J. Hamlet's Blog: Scarred Earth: A Serial Novel, page 4

Vonnegut's Shapes of Stories: Infographicalized!

Via the very talented Maya Eilam comes a very helpful infographic of the different shapes of stories based on Kurt Vonnegut's writings about archetypes. I find that I probably abuse the "Man in Hole," and "From Bad to Worse" more than anything else. 

Overture: Broken Light - #7

Luis is just a guy in facilities. At least, that what he's allowed to tell people . . . The next chapter of Scarred Earth has been posted. 

The Republic of Pirates by Colin Woodard (Books Are My Favorite Movies)

The Republic of Pirates: Being the True and Surprising Story of the Caribbean Pirates and the Man Who Brought Them Down by Colin Woodard

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


As someone who grew up in the mid-atlantic, I was surrounded by all sorts of pirate lore growing up. I always had a desire to find out how much was real and how much was fiction, and Republic of Pirates fits that bill. Aside from piecing together all sorts of fascinating stories based on primary sources such as trials, diaries, and testimonies that paint fresh and realistic pictures of the pirates so notorious to history (Blackbeard and Black Sam Bellamy, to name a few), Republic of Pirates does its best to explain the forces of history that produced the pirates. After a lengthy beginning that focuses on the injustices and squalor that confronted mariners at the time, basically marking their profession as one that was little better than a death sentence with no hazard pay, the reason for so many turning to piracy becomes clear. The quasi-democratic way pirate ships were run was a sharp contrast to the shifty merchant marines and brutal royal navy ships of the time. It seems no surprise that pirates became folk heroes. Many were after money, but some had grander visions of fighting inequality or affecting regime change at home. The affinity pirates had for the Jacobite cause during King George I's reign was something I had no concept of, but that this book did a thorough job teaching me. Even if it shattered so many of the tall tales I was told growing up in coastal Virginia, this was an informative and entertaining read into how the pirates shaped world affairs at the time and the forces that eventually brought them down.



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Overture: Broken Light - #6

Redacted for your protection, the next chapter is now available. 

Scarred Earth - Overture: Broken Light - #5

When the Aliens come, how will you synergize seamlessly outside the box? Chapter 5 of Scarred Earth has been posted. 

More Scarred Earth Chapters Released

I've got two more Scarred Earth Chapters released. Overture: Broken Light - #3 and Overture: Broken Light - #4. The arrival of Aliens is affecting everyone, particularly a few diplomatic security grunts and a bunch of campaign advisors. Is the right answer fear or hope? Humanity's new unreadable "friends" aren't exactly forthcoming. 

Hand of Chaos Blog Tour! (Signup Link)

I will be doing a blog tour for Hand of Chaos soon! (Long overdue). If you're a book blogger or other kind of blogger, check out this link to participate. 

Overture: Broken Light - #2

The second chapter of my Tumblr novel Scarred Earth has arrived!

Lizzy Caplan vs. Rage Faces

Even when compared to other great/wondrous things Paul F. Tompkins is responsible for, this is great/wondrous. Next I want to see someone making rage comics with panels based on Lizzy Caplan's faces imitating rage comics. Why? Because meta, that's why. 

Scarred Earth - Overture: Broken Light -1

The first chapter of my experiment in releasing a novel via Tumblr is now live! You can find it here. I will be continuing to update weekly, providing a new flash-fiction micro-chapter every weekend.