David Lee Summers's Blog, page 86

Two Devils and Two Heroes

Twenty years ago, in 1997, one of the very first authors to send me a story was a gentleman named David B. Riley. I published his story about vampire monks called “The Brother” in Hadrosaur Tales 2. Over the years, David continued to send me stories. In 2001, I published one in Hadrosaur Tales 11 called “The Devil’s Chest” about a cowboy named Miles O’Malley who gets hired by Nick Mephistopheles—literally the devil himself—to recover a chest containing Hades’ helmet of invisibility. In return, Miles received a remarkable horse named Paul.

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David sold me a few more stories featuring Miles, Paul, and Nick. Eventually he collected all of his stories together plus some new material into a novel called The Two Devils. The main antagonist of the longer novel turns out not to be the Christian devil, but an evil Mayan god called Ah Puch. This Mayan god looks like an owl and makes a nasty habit of ripping people’s heads off, then taking over their bodies for his own use. Of course, Miles gets caught in a feud between Nick and Ah Puch. As it turns out, Miles is not just caught between two devils. He has an uncanny knack for running into everything from ghosts looking for a shootout to monsters from Mars to gorgeous angels who find him irresistible. David sold the novel to LBF Books and I edited the first edition. The book even garnered praise in The Denver Post when reviewer Fred Cleaver wrote, “I found “The Two Devils” as irresistible as a bowl of popcorn. I couldn’t stop as I followed Miles from one far-fetched adventure to another.”

I recently found some copies of the first edition of The Two Devils and I’m pleased to offer them at the same half-price clearance sale as other titles I edited for LBF Books. Just visit http://www.hadrosaur.com/bookstore.html#Two-Devils

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This now brings us up to the present day. I’m currently editing a book to be published by Hadrosaur Productions called Legends of the Dragon Cowboys. It contains two novellas, one by Laura Givens and the other by David B. Riley. Laura’s story is called “Chin Song Ping and the Long, Long Night” and features the tale of an escape artist and con-man who finds himself a reluctant hero. Mayan god Ah Puch returns in David’s novella, “The Venerable Travels of Ling Fung.” Our hero here is Ling Fung who must contend with everything from a Yeti, to a cannibal, to his petulant niece, and of course, the aforementioned Ah Puch. I’m pleased to give you a sneak peak at the cover. Stay tuned for more details about this exciting collection. I’ve been having a blast editing it and I know you’ll enjoy reading it.

Cowboys and Battles

Back when I was editing the anthology Space Horrors, I was trying to entice a very good horror and suspense author to write a story for me. Unfortunately, commitments didn’t allow him to deliver a story, but he did recommend a writer he knew named Gene Mederos. I approached Gene with an invitation and he delivered a creepy tale called “A Touch of Frost.” The characters grabbed me right from the start and I could visualize everything in the story. It should then come as no surprise that Gene teaches film making and film editing at Santa Fe Community College. Ever since that first story, Gene has been one of my go-to authors when I have a new anthology project.

One of the things I most enjoyed about editing Tales of the Talisman were the beautiful story illustrations the artists delivered. Unfortunately, Gene has only written for my anthologies and not for the magazine, so I’ve never had the opportunity to see his stories illustrated…until now that is. Gene has recently turned his great visual sense into creating some beautiful illustrations of his stories. He recently shared them on Facebook and I asked permission to share them with you.

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After writing “A Touch of Frost” for Space Horrors, I was delighted to hear he submitted a story to Bryan Thomas Schmidt for Space Battles. Bryan bought Gene’s story “The Thirteens.” In the story, Captain Andromeda Sax and the crew of La Espada investigate a bogey, and come up against Purists, a religious sect dedicated to ridding the galaxy of impurities—like the diverse alien and human species crewing Sax’s ship. The story not only delivered exciting battle scenes but explored issues of diversity and what makes us human. I’m especially pleased that Gene’s story was selected to appear in the best-of collection we assembled from the original anthologies and is now back in print.

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Gene has gone on to submit stories for both A Kepler’s Dozen and Kepler’s Cowboys. In the latter story, Gene tackles the subject of how we’ll recognize alien life when we see it, especially when the aliens are very different than the life we know on Earth. He also imagined a rough and tumble frontier world with exotic landscapes that very much captured the essence of the space cowboy subgenre. One of the things that really makes Gene’s work stand out is the attention to detail, such as imagining a genetically engineered creature called a camule, bred to survive in harsh environments, and shown in the illustration above.

Gene and I have stories in both Maximum Velocity: The Best of the Full-Throttle Space Tales and Kepler’s Cowboys. I’ve invited Gene to read one of his stories with me during the “55 Minutes with David Lee Summers” session at Bubonicon which is going on this weekend in Albuquerque. I’ll read my story in the other anthology. If you happen to be there, we’ll be reading in the Carlsbad Room at 10am on Sunday, August 27. I hope you’ll join us for an hour of exciting science fiction.

If you aren’t fortunate enough to be at Bubonicon this weekend, you can learn more about the anthologies by clicking on the links below:

Maximum Velocity: The Best of the Full Throttle Space Tales
Kepler’s Cowboys

Bubonicon 49

Today’s main event is the solar eclipse happening over much of the United States. I hope you have a good place to watch with clear skies and proper eye protection. I’m in Louisiana, where we should see about 80% of the sun eclipsed, presuming we get clear skies.

This coming weekend, I’ll be in Albuquerque, New Mexico for Bubonicon 49. The link will take you to their page with more information. This year’s theme is Back in Time (Time Travel). C.J. Cherryh and Sherwood Smith are the author guests of honor, Ursula Vernon is the toastmaster, and Elizabeth Leggett will be the guest artist. The convention is being held at the Albuquerque Mariott Uptown at 2101 Louisiana Blvd NE. Read on for my tentative schedule.

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Friday, August 25

4-5pm – Main Room – Jurassic Spark: Dino Appeal. Not just kids love dinosaurs. They’ve fascinated people of all ages for almost 200 years. Why? What is the enduring appeal of dinosaurs in the popular imagination? Dreaming about dinosaurs constitutes mental time travel. Usually. Does this fascination explain the appeal of Godzilla, Rodan, etc? On the panel with me are C.J. Cherryh, Steven Gould, Emily Mah, and John Saberhagen. Victor Milan will be moderating.

Saturday, August 26

10-11am – Salon A-D – Fancy Pants: Idea Strategy. Are you a pantser? An outliner? How do you get at your material? The most common question asked of SF writers is “Where do you get your ideas?” and we’re all interested. Do you keep ‘em in your pants? Should we rephrase that? Where do you find them? What are your ideation strategies? Is that an idea in your pants, or are you just happy to see me? On the panel with me are Brenda Drake, Betsy James, and Susan R. Matthews. Robert E. Vardeman will be moderating.
2-3pm – Main Room – Exo-Planets: What We’ve Learned. Astronomers have discovered several planets in orbit around far stars. What have we learned? Are there any in reach? Are any *really* habitable, or is it just that some could be habitable if all the conditions are just right? On the panel with me are Larry Crumpler, Loretta Hall, Kathleen Kitts, and Cathy S. Plesko. I’ll be the moderator.
4-5pm – Main Room – SF As a Stealth Delivery Platform. Everybody knows that SF has inspired legions of young people to grow up and become scientists; half of NASA was weaned on Star Trek. But does SF’s influence with these people end with their choice of career? Might SF actually serve as a legitimate means of transmitting scientific ideas between working scientists in different disciplines? Might it, in certain circumstances, be more effective than usual technical publications? On the panel with me will be Kathleen Kitts, Pari L. Noskin, and Corie Weaver. Emily Mah will be moderating.
5:25-6:40pm – Main Room – Mass Autographing. I’ll be joining all the Bubonicon participants in the main room where we’ll all be happy to autograph your books, programs, and anything else you want signed!

Sunday, August 27

10-11am – Carlsbad – 55 Minutes with David Lee Summers. Although this is billed as a solo event, I’ve invited Gene Mederos to join me and we’ll read stories from Maximum Velocity: The Best of the Full-Throttle Space Tales and Kepler’s Cowboys. We’ll be happy to answer questions and there may be some surprises as well. Come by and join us for 55-minutes of thrilling science fiction adventure!
1:30-2:30pm – Salon A-D – Ask a Scientist! Larry Crumpler, Cathy S. Plesko and I will field your questions about science!

As usual, I will be helping with the Bubonicon Author Tea on Sunday afternoon. Check the program book for details. Because of my schedule, I’ll be helping at the second session. There are always some amazing teas to try and lovely snacks to eat.

What will be unusual for me this year, is that I won’t have a dealer’s table. I will be a free range author at this year’s Bubonicon. You will be able to find my books at the Who Else Books Table and possibly at the Barnes and Noble table as well. If you’re in Albuquerque this weekend, I hope to see you at Bubonicon!

Vampire Book Signing in New Orleans

I am on the road this weekend. I just participated in a fabulous book signing for Straight Outta Tombstone at the Barnes and Noble in Glendale, Colorado. My next stop is New Orleans, Louisiana where I’ll be researching some of the locations in my next steampunk novel, Owl Riders. I’ll also be at Boutique du Vampyre on Wednesday, August 23 from 3 to 6pm to sign copies of my vampire novels and Straight Outta Tombstone.

[image error] My vampire novels tell the story of the Scarlet Order, a band of vampire mercenaries who fight evil. The first novel, Dragon’s Fall: Rise of the Scarlet Order tells the story of the Scarlet Order’s origin during the middle ages, their role in the grail quest and their encounter with the human prince known as Vlad the Impaler. The second novel Vampires of the Scarlet Order carries their story to the present day where they must stop a top secret project to create vampire-like super soldiers.

My story in Straight Outta Tombstone features the Scarlet Order vampires as they would be if they existed in my Clockwork Legion universe. It’s a fun, twisted crossover that celebrates one of the first vampire stories, Carmilla, and imagines an alternate explanation to the real life Albert Fountain disappearance. Who was Albert Fountain you ask? He was Billy the Kid’s defense attorney and his empty grave is behind my home in Las Cruces, New Mexico.

Boutique du Vampyre is a terrific shop in New Orleans’ French Quarter. They have an assortment of vampire themed gifts including apparel and accessories, dolls, jewelry, and wine. They’ll even help you create a great New Orleans vampire adventure. Come hang out with us at Boutique du Vampyre this coming Wednesday, chat for a while, and find some great gifts!

The boutique is located at 709 1/2 St. Ann Street. Call 504-561-8267 for more information, or RSVP for the signing at the event’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/events/486214595060988/. Even if you can’t make the signing, you can get my vampire books from the Boutique by visiting https://feelthebite.com/collections/vampire-library-books-for-sale

The Weird Western Showdown

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This Saturday, I’ll join bestselling authors Jim Butcher, Kevin J. Anderson, Sarah A. Hoyt, Peter J. Wacks, Bryan Thomas Schmidt, Naomi Brett Rourke, Sam Knight and editor David Boop to discuss the genesis of the anthology Straight Outta Tombstone, reminisce about our careers, and sign our books.

In my story “Fountains of Blood,” Billy and Larissa from the Clockwork Legion series tangle with Marcella and Rosen from the Scarlet Order vampire series while caught up in the historical Albert Fountain disappearance. I’m not the only author revisiting familiar characters. Jim Butcher reveals the origin of one of the Dresden Files’ most popular characters in “A Fistful of Warlocks.” And Kevin J. Anderson’s Dan Shamble, Zombie P.I., finds himself in a showdown in “High Midnight.” Plus there are stories from Larry Correia, Alan Dean Foster, Jody Lynn Nye, Michael A. Stackpole, Phil Foglio, Robert E. Vardeman and many more. Readers in Las Cruces and Tucson might even find copies I’ve signed at their local Barnes and Noble stores.

Lots of fun and a few surprises at this event! Mosey on down and celebrate this amazing anthology!

Here are the details:

August 18th, 7pm

Barnes and Noble

960 S Colorado Blvd

Glendale, CO 80246

Call for more information, 303-691-2998 or

RVSP on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/events/251489345342065/

When Research Derails Your Plot

Before I sit down to write one of my novels, I like to plot them out. These days my plots are fairly detailed with a sentence or two about every scene I plan to write. This helps to guide my research so I learn what I need to know before I start writing the novel. Despite that, details sometimes slip through the cracks.

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For example, I’m currently working on my fourth Clockwork Legion novel, Owl Riders. The historical Wyatt Earp is an important side character. In one scene, a character wants to buy Wyatt a drink. Now, I’ve watched many western movies featuring Wyatt Earp and he’s often shown in a saloon, playing faro or poker. In my research, I found this to be reasonably accurate, so it seemed fair to assume that Wyatt was a drinking man.

I thought it would be fun to add a little authenticity to the story and have the character buy Wyatt not just any drink, but his favorite drink. Wyatt Earp’s life is so well documented, I thought it might be possible to find out what he liked to drink. As it turns out, I did indeed find out. Wyatt Earp didn’t drink alcohol at all!

At this point, I faced two choices. The first, and perhaps most controversial would be to declare that in this alternate history Wyatt does drink. I’d argue this is actually a fair choice, but if you do go this route, you should do even more research to understand why Wyatt Earp didn’t drink and decide what circumstances in your alternate world would make him a drinking man. While you might not dwell on that choice in the story, you probably should say a few words about it. I would only recommend considering this route if major plot points down the road required that Wyatt Earp be a drinker for some reason and pulling that element out of the story would make it fall down like the proverbial house of cards.

In addition to being a writer, I’m a professional scientist. All my training is built around the idea that if I do research and find something that doesn’t fit my preconceived notions, I have to accept that finding. Between that inclination and the fact that Wyatt Earp having a shot of whiskey, scotch or anything else was simply not critical to the story in its own right, I did a little more research. I discovered that Wyatt Earp was a big fan of ice cream and ice cream parlors were just starting to spring up in the old west of the 1880s.

Returning to my novel, I used this bit of trivia to create a minor plot complication for my character who had to scramble to find Wyatt’s favorite ice cream parlor to continue his plans. It adds an interesting moment to the story, as well as a little bit of fun, historical trivia.

For me, this is one of the most fun parts of writing the Clockwork Legion novels. I get to learn about history and figure out how that history is changed by the world-altering events I’ve proposed. Conversely, I figure out what things would be constants in this new world and how that affects the story I want to tell.

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If you haven’t already, I hope you’ll join me on this thrilling ride through history. The links below will take you to my pages about the books where you can find out how to purchase, read sample chapters, see book trailers and more. Also, note the first two books are available as audio books as well as print and ebooks.

Owl Dance
Lightning Wolves
The Brazen Shark

The Solar Sea on Clearance

This past week, I’ve been reading the fine steampunk adventure Arabella on Mars by David D. Levine. It’s a fine novel that won the 2017 Andre Norton Award for best young adult novel. One of this fantasy novel’s conceits is that it imagines an atmosphere in interplanetary space that allows ships to sail between planets in the 1800s.

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When I read the novel, I couldn’t help but think that while sailing between the planets without an atmosphere would have been beyond nineteenth century technology, it’s not beyond our current technology. In fact, I wrote a futuristic science fiction novel about such a journey called The Solar Sea. Solar sails don’t work by harnessing wind, or even the so-called solar wind, but they move by light pressure. About three years ago, I wrote a post that goes into some detail about how it works. You can read more here: https://davidleesummers.wordpress.com/2014/02/01/solar-sailing/

In my novel, I imagine a future where humans got as far as building lunar factories, but the will to go farther out into space died. While I know there’s still a strong interest in exploring space, I fear many of the people who control this country’s money don’t see the value in investing real money in all aspects of space exploration. As an example, the Trump administration routinely touts it’s support of space exploration, yet proposed significant cuts to astronomy funding in its initial budget.

I sometimes wonder if it will take a major discovery to give us the impetus to push out into space again as we did in the 1960s and 1970s. In the novel, a technician from the Very Large Array radio telescope in New Mexico discovers powerful particles orbiting Saturn’s moon, Titan, which could be a new energy source. When the discovery is announced, whales around the world changed their songs.

This chain of events encourages the owner of the powerful Quinn Corporation to build a solar sail to find the source of these particles in Titan’s orbit. He gathers the best and brightest team to pilot his craft: Jonathan Jefferson, an aging astronaut known as the last man on Mars; Natalie Freeman, a distinguished Navy captain; Myra Lee, a biologist specializing in whale communication; and John O’Connell, the technician who first discovered the particles. All together they make a grand tour of the solar system and discover not only wonders but dangers beyond their imagination.

Earlier this year, my publisher and I decided to take The Solar Sea out of print. There were several reasons for this. Partly, science and technology have caught up with the novel and I thought I worthwhile to revise it to make it more accurate. Partly the ebook was created ages ago and wasn’t up to the standards of newer ebooks, so I want to address this aspect as well. Once I finish work on my steampunk novel Owl Riders, I will turn my attention to some of my out of print titles.

In the meantime, I have a few copies of the first edition of The Solar Sea left in my stock and I’m even offering them at half off the cover price. You can order copies at http://www.hadrosaur.com/bookstore.html#solarsea. I would be delighted to sign any copies you buy. Just email me at hadrosaur [at] zianet [dot] com (replacing the info between the brackets with the relevant characters) and let me know that you would like it signed. If you would like them personalized, just tell me so and let me know who to sign the book to.

Accelerate to Maximum Velocity!

[image error] This week saw the release of Maximum Velocity: The Best of the Full-Throttle Space Tales published by WordFire Press. This is an exciting reprint anthology I’ve been working on for a little over a year. I teamed up with editors Carol Hightshoe, Dayton Ward, Jennifer Brozek, and Bryan Thomas Schmidt to assemble the best stories from the Full-Throttle Space Tales anthologies we edited between 2008 and 2012. These action-packed, high octane, science fiction stories span the genre’s full potential. We’ve collected stories about pirates, women, soldiers, monsters, vagabonds and battles. Captain Firebrandt and his crew from my space pirate tales have a story in here, plus you’ll find tales form Mike Resnick, Irene Radford, C.J. Henderson, Danielle Ackley-McPhail and many more. This is a must-have volume both for fans of the original anthologies and those fans of action-oriented science fiction who missed out the first time. Each story includes a new introduction by the editor who originally selected it.

Here’s the complete list of stories:

From Space Pirates:
“On the Eve of the Last Great Ratings War” by David Boop
“Space Pirate Cookies” by C.J. Henderson
“Earth-Saturn Transit” by W.A. Hoffman

From Space Sirens:

“Outpost 6” by Julia Phillips
“Hijacking the Legacy” by David Lee Summers
“Rebel Moon” by Carol Hightshoe

From Space Grunts:

“Price of Command” by Irene Radford and Bob Brown
“Finders Keepers” by Scott Pearson
“Granny’s Grunts” by Alan L. Lickiss

From Space Horrors:

“Last Man Standing” by Danielle Ackley-McPhail
“Into the Abyss” by Dayton Ward
“Listening” by Anna Paradox

From Space Tramps:

“Backup” by Ivan Ewert
“The Frigate Lieutenant’s Woman” by Erik Scott de Bie
“Oh Give Me Land, Lots of Land, Under Starry Skies Above” by Shannon Page and Mark J. Ferrari

From Space Battles:

“The Thirteens” by Gene Mederos
“The Joystick War” by Jean Johnson
“Guard Dog” by Mike Resnick and Brad R. Torgersen

You can find the book at the following retailers:

Print Edition:

Amazon.com

Ebook Edition:

Amazon.com (Kindle format)
Barnes and Noble (Nook Book)
Kobo Store (EPUB Format)
Smashwords.com (Multiple formats)

The Bionic Woman

Today, my wife goes in for knee-replacement surgery. She essentially has no cartilage in either knee and walking has been quite painful for some time. To do the replacement, doctors have imaged both of her knees and are building custom implants. I’m told the surgery will only take about an hour and recovery time should be relatively fast.

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All this brings to mind the 1977 TV series, The Bionic Woman, in which professional tennis player Jamie Sommers is seriously injured in a skydiving accident and has her legs and right arm replaced with mechanical prostheses that effectively give her the super powers of increased strength and speed. It doesn’t sound like Kumie will get super powers beyond those she already possesses, namely sending cancer packing a few years ago and putting up with me, among others.

What truly amazes me is how far medical technology has come in my lifetime. I gather the success rate of this kind of knee surgery is high. When I was a child, the only treatment for people with this kind of damage was pain management. There’s a good chance that if Kumie were born a few decades earlier, she would have been confined to a wheelchair in later life. At this point, there’s a good chance she’ll maintain full mobility for years to come.

By the same token, I’ve seen dramatic improvements in arthritis treatment since I was diagnosed in the early 1990s. At that time, I fully expected the arthritis to progress until I could no longer walk and possibly have serious problems using my hands. Medications developed in the later 2000s not only impeded arthritis, but seem to have sent it into remission. I’m now pain-free without the use of any medication.

Of course, we’re facing this major surgery at a time when the senate is debating federal funding for healthcare. As with most Americans, I’m following this debate with interest. I’m incredibly fortunate to work for a company that provides good health insurance. However, as an astronomer, whose long term job funding is always uncertain and as a writer, whose funding is even more uncertain, this debate takes on even more personal meaning.

As far as I’m concerned, it benefits a country to have a population in good health. I don’t mind the idea of paying an extra tax if it means doctors and researchers get paid, and everyone has access to the benefits of that research and reasonable medical care. It’s apparent the Affordable Care Act has problems. Like many Americans, I’m frustrated by the emotional tirades in Congress. The legitimate issues with the ACA need to be resolved through a thoughtful, careful examination of the system. I just hope our senators and representatives can grow up enough to do that. If not, I hope Americans will hold them accountable at the polls.

In the meantime, especially if you missed it when I first shared it, you can learn more about my wife and I by reading a special feature that appeared in our alumni magazine at: http://www.nmt.edu/images/stories/advancement_office/website/GoldPanSummer-S17.pdf. If you want to take Kumie’s admonition to “Buy Dave’s books” to heart, you can learn more about my fiction at http://www.davidleesummers.com. It’s the kind of thing that helps us save up for the proverbial rainy day, and given the way things are going, we may need it! (And besides, you’ll get some cool reading in the bargain.)

The Calm Before the Storm

The Calm Before the Storm is an exciting fantasy novel I edited in 2006, when Hadrosaur Productions served as an imprint for LBF Books. [image error]

It has been nine hundred years since the Jyniae were besieged by the Human and Aanian armies, forced into the rugged northlands and imprisoned there. Alyxandr Jeffries and Jhonia are both half-human. Jhonia is part Jyniae, and because of that he is able to touch the Source, able to use the magic of his people. Alyx is part Rydi and with his Rydi blood comes the grace and skill that are attributed to that race.

Alyx and Jhonia soon discover their worst fears have come to pass, the Jyniae plan to seize the lands and cities that once belonged to them. War is on the horizon. As Alyx and Jhonia begin a journey that will take them from the Nomadic Rydi tribes of the Southlands to the far Northern reaches of Jhonia’s forsaken Jyniaen homeland, their loyalty and trust will be tested.

Disturbing choices must be made to prevent a war of the races, to save the world from this cataclysmic event. Amid friends, there is now deceit and betrayal and the outcome of the world isn’t so clear.

M.H. Bonham, author of Prophecy of Swords and Runstone of Teiwas says, “The Calm Before the Storm is an engrossing fantasy with a unique voice and memorable characters. A sure winner!”

If you’re in the mood for a quest fantasy like Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien or The Sword of Shannara series by Terry Brooks, I believe you’ll enjoy Joe Lawson’s The Calm Before the Storm. I have two copies of the original edition left in my stock on sale for half off the cover price. They’re available at: http://hadrosaur.com/bookstore.html#Calm-Storm