Alan Loewen's Blog, page 33

My Subconscious Decides to Make A Superfluous Point

Last night I dreamt I lived in a steampunk version of Victorian England that would have been cool in and of itself, but my nightly excursion was evidently not for my own enjoyment, but to teach me a bully pulpit message with all the subtlety of a baseball bat.

Yes, I could have wandered a steampunk vision of Victorian England, but why should I have any fun? So points to Carl Jung and let us continue.

And a warning to special snowflakes. This post is politically incorrect and gravid with triggers. Proceed at your own caution.

I dreamt that in this fascinating world, a lecturer had made himself famous by setting forth some rather odd and stringent rules about diet. Because his theories were so nebulous, I decided to attend one of his lectures just to hear what the man had to say for himself.

I traveled to the hotel where he was lecturing to discover he and his followers had basically taken the establishment over and were in the process of turning it into a commune.

The place was packed with humanity and I did not realize at first the audience was completely composed of women and children. Not only were there no adult men present, I was the only adult man present.

As I wandered among the crowd, I was basically ignored, but there were two middle aged women off by themselves and I took it upon myself to strike up a conversation. "I look forward to the doctor's lecture," I said.

The two ladies rolled their eyes at each other and one with a voice dripping with contempt said to her companion, "Oh, he wants to hear the doctor's lecture."

"Well," I said, determined to remain civil, "What word would you use instead?"

"Yes," the other woman said to her companion, pointedly ignoring me, "he wants to hear the doctor's speech."

The other woman snickered. "Yes, he wants to hear the doctor's talk."

Turning my back on them, I walked away to discover there was to be a communal breakfast so I wandered into the dining room. With at least two hundred women and children in attendance, I took my place at the first seat at one of the tables.

A large platter of blueberry pancakes, a carafe of syrup, and a large bowl of butter was placed in front of me, but before I could help myself, the child sitting next to me, grabbed the food, took his share, and passed everything on. I stared as the child wolfed down his food as fast as he could, barely pausing to chew, and then saw to my surprise everybody following suit. I learned that one of the doctor's dietary rules was to serve yourself and eat as rapidly as possible. Within a few scant minutes everybody in the room had gobbled down their food and were leaving to go to the lecture room.

I walked down to the end of the table to see if there might be any food left, but the leftovers were so filthy and in such terrible shape, nothing edible could be saved.

I turned to discover that a group of young girls had gathered behind me. "We don't need you," the one child said, her voice dripping with contempt.

"Yes," said another. "I am never getting married."

"No?" I asked in some surprise. "Never?"

She shrugged her shoulders. "No need. Say a man asked me out on a golfing date? After dinner and playing a few holes, it's 'piff, poff, poof'' and I'm done."

I was shocked to hear that from a young girl barely 8 years old. "And then you just move onto another?" But her response was lost when the phone beside my bed rang to wake me from a sound sleep.

When I hung up the phone, I mused about the oddity of my dream, a world marked by wanton promiscuity and weird theories where the 'old ways' were held in contempt for momentary trends, where youthful innocence was destroyed as soon as possible, and where immediate pleasure was prized over commitment.

I am so very glad I don't live in a world like that today.

A Dream That Would Shake the Foundations of the Literary World

Some year ago, I read that you should keep a dream journal by your bed and since a goodly number of my stories find their seeds in my dreams, I thought that sounded like a rather good idea. Like most people, I have these incredible dreams, but I can barely remember them at all upon awakening.

Last night I awoke from a dream so profound and so exquisitely moving, I grabbed the notebook and, in the dark, hurriedly wrote down the dream particulars.
This morning, I eagerly grabbed the notebook to remind myself of what was going to be a future story that would momentously move the hearts and minds of my readers and I read,

Lady of theMirror2 rulesOnly when visitedCould take nothing with herShe sought to understand

Annnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnd... I got nothing. Sorry. Mind's a total blank. 

Change of Plans: Introducing Jill Noir

A number of years ago, I met a gentleman at a convention named Ken Pick who had written and illustrated a fascinating fantasy dream sequence about an anthropomorphic unicorn being led to the guillotine during the French Revolution. The name of the piece, translated from the French was, The Age of Reason Has No Place For Unicorns.

Ken's Interpretation of Jill Noir and companion



Since then, we have collaborated on the first book of what we hope will be a science fiction trilogy loosely titled, The Adventures of Jill Noir. A braided novel, each chapter can be read independently, but together they tell a complete story about a genetically engineered, anthropomorphic ferret named Jill Noir and her struggles to be accepted into society. Unfortunately, she has these continuous run-ins with a human Roman Catholic priest named Father Eric Heidler who is something of an enigma himself.

The chapters in the first book are:

Episode 1: Mask of the Ferret
Episode 2: Ferret and Rabbit
Episode 3: Down to Cathuria
Episode 4: Dyads, Part 1
Interlude: On the First of Winter
Episode 5: Dyads, Part 2
Interlude: Breaking News
Episode 6: Dyads, Part 3
Episode 7: Nameless Guild
Epilogue: Until Then...

The projected titles of the three books are:

Book 1: The Ferret and the Priest
Book 2: Ice Vixen, Golden Marten
Book 3: Sargasso and Saint Dismas

Some of the chapters have already been published in assorted anthologies:


 

The anthology, Infinite Space, Infinite God (Karina L. Fabian and Robert Fabian, editors) contains the opening stay, Mask of the Ferret that was reprinted in Fred Patten's anthology, Anthropomorphic Aliens (currently out of print)

The anthology, Different Worlds, Different Skins (Will A. Sanborn, editor) carried the story, Down to Cathuria.

Infinite Space, Infinite God II (Karina L. Fabian and Robert Fabian, editors) contains the full novella, Dyads.

In 2008, Ken and I received an Honorable Mention at the 2008 Washington Science Fiction Association award for Mask of the Ferret.

Needless to say, this means putting aside Return to the Vicarage. And that is for the best. Jill needs her final time in the sun and the Vicarage story shares too much in spirit with my recently released, Strange Streets.

So Sunday, I travel deep into WebFed space and track down an illusive anthro-ferret thief with ADHD paradoxically combined with some serious thanatophobia.

Return to the Vicarage: List of Characters and "Cheat Sheet"

I have begun the process of writing Return to the Vicarage (working title only) and I have cobbled together a list of the characters and a "cheat sheet" to remind me of personality traits and the "rules" the Vicarage and the Presence follow. This is a rough draft and very much subject to change.


The VicarageThe Vicarage and the Presence that lives within it are universal, mythic characters—archetypes—that reside within the collective unconscious of humanity and accessed only through dreams. All humanity dreams of the Vicarage at least once in their lives (you included) though the actual appearance of the building depends upon the culture of the dreamer. The two main characters of the story, Scott and Jenny, perceive the Vicarage as large, two story Victorian mansion that contains a furnished basement. 

The Vicarage contains several mysteries. The three most prominent are: 

1. A chapel devoid of all religious emblems and symbols. All is constructed of polished dark wood. Ten rows of pews are divided by an aisle and behind them, elevated on a small balcony, is a moderately-sized pipe organ. The organist, if there ever was one, sits with his or her back to the congregation, facing away from the altar, pulpit, and lectern. Heavy, dark red curtains hide the walls behind the organ and if one pulls aside the curtain on the left, an entrance to a "priest's hole" can be found. This location is the only safe place where one can hide from the Presence.

2. On the second floor one of the bedrooms contains access to a crawlspace that can only be accessed by a small child. The crawlspace goes back some distance and toward the rear, the walls are painted black with what appear to be obscure and complicated mathematical formulae. Unfortunately, children cannot understand the import of what is inscribed on the walls and adults simply are too large to enter the crawlspace.

3. When people first dream of the Vicarage, they awaken in a furnished basement bedroom that is inhabited by the Presence, an invisible entity that is perceived as intelligent and malignantly evil. The victim spends the night cowering under the sheets, paralyzed with terror. There are people who have actually died from their exposure to the Presence, but Jenny (see below) is the only person whose soul has ever remained trapped within the walls of the Vicarage. If a person has future dreams of the mansion, she or he will appear in a random spot in the mansion and they have the freedom to explore the house, though they will always avoid the basement bedroom. Only 5% of people who dream of the Vicarage ever return in future dreams and those that do, only 3% of those can remember their experiences when they awaken in the real world. Occasionally, the Presence leaves the basement walking "primal and serene" throughout the mansion and those trapped in the house with it are consumed with an overwhelming terror of encountering it. People either flee before it in the circular hallways of the mansion or they eventually hide in the sanctuary of the chapel's hiding spot where the Presence cannot enter. There are never more than four people in the house at any given time and one of those is always Jenny.


Scott James Thomas, our narrator, was born Saturday, August 31st, 1957 in Bonneauville, Pennsylvania. The story takes place in the present day when Scott is in his 58th year. Scott dreams often of the Vicarage, usually about once a week and has been doing so for about 45 years, often enough that he can easily draw the floor plans from memory. Though aware of the Presence that walks the hallways of the Vicarage, he seldom has to deal with it leaving its room and the dreams center on his interactions with Jenny (see below) and his attempts to solve the various puzzles and mysteries of the mansion. Scott believes that Jenny is nothing more than a recurring aspect of his dreams and in the beginning of the story is unaware that Jenny was once actually alive. Married on Saturday, June 17th, 1978, Scott’s wife passed away rapidly from malignant cancer in 1980. The marriage was childless. On the Jung Typology, Scott would test as an ISTJ—Introvert(38%) Sensing(12%) Thinking(34%) Judging(25%). His major personality traits are:
Keen sense of right and wrong Noted for devotion to duty Often gives the initial impression of being aloof and perhaps somewhat cold. "Just the facts, Ma'am." Usually keep his feelings to himself unless asked and when asked, doesn’t mince words. Truth wins out over tact.  
Genevieve Morgan Lee Genevieve Morgan Lee was born Tuesday, May 1st, 1883 in Chiltonville, Massachusetts. She passed away in her sleep on November 14th, 1897 at the age of 14 years, 6 months, 13 days during her first dream of the Vicarage. Her soul is now frozen in time and trapped. Other than the Presence, Jenny is the only permanent resident of the Vicarage and she acts as guide and guardian to dream visitors. On the Jung Typology Jenny would test as an ISFJ—Introvert(62%) Sensing(1%) Feeling(19%) Judging(47%). Jenny’s personality traits are summed up as follows:
Strong desire to serve others, has a strong "need to be needed." Very much bound by prevailing social conventions of the 1890s. Can be relied on for loyalty and unstinting, high-quality work. "If you want it done right, do it yourself." Methodical and accurate worker. Very good memory and analytic abilities. Good with people in small-group or one-on-one situations because of her patient and genuinely sympathetic approach to dealing with others.

Return to the Vicarage

For those who have read my short collection, Come Into My Cellar: Darker Tales From A Cerebral Vault, you were introduced to the Vicarage, a recurring nightmare I have suffered from for years:

All my life I have enjoyed the experience of being a dreamer. At night, I wander dreams flowing with color, rich in plot, and often stay with me upon awakening. Yet, no other dreamer has ever mentioned one aspect of my daily nocturnal wanderings. My subconscious, much like a Grade-B film director, has for six decades repeatedly used the same sets as if the budget for backdrops and scenery had vanished. One place I always return to is the Vicarage.

I have been dreaming about the Vicarage for almost four decades now, a setting so commonplace I can actually draw the floor plans for you.

Well, last night I returned to the Vicarage and it felt like I was there all night long. However, unlike other nights spent avoiding the unholy, otherworldly, and invisible Presence that walks its halls "primal and serene," I met a young lady of about 14 who is as much trapped in the house as I am, but she never leaves simply because she can't.

Looking at her oddly dated clothes, a strange thought came to me and I asked her what year it was. "Oh, it's 1897."

Poor child.

So, when I awoke, a full-blown story popped into my mind, a story about a young child trapped in a nightmarish mansion that others visit in their dreams, a Vicarage that holds a primal terror that walks its halls and, if it finds you, it will kill you, but only if it's in a merciful mood.

(sigh) I'm busy as it is, but as the cliche goes, you strike while the iron is hot.

I'll keep you abreast of my travelogue as I plumb the mysteries of the Vicarage and try to save a young girl who has been trapped inside its walls for almost 120 years.

I've got a gut feeling this is NOT going to end well.

One Final Review for Rowan Dreaming

 The last review I will post, but I am grateful for all of them, regardless of how many stars are attached. As my biography states:

Loewen also makes no bones about his writing: he writes solely to entertain, his first desire to be a storyteller. If the reader discovers some great universal truth in a Loewen-crafted tale, that's icing on the cake, but as Loewen has said, "I want my readers simply to enjoy themselves in a story of my own creation. If they feel their time has not been wasted and they liked the story, I have achieved my primary goal."

Thanks to all who bought the chapbook and enjoyed the tale. Feedback inspires me to write more. Rowan Dreaming is still available for your enjoyment and at 99¢ is, in my humble opinion, a bargain.



Amazon US
Amazon UK
Amazon Germany
Amazon Australia

And Another Rowan Dreaming Review!

I am deeply grateful for those who take the time to leave a review regardless of how many stars are given.

Rowan Dreaming also includes the short story, Strange Streets, and according to Amazon takes 90 minutes to read in its entirety, the length of a feature length movie. Here in the United States, a first run film can cost you anywhere from $6 to $15, but for 99¢ you not only get two stories, but one you can read over and over again as many times as you want.

You can buy your own copy of Rowan Dreaming here at any of these fine sites: 

Amazon US
Amazon UK
Amazon Germany
Amazon Australia

Rowan Dreaming Receives Its First Review!

The Raven Series, by Richard Kirk: A Review

In mid-2014, I picked up a fantasy book entitled Raven: Swordmistress of Chaos for a quarter at a used bookstore and finished it on August 11. I would have stopped there, but I discovered to my delight that the author, Robert Kirk, was merely a house name for the writing team of Angus Wells (1943-2006) and Robert Holdstock (1948-2009). Though I confess I am not familiar with Wells, Holdstock was the author of Mythago Wood , one of my top five literary fantasies of all time. With that tidbit of information, I made the decision to read the entire series.

The next three books in the series were gifts from Eric Hinkle, a friend of mine who shares my interest in fantasy and is a wonderful writer in his own right, and I devoured them as soon as he found them and sent them to me. The first book in the series was written by both Wells and Holdstock as a team, but the second and fourth books were the sole works of Holdstock, while Wells worked solo on the third and final book in the series.

I polished off Raven: A Time of Ghosts on November 24, 2014 and then had to wait five months for the next book in the series: Raven: The Frozen God (April 28, 2015). The fourth book followed quickly:  Raven: Lords of the Shadows (July 20, 2015) and this morning I finished Raven: A Time of Dying. From start to finish, as the books (which are out of print) were acquired, it took me a total of of 1 year, 7 months and 24 days to finish the series.

One side note before I continue: Ignore the cover art as displayed above. Wells and Holdstock know their stuff and though the series is clearly R-rated, Raven is first and foremost a warrior. When she walks around, she is fully armored.

Though written for a male audience and though the books are clearly a product of the late 1970s, toward the end of the series, Wells and Holdstock found their respective voices and broke free of the chainmail bikini mindset into one that began to explore the greater themes of purpose and free will.

The first book was pure pulp, but in the final book, Wells almost touched more upon epic fantasy with lyrical writing that was not present in the opening volumes. And unfortunately, there is no more. The series ends with none of the larger questions answered.

The entire series is narrated by Spellbinder, half human and half mage, trained in the magical arts by the mages of Kharwan, an island in the middle of the sea that is concealed and protected by magic. In the books, he wanders a world that has lost almost all vestiges of civilization and though in the series, he is Raven's tutor/lover/bodyguard, he walks the world alone speaking of Raven in the past tense. His hand is heavily bandaged and the implication is that it was badly maimed by a friend, but the series ends with none of these questions answered. It simply ends.

And unfortunately, we will know no more. Both Wells and Holdstock have unfortunately passed away and it is clear that Ace Publishing never had any desire to continue the series after the fifth book. So we will never know why the mages of Kharwan chose Raven, a former slave, to be their Worldchanger, the ultimate agent of Chaos, or why they even meddled in the affairs of the world to begin with. The post-apocalyptic world in which Spellbinder wanders telling his tales to anyone willing to listen is certainly not the end the mages strove for. We will never learn whatever happened to Raven herself or her other companions, Gondar Lifebane, the pirate, or Argor, outlaw and leader of a band of mercenary horsemen.

And though the Raven series is not high fantasy in any understanding of the genre, I confess I feel cheated as a reader. A series should come to an end that brings a modicum of satisfaction, so instead, I will simply ponder the mysteries of what might have happened and move on.

The world is full of books and there is never enough time to read a good tale.

My Favorite Online Comics

Below are links to my favorite online comics. Some of them do not support my personal world view, but if they make me laugh, make me care about their characters, amaze me with their storytelling or world construction or they make me think, I have included them. Caveat emptor and surf responsibly.
The links, which are in no particular order, will take you to the current comic. You will have to use the archive links to take you to the beginning of the comic itself and some of them go back years.

Direct links are the titles of the comics.


9 Chickweed Lane  Rated PG-13 for frank references on sex and relationships, Brook McEldowney has drawn some very artistic panels. Starting his characters in high school, they have now graduated and well into their adult lives.


Beatriz OverseerI would also rate this one PG-13 due to its medieval-era violence, but the world building in a universe of "funny animals" is top notch along with a surprisingly complex story line. Very sporadic in updating.



Cassiopeia Quinn The title character is a professional thief in Earth's far future and her escapades keep the law enforcement quite busy. However, you will quickly discover she has a heart of gold and even though she doesn't like to wear pants, the fan service is kept at a bare (no pun intended) minimum.


Doc RatSet in another "funny animal" universe, the complex story line of civilized animals still dealing with prey-predator relationships will certainly keep your attention. The strip takes place in an anthropomorphic Australia and sometimes the references go over my head, but give the strip a try. One warning: the artist is addicted to puns big time.

EndtownSet in a not-so-distant post-apocalyptic future, artist Aaron Neathery has crafted an amazingly complex world and story line where underground residents of a virus that has transformed them into various anthropomorphic animals are in constant danger of their lives from what true humans still exist. One does not read Endtown. One invests in it. Not for the kiddies in spite of the "funny animals."


 Faux PasIt is impossible to praise this delightful comic enough. The husband and wife team of Robert and Margaret Carspecken have effectively constructed one of the most wonderful comics around about animals living on a farm that provides animal actors for movies and television. Do read this one. The characters are wonderful and 100% family friendly.




Girl GeniusThe steampunk world of Agatha Hetrodyne is brought to life by the husband and wife team of Phil and Kaja Foglio. Follow the adventures of a super-smart heroine who can build marvels that out-MacGyver, MacGyver.


Mythtickle I fell in love with this delight from Day One. Though the artist repeats a lot of the strips (what he calls classics) the ongoing adventures of gods and goddesses as children attending school for future deities is as charming as it gets.


The Order of the StickWith very simple art, Rich Burlew draws and writes a comic where your classic Dungeons and Dragons characters enact an adventure to save the world, but somehow know they are living and acting in a role-playing game. 

Phoebe and Her UnicornCute and funny, character Phoebe tries to live out her grade-school life with nerd parents, the popular and pretty girl who is also a bully, as well as a magical unicorn who is as vain as vain can be.



ZoophobiaI can't help it. It's the art. I just love the way Vivienne Medrano draws.


I know I have missed plenty. There are numerous comics that are now in graveyards because the artists and writers moved on and someday I may compile a list of comics that I dearly loved, but are no longer being produced. In the comments, please let me know some of your favorites.