Steve Umstead's Blog, page 20

Excerpt – Gabriel's Redemption

Quentin Santander sat at the hotel lobby bar, his hand on a lowball glass of an amber liquid, a solitary cube of ice floating in it. He swirled the liquid, the cube bumping against the glass edges slowly in the Mars gravity. The bar was beginning to fill up, miners and office workers getting off [...]

Future Friendly, by Zack Umstead

"Thrift sale! Entire house must go! Any of you antique collectors out there, this is your opportunity!" The man's surgically enhanced vocal cords allowed the sound to be projected throughout the entire crowd of two or three hundred people. Many were there just to take a look at a piece of history -  this was [...]

Gabriel's Redemption Pitch for ABNA

Can a disgraced soldier find redemption, and will redemption cost him more than just his own life? North American Federation Navy Commander Evan Gabriel lost his rank, his squad, and his freedom on a far off world called Eden. Now, he's being offered an opportunity to command a new team, on a new world, with [...]

Gabriel's Redemption Excerpt for ABNA

The shuttle was a standard single stage to orbit lifting body design, vertical take off and landing capable, mission-modified for inclement weather with an additional set of tail stabilizers and more powerful reentry engines. It streaked down through the atmosphere at Mach 26, its glowing leading edges creating a meteor-like effect across the western skies, [...]

Short story from my 13 yr old…

"We got you in our sight, you roaches." The commanding officer turned around in his chair. "Shall we fire, Captain?" "No. Hold fire. We do not know if they are hostile." "Permission to speak freely, sir." "Granted." "Why in the name of the gods wouldn't they attack! They're Centaurians!" "And they were once Earthlings. You [...]

Gabriel's Redemption Excerpt (Dec '10)

"Commander Gabriel, the Chinese ship just launched a shuttle," an excited voice said over the comm. Gabriel remembered it as Ensign Giroux, the Marcinko's comm officer. "It's a hot launch, very risky, but they're coming in fast towards your position, and that cargo ship is screaming past you, no attempt to aerobrake." "Thank you Ensign," [...]

Gabriel's Redemption Synopsis

Disgraced North American Federation Navy Special Forces Commander Evan Gabriel is haunted by his past, and has isolated himself at his childhood home in the Caribbean. The government now needs him again, and he is reluctantly sent back into action on a far off ice planet. However the motives behind his mission are unclear, and [...]

NaNoWriMo Winner!

Completed 63,841 words in 30 days…now on to editing!