The nice folks at the Star Chamber invited me as well our lead and close authors for this anthology to come and chat a bit. I went on about the project’s background. L. Jagi Lamplighter covered incorporating one of her top characters into the Amelia mythos, and Grathew introduced us to his haunting, almost melancholic ending story; a story that still has hope of Britain and for Western Civilization.
Another person was foolish enough to talk to me. For an hour. What happened to folk’s “fight or flight” instinct?
Richard Nichols at Red Pilled Fiction Factory was kind – or foolish – enough to let me rattle on about the philosophy behind Machine Civilization in general and the book “Worlds Without End” in particular for nearly an hour.
I take a deeper dive into into where ideas for stories come from. Hint: it might really be the stork if you are writing about avians. Beginning with my “movie theater” metaphor, I explore looking inward, looking outward, and just looking about and paying attention for inspiration for your Next Big Thing.
I conclude with something which crushes many new writers: research to get it all right. Many creatives are, to be blunt, not rigorous thinkers and are often overwhelmed at the prospect of logic and consistency. I propose a possible solution for those in that situation.
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Okay, it’s been a while; we’re not going to dwell on that.
This is another 4-excerpt dive into my second novel, a direct sequel to “The Fourth Law.” While that was about the love between friends, this explores family love and loyalty. Perhaps because it has been a certain time since my last podcast, this one is significantly longer. But it is also that much more interesting.
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To you, my content consumers, that is. I’m not going to take the time to look at the records, but it is quite possible that this January which just passed was the only time I did not post for an entire month. Yes, in the post preceding, I mentioned I would have much on my plate… But I’ve no excuse, so I won’t make on.
The most important news is that “Obligations of Rank” is now out and available. I have yet to port it over to Smashwords; if I did nothing here you can bet I did nothing there.
In novel news, my short story about Allen and Ryland is now not only a 48,000 book, but it is already in the hands of both my copyeditor and my cover designer. With chance and luck? Call it released in two months. It is my first romance-only story; no horror or anything like Cursed Hearts. Are there complications? It would be a damn poor story if there were not! Each of the four parts of the book are these two youngsters getting permission to marry; from his parents, from hers, from her cousin the empress, and from the Machines. Not to mention the huge problem this creates for the Texas Navy.
Podcasts? Yeah, sure. I did at least take the physical step of moving my mic and stand from my quiet corner in the freezing cold basement to here at my right, next to the laptop on the dining room table, where I work. The only excuse to not start talking is… again, I have no excuse. Apologies.
So, that’s the update. New book out; newer book already on the way. No reason to not inflict my voice on y’all again. Let’s get to it.
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The good folks at The Star Chamber were having an open lines night. I was just following along with a few lines to their Chat Room when they foolishly wandered onto a topic I found relatable. After all these months, I would have thought that the host would know to recognize at least my Area Code and block all numbers from there, but no… once again they wagered their reputations on letting go live. The triumph of hope over experience.
I wander in almost exactly at the 1:15:00 mark and babble for about eight minutes. Once off, the hosts try to recover from my verbal Molotov Cocktails. It was fun.
My original intent of these podcasts was to just talk about my novels. That, obviously, went off the rails for the last dozen podcasts. So, at long last, I turn my attention to pulling a few – well, four – excerpts from my first novel, and discussing it.
Perhaps the most important take-away from this is fanatic loyalty. To God, your family, your friends. In that order.
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Another more technically oriented podcast where I tell the story of how I try to do something different every time I make a book. I do not want to get stuck in ruts of characters or stories or even types of stories so over the years I’ve made romances, horrors, politics, espionage, war, and even children’s books.
I shall not allow myself to become a formulaic writer. This is the most fun I’ve had in years and I intend to keep having it.
Perhaps because I enjoy talking about my stories so much, this one runs a little longer. Cheers!
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Having covered politics and sex it was time to turn my attention to the last of the “not to be discussed” triumvirate of religion. More specifically Christianity and ever more so, Roman Catholicism. Only two of the machines are believers and I’d guess about half, barely, of the human characters who get a speaking role in my twelve books are. I and my characters are never preachy but it is a very important matter for many of them.
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machciv 