Steven M. Moore's Blog, page 28
October 25, 2021
Halloween…
Horror stories come in all flavors, from the hilarious to the gory. Some call them fantasy, others sci-fi, and still others speculative fiction. Stephen King and Dean Koontz have made successful careers telling them, building on that genre’s founders, authors like Mary Shelley, Edgar Allan Poe, and H. P. Lovecraft.
I have to confess I’m not a reader of horror, fantasy, or supernatural sci-fi. Gore doesn’t turn me on; zombies, werewolves, and vampires turn me off unless they’re comedic fellows; k...
October 22, 2021
“Friday Fiction” Series: Poetic Justice, Chapters Thirteen through Fifteen…
[Note from Steve: I’m having way too much fun writing these British-style mysteries to stop now. This one combines the amateur-detective theme of Irish writer Declan O’Hara paired with the professional-detective theme of Scotland Yard’s DS Margaret Bent. Enjoy.]
Poetic Justice
Copyright 2021, Steven M, Moore
Chapter Thirteen
Declan was echoing Maggie’s thoughts. Am I involved in this mess and completely in the dark about why?
He thought her focus on the Irish Rovers was one alternative, but Arch...
October 20, 2021
Places…
Settings are important in fiction. They represent the stage where the fictional drama takes place. Some of mine are real; some I imagine (the ET settings are obviously creations of my imagination); and some that seem real aren’t (Google Maps and Google Earth are an author’s useful tools, though). You can have some fun trying to guess what places I’ve actually visited (probably more than you think).
Most of Chen and Castilblanco’s cases begin in NYC, which I know well enough; it’s just thirteen m...
October 18, 2021
Undeserved preference…
Note from Steve: How could I forget? October is a busy holiday month—Columbus Day aka Native Americans’ Day and Hallowed Eve (watch for those kiddies, whatever day your town celebrates it!). But the whole month is Hispanic Heritage Month. I was once so immersed in Hispanic culture (in Colombia) that I dreamed in Spanish even when I returned to the States. Of course, I enjoyed a lot of that culture as I grew up in my native California. So, readers, let’s celebrate all these holidays!
I can unders...
October 15, 2021
“Friday Fiction” Series: Poetic Justice, Chapters Ten through Twelve…
[Note from Steve: I’m having way too much fun writing these British-style mysteries to stop now. This one combines the amateur-detective theme of Irish writer Declan O’Hara paired with the professional-detective theme of Scotland Yard’s DS Margaret Bent. Enjoy.]
Poetic Justice
Copyright 2021, Steven M. Moore
Chapter Ten
Declan hadn’t been too happy to hear about Heathrow’s murder. Am I next? What’s going on?
He was happy, though, that his Da had contributed some valuable information to DS Bent a...
October 13, 2021
Harry Bosch…
A while ago, as I was reviewing a book for Bookpleasures.com, something struck me. I was noting how the author’s style reminded of Michael Connelly’s early work, in particular the Harry Bosch books. The first, The Black Echo, came out in 1992, and I remember being impressed. And then I thought: Bosch is like my Detective Castilblanco! Not the same, of course, but similar. Harry was a tunnel rat in Vietnam; Castilblanco was a SEAL who had many missions in the Middle East, Afghanistan in particula...
October 11, 2021
Book review of Woodward and Costa’s Peril…
Peril. Bob Woodward and Robert Costa, authors (2021). Who this book is not about: While the authors are mostly responsible for causing the media hype about the Milley-Pelosi interchange after January 6 (Trump aka Il Duce called Milley a traitor), it’s neither about the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs nor the Speaker of the House. It’s about the transition (or lack thereof) from the administration of the worst president in US history to the administration of the newly elected president, to whom the ...
October 8, 2021
“Friday Fiction” Series: Poetic Justice, Chapters Seven through Nine…
[Note from Steve: I’m having way too much fun writing these British-style mysteries to stop now. This one combines the amateur-detective theme of Irish writer Declan O’Hara paired with the professional-detective theme of Scotland Yard’s DS Margaret Bent. Enjoy.]
Poetic Justice
Copyright 2021, Steven M. Moore
Chapter Seven
Maggie wanted to talk to him at her place of work. That was convenient, because Declan had just had a traditional English breakfast at The Golden Goose as a reward for a mostly...
October 6, 2021
“Inspiring Songs” #5: “Star Trek: The Next Generation” theme…
The original Star Trek series had better episodes than any others in the Star Trek franchise. They’re dated now, especially if you’re looking for razzle-dazzle special effects. (They had to make do with what they had back then—literally!) Yet many of those original episodes were written by real sci-fi writers, not some young screenwriting novices. (The same can be said about the earlier Twilight Zone, even more so.) But The Next Generation‘s theme song was much more inspiring than the one from t...
October 4, 2021
The high cost of most entertainment…
The exception is books! But first, a bit of history…
It all started with cable’s “On Demand”-type offerings (most cable companies had and have that), then HBO with premium movies, and now a whole Jurassic menagerie of streaming services and streaming bundles, a business so lucrative that even Disney jumped in and now competes with other streaming T-rexes. Expensive movie subscriptions, anyone?
And those video games! Lawsuits have been lost or won about who owns them and who can sell them, and th...
