My Friday Reads this week is Master & Commander by Patrick O’Brian. It’s taken me about 10 days to hit 100 pages. I’m a little bored of it, to tell you the truth. There’s plenty goes on, and it’s full to the brim with historical realism but… you know, life’s too short. I’m not particularly enjoying it, to be honest. And why waste another 2 or 3 weeks on reading something that doesn’t hit it?
So this week I brought Stein & Candle: American Nightmares. It’s about an oddball detective agency dealing with paranormal problems. Each book seems to be a collection of 6 or 7 short stories, and they’re just wonderful I have to admit. This Michael Panush fella can write.
I hope it’s not too late to get him involved in the second Kindle All-Stars anthology…
At first I thought, “Oh they’re just anthologies” but then when you read them you actually realize they’re perfect short adventures. It allows Panush to keep it lean and mean, ensuring it is enjoyable and thrilling without going on and on. And like I said, his writing is so good you’re just swept along for the ride.
Reading it really made me want to develop my Jack Axle concept a bit more. Maybe even write it.
Talking of writing, Laurie and I are editing Far From Home 3: Hero right now, so hopefully I can publish it next week. Far From Home 1: Legend is in the top 10 free scifi books on amazon, and Far From Home 2: Commander keeps flitting in and out of the top 100 paid scifi books which is quite thrilling. I think it counts as bestseller status if it’s hitting the top 100 bestseller list, eh?
Next month I embark on nanowrimo. I’ll be writing the first draft of a big scifi novel called Ascension throughout November, and in order to do that I need to hit about 2,000 words a day. It’s doable. I think. In that month I’ll also be releasing Far From Home: Volume 1, which collects the first 3 books, and will be competitively priced to make it a good deal for readers.
I am also working on a Far From Home short story collection, but there’s no due date on that. It’s done when it’s done. The stories are: “First Contact,” “The President’s Man,” and “Death and Glory.” The third story will play directly into Far From Home 4: Directive, which I’ll be writing in December as I let Ascension rest.
This week I’ve been watching the 90’s remake of Psycho, which was pretty satisfying. I also watched Fringe Season 5 Episodes 1 & 2 (so fucking good!) and The Muppets Movie.
I’ve been listening to a Ministry of Sound R&B thing I got (bitchin’) and Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band: The Promise.
“Because the night belongs to lovers…”
Tony Healey 