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A Horror Wuss likes a Horror Book

5/3/2022

4 Comments

 
I'm a giant wuss when it comes to scary stuff, so the fact that CD has gotten me to read any is a big feat. Well, I can handle scary books better than movies, but I am still a big wuss. And CD writes good books.

And with a name like Revenge of the Space-Surfing Butt Monkeys how can I not be intrigued?


EXCERPT:
The truck was burned beyond recognition, but it was in better condition than its occupants. The two bodies inside the pickup truck were little more than piles of ash. Constable Bennett made retching sounds at the sight of them, and he had seen some pretty grotesque stuff last year. Tanguay felt a little sick herself.

“The truck was spotted by a skier earlier this evening,” explained Bennett, after he had regained his composure and wiped his thick moustache with the back of his uniform sleeve.

“A skier?” Marie-Ann asked. “In May?”

“Well, you know, one of those weirdos with the roller skis and the poles.” Bennett made motions with his arms as if he was skiing. Or was he dancing? Marie-Ann suspected the man had never skied in his life. She supposed people did worse things than roller skiing, but it wasn’t particularly safe on a dark road outside of town. There were no streetlights or buildings of any kind for several kilometres in either direction. The truck was in the ditch off the side of the road, partially obstructed by trees and brush. “Any ID?”

“The truck was rented in Halifax a week ago by a German tourist named Hans Meier. Meier and the truck came across on the ferry with another man, Klaus Fischer, last Wednesday, but no one saw them since they arrived in Port-aux-Basques.”

Port-aux-Basques was the landing point of the ferry from Nova Scotia, about two hours from Gale Harbour. “That’s random. Two Germans show up in Newfoundland and mysteriously explode?”

“Maybe they were listening to that European techno music and went off the road?” Now Bennett made different arm motions that Tanguay figured were supposed to be dancing, but it looked like he was trying to shake off a wet shirt that was sticking to his flabby arms.

“They didn’t go off the road.” She shook her head. “Not while they were alive.”

“No, I know. There are no tire marks.”

“And no scorch marks on the trees. The car was burned before it was dumped here.”

“So, our Germans were burned, and then someone dumped their bodies here?” Bennett walked around the truck to the passenger side. He reached out and touched the door handle. “Why the hell would someone…”

“Bennett, don’t touch—”

But the constable had already pulled the handle, and the door popped open. The body in the passenger seat flopped out onto the ground; the burned flesh ripping and tearing like the steaks that time someone burned and dropped the BBQ at the RCMP picnic. Coincidentally, it had been Bennett operating the grill that day, too.

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Newfoundland, Canada, 1993.

It's been a year since a handful of kids defeated the Psycho Hose Beast in the sleepy town of Gale Harbour, Newfoundland. Our heroes have entered into the era of rollerblades, Super Nintendo and oversized plaid shirts… unless you’re a goth, then it’s the era of Maybelline eyeliner, boots with too many buckles, and infected safety-pin piercings.

Thirteen-year-old Niall O'Neil is navigating a blossoming relationship with his crush, Harper Jeddore. Unfortunately, the power that allowed them to defeat the monster from the deep is still within them, and they are no closer to understanding or controlling it. When just touching your girlfriend can kill innocent bystanders, it complicates the already precarious practice of teenage dating.

But lurking in the backdrop of teenage romance, a sinister power is growing in Gale Harbour, and dangerous people are turning up in the small town with possibly deadly intentions.

Will the kids defeat this new threat? What did the US Air Force leave in the abandoned Hansen Air Force base? What is a space-surfing butt monkey? And most importantly—will anyone get to touch a boob?

GO BUY IT!
AMAZON US: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09RKG6772
AMAZON CANADA: https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B09RKG6772
AMAZON UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B09RKG6772

Aboot* the Author

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C.D. Gallant-King is a comic fantasy and horror writer currently based in Ottawa, Ontario, though he was born and raised in Newfoundland, in a town eerily similar to Gale Harbour. He has self-published four novels, including HELL COMES TO HOGTOWN, which was a semi-finalist in Mark Lawrence’s 2018 Self-Published Fantasy Blog-Off. His short fiction has appeared in multiple anthologies by Mystery & Horror LLC and Dancing Lemur Press, as well as in The Weird and Whatnot magazine.

Contact Information:
http://cdgallantking.ca
https://twitter.com/CDGallantKing
https://www.facebook.com/cdgallantking
https://www.instagram.com/cdgallantking/
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09RKG6772
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/60387932

*Did you see what I did there?

4 Comments

The Appeal of Science Fiction by Jemima Pett

2/16/2022

13 Comments

 
Hi, I’m Jemima Pett, and I’m a science fiction writer.
Patricia asked me: why do I write scifi?
And I stopped.
I thought for a while, and nothing really happened in my brain.

Except… why am I a science fiction writer?

Why not thrillers, or romance, or adventure… I’d add mystery, but there’s usually a fair bit of mystery in my books, and usually some adventure, but not the sort that ‘action & adventure’ usually means. Five on a Desert Island sort of adventure, not the Da Vinci Code, although I do prefer to write scifi for grown-ups. That’s an audience that’s older than YA but not in need of the ‘adult’ tag, i.e, not X rated.

But why in space?

Why not Australia, or Norfolk, or the Grand Canyon, or somewhere else I’ve been several times?

Why a planetary system way above the plane of our galaxy, the edge of space where people only go because there’s an incredibly valuable metal that allows instantaneous communications across lightyears, even when travelling at the mythical warp speed—several times faster than light.

Well, that starts to answer the question, really.

I absolutely hate reading books where the author has got the details of the place wrong. So writing about imaginary places means nobody’s going to argue with you. It has to feel real, though. Even if the sky is pink.

If you can only do armchair research on your chosen location, it’s fairly helpful if the main details are very close to you. So close, they’re in your head. Even some of the science is imaginary. But the best scifi uses ‘possible science’.

I used to do things in my work which involved working out logical developments given a set of starting conditions. Building scenarios. What would happen if, instead of Brexit, the UK stayed with the EU, and the US decided to make a strategic alliance with (pick a country).

One set of scenarios I worked with (the Millennium scenarios) had three versions I liked for the future—approximately 2025—and one I didn’t. That one was called Atlantic Storm for short, and involved UK aligning itself with the US against Europe, and pulling away from events in the Middle East.

So the science of science fiction is not as farfetched as you might think.

Many science fiction writers use their own particular specialisms as their starting point. Mine is people and planets. Others have more psychological approaches—try Juliana Rew’s Unwinding for a really mind-bending story. Becky Chambers does absolutely amazing things with people and aliens, and alien people, with a big biochemistry influence. Sue Ann Bowling used her genetics specialism to create evolved people with a very interesting background—akin to Arthur C Clarke’s The Sentinel, but more fully developed.

And many, many people like shiny fast toys, enjoy space ships and battles, and the politics that go with them. Which is what scifi looks like to many potential readers, because of Star Wars and Star Trek, not to mentioned Battlestar Galactica and most (it seems) screen scifi. But Gene Roddenbury put lots of speculative fiction into Star Trek. All those ‘What If … the society of Planet X had been influenced by gangster movies and got stuck in that society?’

What If…? is what science fiction is all about.
It may not even be in space.
It may be quite weird.
Which is why it has the wider genre term of Speculative Fiction (spec-fic).
And that may be why I like reading it.
Just imagine what would happen if….

And if you like reading scifi or time travel books, why not join my SpaceTime Reading Challenge?
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A galactic crisis: the entire comms system destroyed. No waypoints, no navigation aids, no database access... and how will spaceships in flight get home--or to any destination? Dolores is stuck in warp with a very dangerous passenger, Pete gets his shuttle back home on manual. But why does anything in close contact with pure orichalcum fix itself? Just flying through Zanzibar's Rings solves the problem--as the Federation's Fighters find, as they descend on the Viridian System to take possession of the planets.

This third book in the series wraps up the adventure that started with The Perihelix and continued with Curved Space to Corsair. It is a self-contained story with references to previous events, but no prior knowledge is required.

Grab your copy at:
Amazon ~~~ Apple iTunes ~~~ B&N (Nook) ~~~ Kobo ~~~ Smashwords

About the Author

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Jemima Pett has been an independent author for over ten years, with twenty titles published, and plenty more in the notebook waiting to be written.

Jemima reckons she read all of the science fiction in her local library, and most enjoys alternative universes, time travel, consequences of social change and unusual ideas surrounding alien species.  Her favourite authors include Anne McCaffrey, Fritz Lieber, Poul Anderson,  Becky Chambers, Matt Haig, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Clare O’Beara, Jennifer Ellis…  She also loves series – once involved with characters she loves to read their continuing adventures.

She has degrees or diplomas in maths, earth sciences and environmental technology and studied with the Unthank School of Writing while she lived in Norfolk. She now lives in Hampshire, where she enjoys rewilding her garden, raising organically grown vegetables, and birdwatching.

Visit Jemima’s website at jemimapett.com or connect with her at:
BookBub, Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, Instagram and Pinterest.

Remember to share and comment!

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On Gratitude By Lynda R. Young

11/8/2021

8 Comments

 
I've been doing a 365 gratitude challenge this year. Every day I need to find one thing to be grateful for. So, when my friend, Lynda, said she needed help with the release of her next book, Cling to God: 365-Day Devotional, I asked her to talk about gratitude and how important it can be in our daily lives.
In my book, Cling to God: 365-Day Devotional, I wrote, “Like young saplings in a dark forest, we need to always reach for the light, straining toward the warmth and goodness that will fill us, help us to grow, and make us strong.”

When so much is going on, when health takes a turn, or we experience difficulties or stress, finding gratitude changes our focus and reconnects us with the important things in our lives. Practicing gratitude daily, no matter our circumstances, brings long-lasting benefits. Countless studies on the topic have proven that being thankful makes us happier and less depressed. It even makes us sleep better. Gotta love that!

So, what am I thankful for? I’m thankful for God and all the blessings he showers on me when I deserve none of it. I’m thankful that it’s not about earning his favor, that his love is boundless, and that he saved me when there was no way of saving myself. I’m also thankful for those little things like smiles, chocolate, cool breezes on a hot day, and warm blankets on a cold day.

I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds. Psalm 9:1 (NIV)

What things are you thankful for?

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This special devotional book is a year-long journey with daily inspirational messages and uplifting scripture to help you spend time with God. It includes short Bible-based teachings that will encourage and refresh. It is faith building and thought provoking with reassuring reminders of God’s love.

365 days of inspiration and Bible wisdom to lighten your heart.
365 devotions to bring you peace in uncertain times.
365 ways to Cling to God.

A great companion for individual worship or for group Bible study. The perfect gift book or personal keepsake that will be cherished for years to come.

Start each morning with Cling to God to brighten your day and draw closer to God.

Available as an ebook, paperback, or hardcover
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Lynda R. Young accepted Jesus into her life in her early teens and has been active in her faith ever since. She has written multiple Christian articles and other inspirational non-fiction, given Bible-based talks, and is always looking for other ways to encourage and uplift. She is also an author of fantasy novels, an editor, game developer, artist, and dabbles in photography and all things creative. She lives in Australia with her sweetheart of a husband. You can find her here: Blog, Twitter, Goodreads

Please leave a comment and share on social media.
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    blog roll

    ​* Marie Landry
    * IWSG
    * A to Z Challenge
    * Alex J. Cavanaugh
    * Larry Kollar
    * C. Lee McKenzie
    * M. Pax
    * MJ FiField
    * Melissa Barker-Simpson
    ​* Christine Rains
    * Heather M. Gardner
    ​​* L.G Keltner
    * Sarah Foster
    * Chrys Fey
    * Kate Larkindale
    * Warrior Muse
    * Lee Lowery
    * Elizabeth Seckman
    * Heather M. Gardner
    * Jemima Pett
    * My Random Musings
    * C.D. Gallant-King
    * J.H. Moncrieff
    ​* Nick Wilford

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