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GENRENAUTS Kickstarter

Genrenauts: The Complete Season One Collection/widget/video.html

If you read this blog regularly, you know I’m a huge fan of Michael R. Underwood’s Genrenauts series. If you don’t, take my word for it (or go read my posts on both novellas, the short story, and the audiobooks). Now, there’s the opportunity to back the production of the rest of “Season 1” of the series.

I encourage you to back it, buy the books, read the books, and then maybe back it at a higher level 🙂

I’ll try not to be annoying, but I will remind you about this a time or two in the next 29 days.

Saturday Miscellany – 5/7/16

Before I get going today, I’d like to take a moment to say congrats to my oldest son, who is getting his AA today, well done, sir.

Now on to the odds ‘n ends over the week about books and reading that caught my eye. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:

    This Week’s New Releases I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon. I DO NOT HAVE time for all these:

  • Zero K by Don DeLillo — It’s DeLillo, the very definition of a Must Read.
  • Everybody’s Fool by Richard Russo — wasn’t the biggest fan of Nobody’s Fool, but I don’t know that I’ve really stopped thinking about it in the 2 or 3 years it’s been since I read it. So yeah, will have to get to this one
  • Robert B. Parker’s Slow Burn by Ace Atkins — You know it’s a big week when Atkins is #3 on my list. This was another strong one — will try to get my post up next week about it.
  • The Hidden Oracle by Rick Riordan — a new series in the Percy-verse. Apollo is sent to earth as a regular teen, trying to get back to Olympus.
  • Blood Defense by Marcia Clark — the first of a new series by Clark. This time the hero’s a defense attorney.
  • Double Down by Gwenda Bond — I enjoyed the first book about Lois Lane, teen reporter. Expect this one’ll be better.
  • The Jewel and Her Lapidary by Fran Wilde — don’t care what this novella is about, really. Fran Wilde’s Updraft earned her enough credit to just get whatever has her name on it for a year or two.
  • Outriders by Jay Posey — Military SF with a synopsis that starts with the line, “Captain Lincoln Suh died on a Wednesday. And things only got harder from there.” How do you not give it a chance?

Lastly, I’d like to say hi and welcome to J. L. Gribble and Looseygoosey for following the blog this week.

(I looked and looked for a source on this one…would love to link to it)

May the 4th Book Battle

I should’ve posted this two days ago, but this is one of those weeks where email that doesn’t look urgent (or from authors who I’ve talked about repeatedly here) gets ignored. Oops.

Friends of the Irresponsible Reader, Future House Publishing, are having a special sale in honor of Star Wars Day (a great sale on already low prices, I should emphasize) and being in business for a year. Go, check it out! There’s a chance at prizes, too.

Be sure to check out Got Luck and Guardians, in particular — I talked about them here and here, respectively. But all their books look promising.

April 2016 Report

So, here’s what happened here in April:

Books Read:

Calamity Making All Things New The Watcher in the Wall
3 Stars 3 Stars 3 Stars
Waylaid Songs In Ordinary Time The Absconded Ambassador
3 Stars 1 Star 4 Stars
How to Be an Atheist Fate Ball Every Heart a Doorway
4 Stars 4 1/2 Stars 5 Stars
Ideas and Inspiration for Fantasy and Science Fiction Writers Life, The Universe and Everything Off to See the Wizard
3 Stars 3 Stars 4 Stars
There Will Always Be a Max Burned Madam Tulip
4 Stars 5 Stars 4 Stars
The Old World        
3 Stars
or
4 Stars
       

Still Reading:

A Light to the Nations Reformed Dogmatics, Volume 2    

Reviews Posted:

How was your month?

Saturday Miscellany – 4/30/16

Odds ‘n ends over the week about books and reading that caught my eye. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:

    We’re apparently exposing my Inner Child with This Week’s New Releases I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:

  • Arf by Spencer Quinn — The sequel to last year’s Woof by the author of the Chet and Bernie Mysteries. Woof was loads of fun, I bet this will be, too.
  • The Worst Night Ever by Dave Barry — the sequel to last year’s The Worst Class Trip Ever should be a hoot if it’s 2/3 as good as the first.

Lastly, I’d like to say hi and welcome to Vijayalakshmi Harish and allysonyj for following the blog this week.

What’s Scary About Books?

No new piece today, Dadding takes priority (usually). So, I’ll just share this clip that I’m going to be quoting for a long time…

Guest Post: The Machine Keeps Feeding Me by Clay Johnson


Welcome to Part Two of our participation in the Off to See the Wizard Book Tour (see Part One), a couple more posts will be up in a while. This is a Guest Post by Clay Johnson, the novel’s author, about his process:


I have to hear the words in my head before I start writing, or I’m pretty much hosed. I used to plan out the whole story, or at least try to. I spent a lot of time thinking about it, picturing the action and the plot points, really getting into the thing. I did a lot of imagining while listening to music. I figured if I could see what I wanted to write, then I was golden. Unfortunately, when it came time to actually sit down and do it, I’d hit a dry spot. It wasn’t writer’s block, though; it was more like I was incredibly bored. What I pictured so vividly in my head just wasn’t coming out anywhere nearly so thrilling, and in the few instances that it did I still wasn’t particularly captivated by the process. I kept trying though, and I kept ending up with a bunch of barely started or, at best, half-finished manuscripts.

One day, somewhere around senior year, of high school, instead of an idea, I had just a line. It wasn’t a particularly good line. It was something like: Bill woke up to find death staring down at him and asking if they had any nachos. But I liked what the line made me think of, and I was bored in class, so instead of trying to plan out what that story might be I just went with it. The result was an awesome mess. But it was an “awesome” mess. It was full of great little moments, and a lot of threads that led nowhere. I couldn’t use the story for anything, but I felt invigorated the whole way through. In working on that story I finally figured out my problem. If I knew where the story was going, I didn’t care. I’d already thought that part out; I just wanted to move on to the next story. Somewhere in the transition from over-planning to not planning, I’d found my voice.

I started riffing on just a line, or a vague idea built around a specific image. But the trick was that I had to be able to hear at least the opening line in my head. I had to be able to hear the voice the character would use. As long as I could tap into that, then I could continue the story. The rest seems to take place beneath the surface.

It feels like there is some constantly running story machine cranking away somewhere in the basement of my mind, and while I’m busy doing other things, it’s making connections and drawing paths between two unplanned plot points. Those are the moments I love the most when I write, those moments where two bits that I wrote on a whim meet up and fit together so well that I can’t believe they weren’t planned. Writing this way makes it harder in the revision process, because I end up with a lot of gems I want to keep and can’t, and there’s also a lot of connections that still have to be made after the fact, but almost always less of them than I would expect. As long as I can tap into the sound of the story, the way the words flow and the beat of the thing, the machine keeps feeding me.

April 30 – Independent Bookstore Day

You like books, right? Otherwise, why are you here? You like bookstores, too, right? Nothing against Barnes & Noble or any of the dozens of great online booksellers — but there’s nothing like a good Independent Bookstore. Staff who know their wares; possibly get to know your tastes; care about books, writing, etc.

(and better for the local economy than chains, too, but that’s out of my wheelhouse to discuss)

Basically, they’re great resources, community centers, and places to spend your money. To celebrate/promote them, 400 Indie Bookstores around the country are celebrating Independent Bookstore Day this Saturday. Go, check a local store out — see the exclusive items just for the day. If you’re in Southwest Idaho, Rediscovered Books in Boise is the place to go (there are a couple of other decent shops in the area, but not as good, IMHO).

Guest Post – 5 Must-Read Books for Harry Potter Fans

As part of Reader’s Legacy’s Rowling celebration, they’ve provided me with a few Guest Posts to draw attention to their Sale (through 4/30!) and a Grant Program created in order to give away 1 million physical books in support of literacy programs — be sure to check those out!

Harry Potter is one of the most popular book series ever written!

Its whimsical characters and magical adventures have captured the hearts of millions. If you’re a Potter Maniac, you probably think that no story can compare those of the mystifying Hogwarts and the boy with the lightning bolt scar on his forehead. But have you read these spellbinding masterpieces?

***Attention Harry Potter Lovers: In honor of J.K. Rowling being named the Top Followed Author on Reader’s Legacy in 2015 we’re holding a 1 week sale on ALL of her books. From April 25th-30th, 2016 any Rowling book is 20% off AND double the LitCoins will be loaded into your account just for purchasing. Click the link to check out this limited time offer! ReadersLegacy.com/JKRowling***
 
1. The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewishttp://bit.ly/1NygYMp

Like Harry Potter, this series comes in 7 installments and features a secret world full of wonders, its magical inhabitants, and the child-heroes who must save it from destruction.

 
2. The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkienhttp://bit.ly/1VeZwof

A prequel to the famed “Lord of the Rings” trilogy, this delightful classic takes readers far from reality as it follows a hobbit named Bilbo Baggins on an unexpected and perilous quest to help his friends reclaim their home, which has been taken over by a gold-loving dragon.

 
3. The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkienhttp://bit.ly/1qCCSJj

Told in 3 parts, this is the story of Bilbo Baggins’s nephew Frodo who, with the help of some unlikely allies, must travel to the ends of the earth to destroy an ancient ring, before its evil power brings his world to ruin.

 
4. Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland by Lewis Carrollhttp://bit.ly/1YDW3NQ

This endearing story tells of an imaginative young girl who falls down a rabbit hole and finds herself in a world full of whimsical (and more-than-slightly backwards) characters, where nothing is practical and anything is possible. Alice and her topsy-turvy friends return in the sequel, Through the Looking Glass (http://bit.ly/1rcoVmm).

 
5. The Inheritance Series (Eragon) by Christopher Paolini – http://bit.ly/1WbUnfs

4 fantastic novels tell what happens when a farm boy named Eragon finds a mysterious dragon egg, it hatches, and his life is eternally changed as he becomes the last known Dragon Rider…and the primary target of a rising evil empire.

 
These are just some of the countless wonderful fantasy novels out there. By expanding your literary horizons you will gain a deeper love of reading, and acquire a tasteful appreciation for other authors/genres – even ones that may not be your favorite. Check out these books, or one of your own finding, and tell us what you think!

As an added perk of Reader’s Legacy’s Rowling celebration, we will be holding a special 20% off sale for each of her novels from April 25th to April 30th – ReadersLegacy.com/JKRowling

The sale not only celebrates J.K. Rowling, but was also brings attention for a special grant program we have created in order to give away 1 million physical books in support of literacy programs! Spreading a love of books, and ending illiteracy around the world is 100% possible, and with the help of reader’s on the site, we believe will be one step closer to achieving that goal! Get in on this sale HERE.

Saturday Miscellany – 4/23/16

Odds ‘n ends over the week about books and reading that caught my eye. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:

    This Week’s New Releases I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:

  • The Drafter by Kim Harrison is in Paperback — Harrison’s best, if you haven’t read it yet.
  • Dead is Best by Jo Perry — Charlie & Rose are back in this sequel
  • Scarlett Epstein Hates It Here by Anna Brewslaw
  • Almost Infamous by Matt Carter — a superpowered teen becomes a super villain to avoid the paperwork involved in becoming a super-hero.

Lastly, I’d like to say hi and welcome to Bijoux Alisoa for following the blog this week.

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