevated expressway, and all so that she could meet a deadline in order to kill a very bad man. I find the fact that the taxi driver knew that her getting out of his car would change the universe in which she lived somewhat eerie. But I doubt if Murakami will ever return and explain how the driver knew anything at all much in the same way that J.J. Abrams provides very little as far as answers to fans of the television series LOST.

Aomame sees two moons in the sky. She is afraid to point it

out because she doesn't know if others in her world have

noticed or if she is the only one, and what exactly that might

mean. She is aware that the world is different.

One of the things that I find most intriguing about book one of 1Q84 are all the statements that Murakami makes about the profession of writing through the point-of-view of Tengo or through Komatsu (his unscrupulous editor). Here are some of them:

"It has absolutely none of the usual new writer's sense of 'I want to be another so-and-so'." <== interesting observation on all new writers, or no?

"Good style happens in one of two ways: the writer either has an inborn talent or is willing to work herself to death to get it."

"When I'm writing a story, I use words to transform the surrounding scene into something more natural for me. In other words, I reconstruct it. That way, I can confirm without a doubt that this person known as 'me' exists in the world."

"He selected his words with all the care of a craftsman choosing the perfect piece of tile to fill a narrow gap in a bathroom floor...The slightest difference in nuance could bring the passage to life or kill it."

"The exact same text was subtly different to read when viewed on the printed pages rather than on the word processor's screen."

"[Editors] like [Komatsu] are looking for just one thing, and that is to find, if only once in their lifetimes, a work that is unmistakably the real thing. They want to put it on a tray and serve it up to the world."

"The conclusion of things is the good. The good is, in other words, the conclusion at which all things arrive. Let's leave doubt for tomorrow."

"When you introduce things that most readers have never seen before into a piece of fiction you have to describe them with as much precision and in as much detail as possible. What you can eliminate from fiction is the description of things that most readers have seen."

"The point of [writing about] a world that isn't here is in being able to rewrite the past of the world that is here."

What do you think of the statements Murakami makes about the business of writing and/or editing through the voices of his characters?

Prometheus Fan Art and a Mystery

2012-01-27T01:00:00.000-07:00

This is from a still capture of the Prometheus trailer. Who is that on the right?
Many people online seem to think it is the Space Jockey himself. Oh Ridley
Scott...I want to know more dammit! (Click to make bigger so you can see said
strange looking being in greater detail).

I found these pics online. They look amazing don't you think? These are by artist Rado Javor, and if you're like me, these can possibly hold you over until another movie trailer gets released later this spring. You can click any of these to make them bigger.

Some people are so talented. Have a great weekend!

The fiction that reflects our troubled times

2012-01-26T00:08:00.000-07:00

Is there a more disturbing line in Shakespeare than the one in which Shylock promises to Solanio in the Merchant of Venice when he says:

"If you prick us do we not bleed...and if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?"

It is a promise, delivered via monologue, that Shylock shall stop at nothing, even if it means to sink to the level of those that wronged him. In my reading of the December issue of The New Yorker, I thought of this line. It happened when I came across a remarkable story written by Margaret Atwood called "Stone Mattress" which is part of what I see as a new surge or re-invention in crime fiction. I'm going to say that this genre caught fire with Stieg Larson and the publishing of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo.

If you think about the plot, you know it already. A man terribly wrongs a woman via a brutal rape. The wrong that is done to the protagonist of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo is the same thing that is done to Atwood's Verna in Stone Mattress. A few generations ago, or even on Law & Order, this kind of story would focus on how terrible the villain is and then follow some law enforcement agent to tracking down the villain and bringing him to justice. Usually there would be some moral authority present to assuage the woman's anger at being brutally violated.

Well this story is cliche and has been reinvented. Now it's all about revenge. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo empowers herself over her rapist and effectively castrates him (if you consider that rape is not a sexual crime but one of power). Atwood takes this a step further in the Stone Mattress and makes a life-long female serial killer out of Verna. Many of the men that Verna kills are actually innocent of any wrong-doing toward her. Yet she destroys them anyway, because well...she was wronged.

At first upon finishing this story, I wondered if the writer took some sick pleasure in living within the skin of a protagonist in order to experience a complete evacuation of character and complexity. It's a touchstone of moral ugliness the same as a scene from American History X where Edward Norton curb stomps and kills some black gang members when he finds them breaking into a truck left to him by his father. In this case, the justice DID NOT fit the crime. But you can't help but watch because you realize, yes...humans are capable of such things. And therein is the horror. Anger, rage, and hatred that are allowed to flow so unchecked that there is nothing that we can recognize left behind, yet to which any number of us can relate. Is that ironic? That in a state of pure hatred we are perhaps at our most human?

Margaret Atwood

So why are these stories so popular? I would never classify The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo or Stone Mattress as dystopian because I feel that definition applies to "setting" and not "character". Both literary works take place in settings that are no different from what we see every day. If anything, they are stories of an internal dystopian that takes place in the latticework of the human soul. If you were to go into the dreams of these people, would you experience the empty, urban, and utterly Escher-like metropolis that Leonardo di Caprio built in the deepest layer of his subconscious in the movie Inception? Is it because the idea of an "eye for an eye" is no longer acceptable? The United States is a pretty divided place right now. The country has a lot of anger, and based off of the riots that we witnessed in London and the Arab Spring that took place in 2011, I think it's safe to say that the whole world is also pretty angry.

There is no question that rape has a life-altering effect on its victims. But I can't help but wonder if the rise of these kinds of stories are a temperature gauge for the anger felt by men and women the world over who are sick and tired of being exploited, economically raped, and who long for a better life because people finally feel that they can rise up and be successful against brutal oppression. So my question to you is, do you think there is any merit to this hypothesis? And when you write, do you use your writing as a catharsis for the expulsion of feelings and frustrations that you may live with and can find no other outlet?

A Discussion About Dystopia

2012-01-25T07:25:00.000-07:00

This book by Martin Cruz Smith is the latest in his Russian-themed novels. The plot is pretty simple. A girl on a train has her baby kidnapped and then finds her baby by the end of the book. I didn't read this book for the plot. I read it because I was so horrified by the new Russian reality that my "disgust" button became overpowered by my desire to stand as witness to all things horrible.

I admit it. I'm a voyeur. But I don't think I'm alone in this. Are you a voyeur to misery? Do you like it when characters suffer?

As for the book, it's a great, fast read. But I'm not going to give a book review as much as I'm going to talk about the setting in which the story takes place.

My attention as of late has turned to real-life dystopias since I see them cropping up all over the place in young-adult fiction. I started asking myself...why are so many writers making up dystopias when we really only have to look at North Korea, China, and Russia for real world examples? On the surface, the world of Russia is as dystopian as they come...at least that's what I get from Martin Cruz Smith.

NPR had him as a guest when the book was released back in 2010. I remember being hypnotized by his interview because he spoke of Russia so "colorfully" (colorful in this situation is not a compliment). He's what you would call a "hands on" writer since he goes there to pen his novels. The man observes everything. It begs the question though...how much of what he relates to us is fiction? Probably some. But I bet it isn't too far from the truth. Much of it has to do with exploitation of kids and human trafficking. What does the nightly news have to say about human exploitation in Russia? Quite a lot actually.

For one, underaged Russian pornography has gotten a lot of news coverage because the West (read United States) is such a huge buyer of it. America certainly has its fair share of pedophiles. They hide in the ranks of Boy Scout leaders, FLDS prophets, priests, and assistant football coaches to legendary collegiate programs. But sooner or later, they get caught. And when it happens, people act sooo schocked. They say things like, "I had no idea he was raping all those girls/boys. He always played with them in the park. He goes to church, has a wife, and plants trees on arbor day!" Blah blah blah...this kind of argument will continue to play itself out until the end of time (hyperbole? maybe some).

But back to Russia. They're the ones with they dystopia, not us, right? So what are the three stations for which the book is named?

They are Leningrad Station, Kazansky Station, and Yaroslavl Station situated on Komsolmoskaya Square in Moscow, Russia. By day, they are a hubbub of activity. Picture all the stereotypes you have heard of Grand Central Station in New York City and you pretty much got the picture. But by night, it's a whole different story. If you get caught there the best that could happen is someone mugs you. The worst is that you'd end up shot, stabbed, or beaten to death. Usually what really happens lies somewhere in-between. Here's a rundown of stuff that I played witness to simply by turning pages:

Russian prison tattoos all have a meaning.

Homeless kids are everywhere. They're skinny, good-looking, street-smart and opportunistic. Because they are good looking, many are prostitutes and whores. Pedophilia is normal. Men cruising in their fancy cars pick up kids to get some sex, to abuse, or to outright murder them.
Girls end up raped or dead. The bodies are found but rarely does anyone own up to seeing anything. This isn't C.S.I. No one gets caught. It's just another dead body to deal with. When they have babies, the babies are kidnapped and sold to wealthy westerners who want to adopt. Why have a baby when you can buy one, right? It's against the law? Yeah sure...whatever.
I discovered how to make prison ink. It's made from urine and soot mixed together and done with a hook. That's why all the tats look blue. Also the prison tats over in Russia all mean something (I don't know if the prison culture in America has the same thing). Example: a web on the shoulder means the person has some kind of monkey on their back...drugs, alcohol, something from which they have overcome or are trying to overcome. Imagine getting a tattoo from ink made from some guy's urine. Nice image, huh?
Kids hustle at chess the same as people hustle at pool here in the states.
Everyone drinks vodka. They have rehabilitation clinics with beds low to the floor where people can crash for a night. They're close to the floor so they don't hurt themselves when they fall off the bed. Unscrupulous men show up at these places and have sex with the people crashed out on the beds.
There's basically two classes. The oligarchs and the proletariat. The oligarchs are filthy stinking rich and as corrupt as they come. Tangle with them and you end up getting your head wrapped in cellophane until you can't breath while tied naked to a chair.

Old, fat men always pay for underaged sex. That's just the way it is. But the sex isn't descriptive because it's over in 30-seconds, erectile dysfunction not withstanding.

Here's a sentence that I think captures the full flavor of the novel just in case you had any doubt as to how well the writer is able to capture the setting:

"Victor Orlov stood in a shower stall, his head bowed and his eyes shut while an orderly clad in a surgical mask, goggles, rubber apron and rubber gauntlets poured disinfectant on Victor's head until it dripped from his nose and four-day stubble, ran down his sunken stomach and naked ass and pooled between his feet."

Kinda cool, huh? Makes you want to know more? All I can think of is that Victor must be miserable. So what's behind the boom in dystopian fiction for young readers? Maybe it's as simple as to admit that the gritty harsh worlds of dystopias are a place where no one really wants to live but to which everyone is a voyeur. Are you a voyeur? Are you drawn to the sickness of humanity for a good story?

I just have three words for you. The Hunger Games.

Thinking About the American Dream

2012-01-24T00:33:00.000-07:00

Tonight is the State of the Union address and because of that, I've been thinking about the American Dream. The New York Times recently featured an article with the title "How the U.S. Lost Out on iPhone Work". The complete article can be found online here. I read it completely through, and I wanted to talk about what I read because it's a rather bleak commentary on the disappearing middle class. By way of Apple as an example of the ultimate capitalist paradigm, the author pretty much tells us why prosperity for the middle class (as was realized last century) is never coming back no matter what politicians want you to believe. If you don't have time to read it, here are my highlights:

1) Barack Obama asked Steve Jobs at a dinner, "What would it take to make iPhones in the United States." The late Mr. Jobs replied, "Those jobs aren't coming back."

2) Apple’s executives believe the vast scale of overseas factories as well as the flexibility, diligence and industrial skills of foreign workers have so outpaced their American counterparts that “Made in the U.S.A.” is no longer a viable option for most Apple products.

There's so much wrong with this picture and the intentional misspelling
of "America" that I don't even know where to begin.

3) Jared Bernstein, former economic adviser to the White House, said “Apple’s an example of why it’s so hard to create middle-class jobs in the U.S. now."

4) FoxConn in Shenzhen built a factory, stocked it with already cut glass to Apple's specifications, and had workers living in dormitories ready to work 12-hour shifts even before there was a contract to work with Apple. They did this to be more appealing to their potential customer, and it worked. This simply couldn't be done in America.

5) The facility employs 230,000 people working six-days a week making less than $17 a day.

6) One of the selling points for Apple was that China provided engineers at a scale the United States could not match. Apple’s executives had estimated that about 8,700 industrial engineers were needed to oversee and guide the 200,000 assembly-line workers eventually involved in manufacturing iPhones. The company’s analysts had forecast it would take as long as nine months to find that many qualified engineers in the United States. In China, it took 15 days.

7) "[T]he challenge in setting up U.S. plants is finding a technical work force,” said Martin Schmidt, associate provost at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In particular, companies say they need engineers with more than high school, but not necessarily a bachelor’s degree. Americans at that skill level are hard to find, executives contend. “They’re good jobs, but the country doesn’t have enough to feed the demand,” Mr. Schmidt said.

8) “We shouldn’t be criticized for using Chinese workers,” a current Apple executive said. “The U.S. has stopped producing people with the skills we need.”

This is from the Global Competitiveness Report. It measures America's educational
system rank as compared to other countries. The criteria is education expenditure,
quality of math and science education, and quality of primary education.

9) In the last two decades, something more fundamental has changed, economists say. Midwage jobs started disappearing. Particularly among Americans without college degrees, today’s new jobs are disproportionately in service occupations — at restaurants or call centers, or as hospital attendants or temporary workers — that offer fewer opportunities for reaching the middle class.

So my question to you is, do you agree with Apple that the U.S. no longer produces a workforce with enough education to meet the demands of technology companies? If you agree, why? Are people just not motivated to go to school anymore?

In number 2 above, Apple basically calls Americans lazy. Would you agree? Are Americans fat cats sitting around waiting for a lot of money for a little work?

Does the item printed in number 4 at all surprise you? That they would stock and build a factory without any promise of money? Is that what it's going to take to be competitive?

These are workers submitting resumes for jobs at one of the factories at

Shenzhen. There's such a huge pool of people just begging for a job

that all the power rests with the employer. Basically, a single worker on his

own is completely disposable. It makes me wonder if the babies brought into

this world will know a life better than us, or if in fact, we are bringing

them into a world where they will not be able to support themselves and will

be doomed to live in poverty while the rich remain rich.

February is looking pretty exciting

2012-01-23T00:25:00.002-07:00

With February just around the corner, I thought I would take a look at what's going on at the beginning of the month.

From February 6th thru the 10th I will be participating in the "I'm Hearing Voices" blogfest. Signup is on this blog here.

Basically, you'll be roleplaying and interviewing your characters. Kinda fun huh?

Next up there is a blogfest being promoted by Alex J. Cavanaugh but is the brainchild of the Cruising Altitude 2.0 blog.

Here's what it's about:

On Monday, February 13th, post your own origin story. Talk about where your writing dreams began. It could be anything from how you started making up stories as a child, or writing for the school newspaper, or even what prompted you to start a blog. How about stories about the first time somebody took an interest in your writing, or maybe the singular moment when you first started calling yourself a writer. It all started somewhere and we want you to tell us your own unique beginnings.

We all need blog posts and these kinds of blog fests are great to get the juices flowing and to meet more people. I of course have signed up for both and hope that you join me :)

Also this week, I may get my cover art! My book will no longer be blank. I'm excited. Have a great Monday.

What do you need?

2012-01-20T00:11:00.000-07:00

Have a great weekend

A Little Chat With Nephylim

2012-01-19T07:58:00.000-07:00

I'd like to introduce you to a friend of mine who writes dark gay fiction romances. She goes by Nephylim. Her blog can be found here. Be aware before you click that to visit, you'll have to agree to an "adult content" warning.

1) I'm curious about your nom de plume. Can you provide us with some background on Nephylim and why you choose a pen name instead of going with your real name?

According to legend the Nephylim were the children of 'the daughters of men' and the Malakim, or Watchers, which we now know of as Angels. In some versions the purpose of the Great Flood was to wipe the Nephylim from the earth, although the description of Noah in the bible makes it pretty obvious that he is one of them.

I have always had a facination with both fallen angels and vampires and I firmly believe that 'real' vampires, derived from the Nephylim are their descendents.

I am a pagan and do not believe in a christian god and, therefore, do not believe in the christian ideas of heaven and hell. I do not believe that fallen angels 'fell from grace, i.e. were thrown out of heaven by God. Rather that they got caught up in a political battle over the issue of whether or not they should associate with human women, and were defeated in what was essentially a civil war.

Ishtahar/ Inanna is considered to be the mother of the Nephylim and her symbols are the eye and the seven pointed star. She is the first woman to become involved with an angel called Semjaza. I I feel a lot of connection with a woman who risked, and ultimately lost everything, including her sanity, her child and her life, all through love, and of the brave angels who died for the same reason.

There is a lot of fascinating stuff out there if anyone is interested in looking into it further.

The reason that I use it as my pen name is simple. It was the name I used when I first signed up for Gay Authors, who gave me my first opportunity to have my work read. Without them I would definitely not be where I am. Nephylim (Nephy) became the person I am on GA, the part of me that is a writer. Nephy is the writer, Cheryl Headford is the boring lawyer. What is more natural, therefore, than to use the name I associate with writing as my pen name when I write?

2) Do you storyboard your fiction completely before writing or are you what they refer to as a "pantser" in the industry?

I have no idea what a 'pantser' is but I NEVER plan a story in advance. Usually I get a strong burst of inspiration from a person, a dream, once even a mannequin in a shop window. I 'see' a scene or a thread or an idea and then I start writing. From there it simply unfolds as it will. Sometimes the story takes twists and turns I never saw at the beginning as, in many ways, I am just along for the ride and the story is telling itself to me as much as to the readers.

Once I start to write, the characters some alive, and I tell their story. They become very real to me and I quite often have conversation with them or do things as them. Silver from Enigma is an excellent example of that. When I was writing those books he took over my life and I did everything and saw everything as he would have. I love his simple and fresh way of looking at the word and his purity.

3) Why did you start a blog?

Publicity purposes...simple as that. I'm a complete technophobe and I never thought I would be able to make a blog, let alone want to. Then I got my book published, and I thought that was the hard bit done. But no, people started talking about publicizing it and networking and suddenly I was knee deep in blogging, tweeting, making pages on Facebook and profiles on all sorts of sites. It's been scary as hell but so much fun I am now wishing I had done it years ago.

I have rather an... erm... eccentric? dark? strange? downright weird? personality and my blog is a way to express that. It is also a great excuse to look through and at eye candy because that seems to be the way of most blogs.

One of the great thing about having a blog is the networking, getting involved with other people who have blogs. I have started to participate in a weekly flash fiction group and it has been fun and also very difficult. As I am sure you will see my problem is not about getting the inspiration to write but the disciplinne to stop.

4) Can you tell us about your upcoming book and a little about the cover art?

Well, I have two, and I hope you won't mind me being greedy because they are both equally important.

Enigma is a story that I wrote a while ago. I absolutely got taken over by it. The lead character, Silver, is, quite simply...awesome. He was kidnapped at 12-years of age and 'trained' as a sex slave. When he was 19 he was beaten almost to death for daring to fall in love with another slave who WAS beaten to death in front of his eyes. He was then dumped on the verge of a motorway to die.

After recovering from his physical injuries he completely withdrew from the world and lived entirely inside his head, unable to make decisions, responding only to orders, not reacting at all with the world around him.

The story is about his recovery and the man who helps him achieve it, and to survive the blast from the past who tries to finish the job they started when they threw him out of the car on the motorway.

I very quickly became completely taken over by him and totally fell in love with him, to the extent that I started painting him. One of those paintings had been used for the cover art.

THE UNFAIRNESS OF LIFE

This is about Gabriel who is suffering from drastic symptoms of headaches, fits and strange delusions, after having been part of a government research programme that was attempting to unlock latent psychic talent. He's angry at the world and everyone in it. He is remote, aloof and bitter. And then he meets Laurie who, from the first time he meets Gabriel in a night club decides that he is going to get through that unfriendly shell and gain the trust and love of the beautiful boy he can't get out of his mind.

Through sheer persistance he manages to win Gabriel over and the two go on the run, fleeing the government scientists who are trying to track him down.

This time, the scientists are not trying to hurt Gabriel but to save his life. Rather than being grateful he is angry as hell, especially when he finds that the results of the 'help' is that his psychic talents have gone haywire and he can't bear the presence and, more particularly the thoughts, of anyone else.

One of the scientists, Elena, takes Gabriel and Laurie to a secluded cabin to learn to control his abilities. Gabriel is never convinced that the government has stopped coming after him and he determined to drive Laurie away and flee either by running away from him or from life itself. When the government catches up with him again and he is taken back to the research center the experiments take a fatal turn and his only hope of keeping his life and his mind, is Laurie.

The cover art was done by an awesome cover artist called Mika Star. She worked tirelessly with me, ensuring that I got exactly what I wanted. I think my boys are beautiful and totally capture the essence of Laurie and Gabriel and the tension of the courtship and chase.

5) Will you tell us about your publisher and why you went with them as opposed to other options.

I never, ever thought that I would see my work in print (or screen). For most of my life I didn't think that anyone would ever read my stories, for the simple reason that no one had ever wanted to. Then I found Gay Authors and started posting my work for others to read, and review. People seemed to like it and I started to think that maybe, just maybe it was worth putting out there. Still I didn't have the confidence to do anything about it.

I half-heartedly sent a manuscript to some literary agents and publishers but they simply weren't prepared to take a chance on a new writer and, even worse, one who wrote literature with gay characters. I became totally disheartened and decided I was never going to try again.

And then a very good friend with his own indie publishing company offered to publish Enigma. I was completely blown away and have never been so excited in my life... well maybe for my weddings and birth of my children :) After a period of complete stress and tension between us when we clashed over editing, the book was published to my eternal gratitude by Red Haircrow, an amazing man and good friend.

http://flyingwithredhaircrow.wordpress.com/
http://theredhairedcrow.wordpress.com/

And then a friend told me about someone who had set up a new publishing company and was looking for submissions. I needed some persuading to send her the manuscript for The Unfairness Of Life. I mean, this wasn't a friend, this was a 'proper' publisher. Not that I am suggesting that Red isn't but it's a different thing going to a friend, who publishes just for the love of it, to going to a stranger who makes it their business.

Anyway, after some bullying by Sandi Rush, who I love totally, I submitted the manuscript and it was accepted. That's when I was launched into what was a dream and a nightmare.

The people at Romance First Publications, are FANTASTIC. From the very first I was made to feel welcome and special. From the president, Steph Danielson, to my editor, Julie Hayes to the Cover Artist, Mika Star, everyone has been friendly, professional and excellent at what they do. They worked with me totally, even though Julie and I had out clashes, to produce what I consider to be a polished and exciting work of art.

I can't praise them enough, especially since they have accepted two more manuscripts which are in the very early stages of production.

http://romancefirstpublishing.blogspot.com

6) Last question...what advice do you have for writers who are seeking to become published?

Don't give up. Be prepared for a lot of hard work. Don't let criticism get you down; see it as a natural process and a means to make your writing better. At the end of the day criticism is a reaction and isn't that the best thing that you can hope for... that your work provokes a reaction. Most of all, have faith in yourself and what you do.

When music and words collide...

2012-01-18T00:52:00.001-07:00

Have you ever listened to a song and thought that the words captured the impact and emotion of a scene that plays out in your head? Or that the song somehow captures within its tune the very essence of a character?

I thought about this when I watched the season 2 premiere of one of my FAVORITE shows this past Monday. It's called Being Human. And it's on #SyFy :)))

To explain the cast a little bit starting in the upper right corner...

The "Lady Killer" is Aidan. He's a really nice vampire who has some difficult choices to make because his desire to be a "nobody" collides with the vampire political elite who want him to be involved in just about everything that is going on in Boston.

The "Wild Man" is Josh who through no fault of his own has been infected with lycanthropy. He's impregnated his girlfriend and spread his disease unwittingly to her (it would seem). So he's got a lot of tough choices too. Tough in the sense that the "paranormal" won't stop for an instant and allow him to be "normal" which is all that he ever wanted.

And then there's "Sally". She is my favorite character in Being Human because her story is so incredibly sad. Like tear-jerker sad. It really moved me when I discovered that the reason she's a ghost is because her good-looking and charming boyfriend/fiancee murdered her. She didn't know it either. We find out about it about the same time that she does. And boy does he show his true colors. She had so much love and was such a kind person. But just like in real life...those types of things in no way insulate a person from experiencing the worst that life has to offer. I'm not one that believes in karma. Bad things happen to good people all the time.

At the end of season one, there's a scene where Sally looks on from the door and the song by Oasis called "Don't Look Back In Anger" plays. It even has the line "And so Sally can wait, she knows it's too late as we're walking on by...Her soul slides away, but don't look back in anger I heard you say..."

And it really is just perfect because it has her name, she's a disembodied spirit, and she's been very angry and because of that, it's trapped her on earth. It more or less seared her story into my brain so that I'd come back for season two. And I think that's just amazing and clever writing.

Have a great Wednesday :)

Mr. Daisey and the Apple Factory

2012-01-17T00:14:00.001-07:00

I listened to a podcast on This American Life. The link for it is here. I encourage all of you to take the time and listen to it. It's incredibly well written, funny in parts, and more or less gave me an insider's look through his eyes at what it takes to make these gadgets that you and I love.

Apple is undeniably cool. Wouldn't you agree? I'm sure you've seen the ads.

Mr. Daisey's fascination with Apple started when he got an iPhone out of a box that hadn't been wiped. It had pictures of people, conveyor belts, and other things in it and his curiosity became piqued. He asked Siri "Where are you made"? and Siri responded, "I'm not allowed to answer that." He states in the monologue that it was almost like Siri knew where and when and by whom she was created but that there was this thing that prevented her from speaking her mind.

Shenzhen by night. Doesn't it look incredible? Arcologies
and corporate super towers everywhere.

Because of the podcast, I now know that Apple products, namely the iPad and the iPhone are assembled in a place called Shenzhen near Hong Kong in China. Mike Daisey describes it as a city of the future and that it looks exactly what you'd expect a city to look like if Blade Runner were to throw up on itself. I think that's a great description and a great analogy.

This is a Sheraton Hotel

Around the tops of the skyscrapers, particularly at Foxconn, there are nets to catch workers because so many of them go up there to throw themselves to their deaths. In his time there, he talked with many under-aged workers (some as young as eleven) who worked a full-hour (not the American one filled with smoke breaks and slacking off). He clarifies that this is a full 60-minute shift with people standing behind them to monitor their work. And their shifts are back-breaking, some fall between 14- to 18-hour days. The work is so hard that it ruins the hands of many workers. They just get fired and have to go find work elsewhere.

This is the plan for a new corporate HQ in Shenzhen

He spoke with one worker that he found whose hands were ruined at Foxconn. This old man had a new job in a new factory. Mr. Daisey showed him the iPad and he'd never seen one turned on. All of these products (the iPad, iPhone, etc.) are manufactured and shipped back to the states. Imagine working back breaking shifts all day long for weeks and years on end, ruining your body, and never seeing one of them turned on so that you could play with it. To actually hold in your hands the thing that destroyed you.

The old guy in the podcast said, "It's like magic." I suppose it is so I agree with that statement. I play with my iPad and think "it's magic."

A nice cityscape photograph. This is the city where all of your tech comes from.

As writers, we really don't need to look very far to find inspiration for dystopian fiction. Maybe the reason dystopians are so popular is because they are more a reflection of how the world really works and how people really treat each other than utopias could ever possibly be. I will say this. Despite all my whining and bitching, I'm glad I'm not the worker class of Shenzhen. I think it sounds miserable, and I probably would have been one of the people that decided to check out early. Does this mean I'll stop buying Apple products?

Unfortunately no.

Workers in a Chinese factory.

I like the magic.

Does that make me a horrible person?

I joined the cult of Tebow

2012-01-16T00:13:00.001-07:00

I don't like football. I don't watch it. And I don't know many of the players. But, I think that this is going to change next year as I have become an unwilling follower of the cult of Tebow. Allow me to explain the term "unwilling". It means in this context that I cannot stop myself from watching him. It probably started weeks before the wild card game where he shot down the Steelers with a play that left me standing and staring at the television and thinking "I don't believe this." It probably started because of Saturday Night Live's skit first alerting me to the "over the top" behavior of this now world famous quarterback. Millions of internet memes pounding my eye sockets as I travel websites like Reddit and follow links that appear on my google homepage are probably responsible. Anyone that knows me knows that I am influenced by advertising. I do follow trends. That's just me. I can't help it. So I got sucked into the Cult of Tebow...all of this despite the fact that I don't believe in god. But none of that really matters now does it?

Despite the fact that I'm atheist, I do respect a man's conviction in what he
believes as long as he doesn't try to dictate my life or what I should believe.
Tebow behaving like this on the field is something I've never seen, and it's
clearly one of the reasons I like him. He stands up for what he believes and
doesn't give a shit what other people think of him. I like that. I respect that. No,
I don't believe that anything "divine" has ever or was ever going on. But the
fact that other people did was worth paying attention to. I wish I could believe
but religious faith is simply something that I was never meant to have.

I have no concrete explanation for why I like him. Only mixed feelings searching for an answer. I also felt sadness. Sadness when the Patriots completely crushed the Broncos on Saturday. I've never felt that for a football team. I don't understand where the emotional investment comes from. I experimented on Sunday by watching the Giants play the Packers, and I felt nothing. I could care less for either team and could care less who won. I also tried to see why people like Tom Brady, and he just looked like an emotionless angry robot that was as loveable as a swather that cuts down wheat on a field.

So that is the key (at least for me) in watching sports. Does that even make any sense? I have to have the ability to root for a player. Without that, the game is meaningless and kind of boring.

It leaves me with a question. Why do I like this uber Christian underdog? Well he's exciting, he's unique, his confidence is undeniable (maybe it has something do with this)....

In the end, I have no idea.

But he has "IT" quality. A thing that defies my ability to provide a definition in words but is akin to Charisma (but obviously something more than that). People with "IT" command attention. Whatever you want to call it, he had the ability to wake a fat wet bag of cement (which is what I see myself as) from his apathetic take on football and tune in to watch. I guess next fall I'll be watching the Broncos and Tim Tebow. For now, I'll just have to be content and read his book. Life is so strange, but then again, so am I.

The Curse of Gremdon by Ciara Knight

2012-01-13T00:01:00.002-07:00

I bought and read the Curse of Gremdon. This novel by Ciara Knight is the first romance novel I have ever read and I really liked it. I give it five stars out of five.

Curse of Gremdon is more than just a romance though. It is a good ole fashioned sword and sorcery novel (with the emphasis on "sword" and very little if no "visible" magic at all). It's what us nerds might call a "magic poor" world. But the description fits and the world-building is amazing. The book is mostly told through the experiences of Arianna. She's an amazing warrior with the spirit of Grace Jones' character in Conan the Destroyer but with a component of beautiful femininity that the afore-mentioned character never had. And Tardon is every bit a testosterone-fueled warrior who lops off heads with one arm while embracing his true love with the other.

The song done by Bryan Adams called "Have you really loved a woman" comes to mind when seeing Arianna through Tardon's eyes. The story is thick with erotica (and I loved this) and it NEVER gets old. If you are looking for a sexually-charged story that is borderline pornographic yet maintains the side of art instead of descending into details of what goes where and also has an incredibly engaging story, then this novel is for you.

Yes, it's an adult book. But I'm an adult and I loved it. There were several times when the heat from the pages made me fan my face and think, "wow...Ciara is such a damn good writer."

And the story is in no way predictable. There's a plot twist in there that came out of nowhere. I thought the story was going to be linear...you know...as a reader I had it "all-figured out." I was going to give it four stars because of this. But Ciara surprised me with her cleverness and my eyes opened wide when I realized what was going on.

Tardon for all his brawn though is so wimpy when it comes to child-birth. I guess that makes this tough guy kinda cute.

Author Ciara Knight

INTERVIEW:
1) First off, I just wanted to say without gushing too much that you are an amazing writer. That being said, I wanted to ask you on some pointers on how you wrote your sexually charged incredibly steamy scenes? Are there words you would tell others to steer away from, and did it flow naturally or were they really difficult? I've tried to write something similar, and I always thought I ended up crossing the line.

Michael, you are so sweet. *blushes* I’m thrilled that you enjoyed the book so much. I LOVE the story and there is still so much more to tell!

Okay, wow, start with a tough question. ;) I’ll be honest, during the first draft the scenes practically wrote themselves. Tardon and Arianna were two characters that took over and didn’t let me have much say in what was happening. You’ve gotten to know Tardon after reading the story, so I’m sure you can understand that he wouldn’t tolerate my author voice interfering at all. J

As for words to avoid, it wasn’t until editing that word choice took some extra thought. My world is fantasy, so I wanted to avoid any modern terms. I think one of the most important things to remember while writing any scene is to stay true to the world you’ve created; otherwise your reader will be ripped from the moment.

My intent for this type of romance was to describe a setting and what the characters were feeling, but not to list each movement and action. I didn’t want to spell everything out. That would be intrusive to the reader’s journey. I think a writer should be able to describe something to a certain extent, but leave some of the actions to the reader’s imagination.

2) Who would you have star as Tardon? How about Arianna? You can pick anyone from any time period. I'm just curious. My personal pick for Tardon is Dwayne "the Rock" Johnson. Is that even close?

I think Tardon is such a strong character each reader can view him a little different. In my mind, his face resembles Chris Hemsworth (maybe a little less pretty) and the body of “the Rock” or Arnold in the early years.

Dwayne Johnson

Arianna HAS to be played by a curvaceous female, no skinny girl should ever play her. She has lips like Angelina Jolie, curves and a strong female air like Katherine Zeta Jones.

3) How do you channel Tardon so well? I mean he's the quintessential hunk. And do you picture him having to work out to maintain all that muscle or is he just naturally swoon-worthy?

Chris Hemsworth

Tardon just wouldn’t let me write him any other way. His voice was so distinct in my head, I couldn’t alter it. Due to his training schedule, he doesn’t work out. No need, the hours in the Pit keep him in shape.

4) Tell us about Arianna. More specifically, where in your psyche does she come from? She has a riveting strong female voice, but at the same time, she is completely aware of her lack of physical strength when it comes to her comrades in arms, and I just want to know how you came up with her.

Arianna is one strong girl. She is physically capable of handling many things. When I wrote this book I had blown out a disk in my back and I wanted to be tough. Since I wasn’t, and had to spend many hours in bed, I wrote who I wanted to be. It ticked me off that I couldn’t beat the pain, so I lived vicariously through Arianna for several months. They say tap into your emotions to write a better character, so that’s what I did.

Arianna is also strategic, always thinking. When she couldn’t win a fight with her own physical abilities, she’d use her brain and imagination.

5) How is writing romance fantasy different in your mind to writing say fantasy or science-fiction and how did you come up with the story for Curse of Gremdon?

I think the main difference is the character interaction. Typically, fantasy and sci-fi have little romance, and usually it is off screen. The Curse of Gremdon had more on screen romance.

I’ve always had a huge imagination. I LOVE world building and probably have ten other worlds in my head right now. I think of myself as more of a story teller than a writer. Inventing the story is the easy part, writing it is extremely challenging at times. For instance, The Curse of Gremdon started as a short story. I didn’t think I could write a fantasy novel, but when I received a rejection from a magazine that stated the story was too big, I turned it into an 84,000 word novel.

6) Last question...was it difficult coming up with the title? Now that I've read it, I think the title and the artwork are perfect. But it seems so effortless. Were there other titles you had considered before the one you chose or did you go in knowing that it would be called "the Curse of Gremdon"? Oh and is there going to be a sequel (I know I'm cheating by asking two questions here)?

I usually have a difficult time with titles, but this one was easy. Actually, that was the title of the short story.

I have outlined a sequel, but it might not be out for a year or so. This one will be a little heavier on the magic side. I can tell you that it will be held in the same world but the main hero will be Saldor. The female, well you’ll have to wait and see if his love returns.

Buy Curse of Gremdon at Amazon for $7.99 on Kindle here.
Visit Ciara Knight's author blog here.
Enter to win a free copy of Curse of Gremdon on Goodreads here.

AND because it is Friday the 13th, my Christmas giveaway has ended. MY ADVANCED READER EDITION GOES TO...

T.F. Walsh.

I'll get your shipping information from you and get it in the mail.

Project Fiona is the new SEXY

2012-01-12T00:15:00.000-07:00

Mild disclaimer => I own a Razer Lycosa gaming keyboard and a Razer mouse and they do a great job. What you are looking at on the screen of amazing device below is Firefall, a full-fledged online first-person shooter for the PC. Razer (the company that makes some of the coolest gaming gear) says Firefall, and other PC games, will run on its Project Fiona tablet in Windows 8 (time to say adieu to Windows 7).

Yes, I'm a geek, nerd...or whatever you want to call it. THIS does excite me. I know Patrick is probably rolling his eyes. In one sentence...this is not the tablet for you if all you want to do is play Angry Birds.

Here's the skinny:

1) Under $1,000. That's important because it competes with the iPad and is obviously going for the same market.

2) Intel Core i7 CPU--WOW! Quad core baby (all i7 processors are quad core in case you didn't know).

3) SSD memory. This is tech speak for Solid State Drive. You know those flash drives that you use to store your manuscripts on so you don't lose them when your computer chokes? Picture that only larger, roomier, with no moving parts and instantaneous retrieval and upload of information. My gaming p.c. has had solid state drives for two years. They're incredible.

4) Dolby Home Theater Audio on a Windows 8 interface. Damn. Plus you can play most p.c. games for Windows on this tablet using Ivy Bridge.

5) Dual stick controllers and feedback. If you are shooting a machine gun, you'll feel it vibrate.

Are you excited yet? Watch the video below and you'll see how the keyboard and mouse hook up to it to create a full transformational tablet to p.c. experience.

Have a great Thursday. Tomorrow I'm playing host to author Ciara Knight because I begged her for an interview. :)

Authors and publishers are treating the Nook like it is the red-headed stepchild of ereaders

2012-01-11T00:11:00.000-07:00

I just finished an excellent book written by an author that I will choose at this point not to name. I read the book in three days. The publisher is an independent press. First some background.

I own two kinds of e-readers. The first is an iPad and the second is a Barnes and Noble Nook Color.

I buy a lot of books on the Nook because I cash in my Discover Card rewards for gift certificates to Barnes and Noble. Plus, with one of their stores just right across the street from where I live, and the demise of Borders, I felt that I should do something to keep Amazon from destroying the last big brick and mortar bookstore chain in America. Every little bit helps.

So...I buy Barnes and Noble ebooks. I buy quite a few of them.

Chances are, if you're an author with access to your own sales and you mysteriously see one Nook sale next to the hundred kindle sales you have...that one customer is me. Again, I get gift certificates for just using my Discover Card so in a sense, they're free to me and FREE IS GOOD.

However, even though I represent only 1% of your sales, it does NOT give you a license to shit all over the end product. I'm getting sick of it.

In this book put out by independent publisher above that I finished just tonight, a page ended mid-sentence with the word "the". I turned the page to continue to read and it was a whole new paragraph. What the hell? I can only assume by the context of what was going on that either an entire paragraph was omitted, or an entire page was left out. Okay...big deal, right? It gets better. I'm reading along and then pages start repeating over and over and over. I have to drag the bar to advance past them and then backpedal to where I was to continue the story because there are so many of the same page inserted in the Nook formatting.

But it isn't just them. Another independent publisher had a book that had the author's name inserted mid-sentence at the bottom of a page (this isn't a spelling problem but a formatting one). And I've come across foreign letters only represented by empty squares. I have to infer from the context of the sentence what word was used. Also, I've bought self-pubbed books who have the screwiest indents (either omitted or glaringly huge) in the Nook but their kindle editions apparently are just fine. And when I say screwy...I mean REALLY F'IN SCREWY so that the book is damn near unreadable. I don't care that the author goes back and corrects it. I'm not going to buy the book twice to download it. Burn me once, shame on you.

You know who hasn't messed up on Nook formatting? Anything done by the BIG SIX.

All of their books are fine. Gee...I wonder why that is? Haruki Murakami's 1Q84 looks pristine. R.A. Salvatore's book that I'm reading has no repeated pages. George R.R. Martin's books look great. Even old school books like Isaac Asimov's Foundation look passable (and they probably don't make money formatting his books for the Nook anyway). I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that the reason their books don't suck on Nook is because they choose not to make them suck.

I think I know why this is happening. It's called "Apathy". Small publishers and self-pubbed authors are like, "Amazon is the only thing that matters. Kindle formatting is the only thing that makes us money." Well screw you. I'm a consumer, and I own a Nook, and I would like a little respect. Either do it well or don't even make your book available on the Nook...period. But I have five friends that own Nooks as well, and if you don't make your book available to me...that's five friends that will never hear about it (and one of 'em is part of a small book club).

Can you help me with a blog tour?

2012-01-10T07:21:00.001-07:00

I am planning a blog tour for my book that is coming out this May. Only, I have no idea how much is enough or too little. As it is, I've scheduled eleven days. But when I look at Ciara Knight who is going on tour later this month for the fabulous Curse of Gremdon (I can say this because I read it), she has got a lot of time blocked out (I think the entire month).

So, I'm asking you knowledgeable writers out there...what is the perfect amount of days to use for a blog tour? Do they need to be spaced apart or can they be Monday thru Friday? Are you expected to give out something like an Amazon gift card or a book or is it okay not to give out anything?

I'm also looking for three more people who would like to host me to fill out the schedule I have (unless it ends up not being enough or too much). If you would be willing to help me with a blog tour, please say so in the comments :)

You can check the schedule I have at this link or by clicking the tab above.

Have a great Tuesday.

How to write good

2012-01-09T00:02:00.001-07:00

That just about explains it all, now doesn't it?

:) Have a great Monday.

Believe In Yourself

2012-01-06T00:08:00.001-07:00

"I hope you will have a wonderful year, that you’ll dream dangerously and outrageously, that you’ll make something that didn’t exist before you made it, that you will be loved and that you will be liked, and that you will have people to love and to like in return. And, most importantly (because I think there should be more kindness and more wisdom in the world right now), that you will, when you need to be, be wise, and that you will always be kind."

--Neil Gaiman, author of American Gods

Let's own 2012 together. Have a great weekend. :)

Advanced Reader Copy Update and a Blogfest with incredible prizes

2012-01-05T00:00:00.001-07:00

I want to remind those that are interested that the drawing for the paperback Advanced Reader Copy of my book, SLIPSTREAM is still open. Please go to my Christmas post here if you have not done so already and leave a comment that says "I would like an ARC". I have a few interested folks and want to thank every one of you that already commented for your wonderful support. I will keep the contest open for another week and will draw a winner on Friday, January 13th (13 has always been a lucky number for me since I was born on that day). My giveaway is of course, international.

In the month of February, there's going to be a cool blogfest that is hosted by:

1) Live to write...Edit when necessary.
2) Cassie Mae over at Reading, Writing, and Lovin' it.

Why is this blogfest cool? Because I get to talk about my characters and you can too if you join in!

Here are the details:
Monday, February 6th--Characters on the couch:

Have one of your characters answer the following questions (to make this work to your benefit, choose a character who is the hardest for you to write :) Max 250 words (Not including the questions—only the answers).

What is your biggest vulnerability? Do others know this or is it a secret?
What do people believe about you that is false?
What would your best friend say is your fatal flaw? Why?
What would the same friend say is your one redeeming quality? Why?
What do you want most? What will you do to get it?

Wednesday, February 8th--Dialogue Introduction:

Have two characters introduce each other using only dialogue—no backstory, no internalization, just dialogue between the two. Max 250 words.

Friday, February 10th -- Emotion Flash Fiction:

Emotion is the engine of a story. Pick an emotion and in a flash fiction piece of 250 words MAKE us feel it! We want to connect with your character. This will be a challenge in 250 words.

Prizes include two books, two query critiques, and two FULL MANUSCRIPT critiques. Like seriously...these hosts are going to read 80,000 plus words per person for the winner. That is an AWESOME prize. It's so hard to get feedback...so hard to find someone that will actually set aside the time to look seriously at your work-in-progress.

Have a great Thursday and go sign-up for the blogfest! It seriously looks fun.

Insecure Writer's Support Group 2012

2012-01-04T00:25:00.001-07:00

Today is yet another Insecure Writer's Support Group post. This blogfest is one that never ends. It is the brainchild of self-titled "super ninja captain" Alex J. Cavanaugh, friend to everyone that writes, and the man that happens to be just about everywhere online. The rules are simple, post your insecurity on the first Wednesday of every new month. If you are a writer, I encourage you to join by visiting his blog here.

My insecurity this time around is cover art. Deron Douglas is the C.E.O. of Double Dragon Publishing, but he's also the one and only cover artist. I tend to like "most" of his cover art. But some of it doesn't turn out all that great. And it's been my experience that whenever anything bad happens, it always happens to me. If there was a 1 in a 1000 chance that someone could get the plague from drinking water, I would be the one that got the plague, etc.

He's going to begin doing my cover design in February, and I'm a little nervous. I guess if I hate it I can just talk to him about it, but I signed an agreement that said that I essentially have no say in the cover. So if I don't like the result...tough cookie.

Ah well, it's what's inside that matters, right?

Thanks for listening to my insecurity and have a wonderful Wednesday :)

Merlin Season 4 starts this Friday

2012-01-03T00:03:00.001-07:00

I'm a fan of The BBC's Merlin. I own the first two seasons and still have the season finale of season 3 on my DVR. But really all you need to know if you haven't watched it is that there's a lot of homoerotic tension between Arthur and Merlin, Arthur and Merlin are roughly the same age as opposed to one being an old wizard and the other a kid, and Guinevere is black (and doesn't come from a noble family). Oh and Uther (Arthur's dad) was a bigot making all wizards go deep into the "closet". In season 4, he's dead (which took forever to happen). I'm glad Arthur is finally king.

Essentially, it has nothing to do with the actual story which is why I kinda like it.

Here are some pics to whet your appetite; some are courtesy of my new bloggy friend at Hollywood Spy.

If that's too much armor for you ladies out there then here's something more appropriate:

They all have British accents too. And yes...these are the "Knights of the Round Table". Don't believe that the nutrition and razors in the middle ages produced men like this? Well that's why it's called Merlin because there's magic too. And as you can see...magic makes anything possible. Here's more:

King Arthur

Gwen

Morgana

Does there really even need to be a story with actors and actresses that look this hot? Catch the action with me on the SyFy channel.

See you Wednesday with my Insecure Writer's Support Group post.

Starting off 2012 with a Blog Award

2012-01-02T00:06:00.001-07:00

Well I'm black from my blogger vacation, and to start things off I'm doing some housekeeping on some awards that I know you people are just dying to be infected with (and then spread them to your cohorts).

First off is the Smart Cookie Award.

I received this from the Blogger Girlz (Thank you Blogger Girlz!)

Here are the rules. They should look eerily familiar to many of you that pass these along:

Thank the award giver and link back to them in your post. This is par for the course for all of these things.
Share 4 little known facts on anything.
Pass this on to other "smart cookies" you may know.

The facts I choose to talk about all relate to me:

It took me two years to write my book that is being published in May. I'm a slow ass writer, and I don't care if that is a point of condescension for other writers to look down their nose at me. I have a day job, and there are many many days where I feel like writing nothing at all.
I change the title after my name to silly things because I think that people who have their name and "comma 'Author'" are being pretentious. Anyone can string words together and publish them. So anyone can be an author. The next title I plan on using is "Evolved Monkey" unless someone steals it first.
It seems to be easier for me to be real life friends with single women over 30 than it is with single women under 30. The under 30 crowd that "happens" to be single for whatever reason (yes they do exist) only wants to talk about their exes or talk about what they want in their next boyfriend. The single women over 30 will talk about books, movies, and be content watching television that we both enjoy while drinking tea. Not once will they check their Facebook.
The men I know are only interested in hanging out when they are single or extremely tired of their relationships and don't want to bite the horrible bullet and just end it (yes the men I know in this position are cowards plain and simple). If the target man I want to go to a movie with is in a relationship, planning to hang out for even a couple of hours has to have the approval of the other half (who secretly more often than not could give a shit), must be done well in advance (his rules not hers), and is only done so once they have checked with the other half to see if anything has been planned (again the man's rules not hers). This is not the same for women. Women I know that are in a relationship will always hang out at the drop of a hat as long as I'm paying. It just takes one phone call. The only conclusion I've been able to gather from this in the years I've walked the earth is that many men overestimate their importance and impact that they have on their women. This condition is called "pussy whipped" and it is invented by men and not women. In other words, women don't pussy whip men. Men pussy whip themselves. It's really kind of pathetic.

The Smart Cookies:

Mr. Briane Pagel at his blog, Thinking the Lions.
Ms. Steph Schmidt at her blog The Non-Sequitur Ramblings. Honestly, she needs a break from all that painting that she does.
Andrew Leon at his blog StrangePegs, because I'm tired of reading about his dog.
Cindy Borgne over at her blog Dreamer's Perch, because I know she'll give us four facts about Mars, and I like reading about Mars.
Brooke R. Busse because my New Year's Resolution is to pass to Brooke every blog award that I'm fortunate enough to receive from the very giving blogosphere.

I received the great comment award from book blogger, editor, writer, superwoman...Cherie Reich. She passed this award to the last twenty commenters on her blog, and I happened to be one of the lucky recipients. I feel so blessed. In return, I am passing it onto any of you who use any form of "Congratulations" in your comment on today's post. You too, ladies and gentlemen, will be obligated to post a blog that links back to this and thank me for the kindness I have in extending an award to you. How do you like them apples?

Have a happy Monday. :))

Merry Christmas

2011-12-23T00:42:00.001-07:00

I present to you my Christmas story for Heather Arundel's contest. You still have one week if you intend to enter. The prizes are a $25.00 Amazon Gift Card, a beautiful e-reader cozy, and a leather writing journal. So far there are only two entries including mine.

Leave a comment below saying "I would like an ARC" if you would like to read my debut novel set to be published in May. I shall choose a winner next year. I ask that if you are interested, to please visit my Goodreads page and mark it "to read".

My friends, I shall see you in January. May all of your
wishes come true.

Congratulations to Cindy Borgne for being our 10 Lords A Leaping winner, the Prometheus trailer, and Jedi Ninjas

2011-12-22T00:30:00.001-07:00

At the end of November, blogger Sarah Belliston organized the 12 Days of Christmas giveaway. Well the day that I was told to announce my winner is today.

Huzzah Cindy Borgne

You have been chosen by random.org to win $10 to Amazon.

If you don't already know Cindy, she's an award-winning author of science-fiction. You can find her website located here.

UPDATE...Here is the Prometheus trailer I've been waiting all week for (it gives me shivers):

And here's a video of the greatest Star Wars tribute ever. Jedi Ninjas.

I found this video last week and it only had 315 views. It's since gone viral.

I tweeted about it, so you may have already watched it.

And the game of the year is...SKYRIM. Plus the trailer for the HOBBIT

2011-12-21T00:07:00.001-07:00

So I've been playing Skyrim on the weekends. My character is level 12, and I've killed three dragons now. I just wanted to post some screenshots for you because I think the game is so visually stunning. Note: You can click any of these to make them bigger. And yes, this is really what the game looks like through and through. Clouds move, I get stuck in blizzards, I hear footsteps coming up behind me, shadows change, day turns to night, etc. It's completely engrossing and has really consumed my writing/reading time. But truthfully, I'd rather play Skyrim than read 90% of the fantasy that is presently being written. It's like being in your own "visually stunning" book. I read somewhere that it broke a billion dollars in just a couple of weeks. Pretty amazing if you ask me. Some of you may ask, why are guys not reading? Well the answer is in these screenshots. Boys eat this stuff up.

This is me and Lydia (the girl on the left) climbing the steps of the highest
mountain in the world to consult with the mysterious Greybeards about magic.
Not far from us is a badass ice troll that I finally killed by burning him down
with magic flames from my fingertips. Note the beautiful mountains. And yes
the clouds do move in front of the mountains sometimes obscuring them.

This here is actually Lydia and I after having killed said ice troll in the above
caption. We climbed the rest of the way without my horse that got spooked
and ran off. The encounter with the Greybeards was fascinating as they taught
me how to use my Dragon Voice.

A dragon that I killed in single-hand combat. It swooped out of the sky at me
but by this time I've got all steel armor that has enchants on it and a pretty
awesome sword. I had to heal some during the fight but I can do that with
my restoration magic. I just took cover behind trees so it couldn't get me
with its breath weapon. Then I kicked its ass.

Me and my house thrall Lydia. She's my complete servant, always addresses me
as "My Lord" and whatnot and fights by my side. She's pretty powerful.

Another screenshot from a different angle. Not how awesome the water looks.
It's incredible to me that it looks so real. I've swum around and caught fish
with my bare hands in it. Pretty cool, huh?

Skyrim is a game where you can do just about anything. You can walk over to mountains, explore buildings and ruins, jump off of cliffs...the world is so real and so incredibly detailed that the grass sways in the wind and the tree leaves flutter. You can customize your character so completely that you determine the shape of their nose, the color of their irises, and the style of their hair. Each item is so intricate that you can rotate it in three-dimensional view and find clues on the actual item on how to solve a puzzle. I found a gold dragon claw set with rubies that when I turned it over, discovered how to open a magical portal deep in a dungeon. I did so, defeated scores of raving monsters, and got my first powerful magical item. It was pretty awesome.

It's also a game that has inspired countless online memes. Checkout Skyrim Hoarders in a google search. Below, click on the short video and watch. You may ask yourself...why? Why would someone collect all that? The answer: because YOU CAN!!! The video is only 13 seconds long. In this game, you can own a house and store anything you find in your home. You can organize it or just throw it in a room. As you can see, some guys are having too much fun with this by collecting junk, skulls, or even bodies.

If you would like to add me as a friend, my "handle" on STEAM is "kavrik519". We can chat while playing :)

Tomorrow I shall reveal who won the 12 Days of Christmas "Lords A Leaping" give-a-way from Sarah Belliston's blog. Also, I will probably "gush" some about the Prometheus trailer which is due to hit Apple's movie trailer site on Thursday.

In FANTASY NEWS HERE IS THE HOBBIT TRAILER .... ENJOY!!!!!

Thanks everyone for getting me over 50,000 page views in less than a year. I think that's pretty good traffic.

A Little Chat With Author Brinda Berry

2011-12-20T07:15:00.000-07:00

I don't know exactly when I started following Brinda's blog. It just kinda showed up in my Google Reader so I assume that I just went to check her out and liked what I saw. Soon after that, I read her debut novel called The Waiting Booth, and I reviewed it on all the usual sites giving it four stars out of five.

The Review:

Warning, there are some spoilers ahead.

The Waiting Booth by Brinda Berry is an excellent book. The majority of the time, the book remains in first-person perspective looking out at the world through Mia. She is in a difficult spot because her brother Pete has been missing. However, soon she meets two mysterious and extremely hot guys that offer to help her uncover the whereabouts of her brother. Despite a rough start, she eventually learns to trust them. But there is enough tension in the book that you never really know until close to the end if Regulus and Arizona have Mia's best interest in mind.

I thought the men in the book were particularly engaging. Brinda knows how to write them with just enough flavor to allow them to leap off of the page. She also takes chances with her writing by switching occasionally to third-person perspective. It isn't particularly "jarring" as one might expect because she treats these shifts in point-of-view as their own separate chapters. I might have gone about it differently. However, it does seem to work okay particularly as a vehicle to impart information to the reader that they may need to know.

Brinda also has a thoroughly engaging story. She has an amazingly detailed world and has done a lot of impressive world-building to allow the reader to feel its authenticity. I think that this book would appeal to readers of Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi or perhaps those who love strong female characters with paranormal powers (and mysterious men). All I can say is, I hope Brinda is working on a sequel.

Q: Was the online mmorpg in your book inspired by World of Warcraft? It had a certain "authenticity" to it that I could really relate to having been a competitive player for five years in a guild that maintained top 200 ranking in the world (not to brag but this is not easy folks). If so, do you play? If no, how did you get that level of authenticity?

A: It would be difficult to create a fictional MMORPG game without being influenced by WoW. So, yes, I would say that my fictional online game, Quest of Zion, was influenced by the gaming elements of WoW. I don't play multi-player online games as you can probably vouch for the time investment necessary to be successful. That's quite an achievement you listed in the question. I have enjoyed single-player RPG gaming like Final Fantasy and many others in the past. Gaming has always been an activity and discussion topic in my home. My son is majoring in computer science with an emphasis in game design, so we've had lots of discussions about my fictional game.

Q: Suspend time for a moment. You can have any actor from any age of Hollywood to make The Waiting Booth into a movie. Who do you cast for Mia, Austin, Regulus, and Arizona? Who plays Dr. Bleeker?

A: This is really a torturous question for me. If I were in charge of casting today, I would choose unknowns to play the roles. I'll take a stab at it. You do have to imagine these actors at a younger age to fit the characters from The Waiting Booth.

Mia- Ellen Page (of Juno and Inception fame)
Austin - Adam Lambert (I'm giving him a shot at acting.)
Regulus- Ian Somerhalder (currently of The Vampire Diaries)
Arizona - Brad Pitt (think very young Brad Pitt)
Dr. Bleeker - I think I'd like to have Bruce Willis here. Really.

Q: One small point that probably cost you the one star in my rating is my dissatisfaction that there is no Pete in this book. The whole plot revolves around Pete. Why did you give us no payoff and can you give us a hint as to when we will see Pete?

A: Pete is the unfulfilled quest in this book. I knew from the moment I plotted the book that this would be an issue for some. On the surface, the book may be about finding Pete. To me, this is a story about Mia growing into her own skin and accepting her abilities and inner strength. Mia's synesthesia is a secret in the beginning, and I think it's evident that she's afraid to open up to her friends about who she is. She has trust as well as abandonment issues. As for Pete, you'll be happy to hear that Pete plays a much bigger role in the second book, Whisper of Memory. Without giving away too much, I think you might be satisfied with Pete's role in the second book.

Q: How did you come up with the idea for this book and are you working on the sequel? When can we expect it to be available for download?

A: A friend of mine told me about a news story involving an outdoor camera that captured some bizarre photos. It seems that there were all kinds of monstrous snakes and creatures crossing a piece of highway after Hurricane Katrina. Around the same time as hearing that story, I noticed a "red waiting booth" near the highway on my daily commute. I wondered what the kids saw every morning while they waited for the bus. The "waiting booth" was torn down a couple of months ago, but I have some pictures of it. As for the sci-fi elements of the story, I've always been fascinated by the concept of portals and dimensions. So, those are all the ideas that merged into The Waiting Booth.

I have a tentative release date of May 2012 for the second book, Whisper of Memory. I am currently working on the third (and last) book in the series.

Q: Can you tell us a little about your publisher?

A: My publisher is Etopia Press. Etopia is a small press with horror, fantasy, romance, and YA imprints. They are a royalty-paying publisher with wide distribution through major retailers. You can visit Etopia's blog at http://etopiapressblog.wordpress.com/ if you are interested in their catalog or submission guidelines.

WEB: www.brindaberry.com
FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/BrindaBerryAuthor
TWITTER: http://twitter.com/#!/Brinda_Berry

Mark it "To Read" on Goodreads.

Buy The Waiting Booth now on Amazon for $5.99

Have a great Tuesday.

The Cold Winds Are Rising

2011-12-19T01:31:00.001-07:00

In case you missed it, HBO released the teaser for season 2 of Game of Thrones. Oooh it has me so excited. We are only four months away from more of the White Walkers!

And yes for those of you that read the books like me, that is the voice of none other than Stannis Baratheon providing the voice over. Rather chilling, don't you think?

Have a great Monday.

TransShifter by Cindy Borgne

2011-12-16T00:09:00.000-07:00

I recently finished TransShifter by Cindy Borgne. This is a short story, and boy was it good.

Here's my review:

Five stars out of five.

This story is beautiful. Cindy Borgne is a titanic voice among new authors. Aside from having won multiple awards early in her career, she dares to explore a short story of love between a wounded soldier and an alien (who more often than not) takes the form of another man. This bold direction is refreshing and powerful because it has the courage to ask "Can we choose with whom we fall in love?" And "does sexual orientation actually matter?"

As a science-fiction story, Cindy is in full command of her powers as she weaves a tale of a world where nearly immortal entities travel in the form of electro-magnetic waves. But for all of their omnipotence and their ability to see the wonders of the universe, they choose to spend time with humans. The how and the why are within the threads of this story.

I strongly urge people to read TransShifter. It's quick...probably will take you an hour is all...and should belong on the same shelf as other great science-fiction shorts such as "For a breath, I tarry" by Roger Zelazny (probably one of my favorite short stories of all time-embedded link if you want to read it yourself).

You can download the short story absolutely FREE from Smashwords HERE. Seriously, it's worth an hour of your time.

Have a great weekend. :)

Welcome to the Bah Humbug Blahg Fest by none other than Grumpy Bulldog

2011-12-15T00:03:00.002-07:00

Today is my post for the Bah Humbug Blahg Fest created by my friend, Patrick Dilloway. It goes all day long and you still have time to enter if you haven't done so already. If you don't already follow Patrick, please visit his blog and click follow. Then, create your post answering the following question:

What are the 12 things I hate most about the holiday season?

Here are my answers:

1. Christmas music 24/7 on every radio station. It isn't so bad now that I live in a city, but boy when I lived in a small town with only three radio stations on FM this got really really old.

2. The bitter cold (it lasts six months). I live in the northern hemisphere and December is miserable. Additionally, where I live, there's always temperature inversions creating smog through the whole valley for weeks at a time.

I'm not a fan of this.

3. Hazardous driving conditions. Snow and ice make for difficult driving.

4. No sunlight. On the night of the winter solstice there is more than 14-hours of darkness. That just sucks. Christmas is only a few days after that so it's almost the same. It seems like all I do is live in darkness.

5. Television consists of mostly reruns because its the period following the November sweeps.

6. That Thanksgiving and Christmas are so close together. In order to visit family for both vacations, it requires lots of time off, travel, and you have to turn around and do it again.

7. Finding an affordable gift for someone that already owns everything that is affordable and who has few activities that don't cost a lot of money. In other words, they don't read...haven't read a book ever. They just want to go on vacations, remodel the home, and scheme about ways to buy exclusive cars. Hard to get something under a hundred bucks when what they really want is granite countertops.

8. The celebrity Christmas album that everyone is talking about. I don't want to hear how Justin Bieber sings "Jingle Bells".

Sure he's posed here in the snow. In reality he's tanning under lime
trees in California because he too hates the cold.

9. Receiving a gag gift from a friend that thought you'd think it was funny when in truth, it's crap.

10. People who make a big deal out of Xmas versus Christmas.

Everyone loves Monopoly, right? The Community Chest card "XMAS FUND MATURES"
never got any complaints in any game I played. Why does this always pop up?

11. Inflatable yard decorations. I hate them. They're ugly and people keep them in their yard for too long and the wind deflates them and knocks them around.

I will always live in a neighborhood with an H.O.A. so I can report
people that let this go on too long. You would either love me as
a neighbor or absolutely hate me. I don't think there'd be an
in-between state.

12. Fattening sugary foods are everywhere. No matter where you turn, at the office someone has cookies, pies, cakes, rolls, candy...it's ridiculous. They bring them to work to fatten up the co-workers so that their families don't get fat. And I have a love/hate relationship with food. I'm at my best when there is no temptation.

Christmas calories don't count. Yeah, right.

ATTENTION YET ANOTHER BLOG FEST FOR DECEMBER 31ST. AHEM.

Before you leave I want you to know about one being run by Heather Arundel at her blog My Demon Spirits. In the contest, she wants you to write a holiday-themed story (it can be scary or whatever) that is 500 words or less, post it on your blog, comment on Heather's blog that you posted it and link back to it so she can see where it is, and then click "follow" on Heather's blog.

You can win a $25.00 Amazon Gift Card, a beautiful e-reader cozy, and a leather writing journal. The cozy's are done by Zizi Rho Designs by a lady that just happens to write and knit at the exact same time. You try pulling that one off.

Making macarons is really hard

2011-12-14T00:08:00.001-07:00

This last Sunday, my friend Meg gave me my Christmas present (a little early). We attended a cooking class together at Sur La Table which is at the Gateway Mall in Salt Lake City. What were we doing you may ask? Making a French macaroon. They look like this:

Now, these little delicate pastries may look like tiny hamburgers or perhaps...weird Oreos. But I assure you, they are really really hard to make. I was flabbergasted. What makes them so difficult and temperamental...I'm going to go over the short list with you right now:

Macaroons are really made with three ingredients. Egg whites, powdered sugar, and almond flour. However, these ingredients must be perfect. The eggs that make the egg whites have to be a minimum of two weeks old in the fridge. If you use younger eggs, the chef told us we would fail. Additionally, the egg whites need to be set out for 24-hours at room temperature before you use them. Any less and it's guaranteed failure. As for the other ingredients...you have to have 100% pure powdered sugar. There cannot be any contaminants, so you have to pay for the good stuff. No cornstarch. And the same goes for the almond flour (which costs about $15 for a small bag according to the chef). This helps to explain the price tag of charging $2.00 per cookie for these temperamental things.
The egg whites must be whipped in a metal bowl with a metal beater. Somewhere between soft and hard peak, you have to add the food coloring. It cannot be liquid or dry because either of these will cause your recipe to fail. You need to use the gel food coloring and it has to have "no taste" on the label because the color you end up with will be less once cooked. If you whip the egg whites to hard peak...you will fail. That's how temperamental these cookies are. There's a narrow corridor of success. It was kind of mind-blowing. Just to give you an idea of what Meg and I went through over the course of three hours...we added a teaspoon of orange flavoring (the recipe called for it) and failed to whip the egg whites enough so our batter was too runny and we failed :(. There is no levener, so the egg whites are everything to this dish.
I had to sift the powdered sugar through a chinois strainer three times with a wooden spoon. This is to get air into the powdered sugar. And yes, anything less than three times is failure. Once the almond flour and the powdered sugar were mixed (a delicate act since to do so too violently churns the almond flour and sugar into butter) it needs to be folded into the egg whites CAREFULLY. If you are ham-fisted with it, then you over fold the egg batter and the recipe is ruined. Basically start over (we should have done this).
Once you get the egg batter done then you make the stuffing for the middle. Caramel, fudge, or some other buttery thing were our choices. These weren't so difficult...although the caramel had to be done with care.

The ones that I made with Meg turned out hollow. However, people said they still tasted good. Below are some photos I took during the 3-hour class:

So, anyway...macaroons are hard.

Happy Wednesday. And don't forget, tomorrow is Patrick Dilloway's Bah Humbug Blahg Fest.

Thinking about water conservation

2011-12-13T00:20:00.001-07:00

I frequently tune into "Talk of the Nation" on NPR and they had a great topic yesterday yesterday that really got me wondering where humanity seems to be headed. You can find the program that I listened to here. As many of you already know, the world hit a population of 7 billion earlier this year. To comprehend these numbers, here are some staggering facts:

1) It takes 1 liter of water to create 1 food calorie.

2) The recommended daily allowance of calories a person is supposed to eat falls between 1500 and 2000 calories a day. So per person, that's 1500 to 2000 liters of water that goes into the food that sustains each person each day that the sun rises.

3) Multiply that by a little more than 7 billion, and that's how much water is consumed each day around the globe, and it's only getting worse.

And this doesn't even account for other things that need water (for example, animals need water as well).

There are already 12 major river systems in the world that do not reach the sea.

I'm not trying to be negative, but I think we're screwed. That seems unsustainable to me. I try to create as little of a carbon footprint as I can. But I guess when someone like me chooses to do so, there's another person on the other end of the spectrum (the Duggar lady of 20 Kids and Counting fame is just an example) that just keeps popping them out. Do you know how many resources a family with 20 kids consumes? I think it would be just mind-boggling.

A selfish, selfish, selfish family pictured here.

And you know what, despite the fact that she had a miscarriage last week, I don't feel sorry for her. Not one bit. I think she's beyond the point of ridiculous, and that she has only herself to blame.

It really makes me question the ethics of this country that we give celebrity status to a woman that has tons of kids.

What about you guys? Concerned at the population on an overcrowded planet? Or could you care less? Do you think that it's all a "liberal agenda" and that people should have the right to have as big a family as they want? Let me know in your comments.

ANNOUNCEMENTS for the blogosphere:

1) If you get the opportunity, please go visit Stephanie Schmidt's website to see her wonderful "The Twelve Days of Bookmas" that she did. She even decorated a book tree and rewrote the lyrics to 12 Days of Christmas to match the pictures she chose. The originality and time she spent on this was epic. Please go check it out.

2) Please join the Bah Humbug Blahg Fest hosted by author Patrick Dilloway. The rules are simple because Patrick likes simple. On Thursday, December 15th post on your blog the answer to this brain-teasing question:

What are the 12 things I hate most about the holiday season?

By doing this and copying the badge featured on his website to your blog sidebar, you are entered in a drawing for $25.00. That's the easiest $25 I have ever seen.

Happy Tuesday.

12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop ends today

2011-12-12T00:50:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone. This is a friendly reminder that all entries to the giveaways for Sarah Belliston's 12 Days of Christmas blog hop will end tonight at midnight. The winners will all be announced on her blog according the schedule posted below. Additionally, for my particular giveaway, I shall name the person on December 22nd. Prior to this (at midnight tonight) I will be notifying Sarah with the winner's name.

Thanks everyone for participating. If you have not entered, you should do so by clicking on the 12 Days of Christmas blog hop button on the left.

DEC 13 - Jaime Morrow

DEC 14 - Tessa Elwood

DEC 15 - Lisha Cauthen

DEC 16 - Morgan Shamy

DEC 17 - Rachel Bateman

DEC 18 - Carrie Butler

DEC 19 - Jess Melendez

DEC 20 - Charity Bradford

DEC 21 - Athena Franco

DEC 22 - Michael Offutt

DEC 23 - Cherie Stewart

DEC 24 - Suze Reese

DEC 25 - Santa

Have a great Monday.

Why I don't give to the Salvation Army door ringers at Christmas

2011-12-09T07:13:00.000-07:00

The Salvation Army door ringers are out in full force, and I've always stuffed a few dollars in the little red kettles every year.

However, this year, I'm choosing not to do so. Jeff clued me into this over at his website located here and it just made me a little angry.

If they are going to claim to be a charitable organization, I don't think they should take a stance like this.

As Jeff said in his post on this same topic, it's important to examine a charity before you give to see if they match your values.

See you Monday.

Truth has no agenda

2011-12-08T00:14:00.000-07:00

I saw a movie about six months ago called The Invention of Lying, and although it was funny, I kinda wished that I lived in that world. For those of you that haven't seen it, the movie is about an Earth where lying has never been invented. People just tell the truth all the time. In answer to questions like, "How are you?" The main character gets responses like, "I'm terrible and have come up with a plan to commit suicide tonight in my apartment if I have the guts to do it. I'm a terrible coward." The response being, "Oh well best of luck then."

I just think people lie way too much. They lie to avoid embarrassment, they lie to avoid punishment, and they lie to prevent hurt feelings. Sure, I know the reasons of why people lie. I just wish it wasn't that way, and honestly I think the truth makes the world a better place.

Recently, a friend told me a story. She is a Hispanic American whose first husband was a black man. As a result, her beautiful daughter had natural dark skin. She took her daughter to a daycare here in Utah and after work, went to pick her up. The lady at the daycare said, "Please don't bring back your child. I cannot care for your child. You need to find another daycare."

She asked, "Why? Was she bad?"

The lady responded, "No. She's black. I will not care for a black child."

Instead of getting angry, my friend responded as I would have responded. "Thank you. Thank you for admitting that you're a racist bigot. I will find another daycare for my child. I honestly am thanking you because had you not said something, you could have harmed my child. I'm glad it never came to that."

And she promptly went in search of another daycare asking questions like "Are you okay with the fact that my daughter has very dark skin?"

As a man with mixed ancestry myself, I understand perfectly how even though it is 2011, when you don't look a certain way or act a certain way you will be discriminated against. I appreciate truth.

More examples from life. Wouldn't it be better if people were honest in their interactions with others?

Take Sandusky of the Penn State scandal. If he had the guts, he should have just come out thirty years ago and said, "I like to screw boys. I'm a pedophile." Then maybe he could have moved to Thailand or some other place that doesn't prosecute pedophilia and not be in the trouble that he is in. At least boys would have been protected, and he could have claimed to be a part of the human race by outing himself as a monster. As is, he's more slug than human.

People who don't believe in God or the teachings of a religion yet remain within the ranks of a religion giving tithe simply because they don't want to lose friends or shatter the lives of their families. This is living a lie. And it gives strength to a religion (and their agenda) because you support them with your cash. I manage to eek out an okay existence by being an "out" atheist. I have no family and kids and play a lot of video games and read books. I wish it were different, but at least I don't lie. Lying is for cowards.

How about going up for a promotion at work? Here's the situation. You have more experience than the other guy. You have more education. Yet the other guy gets the job. Wouldn't it be nice if the boss just said, "Hey, the other guy is more attractive and even though he's married, I'm hoping I can screw him once or twice despite the fact that he's married." Don't laugh...I've actually seen this happen. I no longer work there...but yeah...I saw exactly that. Being the guy that didn't get the job, I would have liked to have had the truth. I could have quit sooner.

How about people who follow you in social media exclusively because they want to sell you their stuff? The lie is that they are interested in you. The truth is that they have no intention of ever actually being interested in you. They just want your money. Wouldn't it be nice to hear the truth?

Another example: a man I once knew gives his wife a doughnut every day after working midnight's. He knows that the wife has been trying to lose weight but says, "She loves the fresh doughnuts. It's a way I show that I care." The truth is more sinister: "I'm an insecure man and think my wife will leave me for another man if I don't fatten her up and make her feel ugly." I've seen this in action...it really did happen. I called the guy on his bullshit, and he 'fessed up to it.

A person says, "I will read your book." The truth is they have no intention of doing this. Just be honest. "I don't read and won't buy a copy of your book." I'd be fine with that and would say, "Thank you. I never expected your support anyway. It's not like we exchange Christmas cards."

A person gets to be friends with you so that they can befriend a friend of yours that they want to have sex with. Just be honest, "I find this person attractive and want to warm up to you so that the other person will like me and we can screw. But I really have no intention of being your friend and would prefer if you dropped off the face of the earth once I get what I want."

I like truth. I rarely get upset at truth. If someone finds me uninteresting, they should just feel free to say it. "Mike, I find you uninteresting and frankly, don't ever want to interact with you again." My response, "Thank you for being honest. We shall never interact again. Bye."

Occupy Wall Street is a movement that I've watched with fascination. It's people banding together over simple truths and they are not afraid to let people know that they are upset. The truth is that some people are living lives that are so much better than others and work far less for it. The truth is that 1% of the people ~~control 99% of the assets~~. (Mr. Jay Noel corrected me and I apologize for this gross mistype. When I originally wrote this post it was around midnight, and I just wanted to get it out there. 99% just stuck in my mind--with no editor to catch my glaring error, it just got posted.) Here is Jay Noel's words (and he is correct) from comment below (sorry everyone I knew this but it just didn't come out that way although what I "knew" came closer to 50% from the news):

"Other than your gross miscalculation of the 1% (1% actually control anywhere between 38% - 42% of the nation's assets depending on which study you look at. The IRS confirms this. Still lopsided, but a FAR cry from the 99% you stated)"

Now onto the rest of my post ==> And the truth is that many in that 1% could give a crap about anyone in the 99%. I bet if poor people died by the millions or got gassed, they wouldn't shed a tear. They'd say, "At least I don't have to support deadbeats anymore." They should just tell the truth. Let people see them for the assholes that they are.

Funniest truth I heard all week came from a Catholic. I respect what he said. "Go through life and sin a lot. Otherwise, Jesus died for nothing." I was stunned given his beliefs but laughed my ass off.

Most people are so fake. I'm kinda sick of it. Do the world a favor. Next time you find yourself wanting to tell a lie...just stop. Come out with the brutal honest truth. Let people see you for who you are. Be true to thyself.

I'm Insecure and interviewed at the same time in one day.

2011-12-07T07:18:00.000-07:00

It's time once again for the monthly "Insecure Writer's Support Group" that Alex Cavanaugh started on his blog four months ago (wow 1/3 of a year gone just like that).

Today, my insecurity is just wondering if I suck or not. As my publishing date looms, I almost feel like bagging the whole thing and stuffing my book into a box somewhere and never letting it see the light of day. I just don't have any confidence in myself. However, against this cowardly inner voice is that of my friend Kathy. Over Thanksgiving I gave her an ARC to read and she's already finished it. She told me she thought it was incredible which made me feel really good. It was the right kind of random input given at just the right moment to make me shake off my issues with my writing. Do any of you hear those voices? The kind that whisper to you that you suck? I hate those voices.

The other part of today's post is an interview. I was checking my inbox the other day, and I came across an email addressed to moi asking if I'd like to be interviewed. I instantly thought, this is going to be fun! I've never been interviewed before. So if you'd like to check it out, please go visit the lovely >>> click>>> Leigh Covington at her amazing blog.

I'm just tickled because I got to talk about my book. No one ever wants to talk about my book. I'm not saying that's a bad thing...that's just what writers are like, you know? They talk about their books, and expect you to listen. I'm content doing that because someone has to listen, you know? I try very hard to be a good listener because I don't think people get listened to enough (not even Alex and he has a whole lot of people listening to him).

Finally, I want to say that I appreciate all the support from the "to read" clickers on my goodreads sparkling cookie gif featured on the right.

Now for some Wednesday witchcraft.

On the gif below, place your hand in the center of the image and the dots will appear to move faster.

You're welcome.

Happy Wednesday!

I'm a Pied Piper and the Easily Flushed Blog Hop

2011-12-06T00:32:00.000-07:00

L.G. Smith over at Bards and Prophets bequeathed me with the Pied Piper Blog Award created by the Geek Twins (I guess Alex infected her a few days ago)...anywho...thank you L.G.!

The rules are simple:

1) List three of your favorite followers and why.
2) Pass the award onto three bloggers that you feel deserve their followers the most.

I'm going to break the rules a little and pick out some followers that don't get a lot of comment love (and I hope that changes):

1) Benoit Lelievre has a cerebral book blog called Dead End Follies where he analyzes books that he reads and talks about serious film. I hope that you go and visit and partake of some of his wisdom because the man is smart smart smart.

2) Mr. Briane Pagel who keeps several blogs. The one I visit the most is Thinking the Lions. It's mostly about his journey through life as a middle-aged lawyer who has one set of grown kids and another set of babies who just happen to be autistic and run like perpetual motion machines.

3) Ms. Marjorie who sometimes writes on her blog Upwards Over The Mountain. She says in her latest post that she is considering another blog. What I really like about Marjorie is how worldly she is. She's incredibly young, speaks multiple languages, has been to China and Taiwan, lives in New York City...I mean...sheesh...just incredible. So whenever she chooses to breeze on by I think it's wonderful. I feel like Carrie Bradshaw from Sex and the City has recognized me for just a moment.

Okay, so now who do I pass this award onto?

1) Patrick Dilloway who blogs at Grumpy Bulldog's blog. Patrick's personality is similar to my own so I think
it's natural that we are blogging buddies. He's not afraid to say what he thinks, and I appreciate that honesty.

2) Brooke R. Busse because I promised Brooke that she would from now on be the recipient of blog awards that got passed onto me. Aside from that though, she's just a really smart writing person/woman/teenager. Brooke's blog is at Paper Mountain. Get to know her now before she is famous. Famous people don't ever look at you anymore.

3) Charity Bradford because Charity is going to win the Hugo, and I want to say that I predicted it here first. Find this awesome future award winning author at her blog Charity's Writing Journey and ride her coattails of success.

I've joined the Easily Flushed Blog Hop that is the brainchild of Cassie Mae. It takes place all day today. The prize is a $10 Amazon Gift Card. All you have to do is comment and post this polar bear on your blog and tell people/tweet about the contest. Please follow the link and go win a gift card. :))

>>>>>Eeep! I forgot the easily flushed story so here it is <<<<<<

I went to a house to fix a computer internet issue. When I got there, I discovered that the people used wireless. I asked them to take me to the router so I could reset it. Well the router was in the basement behind some sex toys. I said, "Hmmm, I can't quite reach it. Could you get it for me." It was very awkward.

Have a great Tuesday.

Meet Kim Simmons of Cubicle Associates

2011-12-05T00:53:00.000-07:00

I'm one of those writers that goes to an editor before I actually submit my work to agents or publishers. I know, I know...some people say "that's a waste of money" and "you'll never get that money back."

Truthfully, I have a job that pays my bills, and I have no illusions about success or the lack thereof. At this point in my life I write because I have stories to tell. I wish I made money at it, but if someone were to ask me, "Do you consider it a job?" I'd answer "No." A job gives you money. Thus far I haven't earned one penny. The balance sheet is in the negative. Do I care? Kinda. But I consider it the cost of doing business.

Big time authors will tell you "Money flows one way...to the author." Well no shit. But sometimes it's good to get someone to edit your book and if you want quality and it to be done in a timely manner by someone with qualifications, then you should pay that person for their time.

I feel lucky to have found Kim. She's affordable, catches many of my obvious errors and some of my not so obvious ones, and she tells me flat out when stuff I write is not working. She fact checks some and does line-by-line editing. She's also not afraid to tell you when something isn't working and sucks. She edited one of my novels in 2-months. How's that for fast? And I'm serious when I say, working with Kim will not break the bank.

Kim has a business called Cubicle Associates and it's located here.

Q: What made you decide to create Cubicle Associates?

A: I had been on a quest to figure out what my true career desires entail. I've had all these great experiences and I was trying to figure out how to "marry" them. Through brainstorming and prayer...Cubicle Associates was born!

Q: What part of your professional background has proven most valuable with your business ventures?

A: I would say just about every experience. When I was in college I worked my way through as a secretary and administrtiave assistant at the university I attended. I learned a great deal about office etiquette and interacting in a professional setting. As a journalist I found my "voice as a writer" and learned to broaden my scope. Its been a great journey to say the least.

Q: What kind of work are you looking for right now?

A: I'm looking for clients that I can help. Small businesses are ideal because I really believe my talent lies in helping at the ground level. Whether setting up administrative assistant practices to assisting with brand management and marketing; I have a passion to be of help.

Q: Tell us one professional thing about you that you really take pride in that may set you apart from others offering similar services.

A: I'm great a resource. I take great pride in exhausting all avenues of reseach to find answers and/or solutions. Thankfully, down through the years I've built up a good network which makes research and resourcing a bit easier for me.

Q: What advice, if anything, would you offer writers who are looking to publish professionally?

A: Be authentic. No matter the genre, what gets and keeps an audicence is what they can relate to. So don't try to do what someone else has done. Be you. No matter what an editor or professional tells you, there is an audience for your product.

Qualifications:

I graduated from Wayne State University with a BA in Journalism. I was hired first as a general assignment reporter and then promoted to features reporter for the Lima News, in Lima, OH, a newspaper with a daily circulation of 75k. After a number of years in Ohio I moved back to Detroit and began work as the Manager of Events and Conferences for the American Red Cross. In addition I freelance for various local papers in the Detroit area.

Happy Monday and please don't forget to check my Friday post for all the free money you can get just by visiting a couple of blogs.

I want you to win seventy dollars for almost nothing.

2011-12-02T00:13:00.000-07:00

This post is about good cheer and what you can do that is absolutely free that will make someone happy. With December just starting and nano ending for many of the bloggers, there is a lot of loot up for grabs in the blogosphere. I'm highlighting some of this free loot for my weekend post.

Seriously guys and gals...we're talking

like ten minutes of your time max.

First off, my contest for the $10 Amazon gift card is still going. You can find my post located here. All that you need to do is leave one comment. That's it and you are in for the drawing. It's the easiest way to earn ten bucks. I'm not making you follow anything, subscribe to anything, I don't even care if you never come back to this blog again. I received instructions from Sarah Belliston who is running the Twelve Days of Christmas thing and she told me to pick a winner on December 22. So that's when the contest ends.

Also Charity Bradford is giving away a $15 gift card to Amazon as well as a one chapter critique. Charity is an INCREDIBLE writer. I've read some of her sci-fi book and I tell you, it was a page turner from beginning to end. I couldn't get enough. I'm so excited for the day when she lands a huge book deal and movie contract and whatever else that she can get her hands on because with talent that big, she has to succeed. But that being said, a one chapter critique from Charity is like OMG so awesome I cannot even describe it. She will set you straight. She will tell you if your story is working. She's got the chops...she's a hair's breadth away from landing an agent as she's pitched to them and they've requested full manuscripts from her, etc.

As if that weren't enough, Mr. Briane Pagel is giving away a $20.00 Amazon Gift Card for just going to a non-profit website and wishing some conjoined twins a Merry Christmas. Seriously, this is easy money. And look at these darling kids...think of how they will smile knowing that strangers are wishing them well. I know that I would. So please go and do so and get in this drawing for $20 bucks.

And the generosity

doesn't end there!

Up comes author Patrick Dilloway with an amazing blog hop. I'm posting my entry for it on Monday. But Mr. Dilloway is outdoing me, Charity, and Mr. Pagel with a $25 Amazon gift card for one lucky participant!

Like seriously...$25 and all you have to do is make one entry for the bah humbug blog fest before December 15th, 2011.

So yeah...that's $70.00 up for grabs on just a handful of blogs not to mention the stuff that Sarah Belliston is giving away on her blog.

Stop being lazy, go and make a few comments, and earn some dough for yourself for Christmas.

Have a great weekend. Ho! Ho! Ho!

Bubba's Resume

2011-12-01T00:10:00.000-07:00

My Resimay

To hoom it
mae cunsern,

I waunt to apply for the job
what I saw in the paper.

I kin
Type realee qwik wit one finggar and do sum a
counting.

I think I am good on the
fone and I no I am a pepole person, Pepole realee
seam to reespond too me well. Certain men and all the ladies.

I no my spelling is not
too good but find that I Offen can get a
job wit my
persinalety.

My
salerery is open so we kin discus wat you
want to pay me and wat you think that I am
werth,

I kin start emeditely.
Thank yoo in advanse fore yore
anser..

hopifuly Yore best aplicant so
farr.

Sinseerly,

Bubba

PS:

Because my resimay is a bit short - below is a
pickture of me.

Employer's response:

Dear Bubba:

It's Okay honey ... We've got spell check.

See you tomorrow!

Ladies, don't even deny that you wouldn't hire this guy :P

Have a great Thursday :)

Prometheus Plot Synopsis

2011-11-30T00:00:00.000-07:00

So I just discovered that the Prometheus plot synopsis has been leaked online. I've read it twice now, and it's mind-blowing. Just as a disclaimer...this thing could be fake. However, I don't think so. It's just too good. I'm posting it here for you to decide for yourself. Have fun reading. All photographs from the set were taken from Entertainment Weekly.

PROMETHEUS

CAST
Elizabeth Shaw...Noomi Rapace
Rayden Holloway...Logan Marshall-Green
Meredith Vickers...Charlize Theron
David 4.0...Michael Fassbender
Jeremiah Janek...Idris Elba
Theo Zedmore...Guy Pearce
Logan...Ben Foster
Ravel...Benedict Wong
Chance...Emun Elliot
Mudow...Kate Dickie
Yuri...Rafe Spall
Aldrich...Frank Kelly
Francis...Sean Harris
Siena...Tal Berkovich
Lettap...James Payton
Tembrook...Tuppence Middleton

Earth. The beginnings of our world. In an opening montage, we watch as our primordial planet is terraformed and bioformed by seemingly all-powerful, Godlike alien entities...the ENGINEERS. The seeds of life are introduced to Earth for the first time by these fantastic extra-terrestrials, who have the power to create and manipulate both mechanical and biological matter at will. The montage ends as the earliest genetic recipe for life is sent forth from the Engineers' massive, towering CITADEL in the dark desert.

The desolate desert of Africa: 2085. The prehistoric ruins of the Engineers' Citadel is discovered by a corporate construction team tasked with building a nuclear-powered comm-array in the wilderness. Amidst the ancient remains are found highly advanced, biomechanical relics with are determined to be of extra-terrestrial origin. This catches the attention of the mega-conglomerate WEYLAND-YUTANI CORPOTATION, who finances a massive archaeological excavation of the citadel in the hopes of reverse-engineering the alien biotech for financial gain. Running the operation is MEREDITH VICKERS, a cold, calculating corporate executive, who recruits intelligent and independent astrophysicist DR. ELIZABETH SHAW to head up the research team. Assisting Dr. Shaw are xenoarchaeologist DR. THEO ZEDMORE and her fellow astrophysicist DR. LOGAN. Shaw uncovers the secret of the citadel when she discovers a chamber of star charts, which seem to lead the way to the home planet of the Engineers. Also uncovered is evidence suggesting that the Engineers had a database of all life on Earth, and may even have been responsible for its creation including Man.

In a partially-submerged MANHATTAN, Vickers meets with Dr. Shaw and an OPO, (Off-Planet-Officer), CAPTAIN JERAMIAH JANEK, and plans a space mission following the discovered star charts in an effort to find and make first contact with the Engineers. For the scientists and explorers onboard, it will be a journey of discovery, but for Vickers, it's merely a way of obtaining new technology so that Weyland-Yutani may retain the lead in the competitive race to establish colonies off-world.

The depths of space: 2090. A highly-advanced, top-of-the-line ISRV (Interstellar Research Vessel) PROMETHEUS decelerates as it reaches its target solar system. The vessel's crew emerges from their cryo-chambers. Along with Elizabeth Shaw, Theo Zedmore, Logan, Meredith Vickers, and Captain Janek, the crew of the Prometheus is comprised of: First Officer MUDOW, Security Officer RAYDEN HOLLOWAY, Navigator CHANCE, Helm Officer RAVEL, Operations Android DAVID 4.0, Political Officer ALDRICH, Medical Officer FRANCIS, Engineer YURI, and Technical Officers SIENA, LETTUP, and TEMBROOK. The crew gets acclimated to their removal from cryo-sleep, their muscles in atrophy from five years without use. Holloway assists Shaw in her physical therapy exercises.

The crew prepares for arrival at the home planet of the Engineers. Shaw and Holloway are instantly attracted to each other, initiating a romantic relationship. However, as they enter the Zeta 2 Reticuli star system, Prometheus encounters a massive disturbance which hadn't appeared on scanners, one even more powerful than a black hole: a wormhole in space. Prometheus is sucked into the wormhole, and after a harrowing ride, emerges on the other end. The ship crashes on a barren planet, which the damaged computer system identifies as the mission's final destination.

The crew sets about attempting to repair the Prometheus, while Elizabeth Shaw leads a recon expedition to investigate nearby structures, which turn out to be a cavernous Engineer temple. Inside the temple, Shaw's team encounters a bizarre BIO-BRAIN, a biomechanical humanoid face set within a towering pillar, as well as thousands of seemingly primitive URNS. David takes several of the urns back to the vessel for analysis.

Investigating the urns, David discovers that they contain the genetic material for thousands of species within a viscous liquid called BIOFORMER which can rewrite any living organism on a cellular level. Basically, possession of the substance gives its owner the power to create life. Vickers interacts with David and seemingly innocently leads to the Bioformer infecting David through a cut in his finger.

Within the depths of the Temple, we find several living Engineers who discover the transgression of the Humans, and remotely rewrite the stolen Bioformer to make it into a weapon. The Engineers capture Holloway and run a number of horrific experiments on him, injecting him with the Bioformer and allowing him to return to the vessel.

Subsequently, the crew of the Prometheus begins to fall victim to the now weaponized substance, as the "carrier" Holloway injects Ravel, Zedmore, Francis, Siena, Lettup, and Tembrook. The victims begin to lose their humanity and slowly transform, experiencing nightmarish visions and hallucinations and making pilgrimages to the depths of the Temple to receive instructions from the Bio-Brain. Holloway, in particular, is resistant to the transformation, fighting against the alien influence with his feelings for Shaw and his responsibilities as security officer. Meanwhile, David finds that the Bioformer is making him into a biological being...making him Human. The crew also finds that their trip through the wormhole took them back hundreds of millions of years and they are actually stranded on primordial Earth, having moved through space and time.

Eventually, as alien influence and the continued lurking presence of the Engineers becomes clear, the crew of the Prometheus turns on each other as the infected human victims fully mutate into PROTOFORMS: vicious, skeletal alien monstrosities which proceed to assault the unaffected Human crew through the halls of the Prometheus.

Mudow, Logan, Chance, Aldrich, Yuri, and Janek end up being destroyed by the Protoforms. In a strange, erotic ceremony, the Protoforms seemingly mate with the Bio-Brain and each other to create thousands of EGGS, the first of a new generation of the monsters. Meredith Vickers is revealed to be a sleeper CONSTRUCT of the Engineers, who are still active in their far future and Shaw's present due to the time-travelling abilities of the wormhole. Vickers was grown in an Engineer lab but escaped, fleeing to Earth while always wanting to her find creators and take their power. The Engineers activate Vickers' secondary GENE PROGRAMMING, and she transforms into an ALPHA PROTOFORM: the STAR BEAST.

At last, the two remaining crew members, Elizabeth Shaw and David, seek to confront the Engineers in the Temple. The Godlike entities prove to be utterly evil, and David sacrifices himself as he's dissolved in the LIFE SEED BIOFORMER which is the basic genetic recipe for MAN: the former android David, it turns out, is the basis for all Mankind. Shaw is captured by Holloway, but he regains enough of his humanity to remotely activate an Engineer vessel for Shaw's escape, then holds the other Protoforms and Engineers at bay. As Shaw escapes, she finds herself in the midst of the initial Engineer terraforming of Earth which we had witnessed in the opening montage, chased by the former Meredith Vickers who is now the gigantic, horrific Star Beast.

Shaw makes to her escape vessel which blasts off for the wormhole, Holloway fighting the Star Beast with both falling into the wormhole and disappearing. An Engineer PILOT detaches from the Temple in a FAMILIAR VESSEL and follows Shaw, but is lost in the wormhole. Shaw emerges above the Earth of her present day; however, she's deemed insane and responsible for the loss of her expedition and confined to a psychiatric hospital by the Company. It's implied that there are at least some of those who believe Shaw's tale, but have silenced her as part of a cover-up.

In the final scene, we see the vessel of the Engineer that was chasing Elizabeth Shaw emerge from the wormhole in the Zeta 2 Reticuli star system, still in the prehistoric past, and crash on a nearby planetoid, the Engineer Pilot helplessly lost and the EGGS in the ship's cargo hold stirring as something alive moves from within...

The Beginning

So what do you guys think? Excited? Terrified? All of the above?

How clean is the language in your novel?

2011-11-29T07:20:00.000-07:00

This is the Nebula Award. It's cool. I want one.

Every once in a while, I read a post written by an author who believes that swear words, vulgarity, and sex should not be in a novel. Usually these posts come from prudish or religious individuals who have somehow gotten it into their heads that by doing so, it somehow helps their "sales".

I have just one thing to say about that and it has to do with this short story located here.

I suggest that you go and take a look at it. The title is "Spar" and it's by Kij Johnson.

It's a 2009 Nebula winner, was nominated for a Hugo, and was a finalist for a Locus award. In my world, these are amazing credits...awards that I would like to have.

So if you are one of these writers that is afraid to use swear words in your writing, if you are one of those writers that is afraid to portray graphic sex...I think you should ask yourself why. If the writing demands the use of it, these things are in your toolbox. To not use them may be the reason why your novel has a flat tire or why your short story is just...meh.

That's just my opinion of course. Take it for what you will.

For the record, I use the "f-bomb" in my book quite often. And yeah, there's one scene of graphic sex. But I'm not marketing my book to kids. I guess that taking risks in your writing can be the equivalent of sticking your neck out, right?

"Oh my goodness...what will my family think of me if I show teenagers swearing and having sex?"

What will they think of you indeed?

Have a great Tuesday.

The 12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop and an Amazon Gift Card

2011-11-28T00:52:00.000-07:00

I missed you guys! First off, thank you for all the support on Goodreads in hitting "to read" on my upcoming book. I spilled over to page-2 sometime during the long weekend and that made me squee just a little.

Today's post is a giveaway. Blogger ==> Sarah Belliston <==has organized a 12-days of Christmas blog hop. If you go to her website, she has a list of twelve blogs that are all giving something away for the month of December. If you like free stuff, then visit the 12 blogs, comment on them, and you may win something if you're lucky.

So which day am I? I'm the "Ten Lords A Leaping" day of Christmas.

To celebrate my role in the festivities, I will be giving away one $10 Amazon Gift Certificate to celebrate the Christmas season (Ten Lords A Leaping--$1 for each lord--I thought I was being clever).

I would hope that whoever the lucky winner may be, that they would consider buying one of the fine Indie books that I have reviewed on this blog to help out a fellow author.

Okay, so how do you win? Easy.

All you have to do is comment on this post and on the chosen day detailed by Sarah's blog, I will use random.org and select a winner and send you the gift certificate through the email. It's that simple :)

So comment away and have a great Monday. I hope your long weekend was great and that you didn't get "pepper sprayed" at Wal-Mart on Black Friday.

UPDATE: Sarah Belliston now has the post up. So please go check it out!

Practice Cake by Dalya Moon is le awesome

2011-11-18T07:27:00.000-07:00

I read a book called Practice Cake.

I read it.

I loved it.

And now I'm telling you about it.

It's YA but it isn't paranormal. Rather, it's very normal. It even comes with a reality t.v. show. And despite the fact that I am nor never will be a celebrity of any kind, it struck close to heart.

The setting of Practice Cake is a wonderful bakery that instills within
me the same wonderful feeling I had when I watched Ratatouille.

Near the very end of this book, all that Maddie has gone through comes into a brilliant focus with this clear line:

"The world is full of people who are willing to use you, and they aren't always who they seem."

I barely learned this lesson only a few years ago, and I daresay that some never learn it. What Ms. Moon has wrought with "Practice Cake" is a beautiful novel for young women everywhere by giving voice to a protagonist called Maddie who seems to meet all the wrong men.

At first, I was annoyed with Maddie. She didn't seem to have any spine at all. She was a tumbleweed, a victim that things happened to, and she rarely took charge of her life. Instead events just happened to her and she seemed entirely out of control of her own decisions even when they came to something as large as moving to Australia with a man that she hardly knew.

Maddie goes from Chaos to Order in this book. It's something every one of us must
suffer through at one point in our lives. The journey is beautiful.

But Ms. Moon also gives Maddie great strength. And this comes full circle in the end when Maddie learns to pay attention to that voice inside. The last few chapters of this book turn this novel into more than just a slice-of-life story about a girl that works in a bakery. Ms. Moon sticks the ending as solid as a gold-medal figure skater can perform a quad. It's in this ending where she earns her five stars (out of five).

In "Practice Cake" Maddie grows as a person and the journey is filled with great lines, whimsy, and the voice of a girl that is leaving her teen years behind and becoming a young woman. And in the end, Maddie realizes that family has got her back and that the man of her dreams is right there in front of her (and has been almost the whole time). All she needed to do is say "I choose the car" and just like in a game show, what's behind door number 2 becomes "the road less traveled by and it makes all the difference". And to boot, he smells like sunshine. :)

This is Dalya Moon.
She wrote a wonderful book.

Q: Why did we have to wait so long for Hudson to really come into the picture? The man smells like sunshine. It's not fair that you just put him in at the very end and not let us spend a little time with him.

A: I'm so glad you liked Hudson! I agree it was cruel of me to leave him to the end.

Q: Why are Parker, Drew, and Snackboy so horrible? I can believe that there are men out there like this. But in defense of men and boys everywhere, I think that there is some literary hyperbole you are exercising in parading out the worst traits of men and throwing them at your protagonist. However, that is your right since this is your story. What I'm interested in is where all this man-bashing came from? Care to elaborate?

Do you mean ... am I exacting literary revenge on some guys who broke my heart? Like the writer of 500 Days of Summer? Nope, I'm afraid I'm not that scandalous. They're fictional people.

A: I prefer to think that the actions of a character reflect on that character alone, and not the author's opinion of an entire gender, though sometimes I've read books where all the female characters are awful, and it does give me a bad feeling. I hope that my male friends and readers will notice that there are also some terrific male characters in this book and my other stories too.

This does lead into one of the dilemmas writers face, though: is the story balanced? And does it matter, if the point is to tell a story? I remember reading an article, by a person with albinism, about his anger that persons with albinism are always the bad guys in movies, and never the hero. This led me to, years later, write a short story with a protagonist with albinism. But I could have gone the other way, and created the most deliciously evil, pale villain ever. Would that have made me a bad person? Or just an irresponsible writer? Would it make any difference if the author name on the cover were a different gender or ethnicity?

Q: When I read this book, I thought there was a clear message that you were sending out to the young girls that will read it. For me, that message is "Stop being a victim and stand up for yourself." Maddie does this in the elevator using a trope that I've never seen before anywhere...holding a hyperdermic needle to the man she potentially loves to get some answers. In the U.S., this would be considered assault. I don't know if Canada has similar laws. However, I liked it. Am I right on the message, or would you say there is another message here, and I missed it?

There is so much heart break in this book.

A: You make it sound so scandalous! In real life, I don't think people should threaten to assault each other to get to the truth, but this is why it's a novel, and not my how-to manual about how young ladies ought to behave. I'll write that one in forty years or so, once I have it all figured out.

As for a message, I have to say I'm an entertainer first. All things being equal, I think most of us prefer to read stories about protagonists who have some morals, care about others, and finish up a bit smarter than where they started. My job as a writer is to entertain the reader and to facilitate that last thing.

Q: You have an ultra-modern vocabulary and are quite inventive with "Hashtag this and hashtag that..." How do you stay so up-to-date on things young girls are talking about?

A: I have a theory that if I make characters interesting, people will want to believe they're real, so I just try to make them all interesting.

Q: Do girls really think about their boobs as much as Maddie does in this book?

A: The less you have, the more you think about them.

Love is never this simple, is it?

Q: How did you get the bakery details?

A: I would go into my local neighborhood bakeries and stare and stare like a weirdo. A friend finally got me a tour around the kitchen of Butter, a fantastic bakery in the Dunbar area of Vancouver. I asked the baker there what the plastic things covering the rolling trays were called, and he shrugged and said, "Plastic things," so that detail went into the book.

Q: How did you get the idea for this book aside from it being set in Vancouver where you live and it taking place around the time of the riots earlier this year?

A: I came up with the title first, which led naturally to the bakery setting. Then one day I was walking down the sidewalk and realized I was being filmed. I had walked past a local business that has a show on the Food network. Ahah! It all started to come together. I hadn't set a story in Vancouver yet, so I figured this was the perfect opportunity.

I started writing the book in 2010, and I really questioned whether or not to include the riots of Summer 2011, or set it back in Summer 2010. I'm usually very decisive, but I spent weeks debating that one choice. It scared me, so I decided to go for it.

Q: What advice do you have for others who want to write YA?

It's all about the characters.

If you would like a copy of Practice Cake, you can buy it for your very own on Amazon for only $2.99.

You can find Dalya Moon at her blog where she frequently blogs about her projects and the writing process.

I am going on a blog break for one week for the Thanksgiving holiday. Enjoy your turkey or whatever it is that you eat. I will pick up blogging again on Monday, November 28th, 2011. In the meantime, I will be visiting blogs and commenting on them.

Hollywood is screwing up Akira

2011-11-17T07:47:00.002-07:00

Akira is one of my favorite movies. It's also one of the first movies that I saw that made me proud to say I was half-Japanese. Godzilla, though cool, just never gave me that feeling. The Hollywood adaptation for it is gaining steam. I originally was excited to see the movie, but the casting is ridiculous.

1) The kids in Akira are all just that...they're KIDS. Like sixteen at most. That includes Tetsuo, the uber-hero Kaneda, and their girlfriends/friends. So they go and hire Garret Hedlund of Tron Legacy to play Kaneda. I'm sorry but he's WAY TOO OLD. Then they hire Kristen Stewart as Kaneda's girlfriend and she's TOO OLD AS WELL.

2) The kids should be Asian. Kristen Stewart and Garret Hedlund ARE NOT ASIAN. They're not even close. This is like old Hollywood hiring Mickey Rooney to play a Chinese man in Breakfast at Tiffany's. I feel insulted.

I think Kristen Stewart gaining the lead female role is the straw that really breaks the camel's back for me. This movie adaptation is going to suck big time. She's like the male version of Keanu Reeves...completely wooden, can't act, is terrible.

I'm feeling so disappointed right now. >,<

For those of you out there that love YA...just so you can relate, this would be like casting Tyra Banks to play Katniss in the Hunger Games. Imagine that and maybe you can sympathize with how I feel.

Finding the right words

2011-11-16T01:48:00.000-07:00

As writers, we have the power of words. How we say something can make all the difference in the world. Watch this video and see it for yourself. It will only take less than 2 minutes of your life to do so.

Have a great Wednesday.

Snow White and the Huntsman

2011-11-15T07:42:00.000-07:00

I kinda like this trailer. It's a different take on the whole "Snow White" thing, but I'm sold. What do you guys think?

I don't think Kristen Stewart is very pretty...at least not to be playing Snow White. However she's so popular from the Twilight films that I guess she can star in anything. Wasn't Bella "plain"? Seems to me that she was. Interesting that someone "plain" can go to play someone that is more beautiful than the evil Charlize Theron (as the witch).

American Horror Story

2011-11-14T01:38:00.000-07:00

I have been watching American Horror Story, and I have to say, this is the most f'd up show that I have ever seen. But I'm hooked. And this isn't only because I'm a huge Zachary Quinto fan (and I'll watch just about anything that has Mr. Quinto in it). The show is completely unlike anything else on television.

Here's what we have in just the first five episodes (they are on Hulu for free if you want to watch them):

1) Mongoloid child that keeps breaking into the house and says, "You're all gonna die" and stuff like that. She's just really creepy. Her mother locks her in a closet filled with mirrors so that she only has herself to look at to remind her of how ugly she is. Of course, the girl screams at the top of her lungs while the mother goes and has sex with a young man.

2) Ghost/demon in a black rubber suit that impregnates the lady of the house who thinks that she's having mind-blowing sex with her attractive psychiatrist husband.

3) Ghosts everywhere. You don't even know who's a ghost and who isn't. The teenage girl in the show falls in love with one and he's responsible for a terrible Columbine-like murder rampage in a local high school. Yet she's willing to give her virginity to the ghost on a romantic beach on Halloween night.

4) The slutty old woman maid ghost who looks like an attractive vixen that's always trying to get the psychiatrist protagonist to cheat on his marriage with her.

5) The next door neighbor played by Jessica Lange who gives a "twist" to the faded southern belle. She's a cougar, a psychopathic murderer, and delivers her lines with the charm and calm of a female Hannibal Lecter. When she brutally murders her husband and a girl he's screwing, you swear that her pulse barely goes above 60. Plus she puts ipecac into some muffins and has her mongoloid child spit in them and then takes them as a gift to the next door neighbor.

And it goes on and on and on. The writing in this show is amazing, riveting, and compelling. It's exactly the adult fare that I can really sink my teeth into. If you aren't watching it, I suggest that you do. It's plain awesome.

A note on my banner...

2011-11-11T01:17:00.000-07:00

I have always loved blue eyes. I blame
where I was raised. No one in Utah looks
like me being half-Japanese.

I got a few comments this week regarding the new look of my blog. I chose the wolf eyes banner up top simply because it's all wintry in Salt Lake City now and the eyes are a pretty blue. I like blue eyes and have since kindergarten. I remember my teacher handed out papers to all the kids. She asked us to take a crayon from a box and write what color we thought our eyes were. I wrote down blue because I loved blue. Then she passed out a mirror and told us to take a look and see. I looked in the mirror and saw brown eyes the color of dog dung. I was traumatized. But I'll never forget it. Prior to that time period, I don't even think I was aware of what I looked like really. Maybe it was the start of my body image disorder. I have no idea.

So yeah...it has nothing to do with my book. I wanted to make a banner that could reflect my book. Then I realized how impossible that seems without custom artwork. In one sentence I would pitch my book as Schrodinger's cat only with hockey sticks, glass spiders, and monsters from the id. Only no one knows what that means. Maybe the wolf eyes might work in one aspect. They're more serious than goofy penguins. If I had to rate my book with MPAA ratings, it would get a R-rating. The penguins that I used before might make people think, "Oh Mike's book is great for kindergartners!"... which is a resounding..."ummm noooo." I have the goofy penguins banner on my computer hard drive if I ever want to resurrect it. But I think I'll try the wolf eyes for a little while. Who knows...maybe when spring rolls around I'll switch to bunnies.

My story has been as challenging as this for me to define.

Also I finished my final edits on my book and sent it back to DDP. I say final because I've read through it twice (in the last two weeks) and fussed and fussed with it and it really needs to just get out of here. If it stays here more, I'll start changing some things. I'm really happy at this very instant with the way it looks. I can't say that I'd feel that way tomorrow or the next day. So I'm not ever going to reopen it. I'm just going to let it go. I don't want to edit anymore. Not on this project. To give you an idea of how much editing this book has gone through I will tell you. I wrote a first draft in 2008. A beta reader that I trust pointed out glaring things wrong with it. So I rewrote 3/4 of the book. Seriously. Then I hired a private editor and edited it line by line. Then I edited it myself. Then I went on query and submission. DDP picked it up. Then I edited it again with a professional full grade editor line by line. Then I just now edited it again on my own as a final look through. And then I re-read it twice in two weeks and changed more stuff. Last night, I rewrote the opening paragraph fifteen times. I think everything is perfect. So I'm done. I'm letting go.

As writers, there can be a point where we edit something to death.
I think I've gotten close to this point with my current manuscript.

In a few weeks I may have some advanced reader copies that I can give out on my blog. They'll be paperback with no cover art. Paperback with cover art won't be available probably until summer 2012. Ebook release will come first in May. That's just how DDP does business. I know I've got some people who have been extremely loyal to the blog so if they want a free copy of said book with no cover art to read before the release date, I think I can make that happen. Plus I can start querying some of the sites that review Fantasy & Sci-Fi stuff and see if I can get in their queue.

Have a great weekend. I'm off to see Immortals!

When you feel stressed...

2011-11-09T23:25:00.000-07:00

A little song goes a long way.

Happy Thursday :)

Wow

2011-11-09T01:51:00.000-07:00

My Reaction

That is so NOT HAND DRAWN!!!! O.O

Prometheus is coming...

2011-11-08T02:27:00.000-07:00

One month after my book comes out in 2012, I will be going to the first available showing to see this movie. For those of you unfamiliar with Ridley Scott's roots, the Academy Award winning director made a name for himself by teaming up with legendary artist H.R. Geiger to create the most original science-fiction alien probably ever to grace the screen. And now, he's returning to those roots to give us a science fiction fable that speaks to the originality of the Weyland-Yutani universe that brought us such quotes as, "I think we should nuke the site from orbit; it's the only way to be sure."

Here is a synopsis. The film is set in space for the most part, similar to that of "ALIEN"; the jumping off point to this project. The film's name "Prometheus" is that of the space vessel used by a crew of select individuals who set off to explore and investigate fragments of "Alien DNA" that provide tantalizing clues as to the origin of mankind on earth.

This is the Space Jockey creature from the original Alien ship
where the crew of the Nostromo reported seeing "thousands of eggs".

The film itself revolves around the Space Jockey creature; as seen in the original film ALIEN (1979). When a team of scientists embark on the aforementioned journey, they get stranded on an alien world which tests their limits; both mental and physical. In Ridley Scott's own words, the human crew ends up in the darkest part of the universe in a chilling battle of life and death that some describe as absolutely "terrifying".

Prometheus involves a team of scientists known as "The Company". Their representatives and robot/synthetics investigate and search for keys to unlock man's ultimate mystery. But in the process, they threaten the future existence of mankind and are faced with unimaginable horrors.

The Aliens themselves are said to be much larger than the original "Xenomorphs" we are used to. However, their overall construction will be easily noticable to that of the original Alien canon.

The genius, Ridley Scott. I humbly bow before you sir. You are a true visionary.

Prometheus will be much more than just an Alien sci-fi horror. Ridley Scott is digging deeper for this project and Prometheus will unlock many questions and will touch on many aspects of life and existence. A true masterpiece.

Filming has already finished. I bet a trailer will be here soon. I did a YouTube search for one because the Wall Street Journal article I read hinted that there was one that got pulled by 20th Century Fox, but all I could find were fakes.

A story of gay love?

2011-11-07T02:15:00.000-07:00

I love this book and give it five stars out of five.

Okay...what to say about Alex's book because my mind is circling. If you read it casually through from beginning to end, there is nothing new here. A great pilot gets trained and blows up a huge military weapon at the end. But if you go one layer deeper (which I always do), this book is about unconsummated gay love between an older man who is all alone and a young, handsome man who has yet to find himself. Disclaimer: Alex has not said his protag is gay. But I totally think he is. If I made this into a movie, I would want Chris Colfer to play Byron. Chris plays Kurt on Glee. Here's a picture of him:

My vote for the
actor that plays Byron

First: Byron is completely closeted. In this society, men have telepathy and are constantly thrusting each other's minds into one another. Byron keeps his "shields" up most of the time but occasionally lets Bassa (the older man) penetrate him. It's really quite sexual and invasive.

Second: Bassa tells Byron that he can't tell people who he really is. He's afraid that if Byron "comes out of the closet" that other pilots may try to repeat his piloting maneuvers and would die because they just aren't as special as he is. But in the end, Byron has no choice but to "come out" and when he does and succeeds, he gets a standing ovation.

Third: This book is a complete "sausage hang". There are no women. But they aren't needed as this is a "gay" love story in a science-fiction setting.

Fourth: If you think I may be full of crap, then take a look at these sample quotes:

"Despite the vast number of partners and friends over the years, Bassa had never connected with any of them...Byron felt confused and betrayed...He didn't matter to Bassa at all..."

"He felt Bassa's grip on his arm tighten and the sound of movement reached his ears. Byron hesitated, afraid to open his eyes. Reaching deep for the courage, he lifted his head and met Bassa's gaze. Bassa squeezed Byron's arm and released his grasp, stretching his back as he leaned away. Byron moved his arm, stiff from resting in one position for so long."

"He struggled to swallow without losing any of the valuable liquid." <== ?????
Bassa chuckled. "It's probably stronger than you're used to," he offered as Byron gasped for air.
A little, Byron admitted.
"You'll sleep good, I promise." <==== mmmhmmm

These two are just sharing "Telepathy"
"He caught his breath as the liquid slid down his throat, its warmth causing him to wince. Byron coughed once, unaccustomed to a drink so robust. However, he could feel his muscles relax...He would indeed sleep well tonight."

"He'd protested their pairing at first, but now he was grateful for Bassa's presence. The man had taught him many things, most of which extended well beyond their time in the cockpit." <=== makes you wonder, doesn't it?

This book is pretty damn steamy and is full of homoerotic tension. It's extremely interesting and shows that Alex is really writing two stories here which makes him a great writer. What happens near the end is kind of heart-breaking.

If Alex ever consented to an interview, I would ask him for certain if Byron is a gay man. If he said no, then I truly would be surprised because then all of this would just be a coincidence with an "aww shucks...I just wanted to write a story about a pilot" and I honestly wouldn't be impressed by that at all. But as it stands now (without knowing that)...I'm awarding this book a perfect 5. :)