Phil Giunta's Blog, page 39
September 21, 2018
Fan Fiction – Week XVI – “Star Wars: Pursuit of Force” Part II
In our second act, Luke Skywalker encounters the enigmatic Jianna Droxx on the planet Steruub—just before the Empire arrives. Meanwhile, Han Solo departs for Ord Mantell with two Alliance Intelligence agents to broker a black market deal for the Rebellion…
Fan Fiction – Week XVI – “Star Wars: Pursuit of Force” Part Two
In our second act, Luke Skywalker encounters the enigmatic Jianna Droxx on the planet Steruub—just before the Empire arrives. Meanwhile, Han Solo departs for Ord Mantell with two Alliance Intelligence agents to broker a black market deal for the Rebellion…
September 18, 2018
Kickstarter Updates – FREEDOM’S BLOOD and LIKE MOTHER, LIKE DAUGHTERS
Steven H. Wilson and I are just over a week into our Kickstarter campaign to fund the publication of our double horror novella, which includes Steve’s vampire tale, FREEDOM’S BLOOD and my paranormal mystery, LIKE MOTHER, LIKE DAUGHTERS featuring Miranda Lorensen (from my novels By Your Side and Testing the Prisoner).
The book will be formatted in the style of the classic ACE Doubles where you read one story, then flip the book over to read the other.
Each week during the campaign, we’ve posted excerpts from both novellas over on the Firebringer Press website. For the past two weeks, we presented the opening scenes from LIKE MOTHER, LIKE DAUGHTERS. This week, we posted the same for FREEDOM’S BLOOD. More updates are forthcoming, including excerpts from some of the books we’re offering as rewards for your donations.
We hope you enjoy these story samples and will consider donating to our campaign so we can bring you this exciting new book!
September 14, 2018
Murder and Mayhem at the “Bottom of the Hour”
At the end of June 2017, a co-worker of mine inherited enough money from the sale of his late mother’s house that he purchased a bright yellow Corvette in cash and decided to take the summer off. On his last day with the company, our entire team took him to lunch, after which, I was treated to a ride back to the office in the yellow Corvette. As we shot down an open stretch of highway, during which all the blood probably rushed from my face and my lunch threatened to resurface, an idea occurred to me. What if the car were haunted?
And no, I don’t mean possessed like Stephen King’s Christine.
Later that night, I sat down and scribbled out a quick outline about a young man named Victor who inherits enough money from the sale of his late parents’ property to escape city life and buy a house in the country. Of course, he’ll need a car. Buses don’t run out to the sticks.
Victor’s best friend, Toni, convinces him to buy a used but pristine Camaro. Its only flaw is that the dashboard clock is stuck at 1:30AM (hence the story’s title, “Bottom of the Hour”). Shortly after, our hero begins to experience disturbing visions of a man with a silver gun who consistently warns Victor that the car doesn’t belong to him.
At the same time, a beautiful woman named Erica moves into Victor’s apartment complex and the two hit it off immediately. Money, new car, new girlfriend. Things are looking up for our hero, until he discovers that everyone who rides in his Camaro ends up severely injured—or worse—shortly after.
And always at 1:30AM.
After Erica is attacked by an invisible entity in her apartment at that exact time, Victor enlists Toni’s help to investigate the history of the Camaro in the hopes of determining the identity of the man in his visions before he claims his next victim.
After two drafts of the story, I still felt there was something missing so I added two ingredients to increase the tension and give Victor a personal quirk. First, I took an idea from another story that I was working on at the time called “Death Knell” about a six-year-old boy who is “gifted” with the ability to hear death coming after surviving a car accident that killed his parents. I gave that ability and backstory to Victor instead.
Although he possesses this ability, Victor is not always able to intervene. As a result, he keeps what Toni calls “The Grim Reaper’s Scrapbook”—a binder full of obituaries of those people Victor could not save. It’s Victor’s subliminal way of punishing himself.
With those additional elements in place, “Bottom of the Hour” finally came together as a chilling paranormal mystery and I was delighted when editors JM Reinbold and Weldon Burge accepted the story for A PLAGUE OF SHADOWS—available now on Amazon!
September 13, 2018
Fan Fiction – Week XV – “Star Wars: Pursuit of Force”
My first and only Star Wars fan fic was written in 1997, six years after Timothy Zahn’s trilogy of novels (beginning with Heir to the Empire) reinvigorated the Expanded Universe and two years before the dreadful prequels began.
However, the only background material I used for “Pursuit of Force” was what we learned in the original trilogy of films. I wondered what might have occurred in the time between A New Hope (ANH) and The Empire Strikes Back (TESB) without referencing any novels or short stories that might have addressed this at the time.
In TESB, while at the Rebel base on Hoth, Han Solo makes an offhanded comment to Leia about encountering a bounty hunter on the planet Ord Mantell. What was that about? Why did Han go there between Yavin and Hoth? What of Luke? Would he be interested in learning more about Obi-Wan Kenobi and if so, where would his curiosity lead him? Finally, how was Darth Vader rescued and brought back to the Imperial Fleet after his TIE fighter was knocked out of the Death Star trench by the Millennium Falcon? These questions were much too tantalizing for this young storyteller and avid Star Wars fan to leave unanswered…
September 10, 2018
The Plague is Here!
IT’S HERE! A Plague of Shadows is now available on Amazon. The paperback is currently on sale, and the Kindle edition can be pre-ordered. Just in time for Halloween!
I’m ecstatic to have my story, “Bottom of the Hour,” in this anthology!
As a reminder, the book launch will be held on Saturday, October 6 from 6-9PM at the Newark Arts Alliance in Newark, DE. Several of the authors will be on hand to sign copies and read their stories. Refreshments will be served.
September 8, 2018
Book Review: The End of Eternity by Isaac Asimov
When time travel was discovered in the 24th century, it became apparent that events could be manipulated both in the past and the future. The responsibility to make corrections and alter time fell under the purview of the Eternals, a group comprised of Computers, Life-Plotters, Technicians, Maintenance, Timers, and Cubs. The Computers are the highest-ranking members of Eternity and form the Allwhen Council.
The eldest among them, Computer Twissell, takes under his wing a prodigy named Andrew Harlan and promotes him from Cub to Technician, to the chagrin of certain others such as Computer Finge, who targets Harlan and attempts to thwart him whenever possible. At the same time, Finge takes a young, gorgeous woman named Noÿs from the 482nd century as his personal assistant, but Harlan suspects there is more to their relationship.
Meanwhile, Harlan is assigned a cub named Cooper and is tasked with training him on Earth history during the “Primitive” age just before time travel. Neither Harlan nor Cooper is immediately certain why the cub was directed by Computer Twissell to study under Harlan.
Despite his attempts to avoid Noÿs, Harlan begins to fall for her and attempts to save her from a change that the Allwhen Council has approved for her century—a change that threatens to remove Noÿs from history and replace her with an analogous version of herself that could be a completely different woman, one with no feelings at all for Harlan.
Desperate, Harlan begins to break the rules of Eternity by smuggling Noÿs to the 100,000th century, a time that the Eternals have barely explored and mankind seems to be mostly absent from Earth. Knowing that Finge and the council have probably discovered his plan, Harlan sets out to destroy the original discovery of time travel and the formation of Eternity before escaping into the future to be with Noÿs forever.
However, Twissell reveals a secret about Cooper that threatens to undermine Harlan’s machinations. Twissell convinces Harlan to help him undo the damage Harlan caused—until Noÿs reveals an even deeper plot that shakes the foundation of Harlan’s existence…
The End of Eternity is yet another splendid exhibit of Asimov’s remarkable worldbuilding talents. The detail involved in manipulating time and its effects were impressive.
While most of Asimov’s characters in general are afforded little in the way of development and background, at least Twissell reveals a tarnished past that puts him on common ground with Harlan. The tension and pace remain fairly tight once Harlan begins plotting and scheming against Finge and the plot contains sufficient twists to maintain suspense.
September 7, 2018
Ghosts, Vampires, and American History…
Ghosts, Vampires, and American History… brought to you by Firebringer Press!
Writer and publisher, Steven H. Wilson, and I are excited to announce the upcoming combined release of Steve’s vampire novella FREEDOM’S BLOOD with my paranormal mystery, LIKE MOTHER, LIKE DAUGHTERS in the format of the classic ACE doubles (read one story, flip the book over and read the other). Today, we launched a 30-day Kickstarter campaign to help bring this book to fruition by late November 2018.
LIKE MOTHER, LIKE DAUGHTERS sees the return of psychic-medium Miranda Lorensen from my novels By Your Side and Testing the Prisoner while FREEDOM’S BLOOD introduces a vampire like none you’ve ever encountered.
Please click here to learn more. Our goal is only $750 to cover the cost of cover art, editing, set-up fees, etc. We’re offering several reward levels including ebooks, signed paperbacks (including backlist titles), story critiques, and a membership to the Farpoint SF convention in February.
Please spread the word to anyone who might be interested. Thank you for supporting small press authors!
September 6, 2018
Fan Fiction – Week XIV – “Star Trek: Worlds of Doubt” Part III
In the conclusion to “Star Trek: Worlds of Doubt,” Kirk, Mitchell, and the rest of the landing party attempt to escape the collapsed caverns on Dreknor—and a squad of Voitaan soldiers bent on killing them—before the two planets collide. Aboard the Enterprise, Spock coordinates the evacuation of both worlds while determining how to rescue his captain and fellow crew members.
Next week, we venture to a galaxy far, far away in another three part story, “Star Wars: Pursuit of Force.”
August 31, 2018
Fan Fiction – Week XIII – “Star Trek: Worlds of Doubt” Part II
In the second act of “Star Trek: Worlds of Doubt,” Kirk and the Voitaan council begin to unravel the mystery behind the enigmatic aliens who have been abducting security and medical personnel from the research base on Dreknor.
Meanwhile, aboard the Enterprise, Sulu discovers that the narrow gravity well between the two planets is pulling them together on a collision course that will destroy them both.
