Horton Deakins's Blog, page 9
February 15, 2013
Is NASA telling us everything?
Nasa has declared that the exploding meteor over Russia was nothing more than a coincidence when it comes to the close fly-by of the asteroid. But are they telling us everything? Or do they not want us to panic. Have you ever heard of the Roche limit? It speaks to how a satellite may disintegrate due to tidal forces created in it by the body it orbits. It all depends on the masses of the two bodies, their distance, and the density of the satellite.
If the asteroid lost a piece due to earth’s tidal forces, or even if a piece broke off for the same reason near another large body during its trek through space, that could explain the “coincidence.”
Of course, the orbits of the meteor and the asteroid could have been completely different–I don’t know, and NASA hasn’t shared that information, as far as I know. Anyway, check out this writeup on the Roche limit:
January 31, 2013
My own private dystopia
I had one of the worst dreams I’ve ever had last night. It was about 4 A.M., and it seemed I was having one of my recurring dreams that I hadn’t had in a very long time, one in which I have an urgent need to go to the bathroom, and I can’t seem to find a working toilet with any privacy whatsoever. Often, in these dreams, I find myself going up and down hallways in malls or sidewalks on the city streets, trying to find some place that has a restroom, but the toilets are stopped up, broken, in a common area where people can see you, or the men’s and women’s are somehow together in one room.
This dream seemed that way at first. I was working in some office, and the bathroom was a large room containing a number of evenly-spaced brick vats, each about the size of a desk, but a little taller. The vats were filled with water, and they had the type of plumbing you would expect to see on public toilets. The pipes were leaky, and one was spraying a fine stream of water on me as I walked by. I decided this toilet was no worse than the rest, so I climbed on top where the seat spanned the narrower width, front to back. The position of the seat required me to recline a bit. As I did, I looked into the water on my left and saw the partially-decomposed body of a small boy, perhaps six years old. I purposed myself to report this as soon as I had finished my business, but then I noticed that the boy was not alone, as there were two more bodies also in the tank, these appearing to be adult men.
Almost immediately these “bodies” came to life and swarmed me. Clearly, they were not dead bodies, but the un-dead–zombies, if you will. The boy swam from my left side over to my right and began eating my ear, while the two adult zombies attacked my left side. I began hitting at the boy zombie–physically, not just in my dream–and I shouted “Help me!” over and over again, as best my lips could form the words–again, in the real, not dream world.
I did not wake up on my own, which, in my understanding, is what separates a nightmare from from a bad dream. My wife shook me awake, and at that point the experience seemed so vivid, so real. Even now, three hours later, it’s difficult to call it merely a dream. I could almost sketch the face of the boy–pale, gray skin, dark hair and dark eyes, almost triangular-shaped head.
Just now I reached up to check my ear to make sure it was whole.
January 27, 2013
My article in the Edmond Sun Newspaper
The Edmond Sun newspaper published an article on the back page of the paper on January 22 about my book, TIME PULLERS, and the USA Book News award it received. I got a full-color, quarter-page treatment!
Here is a link to the online version of the article:
January 23, 2013
Newspaper article about my book
Time Pullers
January 13, 2013
Life aboard a cruise ship
View from cruise ship stateroom balcony as ship was underway.
We were on the last leg of our trip, making way from Belize to Galveston aboard the Crown Princess. This was during the week of Christmas, and the weather was turning cold quickly as we beat our way on a northerly course, our hold laden with casks of oil and ambergris.
OK, I made that last part up.
December 2, 2012
Time Pullers Giveaway
Goodreads Book Giveaway
Time Pullers
by Horton Deakins
Giveaway ends December 12, 2012.
See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.
USA Best Book Awards Finalist in Sci-Fi
November 17, 2012
Time Pullers — Finalist in 2012 USA Best Book Awards
I am proud to announce that my novel, Time Pullers, has been awarded the position of one of five finalists in the 2012 USA Best Book Awards for science fiction.
This means I get to say the following:
“Award-Winning Finalist in the ‘Fiction: Science Fiction’ category of The 2012 USA Best Book Awards, sponsored by USA Book News.”
November 10, 2012
Long John Vader
Now, isn’t that just a little goofy?
November 8, 2012
So — you want to be a professional writer?
“Dad, I want to be a professional writer.”
“A professional writer, Son? All right, then; tell me, my boy, what’s the difference between this pot roast and a professional writer?”
“Well, gee, Dad… I don’t know. What’s the difference?”
“I’ll tell you, Son. This pot roast can feed a family of four.”
November 3, 2012
You writers out there — do you do this, too?
How many of you writers out there just can’t seem to do anything without also “writing” it in your mind? This morning, after I fed the dog and let her out, my mind shifted into third person.
“He followed his dog out the back door and picked up the ant baits to keep her from chewing them, then sat on the glider bench to sip his morning coffee while the dog took care of business. The wind was picking up, so he pulled his bathrobe tight against the chill and took another sip of coffee.”
I’m talking about *as* you do things, not after the fact. Can anyone out there identify?
