Randall Allen Dunn's Blog: Packing Action, page 3
October 20, 2022
click to play epic Red Rider Saga BookTok trailer!
@author.kdnealClick to play this epic #BookTok trailer for the #RedRiderSaga!@Randall Allen Dunn Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Batman! #fiction #booktok #actionbooks #paranormalbooks #werewolfbooks #redridinghoodretelling
♬ Epic Scary Running – Konstantin Kasyanov
October 14, 2022
The Purge – Containing Evil
I’m not a big horror movie buff, but my son is. After he watched The Forever Purge, he wanted to watch the first movie in the series. So I got to watch two horror films in one day.
As I said, I’m not big into horror, but I appreciate a well-written horror story. The Purge was exactly that.
Don’t worry, I won’t show any scary pictures or discuss any gory details (although, thankfully, the film wasn’t gory). But as this is Halloween month, I want to describe what I feel makes for a good horror story.

Some people assume every horror story is designed to terrify them as the reader or viewer. And it’s true that most of them are. But that does not define horror. Some classic horror films from the 1930’s, such as Dracula and Frankenstein, might not scare us at all today, but it’s still horror. Because it’s not about whether we’re scared as the audience. It’s about whether the story characters are scared, and what they’re going to do about it.
In horror, a character faces a monstrous threat and has very limited options to overcome it. They must destroy the threat, or permanently escape from it, or be destroyed by it. For this reason, horror reveals a character’s true nature better than any other genre.
When the T-rex first attacks in the film, Jurassic Park, the lawyer runs off to save his own skin, abandoning two children in a jeep. We can clearly see his self-serving nature.
By contrast, Dr. Grant has insisted that he despises children. But when the T-rex appears, he risks his life to draw the monster away from them. He then spends the rest of the film guiding the kids back to safety. Although he believes he hates children, the threat of the T-rex reveals his true nature as a fatherly protector.
Now, to The Purge.

It has been said that “all that is necessary for evil to succeed is for good men to do nothing.” Which is exactly what we see in this film. In a dystopian society, it has been determined that everyone needs a single night of releasing their urges, to maim or kill anyone they want to, without it being considered a crime during those twelve hours. Scary, right?
James Sandlin has developed a perfect security system to keep intruders out, so he and his family are safe, even during the Purge.

Until his son, Charlie, takes pity on a victim calling for help outside their luxury home, and opens the doors to let him inside. This creates a problem when a mob arrives at the house, demanding that the Sandlins release the victim to them. James decides that he must surrender the man in order to protect his family, after the mob assures him they have equipment to break through his home’s defenses.
But this ultimately causes a deep rift with his family, who decide it’s wrong for James to let the mob kill the man. His wife, Mary, asks when this happened to them, to become so callous toward others.

James ultimately decides his family is right, and they have no choice but to fight off the intruders. Risking their own lives for the sake of a stranger.
It’s easy to detach ourselves from the needs of others. To “look out for Number One,” valuing our own safety and security above everyone else’s.
But living that way keeps us isolated from those around us, and allows a corrupt mindset to build within us. Those who participate in the Purge say that they need this release of their pent-up anger and hatred. That the only way they can free themselves of these negative thoughts and emotions is to give full vent to them for one night.
In other words, the only way to resist temptation is to give in to it. But if we all give in to temptation, no one will be safe. And if we only protect those we know, only our family and friends will be safe.

It’s our nature to be selfish and to only look after those closest to us. But we must rise above that to help and protect others, even if they’re strangers. It doesn’t matter if we know them. All that matters is that they’re fellow human beings.
If we refuse to help others in need, it makes our hearts callous. We can kid ourselves into thinking we’re kindhearted people, protecting our loved ones. But our conscience knows the truth, and so do those around us. Like James, we have to realize that sacrificing others to save our family will ultimately cause us to lose our family. To lose their love and respect, over those people we discarded to keep ourselves safe and secure.

Keep an eye out for those in need, and help where you can. In doing so, you’ll help yourself as you become a genuinely kind and caring person.
Protect one another and stay safe.
June 15, 2022
When You’d Rather Be Someplace Else
Have you ever wished you were someplace else? Maybe a different location, or a different place in life?
I’m writing this from the hospital, where I’m cooped up for three days because of a serious toe infection. I’ll still be at the hospital when I prepare to post this, on my birthday.
For me, that’s not as depressing as it sounds. My wife and I don’t have extra time or money to do much for my birthday this week, so we already expected to celebrate later on, when it’s easier to do so. Still, I’d rather be somewhere else on my birthday.
I don’t hate hospitals, though. Many people do, and there are plenty of valid reasons for people to feel uncomfortable. It could be the food. The needles and blood draws and constant checking of your vitals. The near-empty, echoing corridors. The wasted time, just sitting around with nothing to do. Being cut off from family and friends and your usual activities. The weird hospital gowns that don’t seem designed to actually close. None of those things have bothered me too much. Except maybe the weird hospital gown.
Nevertheless, I hated to go. I had just returned from a comicon Sunday evening, and my wife noticed something odd on my foot. When she saw my infected toe, she insisted I go to the ER.
Thank goodness she did. When the podiatrist arrived to examine it, she said there’s always a possibility that an infected toe like this would have to be amputated if it didn’t heal, but she believes we caught it in time.

I have horrible neuropathy in both of my feet, so I don’t always feel sensations, or else I feel them very faintly. Whatever damage I did to my toe wasn’t noticed at the time. I felt some soreness while walking Sunday afternoon, but I figured it was due to lugging boxes of my books to the comicon and driving a borrowed stick shift car.
After driving almost three hours to return home that evening, I just wanted to relax. I didn’t even unload everything. The last thing I wanted to do was spend hours at the ER and end up being too tired to do anything else the next morning before starting my regular day job. But I knew my wife was right, that I should get it checked out. Who knew those hours would end up being a few days, for a condition far more severe than I realized?
Sometimes I can’t know where I really need to be, or what I really need to do. I have my own agenda in mind, but life frequently interrupts my schedule. I wrote last month that my car was totaled in a freak accident, so I couldn’t Uber drive for extra money. The insurance settlement we received was quickly eaten up by other bills, leaving me with no car. Thankfully, I work from home, and my wife just started an amazing new job as a therapist, which will earn her far more than she made at her previous job.
However, she is paid per client, so we’re still short on funds for another month while she builds up a full roster of clients. While she works some evening and weekend hours, I’m doing more cooking and cleaning at home instead of spending long hours doing Uber driving or writing. I didn’t anticipate this sudden change of season in our lives, having to quickly improve my “house-husband” skills and live life without a car. But this is what has happened and I have to adapt.
In his song, “Beautiful Boy”, John Lennon wrote that “life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.” I don’t always understand why my life goes in the direction it does. Why something suddenly disrupts everything I had been working toward, throwing all my plans off course. But that’s what happens in life.

At the same time, we find that our needs are somehow met during those hard times. The car I drove to the comicon on Sunday was loaned to us by a Christian couple the day before. They learned of our situation through friends and said they keep an extra car available to loan out to people in need, so we can borrow it for a while, or arrange to borrow it when I travel to comicons. That’s a stunning blessing, arriving at just the right time. The Bible says, “In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps (Proverbs 6:9).”
A preacher once said that “our interruptions might be God’s appointments.” In other words, what we view as an interruption could be an event that God is orchestrating, to position us for something far more important that he wants us to do, in a far more important place than the one where we were headed. That doesn’t mean we’ll never get to the destination we had in mind. It might just mean that our plans get delayed for a while. Perhaps days, perhaps weeks, perhaps years. But we can still get there. Or it might mean there’s a much better destination for us than the one we were pursuing. One with far greater potential to bless not only us, but also a whole lot of other people.
This morning while I was still at the hospital, my daughter texted me and my wife to say, “Just in case, I love you.” My wife quickly learned that our daughter’s school was on lockdown because of an angry local resident who was being evicted. The man refused to leave, threatening to use a gun and a bomb. Thankfully, no one was harmed, and the school lockdown was lifted. Though it could have been much worse.

We never know what will happen next in our lives, or how much life we have left. We don’t have enough information or insight to know whether we’re making the best decisions for ourselves. But we can choose to keep moving forward. If we’ve made bad decisions in the past, we can change how we think and act from now on. If we’ve suffered loss, we can grieve, and help others through their own grief and suffering, to be a listening ear and a shoulder to cry on. If we’re confused and uncertain about our future, we can trust that there’s still time to discover our true purpose and what kind of future lies waiting for us.
I personally trust God for whatever lies ahead. When I don’t know what’s coming, I know that he does. When I don’t feel I’m worthwhile or skilled enough to handle life’s challenges, I know he’ll walk me through each one. When I can’t read the warning signs of imminent danger – like an infected toe that I can’t even feel – I know he’ll surround me with wise and caring people who help guide and protect me. The Bible says, “‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord. ‘Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’”
Whether you know God or not, your life has meaning and purpose, and God cares what happens to you. He knows what you’ve suffered through, what you’ve achieved, and what your private plans are, and he wants the best for you and for me. Even when we can’t see it. And you have a purpose and a destination in life, even when you feel like you would rather be someplace else.
Keep believing.
May 14, 2022
It’s Good to Be Alive
Skillet Good To Be Alive lyrics – YouTube

I had a near-death experience last week without realizing it. Driving to the library after a mild rain, I came around a curve at 35 mph in a 30 mph zone. There must have been an oil spill on the road, because my car spun wildly in a full 360 degree angle. It kept spinning in another 180 degree turn as I struggled to stop the car, tapping the brakes and tugging on the steering wheel. Nothing worked. The back end hopped the curb and struck a lamppost, bouncing off it. While the driver’s front end smashed into a slim tree, denting its door inward.
Air bags had deployed but were torn. The car horn was blaring and wouldn’t shut off. The front windshield was cracked like a spiderweb. I sat in the car, stunned, with small chunks of glass littering my lap and the passenger seat. The driver’s door had crumpled so far inside that it nearly pinned my leg.

A man off the street opened my passenger door to ask if I was all right. He suggested I climb out if I could. Staring at the imploded door curving around my left thigh, I figured I should dial 911 instead and wait for paramedics to help me. Then it smelled like something was burning, so I gathered vital items into a bag, hoisted myself up, brushed glass bits off my lap, and carefully angled myself sideways over the glass chunks on the passenger seat.
A bystander had already called 911, and paramedics soon arrived to take me to the hospital. I felt fine, except for a stinging soreness in my left calf. And the fact that my wife and I have tons of bills to catch up on, and my plans for raising a lot of money over the next month as a rideshare driver just went up in smoke. I knew God had saved my from a freak accident, and that he would bring something good out of this. But what? And when would things ever get better for me and my family?
When all you got are broken dreams
Just need a second chance
And everything you want to be
Gets taken from your hands

X-rays later showed everything normal in my leg, though I still need to have a doctor or chiropractor check my neck and spine curvature after the whiplash.
However, when my sister-in-law saw pictures of the car that my wife took, she was shocked, glad that I wasn’t killed. Because it didn’t look like something anyone would walk away from.


She was right. Honestly, judging from the photos, I’m lucky to be alive.
This life could almost kill ya
When you’re trying to survive
It’s good to be here with ya
And it’s good to be alive
A favorite song of mine is “Good To Be Alive” by Skillet. It’s become one of my personal theme songs, for all the stress my family’s gone through over the last decade. Losing jobs, losing a house, losing friends and family, along with the recent house fire we suffered. The song reminds me that, in spite of the troubles we face, we can persevere through life, grateful to still be here to persevere.
I believe God protected me through this horrible disaster, and is even bringing good things out of it. The insurance settlement is much more than we expected to receive, and my car-smart brother found several inexpensive used vehicles we can buy, in a market where used cars have not been affordable.
On top of that, my wife just landed a dream job as a therapist where she can start counseling people every week, while earning a lot more income. God not only saved me from a near-death catastrophe, but is also positioning us to finally start getting ahead, after facing one crisis after another for nearly a decade.
Still, the fact that I could have died is sobering. We never know how many days or seconds we have left here on Earth. Since I’m still here, there must be more for me to do. For my family, my community, and the impact of my writing.
My favorite scene from “Superman: the Movie” is when Superman’s adoptive father tells him, “One thing I do know, son, is that you are here for a reason. I don’t know whose reason. Maybe it’s because … I don’t know. But I do know this. It’s not to score touchdowns.”

We’re not here for ourselves. We’re here to bless those around us, with whatever time and skills we have. You may not feel you have any talents or gifts to help others, but the biggest blessing we can provide to anyone is to simply be there. Spending time playing with kids. Being a listening ear and shoulder to cry on for someone who’s hurting. Offering someone a smile, a hug, or a laugh. Just being there makes a huge difference for others.
My sister-in-law told me she’s glad I’m still here. So am I. I lost my dad fifteen years ago, and my older brother in 2020. I would love to have another day to talk and laugh with them. Just for them to be here.
We hold on to each other
All we have is all we need
‘Cause one way or another
We always make it you and me

While we’re still here, let’s find ways to encourage and comfort others around us, in whatever they’re dealing with. We only have so much time to do it.
I don’t know what my future holds. But I’m thankful that I have a future and a purpose, and that my life matters – even just being here.

I went to the junkyard the other day to gather some other items stuck in my car. The representative who pulled up photos of my car gasped and said, “Wow. Thank God you’re alive.”
Yeah.
It’s good to be alive.

April 1, 2022
Big Comicon Events – Davenport, IA April 2-3 and Madison, WI April 9-10!
I’m booked the next 2 weekends for some fun comicon events you won’t want to miss!
I’ll be there signing my fantasy & action thrillers, including the brand new RED RIDER REVOLUTION: Book 5 of the Red Rider Saga!

April 2-3 in Davenport, IA!
Mightycon is going to be at Mississippi Valley Fairgrounds. Admission is $10.
https://fancons.com/events/info/18691/quad-cities-comic-con-2022

April 9-10 in Madison, WI!
Quad Con! Tell all the nerds in Wisconsin that we are headed their way next weekend! Here is a link to the event page:
Hope to see you there!
March 18, 2022
March 28th it’s Time to BREAK OUT with RED RIDER REVOLUTION!

Did you miss any of the other Red Rider books?
You’re in luck. The first 3 books are also discounted through March 28th!
Now is the time to collect ALL 5 BOOKS on Amazon Kindle!
Including RED RIDER RISING, a 2021 Realm Makers Paranormal Award Finalist!
ONLY $1.99 through March 28th!
2021 Realm Makers Paranormal Award Finalist!
ONLY $2.99 through March 28th!
ONLY $3.99 through March 28th!
Regular Price $4.99!
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09...
ONLY .99 cents through March 28th!
February 13, 2022
Fires – Through the Flames
I entered my daughter’s bedroom to see a bonfire on her bed.
I screamed. Causing my son in the front room to scream. I ran to the kitchen, pulling out my phone to dial 911 while ordering Noah to leave the house. I filled a large bowl with water, then grabbed it and shoved another bowl under the running faucet.
“911, what’s the location of your emergency?”
I shouted the address, shouted that my daughter’s bedroom was on fire, shouted again at Noah to step outside. At the door, I flung the water at the center of the flame. Black smoke billowed up, filling half the room and rolling into the hall at my face.
The fire was still going.
… When the smoke billows higher, oh and higher
And it feels like I can barely breathe

I ran back to the kitchen, screamed at the 911 operator to send someone right away as I grabbed the other water bowl, sliding the first one under the faucet. The nearby fire department would arrive in less than a minute. By then, the fire would consume all of Abby’s clothes and personal belongings, along with her room and possibly the house. I promised Noah I would leave soon as I tossed more water onto the bed.
Firefighters were at our door within seconds, urging me to come out as I finally suppressed most of the fire, leaving a small flame on a power strip as I hurried outside. I told the responders it was only me and Noah, but Noah cried, “Brownie!”
I had forgotten about our little dog. Usually under foot, now he was nowhere to be seen. Once the firefighters called his name, Brownie quickly ran out from a rear bedroom.
… You’ve walked me through fires
Pulled me from flames
If You’re in this with me
I won’t be afraid

I stood in our driveway, stunned. Two responders asked me what happened while their crew tugged a long fire hose through our front door. I explained that I work from home and Noah’s usual babysitter was away. I was stuck on calls when our house alarm started beeping. I came upstairs to find smoke rolling across the ceiling, and spotted a bright light in our daughter’s room. We later learned that Abby had asked Noah to gather some things for her. He did so, setting a candle on the nightstand to make her room smell nice.
He had no idea it had tipped over.
The paramedics urged us to get checked out. The hospital nurses discovered carbon monoxide in my blood, but not to a dangerous level. I picked up Abby from her school dance rehearsal and drove her to the house. She was devastated. Her bedroom was a charred ruin. Several of her cherished belongings – including a favorite blanket she’s had since infancy – had been destroyed by fire or excessive water.
Good friends put us up at a hotel for two nights.
Disasters never happen at a convenient time. But we were paying down debts. I was about to publish my next book. My wife, Nicki, was studying for her therapy license. And Abby’s been practicing for dance performances scheduled for the entire week.
It was a bad time to have our house catch on fire.
… I’m changed by Your mercy
Covered by Your peace
I’m living out the victory
Doesn’t mean I won’t feel the heat
Nicki couldn’t sleep for several hours that night. I got up later to write a Facebook fundraiser appeal. The next morning, we took Abby to school and returned to the house with Noah to start cleaning.
Two women knocked on our front door, asking if we had a fire. They explained they were a highly experienced restoration company, doing top quality work and advocating for us to help ensure that all of our damaged materials get restored or replaced.
As they spoke, I felt God telling me to simply let them inside. They shared more details and credentials, until we were convinced they could help. They immediately set up machines that would filter out all the smoke within days. Then they started washing our laundry, while planning how to clean our belongings under our renter’s insurance agreement. They kept working nonstop as I posted our fundraiser and Nicki contacted our insurance provider, who took over the cost of our continued hotel stay.
… I remember how You told me
That life may not be easy
And everything that I need
You’ve already given me

Our church community group leader visited us, bringing a restaurant gift card and some food. He complimented our positive attitude, surprised that we weren’t more shaken up.
Nicki and I smiled at each other. She told him this feels manageable after everything else we’ve gone through in the last decade. With lost homes, lost jobs, family stress, financial setbacks, legal attacks, and getting on a first name basis with police and paramedics through multiple emergencies, we’ve been through worse. It’s still rough, but all those horrible dramas made it easier to handle yet another crisis.
… I can face anything
‘Cause You’re here with me
I can do all things
‘Cause You strengthen me
Our group leader prayed with us. As we continued to sweat over all our expenses, I checked my PayPal account for any direct donations, and discovered some significant contributions. Meanwhile, the restoration company delivered a large amount of food from a local church that stuffed our hotel refrigerator to overflowing.
When I started my car this morning, the song “Fires” was playing on the radio. I’ve heard it before but never noticed the words.
… I remember how You told me
I can trust You completely
So why am I doubting
When You proved that You’d fight for me?
We all go through unexpected fires in life. Some will be devastating, or will feel that way. But God will continue to bring us through each one.
We’ll have to adjust some plans. I’ll publish my book in March instead of February. Nicki’s studies will be delayed another month, and she’s taken time off work this week to handle a lot of damage control.
Some plans will remain in place. Abby will keep performing her dance shows, which we got to see last night (she was awesome!). I’ll still sign books at the Davenport, Iowa Quad Con on Feb. 19-20.
Other plans won’t move forward without the right help. Our restoration company is doing quick and excellent work. People are providing food, funds, resources, and prayers that we desperately need. God is overseeing all of it, providing for us in the disasters that we couldn’t see coming, through people and resources we didn’t know were available.
It’s always rough when tragedies strike. Always.
But seeing how God provided for us in the past helps me trust him to take care of us in the future, handling each crisis as it comes. Even when I can’t see it coming.
… I’ll walk through these fires
‘Cause You’re walking with me.
Click here for Fires video.
Click here for the story behind the Fires song.
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=559364828104568
Click here to view updates or contribute to the Facebook fundraiser:
Click here to contribute directly to PayPal to the account radnik97@yahoo.com
January 26, 2022
Quad Con Cedar Rapids Comic & Toy Convention – Sunday Jan. 30th, 2022
Cedar Rapids Comic & Toy Convention – Jan 30, 2022
Join me this Sunday at the Cedar Rapids Quad Con! I’ll be signing my fantasy and action thrillers, alongside fantasy authors Ben Wolf and Charis Crowe, and tons of cool vendors for comics, toys, games, art prints, and other cool stuff! Not to mention the cosplay event!
PLUS you could win a $50 gift certificate to use anywhere at the Quad Con show, by linking to the Facebook post picture above and sharing it! Hope to see you there!
Want to win $50?! LINK TO SHARE THIS FACEBOOK POST and you are automatically entered to win. AND by sharing this post you get $2 off entry.
January 10, 2022
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty – Living the Dream

Most of us have big dreams. Few of us live them.
In The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Walter is a prime example. He has big dreams. Specifically, big daydreams. His mind is full of action-packed fight sequences, steamy romances, and tremendous accomplishments. But in real life, except for skateboarding as a kid, he’s never been anywhere or done anything. He works at LIFE Magazine, reporting on the exploits of other people who have grand adventures around the world.
But when he’s responsible for a vital picture for the magazine’s final issue, Walter sees no choice but to travel to Greenland in search of the intrepid photographer who took it. And chasing down that elusive photographer proves more difficult than Walter could have imagined. It takes him on a travel adventure through land, sea, and air, braving shark-infested waters and a volcanic eruption.
He soon discovers that the most difficult part of any such adventure is taking that first step. Once he does, pushing himself to take big risks and step into the unknown, he discovers that he has much more ability, ingenuity, and stamina than he ever thought possible.

For many of us, our dreams seem destined to remain just that: dreams that are never attained. Because they are never truly pursued. Our fear of failure keeps us immobile.
When we choose to take that first step, we’ll discover that the journey is full of failures and frustrations, surprises and discoveries, and ultimately, success in moving toward our goals. We don’t have to have everything figured out to get started. We just have to find the courage to try.

It won’t happen overnight, and we can’t ignore our family or other responsibilities to follow our heart. But if we want our dreams to become goals that we work toward, we have to bravely take that first step and begin our life’s adventure.
Dare to start living your dream.

December 18, 2021
THE BIG LAST-MINUTE CHRISTMAS SALE!!!
O N S A L E T H R O U G H C H R I S T M A S D A Y !
Doing some last minute Christmas shopping? Check out these ebook and paperback sales, and autographed paperback deals, available to order now through Christmas Day! You can link to all books on Amazon and paperbacks on Square through my website, www.RandallAllenDunn.com!

FREE on Kindle Unlimited!
Kindle 1.99
Paperback now 4.99
Autographed Paperback 5.00

Haunting stories that stay with you long after the last page.

FREE on Kindle Unlimited!
Kindle 1.99
Paperback now 4.99
Autographed Paperback 5.00

FREE on Kindle Unlimited!
Kindle 1.99
Paperback now 5.99
Autographed Paperback 5.00

FREE on Kindle Unlimited!
Kindle 1.99
Paperback now 5.99
Autographed Paperback 5.00

Little Red Riding Hood isn’t little anymore.
Come along for the ride.

Kindle now .99 cents
Autographed Paperback 10.00

Kindle now 2.99
Autographed Paperback 15.00

FREE on Kindle Unlimited!
Kindle 4.99
Autographed Paperback 15.00

Kindle 4.99
Autographed Paperback 15.00

Now she’s desperate to get back out.
FREE on Kindle Unlimited!
Kindle now .99 cents
Paperback now 10.99
Autographed Paperback 15.00

Crocodile-infested stream. Ruthless Imperial soldiers. Diabolical deathtrap. Deadly warrior dwarves.
It’s shaping up to be another bad day.
FREE on Kindle Unlimited!
Kindle now .99 cents
Paperback now 11.99
Autographed Paperback 15.00

Yumiko went searching for her birth mother, but discovered another world …
from which no one can escape!

FREE on Kindle Unlimited!
Kindle now .99 cents
Paperback now 5.99
Autographed Paperback 10.00

FREE on Kindle Unlimited!
Kindle now 2.99
Paperback now 6.99
Autographed Paperback 10.00

FREE on Kindle Unlimited!
Kindle now 2.99
Paperback now 6.99
Autographed Paperback 10.00

Spin into action with WONDER WOMAN from the classic TV series and modern moviies! Unleash your inner artist & bring the Amazon heroine to life with 16 EXCITING PICTURES to color and frame!
Autographed Copy 10.00
Packing Action
- Randall Allen Dunn's profile
- 56 followers
