Category: Eshu.Net

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Zombie 6: new Mil-SF

MEDEVAC crew trains for emergency response

 

Bit of writing news for the new year.

I’ve decided to alternate fiction projects in 2017. My first and main effort continues to be the post-apocalypse fantasy novel Shattered Worlds,  (currently hammering out Act II, Into the Scorned Lands) while the second, ‘mistress project’, is a straight up military science fiction novella presently titled Zombie 6.

Focused on a spec-ops team ordered to support the embattled Colonial Administration Security forces on the mining colony Mèng Tiān, Zombie 6 will be offered free here on HSSJ as it progresses. I have added a tab to the top header menu. The first three chapters are up already and I plan on posting new ones bi-weekly. I’m getting a kick out of where the story is taking me and I hope you enjoy it as it develops too. Feedback is welcome and comments are always appreciated.

In other fictional realities, the second Eshu International book, Shift Tense is now available in print.  You can pick up a copy here at Amazon. For whatever reason, reviews for the Kindle version have not, are not, (will they ever?) carrying over to the print listing, so would some of you nice folks who have read Shift Tense fire off a few lines or Copy-n-Paste your Kindle review so it doesn’t look so forlorn there? Thank you very much.

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Finally, thank you all for your continued support. The older I get the more convinced I am success is defined by creativity, community, and contribution more than anything else. I’m fortunate to have such excellent family, friends, and fans. Thank you and happy new year.

 

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A Shift Tense ask

SHIFT_TENSE_final_rgb_flatten_6x9inches_with_bleedsI know folks are busy, but could a couple of you break the ice and fire off reviews for the Shift Tense compilation? Short and sweet will do it. Anything to let potential readers know it’s being/been read. The other three combined had 30 or so, and it would be cool to start the ball rolling for this edition.

LINK TO KINDLE EDITION

Thanks much. Have an excellent day.

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Shift Complete + Free Excerpts

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The shift to Shift Tense is complete: all three novellas are now compiled in a single volume. Thanks to everyone for their support and encouragement.

Apologies to you print book lovers; at present, my status as a writer combined with the reader demographic for spec-fiction doesn’t make it worth the extra ISBN, effort, and cost to do POD. If anything, it gives you late-adopters another reason to buy an IPad or Kindle.

Speaking of which…part one of both Running Black and Shift Tense are available in PDF here on the site. Scroll down past the Amazon links on the right sidebar, then click on the Incursion and/or Red Flags covers. Free stuff to give you a taste of the novels and my take on Biblical perspective spec-fiction. (notice I didn’t use the phrase ‘Christian fiction’) Hope you enjoy.

Next up: Clar1ty Wars, book 2: Under Strange Stars

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A shift in Shift Tense

SHIFT_TENSE_final_rgb_flatten_6x9inches_with_bleeds Important Notice to all Eshu International readers.

I have decided to compile the three previously published Shift Tense novellas – Red Flags, Soldier Dreams, and Angels – into a single volume. The serialization strategy did not work as intended and I believe a single novel will serve everyone better in the long run. I apologize for any hassle, misunderstanding, or bad feelings. It was never my intention to inconvenience or mislead anyone.

By way of compensation to anyone who has purchased one or two of the novellas, I am offering all three for free for the next five days, from Feb 12th through the 16th at Amazon. After February 17th however, Shift Tense will only be available in the single volume.

Thank you for your understanding and support.

Best,

Patrick T.

 

 

Here are the links:

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RED FLAGS

 

 

 

 

 

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SOLDIER DREAMS

 

 

 

 

 

Cover for final installment of Shift Tense.
Cover for final installment of Shift Tense.

 

ANGELS

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High Crimes and Misdemeanors?

A fellow Christian and author was asked recently how he could like (and write) science fiction and still be a Christian. So assuming the questioner wasn’t adversarial to science, (a whole other discussion) that query strikes me on the same level as demanding how someone ‘could like Thai food (Chinese, Indian, sushi…) and still call themselves an American?’

Seems to me the unspoken assumption of this non sequitur morsel of Stalinist logic is treason; a person’s faith and salvation are precarious if they enjoy spec-fiction, suspect if they write it. As during the Inquisition, thou art guilty until proven innocent.

Hyperbole and harsh comparisons, you say? Maybe, but how about a little blunt-force trauma against sloppy religious-think?

C.S. Lewis said ‘Reason is the natural order of truth; but imagination is the organ of meaning.’ Not only does fiction exercise God-given creativity and imagination, it flavors what otherwise might be bland, banal, indigestible transmission of ideas and experiences. Don’t confuse content with medium, or knowledge with understanding. Has fiction (the arts in general) been misused and misunderstood? Sure. So has the Bible and Christianity – more so, with greater ramifications.

It’s beyond time for believers to employ their talents and convictions with passion, clarity, and courage in any and every facet of life, including the arts.

End of the Day, God will  be the one who makes the final call on our work. No one else.

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Stuck at 39

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Running Black reviews, that is.

Here’s the ask: if you’ve read and enjoyed RB, would you do me solid and fire off a short, honest review on Amazon? Cresting 40 is an itch I’d like scratched – and sock puppets aren’t my thing.

Thanks much. Back to writing.

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Asking a favor

SHIFT_TENSE_final_rgb_flatten_BIGI hope this isn’t an “ask too far,” but if anyone has read and enjoyed any of my books, could you fire off a quick, honest review for Amazon and/or GoodReads?

Even if you weren’t thrilled, that’s fine too. So long as it’s legit. I’m not looking for shill and gush. Genuine reviews (and review numbers) are critical for new or potential readers, and this Indie Sci Fi author needs all the help he can get.

To sweeten the deal, I’ll give away two 11″ x 17″ posters of the cover art for the full-length Shift Tense novel. (image on left) Drawn by Michal Oracz* of Neuroshima Hex fame, it’s the kind of esoteric, indie accessory every great game room needs. Post a review for any book, then leave a comment here, and once I have ten entrants, I’ll pick two names at random. (roll dice or something). Your shiny poster will arrive at your door via mailer tube.

Thanks much.

Links, or you can scroll down and click the images in the right side bar:

My Amazon Page

Running Black

Shift Tense 1 – Red Flags

Shift Tense 2 – Soldier Dreams

Shift Tense 3 – Angels

Clar1ty Wars 1 – One Bad Apple

*Michal also worked up the cover for the upcoming novella “The Barrow Lover”.

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Rest and much geekery


Having finished both Shift Tense and The Barrow Lover (see below) recently, I’m feeling simultaneously relieved and drained. Now I’ve got ideas on the radar screen, the outlines/initial chapters of two novels, the start of the next Clar1ty Wars collection, but they’re all just kinda… sitting there.

The only shiver of excitement is seeing what Chila at Port Yonder Press does with The Barrow Lover. Someone asked if I was worried an editor would ruin the story, change its voice. I’m sure some do but I’m not sensing that here. I need and want a solid editor. A good book isn’t so much written as re-written, and having an objective yet sympathetic set of eyes to hone a story, tease out the best and grind down the rough edges is critical. Like Twain said, the difference between the right word and almost the right word is the difference between lightening and a lightening bug. A good editor helps you in that struggle.

So I’ve moved into a Reading Phase to step back and recharge. Right now, I’ve got Jane Gardam’s Old Filth, Iain Banks’ Surface Detail, Gorky Park, Story by Robert McKee, and The Moth at my bedside. (Plus a bunch of stuff on my Kindle) I’m especially looking forward to The Moth, as immersing yourself in good stories teaches you about good writing as much if not more than a book about writing.

To keep my otaku juices flowing, I’ve been gaming a new set of table top wargame rules titled Pulp Alley, adapting them to science fiction and post-apocalypse settings. My friend and I are having a blast. It’s refreshing to sit back and just enjoy a game.

Here are some pictures from three recent games:

There’s plenty more at my hobby blog if you’re interested.

I’ll also say turning 50 the other day turned out to be more a major blessing, and less one of those ‘acute sense of mortality/passage of time’ things. (I think those are good – in proper doses) My wife rented a house on a lake for a potluck with family and close friends, and we held a story slam that broke up around 11 pm. “All good” is an understatement; it was an opportunity to appreciate God’s grace on my life.

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Eshu International backstories?

SHIFT_TENSE_final_rgb_flatten_6x9inches_with_bleeds I plan on releasing the full SHIFT TENSE novel in trade paperback and ebook late this year, but I want to add bonus material to distinguish the separate release from the serialized portions. I was considering short stories centering on Poet9, Tam and Jace, and the Triplets prior to the formation of Eshu International.

I’ve got a killer one for Poet9, but any preferences or suggestions?