It’s been a good week. I posted a lot, and I had quite a few visitors to my blog. More than ever before in one week. My books are doing well. Since ‘Dual Visions’ doesn’t seem to be selling, for some obscure reason, my publisher and I have decided to split the stories and release them as single volumes. Unfortunately, that means no print version available, only ebooks. So, if anyone wants to have a print version of Dual Visions, then don’t delay, order it now. It will soon be a collector’s item only. In fact, I don’t even own a printed copy myself yet. As I said before, the stories ‘The Cliffs of Time’ and ‘Orion--the Hunt’ are both great stories. They have adventure, suspense, sex. What else could anyone want? Actually, I am editing them again, because I have discovered a few minor errors. Some of them pointed out to me by a couple of people who read an excerpt. They were right, I couldn’t deny them. Well, anyway, I hope they’ll sell better on their own. (They can’t do any worse!). Keep on checking my blog, if you’re interested. They should be available in about three to four weeks, as will be my next novel ‘The Stardogs’ Book One, Return to Redsky.
If you are checking out Midnight Showcase, they are in the process of revamping the site and not all of the books are listed yet or hard to find.
Here are the links to get to Midnight Showcase and to Fiction Wise. They’ll take you straight to my books.
http://www.fictionwise.com/eBooks/HerbertGrosshanseBooks.htm
http://www.midnightshowcase.com/xandra-series.htm
http://www.midnightshowcase.com/seedsofchoaseden.htm
http://www.midnightshowcase.com/chaos2.html
The free story is still available. Just send me an email at hegro@shaw.ca if you’re interested and I will send it to you. Read more below.
Monday, August 27, 2007
Thursday, August 23, 2007
A free story
I've sent in the edited version of Book One of the Stardogs. It should be available from Midnight Showcase possibly in September already. They want to push it to take advantage of the momentum the release of Book Two of 'Seeds of Chaos' has created.
If you are visiting from Beth Wylde you must be interested in Time travel stories. Here is another one: 'Sarah's Gift'. It is another story in my Anthology 'Tapestry of Dreams', coming next year from Midnight Showcase. If you would like to have it, just email me at hegro@shaw.ca and I will send it to you in rtf (rich text format).
My books Seeds of Chaos are currently selling well at Fiction Wise.
Book 2, Hell's Gate is at number 3 position and Book 1, Eden's Gate following close behind at number 5.
This is the link to fictionwise which lists my books available there http://www.fictionwise.com/eBooks/HerbertGrosshanseBooks.htm
or go to check out my Xandra series http://www.midnightshowcase.com/xandra-series.htm or my Seeds of Chaos series Book One http://www.midnightshowcase.com/seedsofchoaseden.htm or Book Two http://www.midnightshowcase.com/chaos2.html
Here is the beginning of 'Sarah's Gift'
Ever since the death of his wife, Thanksgiving had lost its meaning for Jake. What did he have to be thankful for? Now it was just an excuse to take some time off from a stressful job and lose himself in the little bit of wilderness that was still left.
There was talk that the turkey hunt might be suspended for a few years to give the birds a chance to recover. Hunting pressure had become too great in the last ten years.
It wasn’t like it used to be when he went hunting with his dad. He couldn’t remember when they didn’t have a turkey for Thanksgiving, but this year might just be that year.
Then again--what did it really matter if he got one or not? There was no pleasure in eating a turkey by yourself.
It was beginning to get chilly and he shivered inside his camouflage outfit. His fingers, which held his bow, were getting cold and stiff. The temperature must have dropped at least ten degrees within the last hour. He could smell the snow in the crisp air.
Looking into the sky, he saw the clouds moving in fast. Chances of me getting a bird today are getting slim, he thought, animals are smart, they know when a storm is coming and they’ll disappear searching for cover.
His daydreams were interrupted when he heard the soft cluck. Then he saw the big Gobbler strutting into the open.
Jake had done this too many times, and he reacted without thinking. He had been ready for this moment all morning, and when he released the arrow he knew it would not miss the target.
It was almost anti-climactic when he picked up the limp carcass of the big bird. A quick check of its beard and then he stuffed it into his backpack. Again, he looked up at the rolling dark clouds and realized he had to get back to his vehicle as fast as possible. It looked like a snowstorm was going to hit soon. Unusual for this time of year.
Picking up the rest of his gear, he started walking back the trail he had come. It was a good hour’s walk to his truck and another hour’s drive to get to the highway. He wanted to be out of the woods when the storm hit.
The first flakes began to fall after he had walked the trail for less than fifteen minutes. Gently at first, but after another fifteen minutes he could barely see the trail. Just to be sure he was still on the right trail, he checked his compass and put it away, satisfied he was headed in the right direction.
Listening to the howling of the wind above the treetops, he knew this was a bad one.
After walking for over an hour he had the feeling he was going in circles, but the needle of his compass assured him he was still following the right trail. When he couldn’t find his truck after two hours, he realized he was lost.
All his warm clothing was in his truck, and so was his camping gear. He wasn’t dressed for spending a night outside, not in this kind of weather. When he tried his cell-phone he got nothing.
Damn! How could he have been so careless? He didn’t panic. He’d been an outdoorsman far too long and knew that panic was your worst enemy when lost in the woods.
He didn’t remember taking another trail, but he must have, even though according to his compass he had not. There was no sense floundering through the bush, so he kept on walking.
The trail ended suddenly and it almost seemed as if the veil of whiteness was beginning to lift. He thought he saw a light ahead and headed for it. Coming closer, he saw the outlines of a building, a log cabin.
Thank God, he thought, At least I found shelter to wait out the storm.
He pounded against the heavy wooden door. When nothing happened, he pounded again. After a moment the door swung open a crack and he stared into the muzzle of a rifle. Above it the face of woman.
If you are visiting from Beth Wylde you must be interested in Time travel stories. Here is another one: 'Sarah's Gift'. It is another story in my Anthology 'Tapestry of Dreams', coming next year from Midnight Showcase. If you would like to have it, just email me at hegro@shaw.ca and I will send it to you in rtf (rich text format).
My books Seeds of Chaos are currently selling well at Fiction Wise.
Book 2, Hell's Gate is at number 3 position and Book 1, Eden's Gate following close behind at number 5.
This is the link to fictionwise which lists my books available there http://www.fictionwise.com/eBooks/HerbertGrosshanseBooks.htm
or go to check out my Xandra series http://www.midnightshowcase.com/xandra-series.htm or my Seeds of Chaos series Book One http://www.midnightshowcase.com/seedsofchoaseden.htm or Book Two http://www.midnightshowcase.com/chaos2.html
Here is the beginning of 'Sarah's Gift'
Ever since the death of his wife, Thanksgiving had lost its meaning for Jake. What did he have to be thankful for? Now it was just an excuse to take some time off from a stressful job and lose himself in the little bit of wilderness that was still left.
There was talk that the turkey hunt might be suspended for a few years to give the birds a chance to recover. Hunting pressure had become too great in the last ten years.
It wasn’t like it used to be when he went hunting with his dad. He couldn’t remember when they didn’t have a turkey for Thanksgiving, but this year might just be that year.
Then again--what did it really matter if he got one or not? There was no pleasure in eating a turkey by yourself.
It was beginning to get chilly and he shivered inside his camouflage outfit. His fingers, which held his bow, were getting cold and stiff. The temperature must have dropped at least ten degrees within the last hour. He could smell the snow in the crisp air.
Looking into the sky, he saw the clouds moving in fast. Chances of me getting a bird today are getting slim, he thought, animals are smart, they know when a storm is coming and they’ll disappear searching for cover.
His daydreams were interrupted when he heard the soft cluck. Then he saw the big Gobbler strutting into the open.
Jake had done this too many times, and he reacted without thinking. He had been ready for this moment all morning, and when he released the arrow he knew it would not miss the target.
It was almost anti-climactic when he picked up the limp carcass of the big bird. A quick check of its beard and then he stuffed it into his backpack. Again, he looked up at the rolling dark clouds and realized he had to get back to his vehicle as fast as possible. It looked like a snowstorm was going to hit soon. Unusual for this time of year.
Picking up the rest of his gear, he started walking back the trail he had come. It was a good hour’s walk to his truck and another hour’s drive to get to the highway. He wanted to be out of the woods when the storm hit.
The first flakes began to fall after he had walked the trail for less than fifteen minutes. Gently at first, but after another fifteen minutes he could barely see the trail. Just to be sure he was still on the right trail, he checked his compass and put it away, satisfied he was headed in the right direction.
Listening to the howling of the wind above the treetops, he knew this was a bad one.
After walking for over an hour he had the feeling he was going in circles, but the needle of his compass assured him he was still following the right trail. When he couldn’t find his truck after two hours, he realized he was lost.
All his warm clothing was in his truck, and so was his camping gear. He wasn’t dressed for spending a night outside, not in this kind of weather. When he tried his cell-phone he got nothing.
Damn! How could he have been so careless? He didn’t panic. He’d been an outdoorsman far too long and knew that panic was your worst enemy when lost in the woods.
He didn’t remember taking another trail, but he must have, even though according to his compass he had not. There was no sense floundering through the bush, so he kept on walking.
The trail ended suddenly and it almost seemed as if the veil of whiteness was beginning to lift. He thought he saw a light ahead and headed for it. Coming closer, he saw the outlines of a building, a log cabin.
Thank God, he thought, At least I found shelter to wait out the storm.
He pounded against the heavy wooden door. When nothing happened, he pounded again. After a moment the door swung open a crack and he stared into the muzzle of a rifle. Above it the face of woman.
Another free gift
The digest ‘Holiday Voices’ is still available from http://www.midnightshowcase.com/ If you would like to read ‘Remember me next Christmas’ but are not interested in the whole digest (which contains some wonderful stories by other authors), then send me an email at hegro@shaw.ca and I’ll send you the story for free. If you should visit Midnight Showcase, check out my Xandra series. It is erotic Science Fiction. In Books 2 and 3 you will meet vampires, werewolves and other creatures. The story Remember me next Christmas is set into the world of the Xandra, but in the future of the events in the three books.
Thank you for visiting. Maybe you’ll be back again.
Thank you for visiting. Maybe you’ll be back again.
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Free Gift
Thanks for visiting my blog. If you would like the free story (Blood of the Virgin), just send me an email to hegro@shaw.ca and I will send it to you in rich text format. Please ask for it. This story has not been published yet, it is the first story in my Anthology ‘Tapestry of Dreams’, coming 2008 from Midnight Showcase. If you would like the novella ‘Cliffs of Time’, one of the stories in my book Dual Visions, available from http://www.midnighshowcase.com/ ask me for it and I’ll send it to you free, also.
The other novella in Dual Visions is ‘Orion, the Hunt’. You can read a short excerpt below in one of the others posts.
Read on and you might find something interesting on my blog.
The other novella in Dual Visions is ‘Orion, the Hunt’. You can read a short excerpt below in one of the others posts.
Read on and you might find something interesting on my blog.
Monday, August 20, 2007
Stardogs, Book One
The editing department of my publisher Midnight Showcase asked for another copy of Book One of 'The Stardogs', Return to Redsky, due to be published in October. I did some editing to it and hopefully, I'll finish it today.
An update on Seeds of Chaos: Book Two has moved up to number 5 and Book One to position 6 at fictionwise. Maybe it will move up to number One. Possibly position one and two for both books. That would be fantastic. Here's hoping!
I published a bunch of excerpts today on all my groups. I'm pushing 'Dual Visions'. Such good stories and no readers. That has to change!
Anyone reading my blog and anyone interested, send me an email (hegro@shaw.ca) and I will send you a copy in rich text format of my story 'Blood of the Virgin'. It is one of the stories in my Anthology, Tapestry of Dreams, which will be published next year, I believe in August.
Here is the excerpt from 'The Stardogs, Book One, Return to Redsky:
It was dark when I left his shop, carrying a large bundle with things I needed. I loaded it onto the animal I had left tied to a tree. Slowly, I walked down the dark narrow street, pulling the animal behind me.
It was not very smart to travel through this section of town after dark, and it didn’t take long before I heard footsteps behind me. I knew there were four of them, three men and one woman. The sound of her bare feet was easily distinguishable from the heavier footsteps of the three men. One of them big, he shuffled as he walked on heavy feet.
They circled me from behind, the woman gliding by me on my left under cover of some small shrubs. Two of the men were on either side of me now, slightly hanging back, while the third one stayed behind. He carried a heavy club. I could hear the faint scraping as he rubbed it with his left hand.
My built-in defense system had shifted my body in combat-mode. Tiny implants all over my body let me sense and hear things a normal Human could not.
The woman stepped into the street in front of me. “What’s your hurry?” she said, parting her cape. She wore nothing underneath. She was young, a girl with the body of a woman, her breasts high and full. Two solid fleshy cones with dark nipples jutting from her ribcage. She could have been beautiful, if it hadn’t been for her straggly hair and her calculating eyes. This was no innocent girl. She had seen and done more things than a girl her age should have.
The pale light from one of the moons shone down the length of her slim nude body, revealing the dark triangle below her flat belly. “Well?” she said, smiling. “Do you like what you see?”
She came closer. I could hear the man with the club moving in behind me. The other two were still hidden in the darkness of the houses, but I heard the barely audible whispering sound of a long knife being pulled from its sheath.
She stood close enough now to touch and I could smell the odor of her body. A bath was long overdue. Both of her front teeth were missing.
She lifted her arms, jiggling her breasts. The cape slid off her shoulders, leaving her completely nude. She stepped back slightly, but it had not been necessary for me to see the flicker in her eyes.
As the club descended, my free right arm shot up, deflecting the murderous blow and with the same movement my fist connected with the side of the club wielder’s head, sending him sprawling into the dirt. I hadn’t killed him, but he would be out for some time.
The man with the knife rushed me from the right, the other one stayed invisible behind my steed. I could tell my attacker was an amateur. He held the knife in front of him, his knife arm stiff. An experienced street fighter would never do that. I grabbed his wrist and broke his arm. He screamed and cowered back, holding his injured limb.
Now the last of them stepped around the animal, carrying a heavy axe.
“You fight well,” he rumbled, grinning, his wide chin pointing towards the two on the ground, “against children.”
He was right, the other two were young, but I knew that already. That’s why I hadn’t killed them.
He hefted his axe. “Let’s see how you fare against a man.”
* * * *
An update on Seeds of Chaos: Book Two has moved up to number 5 and Book One to position 6 at fictionwise. Maybe it will move up to number One. Possibly position one and two for both books. That would be fantastic. Here's hoping!
I published a bunch of excerpts today on all my groups. I'm pushing 'Dual Visions'. Such good stories and no readers. That has to change!
Anyone reading my blog and anyone interested, send me an email (hegro@shaw.ca) and I will send you a copy in rich text format of my story 'Blood of the Virgin'. It is one of the stories in my Anthology, Tapestry of Dreams, which will be published next year, I believe in August.
Here is the excerpt from 'The Stardogs, Book One, Return to Redsky:
It was dark when I left his shop, carrying a large bundle with things I needed. I loaded it onto the animal I had left tied to a tree. Slowly, I walked down the dark narrow street, pulling the animal behind me.
It was not very smart to travel through this section of town after dark, and it didn’t take long before I heard footsteps behind me. I knew there were four of them, three men and one woman. The sound of her bare feet was easily distinguishable from the heavier footsteps of the three men. One of them big, he shuffled as he walked on heavy feet.
They circled me from behind, the woman gliding by me on my left under cover of some small shrubs. Two of the men were on either side of me now, slightly hanging back, while the third one stayed behind. He carried a heavy club. I could hear the faint scraping as he rubbed it with his left hand.
My built-in defense system had shifted my body in combat-mode. Tiny implants all over my body let me sense and hear things a normal Human could not.
The woman stepped into the street in front of me. “What’s your hurry?” she said, parting her cape. She wore nothing underneath. She was young, a girl with the body of a woman, her breasts high and full. Two solid fleshy cones with dark nipples jutting from her ribcage. She could have been beautiful, if it hadn’t been for her straggly hair and her calculating eyes. This was no innocent girl. She had seen and done more things than a girl her age should have.
The pale light from one of the moons shone down the length of her slim nude body, revealing the dark triangle below her flat belly. “Well?” she said, smiling. “Do you like what you see?”
She came closer. I could hear the man with the club moving in behind me. The other two were still hidden in the darkness of the houses, but I heard the barely audible whispering sound of a long knife being pulled from its sheath.
She stood close enough now to touch and I could smell the odor of her body. A bath was long overdue. Both of her front teeth were missing.
She lifted her arms, jiggling her breasts. The cape slid off her shoulders, leaving her completely nude. She stepped back slightly, but it had not been necessary for me to see the flicker in her eyes.
As the club descended, my free right arm shot up, deflecting the murderous blow and with the same movement my fist connected with the side of the club wielder’s head, sending him sprawling into the dirt. I hadn’t killed him, but he would be out for some time.
The man with the knife rushed me from the right, the other one stayed invisible behind my steed. I could tell my attacker was an amateur. He held the knife in front of him, his knife arm stiff. An experienced street fighter would never do that. I grabbed his wrist and broke his arm. He screamed and cowered back, holding his injured limb.
Now the last of them stepped around the animal, carrying a heavy axe.
“You fight well,” he rumbled, grinning, his wide chin pointing towards the two on the ground, “against children.”
He was right, the other two were young, but I knew that already. That’s why I hadn’t killed them.
He hefted his axe. “Let’s see how you fare against a man.”
* * * *
Thursday, August 16, 2007
More excitement
Book 2, Hell's Gate, is at number 6 and Book 1, Eden's Gate, at number 8. Midnight Raunch Digest (Orola, the Kiir) is at number 5.
Dare I hope for number One with Hell's Gate? Book One of my Xandra series 'Daughter of the Dark' made it to number 1.
I am competing against some very good books and digests. If I don't make it past number six, well, I guess I'll still be happy.
My white elephant 'Dual Visions' is still at number 76. Can't understand that. 'Cliffs of Time' is such a great story. I really enjoyed writing it. My first time travel story, actually. And 'Orion, the Hunt', has always been one of my favorite stories to write. I have a second story still to re-write. It will be about 50,000 words long, also featuring Orion, under the title 'Bakker's Planet'. It contains a lot of erotica, but it is also a good story (I think). Now I wonder about spending more time on it.
I'm at about 70,000 words now with 'Tarnished Valor'. A long way to go before that one is finished.
Dare I hope for number One with Hell's Gate? Book One of my Xandra series 'Daughter of the Dark' made it to number 1.
I am competing against some very good books and digests. If I don't make it past number six, well, I guess I'll still be happy.
My white elephant 'Dual Visions' is still at number 76. Can't understand that. 'Cliffs of Time' is such a great story. I really enjoyed writing it. My first time travel story, actually. And 'Orion, the Hunt', has always been one of my favorite stories to write. I have a second story still to re-write. It will be about 50,000 words long, also featuring Orion, under the title 'Bakker's Planet'. It contains a lot of erotica, but it is also a good story (I think). Now I wonder about spending more time on it.
I'm at about 70,000 words now with 'Tarnished Valor'. A long way to go before that one is finished.
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Seeds of Chaos, Book 2
Things are moving. Just checked Fictionwise and found Seeds of Chaos, Book 2 at number 10 position in sales, up from number 14 yesterday evening. (number 70 in the morning!). And Book 1, Eden's Gate, has moved to number 11. That is fantastic.
Here is the list of my books as they stand at Fictionwise right now. That can change anytime.
The Xandra series:
Book One --- number 62 (down from number 24 just 2 days ago)
Book Two --- number 30 (up from number 51 just 2 days ago)
Book Three --- number 42 (up from number 65)
Seeds of Chaos:
Book One --- number 11
Book Two --- number 10
Sweet Challenge digest (my story: For Love of Arilee) number 75 (down from number 2 a couple of weeks ago)
Midnight Raunch digest (my story: Orola, The Kiir) number 6 (from number 3 yesterday)
Dual Visions --- number 76 (the very last position) no change!
This book is an enigma to me. It has two excellent stories, yet, nobody seems to want to purchase it. It baffles me. I wish somebody would give me some feedback on this phenomena. All my other books are selling. I gave away some copies for free (see below), and I did get a positive review on it from Liz (see comments). Somebody, please, help me out here!!!
Here is the list of my books as they stand at Fictionwise right now. That can change anytime.
The Xandra series:
Book One --- number 62 (down from number 24 just 2 days ago)
Book Two --- number 30 (up from number 51 just 2 days ago)
Book Three --- number 42 (up from number 65)
Seeds of Chaos:
Book One --- number 11
Book Two --- number 10
Sweet Challenge digest (my story: For Love of Arilee) number 75 (down from number 2 a couple of weeks ago)
Midnight Raunch digest (my story: Orola, The Kiir) number 6 (from number 3 yesterday)
Dual Visions --- number 76 (the very last position) no change!
This book is an enigma to me. It has two excellent stories, yet, nobody seems to want to purchase it. It baffles me. I wish somebody would give me some feedback on this phenomena. All my other books are selling. I gave away some copies for free (see below), and I did get a positive review on it from Liz (see comments). Somebody, please, help me out here!!!
Monday, August 13, 2007
I am excited
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.
The digest 'Midnight Raunch', which contains my story 'Orola, the Kiir' has moved into number 3 position at Fiction Wise.
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.
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