Sometimes We All Need to Slow Down

Have you ever seen the Rocky Mountains? I was fortunate to work for a pharmaceutical company and traveled to the majority of the lower forty-eight states during trade shows. I enjoyed several trips to Denver where I viewed the snow covered peaks even if the time of year happened to be in the middle of summer. On one occasion, I drove to Colorado Springs and saw Pikes Peak, among others. I think back with fondness to a time when I was able to view these peaceful locations.

Now that I am an author, my genres focus mainly on Sci-fi, Fantasy, and Action Adventure. I often use social media during my daily writing, and when marketing, my use of social media increases tenfold.

I often think of those serene views of the Colorado Rockies while losing my connection to Facebook, Twitter and the like, to take a short respite from the fast pace world of the internet and the non-stop action in my novels themselves. We should take time from our busy lives, whether it is centered in a large metropolitan area or a single keyboard and desk in your home.

What Came First, The Flying Saucer or The Cup?

Having written Science Fiction for many years, I have found there is an overabundance of material to use in constructing stories.  This material shows itself everywhere from your ice cube trays to that odd looking insect you’ve only seen once in your backyard.

By the way, did you know that last Friday just happened to be Area 51 Day? You know, Area 51, the secret Air Force base that didn’t exist until 2013?

I understand they’re planning a, “Storm 51 Day.” Millions answered, but only around 1500 showed up for the internet hoax. Which is probably a good thing, for what do you get when a million people storm Area 51?

My best guess would be a million dead people.

Area 51 ranks right up there with Roswell, which is a city in New Mexico where two alien bodies were recovered and autopsied after a thunderstorm caused their space craft to crash in July 1947.

So you see, there is never a lack of visible material to use to build your stories or a number of anythings you can use to construct your own, yet outlandish, science fiction epic.

Oh, and never forget, the world is yours, from that super nova to that dripping pipe under your bathroom faucet!

I Guess Anything is Possible . . . But That’s a Big Maybe

If you follow my blog, then you know I enjoy writing and that much of that writing centers around Science Fiction, and Fantasy, with a big smattering of Action Adventure. The novels I write and the creatures I invent are most certainly make believe.

I’d like to deviate slightly from my previous statements and delve into subjects that some folks just can’t seem to release. If we stay within the realm of the living, as far as monsters go, we find ourselves embracing furry creatures with names such as Big Foot, Abominable Snowman, Sasquatch, and Yeti. I truly do not want to step on anyone’s toes, but it seems a new series hunting these creatures hits the airwaves each year, all ending the same way. They just miss seeing one of these allusive fur balls and feel sure they will spot or even capture one next year.

Then we have Nessie. The prehistoric creature that for decades has been rumored to inhabit Loch Ness (a fresh water loch located in the Scottish Highlands), but regardless of her size, has eluded positive identification or any real proof that she exists.

Let us not forget the Chupacabra, Skunk Ape, Jackalope and The Beast of Bladenboro, all valid contenders in this never ending sweepstakes of the unknown.

I think some folks just enjoy having these creatures around, be they fact or fancy, and there’s nothing wrong with that. If the truth be told, I don’t doubt that we could all find a little solace in some parts of the unbelievable. I can’t help but wonder what they will come up with next, but you can bet it will be unbelievable.

The Place I Can Always Call Home

After being diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis and finding I could no longer perform physical labor, writing (a gift from an adoring God) became my passion. As I began my first novel, Rising Tide, I found myself gravitating in my writing toward my faith as a Christian. I knew the manuscript would be written in the genre of Science Fiction with bits of fantasy dispersed throughout, but I would never have been able to anticipate a mixture of Christian fiction mingled within each book I penned. Rising Tide would years later become a series with three published books and a fourth in the works. Terminal Core is a standalone science fiction/action adventure novel that was published in 2016 and Dalon Con (the Essence of Time) is in the editing process.

I shy away from offensive language and sexual situations; however, when you’re killing demons and they are trying to return the favor, a healthy dose of violence is unavoidable.

Melding the many tools I have at my disposal into each novel not only allows me to work at something I love, but more importantly, gives me a way to serve God by spreading the good news of his son, Jesus. For those who would not normally read Christian literature, I find the message is better received when presented within a story, which makes this  ministry another way of service!

A Bite When it’s Tight or a Bite When There’s Height . . No Matter However, A Bite is a Bite

Everyone’s afraid of something. There is at least one thing and probably more in each one of our lives that give us the heebie-jeebies. Arachnophobia (fear of spiders) and Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes) are probably the most frequently used examples of fear regarding creepy crawlies. It’s easy to imagine being afraid of these monsters, often appearing as the harbinger of doom in old sci-fi movies. Even now, they star as the main event because of the severe damage or even death brought about by the creature’s toxins, not to mention, the enormous amount of fodder to fuel sci-fi and fantasy novels. Just the appearance of the mottled serpent or the fur-like surface covering the hand-sized, eight-legged menace can unnerve the heart of the most stoic individuals.

Case in point: As a young man on the water in a john boat fishing, myself and two friends tied up to a small tree. This tree was probably twenty feet from the bank of a hundred foot wide river. (What I have failed to mention is one of the men was fairly good sized and terrified of snakes.) As the day progressed, much to my pleasure our catch increased. I happened to glance to my left and noticed a copperhead in the branches directly over where we sat in the boat happily casting away. Now a poisonous snake is not something I would invite into my bed; however, I was more afraid of my friend trying to get out of the boat than I was a couple glands full of venom emptying themselves into my leg. Thankfully, I was able to divert his attention and remove this snake with an oar.

Fortunately, spiders and snakes do not bother me in general. I’ll hold a tarantula, smash a wolf spider with my hand and in past years, catch non-poisonous snakes, allowing my young son to touch them and avoid fearing the scaly serpents when he became older.

I suppose the most common phobias (of which I too succumb) are claustrophobia (the fear of closed in spaces) and acrophobia (the fear of heights).

Other than hitting the ground at an abnormal rate of speed, air travel, including the heights, doesn’t bother me. On the other hand, standing on more than a half dozen stories of scaffolding on the outside of a building could push my fingerprints forever into the metal uprights of the scaffolding bucks.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, have you ever had an MRI?

Well, allow me to briefly tell you about the occurance. Imagine being pushed into a metal cylinder with your shoulders touching each side to fulfill the claustrophobic part of this event. Then, three men commence to wailing the cylinder with sledge hammers for the next forty-five minutes. Congratulations, you have experienced your first MRI.