5-Star Reviews on Amazon!

A Treat for Sci-fi Fans  

From RCBR for Amazon

Take a doctor with memories of a distant past – memories of other planets and aliens. Add an eclectic group of traveling companions, pepper nicely with metaphysical twists and turns and a dash of Canterbury Tales storytelling and you have a book that rocks.

I loved the characters in SEVEN BEYOND and all their intricate lives all woven together on a journey. Stories unfold and friendships blossom but don’t forget we have aliens and far way planets and maybe even another race of people.

Loved this book as the author really delivered a great tale.

A+++++ all the way.

Quality Sci-fi Read

From Diana L for Amazon

As a huge fan of sci fi, I settled in to read this book. I was immersed almost instantly. The story in SEVEN BEYOND is told by several characters and the attention to detail is spot on.

We join the journey of the traveling companions and the author keeps all the stories straight for us as there is a lot going on in this story.

Lady Drasher Elizabeth Tasgneganz was probably my favorite character. She brought a lot to the story and engrossed me the most throughout this read.

If you like sci-fi that goes a level above and delivers a story that you remember long after you finish reading- I suggest putting this book on your reading list.

More than Sci-fi

from Kohearn for Amazon

This book SEVEN BEYOND, while a great sci-fi read, is also a cool story of friendships with a healthy metaphysical dose added. We follow along with the group of traveling companions as Dr. Meenins searched to uncover his past. Haunted by wispy memories of faraway places (as in planets) and alien races, the good doctor sets out to reclaim his past.

The characters are exceptionally well crafted and the details really impressed me.
If you like sci-fi reads that are not average run of the mill stories, then you want this author on your reading list. Excellent read.

Author Interview for New Release SEVEN BEYOND

Marc:  Great to see you again. Did you cut your hair?

Stella:  Hey, Marc… What’s new?

Marc:  I see you have a new release of SEVEN BEYOND pending for March 1. 2014.  The Midwest Book Review paragraphs are flattering, but were dated for 2003.  Is that correct?

 

Stella:  A decade ago, can you believe it?  Seven Beyond was published by a small press that later went bankrupt.  We thought to offer it again – this time worldwide – in the Amazon pool of fantasy ebooks for 99¢.  We can reach Goodreads friends and Twitter friends living in the UK by this method.

Marc:  But why now, when readers are waiting for the release of Book IV of the Doliva Saga?

Stella:  Book IV is titled SignalStone and is ready for the proofreaders.  I was waiting until I had dug into events for Book V, tentatively titled SeaStone, before the release. 

Marc:  Is it hard to let go?

Stella:  Ha, ha… You know me so well. I had a twist ending for SignalStone that I was trying to resolve for each character in the next book.  But the writing is coming along, so I feel ready to spring the surprise.

Marc:  Yes, well… Those are writerly notes that the reader cannot know.  What are you intending with this new release of Seven Beyond?

Stella:  Promoting a fourth book of a series is complicated. What appeal to readers who have only read the first book, or who are just introduced to this writer?  So we thought to offer a stand-alone novel that shows writing style, to win fans who later dig into the Dolvia Saga from name recognition.

Marc:  Seven Beyond is separate from the books already published?

Stella:  Yah, yah.  A separate worldview. Unrelated. Some of my favorite characters I ever developed are in this book. Lady Drasher, especially, whispered in my ear while I was writing, demanding more lines of dialogue and commenting on other characters.  When she started talking to me about characters in a different novel that I was writing, I knew I had to kill her off.

Marc:  Are you giving away the plot?

Stella:  There’s lots of plot to discover. Dr. Meenins is a channeled Longist, meaning he doesn’t remember the 800 years of his life, who must accept his guilty acts in the past before he can lead his race to the new colony to be settled here on Earth.

Marc:  Aliens are among us?

Stella:  We are them, and they are us, and I am the walrus. Koo-koo-kachu.

Marc:  You’re certainly in a good mood today.

Stella:  The ebook cover of Seven Beyond is stellar. And early reviews are positive. But more than that… I put myself into this effort. Seeing it listed on GoodReads and Amazon and the other distributers gives me a feeling of completion. I can like myself now.

Marc:  Well, I certainly enjoyed the book when I read it. Dr. Grammario was my favorite character. What does that say about me?

Stella:  That you read the classics, maybe. 
_______

Purchase 99¢ ebook at Amazon today! 
See BookViral review!

Preparing Fresh eBook Launch

Busy, busy...  Seven Beyond is ready for a 3/1/14 launch as a 99¢ ebook on Amazon Kindle.  Still lining up new release caches for the announcement.  Getting excited, though!

Synopsis:  Dr. Christopher Meenins is 800 years old and doesn't remember his past. Accompanying him on his journey of discovery are the powerful Lady Drasher Elizabeth Tasgneganz, the pedantic Dr. Virgil Grammario, the mysterious—and possibly alien—Linda Deemer. Christopher is haunted by memories of alien places and of a race called the Longists. The group travels to the one place on Earth the Longists might reappear: a remote abbey inhabited by an order of nuns known for their mystical insights and quality brandy.

Memories of David Shanklen—once Meenins’ patient and perhaps also his mentor—trouble Christopher's dreams. Shanklen claimed that he was kept prisoner in an alien zoo maintained by the Longists. Through Shanklen, Christopher must confront the secrets of his past to find the New Restingplace of the Dead.  The travelers exchange stories during his quest à la The Canterbury Tales, and the discovery of the restingplace grows out of their long friendships.

Watch this space for reviews.  If you have a connection or want an interview with the writer, please comment.  

Greetings from #Chiberia

Now that the snow is melting before the next big system blows in… a moment to reflect. At +16 degrees, the day was 25 degrees warmer than on Monday. I waited at a stoplight when another consumer from the grocery store spoke. “At least we can breathe the air, loosen our scarves.”

“And I ate everything in the house,” I added. “Let me open this can of green beans that I bought in the summer.”

“I was eating dry cereal,” she smiled. “Dog biscuits were looking good too.”

A person has to like herself to tolerate a Chicago winter living alone. But I like my characters and wrote 200 pages, so the time was well spent. The confinement and sensory deprivation actually helped with developing fresh scenes in Book V of the Dolvia Saga. Juggling the many characters and deciding their fates was a great puzzle (glass bead game) for the dark winter months.

I’m almost sorry to return to teaching where I read student papers instead of reading the newest free fantasy release on Kindle.

When schools were closed for two days, students who started online classes celebrated their choices for avoiding the expressway and posting on DBs from the warmth of the living room. 

I live in an integrated society. I’m glad for the work and for my avocation. 

List Makers' Delight

A Christmas list is like Christmas candy.  When the holiday is over, I still want some.  Luckily, January is a list maker’s delight.  I can throw away the old lists and make new ones!

My friends claim that my need for lists is a sign of a clinical depression or OCD or a need for control or some such.  So I made a list of medical conditions that people talk about wrong:

·      Lactose intolerance

·      Sudden leg-jerk syndrome

·      Facial recognition phasia – really mean she saw you but is ignoring you so you won’t ask her again to borrow money

Once I decided to stop making lists, even grocery lists.  I found I list the needed groceries anyhow, but I purposely leave the list at home to punish myself.

Many people are list makers and don’t admit it. Doctors make lists, but they call them categories to sound smart. Librarians are major players. They have lists of compendiums that list the number of specific old books still extant. There’s a cry for help.

So I made a list of list makers:

·      Starbucks employees

·      Airline pilots

·      Writers on Amazon – all want to get listed with Kindle 100 best free books

·      Efficiency experts

·      Anybody in sports (but they call the lists stats to avoid sounding domestic)

           

Website designers are list makers, trying to draw order out of chaos. “Okay, everybody talks, but one at a time and 140 characters only!”

The internet is list nirvana. Google is basically a list with most visited first. Goodreads has a section titled Listopia. I limit my time there from 7-9pm as an act of personal discipline.

My need for lists is satisfied with students. I list the grades I think each will get, then the final grades they actually earned with the variance and frequency. Aaahhhh, I love teaching.

 

The only group that cannot seem to make a quality list is healthcare.gov. 

So I say, list makers stand proud. There are more of us that can be counted. 

Perspective on Bad Reviews

Many years ago at a science fiction convention I was seated next to a famous writer in a well appointed hotel lobby for a book signing – his most recent novel and my first attempt. The idea was that convention attendees offered bought books for a personal autograph, except the many sci-fi fans were there to wear skimpy costumes, read comics and watch animee, and maybe get laid.

The writer and I chatted during a long series of quiet moments while infrequent shy readers approached and he flourished the felt tip pen. One reviewer came by carrying four weighty copies of new books and forty extra pounds under a tucked-in and buttoned-down shirt. “I reviewed your book,” he said.

The famous writer looked over his glasses while he finished an autograph for a young reader. “You said I played fast and loose with time, and the events were out of sequence.” The reviewer registered surprise and pleasure that the writer quoted his words back to him.

“You said the last chapters needed editing,” the writer added, “and the ending was too fast.”

The reviewer took out his phone and glanced at me like I might be willing to serve him to capture the moment.

“I’m reminded of a famous Van Gogh painting that hangs at the Art Institute in Chicago,” the famous writer continued. “Maybe you’ve seen it. The painter’s bedroom is depicted in too-bright yellows with the furniture outlined in squiggly strokes, and the bedposts are too big so they seem to loom off the canvas. I visited the gallery with my mother who claimed that was her favorite painting. She felt confident providing a critique because so many elements were obviously wrong.”

The reviewer’s countenance fell so he resembled a wax figure that was melting. He turned on his heel and marched away with fat thighs and buttocks pumping. The famous writer showed me the briefest smile before he reached to sign the next offered book for a fan.

Of course, we all know that the wrong elements made the painting recognizable at a glance as a Van Goth. Writers also seek a style that’s instantly identifiable for paragraphs taken out of context like with Flannery O’Conner, Margaret Atwood, or even Joyce Carol Oates. O’Conner was slammed for too much violence, Atwood for word smithing, and Oates for, well, everything. 

Change is (mostly) good

Been absent here a while since I downsized to a walk-up in an upscale neighborhood. Did you ever notice that when you make one change, soon enough you change everything? New haircut, new purse, new jeans, new bedspread, new published novel.

The biggest adjustment, though, was my diet.  I was accustomed to perusing the Treasure Island salad bar and eating out of the container.  Dinner was pot pie, or enchiladas at the local Mexican place. Now I live in the land of a thousand restaurants, and I was eager to sample the many choices.

I wanted to start small. I entered a hole-in-the-wall hot dog place that doesn’t serve french fries. When I asked the manager how often he got requests for french fries, he claimed he was philosophically opposed to them. But he serves HOT DOGS!

So I went next door to a California-style lunch place with storefront windows that allow too much light, and artwork that references no cultural preference. They’re open only four hour a day, so I need to set an alarm on my phone. They offer egg entrees at weekend brunch but not at 11am on Wednesday. The menu had five lunch specials, five sandwich choices (one being duck tacos), and four salads.

I was served an overpriced and slimy spinach salad with the stems intact, but no onion slices and no olives. Pine nuts instead of sunflower meats, and tiny globs or what I took to be dried pepper. They need to move back to California.

Just so you don’t think I’m a crudgeon, I did find a steak house that serves real steak with a real baked potato with real butter and even sour cream, not some California soy cream substitute. And there was a line out the door of Midwesterners who can discern value for the dollar.

 

I need to move to Pilsen where steak burritos come wrapped in waxed paper, pizza by-the-slice is served on a Styrofoam plate, and french fries are piping hot and salted.  In this city… In this city, hot dogs come with fries. Spinach salad comes with onions. Attitude is gruff but not haughty. And I can get eggs any damned hour of the day.