Phil Giunta's Blog, page 41
August 3, 2018
Fan Fiction – Week Nine – Star Trek: TNG/DS9 Crossover
For me, Deep Space Nine was the last great Star Trek television series, yet this story from 1997 is the only DS9 fan fiction I ever wrote. “Lasting Impressions” is a crossover tale that brings together the crews of Deep Space Nine and the USS Enterprise-E immediately following the events chronicled in the film Star Trek: First Contact.
Opening this adventure, we meet legendary Bajoran resistance fighter, Reve Talin, who resurfaces a decade after escaping his home planet during the Cardassian occupation. In hot pursuit is the ruthless Gul Drojeer. Each accuses the other of murder, but is there more to the story?
Click here to read “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine – Lasting Impressions” Part I.
August 2, 2018
Let The Hauntings Begin…
Finished final edits last night on my paranormal novella, LIKE MOTHER, LIKE DAUGHTERS, slated for release in November. After one last review, it goes back to the publisher (Firebringer Press) later today.
This morning, I received the final galley for A PLAGUE OF SHADOWS, a paranormal anthology from Smart Rhino Publications. It’s releasing next month and includes one of my best ghost stories. Exciting times!
July 31, 2018
Book Review: Farmer in the Sky by Robert A. Heinlein
Bill Lerner and his father George decide to emigrate to Jupiter’s largest moon, Ganymede, to begin a new life as farmers along with George’s new wife Molly and her young daughter, Peggy.
During their journey aboard the interplanetary colony ship Mayflower, the kids decide to form new branches of the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts and Bill becomes a hero when he uses his old Scout uniform to plug a hull breach in his shared quarters compliments of a fist-sized meteor.
The pacing slows once they reach Ganymede and begin to build their new lives. George takes up a part time job as an engineer, his profession back on Earth, while Bill sets out to terraform his family’s allotted land and build their new home. Along the way, the Lerner’s receive help from their neighboring farmers and the Ganymede Boy Scouts.
Then, disaster strikes…
Compared to Heinlein’s other juvenile space adventures—such as Have Space Suit, Will Travel, Citizen of the Galaxy, or Starman Jones—Farmer in the Sky lacks suspense, tension, and developed characters beyond the protagonist. Instead, it is a first-person POV chronicling of emigration from Earth to Ganymede with several dramatic events scattered throughout. For example, I was disappointed when a certain supporting character’s death happened “off camera” and was glossed over in the final chapters. However, this might be to due to the fact that the book was intended for younger audiences during a time when writers trod lightly when dealing with sensitive topics.
As usual with Heinlein, his attention to even the minutest scientific and practical details—however fictionalized—offers the reader a sense of verisimilitude and plausibility. There is a fair balance between moving the story forward and describing the processes and pitfalls involved in taming the inhospitable surface of Ganymede.
July 28, 2018
Book Review: The Colour Out Of Space by H.P. Lovecraft
This collection of seven stories includes such legendary Lovecraft gems as “The Call of Cthulhu”, “The Whisperer in Darkness”, “Cool Air”, and of course, “The Colour out of Space.” Interspersed among these are two shorter—yet no less eerie—spine tinglers “The Picture in the House” and “The Terrible Old Man.” The final tale, “The Shadow out of Time,” deserves its placement in this collection. It’s a novella that could easily be reduced to a short story, sparing the reader from repetitive and monotonous descriptions.
We begin with one of H.P. Lovecraft’s most popular stories in which a glowing green meteorite crashes into a field of crops and proceeds to poison both soil and water, driving the farmer and his family insane. As local scientists attempt to study fragments of the bizarre rock, it is soon discovered that the vile, luminous substance that infected the land around the crash site might be intelligent. How will the locals rid themselves of “The Colour Out of Space”?
In “The Picture in the House,” a young cyclist takes shelter from a torrential downpour in what he thinks is an abandoned house, only to find it occupied by a jovial old man with a sinister taste in reading material.
After the suspicious death of an elderly anthropologist named Professor Angell, his nephew Francis inherits all of his notes detailing a bizarre series of events involving a primitive, savage cult who worship a grotesque creature named Cthulhu, a member of the Great Old Ones who will someday return to dominate the Earth. Angell’s notes and collection of newspaper clippings detail shared visions and dreams around the world that coincided with an earthquake in the seas of the South Pacific—during which an island of unearthly design surfaced from the depths bearing an ancient evil. Could it be that these events are all related to “The Call of Cthulhu“?
After suffering a mild heart attack in his flat, a destitute man seeks treatment from an elderly eccentric physician living directly above him. Upon entering the frigid apartment of Doctor Muñoz, the man observes that one of the bedrooms has been converted into a laboratory complete with machinery to maintain the temperature below fifty degrees. While administering treatment, Muñoz reveals that he has been experimenting with methods for prolonging life. When our hero finally discovers the true subject of Muñoz’s experiments, he develops a mortal fear of “Cool Air.”
Following a flood in the remote mountains of Vermont, the corpses of several grotesque creatures are observed floating in the surging rivers. This inspires the locals to resurrect tales of ancient evils living in the dense and menacing woods. When such legends are printed in the local papers, Albert Wilmarth, a professor of literature at Miskatonic University in Massachusetts and an expert on folklore, responds to the editors with skepticism. Wilmarth cites fables and myths dating back generations as the source of these ludicrous superstitions—until he begins corresponding with an elderly Vermont farmer named Henry Akeley whose terrifying encounters with strange creatures escalate with each letter and finally convince Wilmarth to travel to Akeley’s home and witness these creatures for himself. What he finds, however, is merely “A Whisperer in Darkness.”
When three burglars decide to target the seaside home of a recluse, they swiftly learn why the locals consider him “The Terrible Old Man.”
A professor of economics at Miskatonic University in Arkham, Massachusetts suffers a five-year long amnesia during which he was possessed by a different personality. Afterward, he recalls scraps of the experience that lead him to believe that his consciousness was exchanged with that of a superior being from Earth’s prehistoric past. After publishing an account of his experiences, he is contacted by a mining engineer in Australia who sends pictures of ruins unearthed in the desert—oddly constructed stone blocks bearing hieroglyphs that correspond precisely to the professor’s memories. Accompanied by a group of scholars, the professor leads an expedition to Australia in a search for answers, but while exploring the ruins alone one night, he finds the shocking truth in the form of “A Shadow out of Time.”
July 27, 2018
Fan Fiction – Week Eight – Indiana Jones
Click here to read part three of “Indiana Jones and Towers of the Empty Quarter.”
Next week, we return to the Star Trek universe for a three-part crossover of The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine.
July 26, 2018
Finding Inspiration Down Memory Lane
It has been 25 years since I graduated from Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, PA. At the time, a friend and fellow science fiction fan named Kathy Gowdy (now a professor at the Community College of Philadelphia) gifted me with a unique item—riddled with SF references—that has found a place on my wall no matter where I’ve lived since. To this day, I occasionally look to it for inspiration. Now that I find myself in a minor personal crisis, I recently took a moment to read Kathy’s handwritten words of wisdom and comfort from a quarter century ago.
The image might be difficult to read, so I transcribed it for you below, correcting a few typos.
Stardate: 4/11/93
Temporarily: Earth
Dear Phil,
“Go boldly” through your journey in life, and may you become all that you never deemed possible. May your days be filled with humor, compassion, wonderment, and most of all, love. Let each day move you forward to become something greater than you have been in the past. Be free to reach your highest potential. Remember, you are never finished growing mentally, emotionally, or spiritually (even though you are already a frood).
“Live long and prosper,” and “May the force” of the Almighty be with you. Revel in the beauty of His creation, and no matter how far you trek through His universe, should you be lost, may you find your way home (and still have your towel with you too)!
Don’t seek to solve life’s mysteries; rather, search for the good in everything and everyone to find your answers. And when your own problems appear daunting, just stick out your thumb, or your Sub-Etha-Sens-O-Matic, pull out your “Guide,” and hitch a ride down the Intergalactic Highway of self-discovery (but beware of those vulgar Vogon ships). Only you can discover that (oh so) elusive inner peace and happiness, but finding the right humanoids will surely help. Even Holmes needed Watson in his most challenging moments.
Till we meet again on a distant planet, or in some parallel universe… “Don’t Panic!” No matter where you are—whatever difficulties you face—should you ever need a friend, “Never tell me the odds,” “Elementary!” ∼Wave your towel ∼ I’ll find you.
Love your fellow hitchhiker,
Kathy
July 21, 2018
Book Review: Robert A. Heinlein’s Space Cadet
The first sixty percent of the story follows young protagonist Matt Dodson as he undergoes rigorous training as a cadet in the Solar Patrol Space Academy. While there, he befriends fellow cadets Tex Jarman, Oscar Jensen from the Venus colony, and Pierre “Pete” Armand from Jupiter’s moon Ganymede.
Upon graduating from the Academy, Matt, Tex, and Oscar are assigned to the Patrol vessel Aes Triplex on a mission to the asteroid belt to locate the Pathfinder, a vessel reported missing during a scientific mission.
After successfully locating the lost ship, damaged as a result of a freak meteor impact, the Pathfinder is repaired and flown to Deimos, the outermost moon of Mars. Meanwhile, the Aes Triplex is assigned to investigate a deadly native uprising against the crew of the Gary, a merchant vessel that landed in the equatorial region of Venus. The cadets depart the Aes Triplex in a small rocket commanded by Lieutenant Thurlow, who is knocked unconscious after a perilous landing—leaving the cadets stranded in the swamps of Venus. Fortunately, Oscar is well acquainted with the customs of the amphibious natives, but can the cadets maintain peace with the rankled “Venerians” long enough to find a way off the planet and save Thurlow’s life?
Space Cadet differs from some of Heinlein’ other juvenile SF novels—such as Spaceman Jones and Citizen of the Galaxy—in that it does not offer much detail about the main protagonist’s background and is not a “rags to riches” tale. By the time we meet Matt Dodson, he has already arrived at the Academy fresh from his hometown of Des Moines, Iowa and returns home only once for a brief visit during leave. In fact, once Matt, Tex, and Oscar are assigned to the Aes Triplex, the role of the main protagonist is shared among the three.
I found that much of the first 65 percent of the book dealing with the cadets’ training could have been trimmed or condensed. Nevertheless, Space Cadet is a reasonably enjoyable adventure, especially in the final chapters dealing with the Pathfinder and the cadets’ subsequent adventures on Venus.
July 20, 2018
Fan Fiction – Week Seven – Indiana Jones
Written in 2001, my first and only Indiana Jones fan fiction pits Indy against the infamous Nazi Colonel Erwin Rommel (aka “The Desert Fox”) on a quest to unearth an ancient lost city in the sands of Saudi Arabia’s Rub al Khali desert, also known as the “Empty Quarter.”
In part two, we catch up with Indy as he arrives in Saudi Arabia in the company of businessmen from Standard Oil, but when he parts ways with them to join fellow archaeologist Diana Forrestal, Indy draws the attention of the Nazis.
As an added bonus, I’ve included excerpts from the unofficial comic book version of this throughout the story. Click here to read part two of “Indiana Jones and the Towers of the Empty Quarter.”
July 14, 2018
Fan Fiction – Week Six – Indiana Jones
Back from vacation and ready to deliver week six (already?!) in my summer of fan fiction. There will be more Star Trek in the near future, but for the next three weeks, let’s go back in time and across the globe with the world’s most daring archaeologist.
Written in 2001, my first and only Indiana Jones fan fiction pits Indy against the infamous Nazi Colonel Erwin Rommel (aka “The Desert Fox”) on a quest to unearth an ancient lost city in the sands of Saudi Arabia’s Rub al Khali desert, also known as the “Empty Quarter.”
As an added bonus, I’ve included excerpts from the unofficial comic book version of this throughout the story. Click here to read “Indiana Jones and the Towers of the Empty Quarter.”
July 13, 2018
The Plague is Nearly Upon Us!
The Plague is almost here! Honored to have my haunted car tale, “Bottom of the Hour” published alongside the works of so many august writers in A Plague of Shadows, coming Fall 2018 from Smart Rhino Publications and the Written Remains Writers Guild!
More info to come!
