Leon Stevens's Blog, page 86
February 14, 2023
Tuesday Tirade: Valentine’s Day
Did you think I was going to go on an Valentine’s rant?
Well …
Maybe, as a poet, I should pen an anti-Valentine’s poem.
Well …
Is there too much pressure on Valentine’s day? If you are in a relationship, do you stress coming up with the perfect gift, dinner, gesture to show your affection in a way you couldn’t (or didn’t) since the first time you met?
Are the businesses rubbing their hands together because this is the biggest spending day outside of … Christmas? Thanksgiving? Super Bowl parties?
Can a writer in a room come up with the best words to describe your feelings?
Maybe I should ask ChatGPT to write a poem about love?
I did. and this is what I got (for real):
C: ChatGPT is currently down
H: Huge demand has caused the site to crash
A: All users will have to wait
T: Time is needed for the servers to catch up
G: Go grab a coffee and check back soon
P: Patience is key in this situation
T: Trust that the team is working hard to fix it up
Apparently, I wasn’t the only one desperately trying to come up with a poem that I could pass off as my own.
So, who loves ya?
ChatBot, baby.
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
Not ready to purchase? Sign up for my newsletter and receive a free book of your choice:
Oh, pick me! (only available here and on KOBO)
C’mon, space stuff!Submit a form.
February 13, 2023
Monday Open Book Blog Hop: Grammar
What grammar rules have you broken on purpose?
Thanks to Stevie Turner for the question
Language is always evolving. The Oxford English Dictionary is constantly adding new words which become common in everyday vernacular. Acronyms and slang are widely accepted as more people use them. Certain words and tendencies fall out of favor though time. There is a reason we don’t use ‘forsoothe’ of make funny looking ‘f’s’ for our ‘s’es.
Grammar changes. Read any style guide and you will find exceptions to the rules we learned in grade school, and by we, I mean the Baby Boomers and Gen-Xers. Any group after that is pretty much caught up. Is it a coincidence that the internet and text messaging exploded in the 90s, at the same time the language laws began to shift?
I respect editors. I don’t have the memory or patience to remember all the rules, so I write what feels natural for me and let them sort out the atrocious grammar. Sentences that she (my editor) will often change around or add to get by my beta readers which show how some writing is understood even if it bends the rules.
To answer the question: Do you break the rules of grammar?
Not on purpose.
Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use #OpenBook when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
Not ready to purchase? Sign up for my newsletter and receive a free book of your choice:
Oh, pick me! (only available here and on KOBO)
C’mon, space stuff!
Music Monday Feb 13: Super Bowl Music
There is a radio show on CBC here in Canada that occasionally does a feature called SYNTH: Songs You Need To Hear.
Now, I can’t say to someone, “You’ll like this song” (or book for that matter) because I can’t presume that others will share my taste in music (or books), so it is safer to say, “You might like this” and if they don’t like it, so be it. Maybe you will find a new favorite.
CBC MUSIC, Central · Mornings with CBC Music
I know what you are wondering: What was the best Super Bowl commercial? But I’m wondering: Who all has played the Super Bowl Halftime shows? This is Music Monday, you know.
Wonder no more. You will notice that for the first 20 years, the music was provided by marching bands, which makes sense because of the predominance of marching bands at college football games.
Until …
The league figures out that more popular music makes more $$$.
11967Universities of Arizona and Grambling University Bands21968“Old Man Winter Takes a Vacation in Miami” featuring seven local Miami-area high school bands31969“America Thanks” with Florida A&M University41970Carol Channing51971Florida A&M Band61972“Salute to Louis Armstrong” with Ella Fitzgerald, Carol Channing, Al Hirt and U.S. Marine Corps Drill Team71973“Happiness Is…” with University of Michigan Band and Woody Herman81974“A Musical America” with University of Texas Band91975“Tribute to Duke Ellington” with Mercer Ellington and Grambling University Bands101976“200 Years and Just a Baby” Tribute to America’s Bicentennial111977“It’s a Small World” including crowd participation for first time with spectators waving colored placard on cue121978“From Paris to the Paris of America” with Tyler Apache Belles, Pete Fountain and Al Hirt131979“Super Bowl XIII Carnival” Salute to the Caribbean with Ken Hamilton and various Caribbean bands141980“A Salute to the Big Band Era” with Up with People151981“A Mardi Gras Festival”161982“A Salute to the 60’s and Motown”171983“KaleidoSUPERscope” (a kaleidoscope of color and sound)181984“Super Bowl XVIII’s Salute to the Superstars of the Silver Screen”191985“A World of Children’s Dreams”201986“Beat of the Future”211987“Salute to Hollywood’s 100th Anniversary”221988“Something Grand” featuring 88 grand pianos, the Rockettes and Chubby Checker231989“Be Bop Bamboozled” featuring 3-D effects241990“Salute to New Orleans” and 40th Anniversary of Peanuts’ characters, featuring trumpeter Pete Fountain, Doug Kershaw and Irma Thomas251991“A Small World Salute to 25 Years of the Super Bowl” featuring New Kids on the Block261992“Winter Magic” including a salute to the winter season and the winter Olympics featuring Gloria Estefan, Brian Boitano and Dorothy Hamill271993“Heal the World” featuring Michael Jackson281994“Rockin Country Sunday” featuring Clint Black, Tanya Tucker, Travis Tritt, Wynonna and Naomi Judd291995“Indiana Jones and the Temple of the Forbidden Eye” featuring Tony Bennett, Patti LaBelle, Arturo Sandoval and Miami Sound Machine301996Diana Ross311997“Blues Brothers Bash” featuring Dan Aykroyd, John Goodman, James Belushi, James Brown and ZZ Top321998“A Tribute to Motown’s 40th Anniversary” including Boyz II Men, Smokey Robinson, Queen Latifah, Martha Reeves and The Temptations331999“Celebration of Soul, Salsa and Swing” featuring Stevie Wonder, Gloria Estefan, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy and Savion Glover342000“A Tapestry of Nations” featuring Phil Collins, Christina Aguilera, Enrique Iglesias, and Toni Braxton352001“The Kings of Rock and Pop” featuring Aerosmith, *N’SYNC, Britney Spears, Mary J. Blige and Nelly362002U2372003Shania Twain, No Doubt and Sting382004Janet Jackson, Kid Rock, P. Diddy, Nelly and Justin Timberlake392005Paul McCartney402006The Rolling Stones412007Prince422008Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers432009Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band442010The Who452011The Black Eyed Peas, Usher and Slash462012Madonna with guests Cee Lo Green, LMFAO, M.I.A. and Nicki Minaj472013Beyonce with guests Destiny’s Child482014Bruno Mars with guests Red Hot Chili Peppers492015Katy Perry with guests Missy Elliott and Lenny Kravitz502016Coldplay with guests Beyonce and Bruno Mars512017Lady Gaga522018Justin Timberlake532019Maroon 5 with guests Travis Scott and Big Boi542020Jennifer Lopez and Shakira552021The Weeknd562022Dr. Dre, Eminem, Snoop Dogg, Kendrick Lamar and Mary J. Blige572023RihannaWhich one was the best? That’s a tough one.
-Leon
-Leon
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
Not ready to purchase? Sign up for my newsletter and receive a free book of your choice:
Oh, pick me! (only available here and on KOBO)
C’mon, space stuff!
February 11, 2023
Weekend Wrap-up Feb 11: Trailer version II
On the advice of several authors and readers, I edited the book trailer I created this week. It is slightly shorter, less wordy (with more legible font), and a tad more sci-fiey (sci-fiey? Yeah, that’s a word, sure.)
Can you read two novellas before book three comes out on April 17?
-Leon
From my blog:
Free Book Friday Feb 10: In Conversation with M.K. Weaving
Thursday Thoughts: Social Media
Weird Wednesday Feb 8: Cartoons
Tuesday Tidbits: Book Trailers
Music Monday Feb 6: Julia Michaels
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
Not ready to purchase? Sign up for my newsletter and receive a free book of your choice:
Oh, pick me! (only available here and on KOBO)
C’mon, space stuff!
February 10, 2023
Free Book Friday Feb 10: In Conversation with M.K. Weaving
M.K. Weaving was born and raised in Finland in a very small village with no street lights. She now lives in Florida with her husband. She collects seashells and takes photos of the tropical beaches in Southern Florida. M.K. loves sci-fi and classic films, and has always loved writing and all things creative. Many of her story ideas originate from dreams. Her favorite sci-fi heroes are Ellen Ripley and Sarah Connor. M.K.’s special skill is driving on crazy freeways.
Today I have the pleasure of sitting down with author M. K. Weaving. Thanks for dropping by.
Thank you, Leon! Glad to be here.
I try to do some research on my guests, but you have a very limited online footprint. Is this on purpose?
Yes. I do spend a lot of time online and I guess that’s why I want to limit my footprint. I was there when the internet was a baby and quickly realised that everything online is forever, but I’ve always loved technology, and I had the great fortune of being there when the Internet became a thing!
Seeing that I can only base my questions on rumors and hearsay, let’s begin.
Fun!
What was the first book you remember reading on your own?
Nils Karlsson Pyssling by Astrid Lindgren (who also wrote the Pippi Longstocking books). I grew up speaking Swedish, so all my childhood books were in Swedish. This book is about a boy who discovers a tiny boy under his bed. This tiny boy lives in the wall of the house and through a magical word he helps the larger boy become small so they can play together. There is a wonderful scene where they share a gigantic meat ball! I loved the feeling of magic mixed with reality, and the fact that the little boy still was a human being. Just smaller, but still human.
The only thing I remember about the Pippi Longstocking books was that her pigtails stuck straight out.
I always wondered how the pigtails were able to stay that way!
What got you into science fiction?
The original TV series Battlestar Galactica! I was still too young to understand English, but loved watching Apollo and Starbuck fight the Cylons. I loved the space ships! I also have an extremely vivid memory of seeing “The Planet of the Apes” on TV at an early age, and was blown away by the ending! I still love the movie and watch it every time it is on TV. Strange coincidence, but I got married on the cliffs above the exact location of that last famous scene which was filmed on Point Dume in Malibu, California!
Hmm. So it wasn’t New York after all … Damn them all to hell.
Maybe some serious plate tectonic movements occurred!
What authors influenced you?
Enid Blyton, Tove Jansson, Stephen King, Arthur C Clarke, Jack Vance, Isaac Asimov, Dan Simmons, Jane Austen, Charles Dickens.
That’s a good list. Do you have a favorite book?
The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. And – if I may break the rule, one more, The Compleat Dying Earth by Jack Vance.
I was going to say you can’t but, you snuck it in, so … Anyway, one fact I do know is, according to Goodreads, that you were born in Finland. What made you move to Florida— Wait. Because of the cold, right? It’s got to be because of the cold.
I grew up in Finland. Yes, it was very cold there in the winters! I once got stuck in a snowstorm on a bridge and we had to dig ourselves out until finally a truck driver pulled us out of the snow! I first moved from Finland to California, where I lived several years before moving to Florida. My husband and I drove across the entire United States in the middle of the pandemic from California to Florida!
I always like to talk about music. Are there any famous Finnish bands?
Yes! I love music and there are indeed famous Finnish bands. Let’s see…
Eppu Normaali (great Finnish vibes!)Ismo Alanko (legend as far as I’m concerned)Nightwish (I don’t listen to them. Can’t handle metal but lots of people swear by them!)Darude (played in every American sports stadium every single game)Who do you like to listen to?
I’ve been on a Belle & Sebastian and Tame Impala binge. I also love Elton John, the ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’ soundtrack, and Jungle. Oh, and DJEdit! There’s no rhyme or reason to my music taste. I love Bing Crosby, Fever Ray, and Fleetwood Mac.
Are you ready for the lightning round? Wait. I guess we should talk about your book, No End Code.
Yes!
So. In 10 words or less, what’s No End Code about?
It’s about us humans in the near future…
OK. You can have a few more.
… and where the human ends and the machine begins.
How did your book ‘No End Code’ come to be? Where did you get the ideas for your stories?
Many details in the stories are directly generated through dreams I’ve had. I’ve always found dreams incredibly helpful in my creative life. Moods, details, and scenarios unlike anything I could generate by daydreaming. No End Code came about as I was going through my collected writings and noticed that four of them belong together. An anthology format seemed suitable as I remember absolutely loving sci-fi anthologies, and still do. I subscribed to The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction for many years. There’s something uniquely satisfying in reading sci-fi short stories. I hope you’ll get a kick out of reading my sci-fi collection.
My first sci-fi book is a short story collection, so I understand the allure.
Now are you ready for the lightning round?
I’m in that starting position 100 meter sprinters take before they run!
Ready, set, go! Last binged TV show?
Oak Island. I’ve followed the Lagina brothers and their treasure hunt since the beginning!
Oh, we could have a whole other conversation about that show, but let’s continue.
Weirdest food you’ve eaten?
A Finnish Easter delicacy called ‘mämmi’ – a molasses and rye flour dessert which has the unfortunate look of… well, poop.
Time travel. Possible?
I say yes. I really really want it to be possible, at least on some level. I love time travel stories and movies!
Favorite city?
L.A.
Analog or Digital?
Analog
What does M.K stand for?
Minna and K is a secret!
Scariest animal you have encountered?
Rattlesnake.
This has been a pleasure. Thanks for chatting. Any links you want to share?
Thanks so much! My pleasure as well! Love chatting with a fellow sci-fi writer! If anyone’s curious to see more of me they can head over to Substack for my written work, and to Instagram for my photos. And, if you want to listen to my voice you can head over to Stream moterdiggladjen music | Listen to songs, albums, playlists for free on SoundCloud.
The story behind Free Book Friday:I’ve met many authors and readers during my time marketing, cross-promoting, and blogging. I think writers have a responsibility to inform readers about all the indie authors out there in the very crowded world of book publishing. You can’t do it alone, and why would you when you have a supportive group available?
Readers don’t just read one author – they stick with their favorite genres. There lies the power in cross-promotion. If one of my readers buys a book from an author I promote, then chances are there will be a reciprocal effect, or so is the hope. Do I want to boost sales? Of course I do. Do I want to boost other’s sales? Why not. It’s called karma.
Some free book offers require a newsletter sign-up, which is a small non-monetary price to pay to try out a new indie author.
Here are this week’s promos to check out:
Free Books
StoryOrigin
BookFunnelKindle Unlimited
StoryOriginPrevious promos: Discover New Authors and Free Books.
Read and Review with Kindle UnlimitedRead and Review on StoryOrigin
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
Not ready to purchase? Sign up for my newsletter and receive a free book of your choice:
Oh, pick me! (only available here and on KOBO)
C’mon, space stuff!
February 9, 2023
Thursday Thoughts: Social Media
“This is embarrassing.”I hit my daily tweet limit yesterday. I got the message last night as I was commenting on another author’s thread. I was perplexed, as I am not an excessive tweeter. Far from it. So I looked up what the limit was: 1000 (including retweets).
I then counted how many I did: 5
Yes. Five.
Yeah, probably a glitch.
I’ve never been a fan of social media. From it’s earliest versions, I always thought it as an ego stroking platform, with millions of people competing for positive affirmations. It can be damaging for younger users in their mental and personal development. But it is part of the world now and it’s not going away.
There are countless users playing with the Twitter algorithm, jockeying to get themselves more visibility than the next, and trying to gain followers “Follow me! Follow me!”.
I have connected with some wonderful people on the 3 platforms I am on, and I think I have even sold a few books too. But I’m not playing those other games.
You can tell that from the five tweets I sent yesterday.
-Leon
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
Not ready to purchase? Sign up for my newsletter and receive a free book of your choice:
Oh, pick me! (only available here and on KOBO)
C’mon, space stuff!Submit a form.
February 8, 2023
Weird Wednesday Feb 8: Cartoons
My newsletter goes out on Wednesdays:
Lines by Leon Newsletter: Feb 8
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
Not ready to purchase? Sign up for my newsletter and receive a free book of your choice:
Oh, pick me! (only available here and on KOBO)
C’mon, space stuff!
February 7, 2023
Tuesday Tidbits: Book Trailers
“It’s about time you had me back.”I know some people think the book trailer has fallen out of fashion, but I have been playing around with some programs to create one for the first book of my sci-fi trilogy. They are kinda fun to create. Here is a sneak peek at a book trailer I’ve been working on. Might need to change the font color, but I think it creates a mood.
Why am I doing a book trailer for a one-year old book? Book three comes out in April.
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
Not ready to purchase? Sign up for my newsletter and receive a free book of your choice:
Oh, pick me! (only available here and on KOBO)
C’mon, space stuff!Submit a form.
February 6, 2023
Music Monday Feb 6: Julia Michaels
There is a radio show on CBC here in Canada that occasionally does a feature called SYNTH: Songs You Need To Hear.
Now, I can’t say to someone, “You’ll like this song” (or book for that matter) because I can’t presume that others will share my taste in music (or books), so it is safer to say, “You might like this” and if they don’t like it, so be it. Maybe you will find a new favorite.
CBC MUSIC, Central · Mornings with CBC Music
Last week I shared some Julian Taylor and I was able to recycle some of my letters this week by featuring Julia Michaels.
There is something about her breathy voice and articulations that give her songs a depth of emotion that is rare in a pop song. I previously had only heard the song, When You Need Me, on the radio before (yes, I still listen to radio), so when I found the video, the explanation behind the writing of the song made sense.
Julia Carin Cavazos, known professionally as Julia Michaels, is an American singer and songwriter. Born in Iowa and raised in California, Michaels began her career writing for other artists such as Selena Gomez, Demi Lovato, and Justin Bieber
Not a bad resume.
The emotion doesn’t stop at that song either.
-Leon
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
Not ready to purchase? Sign up for my newsletter and receive a free book of your choice:
Oh, pick me! (only available here and on KOBO)
C’mon, space stuff!
February 4, 2023
Weekend Wrap-up Feb 3: You know that groundhogs hibernate, right?
I know that I get grumpy if I get woken up early …
And did you also know the first animal they tried was a bobcat, and that, let’s just say … didn’t go too well.
-Leon
From my blog:
Free Book Friday Feb 3: Brrr…
Weird Wednesday Feb 1: Cartoons and Temperature
Music Monday Jan. 30: Julian Taylor
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
Not ready to purchase? Sign up for my newsletter and receive a free book of your choice:
Oh, pick me! (only available here and on KOBO)
C’mon, space stuff!
