Doug Dandridge's Blog, page 12

Exodus: Empires at War: Book 8: Soldiers is coming.

 

Hopefully by this weekend I will have Exodus: Empires at War 8 out on Amazon.  I say hopefully, because some of the software I use for production has been improved, which, as we all known, means I don’t know how to use it.  Hopefully (that word again) I will be able to beat the learning curve and get everything out the door.  The cover art is also finished, but not the cover itself.  Book 8 takes over where 7 leaves off, with the Cacas more or less expelled from Imperial and Republic space, but still in business in the Kingdom of New Moscow.  The Fenri are also still involved in a shooting war with the Empire, but they take second place to the primary mission, the liberation the survivors of New Moscow from the Cacas before they are all turned into rations.  Now some might think with a title like Soldiers the book will revolve around ground combat.  While ground combat is central to the story, the action is almost evenly split between space and land warfare.  In fact, the last half of the book goes at it a chapter at a time from each perspective, giving a detailed view of all the action.  So, to start off, an excerpt from the ground side of things.

“You’re going to need some backup, sir,” said the older man, who had been in the Army for over twenty-five years.  “You may think you are superman, but you can be killed just as easily as the rest of us.  So I will be coming with you to make sure you aren’t killed due to arrogance or stupidity.  Understand, sir?”

“Roger, Top.  Just make sure you let me lead.  You may be the more experienced, but I’ve got the skills.”

“Yes, sir.”  The Top Sergeant looked up at the sky as a true cloud burst let loose.  “So, let’s be about it while the weather is still favorable.”

Cornelius nodded and smiled, then turned and walked out in a crouch, his eyes wide and drinking in every bit of light there was to find.  He strained his ears, but the world had mostly dissolved into the sound of water drops raining from the sky.

Walborski had slithered forward about a kilometer when he heard the movement of heavy objects to his front.  Actually, he felt the vibrations of their walking through the ground before he actually heard them, and he was sure that no matter how sensitive their audio receptors they were not going to hear him or his men.  He waved his hand to Top, who was only a couple of meters away.  He could barely see the NCO from even that close a range, and was hoping that the enemy would never spot them until they got within a similar distance.

Something exploded in the darkness, a muffled crump and a flash that mimicked the lighting that was going off almost continuously in the clouds.  Cornelius smiled for a moment, then grinned as a dozen more blasts sundered the night.  Those were his men, throwing heavy blast grenades into the enemy wherever they could see them.  Each grenade had the equivalent of a ton of explosive in it, and would throw darts of hardened supermetals at high speeds, capable of penetrating even the armor of a suit if they hit right.

The Captain went to a knee as he picked up the shadowy figures of suited Cacas.  They had their stealth systems engaged, and would have been nearly invisible under normal circumstances.  The rain outlined their forms, and though Cornelius could only pick out the forms of the trio nearest him clearly, he could see the indistinct silhouettes of more beyond.

Cornelius pulled a grenade from his webbing and twisted the cap off, then hit the trigger three times before throwing it with all his strength toward the Cacas.  In the rain most of them couldn’t even see the small object that came flying into their formation, until it had gone off with a deafening roar.  Three of the Cacas went flying through the air, tossed by the explosion, while several others fell into the mud.  Walborski aimed his rifle at one of the Cacas who was struggling to get up from his knees, aiming for the faceplate that was one of the weak points on the armor.  He squeezed his trigger once, the chemical rifle phutting out a round, most of the sound captured by the suppressor on the front of the barrel.  The round hit the faceplate, the microshape charge shooting a splinter of supermetal through the armor and into the head of the Caca.  The large soldier went down in a quivering heap.  Cornelius wasn’t sure if he had killed the creature, but the injury he had inflicted would put him out of action.

Walborski spent the next fifteen minutes stalking and killing, using up all of his grenades, then closing for the kill.  On a couple of occasions the spooked Cacas fired at ghosts, their proton beams hissing through the rain.  On at least one occasion one group of Cacas fired at another, and a lively firefight developed in which at least a half dozen of them were killed.

Empty of grenades, now he stalked them in earnest, shooting them at their weak points from close range.  Stabbing them with his monomolecular knife at the joints.  He was like a ghost in  the dark, coming from nowhere, leaving a dead or dying Caca behind.  He hoped that his men were doing the same, and the Cacas refusing to move forward seemed to point to that result.  The augmented reflexes of the Ranger meant that he moved faster than the Cacas, had better reaction time, more precise hand eye coordination.  While he couldn’t stand up to them in an open battle, in this type of fight he had all the advantages.

As the rain started to slacken a bit the Rangers withdrew, leaving terrified Cacas to their rear.  Walborksi and his Top Sergeant made their way back to their own lines.  Over the next half hour the rest of the Rangers returned, or at least those who were going to return.  Eighteen of his men didn’t come back, and he was sure that what was left of them littered the mud in front of his positions.

When they had counted down the probables, the number of dead and wounded Cacas topped three hundred.  Most important, their attack had been blunted, and they had slunk back to their jumping off point.  He was sure that they would be coming back, though.  And with the storm starting to break up, he wasn’t sure that the same tactic would work on them again.

 

Filed under: Alien Life, eBooks, Far Future, Fusion, Future Warfare, Intelligent Life, Military, Nanotechnology, Robots, science Fiction, self publishing, Space Navy, Uncategorized, Writing Tagged: Exodus: Empires at War

The Months Ahead

I finished the first draft of Exodus: Empires at War: Book 8: Soldiers last night (4/20/2015) and immediately jumped into the first draft of book 9, titled Second Front.   The plan is to work on rewrites and proofing of book 8 while writing book 9, then doing the same with book 2 of Machine Wars: Bolthole, while doing the rewrites and proofing on book 9 of EAW.  Then to jump straight into book 10 of EAW.  Whew.  The plan is to get through all the books before summer is out so I can work on the fantasy I have been planning for almost a year, but never seem to get to (except for the first three chapters, which are already done) so I can submit it to Baen.  I figured that if I can do these four Exodus books back to back, which all use the same backgrounds, tech, etc, I can save enough time to work on that submission.

Why, you might ask, would I want to get a traditional book publishing deal?  Because to me that seems like the way to get the most readers.  Not that I’m doing badly, and I appreciate the readers I have, and the living I am making putting out indie books.  But having a publisher and getting covers in bookstores cannot hurt, and with Baen I can keep my indie series going as my own.  And there is always the possibility of getting a collaborative deal out of that mix, which can’t hurt.  Having your name on the same cover with a bestseller means that most of their fans are going to read that book that also has my name on it.  I have several other ideas for Baen if the first one doesn’t pan out, and can always release the books they reject as indies, so it’s really a no lose situation for me.

I am also having the first two covers of my Refuge series redone by a professional.  While that series has done reasonably well, it has not come close to Exodus.  I am hoping that new covers will inject some new life into the series, which is near and dear to my heart.  This weekend I have the Tallahassee Writers’ Conference.  This year I am a presenter, with two sessions.  How To Write Science Fiction, and How I Quit My Day Job.  I have power point presentations for both of these topics, and will be releasing those over the next couple of weeks along with blogs about each presentation.  And I will be releasing two blogs about the upcoming Empires at War Book 8, along with excerpts.

And then we have Liberty Con, in June in the city of Chattanooga.  This year I will be on some panels there as well.  I have no idea which ones I will be on, or what topics.  I’m hoping for at least one panel with some big names, and dreading getting the one person presentation that only two people attend (I went to one of those last year).  I have also signed up for two one hour sessions on Author’s Alley to sign and sell books.  No matter what, it will be good to attend that con and to see the friends I have made through attending last year, like Nebula nominee Chuck Gannon, Campbell Award nominee Jason Cordova, Sarah Hoyt, Cedar Sanderson, David Burkhead and of course Larry Southard, my biggest fan and most faithful purveyor of my work by word of mouth.  Anyone who can make it to Liberty, I would be very happy to meet you.

And then we have the big one at the beginning of September.  Dragon Con.  I didn’t even try to get on a panel this year, after striking out completely last year.  So I will just go and have fun, meet some more of the legends I enjoy reading, and hang out with some friends.  I have seen a couple of my fans at each of the Dragon Cons I have attended, and hopefully this year will be no different.  Live in interesting times, indeed.

Filed under: Uncategorized

Fist Full Of Steel, My First Book Bundle.

 

On Wednesday the Fist Full Of Steel book bundle was released at WeBundle.it .  Just go there and click on the Fist Full Of Steel tab.  You can pay whatever you want, and anything under $13 gets you five great books.  $13 or more gets you 8 great books, including my own Exodus: Empires at War: Book 1.  And thanks to Quincy J Allen for organizing this venture.  Sarah Hoyt had messaged me about an upcoming bundle last year, and I’m not sure if this was what she was talking about.  I was delighted to find her and David Farland were participants, two heavy hitters to headline the bundle.  I am Facebook friends with Mark Everett Stone, Travis Heermann and W. J. (Bill) Cherf, as well as David Farland and Sarah Hoyt, and have seen all of them at Superstars Writers Seminars the last couple of years.

Fist Full Of Steel features novels with a fighting theme, hence the steel in the fist, whether it is a sword of the weapons panel of a starship.  All are books of action and adventure in their own way, covering the gamut of the fantastic.  I understand that all of these people are very good at what they do.  Travis, as a matter of fact, attended the same Anthology Workshop that I did at the beginning of the month, and he sold three or four stories to my one.  Which might mean he is three or four times better than I am.  David Farland is a perennial New York Times bestseller, and Sarah writes for Baen, which tells you quite a bit about their skills.

Originally I had wanted to put another book in this bundle, one of my fantasies.  I love writing fantasy, and all that I have done have gotten good reviews, but not the sales of my Space Opera.  But Quincy wanted my best selling effort, so we went with Exodus.  Hopefully I will get a chance to do another one in the future featuring Aura.  Or maybe I can put one together myself, now that I have seen how it is done.  For now I will enjoy this one, and hopefully my fans will enjoy it as well.  The whole idea is to get the fans of other writers look at your stuff, and turn some of them into your fans.  So give it a look, and if you like what you see, go ahead and buy the bundle.  Again, it’s whatever you want to pay, but $13 or more gets all the books, and honors all of the authors represented in this effort.  Thanks.

Filed under: Blog Tour, eBooks, Fantasy, Far Future, Kindle, Magic, Military, Near Future, science Fiction, self publishing, Titles, Writing Tagged: A K Alexander, book bundles, Charles Colley, David Farland, Fist Full Of Steel, Jen Grayson, Mark Everett Stone, Quincy J Allen, Sarah Hoyt, Travis Heermann, W J Cherf, WeBundle.it

Superstars Writing Seminar 2015: Part 3: Attendees.

Really the coolest thing about returning to a seminar like this is seeing the people you’ve met at last year’s seminar.  I saw Scott Boone again this year at Dragon Con, after meeting him last year at Superstars.  He has given gave presentations two years in a row now about trademarks.  I met Scott in the Atlanta airport this year, the first returning attendee I saw.  Walking into the hotel I saw many familiar faces.  I will not name all of them in this blog.  That would just take too long.  Still, it was great to see all those people again, people with the same dream that I have, to become a selling writer who makes a living with their work.  They were where every one of the big names at the seminar had been, and were here to learn how to get to the same place they were now.  There are times between each session to talk with people, to set up projects (networking), and just to make new or renew old friendships.  Every day was an opportunity to have lunch or dinner with other attendees.  These were, for the most part, impromptu events, people just gathering at the front of the hotel and wandering out into the wilds of Colorado Springs to random restaraunts.  There was game night, gathering in the lobby to play all kinds of card and board games.  The theme of Superstars is that we are a tribe, there to help each other to get to where we all want to be.  And all of these activities contribute to that tribe building.  I am not sure I will attend Superstars every year.  While there is a lot to learn, two years has probably presented enough to work with.  But seeing the people is one reason for wanting to return.

Three attendees I saw at the last Dragon Con stand out as favorites.  I had lunch with Raphyel Jordan, at Dragon Con, as well as attending some events together.  That he wanted to hang out with an old fossil like me was something in his favor.  I only saw Travis Heerman in passing at the con, but seeing a familiar face while trying to fight through the crowd was somehow heartening, and I’m looking forward to seeing him at Dean Wesley Smith and Kristine Kathryn Rusch’s Workshop on the Coast.  Same with the previously mentioned, Scott Boone, whom I saw at several panels at the Con.

Kevin Ikenberry would be a very interesting man even if he wasn’t a writer.  An ex-armor officer and currently a Lt. Colonel in Army Space Command, I have communicated with Kevin, including the exchange of guest blogs, for the past year. And sat with him at dinners with both Eric Flint and Toni Weisskopf.  Kevin has recently signed a publishing contract, and I see big things ahead for him.

Ramon Terrell is an actor and writer, who has had parts in Arrow, Supernatural, and Battlestar Galactica.  His series, Legend of Takashaniel, is being published by Kevin J Anderson’s Wordfire Press, and Ramon signed his contract at the seminar.  Another young man I expect big things from.

Alex Perez-Bergquist, writing under the name Alex P. Berg, has just has his Daggers & Steele Series featured on KOBO.  Another writer I expect we’ll be hearing a lot of in the future.

Quincy Allen is helping to put together a book bundle, which includes one of my books.  Something I have never done, and I have to thank Quincy for asking.  Quincy titles himself a cross genre author, which says a lot for his versatility.

As I said earlier, there were over a hundred attendees at Superstars this year, and I could write a book in trying to discuss all of them.  But, as I said in the first two posts of this series, meeting people is the biggest advantage of Superstars.  People who can help you.  People you can help.  It’s what tribe building is about.  And face to face time is important, still.  The internet is great, but you really feel like you know the person more from being in the same room with them.  I highly recommend Superstars Writing Seminars.  But if you can’t afford the trip to Colorado and the other expenses, at least travel to local Cons and try to interact with every writer you can.  It’s worth the effort.

Filed under: Comics, Conferences, eBooks, Fantasy, Guest Blog, Kindle, Military, science Fiction, self publishing, Titles, Tropes, Writing Tagged: Alex P Berg, Alex Perez-Bergquist, Kevin Ikenberry, Kevin J Anderson, Quincy Allen, Ramon Terrell, Raphyel Jordan, Scott Boone, Superstars, Superstars Writing Seminar, Travis Heerman

Marathon is Free on Amazon.

My short story Marathon, part of the Prometheus Saga, a series of stories written by eleven different authors, will be free on Amazon from February 23rd to 27th 2015.  The Prometheus Saga follows the progress of an alien probe, made to look human, as it observes humankind through the centuries.  Prometheus can become male or female, of every ethnic group, given time.  The stories are set from the war between hominid species in the year forty thousand BC, up to modern times.

I set my story at the battle of Marathon, the year 490 BC, when the invading Persians made their first attempt at conquering Greece.  The outnumbered Athenians faced them, and despite all the Persian advantages, defeated the invader.

One of the reasons I chose Marathon, besides the fact that it was a conflict between opposing ideologies, of east and west, was the fact that the playwright Aeschylus, the father of modern theater, was in the Athenian army.  In those days every able bodied citizen of the democracy came at the call of the city, bringing his own weapons and armor to stand with the others of his people.  Aeschylus had fought in several battles prior to this, and was a seasoned warrior.  He also wrote the play, Prometheus Unbound, and I was able to weave the Greek legend of the Titan into the story.

If you wanted to sample saga, but didn’t want to put up the $0.99, or burn a free pick from Kindle Prime or Kindle Unlimited, this is your chance.  And be sure to check out the offerings of the other talented authors, listed below.  And, as always, a review is appreciated.

 

About The Prometheus Saga

The Prometheus Saga is the premier project of the Alvarium Experiment, a consortium of accomplished and award-winning authors. The Saga spans the range of the existence of Homo sapiens. The stories do not need to be read in any particular order; each story is an entry point into the overall story.

The Prometheus Saga stories & authors are:

 

“The Pisces Affair” by Daco Auffenorde. CIA operative Jordan Jakes meets Prometheus when the Secretary of State becomes the target of a terrorist attack at a head-of-state dinner in Dubai. Visit Daco at www.authordaco.com.

“On Both Sides” by Bria Burton. When a mysterious woman vanishes during the American Revolution, young Robby Freeman searches for answers from a cryptic sharpshooter who deserted Washington’s Continental Army. Visit Bria at www.briaburton.com.

“Ever After” by M.J. Carlson. Two mysterious women convey the same Cinderella story to Giambattista Basile in 1594 and Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm in 1811. How different cultures retell this story reveals humanity’s soul to those who listen. Visit M.J. at www.mjcarlson.com.

“The Blurred Man” by Bard Constantine. FBI agent Dylan Plumm’s investigation of a mill explosion puts her on the trail of the Blurred Man, a mysterious individual who may have been on Earth for centuries. The case turns deadlier at every turn, placing Dylan in the crosshairs of shadowy antagonists even as she unravels a centuries-old mystery. Visit Bard at www.barwritesbooks.com

“Crystal Night” by Charles A. Cornell. Berlin, 1938. On the eve of one of history’s darkest moments, a Swedish bartender working in Nazi Germany accidentally uncovers a woman’s hidden past. Can he avoid becoming an accomplice as the Holocaust accelerates? Visit Charles at www.charlesacornell.com.

“Marathon” by Doug Dandridge. Prometheus, posing as a citizen of Athens, participates in the battle of Marathon alongside the playwright Aeschylus. Visit Doug at www.dougdandridge.net.

“The Strange Case of Lord Byron’s Lover” by Parker Francis. Writing in her journal, Mary Shelley recounts a series of perplexing events during her visit with Lord Byron—a visit that resulted in the creation of her famous Frankenstein novel, but also uncovered a remarkable mystery. Visit Parker at www.parkerfrancis.com.

“Strangers on a Plane” by Kay Kendall. In 1969 during a flight across North America, a young mother traveling with her infant meets an elderly woman who displays unusual powers. But when a catastrophe threatens, are those powers strong enough to avert disaster? This short story folds into Kay’s mystery series featuring the young woman, amateur sleuth Austin Starr. Visit Kay at www.kaykendallauthor.com.

“East of the Sun” by Jade Kerrion. Through a mysterious map depicting far-flung lands, a Chinese sailor in 1424 and a Portuguese cartographer in 1519 share a vision of an Earth far greater than the reality they know. Visit Jade at www.jadekerrion.com.

“Manteo” by Elle Andrews Patt. In 1587, Croatan native Manteo returns from London to Roanoke Island, Virginia. Can he reconcile his strong loyalty to the untamed land and people of his home with his desire for the benefits the colonizing English bring with them before one of them destroys the other? Visit Elle at www.elleandrewspatt.com.

“First World War” by Ken Pelham. 40,000 BC: As the last remaining species of hominid, Homo sapiens and Homo neanderthalensis, fight a desperate battle for ownership of the future, the outcasts of both sides find themselves caught in middle. Visit Ken at www.kenpelham.com.

“Lilith” by Antonio Simon, Jr. In this retelling of the Adam & Eve story, a hermit’s life is turned upside-down by the arrival of a mysterious woman in his camp. As the story of their portentous meeting carries forward through the millennia, only time will tell if Lilith is a heroine, a victim, or a monster. Visit Antonio at www.DarkwaterSyndicate.com.

“Fifteen Dollars’ Guilt” by Antonio Simon, Jr. 1881: After a close brush with death in a steamship disaster, Prometheus encounters another survivor who gripes about how aimless his life has become. Prometheus helps him find his calling, inadvertently setting in motion the assassination of President Garfield. Visit Antonio at www.DarkwaterSyndicate.com.

For additional info about the stories and authors, visit the official website: The Prometheus Saga

Filed under: Alien Invasion, Alien Life, Blog Tour, eBooks, Future Prediciton, History, Intelligent Life, Kindle, Military, Near Future, Past, Robots, science Fiction, self publishing, Writing Tagged: Aeschylus, Alvarium Experiment, Amazon, Bard Constantine, battle of Marathon, Charles A. Cornell, Prometheus, Prometheus Project, Prometheus Saga

Exodus: Machine War: Book 1: Supernova in coming 2/20/2015.

I have always had a fascination with supernovas in science fiction.  An exploding star, something which the human mind really can’t comprehend, putting out the same amount of energy in a second that most stars release in a lifetime, also beyond comprehension.  Inhabited worlds falling prey to a supernova with incinerates the sentient species and civilization of that star, those were the ultimate disaster novels.  Then astronomy came along and found that normal stars like our sun don’t go through supernova.  They lack the mass to reach into the iron burning process that proceeds the cataclysmic death of a star.  That can only happen to the giant stars, blue and red.  The only problem there, at least from a literary point of view, is the giant stars don’t live long enough, only into the millions of years, not even enough time for their planets, if any, to cool, much less for life to evolve.  Which doesn’t mean that inhabited planets around normal stars are totally in the clear.  A supernova going off close enough to the planet can still flood it with killing radiation.

And what if a civilization finds itself in close proximity to one of these monsters?  Like, say, six light months, their own star trapped by the gravitational pull of the giant.  And another, space faring civilization, such as, let’s say, the New Terran Empire, discovers them, and also discovers that the sentients have an ability which would surely serve the Fleet in the face of the Ca’cadasans.  A rescue effort would be attempted, even though the Empire lacked the resources at the moment to conduct a total evacuation.  This was the premise that Supernova came out of.  I wanted to introduce another species to the Empire, one that would help the war effort.  It was to be followed up by another novel titled Bolthole, about the secret imperial base a thousand light years outside the borders of the Empire.  But while writing Supernova, another idea presented itself, and Machine War was born, a series about the battle between the organic and cybernetic in the deeps of space, while the Ca’cadasan war continues to rage thousands of light years distant.  I am working on Bolthole now, and hope to have it out by April.

Empires at War is not over.  The seven books in the series to date have sold over 80,000 copies, and the same production company, Falcon, that put out Books 1 & 2 on audio are now working on Book 3.  I needed a break to plan where the series was going, and now have the next three books at the pre-plotting stage, knowing what the plot matter is going to be.  The tentative titles are Soldiers, Second Front, and The Dagger Thrust.  I will be coming out with Soldiers in time for Liberty Con this year, June, and follow up with the other books, with probable release dates in August and October.  Tales of the Empire is also not over, though I have now determined that those tomes will be made up of multiple short stories (ten to twenty thousand words) filling in the background tales of the Empire.

Exodus: Machine War: Book 1: Supernova will be a full novel, over one hundred and ten thousand words, which will hopefully satisfy those fans who found Tales of the Empire: Exploration Command to be too short.  And now for the obligatory excerpt:

 

“Spectrograph is showing iron burning,” called out the Sensor Officer, looking back at the Captain with alarm.

Captain Walther Huang looked up from his chair, his eyes narrowing as he looked at Big Bastard in the viewer.  It didn’t look any different than before, but the spectrograph lines along the side told the story.  And we’re sitting nine light hours away, which means what we’re looking at now happened nine light hours ago.  And the iron burning stage will only run for about twenty hours.  Shit.

“Prepare for jump into hyper I,” called out the Captain, and the crew of the Merriwether Lewis came back with their acknowledgements.

“What is going on, Captain Huang?” asked Dr. Avery Phillipson, running over from the station he was using to monitor the star.  “I need more time to take readings.”

“You’ve had all the time you’re going to get, Doctor.  I’m not about to risk my ship just so you can get some more information, just before the thermal wave hits.”

“You’ll have plenty of time when the graviton wave hits,” said the scientist, putting hands to hips.

“Not according to my Exec,” said Huang, watching as the lights on the status board turned green, indicating that all hatches to the outside were closed, all crew aboard.  “She thinks we’re going to be unable to go to and from hyper once that damned star blows.”

“And I think your Exec is an idiot,” growled the Astrophysicist.

“Since I don’t agree with your appraisal of Commander Harrison, I am going to jump my ship now.”

“You have orders from above to cooperate with me,” said the Scientist with a scowl.   “And I expect you to follow those orders.”

“With the clause that I am not to put my ship at risk,” said Huang, standing up from his raised chair and looking down at the smaller man.  “Those orders were not a suicide pact.”  The Captain sat back down and looked straight ahead to his Helmsman.  “Jump her into hyper, Ensign.”

“Aye, sir,” said the Helm, pushing the panels on his board.  “Jumping to hyper, now.”

The hyperdrive opened the hole in hyper I, and the light cruiser slid into the higher dimension.  Huang felt the characteristic nausea from the translation, something he had grown used to, if not immune.  Dr. Phillipson bent over, clutching at his stomach as he was wracked with much more severe illness.  Then the ship was through and the space around them had turned the red of the alien dimension.

“Set a course for Klassek, fastest turnover at each hyper barrier.”

“Aye, sir.”  The ship started to accelerate from near rest at five hundred gravities, on a course for the nearest star.

“I must protest, Captain,” said the pale faced scientist, trying to glare at Huang and failing, then staggering away.

“Protest all you want,” whispered the Captain, staring at the back of the scientist.

An hour later they were jumping to hyper II, an hour after that III.

“Are you happy, Captain?” asked Phillipson in a hacking voice.  “We lost hours of readings, when the star would not blow for at least a day.”

“Doctor Phillipson,” said Huang, trying to keep his temper.  “I…”

“We’re picking up severe graviton fluctuations,” called out the Sensor Officer.  “I think its collapsing.”

“You were saying, Doctor Phillipson.”

“We’re twelve light hours out in normal space from the star,” called out the Navigator.

“Graviton fluctuations increasing,” continued the Sensor Officer.  “They’re going off the scale.”

Dr. Phillipson looked over at the holo which showed the computer graphic representation of the star, its surface falling inward, till the star was three quarters of its original diameter, then half, then a quarter, shrinking beyond, then stopping for just an instant.  Then came the rebound, as the pressure reached the point where the star could collapse no more, for the moment.  And it exploded out.

“Graviton wave moving by in VIII,” said the Sensor Officer.  The sensors went wild for a moment, and then the wave passed.  Minutes later another wave passed by, this one in VII.  About eight minutes later came the wave through VI, then V, all the way down until the III wave, running through the dimension they were in, came roaring up to the light cruiser.

“All crew, brace for impact.”  Anyone with a little bit of forethought sought a chair or acceleration couch.  Most made it.  Those who didn’t were tossed about by  the passing wave, battering the ship like a tsunami moving through a shallow sea.  And then, as suddenly as it had begun, it was gone.  At least the tsunami part.  The roiling space around them was a seething froth of gravitons, the messengers that something had gone horribly wrong with a gravitational point source nearby.

“We’re passing the old hyper IV barrier,” reported the Navigator, and Huang nodded.

Those barriers were now moving as the mass of the star was ejected outward.  They wouldn’t change much, at first, but would eventually move out to over twice their original circumference.  Then they would rebound in as the globe of ejected mass continued to spread and grow less dense, until they conformed to the mass effects of the new five or so solar mass black hole which was even now collapsing to its event horizon.

“Give us fifteen minutes at this velocity, then attempt translation up to IV,” the Captain ordered the Helmsman.

Fifteen minutes later the translation was attempted, with no effect.  The hyperdrive generators sent out their masses of gravitons, raising the region just in front of the ship to thousands of gravities for a microsecond.  That should have torn open a hole in the fabric of hyper III, giving them an opening into IV.  Instead, they were lost among the roiling gravitons that swirled through space, blown away by the gravitational wind that prevailed.

“No luck, sir,” reported the Helmsman, looking back at the Captain with a frown.

“Try moving us back down into hyper II.”

Again the helm activated the hyperdrive generators, again the gravitons were sent out in the focused beam, this time at a lower power level and a different resonance.  And again they failed to open space.

“There’s your answer as to what would have happened to us, Dr. Phillipson,” growled the Captain, looking back at the astrophysicist.  “We wouldn’t have been able to translate into hyper, just as my Exec hypothesized.  And we would be waiting for the thermal wave to come along and smack us with enough energy to kill everyone aboard, if not melt the ship.”

The cowed scientist said nothing, simply looked down at the deck.  Huang turned back to the main holo, configured in tactical mode, which showed the system behind them.  According to the projection, the thermal wave had already obliterated the two innermost planets, and was just about to hit the orbit of the third one out.  Anything that survived the awful influx of photons would soon be wiped away by the massive wave of particles, traveling at point nine seven light speed.

 

Filed under: eBooks, Far Future, Future Prediciton, Intelligent Life, Kindle, Military, Nuclear Weapons, Robots, science Fiction, self publishing, Wormholes Tagged: Best Selling, Evacuation, Exodus, Exodus: Machine War, Exploration Command, Search and Rescue, Space Fleet

Superstars Writing Seminars 2015, Part 2: The Professionals.

I will be putting out another blog tomorrow (Thursday, February 19, 2015) about the upcoming novel in the Exodus Universe, due to be released on Friday.  But today I wanted to get back to my impressions of this year’s Superstars Writing Seminar in Colorado Springs, while they are still fresh in mind.  Next week I will post Part 3, about the attendees, many of who have become friends and colleagues.

 

One of the most amazing things about the seminar were the professionals who were on hand.  People who not only taught the courses, but also took meals with the attendees and talked with them between sessions.  There was plenty of time to talk with these people, even if there were almost a hundred other people clambering for their attention.  Kevin J Anderson knew everyone there, or, if they were a first time attendee, knew them by the end of the seminar.  He actually named everyone in the room during the farewell session in order.

It all starts with Kevin, who, with his wife Rebecca, is the heart and soul of the seminar.  Kevin always seemed to have time for a couple of words with everyone. He took people to Garden of the Gods the day before the seminar started, and hung out with Dean Wesley Smith in the lobby after the close.  His productivity is amazing, and you still see him at just about every con around.  My most salient memory of Kevin this year was when I bought his book, Martian War, and brought it to him to get signed.  His eyes were aglow and there was a smile on his face as he signed the book, telling me the whole while about both that book and one he had written about Captain Nemo.  I told him about the animated movie on Netflix in which Teddy Roosevelt fights the Martians, and Kevin showed himself what he is at heart.  A fan, who went into writing science fiction because of his love for it.

Rebecca, of course, is also a permanent fixture, and is always kind and gracious to everyone at the seminar.  She teaches several of the sessions with the other professionals, and her knowledge of publishing, both from her own career and being right there alongside Kevin during his is amazing as well.

Eric Flint is one of the other stalwart regulars.  Eric comes off as a curmudgeon, but is another writer who both loves the field and the people in it.  I talked with him just a few minutes, telling him how much I enjoyed his newest collaboration with David Weber.  That brought a smile to his face, and I realized no matter the stature of the author, they still like to hear people tell them how much they like their work.  I sat at Erik’s table for last year’s VIP dinner, and was heartened by the story of a man with a degree in history who worked most of his life in a factory until he won a contest, Writers of the Future.

Dave Wolverton (David Farland) is another regular, and a man who had helped innumerable writers to success.  I saw Dave last year, then took a workshop from him in Atlanta, before appearing on  Podcast with he and Kevin.  I would have liked to talk with him more, but didn’t want to monopolize his time when there were so many others who wanted his attention.  Dave is someone I hope to have much more communication with in the future.

James Artemis Owens is the last of the regulars, also back from last year.  James is an artist as well as a writer, and the complete comics enthusiast.  Toward the end of the seminar, James showed me some art he had finished for a project he was working on.  It was amazing, with so much detail in a pencil drawing that it has to be seen to be believed.  James’ strength as an instructor is his demonstrated perseverance, coming back from a hand injury that should have left him unable to draw, and now producing master works like I saw at the seminar.

I took Jody Lynn Nye’s Writing Workshop at Dragon Con in 2013, which was really the start of my networking with such amazing people.  I have seen her at Liberty Con 2014, and visiting the Dragon Con Workshop again in 2014, and every time I saw her it was like seeing an old friend.

All the above people are also friends on Facebook, so I get to see so much that is going on in their lives, while they get a peek into mine at the same time.

I had dinner with Toni Weisskopf, and as related in the last post, it was an amazing experience.  Three hours of talking to the publisher and chief editor of Baen Books.  Baen is one of the few companies I would want to write for, but the dinner, for the most part, was not about that.  It was conversation about some of the greats in the field, Heinlein, Poul Anderson, Howard.  I told her about meeting Nancy Springer in Tallahassee, and the discussion turned for a short while to Robert Adams.  A completely enjoyable evening.

Dean Wesley Smith and Kristine Kathryn Rusch were people I didn’t know at all except by email and Facebook.  I got to meet them, and am looking forward to getting to know them better at their workshop coming up.  Last impression of the last day was Dean and Kevin sitting and talking in the lobby, and Kevin telling Dean he didn’t know how I did it with my horrible covers and such.  And Dean saying I must be doing something right.

I met Todd McCaffrey at two Dragon Cons and Liberty Con.  Haven’t spent much time talking to him at either event, something I may have to rectify in the future.

And this is the reason you go to an event like this.  The instruction is first rate, the things you learn can change your life.  But the opportunity to meet and network with such stellar professionals is what really brought me back this year.

Filed under: Conferences, eBooks, Fantasy, History, Military, science Fiction, self publishing, Writing Tagged: Baen Books, Dave Wolverton, David Farland, Eric Flint, James Artemis Owen, Jody Lynn Nye, Kevin J Anderson, Rebecca Moesta, Superstars Writing Seminar, todd mccaffrey, Toni Weisskopf

Superstars Writing Seminars 2015: Part 1

Note:  This post will be in three parts, as I have a lot to say, but am also strapped for time with self-imposed deadlines.  If I don’t get my thoughts down now, they will not be put down.

 

This was my second year at Superstars Writing Seminars, held in Colorado Springs.  I have been to many second years, second meetings, second loves, second parties and campouts and on and on.  Most times the second of an event is a disappointment as compared to the first.  Not saying that seconds are bad.  Most times they are very good, just not as good as the first.  The first builds expectations that are seldom ever matched.  I go into the second hoping it will be as good as the first, that experiences that were great will repeat, as if I’m putting a well-loved movie in the blu-ray to watch once again.  But with real life it never happens.  Almost.

It did happen with Superstars 2015, my return after the 2014 session.  It was a return to old friends in a comfortable location.  Not only the old, but the new, people I hadn’t met before and was very happy to acquaint myself with.  The Antlers Hilton felt like a well prowled lair, comfortable, spacious and, most important of all, known.  It was an uncrowded venue, with the exception of Friday night, and this year, at least for this camper, even that night of the Army Ball was much better.

Superstars is headlined by Kevin J Anderson and Rebecca Moesta, his lovely wife and business/writing partner.  The regular cast of characters were also present.  Best sellers David Wolverton (David Farland) and Eric Flint, and the totally amazing James Artemis Owen, who is not only a bestselling writer, but also an amazing illustrator.  Lisa Mangum, an editor at Wordfire Press, and Mark Leslie Lefebvre of Kobo were there in supporting roles.  New cast included Toni Weisskopf, the publisher of Baen books; New York Times Bestseller Jody Lynn Nye; the well-known writing team of  Kristin Kathryn Rusch and Dean Wesley Smith, and Todd McCaffrey, son of Anne and a bestseller in his own right.  I met Jody at the Dragon Con Writers Workshop, which she runs, in 2013, and saw her again at Liberty and Dragon Cons in 2014.  I met Todd at the same workshop, where he was a guest speaker, and had seen him several times since.  Toni, who I would dearly love to be my publisher, was someone I wanted to meet, though I talked to her briefly at Dragon Con 2014.  And I am attending Dean and Kristin’s Anthology Workshop at the beginning of March, and it was nice to meet my instructors before actually flying out to work with what would otherwise have been strangers.

The workshop ran from Thursday morning through Saturday evening, with three sessions in the morning, an hour and a half lunch, and four in the afternoon, with a question and answer period with all the instructors/presenters at the end of each day.  There was only a single track of sessions in the morning, and, something new this year, a double track in the afternoon, giving a choice of what the attendee wanted to learn.  Like all such multiple tracks, just like at major cons, there were times I wanted to split myself in two so I could attend both (there might be a story in there somewhere).

On Friday evening, while the Army Ball was going on in the hotel (which entailed a mass of men and women in uniform clogging up the lobby) there was a VIP dinner in the nearby Phantom Canyon, just like last year.  Last year I sat with Eric Flint, for a most enjoyable and instructive evening, which including some free signed books.  This year I requested and got placed at the table with Toni Weisskopf, and again the free books were given.  I wanted to get my face and name in front of the publisher of Baen books, which mission was accomplished.  Whether anything comes of it remains to be seen, but it was fun talking with someone who is such a big part of modern science fiction, as well as being a historian of the older days of the field.

This year also featured professional photographer Lauren Lang, who was providing free author shots.  Unfortunately, I had purchased professional pictures in September, so really didn’t have the need for more, but, having seen some of her other shots, the lady was very good.  There was a presentation on ebooks from Mark Leslie Lefebvre, and one on Wattpad by Ashleigh Gardner.  I intend to do some stuff with Wattpad as soon as I get enough time to breath, so the presentation was useful to me.

Lunch each day was spent with a random and different group of people, and was always a lot of fun.  I had my moment of fame, same as last year, with the In The Indie Trenches panel, which I shared with Peter J. Wacks, Rhiannon Paille and Quincy Allen.  Even the presentations that were again presented from last year were great.  Kevin gave his Popcorn Theory of Publishing, and James again gave his Drawing the Dragons inspirational talk, which was still amazing the second time around.

All in all it was a great conference, well worth the time, money and travel.  There was networking to be had, and I came away not only with more knowledge, but also some opportunities that presented themselves during the networking time.  Never one to pass up opportunities, now it’s up to me to make the most of them.  I would recommend this conference to anyone who wants to take the next step in their publishing career, as the wisdom of this group is phenomenal.

 

Part 2 of this blog will concern the interactions with professionals I engaged in and observed, and how much that added to the conference for this attendee.  Part three will be about some of the other attendees, and how engaging in this process had led to some success in their writing careers.

Filed under: Agents, Comics, Conferences, eBooks, Fantasy, Kindle, Movies, science Fiction, self publishing, Titles, Writing Tagged: Ashleigh Gardner, Book Covers, Colorado Springs, David Farland, David Wolverton, Dean Wesley Smith, Eric Flint, James Artemis Owen, Kevin J Anderson, Kobo, Kristin Kathryn Rusch, Mark Leslie Lefebvre, Rebecca Moesta, Superstars, Superstars Writing Seminar, Toni Weisskopf, Wattpad

Prometheus Saga is Here.

Several months ago I was invited to take part in a very unusual collaborative project.  Called the Alvarium Experiment, it would feature short stories by over a dozen award winning or best selling authors based on the same premise.  The styles of the stories are different, as told by writers of mystery, romance, fantasy and scifi.  I told my tale with my normal focus on lots of action, and fans of any of my series will most probably enjoy Marathon.  And if you enjoy my tale, you will surely want to check out the other stories in the Saga.  The information posted on this blog about authors and stories are from the project pages themselves.

About the Authors:

Bria Burton’s short stories have appeared in anthologies such as Welcome to the Future and speculative fiction magazines such as The Colored Lens. Her novella, Little Angel Helper, was written for her sisters, one of whom has special needs like a character in the story. She also has a collection of family-friendly pet stories called Lance & Ringo Tails. Her epic fantasy manuscript, Livinity, won First Place in the RPLA Unpublished Fantasy Novel category in 2011.

At St. Pete Running Company, she works as a blogger and customer service manager. Find out more about her upcoming and past publications by visiting www.briaburton.com.

Raised in Huntsville, Alabama, Daco is a member of the International Thriller Writers, Romance Writers of America, Author’s Guild, and the Alabama State Bar. She is the author of The Libra Affair (April, 2013), an international spy thriller featuring CIA agent Jordan Jakes. The Libra Affair was an Amazon #1 Bestseller of Suspense, Romantic Suspense, and Romance in September, 2013. The novel was also included in a limited-time only Suspense bundle entitled Racing Hearts: 10 thrilling suspense novels released in July, 2014. The sequel, The Scorpio Affair, will be released soon. Visit Daco at www.authordaco.com, Twitter @AuthorDaco, and her author Facebook page “Daco.”

The Libra Affair is “A complex spy game, rather like a Jason Bourne movie – only instead of the usual male secret agent, we get Jordan Jakes. And she is more than capable of rocking your world.”

—RT Book Reviews

“Daco’s romantic thriller debut intrigues with fast-paced, high-stakes action that forces the take-charge heroine to balance her clandestine mission with obligations to her heart … The keenly sharp intelligent female characters soar in this edge-of-your-seat adventure …”

—Publishers Weekly

Ken Pelham lives and writes in Maitland, Florida. His debut thriller, Brigands Key, won first place in the Florida Writers Association’s Royal Palm Literary Awards and was published in hardcover in 2012 by Cengage/Five Star Mystery. The ebook edition was released in 2013.

Brigands Key is “. . . a perfect storm of menace . . . breathtaking!”

—The Florida Weekly

His BK prequel, Place of Fear, also a first place winner of the Royal Palm Literary Award, hit the electronic shelves as an ebook in 2013, and the wood shelves in softcover in 2014.

Short stories by Ken, available for e-readers on Amazon.com, include:

Tales of Old Brigands Key

—Three short stories about the sordid and unseemly past of little Brigands Key. Contains “The Light Keeper,” a finalist in the 2014 Royal Palm Literary Awards, and “The Wreck of the Edinburgh Kate,” 2nd-place winner of the Royal Palm for Published Short Story.

Treacherous Bastards: Stories of Suspense, Deceit, and Skullduggery

—Three stories in the Hitchcock tradition, including one about Brigands Key.

A Double Shot of Fright: Two Stories of Horror

—Two chilling short stories guaranteed to cause loss of sleep.

Ken has penned two nonfiction books on the craft of writing: Out of Sight, Out of Mind: A Writer’s Guide to Mastering Viewpoint, and Great Danger: A Writer’s Guide to Building Suspense.

Visit Ken at www.kenpelham.com for updates on his work, and musings on suspense fiction.

Charles A Cornell writes thrillers with a touch of the macabre and pens a unique form of science fiction blended with fantasy and alternative history known as dieselpunk. His awards include the 2012 Royal Palm Literary Award for Best Thriller for Tiger Paw and another RPLA in 2014 in the science fiction category for his illustrated dieselpunk novel DragonFly. He fuels his creativity from inside the chaos of everyday life and you can follow his musings at http://www.CharlesACornell.com.  He’s a proud member of the Florida Writers Association and the Alvarium Experiment. ‘Alvarium’ is Latin for beehive. The Alvarium Experiment is a unique collaboration of fourteen authors reinventing the short fiction experience. Their first short fiction collection is The Prometheus Saga.

Doug Dandridge lives in Tallahassee, Florida, and has been a full time independent author for the last two years.  His Amazon Best Selling science fiction series, Exodus: Empires at War, has consistently placed in the number one position in Space Opera and Military Science Fiction on Amazon.UK, and in the top five in the same genres on Amazon.US.  He is also the author of the Refuge Technothriller/Fantasy series, and The Deep Dark Well Space Opera series.  He currently has 23 fiction and one nonfiction book on Amazon, How I Sold 100,000 Books On Amazon, which documents his steps to becoming a successful author.  He has also most recently been published in Kevin J. Anderson’s Five By Five 3: Target Zone military scifi anthology.  His blog can be found at http://dougdandridge.com, in which he covers his own work,topics of interest to readers and writers, his take on some of the most tiresome tropes in scifi and fantasy.  Doug earned a BS in Psychology from Florida State University, and an MA in Clinical Psychology from the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa.

JADE KERRION is the author of the Double Helix series, which has won eight science fiction awards, including the Gold Medal, Readers Favorites 2013. She writes speculative fiction and contemporary romance novels that aspire to keep you from doing anything else useful with your time.

“The Double Helix is the kind of series you’d expect to see with a movie deal. I loved, loved, LOVED it.”

—Full Time Reader, Amazon Reviewer

“I wish I could award more than 5 stars. This phenomenal series continues to astonish and delight.”

— Hillel Kaminsky, Amazon Reviewer

For a free electronic copy of Perfection Unleashed, visit www.doublehelixbooks.com

Find Jade’s books on Amazon at www.amazon.com/author/jadekerrion

Visit Jade at www.jadekerrion.com for her latest publishing news, events, promotions, and giveaways.

About The Author

Victor DiGenti (aka Parker Francis)

 After a career in broadcasting as a producer/director of public affairs programs and award-winning documentaries, and in the special events arena in which he produced the Jacksonville Jazz Festival for eight years, Vic DiGenti turned to his first love—writing. He found inspiration in his household of cats and wrote three award-winning adventure/fantasies with a feline protagonist.

Writing as Parker Francis, Vic made the leap into the hard-boiled mystery/suspense field and has written two award-winning novels in his Quint Mitchell Mystery series, Matanzas Bay and Bring Down the Furies. A third in the series, Hurricane Island, will be released soon. He’s also published the novella, Blue Crabs at Midnight, and the short story collection, Ghostly Whispers, Secret Voices.

Vic is a frequent speaker at libraries, book festivals, and writers’ conferences. He’s taught writing classes at the University of North Florida, and is the FWA Regional Director for NE Florida coordinating 8 writers’ groups, and has served as Co-Director of St. Augustine’s Florida Heritage Book Festival and Writers Conference. He’s also on the Board of the Friends of the Ponte Vedra Library. Visit him at www.parkerfrancis.com

Elle Andrews Patt is a married mother of two unschooled kids now thriving in high school and at  university. She is an eclectic and has worked as a certified veterinary technician, event manager, and  co-owner of a pizza restaurant, large equestrian boarding, show, and breeding farm, and telecommunications company. Her award-winning speculative and literary short fiction has appeared in markets such as The Rag, Solarcide, and SawPalm, as well as anthologies. She is currently seeking representation for her paranormal murder mystery, Billie Mae, and completing a literary novella. ‘Manteo’, a short story within The Prometheus Saga collection is her first self-publication and a product of her association with The Alvarium Experiment. To read her short fiction and samples of her novel, please visit elleandrewspatt.com Facebook: Elle Andrews Patt, The Prometheus Saga, The Alvarium Experiment Twitter: @LAndrewsPatt

Antonio Simon, Jr.

Antonio Simon, Jr. is a lawyer and award-winning author of several books. His debut novel, “The Gullwing Odyssey”, is a fantasy/comedy adventure and winner of three awards in its first year. In 2014 it won the first-place Royal Palm Literary Award in the category of humor & satire. If nothing else, the book proves that being a lawyer and fostering a sense humor are not mutually exclusive. Mr. Simon is also the author of “R.A.G.E.”, an original roleplaying game system, and “Miami Is Missing”, which delves into Miami’s hidden history. All told, he has written four books, collaborated on two, and published over a dozen short stories.

Mr. Simon holds two Bachelor of Arts degrees from the University of Miami (Florida), one apiece in the subjects of political science and history, as well as a Juris Doctorate from Saint Thomas University’s School of Law. He lives in Miami, Florida.

Visit his blog at www.GullwingOdyssey.com.

Discover his books at www.DarkwaterSyndicate.com and Amazon.

Kay Kendall set her debut novel, DESOLATION ROW—AN AUSTIN STARR MYSTERY in 1968. The sequel RAINY DAY WOMEN (June 2015) shows her amateur sleuth Austin Starr proving her best friend didn’t murder women’s liberation activists in Seattle and Vancouver. Both books are published by Stairway Press of Seattle. A fan of historical mysteries, Kay does for the 1960s what novelist Jacqueline Winspear accomplishes for England in the 1930s–she writes atmospheric mysteries that capture the spirit of the age. Kay is also an award-winning international PR executive who earned degrees in Russian history. She lives in Texas with her husband, three house rabbits, and spaniel Wills. Terribly allergic to the bunnies, she loves them anyway! Her book titles show she’s a Bob Dylan buff too. Visit Kay at http://www.kaykendallauthor.com and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/KayKendallAuthor

Bard Constantine writes gritty futures and far-flung fantasy. His love of those genres catapulted his writing career, which includes the Troubleshooter novels, featuring the private eye of a dystopian future. Other novels include the horror/sci-fi novel The Aberration, and Shadow Battles, a recently released epic fantasy series. A huge fan of edgy, fast-paced television shows, Bard paces his stories in a similar fashion, keeping his readers hanging on from chapter to chapter. Bard lives in Birmingham, Al with his wife and unbridled imagination. Keep up with his work at http://bardwritesbooks.com and at Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/bardwritesbooks

And, the stories, with links to their Amazon sales pages:

“The Pisces Affair” by Daco Auffenorde. CIA operative Jordan Jakes meets Prometheus when the Secretary of State becomes the target of a terrorist attack at a head-of-state dinner in Dubai. Visit Daco at http://www.authordaco.com.

“On Both Sides” by Bria Burton. When a mysterious woman vanishes during the American Revolution, young Robby Freeman searches for answers from a cryptic sharpshooter who deserted Washington’s Continental Army. Visit Bria at http://www.briaburton.com.

“Ever After” by M.J. Carlson. Two mysterious women convey the same Cinderella story to Giambattista Basile in 1594 and Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm in 1811. How different cultures retell this story reveals humanity’s soul to those who listen. Visit M.J. at http://www.mjcarlson.com.

“The Blurred Man” by Bard Constantine. FBI agent Dylan Plumm’s investigation of a mill explosion puts her on the trail of the Blurred Man, a mysterious individual who may have been on Earth for centuries. The case turns deadlier at every turn, placing Dylan in the crosshairs of shadowy antagonists even as she unravels a centuries-old mystery. Visit Bard at http://www.bardwritesbooks.com

“Crystal Night” by Charles A. Cornell. Berlin, 1938. On the eve of one of history’s darkest moments, a Swedish bartender working in Nazi Germany accidentally uncovers a woman’s hidden past. Can he avoid becoming an accomplice as the Holocaust accelerates? Visit Charles at http://www.charlesacornell.com.

“Marathon” by Doug Dandridge. Prometheus, posing as a citizen of Athens, participates in the battle of Marathon alongside the playwright Aeschylus. Visit Doug at http://www.dougdandridge.net.

“The Strange Case of Lord Byron’s Lover” by Parker Francis. Writing in her journal, Mary Shelley recounts a series of perplexing events during her visit with Lord Byron—a visit that resulted in the creation of her famous Frankenstein novel, but also uncovered a remarkable mystery. Visit Parker at http://www.parkerfrancis.com.

“Strangers on a Plane” by Kay Kendall. In 1969 during a flight across North America, a young mother traveling with her infant meets an elderly woman who displays unusual powers. But when a catastrophe threatens, are those powers strong enough to avert disaster? This short story folds into Kay’s mystery series featuring the young woman, amateur sleuth Austin Starr. Visit Kay at http://www.kaykendallauthor.com.

“East of the Sun” by Jade Kerrion. Through a mysterious map depicting far-flung lands, a Chinese sailor in 1424 and a Portuguese cartographer in 1519 share a vision of an Earth far greater than the reality they know. Visit Jade at http://www.jadekerrion.com.

“Manteo” by Elle Andrews Patt. In 1587, Croatan native Manteo returns from London to Roanoke Island, Virginia. Can he reconcile his strong loyalty to the untamed land and people of his home with his desire for the benefits the colonizing English bring with them before one of them destroys the other? Visit Elle at http://www.elleandrewspatt.com.

“First World War” by Ken Pelham. 40,000 BC: As the last remaining species of hominid, Homo sapiens and Homo neanderthalensis, fight a desperate battle for ownership of the future, the outcasts of both sides find themselves caught in middle. Visit Ken at http://www.kenpelham.com.

“Lilith” by Antonio Simon, Jr. In this retelling of the Adam & Eve story, a hermit’s life is turned upside-down by the arrival of a mysterious woman in his camp. As the story of their portentous meeting carries forward through the millennia, only time will tell if Lilith is a heroine, a victim, or a monster. Visit Antonio at http://www.DarkwaterSyndicate.com.

“Fifteen Dollars’ Guilt” by Antonio Simon, Jr. 1881: After a close brush with death in a steamship disaster, Prometheus encounters another survivor who gripes about how aimless his life has become. Prometheus helps him find his calling, inadvertently setting in motion the assassination of President Garfield. Visit Antonio at http://www.DarkwaterSyndicate.com.

For additional info about the stories and authors, visit the official website: The Prometheus Saga

The Prometheus Saga promises to be a unique experience for readers, and the same main character is followed for thousands of years through the craft of many different writers. The series can be entered at any point, as all of the stories are stand alone.  There may be more in the future; that had yet to be determined.  So give the series a try, and, as always, reviews are welcome.

 

Filed under: Alien Invasion, eBooks, History, Intelligent Life, Kindle, Plotting, Robots, science Fiction, self publishing, Titles, Writing Tagged: Alien probes, Alvarium Experiment, Amazon, Anthologies, Collaborations, Prometheus Project, Short Stories, speculative fiction

Refuge: Book 4: Kurt’s Quest is out, and other news.

Refuge: Book 4: Kurt’s Quest is out on Amazon.  Refuge is my most popular fantasy series, more of a cross genre offering of high fantasy and military techno-thriller.  It is nowhere near as popular as my Exodus series, but I will continue on with at least one new book a year as long as I’m able.  I have enough people asking me to continue the series, and I have a lot of research, development and worldbuilding invested to keep my own interest in it.  Kurt von Mannerheim, the main protagonist, is an Immortal, a human with abilities far greater than those of any normal human, and what looks to be a limitless lifespan.  He has been prophesized to  be the savior of the world of Refuge from the evil of the Dark Gods.  A veteran of the Wehrmacht, fighting on the Russian Front in the army of Hitler, Kurt really wants nothing to do with power.  Unfortunately, the job is his, unless he wants to see this world ruled by a being even worse than the madman of twentieth century Earth.  While the armies of the alliance, humans from the American and German armies of Earth, as well as many of the native Elves and Dwarves, and the native human races, are rolling over the armies of the evil Ellala Emperor, a party of his strongest warriors, priests and assassins are on a mission to find the Crown of the Lost Gods, and artifact capable of ruling the minds of millions.  Kurt and his closest friends, the Immortal American Jackie Smith, the Physicist/Natural Mage James Drake, Garios na Gonron of the Mountain Dwarves, and Fenris Hallanta of the Ellala, must quest to stop the men of the Emperor.

Exodus: Tales of the Empire: Exploration Command is also out in time for those Christmas kindles.  Three 15,000 word novelettes covering the smartest men and women of the Fleet, Exploration Command.  In Retribution, missionaries from the Empire are found well beyond its bounds, helping to raise an alien race back from the primitive state they had been left in by rampaging pirates.  Or are they?  In Timeless, a derelict tens of millions of years old is found in orbit around a dead planet circling a dying star.  There are some indications of working machinery aboard.  But how can something that old still be functioning?  And does the secret of its operation point to a long sought after technology for the Empire?  In They Don’t Care, aliens are destroying all intelligent life within range of their homeworld.  An Exploration Command team is determined to stop them, but can they with only a pair of ships?

Finally, Five By Five 3: Target Zone, is also available on Amazon.  Featuring stories by New York Times best sellers Kevin J. Anderson and Michael A. Stackpole, as well as Prometheus Award Winners Dani and Eytan Kollin, as well as Baen Author Sarah A. Hoyt, I am proud to offer a story of the Exodus Universe among this august company.  In Goliath, a Fleet captain must find a way to defeat a Ca’cadasan Battleship two hundred and fifty times the mass of her frigate.  I loved writing this story, and think my fans will enjoy it.  And it’s only available in Five By Five 3.

Merry Christmas to all and a Happy New Year.  I look forward to the coming year, and the production of more fiction.

 

Filed under: Alien Invasion, Alien Life, eBooks, Far Future, Fusion, Future Prediciton, Future Warfare, Kindle, Military, science Fiction, self publishing, Space Industry, Space Navy, Writing Tagged: Amazon, Dani Kollin, Exodus: Empires at War, Exodus: Tales of the Empire, Exploration Command, Eytan Kollin, Five By Five Military Anthology, Kevin J Anderson, Kurt's Quest, Michael A. Stackpole, Refuge, Sarah Hoyt