Steven M. Moore's Blog, page 122
August 22, 2016
Monday words of wisdom…
A photon checks into a hotel and the bellhop asks him if he has any luggage. The photon replies, “No, I’m travelling light.”
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On sale: The Golden Years of Virginia Morgan. This sci-fi thriller will be on sale at Smashwords for $0.99, reduced from $2.99 (67% discount) from now until September 1. Use the coupon code FU54W. First question: what will the U.S. in the future do with retirees with Top Secret information? Second question: how do you prevent the assassination of a presidential cand...
August 19, 2016
Mini-Reviews #22…
[Note: these reviews are generally reserved for R&R books I’ve found entertaining. They are NOT on Amazon, and please don’t query me to review your book here. I do my “official reviewing” at Bookpleasures.com–query there instead.]
The Nuremberg Puzzle. Laurence O’Bryan, author (Ardua, 2016). The PR for this novel calls it the “most controversial mystery of 2016.” Hmm. It’s not very controversial—people have been wondering about the Catholic Church’s support of the Nazi regime for years—so it’...
August 17, 2016
Steve’s Shorts: Siege…
[Sometimes a story will lead a reporter to the unexpected…]
Siege
Copyright 2016, Steven M. Moore
“Who wants the story?”
Marguerite Favreau raised her hand. So did three others attending the meeting.
The ezine’s editor studied his group of volunteers. “This isn’t an easy assignment. Let’s hear ideas from the volunteers.”
Marguerite went first. There were a few backup assignments on her list, but this one had caught her attention. Roger Montgomery was an enigma, a mercenary who had retired and...
August 16, 2016
Should Turkey be in NATO?
Recent events justify this question. First, the coup attempt was evidence for a country in turmoil. Second, the crackdown after that attempt—let’s call it for what it was, a Stalin-like purge of most anyone who has spoken out against the current government, including university personnel—represent several kilometers more down that bloody brick road that leads to fascism. Third, pointing the finger at the U.S. as the cause of the coup because their scapegoat is self-exiled in the U.S. has no l...
August 15, 2016
Monday words of wisdom…
The system is more corrupt than ever and I think people are ready to change that. What I’m doing now is practicing political medicine.—Dr. Jill Stein
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On sale: The Golden Years of Virginia Morgan. This sci-fi thriller will be on sale at Smashwords for $0.99, reduced from $2.99 (67% discount) from now until September 1. Use the coupon code FU54W. First question: what will the U.S. in the future do with retirees with Top Secret information? Second question: how do you prevent the assassinati...
August 12, 2016
Movie Reviews #33…
Star Trek Beyond is too confined. Justin Lin, director. This is #3 in the new parallel universe of the franchise. The screenplay by Simon Pegg (Scotty) and Doug Jung (Ben) is a wee bit slow at the start, but it soon becomes another breathless summer action film. I could have done without the futuristic Harley. I like Chris Pine (Kirk), but Patrick Stewart (Picard) was and will always be my idea of what a starship captain should be. Maybe Pine is channeling Shatner? Nothing logical about his p...
August 11, 2016
News and Notices from the Writing Trenches #129…
Wild about Harry? Not so fast! First, what’s hit the bookstores and brought out wizards, muggles, and so forth wasn’t written by Rowling—her name is prominently featured on the cover in a blatant show of brand borrowing designed to entrap the naïve. Second, it’s a play, not a novel, the written version of a drama that has already opened in London. Third, Harry is all grownup and sending his own kids to magic school. This exploitation of a brand name is as flagrant as when the Chines bought Le...
August 9, 2016
Why American representative democracy isn’t representative…
Britain has the Conservative and Labour parties. We have the GOP and Dems. France’s two main parties are the Socialist Party and Republican Party, while Germany’s are the Social Democratic and Christian Democratic parties. Western democracies tend to have two major parties, whether their system of government is parliamentary or like ours. In parliamentary systems, more sharing of power is done, because a multitude of minor parties often guarantees that two or more parties have to join forces...
August 8, 2016
Monday words of wisdom…
What injures the health of the climate also injures human health.—Dr. Jill Stein
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On sale: The Golden Years of Virginia Morgan. This sci-fi thriller will be on sale at Smashwords for $0.99, reduced from $2.99 (67% discount) from now until September 1. Use the coupon code FU54W. First question: what will the U.S. in the future do with retirees with Top Secret information? Second question: how do you prevent the assassination of a presidential candidate? Third question: is there room for rom...
August 4, 2016
Theme v. plot…
[An oldie but goodie that bears repeating…]
In essay-land (that includes op-ed, of course), theme rules: you have to have at least one theme to opine. For writing fiction, not so much. And, perhaps because I do both, I make a semantical distinction between theme and plot when I write fiction. A good story doesn’t need themes per se, but it does need a plot. But one or two themes make for a better story—they enhance the plot. The theme or themes in a story are motivating issues: spousal infide...
