Rinse & Repeat

Greetings gentle reader, launched the, er, recycle of Hard Reality into 'Unplugged' this morning. Not a particularly attractive title, I'll have to admit but I played with some alternatives and wound up getting too far away from the actual subject matter again so I returned to the proverbial 'first impulse'...it remains to be seen if it is the 'best' one.

Unintended consequences

Under the category of 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it', I went to make a new cover for my novel End Play...and not only wouldn't the system let me do it but the old cover went 'poof!' Now I'm stuck! My member dashboard has a glaring red 'attention needed' screaming at me and I don't know how to fix it! So I 're-published' the book under a new title "Edge of Eternity" (A lot closer to the subject matter than End Play, which is tied to the events in the Series...)

Both works, Hard Reality and End Play are, er, 'self-contained' enough to stand alone, in fact if it weren't for the fact that one begins on the same day the other ends, the reader wouldn't even suspect there was a connection.

If 're-titling' my projects doesn't raise too many red flags at Create Space, I intend to rename Hard Reality as 'Unplugged' (again, a title that more closely reflects the events that take place in the book.)

In a self-defeating turn of events, promoting my works on social media has resulted in zero reviews because my friends can tell me in person how much they enjoyed my book...go figure? [sigh]

Happy Friday!

Greetings gentle reader! I hope you're getting everything ready for an exciting adventure this weekend! What, you're not planning an adventure? Too expensive you say? Dang, that's why books are so helpful. When you need a getaway but can't afford it, a book can take you to places you only imagined/sometimes never imagined and you don't have to pack a single thing (assuming you always have your sense of wide-eyed wonder handy!)

That said, it's looking like a different kind of adventure is getting ready to show up on your front doorstep, unannounced. Actually the game is changing everyday, not that the corporate-owned media has commented but the blogosphere is alive with red flags...which the corporate lapdogs dismiss as rubbish, the incoherent rantings of the deranged minds that lurk in cyberspace.

The political situation globally is a trainwreck and those behind the scenes continue to throw gasoline on the fires they themselves started.

The real danger lies in the witchhunt...who are they going to blame for all this? More curious is the huge number of people that have been robbed by these manipulating scoundrels. People who operate 'above the law', (because they own the law/lawyers.) Who will the cheated extract their 'pound of flesh' from?

Maybe you don't need a book after all...(but the above isn't going to happen this weekend and since you have some free time on your hands...)

Just saying, ya know?

Going off the rails

Greetings good citizen! This morning's headlines say Saudi Arabia has gone to war with the rebels in Yemen. Does anyone else see a pattern developing? (Besides rising fuel prices...)

So what are you going to do? The beauty of democracy is the power to alter the system to make it better for everyone, the caveat here is if we fail to use this tool, and 'democracy' is reduced to the narrow agenda of the self-interested few) it will be turned against us...resulting in revolution.

It is this, er, 'propensity' for humans to repeat, over and over, the abuses of the past that creates the popular meme that mankind isn't worth saving; so when we finally run afoul of our own stupidity, it will be a well-deserved end.

That, perhaps, is the Biggest Question of all, is mankind worth saving?

Cabbages & Kings

Greetings, gentle readers, Seems an author's work is never done. Imagine my surprise to learn that the e-files of my latest book failed to take not once but twice! I'm happy to announce that problem has been fixed and this morning I uploaded a final tweak that fixes the pagination problem on kindle.

The Kindle folks have been very responsive and I anticipate the book becoming available (again) shortly, later today even (how's that for optimisim?)

How sad is it that this is how we learn? [Won't we all be happy when they create 'idiot-proof' software?]

Here's a little plot twist playing out in real time good citizen, what if you had a message to put out but the media is privately owned and everything had to pass a gatekeeper before being publicized?

You can't write a book because the privately-owned publishing houses don't want their operations either criticized or scrutinized. The net is routinely discounted as 'untrustworthy' (including the widely held suspicion that some people are paid to post wildly untrue, wholly fabricated BS on the net.)

How would you get your message across? Short answer is you wouldn't. However, the message gets out regardless, and why is that? Because the corporate owned media becomes so 'unreliable' that nobody trusts it...and being 'pooh-pooh'd by the media now serves as a stamp of authenticity!

Which is where we're at, good citizen.

Won't you take the time to let me inside your head and share some things you might not have considered before?

No secret

I am not the only author having problems with their files so I'm going to ask you potential customers for a 48 hour hold on purchasing/downloading Big Questions because customer support provided the 'Lime in the Coconut' solution prescribed in the tune of the same name.

The first file I loaded is indeed blank, all you get is the cover, second file works fine...so I de-activated the first file leaving the second one active...now they're telling me they can't 'transfer' the account numbers. Worse, people that downloaded a 'free' copy won't show up on the royalty report so I don't know how many people got stuck with just the cover and a blank interior.

Being a manufacturing man of many years I'm used to this sort of catastrophic failure but the average individual seldom encounters this sort of, screw-up.

I'm working on it and I'm sure Kindle support is too.

Um, if you want to spring for a paperback, CreateSpace assures me their files are ready to go...just saying.

Oh, and a special welcome to new google+ followers!

Table of Contents

Greetings Readers, Since it's Sunday and SOME of you have nothing better to do than 'poke' me on Facebook, I thought I'd give you a distraction/better use for your time...

I'm winging this here and yes, I know that many of you 'don't read' (or at the very least the internet has more than you can keep up with and it doesn't cost you money...(per se.)

The problem with short stories is you don't know what you're going to get without looking at the Table of Contents...especially with an author you're not familiar with.

Two of my ten tales, "To the Death' and 'Homeward Bound' were the winners of the writing competitions they were entered in. 'To the death' had to be set in an 'arena' (although we were given the latitude to use 'informal' or natural settings) and Homeward Bound had to include a light saber duel between two friends, be on a ship underway in space and include the line "Capt'n, there's something on board and it's eating the men..."

There are two others that are set in the 'Magical' realm of Elsewhere (that are more tongue-in-cheek than 'serious' fantasy.) I hope you will enjoy these for their entertainment value. 'Elsewhere' relates the tale of the quest to re-discover the human dimension while the second tale, 'Nevermore' takes on the question of why magical creatures need mortals...

I opened this collection with a short story titled Badlands, a tale about what a 'new' criminal justice system might look like.

I followed this with a tale titled 'The Pointman', a tale set in the Hard Reality universe (yes, all the way to the Boxford/Rowley line, for those of you taking the writer's term for their character's stage too literally!) The Pointman is about an individual that has a talent for spotting and exploiting weakness in a foe's defenses.

Then we have (not necessarily in order) 'The Smoke-filled Room' if you ever wondered why it seems the government isn't a little too interested in your overall health.

The Kobiachi Maru (that famous episode of Star Trek which translates to 'the doomed ship scenario' used to test command candidates.)

What starts off as a routine traffic stop in anything but ordinary times, 'The Fog of War' asks the question of what if the Bible was actually literal.

I round out our ten tales with one call 'The Eye' that follows one possible set of circumstances for man's leap to the stars and what might(is likely) to happen if he takes Capitalism with him...

So if you've got nothing better to do and you have .99 cents burning a hole in your pocket, you may want to check it out.

The Challenge

I am pleased to announce that my latest work, 'Big Questions' is available once more! If you enjoy action and a plot that sweeps you up and blows you away, these stories are for you.

Now it's time to ask my readers for reviews, You've bought my work, now share with others what you think! On the topic of reviews, I need comments if I am to write what you want to read! I don't do 'bodice rippers' (although there is some pretty steamy stuff in both Hard Reality and End Play.)

So if you have any story ideas, I'm listening. (The caution here is it won't be 'your' story, you'll get my take on the topic you provide! (like a writing challenge.)

Meanwhile in the real world...

In today's headlines we have this article "Scientists Seek Ban on Method of Editing the Human Genome
By NICHOLAS WADE
A group of biologists, including the scientist who developed the technique, has called for a worldwide moratorium on using the method to change human DNA.

[This headline was lifted from today's NY Times.]

This is what I mean by 'big questions'...which is to opine that we don't need to leave the planet to wipe ourselves out. [or to create a class of 'super-beings' that feel it is their perrogative to 'wipe out' us 'lesser creatures.']

Ironic that cautionary tales like Frankenstien have made us turn a blind eye to what researchers are tinkering with and how a single 'oops' could spell the doom of our species, if not all life on the planet.

As the article goes on to explain

A group of leading biologists on Thursday called for a worldwide moratorium on use of a new genome-editing technique that would alter human DNA in a way that can be inherited.

The biologists fear that the new technique is so effective and easy to use that some physicians may push ahead before its safety can be assessed. They also want the public to understand the ethical issues surrounding the technique, which could be used to cure genetic diseases, but also to enhance qualities like beauty or intelligence. The latter is a path that many ethicists believe should never be taken.

“You could exert control over human heredity with this technique, and that is why we are raising the issue,” said David Baltimore, a former president of the California Institute of Technology and a member of the group whose paper on the topic was published in the journal Science.

Some of you are peeing your pants worried over how the conflict in the Crimea will play out but I'm more concerned with what's happening behind closed doors in the secret laboratories of the one percent (our self-appointed 'betters')

Now that the method has been developed it's only a matter of time (and patience) before our internal 'self-destruct' mechanism is defeated.

Then our entire species will be faced with the very real question of whether or not an entire planet is big enough for an immortal?

Thank you for your patience...

As per usual it takes a machine to really mess a project up. Worse, one can't be sure the file you're looking at isn't the one you loaded and not what's actually there.

Confused? It gets worse. I was notified this morning that my latest work was either blank inside or could be only one page deep. When I loaded it, I went cover to cover to make sure the formatting ran true and it was all there.

Reloaded the same file...and it took, just like the first time, and I checked it front to back.

However, just like the first time, it told me my 'fonts weren't embedded' and I'm not sure what that means...worse, it says to cure this malaise I need to use 'good software'...?

Help!

The plot thickens!

Greetings gentle reader, Welcome back.
After establishing the backdrop of the story (Space Cadet, you know, clones and how they were sent into space because the precious immortals couldn't bring themselves to risk it). Then we had the other side of the equation, how the 'already have it all' immortals eventually drove the 'lesser beings' into extinction...making the war with the clones sort of a war with themselves...while clones were expensive too, if you had 'desirable attributes' you could join the ranks of the fabulously well to do by selling your genetic inheritance...(into perpetual bondage but what the hell? at least your 'line' would survive.)

But enough of this nightmarish banter as it doesn't come into play in the plot of my next novel...although it does come up when our outcast Space Cadet meets human females that rescue him on the prison planet he is marooned on.

(For more on this 'Empire' created by immortals read my short story Fog of War, available in my latest work, 'Big Questions'. If you have a Kindle, it's only 99 cents! (and if you have a computer you can download the kindle app for free...so what are you waiting for?

Thanks for dropping by

On the third day of blogging I made a tiny bit more progress (partly because I spread yesterday's post around a little.) That said, I need some feed back to help guide me in what direction YOU find interesting?

If you're going to 'follow' an author he better be writing something that YOU care about and enjoy reading to make it worth your while.

I'll begin with the question that has long plagued scientists and legal professionals alike...would a clone be 'property'?

It's an issue that is creeping ever closer to the public sphere as animal cloning continues to work (literally) up the food chain.

It is this issue the forms the foundation of my screenplay Space Cadet, a story about clones that have revolted because their 'property' status has subjected them to some mighty demeaning working conditions and next to no legal protection.

As you might imagine, the legal protections that do exist mostly protect the creator, this is why the clones are 'marked' so, er, 'normal' people can instantly tell they are dealing with a 'manufactured entity'.

But wait, a little more background is necessary (and most of you should see that our own path into the future is following this one...)

The decision to 'authorize' human cloning comes AFTER the cure for death is found. Now the originals (who can afford the outrageous price of becoming virtually 'immortal') consider themselves too precious to venture into space.

You and I can dismiss alien invasion with a shrug and a 'not in my lifetime' but that turns around completely when you start pondering 'forever'...

And, as the term implies, the treatment only prevents 'death from natural causes', you can still be killed.

So, who is going to risk life and limb exploring space when they could send their clones to do it?

And the slope just keeps getting slipperier...

One last technological development, the ability to travel between stars (relatively) instantly will start a race to secure the ownership of the resources space has to offer.

Then we come to the need to 'defend' those resources...on and on it goes.

So, what do you think? Would you like to read more?

Eyeballs Wanted

I see we're off to a ripping start, I got two page views over 24 hours and I'm pretty sure they were both me.

I'd better come up with something interesting or this bad boy is going to take a nosedive before it get's off the ground.

It's hard to crash into the dirt when you're already sprawled on it...but it's been done!

How sad is it that I speak from experience?

Anyway, the purpose of this particular Framus is to promote my latest book, Big Questions. Some of you may be wondering, why call it Big Questions? Why not Big Guns or Big Explosions? Nobody wants to answer questions...they want their questions answered!

I don't know this guy, he doesn't know what I need the answers to...

Or does he?

I know it's cheating but these are questions you've all pondered at one time or another and like all answers, these are neither definitive or complete.

Not all of my stories address societies burning questions but, like it or not, we need to put our heads together and create solutions to these troubles nobody is doing anything about because we don't have a lot of time.

This sad ol' jalopy is on her last legs, it can't be repaired because its fubar...you know it, I know it and more importantly they know it.

[And you know who 'they' are...they're the one pretending they don't exist.]

So in the infamous words of whoever (maybe me), "How will you get the answer if you don't even know what the question is?

Thanks for dropping by,

GCA Jr

The Beginning

Welcome Dear Reader! As the title suggests, this is the launch of a project with unspecified parameters (for those of you unfamiliar with the term.) My publishersays I can market my works by blogging...but they don't say 'how'(and I'm supposed to be the witty one so here goes nothing!) I just launched my third work,Big Questions a collection of short stories set in the genres I write in, sci-fi, thriller and fantasy (which might more accurately be called satire...) I'm going to keep this brief (partly so I'll have something to write about tomorrow) and see how it does. Thanks for dropping by.