New Releases for March 2015

     Below is a list of new book releases in the Sci-fi and Fantasy genres that I have noted for the month of March, 2015.  This list was compiled by myself from various sources and is in no way a comprehensive list, simply a few new releases that I have heard and/or read about, and thought I would share.  :)  Hope you find one(or several) that you find interesting.

     Fist up is a new steam punk release from Bec McMaster, entitled 'Of Silk and Steam'.  Published as of March 3rd, this novel is the fifth book in McMaster's 'London Steampunk' series.  I myself have not yet read anything in this series, yet McMaster seems to have a following for this steampunk/fantasy/romantic tale.  It seems well worth putting on my 'to read' list from what I have seen and heard.  More info can be found, and the novel may be purchased, here.

     Next up is an anthology featuring stories from some of the top talents in Science Fiction.  'Old Venus', published as of March 3rd, features stories collected by the incredible author George R R Martin and award winning Editor Gardner Dozois(winner of 49 various awards for his work in editing and writing!).  With these two choosing the 16 stories that have been included in this anthology makes this a MUST read for any fan of Science Fiction, it is most certainly going onto my 'to read' list!  More info can be found, and the anthology may be purchased, here.

     This next novel takes us to 'A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away....'  'Heir to the Jedi', by Kevin Hearne, published March 3rd, is set between 'A New Hope' and 'The Empire Strikes Back', and is told entirely from Luke Skywalker's point of view.  More info can be found, and the novel may be purchased, here.

     Lastly, in the place of honor, is a collection of short stories from one of the masters, who recently left this world, Sir Terry Prachett.  'A Blink of the Screen' features short stories that span his entire career all the way from his schooldays through his phenomenal Discworld series.  This collection, published March 17th, also features an introduction penned by award winning author A S Byatt as well as illustrations both by Pratchett himself, and the late Josh Kirby, making this book something to be treasured.  Prachett's brand of humor, imaginative creativity, and incredible writing style made his works truly unique.  I will definitely be putting this volume of short stories from the prolific Terry Prachett on my book shelf.  More info can found, and this book may be purchased, here.

     There you have it, my short list of Fantasy and Science Fiction released during the month of March, 2015.  There were, of course, many, many others released during this time frame, but these are those that have caught my eye.  What other new releases have you noticed that I did not mention?  Or maybe there are upcoming releases in the near future that you are waiting for with anticipation?  Let me know in the comments and share your own favorite new treasures with us all.  :)

“A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP” ― Leonard Nimoy

     As I am certain most of you reading this will have already heard or read by now, on February 27th of this year we lost a man that was an icon in many sci-fi and entertainment circles, and for many of us a mentor and inspiration as well.  I am speaking of course of the entertaining, caring and inspirational Leonard Nimoy.

     My first experience of Leonard Nimoy's talents was in his iconic role as the unflappable Mr. Spock.  Some of my favorite memories as a child were spending time with my Dad on Sunday mornings watching reruns of the original series of Star Trek.  As Spock he entertained and inspired many people, including many young people who have gone on to live their dreams because in a very big way he made science seem cool.  It was also in this role that he helped teach the message of equality for all that was at the heart of the Star Trek franchise from its very beginnings.  In this same spirit, when Mr. Nimoy was later approached about voicing Spock for the animated adaption of Star Trek in the 70's, it was his pushing and coaxing that made sure that George Takei and Nichelle Nicols were also included in the voice cast.  At first the studios were only going to use William Shatner, DeForest Kelley and Leonard Nimoy from the original cast, and then get others to do the rest of the voice, but it was Mr. Nimoy that basically told them that if they wanted him, they would have to include the others, as 'they' were the ones that represented the diversity that was at the heart of Star Trek, and without them he would refuse to be part of it.

     Yet as iconic as his portrayal of Mr. Spock is, there was so, so much more to his professional career.  From various movies to his role in the Mission Impossible series, Gunsmoke, playing a wonderful villain in an episode of Columbo, to TV movies such as 'Vincent', voicing animated characters(such as Galvatron from Transformers the movie), narration roles, lending his voice to 'Big Bang Theory' to his role in the more recent and popular series Fringe, his acting career was, in the very least' prolific, with more than 130 acting credits to his name.  But this also was only a part of Leonard Nimoy's contribution to our world, for he directed several projects(including the incredible movie 'Three Men and a Baby'), was a writer, producer, and a fabulous photographer, and of course his infamous singing career which included such cult classics as 'The Ballad of Bilbo Baggins'.  :)

     Actor, director, writer, poet, speaker, photographer, humanitarian, he was an inspiration to many through his professional work, and also just by being the man he was.  Not once have I seen/heard a story from any fan who met the man, saying that he had seemed rude, or had obviously ignored them, or had been uncharitable in any way.  He was one of those people that showed us how to live, not through beating us over the head with 'you should do this' or things of that nature, but by example, and through some of the characters he brought to life for us.

     May you rest in peace Mr. Nimoy.

In memory of Leonard Simon Nimoy

March 26, 1931 - February 27, 2015

NaNoWriMo, here we go!

This Saturday is the first of November, and as mentioned in my last post, that means the beginning of another NaNoWriMo.  I have decided that this year I will occasionally post updates on my blog during November about how my story coming along, and a bit about the process, and of course about NaNoWriMo and the culture that has grown up around this yearly, month long event.  :)

With just a few days to go, I have finally decided what idea I am going to tackle for this year's project.  A couple years ago I jotted down some notes, and did a loose outline for some back story, about a tale I wanted to write titled 'The Dragon's Daughter', and then promptly forgot about it as I was trying to work on the sequel to 'The Lost Gate'.  After coming across these notes and outline the other day on my computer, I decided that it is high time I tried to punch out a rough draft for this tale, and NaNoWriMo is the perfect opportunity.

And so I am spending some time making notes about my characters, who they are, what their motivations are, and just generally getting to know them, in preparation for the start of the writing frenzy we call NaNoWriMo which beings at midnight on November 1st.  Wish me luck!


In case you haven't read any of my stories, you can obtain a free e-copy of my short story 'Brighid' at the following site:  Brighid by RD Williams

November is right around the corner, and that means...NaNoWriMo

Each year from November 1st through 30th thousands of people set pen to paper, or fingers to keys, and attempt to write 50,000 words in 30 days.  That's right, I said 50,000 words in 30 days.  We like to call November NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month.

Why do we do this?  Is it the challenge?  Is it just a good way to keep our writing muscles exercised?  Is to be able to say "I did it!"?  I think there are a lot of reason why, for myself it's the challenge, and it's also a great way to spread the practice of reading and writing and to further literacy.  In fact, NaNoWriMo is organized by a non-profit organization dedicated to literacy for everyone by sponsoring events like NaNoWriMo and other various writing based events.  'National Novel Writing Month', which use to be known as the 'Office of Letters and Light', also conducts a fundraising drive as part of NaNoWriMo during November to support creative writing programs for more than half a million children and adults in approximately 200 countries, including 2,000 classrooms, 650 libraries and more.

For more information about NaNoWriMo go to http://www.nanowrimo.org

And if you write for fun, or have ever considered writing story or a novel, go ahead and sign up for NaNoWriMo this year and join myself and thousands of others as we dash out ideas, scribble down words, and fight our way through tangled plots, oh and have lots of fun doing it!  :)  If you do NaNoWriMo already, or are thinking of doing it this year, let me know.

Awesome on tap, or is that tape? :D

At last I can say that there was a reason for keeping my old cassette player.  It has been announced that the Guardians of the Galaxy 'Awesome Mix Vol. 1' will be released on cassette tape on November 17th.  Now, there may be a few of you out there saying "What's a cassette tape?".  For you kids out there, yes there was portable music before CD players, in the form of a cassette with tape in it on which you could record music, for more info ask you parents.

For the rest of us, or at least those like myself that might still have a cassette player, you can, if you wish, obtain a cassette tape of the 'Awesome Mix Vol. 1', but apparently it's only available through retailers partnered with Record Store Day.  http://www.recordstoreday.com/

I know, it's a little thing, but I just love seeing a little retro action.  :)

Science Fiction to Science...

If you are a Trekkie like myself, or even if you are a casual fan of, or have even just seen a couple of episodes of any of the Star Trek series, you will easily recognize terms like Transporter, Warp Drive, Phaser, and many more of the various futuristic pieces of technology that the crew of the Star Ship Enterprise(and DS9 and Voyager) depended upon on a daily basis.  I myself love to see a new type of technology that comes which bares a striking resemblance in function to something that started long before as a sci-fi only bit of tech.  Cell phones vrs. Star Trek Communicators for instance, and over the last few years I've seen several other things that have become real life technology.  Remember the PADDs that Captain Picard was always using for reports and reading information and who knows what else?  Enter the IPad / Tablet.  Further to this list MIT has announced a programmable needle-less medication injector (Hypospray anyone?), Handheld Ultrasound scanners are now commonly used in ER's, and I've heard rumors that a version of a Holideck is starting to take shape.

I always find these sorts of stories amazing, and they always make me wonder "what's next?", hence the reason I was so excited when I saw the below noted story on the website of Krypton Radio (www.kryptonradio.com) earlier today.  Hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

http://kryptonradio.com/2014/10/16/open-source-tricorder-nears-completion/

Review and thoughts on 'The Hallowed Hunt' by Lois McMaster Bujold

It has actually been several years since I read 'The Hallowed Hunt' by Lois McMaster Bujold, but it is a tale that has stayed with. So when I thought to state an opinion on this book, I decided it would be best to give it a fresh perusal.  At times we find when we go back to a book, that it is not always as we remember, it losses something, or it seems stale due to comparisons with other books.  With 'The Hallowed Hunt' though I found this not to be the case.  Lois McMaster Bujold brings the characters to life and allows you to empathize with them, even when you are not sure you like one or two of them.

The story itself is set amid a quiet political struggle, as the old King lays dying, and his younger son, who was rather crazed, has been slain.  It is Ingrey kin Wolfclif, a Lord who has no land or title due to an act of sorcery in which his Father involved him in as a child, who is sent to investigate the death.  Yet it seems the young Prince was involved in the same type of illicit sorcery, and the person who killed him is a young woman who claims self defense.  Now she has a secret like to that of Ingrey's, for this sorcery has bound the spirit of a Leopard inside of her, as Ingrey has bound to himself the spirit of a Wolf.  Yet what other secret is there about Ingrey, that even he does not realize himself?  And what is the secret carried by the Earl Wencel Horseriver who joins them on the road to the capital city, and how does it tie him together with Ingrey, long dead spirit warriors, and the Hallowed Kingship?

I highly recommend this novel for any fantasy fan who loves to delve into complex and unique magic, religious, and political systems.  If anyone out there has, or does in the near future, read this novel, please feel free to share your thoughts on it via the comments below.