I am really happy. Seeds of Chaos 2 has moved from number 70 position this morning to number 14 this evening. My fans haven't abandoned me after all. Maybe I can reach number one again, like my first book 'The Xandra, Daughter of the Dark'. That would be nice. I just can't figure out why 'Dual Visions' isn't selling. There are two good stories in there.
The digest 'Midnight Raunch', which contains my story 'Orola, the Kiir' has moved into number 3 position at Fiction Wise.
Monday, August 13, 2007
A few uplifting words
I have this hanging over my desk. It helps smooth out those rough times we all go through sometimes.
Don’t quit now!
When things go wrong, as they sometimes will
When the road you are trudging seems all up hill
When the funds are low and debts are high
And you want to smile, but you must sigh
When care is pressing you down a bit
Rest if you must, but DON’T QUIT!
Life is queer with its twists and turns
As everyone of sometimes learns
And many a fellow turns about
When he might have won had he stuck it out
Don’t give up, though the pace seems slow
You may succeed with another blow
Success is failure turned inside out
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt
And you never can tell how close you are
It may be near when it seems afar
So stick to the fight when you are hardest hit
It’s when things seem worst
THAT YOU MUST NOT QUIT!
Don’t quit now!
When things go wrong, as they sometimes will
When the road you are trudging seems all up hill
When the funds are low and debts are high
And you want to smile, but you must sigh
When care is pressing you down a bit
Rest if you must, but DON’T QUIT!
Life is queer with its twists and turns
As everyone of sometimes learns
And many a fellow turns about
When he might have won had he stuck it out
Don’t give up, though the pace seems slow
You may succeed with another blow
Success is failure turned inside out
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt
And you never can tell how close you are
It may be near when it seems afar
So stick to the fight when you are hardest hit
It’s when things seem worst
THAT YOU MUST NOT QUIT!
Dual Visions and Seeds of Chaos, Book 2
Wow, I did get a few emails and I gave away free ebooks to four readers. That makes me happy. I also quite a few visitors to my blog.
On other news, Book 2 of 'Seeds of Chaos' Hell's Gate is finally available from Fiction Wise. If you want to find it, just go to http://www.fictionwise.com, and do a search for my name under 'Authors'. My file will come up with all of my books.
On other news, Book 2 of 'Seeds of Chaos' Hell's Gate is finally available from Fiction Wise. If you want to find it, just go to http://www.fictionwise.com, and do a search for my name under 'Authors'. My file will come up with all of my books.
Wednesday, August 08, 2007
About the free ebook
I am surprised. It seems nobody wants a free book. For the price of one book a reader could have two. ‘Dual Visions’, which is now available from Fictionwise, doesn’t seem to be selling at all, because it is still in the last position in sales. I don’t understand it. I think I’ve written two great stories. Cliffs of Time is in my opinion one of the best stories I’ve written. It has adventure, erotica. The story even makes you think a little. And Orion, the Hunt is also quite an adventure story. When I was still reading a lot, I would have been ecstatic to read a story like that. That is one of the reasons I started writing my own. I needed more of those stories. It seems to me, most people just want to read romance, like the Harlequin books. Formula writing, nothing new, ever. No adventure, just the same old thing. Two people hate each other, but in the end they come together and live happily ever after. Sorry, if this sounds like sour grapes (maybe it is a little), but I’m just a bit baffled.
I have an idea. Anyone reading my blog, send me an email to hegro@shaw.ca and I will send you a copy of ‘Dual Visions’ in the pdf format. Free. I will give away four to the first four people who respond. If you ask for it, I might even send you a free copy of Seeds of Chaos, Book One. The only thing I’ll ask, after reading it, send me a comment how you liked it. Maybe even post it (if it is positive, only, please), on one of the groups you belong to.
By the way, Book Two, Hell’s Gate should be available from Fictionwise sometime within the next two weeks. It is available now (still!) from http://www.midnightshowcase.com
So, come on, let’s hear from you.
Excerpt from ‘Orion, the Hunt’
Warning: Explicit sexual situation
He awoke, his defense-system ready to strike, when he sensed the presence of someone sliding into his tent. He lay quiet and carefully sent a weak searching tentacle towards the intruder’s mind. When he touched the artificial shield he smiled and relaxed, watching the slim shadow gliding up beside him.
“Don’t pretend you’re sleeping. I know you are awake,” she whispered into his ear. “I can see quite well in the dark.” Her cat’s eyes glowed softly above him.
Orion chuckled and reached for her. She was already easing out of her clothes and moments later boldly pulled down his pants. “You certainly are not shy,” he said and stroked the cat-woman’s round buttocks as she slid on top of him. Her body was covered with fine, incredibly silky fuzz. It sent waves of delicate pleasure through him from every spot where her naked skin touched his. Her warm breasts pressed into his chest, soft and warm.
She made a guttural sound deep in her throat, touched his erect penis, curled her fingers around it and eased herself onto it. “Ahh…” she moaned softly. “You are big all over. It feels good.”
He could feel the soft bushy mass of hair growing around her groin area as she moved against him and dug his fingers into her solid buttocks.
I have an idea. Anyone reading my blog, send me an email to hegro@shaw.ca and I will send you a copy of ‘Dual Visions’ in the pdf format. Free. I will give away four to the first four people who respond. If you ask for it, I might even send you a free copy of Seeds of Chaos, Book One. The only thing I’ll ask, after reading it, send me a comment how you liked it. Maybe even post it (if it is positive, only, please), on one of the groups you belong to.
By the way, Book Two, Hell’s Gate should be available from Fictionwise sometime within the next two weeks. It is available now (still!) from http://www.midnightshowcase.com
So, come on, let’s hear from you.
Excerpt from ‘Orion, the Hunt’
Warning: Explicit sexual situation
He awoke, his defense-system ready to strike, when he sensed the presence of someone sliding into his tent. He lay quiet and carefully sent a weak searching tentacle towards the intruder’s mind. When he touched the artificial shield he smiled and relaxed, watching the slim shadow gliding up beside him.
“Don’t pretend you’re sleeping. I know you are awake,” she whispered into his ear. “I can see quite well in the dark.” Her cat’s eyes glowed softly above him.
Orion chuckled and reached for her. She was already easing out of her clothes and moments later boldly pulled down his pants. “You certainly are not shy,” he said and stroked the cat-woman’s round buttocks as she slid on top of him. Her body was covered with fine, incredibly silky fuzz. It sent waves of delicate pleasure through him from every spot where her naked skin touched his. Her warm breasts pressed into his chest, soft and warm.
She made a guttural sound deep in her throat, touched his erect penis, curled her fingers around it and eased herself onto it. “Ahh…” she moaned softly. “You are big all over. It feels good.”
He could feel the soft bushy mass of hair growing around her groin area as she moved against him and dug his fingers into her solid buttocks.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Free eBook
Thanks for visiting my blog. Before you leave, stay a while and browse a little.
About the book I’m giving away, as I said, there is a catch. You’ll have to buy a copy of Dual Visions. It contains two novellas: Cliffs of Time and Orion, The Hunt.
As proof of purchase, you must send me the first line of Chapter sixteen from Orion, The Hunt. Send it to my email hegro@shaw.ca
The book I’m giving away will be Book One of ‘The Xandra’, Daughter of the Dark. If you already own that book, you can choose another one. Book Two of Seeds of Chaos will be exempt, since it is a new release.
Go to http://www.midnightshowcase.com to check out my other books. I also have a number of short stories in Sweet Challenge, (newly released), Sweet Revenge, Summer Heat 3, Holiday Voices, and Midnight Raunch.
Dual Visions (as well as my other books) are also available at http://www.fictionwise.com/eBooks/MidnightShowcaseeBooks.htm It is a new release with fiction wise, so you will find it at the end of the list. Scroll down the list for my other books or do a search by Author.
About the book I’m giving away, as I said, there is a catch. You’ll have to buy a copy of Dual Visions. It contains two novellas: Cliffs of Time and Orion, The Hunt.
As proof of purchase, you must send me the first line of Chapter sixteen from Orion, The Hunt. Send it to my email hegro@shaw.ca
The book I’m giving away will be Book One of ‘The Xandra’, Daughter of the Dark. If you already own that book, you can choose another one. Book Two of Seeds of Chaos will be exempt, since it is a new release.
Go to http://www.midnightshowcase.com to check out my other books. I also have a number of short stories in Sweet Challenge, (newly released), Sweet Revenge, Summer Heat 3, Holiday Voices, and Midnight Raunch.
Dual Visions (as well as my other books) are also available at http://www.fictionwise.com/eBooks/MidnightShowcaseeBooks.htm It is a new release with fiction wise, so you will find it at the end of the list. Scroll down the list for my other books or do a search by Author.
Monday, July 23, 2007
Dual Visions
Finally! Starting today my book Dual Visions is available from Fiction Wise. Right now it is at number 78 position. I'm anxious to see how fast it rises up in the numbers. It contains two novellas: Cliffs of Time and Orion, the Hunt. One is a time traveling story and the other one a space adventure. Both of them contain sexual situations. Book Two of Seeds of Chaos isn't available yet at Fiction Wise, but can, of course, be purchased at http://www.midnightshowcase.com/ Haven't done too much writing lately. Been busy in the yard, but this week is way too hot to work outside, but there are other things I need to do. Today it is supposed to go up to 36 degrees. Same for the next few days. Time seems to fly. I don't know where it is going. The older I get the less time I seem to have. Maybe I can get another chapter written in my novel 'Tarnished Valor'. I find writing a contemporary novel is much harder to do and more time consuming than SciFi or Fantasy. In that genre I can make up my worlds, the people, the societies, but in contemporary I have to do research. Much information can be found on the internet, but it takes time to sift through all the stuff that is out there. When I wrote Cliffs of Time (a time traveling Science Fiction story), I had to do some research. I never knew that Tyrannosaurus Rex didn't exist 100 million years ago. There were dinosaurs larger than T-Rex and equally ferocious. I never knew that. I know now and it was a lot of fun to study that, but as I said, it takes time. Right now I'm studying up on Iraq, because the background for my current novel is about the war. I find out lots of interesting things. I hope I don't get a visit one day from Homeland Security, the CIA, FBI, or the Canadian Secret Service because I spent so much time checking out Iraq. Wow, look what writing a murder mystery novel can do to a writer! I'm becoming as paranoid as my characters. It would make a good story, though.
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Update and short excerpt
I’m still waiting to have my book ‘Dual Visions’ and ‘Seeds of Chaos Book 2’ put up for sale at Fictionwise. Strange thing how sales are going there and what spawns them. I haven’t done any advertising on any of the sites, but my books are moving up and down. Take ‘Seeds of Chaos Book 1’. June 18 it was a the number 21 spot, then it moved way down to spot 74 by June 25, then up again to number 17 by July 4. Then it dropped to number 74 by July 9. Today I checked it and it is back up at number 17 again. Just one day later. Strange. And the same thing is happening to my Xandra trilogy.
I’m busy writing my book ‘Tainted Valor’ and have past the 50,000 word mark. Unfortunately, right now I have a lot of work outside in my yard, rejuvenating the flowerbeds and tending my garden, cutting the grass and whatever else pops up. With all the rain we’ve been having things grow. That means little time left for writing. It is rainy today, but I want to bottle some of my wine. Running out of full bottles. I have about 80 bottles of red wine to fill and cork. That should last for a while. I’ve got three more batches of white wine going, which should be ready for bottling in about three weeks.
I am fully retired now, but it seems I have less time than before.
A few years ago, when a friend of mine retired, I asked him what he was doing with all his free time. He just laughed and said, “What free time? I can’t figure out how I had ever time to work for a living with all the stuff I need to do at home.” At that time I couldn’t understand what the heck he was talking about. Now I know. I guess this is one of the ‘Secrets of the Universe’ I’ve stumbled upon. Somebody should try to find the answer to that one. LOL.
My short novella ‘Outpost Epsilon’ has been accepted by Midnight Showcase, for release as a stand alone novel in the Romps series in August 2008, but I haven’t signed the contract yet. Some ideas popped into my head about a story that takes place on ‘Epsilon’, an intriguing planet and world I created. I just wish I had more time to write, but I want to finish ‘Tarnished Valor’ before I start with another short story or novel. I’ve done it before with some of my other works. Seeds of Chaos took a long time to write, because I left it sitting to work on other stuff. It was probably a good thing, because that way I had more stories to publish, but now I’m getting anxious with Tainted Valor. It is hard to stay in a story when you leave it. When I write I pretty well have to live in the world of that story to keep things flowing (obviously, not literally, only in my mind. LOL.), but sometimes it is nice to start something new, just to get a different perspective.
I haven’t mentioned yet that ‘Midnight Raunch’ is available from http://www.midnightshowcase.com/ . My story ‘Orola, The Kiir’ is in that digest. Midnight Raunch pushes the envelope a bit more than the other digests. There is more erotica in those stories. Here is a short excerpt from it, a little edited, though. If you want to read all the juicy stuff you’ll have to buy the digest.
Excerpt:
Warning, sexual situation.
Her body seemed aflame, and staring into Garron’s wide-open eyes, she slipped into an altered state.
Her mind seemed befuddled and clear at the same time.
She was Orola, the girl, gasping for breath beneath Garron’s tirelessly moving body. She felt his hard muscular chest against her soft breasts, felt his flat belly touching hers.
She was Garron.
No…she was not Garron, only a simulacrum. A form It had assumed out of necessity. The real Garron lay nearby, giving life to another.
Life. It would have Life.
Exhilarated, it continued giving pleasure to the life form beneath it, continued feeding her life-giving fluid, which flowed freely from the orifice between her lower extremities, her flower, as she called it. It drank the nectar from her lips when they tasted each other.
But it did not just take. It gave back. It gave of its own fluid, which was laced with elements of healing, elements that gave endurance, vitality and youth.
Through the thoughts of the life form whose body it copied, it knew that coupling with a female was not only used for the continued existence of their species. They coupled also for the experience of pleasure.
And pleasure it gave, while taking pleasure in return.
It had no memories of a life before this. Only fragments of a life as a formless blob suspended in water.
Waiting.
Then it became aware of another life form close by. On the land.
It felt joy and ecstasy.
It would have Life.
It crawled on land.
One entity was close. No…there were two. Two minds, one body.
After the ecstasy came separation. One body became two.
One, the female, she called herself Orola, lay watching another body/two minds.
The other, the male, Garron, lay on his back, eyes closed.
Instinctively it knew what it must do.
It took Garron’s thoughts, his memories. It became Garron. Its gelatin body became solid and warm. It formed the feeding tube between its legs, shaped it into the likeness of a male organ.
Then, as Garron, it moved on top of the female Orola, pushed its feeding tube into her sex-organ from behind. It created strands of pleasure inside its new body and the moment the simulated organ entered Orola’s it experienced extreme pleasure.
So did Orola.
The fluid the creature exuded acted like an aphrodisiac to her. As she absorbed it into her body, she slipped into an immediate trance, totally under the creature’s control.
As it joined with Orola, it became aware of three others of its kind, shaping themselves into the likeness of the other three life forms.
It was jubilant.
It would not be alone.
Joyfully it moved its lower body with a steady rhythm, pushing its feeding tube deep into the female’s clutching orifice. The creature’s source of life.
Coupled with intense pleasure the creature released a spray of fluid into Orola’s womb. The seeds inside searched and found the ova, melded, fertilized. Then it sucked the life-givers back into its own body, where the growing process began.
Another life formed. A superior life form would emerge.
There would be no offspring in Orola’s womb, all she received was pleasure for now and vitality and health for a long time after.
A fair exchange.
Orola didn’t feel appalled by this. Sharing the creature’s thoughts and memories, she understood the need.
Her consciousness shifted back to her own body.
I’m busy writing my book ‘Tainted Valor’ and have past the 50,000 word mark. Unfortunately, right now I have a lot of work outside in my yard, rejuvenating the flowerbeds and tending my garden, cutting the grass and whatever else pops up. With all the rain we’ve been having things grow. That means little time left for writing. It is rainy today, but I want to bottle some of my wine. Running out of full bottles. I have about 80 bottles of red wine to fill and cork. That should last for a while. I’ve got three more batches of white wine going, which should be ready for bottling in about three weeks.
I am fully retired now, but it seems I have less time than before.
A few years ago, when a friend of mine retired, I asked him what he was doing with all his free time. He just laughed and said, “What free time? I can’t figure out how I had ever time to work for a living with all the stuff I need to do at home.” At that time I couldn’t understand what the heck he was talking about. Now I know. I guess this is one of the ‘Secrets of the Universe’ I’ve stumbled upon. Somebody should try to find the answer to that one. LOL.
My short novella ‘Outpost Epsilon’ has been accepted by Midnight Showcase, for release as a stand alone novel in the Romps series in August 2008, but I haven’t signed the contract yet. Some ideas popped into my head about a story that takes place on ‘Epsilon’, an intriguing planet and world I created. I just wish I had more time to write, but I want to finish ‘Tarnished Valor’ before I start with another short story or novel. I’ve done it before with some of my other works. Seeds of Chaos took a long time to write, because I left it sitting to work on other stuff. It was probably a good thing, because that way I had more stories to publish, but now I’m getting anxious with Tainted Valor. It is hard to stay in a story when you leave it. When I write I pretty well have to live in the world of that story to keep things flowing (obviously, not literally, only in my mind. LOL.), but sometimes it is nice to start something new, just to get a different perspective.
I haven’t mentioned yet that ‘Midnight Raunch’ is available from http://www.midnightshowcase.com/ . My story ‘Orola, The Kiir’ is in that digest. Midnight Raunch pushes the envelope a bit more than the other digests. There is more erotica in those stories. Here is a short excerpt from it, a little edited, though. If you want to read all the juicy stuff you’ll have to buy the digest.
Excerpt:
Warning, sexual situation.
Her body seemed aflame, and staring into Garron’s wide-open eyes, she slipped into an altered state.
Her mind seemed befuddled and clear at the same time.
She was Orola, the girl, gasping for breath beneath Garron’s tirelessly moving body. She felt his hard muscular chest against her soft breasts, felt his flat belly touching hers.
She was Garron.
No…she was not Garron, only a simulacrum. A form It had assumed out of necessity. The real Garron lay nearby, giving life to another.
Life. It would have Life.
Exhilarated, it continued giving pleasure to the life form beneath it, continued feeding her life-giving fluid, which flowed freely from the orifice between her lower extremities, her flower, as she called it. It drank the nectar from her lips when they tasted each other.
But it did not just take. It gave back. It gave of its own fluid, which was laced with elements of healing, elements that gave endurance, vitality and youth.
Through the thoughts of the life form whose body it copied, it knew that coupling with a female was not only used for the continued existence of their species. They coupled also for the experience of pleasure.
And pleasure it gave, while taking pleasure in return.
It had no memories of a life before this. Only fragments of a life as a formless blob suspended in water.
Waiting.
Then it became aware of another life form close by. On the land.
It felt joy and ecstasy.
It would have Life.
It crawled on land.
One entity was close. No…there were two. Two minds, one body.
After the ecstasy came separation. One body became two.
One, the female, she called herself Orola, lay watching another body/two minds.
The other, the male, Garron, lay on his back, eyes closed.
Instinctively it knew what it must do.
It took Garron’s thoughts, his memories. It became Garron. Its gelatin body became solid and warm. It formed the feeding tube between its legs, shaped it into the likeness of a male organ.
Then, as Garron, it moved on top of the female Orola, pushed its feeding tube into her sex-organ from behind. It created strands of pleasure inside its new body and the moment the simulated organ entered Orola’s it experienced extreme pleasure.
So did Orola.
The fluid the creature exuded acted like an aphrodisiac to her. As she absorbed it into her body, she slipped into an immediate trance, totally under the creature’s control.
As it joined with Orola, it became aware of three others of its kind, shaping themselves into the likeness of the other three life forms.
It was jubilant.
It would not be alone.
Joyfully it moved its lower body with a steady rhythm, pushing its feeding tube deep into the female’s clutching orifice. The creature’s source of life.
Coupled with intense pleasure the creature released a spray of fluid into Orola’s womb. The seeds inside searched and found the ova, melded, fertilized. Then it sucked the life-givers back into its own body, where the growing process began.
Another life formed. A superior life form would emerge.
There would be no offspring in Orola’s womb, all she received was pleasure for now and vitality and health for a long time after.
A fair exchange.
Orola didn’t feel appalled by this. Sharing the creature’s thoughts and memories, she understood the need.
Her consciousness shifted back to her own body.
Monday, June 25, 2007
June 25, 2007
After some absence from my blog, I figured it’s time to update it a bit. Dual Visions and Hell’s Gate are still not available from Fictionwise. You can only buy them at http://www.midnightshowcase.com/ , and I don’t know how sales are going there. I’m anxious to find out how both books are doing. The rest of my books (The Xandra trilogy and Book one of Seeds of Chaos ‘Eden’s Gate’ are moving up and down on the scale. I’m waiting for a couple of reviews of Hell’s Gate. If they are favorable, they will spawn a new flurry of buys (usually).
Still busy with ‘Tarnished Valor’. I’ve got over 40,000 words now and lots more to go. Haven’t had too much time lately to write. Work in the yard. Tore apart one flowerbed and replanted some shrubs. Good thing we finished. With all the rain we’ve been having, it is hard to get much done. And the grass is growing well, now we just need the sunshine so it can be cut. Last time I cut, it was June 15. I’ll have to bag it again and take the clippings to the dump. Without bagging, I can cut it in about two hours. With bagging, it sometimes takes three hours. Too bad I can’t listen to my MP3 player while I’m cutting. That damned lawn tractor is so loud you only hear parts of the music and it doesn’t sound good. Even wearing earmuffs doesn’t help. And I can’t think about the stories I write, because I need to concentrate on operating the tractor. What a bummer!
We’ve had pretty bad weather this weekend. Tornados and terrible thunderstorms with enough rain to last us for a while. Our yard is littered with branches from the willows. More work. And we always thought we were safe in Manitoba from tornados. They only happen south of the border. Yeah, right! The one on Thursday was a Stage 4 with winds over 400 km an hour. Apparently, over 1000 cottages were damaged in the Whiteshell and many trees uprooted and down. Many places still don’t have power because of the downed hydro poles. Wonderful planet we live on.
We had a garage sale on Saturday. Sold $33.00 worth of stuff. Not really worth the trouble. Parted with over 80 over my Hunting and Fishing magazines, got six bucks for them. It is tough to let go of books, especially if you’re a collector, but I figured I haven’t looked at them for years and probably never will again. They’ve been stored away in boxes on a shelf. This way somebody else can enjoy them.
Since I’ve been talking about ‘Tarnished Valor’, here is a short excerpt:
He walked past the cages, glanced at the glistening bodies of the nude dancing girls and the half-drunken men watching them.
They’d be screwing them on the tables if the law allowed it, Jeff thought.
When he arrived at the door with the Private sign on it, two burly guys barred his way.
“I guess you can’t read signs. This is a private room, buddy,” one growled. “Beat it!”
Jeff gave him a friendly smile. “I want to talk to your boss.”
“He’s busy. Besides, Mr. Galliano doesn’t talk to anyone without an appointment.”
“I’m making one. Right now.”
“You’ll have to talk to his secretary, but it’s her day off.”
“I don’t really need the secretary to make the appointment,” Jeff said, losing his patience.
“Then you won’t get in, stupid. Now, get the fuck outa here! I’m not telling you again.”
Jeff had been seizing up the guard, who outweighed his 235 pounds by at least thirty pounds. However, Jeff was solid muscles and in top shape, while the other one could have been a model for the Pillsbury Doughboy.
The second guard was a different story. He matched Jeff in height and physique. He had been silently watching, almost as if amused by the exchange between Jeff and his buddy.
Jeff decided to take him out first.
“You know, I don’t have the time to argue with you two clowns,” he said and, with a sudden movement, he kicked sideways, smashing his heel into the guard’s solar plexus to send him sprawling. Then he twisted around and with his fist, he hit the fat guy in the belly.
Unprepared for the attack his opponent let out a surprised grunt and folded forward. Jeff brought the edge of his right hand down, hitting the fat neck with great force.
The big man hit the ground like a sack of flour. Jeff stepped over him and opened the door.
There were two people in the room. A man and a woman. The woman sat on the desk, the top of her dress down to expose her breasts. Behind the desk, sat a short, fat and completely bald man. One of his hands covered the woman’s right breast.
The man looked up when Jeff walked in. “Who the hell are you?” he rasped. “And how did you get past my men?”
“They’ve decided to take a little nap.” Jeff grinned. “They must have been tired of their job. My name is Jeff Chartrand. Does the name Chartrand ring a bell?”
Galliano removed his hand from the woman’s breast. She slipped off the desk and pulled up her dress. “Leave us alone,” Galliano told her. “Tell Alfonso and Tony to move their asses in here.” Then he looked at Jeff out of black eyes hidden between folds of flesh. “What was your name again?”
“Don’t pretend you didn’t hear me the first time, Galliano,” Jeff said calmly, keeping an eye on the fat man’s right hand.
“It’s Mr. Galliano to you. Now…what the fuck is so important that you have to bust into my office unannounced?”
“It’s about my brother, Michael Chartrand. I believe you and he had business dealings.”
Still busy with ‘Tarnished Valor’. I’ve got over 40,000 words now and lots more to go. Haven’t had too much time lately to write. Work in the yard. Tore apart one flowerbed and replanted some shrubs. Good thing we finished. With all the rain we’ve been having, it is hard to get much done. And the grass is growing well, now we just need the sunshine so it can be cut. Last time I cut, it was June 15. I’ll have to bag it again and take the clippings to the dump. Without bagging, I can cut it in about two hours. With bagging, it sometimes takes three hours. Too bad I can’t listen to my MP3 player while I’m cutting. That damned lawn tractor is so loud you only hear parts of the music and it doesn’t sound good. Even wearing earmuffs doesn’t help. And I can’t think about the stories I write, because I need to concentrate on operating the tractor. What a bummer!
We’ve had pretty bad weather this weekend. Tornados and terrible thunderstorms with enough rain to last us for a while. Our yard is littered with branches from the willows. More work. And we always thought we were safe in Manitoba from tornados. They only happen south of the border. Yeah, right! The one on Thursday was a Stage 4 with winds over 400 km an hour. Apparently, over 1000 cottages were damaged in the Whiteshell and many trees uprooted and down. Many places still don’t have power because of the downed hydro poles. Wonderful planet we live on.
We had a garage sale on Saturday. Sold $33.00 worth of stuff. Not really worth the trouble. Parted with over 80 over my Hunting and Fishing magazines, got six bucks for them. It is tough to let go of books, especially if you’re a collector, but I figured I haven’t looked at them for years and probably never will again. They’ve been stored away in boxes on a shelf. This way somebody else can enjoy them.
Since I’ve been talking about ‘Tarnished Valor’, here is a short excerpt:
He walked past the cages, glanced at the glistening bodies of the nude dancing girls and the half-drunken men watching them.
They’d be screwing them on the tables if the law allowed it, Jeff thought.
When he arrived at the door with the Private sign on it, two burly guys barred his way.
“I guess you can’t read signs. This is a private room, buddy,” one growled. “Beat it!”
Jeff gave him a friendly smile. “I want to talk to your boss.”
“He’s busy. Besides, Mr. Galliano doesn’t talk to anyone without an appointment.”
“I’m making one. Right now.”
“You’ll have to talk to his secretary, but it’s her day off.”
“I don’t really need the secretary to make the appointment,” Jeff said, losing his patience.
“Then you won’t get in, stupid. Now, get the fuck outa here! I’m not telling you again.”
Jeff had been seizing up the guard, who outweighed his 235 pounds by at least thirty pounds. However, Jeff was solid muscles and in top shape, while the other one could have been a model for the Pillsbury Doughboy.
The second guard was a different story. He matched Jeff in height and physique. He had been silently watching, almost as if amused by the exchange between Jeff and his buddy.
Jeff decided to take him out first.
“You know, I don’t have the time to argue with you two clowns,” he said and, with a sudden movement, he kicked sideways, smashing his heel into the guard’s solar plexus to send him sprawling. Then he twisted around and with his fist, he hit the fat guy in the belly.
Unprepared for the attack his opponent let out a surprised grunt and folded forward. Jeff brought the edge of his right hand down, hitting the fat neck with great force.
The big man hit the ground like a sack of flour. Jeff stepped over him and opened the door.
There were two people in the room. A man and a woman. The woman sat on the desk, the top of her dress down to expose her breasts. Behind the desk, sat a short, fat and completely bald man. One of his hands covered the woman’s right breast.
The man looked up when Jeff walked in. “Who the hell are you?” he rasped. “And how did you get past my men?”
“They’ve decided to take a little nap.” Jeff grinned. “They must have been tired of their job. My name is Jeff Chartrand. Does the name Chartrand ring a bell?”
Galliano removed his hand from the woman’s breast. She slipped off the desk and pulled up her dress. “Leave us alone,” Galliano told her. “Tell Alfonso and Tony to move their asses in here.” Then he looked at Jeff out of black eyes hidden between folds of flesh. “What was your name again?”
“Don’t pretend you didn’t hear me the first time, Galliano,” Jeff said calmly, keeping an eye on the fat man’s right hand.
“It’s Mr. Galliano to you. Now…what the fuck is so important that you have to bust into my office unannounced?”
“It’s about my brother, Michael Chartrand. I believe you and he had business dealings.”
Monday, June 04, 2007
Book Two, Seeds of Chaos
Finally. Seeds of Chaos, Hell's Gate is available from Midnight Showcase. The cover looks good. I also signed the contract for my short novella 'Time Flares'. It won't be released until June 2008. A long time to wait for it, but what the heck. It will be part of a special digest featuring Science Fiction stories by different Authors. There'll be other stuff to look forward to, like 'Mark of the Cobra' in September 2007, Book One of 'The Stardogs' in October and Book Two of 'The Stardogs' in January 2008. Also, my short story 'Orola--The Kiir' will appear in the Launch the Raunch digest to be released in the next few days. I haven't heard back yet about my last novella 'Outpost Epsilon'. In the meantime I'm back writing my book 'Tarnished Valor'. I've got over 30,000 words now. A long way to go until it is finished. I'm aiming for about 150,000 words.
Check out my latest release at http://www.midnightshowcase.com/
I'd like to post more, but I'm very tired today. Tilled my garden and started planting some stuff. Got all my tomatoes (12) and peppers (36) planted. Tomorrow I'll be doing the seeding of Beans, Carrots, Red Beets, Lettuce, Swiss Chard, Spinach. I'll also put in some Onions. Red ones and the giant Spanish Onions. Love Onions.
And Parsley. Don't have to worry about the Dill-weed. Like the name says, it's a weed. I's been sprouting like crazy all over the garden already. I had to till it under, but it will be back. It always does.
Hopefully it won't rain for a few days now. I'm over a week behind because of the constant rain, but I' ll get it done by tomorrow. Then it's cutting the grass. It's also growing like crazy because I put on fertilizer. What was I thinking?
Check out my latest release at http://www.midnightshowcase.com/
I'd like to post more, but I'm very tired today. Tilled my garden and started planting some stuff. Got all my tomatoes (12) and peppers (36) planted. Tomorrow I'll be doing the seeding of Beans, Carrots, Red Beets, Lettuce, Swiss Chard, Spinach. I'll also put in some Onions. Red ones and the giant Spanish Onions. Love Onions.
And Parsley. Don't have to worry about the Dill-weed. Like the name says, it's a weed. I's been sprouting like crazy all over the garden already. I had to till it under, but it will be back. It always does.
Hopefully it won't rain for a few days now. I'm over a week behind because of the constant rain, but I' ll get it done by tomorrow. Then it's cutting the grass. It's also growing like crazy because I put on fertilizer. What was I thinking?
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Outpost Epsilon
I finally finished my novella 'Outpost Epsilon'. It turned out to be 24,000 words long. I edited it and sent it in today to Midnight Showcase.
My other releases, Book 2 of Seeds of Chaos and the short story 'Orola, the Kiir' in Midnight Raunch has not been released yet, because the editors of Midnight Showcase live in an area of the States where they have bad weather right now and so working on computers proved to be a little difficult. But the books will be available within a couple of days, I'm sure.
Here is the first chapter from 'Outpost Epsilon'.
Chapter One
Terrex Stonewall shouldered his huge duffle bag, which held his meager possessions, and stepped from the shuttle onto the alien soil. Taking a deep breath, he inhaled the hot, humid air, registering unfamiliar scents and finding them not as unpleasant as he’d been told.
The door of the shuttle irised shut behind him, cutting off his way back should he change his mind about this new assignment, and he moved further away as the small shuttle lifted into the air.
He watched it rise, and then disappear into the low hanging clouds.
Although he had been briefed, it still came as a surprise to see the giant mushrooms surrounding him. He walked slowly across the cleared area towards the enormous bubble that would be his home for the next year.
He knew what to expect.
Life on an outpost was not a holiday. Neither did it mean hardship, not usually. His job, as a scout for the Solar Union, would be to keep watch over this area of space and report any intrusion into the system.
They did not tell him why this particular outpost was so important. Epsilon happened to be the fourth planet in a solar system at the edge of controlled human space. There wasn’t much here, as far as Stonewall knew. Nothing anyone would want, unless you liked mushrooms.
The shrill cry of an animal hastened his steps towards the dome. Before he reached it, an opening appeared in the smooth surface of the bubble and a man in the drab brown uniform of the Union stepped out.
“No canvassing allowed.” The man burst out laughing when he saw Stonewall’s perplexed expression. Holding out a hand, he said, “You must be Terrex Stonewall. I am William Peters. Welcome to Hell.”
“Hell?” Stonewall said, then nodded and grinned, suddenly aware of the wet fabric of his uniform clinging to his perspiring body. “It is damned hot.”
“Come inside.” The other man stepped back into the dome.
Stonewall followed him and stood silent for a moment, breathing in the cool air. Behind him, the door closed with a barely audible whoosh.
From the outside, the surface of the dome looked opaque, but standing inside, he could see the sky above and the forest of mushrooms as clearly as if the shell didn’t exist.
“Pretty clever,” he commented.
“It is. Don’t ask me how it’s done. I’m not a scientist. Something about bending the light waves.”
“You even have a garden,” Stonewall observed.
“That and more. Makes living on this hell-hole almost bearable.” Peters pointed to a squat building. “Those are our sleeping quarters. The kitchen and mess hall are over there. That ugly structure behind the kitchen houses the observation screens, computers, and detection systems. Below it, underground, is the power grid. We call that building the Power-building.” He grinned. “Very original, don’t you agree? You’ll be spending most of your time in there.”
Stonewall saw a couple of figures moving around in the garden. Peters noticed his interest. “Don’t worry,” he said, laughing. “You won’t have to work in the garden. Those are work-drones. Robots.”
Stonewall grinned. “You had me worried there for a moment. I’m not a farmer.”
“Speaking of farmers,” Peters said, “there is the Chief right now. His name is…”
“Derrol Farmer. I know,” Stonewall said and smiled.
The tall man who came walking towards them, looked gaunt, like someone who hadn’t slept or eaten for days. “So, you’re the new guy,” he said with a grating voice and gave Stonewall a tight smile.
“The name’s Terrex Stonewall, sir.”
“I’m aware of that. Call me Chief. We are not that formal around here.” Farmer pointed at Stonewall’s duffel bag. “What did you bring with you? I hope all that stuff fits into your locker.” He stared at Peters. “Show him his bunk and introduce him to the others.”
Peters tipped his non-existent helmet in a sloppy salute. “Will do, Chief.”
Farmer turned and walked away.
“Is he always in this cheerful mood?” Stonewall asked when he was out of earshot.
Peters chuckled. “Not always. Today is one of his better days.” He punched Stonewall on the arm. “Come, I’ll show you to your executive suite.”
He took Stonewall to the dormitory and showed him his bunk. “Here we are. Your lavish quarters for the next year.” He grinned. “Just throw your stuff on the bed. You can stow it away later. It’s almost noon, but before we go for lunch, I want you to see your new workplace.”
My other releases, Book 2 of Seeds of Chaos and the short story 'Orola, the Kiir' in Midnight Raunch has not been released yet, because the editors of Midnight Showcase live in an area of the States where they have bad weather right now and so working on computers proved to be a little difficult. But the books will be available within a couple of days, I'm sure.
Here is the first chapter from 'Outpost Epsilon'.
Chapter One
Terrex Stonewall shouldered his huge duffle bag, which held his meager possessions, and stepped from the shuttle onto the alien soil. Taking a deep breath, he inhaled the hot, humid air, registering unfamiliar scents and finding them not as unpleasant as he’d been told.
The door of the shuttle irised shut behind him, cutting off his way back should he change his mind about this new assignment, and he moved further away as the small shuttle lifted into the air.
He watched it rise, and then disappear into the low hanging clouds.
Although he had been briefed, it still came as a surprise to see the giant mushrooms surrounding him. He walked slowly across the cleared area towards the enormous bubble that would be his home for the next year.
He knew what to expect.
Life on an outpost was not a holiday. Neither did it mean hardship, not usually. His job, as a scout for the Solar Union, would be to keep watch over this area of space and report any intrusion into the system.
They did not tell him why this particular outpost was so important. Epsilon happened to be the fourth planet in a solar system at the edge of controlled human space. There wasn’t much here, as far as Stonewall knew. Nothing anyone would want, unless you liked mushrooms.
The shrill cry of an animal hastened his steps towards the dome. Before he reached it, an opening appeared in the smooth surface of the bubble and a man in the drab brown uniform of the Union stepped out.
“No canvassing allowed.” The man burst out laughing when he saw Stonewall’s perplexed expression. Holding out a hand, he said, “You must be Terrex Stonewall. I am William Peters. Welcome to Hell.”
“Hell?” Stonewall said, then nodded and grinned, suddenly aware of the wet fabric of his uniform clinging to his perspiring body. “It is damned hot.”
“Come inside.” The other man stepped back into the dome.
Stonewall followed him and stood silent for a moment, breathing in the cool air. Behind him, the door closed with a barely audible whoosh.
From the outside, the surface of the dome looked opaque, but standing inside, he could see the sky above and the forest of mushrooms as clearly as if the shell didn’t exist.
“Pretty clever,” he commented.
“It is. Don’t ask me how it’s done. I’m not a scientist. Something about bending the light waves.”
“You even have a garden,” Stonewall observed.
“That and more. Makes living on this hell-hole almost bearable.” Peters pointed to a squat building. “Those are our sleeping quarters. The kitchen and mess hall are over there. That ugly structure behind the kitchen houses the observation screens, computers, and detection systems. Below it, underground, is the power grid. We call that building the Power-building.” He grinned. “Very original, don’t you agree? You’ll be spending most of your time in there.”
Stonewall saw a couple of figures moving around in the garden. Peters noticed his interest. “Don’t worry,” he said, laughing. “You won’t have to work in the garden. Those are work-drones. Robots.”
Stonewall grinned. “You had me worried there for a moment. I’m not a farmer.”
“Speaking of farmers,” Peters said, “there is the Chief right now. His name is…”
“Derrol Farmer. I know,” Stonewall said and smiled.
The tall man who came walking towards them, looked gaunt, like someone who hadn’t slept or eaten for days. “So, you’re the new guy,” he said with a grating voice and gave Stonewall a tight smile.
“The name’s Terrex Stonewall, sir.”
“I’m aware of that. Call me Chief. We are not that formal around here.” Farmer pointed at Stonewall’s duffel bag. “What did you bring with you? I hope all that stuff fits into your locker.” He stared at Peters. “Show him his bunk and introduce him to the others.”
Peters tipped his non-existent helmet in a sloppy salute. “Will do, Chief.”
Farmer turned and walked away.
“Is he always in this cheerful mood?” Stonewall asked when he was out of earshot.
Peters chuckled. “Not always. Today is one of his better days.” He punched Stonewall on the arm. “Come, I’ll show you to your executive suite.”
He took Stonewall to the dormitory and showed him his bunk. “Here we are. Your lavish quarters for the next year.” He grinned. “Just throw your stuff on the bed. You can stow it away later. It’s almost noon, but before we go for lunch, I want you to see your new workplace.”
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Tapestry of Dreams
Just signed the contracts today with Midnight Showcase. My Anthology 'Tapestry of Dreams' is scheduled to be published April 2008. That's a long time to wait, almost a year, but that is publishing. My short story 'A Taste of Paradise' will appear in the Men of Eros Digest. Is is a digest written entirely by the male authors with Midnight Showcase.
However, while waiting, there are other works of mine coming out. 'Seeds of Chaos, Book Two, Hell's Gate, is coming out any day now and so is the short story 'Orola, The Kiir' in the Midnight Raunch digest. As already mentioned elswhere September will see my contemporay novel 'Mark of the Cobra', October Book One of 'The Stardogs'. So there is lots of stuff happening.
I haven't heard back about my short novel 'Time Flares'. I'm almost finished with my new shortl novel 'Outpost Epsilon'. I've written nearly 20,000 words now (So much for wanting to write another short story!). There's probably at least 2,000 words to write, maybe more, to bring it to its conclusion. We'll see. Unfortunately, my book 'Tarnished Valour' still sits at 25,000 words. I've written outlines of a few chapter, but just can't seem to get back to it. Something else always seems to cry for more attention, but one of these days.
Been busy with the yard. Just spread some fertilizer on the grass and herbicide on the dandilions. I know, they are beautiful yellow flowers, but not in my yard! My neighbors have enough of them. One just moved into his new house and the other one doesn't believe in spraying. He's probably right. It certainly isn't good for our water supply. Some day we'll just have to let the dandilions take over.
However, while waiting, there are other works of mine coming out. 'Seeds of Chaos, Book Two, Hell's Gate, is coming out any day now and so is the short story 'Orola, The Kiir' in the Midnight Raunch digest. As already mentioned elswhere September will see my contemporay novel 'Mark of the Cobra', October Book One of 'The Stardogs'. So there is lots of stuff happening.
I haven't heard back about my short novel 'Time Flares'. I'm almost finished with my new shortl novel 'Outpost Epsilon'. I've written nearly 20,000 words now (So much for wanting to write another short story!). There's probably at least 2,000 words to write, maybe more, to bring it to its conclusion. We'll see. Unfortunately, my book 'Tarnished Valour' still sits at 25,000 words. I've written outlines of a few chapter, but just can't seem to get back to it. Something else always seems to cry for more attention, but one of these days.
Been busy with the yard. Just spread some fertilizer on the grass and herbicide on the dandilions. I know, they are beautiful yellow flowers, but not in my yard! My neighbors have enough of them. One just moved into his new house and the other one doesn't believe in spraying. He's probably right. It certainly isn't good for our water supply. Some day we'll just have to let the dandilions take over.
Friday, May 11, 2007
Musings
This epublishing is a strange business. I am excited to be able to publish my stories and my books, but that's all it is. I have to admit though, I am a little disappointed. I may have had foolish notions about making some money. It is nice to be published, but some reward would also be nice. It's not happening and sometimes I wonder why I carry on. There are so many other things I'd like to do. In my younger days I used to spend most of my time either reading or drawing and I was not bad at drawing. Had I kept it up I could have made a career out of it. These days I don't draw, and I read very little. There are just not enough hours in a day to do everything. When I have time, I write. Sometimes even if I don't have time, and other things get neglected. As I said before, writing is in my blood. Stories must be told. And if a few people read them and get enjoyment out of it, then my dream is coming true. After all, what sense is it to create something and there is nobody to appreciate it?
A few days ago I received an email from Midnight Showcase that they want to publish my Anthology 'Tapestry of Dreams'. Sometime next year. I haven't heard back about the shorter novella 'Time Flares'.
I've written about 10,000 words to date on my new story 'Outpost Epsilon'. I've had it all planned inside my head, but now I'm not quite sure where exactly it will end. New ideas are popping up while I'm writing. That usually happens to me. That's why I don't get too caught up with my outlines. I know they will change. Most of the time the stories turn out longer than planned.
My story 'Orola, the Kiir' will be coming out soon from Midnight Showcase in the digest Midnight Raunch. It pushes the envelope a bit more than usual, that means more Erotica, but that's what that line demands. Hopefully, I'll have more stories published in that line. I've written a few stories featuring Orola, the Warrior Priestess. They are more 'raunchy', some of them may have to be re-written.
Here is the first chapter from 'Orola, the Kiir':
They sat unmoving among the branches of a giant Scrip-tree, the foliage hiding them from anyone looking up. There were five of them. Scruffy looking men with stoic brutal faces. Only their black eyes seemed alive as they watched the river below.
The object of their attention stood looking at the briskly flowing water.
A naked young woman. She had arrived some time earlier. After tethering her steed, she shed her rather skimpy clothing, consisting only of a short kilt, a strip of cloth to cover her pubic area and a pair of metal breast cups, hardly large enough to cover much of her ample breasts.
Testing the water with one foot, she seemed to hesitate, but then with a shrug, she dove into the water, her naked body glistening white in the midday sun.
She hit the water and one of the watchers grunted. His lips parted to reveal brown, rotten teeth. The others nodded and silently they began to move through the branches.
Climbing down on the hidden side of the thick tree trunk, they reached the soft forest floor and, without making a sound, two of them moved towards the girl’s steed. One took her clothing and the other one tried to untie the animal.
When the black coated beast snorted, the girl looked towards the commotion and called out sharply. Then she began swimming towards shore.
Letting go of the beast’s rope, the man looked at her and grinned. His companion had already disappeared.
She climbed ashore and looked at the spot where she left her clothing and her sword, realizing they were gone. “What do you want?” she demanded.
The man grinned, his eyes raking her naked form. They rested momentarily on the thick black triangle below her smooth flat belly, then moved up to her round, large breasts, his attention suddenly on the red glowing object nestled in the deep cleft between them.
“Well?” she said, staring defiantly at him.
“I want you,” he said, his voice thickly accented and his words slurred.
The girl laughed, shaking her long black hair. “You want me?” she taunted. “You and how many other men?”
Still grinning, he said, “Four.”
Hearing the breaking of a twig behind her, she turned and looked at the two men approaching her. She stepped to the side and watched them coming closer, her body suddenly falling into a fighting stance.
Noticing her position, the two men slowed, but didn’t stop. “Don’t try to fight us,” one of them said. “We are five…you are just one helpless girl.”
She took one step backwards. The jewel between her breasts pulsed with a steady rhythm. “I may be just a girl, but I’m not helpless.” She whirled with a sudden movement, her knee came up and rammed into the belly of the man who tried to sneak up on her. He howled and dropped to the ground, his hands clutching his belly.
The other two rushed her and tried to grab her arms. She hit one of them in the face with her right fist, while the ball of her foot smashed into the chest of the other one. Rolling away from them, she came up, but collapsed, as a thrown club hit the side of her head.
A few days ago I received an email from Midnight Showcase that they want to publish my Anthology 'Tapestry of Dreams'. Sometime next year. I haven't heard back about the shorter novella 'Time Flares'.
I've written about 10,000 words to date on my new story 'Outpost Epsilon'. I've had it all planned inside my head, but now I'm not quite sure where exactly it will end. New ideas are popping up while I'm writing. That usually happens to me. That's why I don't get too caught up with my outlines. I know they will change. Most of the time the stories turn out longer than planned.
My story 'Orola, the Kiir' will be coming out soon from Midnight Showcase in the digest Midnight Raunch. It pushes the envelope a bit more than usual, that means more Erotica, but that's what that line demands. Hopefully, I'll have more stories published in that line. I've written a few stories featuring Orola, the Warrior Priestess. They are more 'raunchy', some of them may have to be re-written.
Here is the first chapter from 'Orola, the Kiir':
They sat unmoving among the branches of a giant Scrip-tree, the foliage hiding them from anyone looking up. There were five of them. Scruffy looking men with stoic brutal faces. Only their black eyes seemed alive as they watched the river below.
The object of their attention stood looking at the briskly flowing water.
A naked young woman. She had arrived some time earlier. After tethering her steed, she shed her rather skimpy clothing, consisting only of a short kilt, a strip of cloth to cover her pubic area and a pair of metal breast cups, hardly large enough to cover much of her ample breasts.
Testing the water with one foot, she seemed to hesitate, but then with a shrug, she dove into the water, her naked body glistening white in the midday sun.
She hit the water and one of the watchers grunted. His lips parted to reveal brown, rotten teeth. The others nodded and silently they began to move through the branches.
Climbing down on the hidden side of the thick tree trunk, they reached the soft forest floor and, without making a sound, two of them moved towards the girl’s steed. One took her clothing and the other one tried to untie the animal.
When the black coated beast snorted, the girl looked towards the commotion and called out sharply. Then she began swimming towards shore.
Letting go of the beast’s rope, the man looked at her and grinned. His companion had already disappeared.
She climbed ashore and looked at the spot where she left her clothing and her sword, realizing they were gone. “What do you want?” she demanded.
The man grinned, his eyes raking her naked form. They rested momentarily on the thick black triangle below her smooth flat belly, then moved up to her round, large breasts, his attention suddenly on the red glowing object nestled in the deep cleft between them.
“Well?” she said, staring defiantly at him.
“I want you,” he said, his voice thickly accented and his words slurred.
The girl laughed, shaking her long black hair. “You want me?” she taunted. “You and how many other men?”
Still grinning, he said, “Four.”
Hearing the breaking of a twig behind her, she turned and looked at the two men approaching her. She stepped to the side and watched them coming closer, her body suddenly falling into a fighting stance.
Noticing her position, the two men slowed, but didn’t stop. “Don’t try to fight us,” one of them said. “We are five…you are just one helpless girl.”
She took one step backwards. The jewel between her breasts pulsed with a steady rhythm. “I may be just a girl, but I’m not helpless.” She whirled with a sudden movement, her knee came up and rammed into the belly of the man who tried to sneak up on her. He howled and dropped to the ground, his hands clutching his belly.
The other two rushed her and tried to grab her arms. She hit one of them in the face with her right fist, while the ball of her foot smashed into the chest of the other one. Rolling away from them, she came up, but collapsed, as a thrown club hit the side of her head.
Sunday, May 06, 2007
Sales and other stuff
Just checked fictionwise again and found Seeds of Chaos Book One on number seven place after moving up and down. Also the Xandra series is still selling nicely. Book 3, Goddess of Life, is at number 17 position, Book 1, Daughter of the Dark, at number 25, and Book 2, Mother of Light, at number 55 (not so good, but it is still around). Dual Visions, which is available from Midnightshowcase, is not selling yet at fictionwise, so I don't know how the sales are going.
Hopefully, Book two of Seeds of Chaos will spawn more sales in all of my other books. But it is not all about sales, there isn't much money in epublishing. I'm just happy to see that there are readers out there who seem to like what I write. Just being published is already a dream come true for me. Maybe some day someone will discover my books and make them available to a greater circle of readers. Until that day comes I'll keep on writing. After all, that is what a writer does. It's in the blood, you can't fight it. Ask me not to write anymore, then ask me to stop breathing. It's the same thing. Something hard to explain to someone who doesn't write. My head is filled with ideas and stories that need to be put on paper. Just when I think now it is time to take a break, something else pops up. Some Character wants to have his or her story told. Sadly, there isn't always enough time, there are other things that need to be done.
Right now I'm busy writing a story that takes place on a planet that hasn't been explored yet by humans. There might be some vampires in it, I'm not certain. I haven't come to that part in the story. It is titled: Outpost Epsilon. I've also started writing (actually re-writing) another story featuring Orion. So far the titel is: Bakker's Planet.
Here is an expert from Orion - The Hunt, the second story in Dual Visions.
Izzard-Junction was an unexplored planet. Larger then Earth, with a diameter of about 16,000 km, it should have had a higher gravity, but because of its lower density the gravity was still around Earth-norm. Most of its surface was covered by land, with only one large ocean. Much of the land area consisted of deep, impenetrable jungle, broken up by huge lakes and millions of smaller lakes and rivers.
There were natives, lizard-like beings, but they shunned the aliens from outer space. Not much was known about them, except that they were primitive and savage
Nobody had claimed this planet, because it didn’t have anything to offer that could not be found on other, more hospitable, planets. A few colonists had settled in the more temperate zones, some left again after years of struggling against the hostile elements, but some had stayed.
The spaceport, also called Izzard-Junction, had grown into a city of about 130,000 inhabitants, with a few smaller settlements in the surrounding areas.
There was another large settlement of about 40,000 inhabitants in the Northern Hemisphere, by the ocean. They called it Makkuo-Tsei, which means The Eye of God. Most of its inhabitants settled there after fleeing from a planet in the Bellatrix System, where they had been prosecuted for their religious beliefs.
Their main food supply came from the ocean, which held many varieties of aquatic life forms, some of them so huge and gigantic that they were a menace to the fishing vessels.
Makkuo-Tsei’s contact with the rest of Izzard-Junction was very limited.
Only because of its location near the center of the Neutral-Zone Izzard-Junction had been settled at all.
Since it had no central government, with practically no law, it naturally attracted all kinds of travelers. It became a popular meeting place for criminal elements as well as agents from many stellar worlds, humans and non-humans.
Billions of giant reptiles inhabited the jungles, and many adventure seekers came here for The Hunt, which the locals promoted. The most popular quarry was the elephant-dragon, a large reptile with a head like a Terran elephant. The long tasks were of an ivory like substance and used for carvings, but the most valuable part was the single horn on the forehead of the bulls. Its crystalline structure made it a highly prized commodity on the human worlds for making jewelry. Since diamonds and gold could be manufactured artificially and had been found in vast quantities on hundreds of planets, they had lost their value and attraction.
Elephant-dragons were huge, vicious, and possessed ferocity unequalled by any animal the Humans had ever encountered. Hunting them was a treacherous undertaking, and many fortune hunters had lost their lives. They lived in the swamps and were not easy to track, but once aroused they attacked without warning. Their size and fantastic speed made them extremely dangerous, but only added to the attraction searched for by thrill-seeking hunters.
After searching the Terran government’s computer database, Orion found little information about Izzard-Junction and the Hunt, but what little he did find gave him at least enough to be somewhat informed.
Hopefully, Book two of Seeds of Chaos will spawn more sales in all of my other books. But it is not all about sales, there isn't much money in epublishing. I'm just happy to see that there are readers out there who seem to like what I write. Just being published is already a dream come true for me. Maybe some day someone will discover my books and make them available to a greater circle of readers. Until that day comes I'll keep on writing. After all, that is what a writer does. It's in the blood, you can't fight it. Ask me not to write anymore, then ask me to stop breathing. It's the same thing. Something hard to explain to someone who doesn't write. My head is filled with ideas and stories that need to be put on paper. Just when I think now it is time to take a break, something else pops up. Some Character wants to have his or her story told. Sadly, there isn't always enough time, there are other things that need to be done.
Right now I'm busy writing a story that takes place on a planet that hasn't been explored yet by humans. There might be some vampires in it, I'm not certain. I haven't come to that part in the story. It is titled: Outpost Epsilon. I've also started writing (actually re-writing) another story featuring Orion. So far the titel is: Bakker's Planet.
Here is an expert from Orion - The Hunt, the second story in Dual Visions.
Izzard-Junction was an unexplored planet. Larger then Earth, with a diameter of about 16,000 km, it should have had a higher gravity, but because of its lower density the gravity was still around Earth-norm. Most of its surface was covered by land, with only one large ocean. Much of the land area consisted of deep, impenetrable jungle, broken up by huge lakes and millions of smaller lakes and rivers.
There were natives, lizard-like beings, but they shunned the aliens from outer space. Not much was known about them, except that they were primitive and savage
Nobody had claimed this planet, because it didn’t have anything to offer that could not be found on other, more hospitable, planets. A few colonists had settled in the more temperate zones, some left again after years of struggling against the hostile elements, but some had stayed.
The spaceport, also called Izzard-Junction, had grown into a city of about 130,000 inhabitants, with a few smaller settlements in the surrounding areas.
There was another large settlement of about 40,000 inhabitants in the Northern Hemisphere, by the ocean. They called it Makkuo-Tsei, which means The Eye of God. Most of its inhabitants settled there after fleeing from a planet in the Bellatrix System, where they had been prosecuted for their religious beliefs.
Their main food supply came from the ocean, which held many varieties of aquatic life forms, some of them so huge and gigantic that they were a menace to the fishing vessels.
Makkuo-Tsei’s contact with the rest of Izzard-Junction was very limited.
Only because of its location near the center of the Neutral-Zone Izzard-Junction had been settled at all.
Since it had no central government, with practically no law, it naturally attracted all kinds of travelers. It became a popular meeting place for criminal elements as well as agents from many stellar worlds, humans and non-humans.
Billions of giant reptiles inhabited the jungles, and many adventure seekers came here for The Hunt, which the locals promoted. The most popular quarry was the elephant-dragon, a large reptile with a head like a Terran elephant. The long tasks were of an ivory like substance and used for carvings, but the most valuable part was the single horn on the forehead of the bulls. Its crystalline structure made it a highly prized commodity on the human worlds for making jewelry. Since diamonds and gold could be manufactured artificially and had been found in vast quantities on hundreds of planets, they had lost their value and attraction.
Elephant-dragons were huge, vicious, and possessed ferocity unequalled by any animal the Humans had ever encountered. Hunting them was a treacherous undertaking, and many fortune hunters had lost their lives. They lived in the swamps and were not easy to track, but once aroused they attacked without warning. Their size and fantastic speed made them extremely dangerous, but only added to the attraction searched for by thrill-seeking hunters.
After searching the Terran government’s computer database, Orion found little information about Izzard-Junction and the Hunt, but what little he did find gave him at least enough to be somewhat informed.
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Seeds of Chaos, Eden's Gate
Wow, what a surprise! I just checked fictionwise and found Book One of Seeds of Chaos in fourth place. Book Two, Hell's Gate, is scheduled to be released within the next couple of weeks. That should spurn sales of Book One even more. We'll see.
Monday, April 23, 2007
New release
Hurray, my book 'Dual Visions' is available now from Midnight Showcase. 'Cliffs of Time' is a time travel story. If you'd like to read an excerpt, go to the Archives, February, (February 28) under New contract. Buy the book at http://www.midnightshowcase.com/
The Digest 'Sweet Challenge' is also available starting today. It contains my story 'For Love of Arilee'.
The Digest 'Sweet Challenge' is also available starting today. It contains my story 'For Love of Arilee'.
Excerpt from Seeds of Chaos, Book Two, Hell's Gate
Chapter One
Caution is always a good policy when approaching an alien system. Kabrina took her seat at the com-center on the bridge and waited for the moment when we would be challenged.
I sat in my chair, watching the screen, and I saw the small craft appear from behind the closest moon. When I say small, I don’t really mean tiny. It was ten times larger than our ship, and bristling with turrets. If they weren’t in a good mood our ship would make a nice new temporary star in the planet’s sky, and we wouldn’t have to worry about our oxygen supply.
The computer replaced the screen’s view of space with the larger-than-life image of a Srax-male. He was in uniform, obviously an official.
“Approaching vessel! State your origin and your business.” The voice sounded deep, grating.
“This is Starsurfer.” Kabrina kept her voice neutral, cool. She didn’t speak Srax, because there was no need. Our computer would send the transmission in the Srax-language.
“We are a human-based merchant ship. Our life-support system sustained damage in an encounter with pirates. We need assistance with the repairs.”
“Am I speaking with a female?” the Srax asked. Both of his protruding eyes focused on me. “Why is the male not talking?”
I gave him a friendly smile. “I am Thomas Stone, the captain of this ship. As my com-officer said, we need your assistance. Our life-support system could fail at any time. We have no other business with you, but if necessary we could do some trading. After all, we are merchants.”
“What do you carry?”
“You are welcome to inspect our cargo,” I said. “Maybe there is something that might interest you.”
“I will accept your invitation, Captain Stone; but let me warn you, I will be accompanied by two armed guards.” He showed large black teeth. “I’ve dealt with humans before, and I don’t trust you.”
The screen blackened for a split-second, and then we looked again into space, or at least a small portion of it. The image of the alien patrol vessel filled most of the screen. The ship rotated until we faced a huge hatch. It slid open, like the jaws of a huge shark, displaying a dark, gaping hole that swallowed us up as if we were nothing but a tasty morsel. I could almost hear the satisfied burping as the giant maw closed again.
As soon as we were inside, lights lit up to show black metal walls all around us. We were inside the belly of the alien ship.
“The air is breathable on the other side,” Sharina said. “Atmospheric pressure is very close to ours.”
“Well then, let’s put out the welcome mat,” I said, getting out of my chair. I climbed the stairs down to the lower deck, walked down a short corridor and threw open the airlock. I never trust this job to a computer.
The air entering our ship had a different smell to it. It was breathable, a little warmer and more humid than ours was, but alien. According to our analysis, it didn’t contain any toxic particles, but we did find traces of unknown elements. Even though they were supposed to be harmless to humans, I felt nauseous for a moment. I took a few deep breaths to get my body acclimatized. When an oval porthole dilated in the back wall of the hangar, my system seemed almost used to the air.
The uniformed Srax we had spoken to stepped through the opening, followed by two of his guards. In their hands they carried mean looking weapons. Their leader appeared unarmed, until I saw the huge rifle slung across his back.
One thing became apparent. These people were big on intimidation.
I stepped out of our ship and stood beside the airlock to greet them. People like these craved respect and recognition. I needed their help and therefore had no problem groveling a little.
“Welcome to my humble ship,” I said, standing at attention.
The Srax stopped, looked at me with his protruding eyes. His mouth opened to show his teeth. They really were quite black, but they looked strong and healthy. He gave a loud hiss. A forked tongue appeared briefly between his lips.
“I am Flightleader Horax of the Fifth Family, and these are my personal guards, Hedge-Warriors of the Third Degree. Are you a warrior, Captain Thomas Stone?”
“Not really,” I smiled. “I am just a merchant. Violence is something I do not approve of.”
“And yet you carry a weapon in your boot!”
“Oh, that. I keep it for my protection. I may not approve of violence, but I am quite capable of defending myself, if the need arises.” No need to appear too meek.
Horax smiled again. “You don’t strike me as a timid man, Captain. As I have mentioned, I am familiar with your species, and I have actually made it a point to study humans. My Second Protector was a merchant, like you, and he used to deal with humans. I was in his employ before I was chosen to serve our space fleet.”
“Then you have the advantage, Flightleader, I know very little about your kind. You must forgive me if I don’t always follow protocol.”
“We are not as rigid as you may believe. You’ll find that you and I are much alike.” His tongue flickered across hip lips again. “Are you going to invite me into your ship or are we going to waste time out here hissing like two female egg-layers?”
“Of course not. Forgive my rudeness.” I smiled. “Please, enter my ship.”
Caution is always a good policy when approaching an alien system. Kabrina took her seat at the com-center on the bridge and waited for the moment when we would be challenged.
I sat in my chair, watching the screen, and I saw the small craft appear from behind the closest moon. When I say small, I don’t really mean tiny. It was ten times larger than our ship, and bristling with turrets. If they weren’t in a good mood our ship would make a nice new temporary star in the planet’s sky, and we wouldn’t have to worry about our oxygen supply.
The computer replaced the screen’s view of space with the larger-than-life image of a Srax-male. He was in uniform, obviously an official.
“Approaching vessel! State your origin and your business.” The voice sounded deep, grating.
“This is Starsurfer.” Kabrina kept her voice neutral, cool. She didn’t speak Srax, because there was no need. Our computer would send the transmission in the Srax-language.
“We are a human-based merchant ship. Our life-support system sustained damage in an encounter with pirates. We need assistance with the repairs.”
“Am I speaking with a female?” the Srax asked. Both of his protruding eyes focused on me. “Why is the male not talking?”
I gave him a friendly smile. “I am Thomas Stone, the captain of this ship. As my com-officer said, we need your assistance. Our life-support system could fail at any time. We have no other business with you, but if necessary we could do some trading. After all, we are merchants.”
“What do you carry?”
“You are welcome to inspect our cargo,” I said. “Maybe there is something that might interest you.”
“I will accept your invitation, Captain Stone; but let me warn you, I will be accompanied by two armed guards.” He showed large black teeth. “I’ve dealt with humans before, and I don’t trust you.”
The screen blackened for a split-second, and then we looked again into space, or at least a small portion of it. The image of the alien patrol vessel filled most of the screen. The ship rotated until we faced a huge hatch. It slid open, like the jaws of a huge shark, displaying a dark, gaping hole that swallowed us up as if we were nothing but a tasty morsel. I could almost hear the satisfied burping as the giant maw closed again.
As soon as we were inside, lights lit up to show black metal walls all around us. We were inside the belly of the alien ship.
“The air is breathable on the other side,” Sharina said. “Atmospheric pressure is very close to ours.”
“Well then, let’s put out the welcome mat,” I said, getting out of my chair. I climbed the stairs down to the lower deck, walked down a short corridor and threw open the airlock. I never trust this job to a computer.
The air entering our ship had a different smell to it. It was breathable, a little warmer and more humid than ours was, but alien. According to our analysis, it didn’t contain any toxic particles, but we did find traces of unknown elements. Even though they were supposed to be harmless to humans, I felt nauseous for a moment. I took a few deep breaths to get my body acclimatized. When an oval porthole dilated in the back wall of the hangar, my system seemed almost used to the air.
The uniformed Srax we had spoken to stepped through the opening, followed by two of his guards. In their hands they carried mean looking weapons. Their leader appeared unarmed, until I saw the huge rifle slung across his back.
One thing became apparent. These people were big on intimidation.
I stepped out of our ship and stood beside the airlock to greet them. People like these craved respect and recognition. I needed their help and therefore had no problem groveling a little.
“Welcome to my humble ship,” I said, standing at attention.
The Srax stopped, looked at me with his protruding eyes. His mouth opened to show his teeth. They really were quite black, but they looked strong and healthy. He gave a loud hiss. A forked tongue appeared briefly between his lips.
“I am Flightleader Horax of the Fifth Family, and these are my personal guards, Hedge-Warriors of the Third Degree. Are you a warrior, Captain Thomas Stone?”
“Not really,” I smiled. “I am just a merchant. Violence is something I do not approve of.”
“And yet you carry a weapon in your boot!”
“Oh, that. I keep it for my protection. I may not approve of violence, but I am quite capable of defending myself, if the need arises.” No need to appear too meek.
Horax smiled again. “You don’t strike me as a timid man, Captain. As I have mentioned, I am familiar with your species, and I have actually made it a point to study humans. My Second Protector was a merchant, like you, and he used to deal with humans. I was in his employ before I was chosen to serve our space fleet.”
“Then you have the advantage, Flightleader, I know very little about your kind. You must forgive me if I don’t always follow protocol.”
“We are not as rigid as you may believe. You’ll find that you and I are much alike.” His tongue flickered across hip lips again. “Are you going to invite me into your ship or are we going to waste time out here hissing like two female egg-layers?”
“Of course not. Forgive my rudeness.” I smiled. “Please, enter my ship.”
Thursday, April 19, 2007
List of my published stuff
Here is a list of my published books and short stories
Books:
The Xandra, Book One, Daughter of the Dark.
The Xandra, Book Two, Mother of Light.
The Xandra, Book Three, Goddess of Life.
Seeds of Chaos, Book One, Eden’s Gate.
Seeds of Chaos, Book Two, Hell’s Gate (coming in May).
Dual Visions (Cliffs of Time, Orion -- the Hunt).
Mark of the Cobra (coming in September?)
The Stardogs, Book One, Return to Redsky (coming in October)
The Stardogs, Book Two, Redemption (coming in January 2008)
My Anthology ‘Tapestry of Dreams’, Eight tales of the Imagination, (forthcoming ?)
Short novella ‘Time Flares’ (forthcoming?)
Short stories: (name of digest in brackets)
The Anniversary Gift (Sweet Revenge)
Remember me next Christmas (Holiday Voices)
Gin and Tonic (Summer Heat 3)
Orola, The Kiir (Midnight Raunch)
For Love of Arilee (Sweet Challenge)
A Taste of Paradise (Men of Eros, forthcoming)
All of these books are available (or will be) from http://www.midnightshowcase.com/
Books:
The Xandra, Book One, Daughter of the Dark.
The Xandra, Book Two, Mother of Light.
The Xandra, Book Three, Goddess of Life.
Seeds of Chaos, Book One, Eden’s Gate.
Seeds of Chaos, Book Two, Hell’s Gate (coming in May).
Dual Visions (Cliffs of Time, Orion -- the Hunt).
Mark of the Cobra (coming in September?)
The Stardogs, Book One, Return to Redsky (coming in October)
The Stardogs, Book Two, Redemption (coming in January 2008)
My Anthology ‘Tapestry of Dreams’, Eight tales of the Imagination, (forthcoming ?)
Short novella ‘Time Flares’ (forthcoming?)
Short stories: (name of digest in brackets)
The Anniversary Gift (Sweet Revenge)
Remember me next Christmas (Holiday Voices)
Gin and Tonic (Summer Heat 3)
Orola, The Kiir (Midnight Raunch)
For Love of Arilee (Sweet Challenge)
A Taste of Paradise (Men of Eros, forthcoming)
All of these books are available (or will be) from http://www.midnightshowcase.com/
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
New releases
These are my new releases coming up in a few days. The dinosaur on Dual Visions is my own drawing. The cover was designed by Mae Powers.
For Love of Arilee
Here is the cover for the Sweet Challenge Digest. My story 'For Love of Arilee' appears in it.
So much is happening this month. I'm excited. Anyone who has read 'Daughter of the Dark' will regocnize the planet where the story takes place. It is 300 years in the future of the events in 'Daughter..'. It is a love story and I enjoyed writing it. There are no explicit sexual situations, that's why 'Sweet Challenge', just a sweet story. However, it is not boring, there is adventure.
So much is happening this month. I'm excited. Anyone who has read 'Daughter of the Dark' will regocnize the planet where the story takes place. It is 300 years in the future of the events in 'Daughter..'. It is a love story and I enjoyed writing it. There are no explicit sexual situations, that's why 'Sweet Challenge', just a sweet story. However, it is not boring, there is adventure.
Saturday, April 14, 2007
Spring is here
Easter is over. I wanted to post for Easter, but somehow I never found the time. I’ve been working on my Anthology. I finished it and sent it in to Midnight Showcase. The whole thing is 64,500 words long. I gave it the title ‘Tapestry of dreams’. I’ve also been busy with a time travel story, which was supposed to be part of the Anthology, but I got so involved with the story and found it impossible to write a good ending without it becoming longer than intended. Finally, after 28,000 words I finished it. However, now it is possibly too long for the Anthology and will have to stands on its own. I sent that one in also. That story is called ‘Time Flares’.
It is beautiful outside today. I walked around my yard and found a lot of work ahead. If it stays warm and dry I should be able to do some work next week. Spring is always busy, just to get everything back into shape, then comes the garden, and of course, raking the lawn and getting rid of the debris and grass. On a property our size there is a lot of dead grass to rake together, but it is nice to walk around and to see the snow gone. Tomorrow it is supposed to go up to 20 degrees. That’ll be great.
Actually I am waiting for Book two, Seeds of Chaos, to be published this month and ‘Dual Vision’, which includes the stories ‘Cliffs of Time’ and ‘Orion, the Hunt’. That one was actually supposed to come out last month.
Here is an expert from ‘Time Flares’:
Snydor and Silver sat in the visitor section and watched the giant screen. For safety reasons everyone was strapped into the seats. Gigantic tongues of fiery gases reached towards the ship from the white dwarf, like spidery fingers of death. Even though Professor Braun assured everyone they were safe, it was still unnerving to see the bright flares shooting out of the body of the dying sun, trying to pull the ship out of orbit into its own blazing inferno.
“Prepare yourself for the most intense flares, after this they will slowly disperse until in about three or four days the nova will be finished.” Braun’s voice came over the speakers. He chuckled. “Remember what you see is already thirty seconds old.”
He barely finished talking when the screen lit up. Snydor involuntarily closed his eyes. He felt a shudder vibrating through the ship. A dark hand seemed to reach for his brain; he felt as if an electric shock touched him and burned every fiber of his body. Strange images flashed in front of his eyes, streaks of lightening, faces, objects. A cacophony of noises threatened to burst his eardrums and burn out his mind.
Then it was over.
Snydor sat in his seat, still stunned from the onslaught on his mind and body, aware of an eerie silence. He looked around the observation deck. Everything appeared normal, except for the sudden excited shouting of the people in their seats.
“What happened?” Someone yelled.
The lightshow on the giant screen seemed to have ended. Snydor stared at the three-dimensional glowing white sun in the center. The dwarf star. He didn’t think it looked right.
“Something is wrong,” Silver said beside him.
Snydor searched for Professor Braun. He spotted him getting up from his seat and rush towards one of the exits, with Dr. Bushiri close on his heels.
Snydor unbuckled himself. “I think we’d better check in with the Captain and find out what happened. Maybe he can enlighten us.”
Professor Braun and Dr. Bushiri were already talking to Captain Harper when they stepped out of the elevator and onto the bridge. The Professor saw Snydor and waved for him to join them.
Captain Harper nodded to Snydor and Silver. “Ah, my trusted Chief of Security and his Second, Miss Silver.”
“Is everything alright, Captain?” Snydor asked.
“The ship’s AI is doing an analysis right now. So far, everything looks normal. The ship has sustained no damage. We’re not in any danger.”
“But something happened,” Silver said.
“It certainly did. We just haven’t determined yet what.”
The Captain lifted his head, his eyes glazed over. He stood like that for about thirty seconds; his expression was solemn when he focused back on the little group. He looked at Professor Braun. “I don’t know if this is possible, Professor. You will have to confirm that. According to the AI we’ve been thrown back in time about two hundred years.”
“That’s why that dwarf looks so different,” Dr. Bushiri said in a low voice. “We’re in the past.”
Braun glanced at Snydor. “It seems again I failed you, my friend. Maybe there was a flaw in my equation after all.”
“It’s possible the AI suffered damage from the electrical charges that hit the ship.” Snydor said.
“Anything is possible.” Professor Braun shook his head. “I’ll have to go over my figures and find out what went wrong.”
It is beautiful outside today. I walked around my yard and found a lot of work ahead. If it stays warm and dry I should be able to do some work next week. Spring is always busy, just to get everything back into shape, then comes the garden, and of course, raking the lawn and getting rid of the debris and grass. On a property our size there is a lot of dead grass to rake together, but it is nice to walk around and to see the snow gone. Tomorrow it is supposed to go up to 20 degrees. That’ll be great.
Actually I am waiting for Book two, Seeds of Chaos, to be published this month and ‘Dual Vision’, which includes the stories ‘Cliffs of Time’ and ‘Orion, the Hunt’. That one was actually supposed to come out last month.
Here is an expert from ‘Time Flares’:
Snydor and Silver sat in the visitor section and watched the giant screen. For safety reasons everyone was strapped into the seats. Gigantic tongues of fiery gases reached towards the ship from the white dwarf, like spidery fingers of death. Even though Professor Braun assured everyone they were safe, it was still unnerving to see the bright flares shooting out of the body of the dying sun, trying to pull the ship out of orbit into its own blazing inferno.
“Prepare yourself for the most intense flares, after this they will slowly disperse until in about three or four days the nova will be finished.” Braun’s voice came over the speakers. He chuckled. “Remember what you see is already thirty seconds old.”
He barely finished talking when the screen lit up. Snydor involuntarily closed his eyes. He felt a shudder vibrating through the ship. A dark hand seemed to reach for his brain; he felt as if an electric shock touched him and burned every fiber of his body. Strange images flashed in front of his eyes, streaks of lightening, faces, objects. A cacophony of noises threatened to burst his eardrums and burn out his mind.
Then it was over.
Snydor sat in his seat, still stunned from the onslaught on his mind and body, aware of an eerie silence. He looked around the observation deck. Everything appeared normal, except for the sudden excited shouting of the people in their seats.
“What happened?” Someone yelled.
The lightshow on the giant screen seemed to have ended. Snydor stared at the three-dimensional glowing white sun in the center. The dwarf star. He didn’t think it looked right.
“Something is wrong,” Silver said beside him.
Snydor searched for Professor Braun. He spotted him getting up from his seat and rush towards one of the exits, with Dr. Bushiri close on his heels.
Snydor unbuckled himself. “I think we’d better check in with the Captain and find out what happened. Maybe he can enlighten us.”
Professor Braun and Dr. Bushiri were already talking to Captain Harper when they stepped out of the elevator and onto the bridge. The Professor saw Snydor and waved for him to join them.
Captain Harper nodded to Snydor and Silver. “Ah, my trusted Chief of Security and his Second, Miss Silver.”
“Is everything alright, Captain?” Snydor asked.
“The ship’s AI is doing an analysis right now. So far, everything looks normal. The ship has sustained no damage. We’re not in any danger.”
“But something happened,” Silver said.
“It certainly did. We just haven’t determined yet what.”
The Captain lifted his head, his eyes glazed over. He stood like that for about thirty seconds; his expression was solemn when he focused back on the little group. He looked at Professor Braun. “I don’t know if this is possible, Professor. You will have to confirm that. According to the AI we’ve been thrown back in time about two hundred years.”
“That’s why that dwarf looks so different,” Dr. Bushiri said in a low voice. “We’re in the past.”
Braun glanced at Snydor. “It seems again I failed you, my friend. Maybe there was a flaw in my equation after all.”
“It’s possible the AI suffered damage from the electrical charges that hit the ship.” Snydor said.
“Anything is possible.” Professor Braun shook his head. “I’ll have to go over my figures and find out what went wrong.”
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