Alex J. Cavanaugh's Blog, page 53

Optical Osmosis and Snark, Pacific Rim Review, Cassa News, and Major Ninja News!

I am being highlighted by Jo over at The Murphey Saga today, and I’m a bit nervous because I have NO IDEA what she’s going to say! Visit her today and hope we are both pleasantly surprised.

Optical Osmosis
Today I welcome long-time friend and critique partner, Jeffrey Beesler. His third book, Optical Osmosis, is out now, and he’s here to tell you about it. And snark. You’ll see!

Hey, Alex! Thanks for having me on the blog today. It’s been a sizzling summer so far for me, both in terms of the w...

Music Influences, Book Trailers, Ninja News, Touche Cleveland Browns, and Wednesday Movie Quote

Ninja News
Special sale and giveaway through July 15!

The Mistaken by Nancy S. Thompson

All Tyler Karras wants is to enjoy life with his expectant bride. What he gets instead is a graveside seat at her funeral. With the woman who killed her uncharged and still free, all Ty wants now is revenge….

Purchase it for only 99 cents at Amazon or Barnes and Noble and enter the giveaway for an Amazon gift card at Nancy’s BLOG.

Best book I read last year!
Angela Orlowski-Peart’s latest book is out today -...

Cassa and Ninja Myths! Plus Despicable Me 2 Review, Ninja News, and Special Thanks.

Cassans and Ninjas - Myths and Answers
Thanks everyone for the awesome comments on CassaStorm’s book trailer and my IWSG POST last week! Since there were some interesting comments and questions, I decided to set the record straight about a few things. I was also informed there is never anything about ME on my own blog. So you're getting me. (Hope this isn’t a mistake of epic proportions.)

The Trailer

CassaStorm’s trailer was created by my publisher, Dancing Lemur Press.

No, I am not Byron’s vo...

Insecure Writer’s Support Group and CassaStorm Book Trailer!!!! Plus Ninja News, Wednesday Movie Quote, and Special Announcement.

It’s time for another group posting of the Insecure Writer’s Support Group! Time to release our fears to the world – or offer encouragement to those who are feeling neurotic. If you’d like to join us, click on the tab above and sign up. We post the first Wednesday of every month. I encourage everyone to visit at least a dozen new blogs and leave a comment. Your words might be the encouragement someone needs.

My awesome co-hosts today are Nancy Thompson, Mark Koopmans, and Heather Gardner! Ple...

IWSG News, Movie Remakes and Box Office, Ninja News, Super Blogger, and Thunderstruck on Bagpipes!

A lot happening today!!

Insecure Writer’s Support Group
Many of you participate in the IWSG every month, but there may be some things you don’t know about it. Or you might wonder what the IWSG is all about. Well, I’ve taken over Lee’s Tossing it Out today and you can find your answers there!

Does the IWSG really matter to writers? Livia had Celeste Holloway as a guest last week and her whole post was about the IWSG. You can read it HERE. Celeste, thanks – you are the reason why I started this...

The July Movie Preview! Plus CassaStorm Updates, Wednesday Movie Quote, and Ninja News

Ninja News
Misha Gericke’s Paying it Forward nominations are open again! One category - Blogger Most Deserving of Having Their Day Made. See her site for details.

Nominate a self-published author for their weekly series spotlight at The Guardian.

Sarah Ahiers has a story, Smothered, in Dark Moon Digest’s YA quarterly edition. Congratulations, Sarah!

Available now!

Ruby’s Fire by Catherine Stine

If everything about you changes, what remains?

Find Ruby’s Fire at Amazon, Amazon Kindle, and Goodread...

The Truth About Clones, World War Z Review, Thrill of it All Blogfest, and Movie Trivia Answers

Today I’d like to welcome fellow science fiction author, Sandra Ulbrich Almazan! Sandra knows her science and she’s here to share about clones. (Yes – clones!)

Are Clones Really Identical to the People They're Cloned From?
Clones, twins, and other types of doubles make for interesting fiction because they allow us to explore questions of identity. How much of what makes us unique is determined by our genes, and how much by our environment? One way to answer this question is by looking at peop...

Ready to Rumble with WRiTE CLUB? Plus Movie Trivia and Ninja News

What is WRiTE CLUB? Are we allowed to talk about it? The awesome DL Hammons is here to explain!

When Alex approached me about doing a segment for his uber-popular blog I knew right away I wanted to talk about WRiTE CLUB, but wasn’t sure how to go about it in a fresh way. I thought about it for a good long while, and then finally decided to ask for help. What I did was ask our 2011 WRiTE CLUB Champion -- Tiana Smith, and the 2012 Champion – Mark Hough, to interview me so I made sure to cover t...

Genre-Gender Prejudice, Ninja News, Wednesday Movie Quote, and Movie Review

Today, Damyanti at Amlokiblogs is doing a special feature for CassaFire and posting a very short excerpt. If you enjoy snarky exchanges between men and women, check it out.

And she is looking for other books to feature! Check out the details at the A to Z Blog.

Ninja News
Miss Jack posted a wonderful review of CassaStar HERE. And it made her cry! I feel bad…

Men of Foxwick by Cherie Reich is now available! This fantasy short story collection features five men from the Kingdom of Foxwick.

A blind...

Anne R. Allen Takes on Martha Stewart! Man of Steel Movie Review and Ninja News

It is my great honor to welcome the amazing Anne R. Allen today!

Blues for Martha StewartBy Anne R. Allen
People always ask writers where they get their ideas. Most writers don’t know how to answer that, because the answer is pretty much “everywhere.”

It’s funny what can plant the first seeds of a novel in your subconscious. For my comic mystery, No Place Like Home, it was an odd news story about how Martha Stewart had learned to play the blues while serving her prison time for insider trading...