James Pyles's Blog, page 68
May 1, 2020
Coronavirus is no laughing matter…or is it?
Ive read a number of social media memes that have suggested the death rate due to COVID-19 has been exaggerated. I also read a New York Times article that said New York City added more than 3,700 additional people who were presumed to have died of the coronavirus but had never tested positive, which seems []
Third Place in the “Building Your Brand” project
I participated in an online contest by writing an essay about how writers and other creative people can build our brand. Heres the result. Steven Lester Carr: The panel of judges for the Building Your Brand project has selected the top three entries. First place and $50.00 goes to Elaine Marie Carnegie. Second place and []
April 30, 2020
Featured Author for the Black Hare Press Anthology “Lockdown Sci-Fi #3”
Ive already mentioned that my short story The Apollo Containment is being published in the Black Hare Press anthology Lockdown Sci-Fi #3. Heres the graphic featuring me as a contributing author. Oh, excerpt: Frankly, rows of supercomputers and the best medical experts in the country are still stumped. We know that Captain Downeys biological processes []
My short story “Betrayal” accepted in Eleanor Merry’s horror anthology “Dark Solstice”
The submission call was for up to five short stories, each between 100 and 500 words long. I submitted two and one was accepted. Heres an excerpt. Warning: its a bit spicy: Not this solstice, you wretched misogynist. Litha, the Earth Mother, his stolen antlers growing tall and wild from her forehead, and the sides []
April 28, 2020
“The Apollo Containment” Accepted into Lockdown Sci-Fi #3
Black Hare Press is producing a number of lockdown anthologies, all based on themes of SciFi, Horror, Fantasy, Phantom, and Paranormal Romance. My short story The Apollo Containment was just accepted into Lockdown Sci-Fi #3 (on that page, keep scrolling down). This is part of an ongoing submission call that will remain available as []
April 24, 2020
Guest Blog for Tuscany Bay Books: “The Journey To Barsoom”
Okay, the title is inaccurate, but thats only because I forget to include one of my own when I crafted my missive and submitted it to Richard Paolinelli. Tuscany Bay Books as part of the effort to raise awareness of their Planetary anthology series. Today, I discuss my short story The Billion Year Love, which []
Featured on the Zombie Pirate Publishing “Meet the Author” Series
As my regular readers know, my short story Buried in the Sands of Time is being featured in the Zombie Pirate Publishing SciFi anthology RAYGUN RETRO: A Science Fiction Anthology. I was recently interviewed as one of the contributors to Raygun, and that interview has since been published on ZPPs Facebook page. Heres an excerpt: []
April 23, 2020
COVID-19 Log: WIP for April 23, 2020
Editing an over 28,000 word novella takes a long time. Im actually okay with that, since Im not (paid) working today, and we dont have the grandchildren. My wife is going nuts since shes far more social than I am, and shes spent long periods of time talking by phone to our daughter and my []
April 21, 2020
Book Review of “First Lensman”
Ive been reading the legendary E.E. Doc Smiths Lensman series recently. After Triplanetary (1948 originally published as a serial in 1934), which really wasnt about the Lensmen, but did introduce a few key characters, came First Lensman (1950) which still gave off more of a 1930s flavor. While readers get their first real glimpse []
My Copy of “Spring Into SciFi 2020” Arrived Today
As my regular readers know, my short story The Colonists is featured in the Cloaked Press anthology Spring Into SciFi 2020. The book, including my story, was recently and favorably reviewed. Today, my personal copy of the anthology was delivered as you can tell from the image at the top of the page. My grandchildren []
