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Political Rant Ahead: Read at Your Own Risk

I rarely use my blog to discuss political stuff, but I am getting so tired of “religious freedom” bills and people claiming that their “sincerely held religious beliefs” justify treating other people like crap.

Let’s be clear, this is NOT about “religious freedom” this is about far-right wing evangelicals trying to bring their own version of Sharia law into the United States. Because these laws only protect things that are important to far-right wing evangelicals. They don’t extend the same “religious freedom” to the “sincerely held religious beliefs” of non-evangelicals.

Can you imagine the uproar if, for example, a Muslim gas station attendant refused to fill my car because of a “sincerely held religious belief” that women should not drive? Can you imagine the heads exploding if a Scientologist refused to fill a prescription for an anti-depressant because of a “sincerely held religious belief” opposing such drugs?

Or hell, imagine the wailing if a baker refused to sell a cake to the parent of an overweight kid because of a “sincerely held religious belief” that gluttony is a sin? Serious, go read your damn Bibles and stare in awe of the number of things that are “offensive in the eyes of God” to really grasp the stupidity of these laws. Can a caterer refuse to cater a wedding for a couple if the bride isn’t a virgin? (And by extension, can businesses now demand proof of virginity from potential customers?) Can the manager at Chuck E. Cheese demand proof that a child was not born out of wedlock before scheduling a birthday party?

Oh, I know. “You don’t punish the child for the sins of the parents!” you say. But isn’t Original Sin ALL ABOUT everyone else being punished because of Adam and Eve? And have you even read Deuteronomy?

Aren’t you just encouraging these sluts to have more kids out of wedlock by hosting birthday parties for their little bastards???

Can hotels refuse to provide rooms to people with tattoos? Can a dressing room attendant refuse to let me try on clothes if the pants are made of cotton and the blouse is polyester because of a sincerely held belief that one should not mingle garments of different fabrics?

I know what you are going to say. “That is all in the Old Testament. That stuff doesn’t apply anymore because…JESUS!” Because the birth of Jesus somehow eliminated all of those pesky Old Testament laws you don’t agree with but somehow preserved the ones you do (like prohibitions against homosexuality?)

Or maybe you will make some lame comment about how I need to “study the Bible” to understand it better. Unlike many evangelicals, I HAVE actually studied the Bible. I’ve read it cover to cover with a critical eye. I’ve studied comparative religion formally in college. I read copious amounts of non-fiction of the historical context of ancient mytho-poetic works. I have studied the socio-economics of classical cultures. I have studied enough to know that your “study the Bible” is code for “Just stop arguing with me and do what I want you to do because…GOD.”

If your religious prohibits you from interacting with gay people, then the proper response is to get a job where you don’t have to deal with the public. If your religion forbids you from handling pork, you don’t work is a restaurant that serves bacon. If your religion forbids you from handling alcohol, you don’t apply for a job as a bartender. If your religion prohibits you from being seen naked, don’t take a job as a stripper.

But what you don’t do is open a business or take a job that would put you in contact with all sorts of people who don’t share your religious beliefs, and then try to impose your religious beliefs on them by shaming or embarrassing them by refusing to sell them a product or provide a service. Your “deeply held religious belief” argument is the same argument that was used to support slavery. It is the same argument that was used to fight against women getting the right to vote. It is the same argument that was used to justify “separate but equal” policies.

In short, it has nothing to do with your actual religion and everything to do with you being an entitled ass who thinks you have the right to force other people to bow to your narrow-minded will because they engage in activities that have absolutely NO IMPACT on your life.

Batman V Superman and the Quest for Internal Plot Consistency

This is NOT a movie review, but it does contain spoilers. So read at your own risk.

So we went to see Batman V Superman on Friday. There were a lot of things wrong with the movie. There were also a lot of things I liked. But the thing I want to discuss right now is the conclusion of the final fight scene involving the movie’s version of Doomsday.

Speculative fiction lives and dies on the ability of the reader or viewer to suspend belief. Often, novice writers of speculative fiction will simply shout, “Well, it’s FANTASY. It doesn’t have to be believable.” But this statement misses the root point. Speculative fiction is not expected to be believable by the standards of the real world that we live in. But it must be believable by the standards that the author actually sets. This is what we refer to as internal consistency. When you introduce fantastical elements into a story, those elements must meet the expectations of the reader by remaining consistent with the rules you set up in your setting.

And Batman V Superman is a shining example of how to completely ignore your own internal plot points and destroy the viewer’s ability to suspend belief.

SECOND SPOILER ALERT. If you are still reading, it is your fault if the ending is ruined for you.

Earlier in the film, it is clearly established that Kryptonite is perhaps the only thing on the planet that can hurt Kryptonian. We are given a brief, pseudo-scientific explanation of this by Lex Luthor while he is pitching his diabolical plot to members of the Senate. Later, Batman gets his hands on Luthor’s stash of Kyptonite and uses it in his fight with Superman.

This fight sets up just how devastating the effects of Kryptonite actually are. A single smoke grenade made of Kryptonite gas almost knocks Superman unconscious. Just being in the presence of a spear made of the material weakens him to the point that within seconds he passes out and almost drowns. In short, it only takes a small amount of Kryptonite and a short exposure time to render Superman incapacitated.

Meanwhile, the movie also sets up Wonder Woman as a uniquely qualified warrior with the skills needed to help fight Doomsday. When informed that Doomsday is of alien biology, she simply responds that she has fought aliens before. During the fight, she holds her own as well as Superman, taking significant hits and getting right back up. At one point, she holds Doomsday in place with her golden lasso so Batman can hit him with one of his Kryptonite gas grenades.

Of course, it is also clearly established that the only thing that will be able to kill Doomsday is the very same spear Batman originally made to kill Superman. However, there is no way Superman can finish the job, as just being in the vicinity of the spear knocks him out and renders him helpless. Fortunately, Wonder Woman is there and we now have an actual reason why she was introduced into this film, because as an Amazon warrior highly trained in melee weapons and almost as strong as Superman, she can easily get the spear and use it to finish off Doomsday!

“Good job with the Kryptonite grenade, Bruce. Clark, throw me the spear and stand back. I’ll…Clark?”

Except this isn’t what happens. And this is why the movie ultimately failed. IF they had given Wonder Woman the spear and had her finish off Doomsday, that would have been internally consistent with everything we were introduced to in the film. It also would have justified the introduction of the character into the plot.

Instead, we are given the most internally INCONSISTENT moment possible in order to present a contrived faux-emotional moment of self-sacrifice. After muttering some of the worst “romantic” dialogue since Anakin declared his love to Padme, Superman PICKS UP THE SPEAR that only minutes ago knocked him unconscious in a matter of seconds, FLIES across the battlefield, drives the spear into Doomsday’s chest, and HOLDS IT IN PLACE for a ridiculously long period of time before Doomsday blows up (and, “killing” Superman in the least believable death scene ever in the process).

The writers desperately wanted their “hero” to be the one to save the day, and internal consistency be damned. Despite having spent a good third of the movie hinting at or point-blank explaining the ramifications of Superman being exposed to Kryptonite, the writers ignored their own ground rules for their “heroic” sacrifice ending. Despite introducing a character with almost the same strength as Superman and the melee skills to perform the task, they simply ignored her presence to have the ending they wanted.

A great many other plot holes in the film could have been forgiven if the conclusion had followed the logical path set forth by the movie’s own internal rules. Instead, the writers threw internal consistency out the window for a single forced moment, rending much of the movie pointless and creating even more plot holes and logical fallacies.

Readers and moviegoers are willing to suspend belief and ignore a lot of plot holes so long as they get a satisfying ending. Where Batman V Superman failed is that it set up a satisfying ending that would have been internally consistent with the rules the writers set up, but then ignored everything they had introduced earlier in the movie to do something else.

Book Review: Pro-Voice

Pro Voice: How to Keep Listening When the World Wants a Fight is a provocative book because it does not seek to provoke. Written by Aspen Baker, founder of Exhale, the book details the founding and history of the post-abortion counseling service. Refusing to work under the bright light of either pro-life or pro-choice, Exhale thrives in the gray; providing a non-politicized, non-judgmental place for those impacted by abortion to share their stories.

The book also elaborates on the value of the pro-voice way of approaching social issues. It is not either/or, right versus wrong, black or white. It acknowledges the complexities of human life and the personal and unique issues of the individual. Pro-Voice says that each person’s life experiences have value, and that understanding those experiences can help build bridges across even the most vicious political divides.

Baker has a casual, personable writing style that is easy to read. There is a refreshing humility to her writing. She isn’t pretending to have all of the answers. Rather, Pro-Voice provides a way to make sure we actually hear the real questions.

Reviewer note: I was given a comp copy of this book for review.

Book Review: Every Gift Matters

I have a great interest in philanthropy. Through my publishing company, I do a lot of cause-based marketing; from a charity cookbook that we put together to an annual writing competition to benefit different charities each year. I’m not donating tens of thousands of dollars a year, but I do try to make sure that what I am donating is getting where it needs to get and doing what it needs to do. Because of this, I was very interested in reading Every Gift Matters: How Your Passion Can Change the World.

Every Gift Matters by Carrie Morgridge is a well-written, thoughtful, but ultimately low-information book for the average person interested in doing more in their community. The fundamental problem with the book is that, despite Morgridge’s attempts to present the concepts in a blanket of “everyman” can-do, the work is really written for affluent donors who have the time and resources to engage in significant philanthropy. For those interested in setting up trust funds or donating thousands of dollars to causes they care about, the book provides a nice guide of pitfalls and advice. But most of the book will mean little to less affluent donors.

Advice like going on site visits and studying financials all makes perfect sense if you are establishing a trust fund or engaged in largescale philanthropic efforts. But it seems terribly impractical for the person writing a $20 check to the local food bank. There is a lot of emphasis placed on getting to know the leaders of charitable organizations personally before investing in them, which makes perfect sense if you are about to write a check for $250,000 but not so much for people writing checks for $50. While certainly all donors should learn more about a charity before donating, I’m not sure the advice on scheduling dozens of meetings with local leaders is actually practical for the majority of average donors.

Morgridge also includes some anecdotes about “average” people doing extraordinary things, but even these narratives are rose-tinted and don’t really provide any insight on HOW to get things going. For example, she tells the story of Kylan, a young boy who became pen pals with a child in Uganda that his parents sponsored through WorldVision. In Morgridge’s telling of the story, Kylan, at five, decided on his own to try and raise money to help others in Uganda; first with a lemonade stand, and then by collecting scrap metal. It is a sweet story of how an average kid took the initiative and changed lives.

But the version of events in the book is disingenuous. A quick Google search was enough to understand that it was actually the boy’s parents that “encouraged” him to do these things and eventually establish Metal Mission, a charity that collects scrap metal to raise money to help families in Uganda. This doesn’t take away from the wonderful work Metal Mission does, nor does it diminish Kylan’s efforts at such a young age. But Morgridge’s example of how anyone can change the world falls flat when the example is actually about affluent parents with time and resources to spare encouraging their son to follow in their footsteps.

I had hoped that Every Gift Matters would provide me with some practical insight. But there is little in the book that has any bearing on what is within my capabilities to do based on the level of donations I can do. If I hit the lottery and was looking to establish a philanthropic organization to maximize my donations, I would call Morgridge personally to pick her brain (she is Vice President of the Morgridge Family Foundation and does wonderful work with charities like DonorsChoose.org). I have enormous respect for the work she does, but unfortunately Every Gift Matters doesn’t live up to the stated premise of demonstrating how small gifts can make a difference.

Disclosure: I was given a comp copy of this book for review.

eFestival of Words Awards Program Update

The nomination period for the 2016 eFestival of Words Best of the Independent eBook Awards will open on February 1st. To help folks prepare to complete the nomination ballots, I wanted to share some of the changes we are making this year to the program.

 

Our virtual book fair and awards program is a labor of love run by volunteers. Each year, our volunteers donate tons of their time to help organize, plan, and run the event. One of the bigger time issues involves the validation of ballots for the awards. We process hundreds of nominations each year. Each ballot has to be manually confirmed to make sure that titles nominated qualify for the awards and are nominated in the correct categories. Volunteers also are responsible for narrowing down the list of nominations to select five to seven finalists per category.

 

While the majority of individuals complete ballots in good faith, we still run into issues with those who simply don’t follow the written guidelines, ignore our intentions for the awards, or otherwise try to circumvent the spirit of the awards. Because of this, we are always working to improve the process and streamline validation to make the job easier for our volunteers while making sure all nominations are treated with the attention they deserve.

 

Effective for this year, all titles nominated in the genre-specific categories (with the exception of Children’s Books) must be at least 40,000 words in length. We have also lowered the minimum word count for the Best Novel category to 40,000 words. The reason for this change is that the 40,000 word count is used by most of the major awards programs to designate a novel, and we feel the awards should reflect the industry norm in this regard. While this means that many titles will no longer be eligible for the genre-specific categories, we feel it is important for the awards to reflect the norms and expectations of the industry.

 

Effective this year, a book may only be nominated in ONE format-specific category and ONE genre-specific category. In regards to the format-specific categories, you would think this would go without saying. But folks who have helped with the validation in the past can attest to the number of times we have had books nominated in the novella and novel category at the same time, or the anthology and short story collections at the same time.

The bigger issue has always been in the genre categories, however. Too many folks simply either don’t understand the different genres or just want to cram their favorite book in as many categories as possible. But when the same book is nominated in six genre categories, it creates an incredible amount of work for the volunteers. We have to manually validate each ballot. And when a book is nominated in five or six different genre categories we have to take the time and figure out if it really belongs there.

I know some folks will be disappointed with this change as many books do legitimately qualify in more than one genre. But the truth is the amount of work involved in validating the ballots is enormous and we have to put the responsibly back on the nominators to make sure they are putting books where they should go.

 

Effective this year, we have eliminated the old special categories (Best Villain, Best Heroine, etc). Volunteers have always found these categories problematic during validation and when trying to select finalists, so we decided this year to remove them. We have also removed some genre categories that historically have had a low number of nominations in an effort to better streamline the awards.

 

Following are the Format-Specific categories for 2016, along with their format requirements

Format-Specific Categories

Best Anthology: A collection of short stories featuring three or more authors.
 Best Novel:  A fictional work of at least 40,000 words in length.
Best Novella:  A fictional work of at least 10,000 words but less than 40,000 words in length.
Best Short Story: A fictional work of less than 10,000 words, either sold as a stand-alone product or included in another publication.
Best Short Story Collection: A collection of five or more short stories written by the same author.
Best Poetry Collection: A collection of ten or more poems, either by a single poet or multiple poets.
Best Audiobook: An audiobook of at least three hours in length

The following are the Genre-Specific categories for 2016. Note that all nominated works except Children’s Books must be at least 40,000 words in length.

Genre-Specific Categories

Best Non-Fiction
Best Roleplaying Game
Best Fiction (General Fiction)
Best Children’s Book
Best Contemporary/Urban Fantasy
Best Erotica
Best Fantasy (High Fantasy/Sword and Sorcery)
Best Historical Fiction
Best Horror
Best Literary Fiction
Best Mystery/Suspense
Best Romance
Best Thriller
Best Science Fiction
Best Young Adult

Special Awards

Author of the Year
Editor of the Year
Graphic Artist of the Year
Reviewer of the Year
Small Press Publisher of the YearThese awards are new for 2016. The Special Awards are unique  for two reasons.

 

First: While are normal rules regarding self-nomination and nomination exchanges still apply, we are loosening the restriction regarding work relationships in general. This means, for example, that a publisher could nominate a graphic artist who performed exceptional service for the company, or an author could nominate an editor who went above and beyond in providing service.  These awards are an opportunity to recognize those service providers or partners who have demonstrated exceptional talent, work ethic, and professionalism.

Second: Nominators are asked to provide a short explanation of their nomination in these categories, and have the option to share those explanations in the event the nominee becomes a finalist. Those that fill out a ballot will have the option of their comments being shared when we announce the finalists. We think this is a wonderful way to publicly recognize individuals who deserve special accolades.

 

The ballot will go live on February 1st. In the meantime, if you are interested in participating in the festival this August, please complete the volunteer form.

2015 Bards and Sages Charity Writing Competition winners!

Congratulations to the winners of the 2015 Bards and Sages Charity Writing Competition!

First Place

Verity Mendes

Aveiro, Portugal

Bloom

2nd Place

James Zahardis

Miller Place, NY

The Super-Man in Black

3rd Place

Teo Kos

Rijeka, Croatia

Nigredo

Honorable Mention

Anna Cates

Wilmington, OH

Story of the Gods

Derek James Cottrell

Marshall, TX

Comes a Hunter

Aaron Vlek

Berkeley, CA

How Coyote Lost His tail in a Poker Game

Each year, we sponsor a writing competition to raise funds and awareness for various charities. In 2015, the charity we supported was Kiva.org. To date, we have issued $475.00 in microloans through Kiva.org to help support entrepreneurs in developing countries. You can learn more about our annual charity competition at http://www.bardsandsages.com/annual_w...

Philcon Schedule!

I’m going to be very busy at Philcon this year! Been a while since I attended a convention and they certainly booked me up. Philcon this year is being held in Cherry Hill, New Jersey from November 20th-22nd. It is one of the region’s biggest sci-fi, fantasy, and horror events and I am pleased to be a part of it.

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 21st

3:00 PM to 5:00 PM (Gaming Suite)

Post-Apocalyptic Blues: Beta Squad game demo

Please note: The game was originally publicized as being from 4 PM to 6 PM, but scheduling conflicts required that it be moved up an hour. The game will start at 3 PM.



6:00 PM in Plaza III (Three) (1 hour)

SMALL PRESS MAGAZINE PANEL (2121)



Sat 9:00 PM in Plaza V (Five) (1 hour)

THE UNETHICAL TREATMENT OF WOMEN IN GAMING (2072)

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22nd

11:00 AM in Plaza VI (Six) (1 hour)

SMALL BUSINESS IRS PITFALLS (2062)

2: 30 PM: Executive Suite 623 (30 minutes)

Live Reading

Excerpt: The Cult

Our eFestival of Words Halloween Party continues with another horror excerpt for your pleasure.

About the Book

When the Dadan Indians discovered what grew in the underground caves, they made it a sacrament. When the Ashton family re-discovered it a century later, they used it as a doorway. Now something waits on the other side of that doorway, a vast and malefic intelligence that feeds on human potential and threatens all existence. Can seven college students on summer break stop this primal force from reshaping reality in it’s own image, or will they be the first to fall before it’s limitless power?

Stalk the Author!

Blog: https://jasonrmink.wordpress.com/tag/jason-r-mink/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Jason-R-Mink-435040986643666

Excerpt

The night lasted forever. There were times Baxter was sure he’d gone mad, but it was wishful thinking on his part: madness would have been sweet relief in the face of what had occurred. It had all gone so wrong…

While his body was fine, Adam’s mind seemed to have been damaged by his experience, leaving him in shock. Chloe and Erica had attempted to bring him around but he proved unresponsive. Meanwhile, Zak had been driven to build a fire at the circle’s center; with the aid of Metathias a good-sized blaze was started and maintained at a hellish intensity throughout the night. Around it Zak danced, sometimes with the girls but mostly alone. He’d picked up a small drum from somewhere in the house and banged on it incessantly, only stopping to smoke pot with Ashton. He did his best to ignore Annie; her transformation was unbearable to behold and no one would look at her. She babbled a mix of heresy and prophecy, laughing, weeping, her veil of eyes staring, staring…

Baxter had enough. He tried to reconcile himself to Annie’s transformation. He could not. The change was… too painful. But it was her true self, Ashton explained, it was why she stood with them in the first place.

“Annie is our oracle, the lens through which we see out past and future paths. She is the First, and has been sent to guide us.”

No one bothered to dispute him.

“We should get them both to a hospital,” Erica said, staring down at Adam’s trembling form.

Ashton shook his head dismissively. “Impossible. No doctor can help them.”

“I think he is going into shock!”

Ashton rose, his irritation evident.

“No one is going anywhere. Anything we might need is here at the Manor.” Ashton knelt down beside Adam.

“Adam. Snap out of it.” Adam looked up uncomprehending, then stared down at his right hand. It was intact, unchanged, though the fingers were curled in a grim rictus, Ashton seized it.

“See? You’re fine. Get up, now. Join the party.”

Adam looked away, his face rashed with shame.

“Go away,” he said in a small voice.

Disgusted, Ashton pushed his hand aside and rose. “Adam is our knight,” he said, his voice thick with disgust. “Or was, anyway. Perhaps you would like to be knight, Erica?”

Wordlessly Erica stormed off. Ashton swore under his breath and returned to his chair, to drink from a small silver flask. After a moment Chloe joined him and the two fell into a quiet but intense conversation. Zak continued to dance around the circle, thumping away on his drum and looking all the world like a certain behooved deity of the Spring. His black mane swung and swirled, an ever-changing shadow tattoo across his face. He moved in time with the music, jumping, leaping, twisting wildly in the air only to land effortlessly on his already-moving feet. His shredded pant-legs took on the appearance of coarse black hair, obscuring his movements and allowing him to seemingly change direction in mid-air. His was a mad dance, spurred on by the Paq’qa and the unrelenting music of the night.

Baxter watched his friend in both wonder and apprehension; would Zak make it back from something like this? He’d heard of people going on acid trips and never coming down – the Paq’qa made acid look like candy. Still, Baxter figured it was best to let Zak dance it out of his system. What to do about Annie, though… that was another story.

That she now wore some sort of bizarre veil was undeniable; it was the reality of the thing itself that was questionable. Was it simply a silk scarf she’d draped over her head, transformed by the power of suggestion into the now-hideous caul? Or was it some sort of astral thing? Baxter tried to remember his esoteric lore, but realized he wouldn’t know a chakra from a hole in his head. No luck there. He refused to entertain the third possibility. It couldn’t possibly be…

“Baaaxter.” Annie called to him, her voice a strained whisper. He tried to ignore her but could not, compelled to again look her way. She was staring at him with dozens of unblinking eyes. They were blue, green, hazel and otherwise, indescribable hues that had no place in nature. Held in place by a network of countless tiny veins, the eyes darted about independently, with an almost gluttonous need for sensation. Baxter found himself ensnared, unable to look away.

“What? What do you want, damn it?” he said, raising an arm as if to ward her off. It weighed a ton, proved impossible to move above his collarbone. She giggled and the veil rippled wetly, billowing with her expelled breath. Sickened, Baxter staggered backwards. The grass was slick beneath his feet and he realized he was stepping through Zak’s old vomit. Annie raised her hands in sudden prostration, then leaned forward to whisper in his ear.

“I can’t see.” From beneath her veil Annie let out an ice-cracking note, the frightful precursor to the peals of mad laughter which followed. Shaken, Baxter turned from her and ran wildly out of the garden, into the blessed shadows beyond.

Excerpt: Special Levels of Earthly Hell by Merry Freer

As part of the eFestival of Words 2015 Halloween Party, we’re hosting book excerpts from horror, dark fantasy, and Halloween-themed books.

About the Book

Drew Collins is an atheist who experiences the world in black and white. As an educated man of science, he rejects belief in the paranormal and the existence of demons. Until an energy he calls “The Beast” takes possession of his wife.

What he witnesses at night in his own bedroom cannot be reconciled with science. And yet he sees it with his own eyes, feels its presence, ominous and evil, with his entire being.

Against every instinct, Drew reaches out for help. It is not just his marriage that’s at stake. The evil force has permeated his wife’s family, tearing them apart and culminating in bloodshed and murder. Drew must face a stark choice: sacrifice his beliefs and fight an entity he doesn’t understand and is reluctant to label, or abandon his wife and her family.

About the Author

Merry Freer is an author of memoir and fact-based fiction. She is a native of San Diego, where she lives surrounded by a large, eclectic family and a treasured handful of truly close friends.

While Doctor, Doctor is her debut novel, she has been a writer and editor for many years, including work with the San Diego Chargers and the San Diego Hall of Champions.

She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism from San Diego State University and has been a featured speaker for classes dealing with medical ethics.

Learn more at: http://merryfreer.wix.com/merryfreer

Book Excerpt

The most difficult battle is with an enemy you can’t identify.

“This is what I’ve learned about The Beast,” Laura said. “It doesn’t exist in our plane of existence. It has no physical form. Use that fact to your advantage. It gains power from negative energy. Remove your negative energy and replace it with positive energy. Be its opposite. It’s the only way to fight evil.”

Spending his lunch hours receiving an intense and personalized lesson on the finer points of demonic shielding, as well as an education on the various cultural ideologies of good and evil, was the last place Drew Collins expected to find himself in his five-year plan. His plan was loose and flexible, but he was certain it included love. He even had a vision about it before he left on his dream adventure, traveling through Mexico after he graduated from the University of California at Santa Barbara with a degree in Bio-Psychology. He dreamed he was destined to go to Mexico to bring something back. What he returned with was better than his wildest dream and worse than his most horrific nightmare.

Yet here he was, spending his lunch breaks with his boss, Laura, on the grass at the Self-Realization Temple. Today he was learning to control his personal energy. Laura studied with two shaman from different indigenous tribes. One was the Hopi, a small tribe within the Navajo nation. The other was from the Yaqui Indians, who lived in the Sonoran Desert in Mexico, south of Arizona, the same tribe associated with the mentor of Carlos Castaneda, a trained shaman and American author who held a Ph.D. in Anthropology. Castaneda claimed to have learned his craft from a Yaqui named Don Juan Matus, whom he claimed was personally trained by a Diablero, or devil, though some say his mentor never existed. Under ordinary circumstances, Drew would have considered the teachings of shamans to be fascinating fodder for an excellent conversation. Today, he considered them to be a necessary component in the lessons he agreed to pursue – the lessons he hoped would help him save his wife. Drew was a self-proclaimed atheist, a man whose beliefs were based in science, a godless man, to put it bluntly, who was in the peculiar position of being married to a woman who appeared to be possessed by a demonic presence.

A reasonable person might ask themselves how this could be so. How could a godless man, an atheist, believe his wife was possessed? Aren’t demons, the kind that possess humans, take over their bodies and voices to spread a vile message, associated with religious belief? Certainly the Catholic religion makes this connection. His wife was Catholic and he’d seen The Exorcist. For Drew though, The Beast was secular. It existed as an evil energy, separate and independent from the confines of religion. It had to. He didn’t believe in God, so he couldn’t accept The Beast as His antithesis, as a religious man might do. Religious belief as an explanation for his experience was discarded. He believed in science. But The Beast was an entity unidentified by scientific study. The Beast. Science.

Drew recognized with an awareness that shook the foundation of his being that they could not be reconciled. In the science he had studied there was no place for demons. And yet he knew they existed. He had seen The Beast for himself. In his own home.