The Corsican Brothers were here at the Chateau du Chat Gris for Thanksgiving. The K-man got to help light (reluctantly) the final batch of coals I used to finish off the turkey. The bird turned out great, by the way, with a light smoke and orange flavor. It may have been as good as the turkey I smoked last year.

Following the gratitudinal repast, the four-wheeler refused all entreaties. It could not be persuaded, cajoled, or prodded into service. Instead, we enjoyed a rousing game that I made up on the spot. RC wanted to play a game with the Star Trek figures, and K-man manifested boundless enthusiasm for the idea as well. With five figures, a hunk of rigid insulation for a game board, homemade scenery and obstacles that consisted of a ruin, a big rock (played by an actual rock) a few trees and a wooded area, and the Guardian portal from The City on the Edge of Forever which came with some of the figures, along with several six-sided dice, some bottle caps and red wax, we sat down to the table to play. I should say that I sat down. The boys remained standing, moving about, and hopping with excitement. 

The visiting team included both Federation and Klingon crewmen. The home team consisted of two carnivorous dinosaurs, and a giant spider. It seems that the joint mission of frequent enemies had troubles with their small craft and had to land to effectuate repairs. While working to fix the problem, one crewman was bitten by a venomous creature. The venom didn't kill him, but sent him into a delirium and he leaped through the strange stone portal with a crucial part of the vessel. The rest of the team followed to find themselves in a strange new environment. Their mission required the crew to find the missing part, and to rescue the crewman who had gone unconscious, all while avoiding the unfriendly denizens who sought to make a meal of them. 

The game was complicated by the fact that RC insisted on adding more monsters/plot complications, and also a creature that wandered about according to his desires dispensing unsolicited healing. The Corsican Brothers had their men spread out for a more effective search. One Klingon bravely faced off with a dinosaur--and finished the game right there as a terrible lizard lunchable. 

One crewman took a wound in battle with a dinosaur; he escaped. Another red shirt made the dinner menu for a dinosaur, but the remaining crew escaped with the missing part and the passed-out crewman. A late arrival (one of RC's plot complications) tested his phaser on a dinosaur and found the results entirely satisfactory. I think the fact that most of the Star Trek figures were from the "Day of the Dove" episode, and carried swords rather than phasers or disruptors, is why the Corsican Brothers didn't think to try ranged weapons before they had already fed two comrades to the beasts. The giant spider did get in on the action, but neither took nor delivered any wounds.

In short, the Corsican Brothers and I had a great time with our little game. The chance to take a second or third action tempted the boys early in the game, but they began to see that the gamble usually brought unfavorable results. They stopped taking the gamble until the race to the portal at the end. After some close calls and frustrating die rolls, the K-man made it to safety with the crucial part, and RC carried off the unconscious crewman.

***

In other news, I'm working on the cover for The Shrinking Zone. Here are two possibilities for your consideration. I'm probably going to explore more font/color options for the title. 

Let me know if you think one is more appealing than the other for a novel categorized as a dystopian domestic thriller. It's a fanfare for the common man featuring action and adventure in a dystopian setting.

Here are some quotes I've included in the Author Foreword of the novel:

“May the Freedom and Independency of America endure until the Sun grows dim with age, and this Earth returns to Chaos.” –Toast given at a Massachusetts tavern in 1776 following the reading of the Declaration of Independence

“Show me that age and country where the rights and liberties of the people were placed on the sole chance of their rulers being good men, without a consequent loss of liberty?” –Patrick Henry

“They tell us, sir, that we are weak; unable to cope with so formidable an adversary. But when shall we be stronger? Will it be the next week, or the next year? Will it be when we are totally disarmed, and when a British guard shall be stationed in every house? Shall we gather strength by irresolution and inaction? Shall we acquire the means of effectual resistance by lying supinely on our backs and hugging the delusive phantom of hope, until our enemies shall have bound us hand and foot? Sir, we are not weak if we make a proper use of those means which the God of nature hath placed in our power.” –Patrick Henry

Get your copy of The Shrinking Zone in December.

 

I was going to give the main character a flip phone in a holster. It would have been perfect for him. Except the dystopian society in which he lives in the high desert of the Western U.S. won't let him have one. He doesn't meet the necessary criteria and his son has possible ties to a suspected domestic terrorist group. Electricity is an intermittent luxury for him and his wife. The internet and cell service are only two of the things the government has forbidden to them. 

(here's a photo of a lizard completely unrelated to the novel I'm writing)

In this dystopian thriller, Don is a hardworking, blue-collar man just trying to survive. When his best friend's daughter is taken by the half-crazed subjects of clandestine government experiments, he calls on Don to help save her. How can Don rescue the girl when he must struggle against a power-mad demagogue in the desert, savage hybrid beasts, rebel forces, and the crushing power of a state rushing toward totalitarianism?

Find out in The Shrinking Zone -- coming soon.

I've had some great times writing this novel this week. The action has built to a crescendo and the chips are hitting the fan with exceeding rapidity. At its core, the novel is about families and friendships, but it's wrapped in thrilling action with precious lives and the fate of a nation at stake.

 Links to my books are above.

Author Interview with

Cully Mack

Author of The Voice That Thunders Series

Please tell me a little about your current work in progress.

I’m over halfway through writing my Voice That Thunders Series and currently I’m writing book five. The series features siblings, Mirah and Gabe, who become central characters along with a band of rebels fighting against immortals conquering their realm. Think epic battles with Immortals and beasts of all kinds, throw in elemental magic, huge plot twists, portals and unique worlds, and an ever-growing number of characters trying to save their world. If you love character-driven fantasy, you'll love my books. I warn you now; I don't go easy on them.

Where did you get the idea for this book or series?

I have a fascination for mythology. The older the better. My primary sources are from myths from Mesopotamia. Most people have never heard of them. This is because, until around 150 years ago, the cuneiform tablets detailing their accounts was undecipherable. Mesopotamia is otherwise known as the birthplace of civilisation and its historical setting is in the ancient near east. Differing cultures lived in proximity, so there is a blending of myths and traditions. I mainly draw from the Sumerians, the Akkadians, the Semites and the Babylonians.

YA readers may have heard the term Nephilim from Cassandra Clare’s series or watching Supernatural among other popular sources. Most modern Nephilim depictions are drawn from Semite sources such as the Book of Enoch, where they are portrayed in an urban setting and regarded as fallen angel/human hybrids. As interesting as this is, the Semite account is only one version of the mythos.

Mesopotamian texts differ on many topics. For example, creation epics, deity names and culture heroes. But they agree on one thing… the gods came, slept with human women, and created giant hybrid offspring. Yes, those Titans, gods and beastly monsters from Greek, Roman and biblical myths were known to older civilizations! Some saw these gods in a positive light, others as negative. It makes for great conflict. I wanted to create a work more aligned with the earliest accounts of this mythos.

Do you write in more than one genre?

I write high/epic fantasy, myth, legend and fairy tale retellings, and speculative fiction. I also short film scripts and creative nonfiction.

Tell me about something that you believe makes your writing unique or worthy of attention.

I’m not afraid to write what the story needs. In places, it’s dark (but not grimdark). People die! The battles are intense, blending weapons, magic and intelligence. No one is safe! I’ve got messages from fans to prove it. I always tell them the same, trust me, keep reading. The monsters are unique. Ever heard of Dactyrs or Dagani? The cast is huge, with two or three plot arcs often running parallel, and narrated from multiple pov’s. I’m a discovery writer, so the edge of your seat plot twists in unexpected ways. You’ll find romance and broken hearts (sorry). Even so, romance isn’t the main plot. I’ve been told many times that my writing is very visual and how reading my books is like watching a movie. I’ll let you be the judge of that…

 

Is there anything about your personal history or personality that manifests strongly in your writing?

For many years, I worked with people who were the most broken, those experiencing homelessness, isolation, trauma, and addictions. My characters tend to go down similar paths, and even though their journey darkens, in one form or another, it becomes a redemptive arc, finding themselves, who they truly are, kind of thing. I’m an advocate for nothing and no one can break me unless I give them the power to do it. So, yes, I test my characters to the point of shattering, and watch them rise from their brokenness into who they were meant to be.

What else would be helpful for readers to know about you?

I’m on most social media

Links:

Amazon author link: https://www.amazon.com/Cully-Mack/e/B07QBLXZLT

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/19033629.Cully_Mack

Twitter: https://twitter.com/CullyMack

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CullyMack

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cullymackauthor/

Excluding your own work, what underrated author or book would you recommend that more people read? Why?

Shawn Dressler’s A Tale of Cloak and Shadows. This was a new author for me. The prose is poetic, and the world is painted with vivid imagery. The way Galindel switches back and forth from the present to his memories is enchanting and intriguing. It’s not technically a novel, more of a prequel to the Kingdoms of Core series. Everything about it feels so alive and made for intense reading. The world building, characterization and dialogue were all spot on. An author to try out for sure.

Which of your books do you most highly recommend? Why?

I’d recommend book three, A Fire That Whispers. But to get there, you’d need to read the first two books in my series. Why book three? My writing is stronger. What I loved most about writing this book, is how the two main characters are trying to discover the truth but are unable to discuss and compare their findings. Nothing is as it seems. I drop hints and foreshadow the plot. There are some huge plot twists! Other characters who know the truth are possibly lying. Even I didn’t know how it was going to play out until the latter part of the book. The reader learns the truth as the characters do, because that’s how it was revealed to me. This is the beauty of discovery writing.

 

Which break, event, decision, or fortuitous circumstance has helped you or your writing career the most?

I had the opportunity to return to university to study English Literature and Creative Writing. As a mature student, I had a blast. I stayed on and completed my Master’s in Creative Writing.

What question do you wish you would get asked more often?

How can I join your mailing list? The best way to do this is to sign up for Sojin. A free prequel featuring Ammo and Sojin, two side characters in the Voice that Thunders series. It can be read at any point in the series.  https://BookHip.com/QVLCRL

Do you have a catch-phrase or quote that you like? What is it? And why do you choose it?

“It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.” Aristotle, Metaphysics

______________________________

Thanks to Cully for participating in the interview.

I had a great time writing this week. I did miss one day, but I made it up the next day. I'm on the home stretch in writing the dystopian thriller. It's an action adventure novel set in the near future--like the week after next--and it's a fun ride. Abductions, rescues, surveillance drones, government agents, farms attacked by gangs of drugged convicts, secret government experiments, oppressive government interference, conspiracies, plot twists, and unstoppable action are yours in The Shrinking Zone by Stanley Wheeler. Until that one is ready, I invite you to read my flintlock fantasy series in which the American Revolution, magic, and dragons collide. The series begins with THREADING THE RUDE EYE.

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