Justin R. Macumber's Blog, page 15

HAYWIRE out March 13th!

How's that cover, huh? Because HAYWIRE is being published by a small press, I had more control over what my cover would look like than a lot of other authors would, and I knew my brother — who'd worked on previous covers me, all to my delight — was up to the challenge. What do you think? Do you like it? Please let me know.

Also, the book will be releasing on March 13th in both print and ebook versions. You won't be able to just walk into a store and see it on a shelf since Gryphonwood is a smaller press, but you should be able to order it at your local store, as well as online. I hope that you do, and that you contact me to tell me what you thought. I'm really excited. Are you?

HAYWIRE out March 18th!

How's that cover, huh? Because HAYWIRE is being published by a small press, I had more control over what my cover would look like than a lot of other authors would, and I knew my brother — who'd worked on previous covers me, all to my delight — was up to the challenge. What do you think? Do you like it? Please let me know.

Also, the book will be releasing on March 18th in both print and ebook versions. You won't be able to just walk into a store and see it on a shelf since Gryphonwood is a smaller press, but you should be able to order it at your local store, as well as online. I hope that you do, and that you contact me to tell me what you thought. I'm really excited. Are you?

A writing update

Hey, everyone, sorry it's been so long since I last did an update on where I'm at with my writing. I could roll out my usual excuses, but I won't. Suffice it to say, I've been busy as hell. But, today is a calm morning, so let me take advantage of it by bring you up to speed…

First up, HAYWIRE! The editor of Gryphonwood Press sent me an edited version of my manuscript a little over a month ago with notes on further edits he'd like to see me make. When I got them I thought, "Oh, I'll be able to knock this out in a week, if it takes that long." Man was I wrong. What I'd failed to realize was that HAYWIRE is a novel I'd finished a couple of years ago, and since then I've evolved as a writer, and if I wanted to make the book as good as it could be, I'd have to make a ton of little changes all through it to bring it up to the level I'm at now. Then, to make things even more difficult, the changes I was asked to make were more far-reaching than I'd initially thought, causing extensive rewrites and wholesale slaughter of previous chapters. It was an alphabetical massacre. Now, a little over a month later, I'm done. I've corrected and changed it as much as I'm able. Yesterday I sent it back to the publisher, and now I wait to hear back. Once I know more, I'll let you know.

A MINOR MAGIC, which is being published by Crescent Moon Press, has emailed me about edits to that manuscript. They want to wait a little while between the publishing of that novel and HAYWIRE, which I totally agree with. When I know the date HAYWIRE comes out, I'll let CMP know so we can schedule the editing of A MINOR MAGIC.

I was nearly finished with the first draft of STILL WATER when the edits for HAYWIRE came in. Now that HAYWIRE is off my plate, I'll be getting back to STILL WATER. I'd like it if I could finish the first draft, and then let it cool while I edited A MINOR MAGIC. That way, when I got back to it, STILL WATER would be out of my head and I could come to it fresh. After I do an editing pass on it, I'll send it to some beta readers to get their take on it.

And as for my short stories, I've actually just had two of them published. My sci-fi noir story THE DAME WORE WHITE has been published by Flagship Magazine, and my horror story IN THE DEEP DARK has come out from Abbatoir. I'm extremely proud of both stories, and I like that they represent me as a full-spectrum writer. I love science fiction, I love fantasy, and I love horror, so it's only natural that I write the same way. Hopefully I've got something for you no matter your tastes. Please click on one of those links to support not only me, but also the wonderful people who think enough of my work to publish it.

And… that's it for now. As always, I'll try to post more quickly next time. Have a good one!

Movie Review – THE DEVIL INSIDE

Before you go see THE DEVIL INSIDE, the latest horror movie to hit the big screen, give my review a listen. This is an excerpt from a weekly podcast I'm proud to be part of called The Hollywood Outsider. Fair warning, it's a bit saucy. Let me know what you think of the review, and the movie if you go see it too.

New Years Resolutions

Happy New Year, everyone! I hope you celebrated well and responsibly. Krista and I watched a ton of movies and started playing "Skyrim" on the ol' Xbox 360 (we just finished playing "Saint's Row: The Third," and I honestly think it was the most fun game I played all of last year). All in all, being the old man that I am, I consider that a good way to end 2011 and start the new year off right. But, it wouldn't be a new year if there weren't some resolutions to go with it, so if you're interested I've decided to post mine here. Maybe if I have the whole world keeping me accountable I'll make a greater effort to actually stick with them. Please comment periodically to see how I'm doing.

Anyway, here we go:

1. Live healthier. This means eating better and being more active. I have a gym membership, and access to a personal trainer, yet I treat both with regular indifference. That needs to change. Plus, I just need to eat healthier. No more midnight snacks!

2. Treat my writing more like the career it is and less like the thing I do when I'm not busy doing everything else. I've let my writing take a backseat far too often in the past, and I have to stop that. My daily goal is 2,000 words written. That's an achievable number.

3. Read one book a week. Lately I've fallen into the habit of watching pointless TV shows, and I know I'd be so much better off reading instead, especially since my stack of books to read is taller than I am. So, one book a week. Another achievable number.

And that's it! I think those are all realistic resolutions. Will I succeed? Can I dare to dream? Check back this time next year and we'll find out.

Book review – Myke Cole’s SHADOW OPS: CONTROL POINT

When I think about spellcasting, wizards, and far-flung magical lands, the next idea to jump into my mind usually isn’t the US military, but luckily for all of us author Myke Cole made just such a connection, and his debut novel SHADOW OPS: CONTROL POINT is the result. One part J.K. Rowling, two parts Tom Clancy, CONTROL POINT is a taut military thriller, but instead of guns and terrorists Mr. Cole fills his story with humans bursting with magical powers, powers that spring from a distant world that could be our salvation, or the source of our destruction. And, unlike most urban fantasies where magic runs wild in the streets, unconstrained and unregulated, Mr. Cole — who has a deep military background himself — brings his unique perspective to the genre and shows us a world where the government has clamped down on all magical activity, and where those who have the ability to wield fire, air, and earth are pressed into serving the United States armed forces. Can such power be contained? Can beings who control the very fabric of reality be controlled? These questions and more lie at the heart of SHADOW OPS: CONTROL POINT, and the answers will blow you right out of your seat. I thoroughly enjoyed Mr. Cole’s debut novel, and if you want to see what happens when “Lord of the Rings” is smashed into “Clear And Present Danger,” buy his novel and join the excitement. You won’t be disappointed.

SHADOW OPS: CONTROL POINT will be available in print and on the Kindle January 31st, 2012.

Book review – Myke Cole's SHADOW OPS: CONTROL POINT

When I think about spellcasting, wizards, and far-flung magical lands, the next idea to jump into my mind usually isn't the US military, but luckily for all of us author Myke Cole made just such a connection, and his debut novel SHADOW OPS: CONTROL POINT is the result. One part J.K. Rowling, two parts Tom Clancy, CONTROL POINT is a taut military thriller, but instead of guns and terrorists Mr. Cole fills his story with humans bursting with magical powers, powers that spring from a distant world that could be our salvation, or the source of our destruction. And, unlike most urban fantasies where magic runs wild in the streets, unconstrained and unregulated, Mr. Cole — who has a deep military background himself — brings his unique perspective to the genre and shows us a world where the government has clamped down on all magical activity, and where those who have the ability to wield fire, air, and earth are pressed into serving the United States armed forces. Can such power be contained? Can beings who control the very fabric of reality be controlled? These questions and more lie at the heart of SHADOW OPS: CONTROL POINT, and the answers will blow you right out of your seat. I thoroughly enjoyed Mr. Cole's debut novel, and if you want to see what happens when "Lord of the Rings" is smashed into "Clear And Present Danger," buy his novel and join the excitement. You won't be disappointed.

SHADOW OPS: CONTROL POINT will be available in print and on the Kindle January 31st, 2012.

My Top 5 Sci-Fi TV Shows Of All Time

Okay, I thought that some of the people who come here might want to know a bit more about what makes me tick, and one of the best ways to know someone is to know their passions, their likes, what it is that they appreciate and admire. I've talked about some of that before, but perhaps a weekly list of my favorite things would help. My first list, then, will be something that I'm especially passionate about — sci-fi TV. Science fiction runs through my veins, and of course being a member of Generation X I was raised on television, so it's no great surprise that sci-fi TV shows would be something I would be heavily steeped in. I hope you enjoy this little experiment, and if so, let me know in the comments section. Now, here we go…

… But first, a little disclaimer. I'm one of those people who's a stickler about genre labels. I'm all for style mash-ups and blending genres, but for the purposes of this list I wanted to keep to solid, without-question sci-fi television. Some of my favorite shows have sci-fi elements to them (hell, even Buffy had a robot or two during its run), but here I'm going purely and unequivocally science fiction, meaning that the story is based on science, no matter how fantastical. If mysticism or fantasy takes equal or greater prominence to the story, then it's out. Okay? Okay. Then let's go.

Justin's #5 Sci-Fi Show Of All Time

If you'd told me a couple of years ago that Doctor Who would be my fifth favorite sci-fi show of all time, I'd have slapped you across the mouth and called you a filthy liar. Luckily you didn't do that, so I don't have to make an awkward apology to you now. Yes, Doctor Who is amazing. Once the province of British citizens and effete TV elitists, Doctor Who is now a truly world-wide phenomenon, and much of the credit for that goes to Russell T. Davies, who helped bring the show back to life in 2005 and served as its head writer. Well done, sir!

I probably wouldn't have given Doctor Who a chance were to not for two people. The first is Amanda Cales, a woman I came to know through my Dead Robots' Society podcast. She constantly sang the show's praises, and since I respected her opinion, I knew it was something I should look into. The second person was Christopher Eccleston, the actor who played the role of the Doctor in its 2005 return to television. I was familiar with Eccleston through two movies he'd been in ("Gone In 60 Seconds" and "28 Days Later"), but it was his role in the TV show Heroes that made me want to see more of his work. So, when those two things collided, I picked up Series 1 of the new Doctor Who on DVD.

And, I loved it. Definitely British, but in all the right ways. The Doctor was a more frenetic character than I'd expected from the fleeting clips I'd seen of previous Doctors from the 60′s and 70′s, but that was okay. And then, when David Tennant came on to play the Doctor (you have to watch the show to see why different people play him over time), that frenetic vibe went through the roof. The latest Doctor is played by Matt Smith, who is much younger than any previous actor who's played the role. I'll be honest, I expected the quality of the show to dip with his entrance to the show. Not only was he really young (which I figured was a transparent attempt by the BBC to get a younger audience), but his companion was also young (watch the show to understand why he has companions). Even worse, though, was the fact that Russell T. Davies had left the show, and in his place was Steven Moffat, someone who'd written some previous episodes but who I wasn't overly familiar with. Now Moffat was suddenly the head writer, show runner, and executive producer. It's easy to see why I was apprehensive, but thankfully the show has not only continued to be good, it's been amazing. I actually think that Matt Smith's Doctor is the best yet, and the scope of the show has expanded in fantastic ways. Hell, last season they even did some filming right here in the USA, and that was a first for the show.

Now, after explaining all that, what it is about Doctor Who that I love? I think it's the breadth of the story they're telling. The show constantly takes risks, it never goes where you think it's going to, and the occasional infusion of new cast members means it never gets stale. Yes, sometimes the makeup and special effects can get sketchy, but so what. It's the story that counts, and any show that's willing to do the work it takes to create plots and subplots that take entire seasons or more to tell is a show I'm going to support. If you've not watched Doctor Who, and you're a fan of sci-fi, then do yourself a favor and pick up the Eccleston season. You don't have to know a single thing about the show prior to that, as they bring you up to speed gracefully. Go, watch it. I'll wait…

Justin's #4 Sci-Fi Show Of All Time

When I heard that they were rebooting Battlestar Galactica, I couldn't have been more bored. Why do it? I hadn't cared one bit about the original version, so what could they possibly do that would make a new version worth a crap? Oh, man, how little I knew. Suffice it to say they did a lot. What started off as a sci-fi tale of flesh versus steel quickly became a spiritual story about what it means to be human, what it means to have a soul.

Battlestar Galactica was everything I'd wanted Star Trek: Voyager to be – dark, dangerous, gritty, uncompromising. Nothing was ever easy for the crew of the Galactica, and the struggles they went through went far past the flesh into realms most sci-fi shows are too scared to even look at. I was constantly amazed at how unflinching the show's writers would be, and how they could keep upping themselves. I implore you to go and watch the miniseries that started the reboot, and then watch the season one opener "33." If you're not hooked after that, I don't know if we can be friends.

Justin's #3 Sci-Fi Show Of All Time

The X-Files was the show that made me believe (for fans of the show, please pardon that pun) that television could produce something truly profound. I was so used to shows that only went skin deep, that wrapped everything up and moved on by episode's end, so when The X-Files came along and created something that had depth and that told its story over weeks and months, I was hooked. It didn't hurt that the two leads — David Duchovny as Agent Fox Mulder and Gillian Anderson as Agent Dana Scully — were incredibly charismatic and had wonderful chemistry with each other. This show had the perfect ingredients to make the sort of TV stew I could eat for years and years.

Sadly, The X-Files came in like a lion yet went out like a lamb. As much as I respect show creator Chris Carter for what he did, I'll always wonder why he didn't take a firmer hand with the show and guide it toward a definitive ending. The X-Files became a victim of its own success, not to mention the lack of story care it really needed. Had Carter or someone else stepped up and put it on a definitive track that had a known ending, I think The X-Files would have been the stuff of legends. Now, for most people, it's just an interesting footnote. Personally, in spite of its failings and flaws, I still love the show. When it was hitting on all cylinders, I really was a marvel to behold. And, it also spawned a short-lived spin-off called The Lone Gunmen that was as funny as it was brief.

As a closing thought on the show, I know there's been talk about doing another movie. If that's true, and if Christ Carter is reading this, please make a movie that deals with the 2012 alien invasion that the show always talked about. It was laid out in the show that the aliens would come in force, and that 2012 was their due date. Well, that's next year, and I can't think of a better way to send the show off into history than to tell that final story. If there's a god out there, this will happen.

Justin's #2 Sci-Fi Show Of All Time

Some of you might be wondering why it's taken me so long to mention a Star Trek show, and others might be wondering why this isn't #1. To both of you I say, hear me out. I love Star Trek, and have ever since The Next Generation started in 1987, which was also my Freshman year of high school. Perhaps it was kismet that the year I started to really mature as a person is also the year I became a Star Trek fan. I'd of course seen episodes of the original series when I was younger, and I'd seen the movies, but they'd never really done anything for me. I think it was because they were artifacts of their time, and as a kid I was interested in the new, the hot, the now. Well, in '87, that was exactly what Star Trek: TNG was. Picard was my first captain, Q my first Trek villain, and I've not been the same since. The season five episode entitled "The Inner Light" is one of the most powerful, most profound hours of television that's ever been produced, and I dare anyone to say otherwise.

Now, even though TNG is the series I'm highlighting here, let me say that I respect all the series that Star Trek has produced, even the lesser ones (cough*Enterprise*cough*Voyager*cough), but TNG was my first Trek love, and I suspect it'll always be my greatest. It was so unlike the sci-fi loves that had come before it, and I think it helped round me out as a genre fan. I'm just as eager to discuss Star Trek as I am Star Wars or anything else. I don't believe you have to be either a Trek fan or a Star Wars fan. I love them all, each for their own gifts and quirks. I'll boldly go to a galaxy far, far away, and be happy to do it.

But, if this is a sci-fi TV show list, and I've put Star Trek at #2, then what could possible be better? Funny you should ask…

Justin's #1 Sci-Fi Show Of All Time

Babylon 5, baby! Yep, this might be heresy to some, but I don't care. For my money, sci-fi television gets no greater than B5. This show is DEEP, its story is COMPLEX, and if you really want to understand its full glory, you HAVE to watch it from the very beginning. It's part Star Trek, part Star Wars, part Excalibur, and part Lord of the Rings. Does that sound odd? Hell yeah it does, but it works. It works like gangbusters! I have yet to convince someone to give it a shot who hasn't come back thanking me. More than any other show I'd ever seen, Babylon 5 didn't give a crap about episodic television. If you want your story wrapped up at the end of the episode, or at the end of the season, think again. B5 was a five-season long adventure right from the very beginning, and even though things got rocky near the end, it stayed true and told that five-year story from beginning to end. I was blown away by how it all came together to reach its crescendo, and you will be too if you give it a chance.

A quick word though, before you run out and buy the series (you were going to do that, right?) — even though the show was planned from the beginning to last five seasons, with every season mapped out well in advance, things didn't go as planned. PTEN, the network B5 aired on, told show creator J. Michael Straczynski that he wasn't going to get his full five seasons, and would in fact have to wrap it up in the fourth. So, as you can imagine, he had to scramble to truncate the story, cutting out plots all over the place to hone in on the central story. Well sure enough, after all that was done, the TNT network came along and gave Straczynski his fifth season after all, which he filled out by taking some of those cut plots and making them into a new season story, as well as finding new ways to bring the finished story along for the ride. In spite of that sort of Frankenstein treatment, the end result was still amazing. I defy anyone to watch the final episode, "Sleeping In Light," and not tear up. I do, every single time.

Babylon 5 is a magnificent achievement not just in sci-fi television, but also in plain old storytelling. I owned the show when it was on VHS, I own it now on DVD, and I'll own it when it comes out in a new format. It is television at its finest, and I recommend it to everyone I meet – genre fan or not. Thank you, Mr. Straczynski. Thank you so much. You've given me a gift I don't think I can ever repay.

Now, before we go, let me list a few shows that nearly made the cut but didn't make it for whatever reason. Maybe here you'll see a show you thought I should have mentioned.

LOST - This show is without doubt my favorite show of all time. Yep, I think that highly of it. BUT, while it has some sci-fi trappings, it's not really sci-fi. It's a spiritual story more than anything else, a fantasy. I wanted to list it here, if only so that I could once again sing its praises, but I couldn't.

Firefly - I have no doubt that had the Fox Network not been complete morons and given Joss Whedon more episodes and more seasons to tell the story of Firefly, it would have eventually ended up as my #1 show. How can I say that with such certainty? Because even though Firefly only lasted for eleven episodes (fourteen episodes were actually produced, and you can see them all on DVD and Blu-Ray), it still nearly landed at my #1 spot. It's THAT good! But, for this list I wanted shows that had lasted at least a couple of seasons, that had had a chance to develop and grow. Still, Firefly is a spectacular show, and the hatred I feel toward Fox for cancelling it still burns bright and hot. If you've not watched it, please do so, and then watch the movie "Serenity," which Paramount was kind enough to help Whedon make so that he could try and finish his story. It isn't really finished, not by a damn sight, but it's better than nothing…

The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr - This is one of those shows that not too many people seem to remember, which I guess is why it only lasted one season, though at least the idiots at Fox let this one go for a more than full 27 episode count. From the outside, this show looked like a Western, but once you got into it you realized that this was really a sci-fi show, and I don't know if people were really ready for that kind of thing. Bruce Campbell was so damn good as the titular character, he had a great cast to work off of, and as silly as the show could be it was always grounded by its heart. Another Fox blunder.

Farscape - I avoided this show for a long time, figuring it was just muppets in space, but I couldn't have been more wrong, and I'm glad I eventually wised up. This show is unlike anything else you'll ever see, and everyone involved gave it their all. And, it probably has one of the ballsiest stories TV has ever produced, in that Earth and we humans play next to no role in it at all outside of the main character. Everyone else is an alien, and all the action takes place on the far side of the universe. And, for a show that had a lot of prosthetic characters, it had more heart and emotion than most fully human shows could ever hope to produce.

And… yeah, I think that's it. I could go on about more shows, like Andromeda and Chuck and Space: Above & Beyond, but really at this point I'm just flogging a tired horse. I hope you enjoyed this excursion into my mind, as crazy as it can be, but I especially hope that it has encouraged you to take a look at a show you might have avoided before, or maybe didn't even know existed. I have no idea what list I'll put together next time, so if you have a suggestion, please let me know.

Good night, and be well.

Movember – Support the fight against men's cancer

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For those who don't know what Movember is, I'll let the site that organizes the event tell you:

During November each year, Movember is responsible for the sprouting of moustaches on thousands of men's faces, in the US and around the world. With their Mo's, these men raise vital funds and awareness for men's health, specifically prostate cancer and other cancers that affect men.

Once registered at www.movember.com, men start Movember 1st clean shaven. For the rest of the month, these selfless and generous men, known as Mo Bros, groom, trim and wax their way into the annals of fine moustachery. Supported by the women in their lives, Mo Sistas, Movember Mo Bros raise funds by seeking out sponsorship for their Mo-growing efforts.

Mo Bros effectively become walking, talking billboards for the 30 days of November. Through their actions and words they raise awareness by prompting private and public conversation around the often ignored issue of men's health.

At the end of the month, Mo Bros and Mo Sistas celebrate their gallantry and valor by either throwing their own Movember party or attending one of the infamous Gala Partés held around the world by Movember, for Movember.

And, to make sure that I do my part to help this worthy cause, I've shaved off my goatee, signed up with the site, and am now asking people to donate. If you'd care to lend your dollars to this effort, please go to http://mobro.co/JustinMacumber and make your donation. We can use every dollar you'd be so generous to give. Thank you in advance.

Oh, here's what I look like tonight, just so you know I'm on the up and up:

I hate getting bad news, but especially when it's late…

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Back around 1993 or so I remember looking over the shelves of my local bookstore and coming across a book by the name of "Vampire$". What caught my attention, as I'm sure you can guess, was that little dollar sign at the end. What was that about? Was this a book about rich vampires? What in the world? So, I picked it up and checked out the back of the cover to see what this strange book and its title were all about…

From Amazon's description, "Vampire$" is… "about a tightly knit group of professional vampire killers. They may say they're in it for the money, but their death-defying bravado and warm male friendships are as intense as those in any soldier-hero epic. The irrepressible, foul-mouthed, hard-drinkin' Jack Crow–decked out in high-tech chain mail and wielding a fearsome crossbow–is the leader of the bunch. He's the sort of man who screams obscenities at the pope, and then (after a lot of booze) weeps in the pontiff's lap over the horrors he's witnessed."

Vampire hunters? For money? Backed by the Vatican? Yep, that was definitely my type of book. I couldn't buy it and read it fast enough. But, while reading it, I was hit by a huge surprise — one of the locations used in the book was Cleburne, Texas, a small town not ten miles from where I was living, a place I knew all too well. What was a tiny Texas town doing in a novel? Later I discovered that the author, John Steakley, was actually from Cleburne, and that his father owned a car dealership in the Fort Worth area (where I happen to live). Seeing a place like that in a book everyone around the world could read struck me as insanely cool.

When I was done reading the book I went out and looked for more from Steakley. That was when I found the novel "Armor". Amazon describes this one as… "Felix is an Earth soldier, encased in special body armor designed to withstand Earth's most implacable enemy-a bioengineered, insectoid alien horde. But Felix is also equipped with internal mechanisms that enable him, and his fellow soldiers, to survive battle situations that would destroy a man's mind.

This is a remarkable novel of the horror, the courage, and the aftermath of combat-and how the strength of the human spirit can be the greatest armor of all."

Frankly, that's a pretty poor description of what is an intense and engaging story about what a person must become to survive the horror of war. The closest comparison is obviously "Starship Troopers" by Heinlein, but "Armor" is a much darker story, and the story is less interested in dealing with future politics and more in getting inside the struggle to survive. Just an amazing read.

Once that book was put down I sought out more from Mr. Steakley, but sadly there weren't any. For years I kept looking, but nothing new ever popped up. When the internet finally rolled around I looked to see if he had a website, which he did, but it seemed to be run by fans, and all it ever said about new work was "no information." Ugh. For such a talented writer to not use and share his gift was sad.

Today I found out that John Steakley died nearly a year ago. Goodreads says that he passed away in his home after a long illness. I couldn't find any further information. Apparently he had worked on a sequel to "Armor," but he was never able to finish it. This is all very sad news to me, and I feel especially bad that it took me so long to find out about it.

To the family and friends of John Steakley, let me offer my sincerest sympathies for your loss. He was an amazing writer, and I'm sure he was a wonderful person to know and love. The world is a poorer place without him and the stories he had inside. My condolences to everyone…