Tracy Falbe's Blog, page 43

Soylent Green is the movie that made me a foodie

Back in the 1970s Soylent Green was a leader in the dystopia genre. The grim movie presented an overpopulated, polluted, and depleted world in which people were being secretly fed food biscuits made out of dead people. Makes the recent horse meat scandal sound a little tame doesn't it?

One of my very favorite actors of all time is the star of the movie: Charlton Heston.  I had always heard about this famous movie but it was not until about 2006 that I actually sat down and watched it. It had a profound effect on me. It was such a horrifying portrayal of the future that I could not get it out of my mind. I finally worked up the courage to watch it again this winter. It is an astonishing movie. The issues it presents are eerily relevant, especially global warming. In the story people are living in a never ending heat wave. Even in January in New York it is 90 degrees. The greenhouse effect is directly mentioned. Air conditioning is a luxury that few people have access to. Showers and hot water are also rare because resources are so scarce. Electricity is rationed. A man rides a stationary bike to generate power for a light bulb.

Throughout the story people say they won't take any risks that will cost them their job. If you lose your job then you will be in the street. The streets are clogged with millions of homeless, awaiting their food handouts. Armed guards sit at the doors to apartment buildings to protect residents from the unsheltered hordes. When the mobs riot they are controlled with the "scoops" that are big trucks that toss people back with big front loaders.

Food is mostly derived from plankton harvested from the oceans. The land has been depleted and poisoned and can no longer produce anything close to enough food for the world. The story is commenting on the deleterious effects of industrial farming practices that strip mine nutrients from the soil and pollute the land and water with pesticides and chemical fertilizers. Our existing food system is something that will ultimately fail.

The big secret in the story is that even the plankton-based food supply has collapsed. The Earth's ability to nourish humanity is utterly spent. This is why dead people are now going to the food factories because they are a source of protein. This of course is also a secret. Death centers promote assisted suicide to the masses as an escape from the misery of existence without mentioning that their bodies will be translated into mass cannibalism.

One scene that had a great impact on me was the one with the strawberry jam. The character played by Charlton Heston is a police detective and he'll steal anything of value that he encounters while doing investigations, especially food and things like soap. He comes home with a jar of strawberry jam but does not know what it is. He asks his older partner to taste it. After some thought the older man replies that it's strawberries. The concept of a world in which people would not recognize the taste of strawberries terrified me. This movie impressed on me the need to appreciate real food with real flavor. It also made me much more aware of the state of the modern food supply. Now I grow food and shop at farmers' markets and do my part to nurture a local food system. I want to encourage a food system based on a sustainable model.

Since I first watched Soylent Green I go strawberry picking every spring and make jam. That's the power of science fiction. It can dramatize plausible real world scenarios and impart a lesson.

No matter how things go in the future, I want to be certain that I still have strawberry jam. And when I eat highly processed foods that are usually crunchy and of uniform shape and color, I jokingly call them Soylent Green. Hopefully such snacks only contain trace amounts of dead people. Nothing a little monosodium glutamate won't fix up.

I got a review so good it almost made me cry

Reviews on ebook retail sites are slow to come in for me. It's somewhere between hard and impossible for me to solicit reviews from book bloggers that specialize in book criticism. They have enormous reading lists because of an endless supply of authors seeking reviews. On top of this my novels are long, so reviewers probably tend to go for the quicker reads. Then there are the many reviewers who refuse to look at anything self published.

I rely almost solely on reviews from my actual readers. I put a statement at the end of my novels asking readers to leave a star rating or written review for me if they liked one of my novels. Most readers don't bother because they want to enjoy books, not write book reports. But every once in a while, a reader kindly takes the time to leave me a review. I got one of the best ones of my life at Amazon US on March 19th for Rys Rising: Book I.

The reader concluded her review by writing: "This is truly a work of art."

I was so touched to have my creation called a work of art. It is immensely gratifying to create a written work that another person is able to enjoy and also appreciate the depth of effort I put into the novel. I spent two years writing Rys Rising. I put one or two years of my life into every novel I write. It's so good to know I'm not wasting my time. Every reader who gives one of my novels a try creates a new opportunity for me to succeed as an artist. It is half of my goal as a writer. The other half is to express myself because if I don't I'll be miserable.

Please visit Brave Luck Books to sample, buy, and learn more about all my novels. 

25% off Savage Storm ebook plus Rys Rising paperback giveaway

For three days only March 20th, 21st, and 22nd, readers can enjoy 25% off the regular price of Savage Storm: Rys Rising Book II.


 The sale price is $3.71 and you can enjoy the sale at either:

Brave Luck Books (no coupon code needed)

or

Smashwords (At Smashwords use coupon code BY35Z )

This spring celebration promotion is part of the Magic Appreciation Tour Spectacular Spring Equinox Fantasy Sale. Over 30 titles are part of the sale. Everything is under $5 and many are only 99 cents.

Please visit the sale page to browse all the great titles.

To make the event even more exciting there are two big giveaway drawings included. I have donated a prize to the drawing for U.S. residents. It's a signed paperback copy of Rys Rising: Book I. Please use this form to enter the drawing. Good luck!

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Rys Rising fantasy series part of Trindiebooks 1st Anniversary Giveaway

I am among the sponsors of the 1st Anniversary celebration at Trindiebooks, a Kobo focused book blog. The grand prize is a Kobo Mini ereader, which I imagine just about anyone would enjoy having. I know I'd like one because I'm in the market for a new ebook reader. The grand prize also includes 17 ebooks along with the Kobo Mini.

Then there will be 9 additional winners chosen who will win various titles from the supporting authors. And one lucky person will get all four of the Rys Rising novels: Rys Rising, Savage Storm, New Religion, and Love Lost.

My novels have been well received in the Kobo marketplace without me really do much to promote them at that retailer, so I've been focusing on reaching out to the Kobo audience a little more. Browse me ebooks at Kobo.

You can use this form if you want to enter the Trindie Books giveaway:


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My recent appearances around the web

Richard Stephenson author of Collapse helps out authors at his blog. He recently published an excerpt from Rys Rising: Book I. Visit his blog to read the opening from Chapter 24 when Amar has begun terrorizing the tribal kingdoms and plots his revenge against the Patharki Tribe. Thank you for the guest spot.


The Eden Plague author David VanDyke kindly published my guest post about Keeping it Real for Fantasy Warriors. Thank you!

Does it ever bother you when you’re watching a movie and someone gets shot in the shoulder but still runs up and down a mountain, gets in a fist fight, and isn’t even really bleeding 15 minutes later? I enjoy fantasy but I can’t imagine away chunks of flesh flying loose from the upper body and not having to take a breather. If a warrior takes a bad wound he better have a friend ready to jump in and defend him from the mortal blow.

Keep reading it David's blog.


And on March 8th Digital Book Today syndicated my article Are We Enjoying A Golden Age of Reader Rewards? that first appeared at this blog. Add a comment if you have something to say about book giveaways or have been lucky enough to win one.

My fantasy novels are now available at Buggle Books in the UK

On twitter not long ago I came across a small UK-based ebook retailer called Buggle Books. I noticed that the site was open to selling ebooks from authors, so I contacted the operator, Ken May. He agreed to include my ebooks in his online store.

I don't really have any way of knowing if any sales will come from being included at this little store, or if the place has any intention of paying me if any sales occur. But I figured why not give it a try? The more readers who run across my novels the better. Because my novels are newly added, I have a nice feature on the home page right now. My free ebooks also happen to be listed under the Bestsellers heading. That tickles me.

I'll keep my fingers crossed for Buggle Books. I hope it's a legitimate effort and that I reach a few more readers. See all my fantasy ebooks at Buggle Books.

The Seed of an Idea by Coral Russell plus Kindle Fire giveaway

Today I welcome author Coral Russell who has just released her novel Sacrifice. It sure sounds like a good one. 

And be sure to enter the giveaway drawing at the bottom for a chance to win ebooks and even a Kindle Fire. 

About Sacrifice

When Mexican drug cartels fight for control along the border, Juarez becomes the murder capital of the world. In El Paso, Texas it's drug business as usual: a grifter sets out to buy her freedom, a car salesman runs drugs to make his fortune, a gang leader battles to rise among the ranks of the cartel, and a detective and his wife are ripped apart by a family secret. Everyone's fate lies in the hands of an old woman. Will she let the past die with her or take revenge the only way she knows how? Sacrifice is a fast-paced, gritty story that'll keep you guessing, gasping, and gripping your eBook.

Get the novel at Amazon.

How did the author come up with the idea for this novel?

Here's what Coral Russel has to say.

Thanks to The Indie Exchange for letting me kick off my Sacrifice Book Release and Tour and also to The Bunny's Review for helping sponsor the tour.
The Seed of An Idea

I never knew where writers got their ideas. Mostly they said it comes to them out of nowhere or by doing research on some subject and just because it might look like a tidbit from their life, it really isn't. I also heard that it's not 'Write what about what you know.' but rather 'Write about what you want to know.'
Having finished Sacrifice I can definitely tell you that tidbits of the story came from real life and sometimes you write what you know and what you don't want to know. Don't get me wrong, real life is boring a majority of the time. When you're writing fiction you have to spice it up. So lets say I had this friend. I hadn't talked to her in a while because I moved away. She passed away after a long illness and thinking back on our relationship I realized I had a secret I was going to take to the grave.
Now the assumptions are: one, she never told anyone else. You know how someone tells you, 'I'm going to tell you a secret...' and no one else is supposed to know only come to find out later everyone knows. Yeah, so that's a big assumption. Two, it wasn't anything earth shattering. Like I said, life is generally boring.
Here's the fun part. What if? What if I was really the only person who knew. What if it was earth-shattering at least to one other person. And that's how the story begins...
To be continued. Find Part 2 at Java With Jambor on March 15th.
Enjoy the book trailer. It will really get you interested. 


Get the novel at Amazon.



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TED talk by Allan Savory about greening deserts and halting climate change

I've watched many TED talks and this one has to be one of the most important ones. I've been working to sequester carbon in my small bit of land and see great results from it. Now I just need to figure a way to integrate grazing animals into my suburban quarter acre and I'll really prosper.

Please watch the video. It's very inspiring.

The Parting of Friends and The Fate of Captives

The headline names the two newest chapters just completed for The Goddess Queen audiobook.

The Goddess Queen is a novel that I wrote about 14 years ago, so the details of it are not exactly fresh in my mind. Listening to the chapters as they are recorded has been a delightful experience. Chapters 15 and 16 are really intense to listen to. The narrator Andrew Wetmore did a marvelous job of it. These chapters are really emotional and story-shifting. 
In Chapter 15 The Parting of Friends, Shan realizes that he should have granted Taischek the favor he wanted, and Dreibrand worries that his position is in jeopardy.

In Chapter 16 The Fate of Captives, Onja puts Quylan to a final brutal test, and Lord Kwan approaches the breaking point no matter the consequences. 
If you are looking for a fantasy fiction listening experience, please visit my fantasy audiobooks page and download samples from the complete audiobook Union of Renegades and listen to samples from The Goddess Queen audiobook production. You can buy mp3 chapters to support the recording. 
My narrator and I officially passed the halfway point for recording The Goddess Queen, and I'm really looking forward to publishing the completed audiobook late this summer and getting it into iTunes and Audible. 
If audiobooks don't suit your lifestyle, The Goddess Queen is also available as an ebook. 
 

New 5 star review for Rys Rising at Barnes and Noble

Although I try not to look at reviews, I still do, and I was rewarded this week with a great one.

At the Barnes & Noble site a reader gave me 5 stars on February 27 along with this glowing feedback.

"Loved it.. Everything is here. Magic. World building. Multidimensional character. Pathos. Conflict. I have read more than 50 books in this venue. Rys Rising is the only 5 star rating I have given."

I'm especially flattered by the statement that this reader is not a quick draw with 5 stars. I'm so happy every time I hear of a reader enjoying my novel. It really means a lot to me. Thank you!
Find out if my fiction is a good fit for you too.  
Rys Rising: Book I is a free ebook for Barnes & Noble Nook.