All posts tagged time travel

Wednesday Weekly Roundup


Last week, after a kick in the pants from the workshop I’m taking, I managed over 12K and finished whatever I was working on, despite not writing every day. This week I’ll try for a short story and then we’ll see. Maybe two short stories if I manage to keep the wordcount high! I mean, I do want to reach pulp speed (i.e.1million words per year), so I better start worning on it! 😉

I got the email from KDP that they’re raising the paperback prices. With hundreds of books to update, I will take advantage of their bulk update, but not until mid-June, so if you’re a paperback lover, go grab ’em now! Other authors who have already sent the bulk update mentioned it takes time, but just to be safe, order now.

I ordered some paperbacks myself for future comic con, since they will cost more for me as well! They’re mostly in Italian, since I don’t plan on going anywhere this year. Worldcon is in China, and since I didn’t make it to Chicago, which I love, imagine if I want to embark on a trip to China! 😉 Next year it’s in Glasgow, so we’ll see…

Speaking of Worldcons, I finally read a paperback that I got from the author at Loncon 2014… yeah, I’m ashamed to admit that’s how much it took me to get to reading it. And since he’s not on Bookbub, but he’s a Goodreads friend, here’s the link to his book (although I have a different cover).

Do I recommend it? Yes, if you like historical time travel! I read the short story back then, so I don’t remember it at all (it’s still on K.K. though), therefore it was totally new and rather interesting. I mean, historical time travel and alternate history, what’s not to love? Check it out!

I see he has written other books since, although we haven’t been in touch… but my TBR pile is still quite high, so I’ll have to postpone checking them! I might go back to reading on Kindle soon, still plenty of Kickstarter books to read, sigh!

Above it’s Peter&Barb at Loncon 2014, and yes, he’s holding the book he gave me (and I’m holding my copy of Star Minds the Trilogy)… While looking for that picture in the dashboard, I cleaned up the old posts – mostly of my own drawings, all the guest posts still have images – to get more space in the media library… And that’s all for today! Have a great week!

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by Barb on 24/05/2023  •  Permalink
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Posted by Barb on 24/05/2023

https://creativebarbwire.wordpress.com/2023/05/24/wednesday-weekly-roundup-189/

Wednesday Weekly Roundup


And here’s a new title, the last for the summer! I’m taking August off except for another collaboration anthology still in the works. Here’s my historical time travel stories, some very nice experiments to prepare myself to the next project – when the Urban Fantasy Trilogy is finished, that is!

Lost in History – A collection of original stories with reenactors or tourists lost in time, through portals or timeslips, from the Middle Ages to the early 20th century, in Europe, India or the United States.

A Real Tournament (12th century France)

Living History (12th century England)

The Pink City (19th century India)

Stranger Than a Movie (19th century U.S.A.)

Jazz Times (20th century U.S.A.)

I have started on the third book of the Trilogy – actually the middle one. Again, I’m changing how I write, I never wrote so badly out of order before! But since I’m not publishing anything until I have written all the books, I should be fine. I’m only 10K in, but I’ll probably pick up speed next week.

I have a couple of friends who are on Kindle Vella. It’s available only to US authors and customers at this time, but eventually (and when I’m ready, which is definitely not now!) I might be able to get on it too. For those who don’t know, it’s to read serialized things.

So, if you’re in the US, first check out Debbie Mumford, who has quite a few things there! 🙂

Wildfire: https://www.amazon.com/kindle-vella/product/B093DS7CCQ

Prentiss Twins: White Buffalo: https://www.amazon.com/kindle-vella/product/B097QFC3HL

Confessions of a Teenage Tree Sprite: https://www.amazon.com/kindle-vella/product/B093DSD4YP

Then don’t miss Circus Galaxus by Dirk Walvoord about a trickster hero in the deadly world of the ultimate gladiator game show.

Last week was cooler and with plenty of thunderstorms, but I doubt the heat wave is over. I’m still better off than people in Germany and Belgium with floods or in California with fires. We’re destroying the planet, no wonder it’s trying to shake us off!

I’m experimenting with TikTok, but I don’t like making videos with my phone, so I’ll probably stop soon. It doesn’t look like I’m going viral yet – not that I care. Like Instagram, when I’m fed up with it, I’ll just leave it out there. Or maybe close the account, since I don’t really follow anyone – except Khabi Lame.

Oh, well, we’ll see… Since it doesn’t look like we’ll be able to travel much this year either, the rest of my vacations I will use to for more online workshops. I might be able to finally set up a Kickstarter, if I finish watching the videos! 🙂 If you’re interested, it’s free.

And I also have another online workshop to do whenever I get off DayJob again. So, plenty to keep myself busy even if I can’t get out of Italy – or move around it much.

A couple of interesting Kickstarters: Pulphouse Fiction Magazine subscription drive (hint: I might have a story in the coming issues as well) and Starbarian Saga, a fun project by my friend Robert Jeschonek! Check them out and have a wonderful week!

by Barb on 21/07/2021  •  Permalink
Posted in indie publishing, real world inspiration, world creation, writing projects
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Posted by Barb on 21/07/2021

https://creativebarbwire.wordpress.com/2021/07/21/wednesday-weekly-roundup-93/

Wednesday Weekly Roundup


And we got a new title! As announced, here go the two covers. This week you can check Edwyn Blackmore, a m/m romance set at the beginning of the Varian Empire. You can check the chronology of all the stories here. And here’s the blurb of the latest.

Edwyn’s father demands he finds a bride, so he sets out for Xendaria, where the family originated, to look for a suitable maiden. He stops in a rundown castle belonging to his former sword teacher, Curzio, a Varian nobleman who never married and is the last of his line. Love and drama ensue. A Silvery Earth sweet m/m romance

Like I said, both covers have the same m/m couple by Ravven, but the newest one has a background with a picture of yours truly. It’s the interior of the castle Fortezza Verrucole Archeopark in Garfagnana, a wonderful place to visit if you ever get to Tuscany. Reenactors in medieval costumes show you the life inside the castle when it was still used.

Reading recommendations: check out the Cave Creek Series. I read the novel, Card Sharp Silver, and it’s a very enjoyable read! And I know most of the writers who contributed to the three anthologies. I know a lot about this shared world and I can only recommend you check it out!

Moving on to non-fiction for writers, two neat things came out last week, too late for me to include them in the post. One is the Write Stuff Bundle 2021 – I’ve met all those author (except Joanna Penn, and she’s British!) and they’re all terrific writers. I was even a beta-reader on Michael W. Lucas book. So, highly recommended.

The other spawned from The Covid Year (in their own world) – The Indie Author Magazine. I used to buy all the writers magazines when I traveled abroad, but I stopped because they focused on traditional publishing and finding an agent and all that 20th century publishing stuff. Welcome to the 21st century and the new world of publishing!

Eventually I might write something for them, but probably not this year, since I’m feeling sort of in transition, so until I settle in the new normal, I don’t have much to say!

Last week I wrote under 8K, on three different short stories. This week I’m probably writing for the workshop, but I also have other ideas fluttering around. Again, I don’t know if and when I’ll publish these latest stories, but then, they’re not the only ones still in a drawer (or computer file).

Maybe at some point I’ll do a collection of Rejected Stories in various genres, LOL! But I’m currently still writing and submitting them, and like Breathe found a home in the namesake anthology years after it was written, it could happen again.

Gente reminder that if you want free books in different genres, you should subscribe here. Currently LitRPG/Steampunk books are free! I guess that’s all for today and I wish you a wonderful week! 🙂

by Barb on 12/05/2021  •  Permalink
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Posted by Barb on 12/05/2021

https://creativebarbwire.wordpress.com/2021/05/12/wednesday-weekly-roundup-83/

Wednesday Weekly Roundup


And we have another title out, a short story this time. I experimented with a different way of telling on this one, and threw in some of my historical research I did for other stories. The piece in Uruk, 2600BCE is short and brand new, but for the Spartan at the Thermopilae I referenced the two books I read for Helios of Sparta (although he’s born about a century later). And the two 12th century knights appear briefly in The Fern and The Cross as adults.

Rohan is married to Charlie, but the lockdown is hard on their relationship. Rohan tries to relieve past lives to see if there’s bad karma between them that needs to be cleansed.

So go check Lessons From Past Lives, at 99c on your favorite retailer! 😀 And don’t forget the epic fantasy bundle… Do you love big books and epic adventures? Longing for elves and wizards and dragons? Then look no further. https://20bookpacks.com/IASFA-Fantasy-Bundle

Last week I wrote about 6800 words and gave up the idea of writing more Star Minds short stories. The three that I have already written will come out at some point, but I don’t feel like writing more at this time. I want to keep experimenting and trying new genres.

Like I said, I did the Writing Time Travel workshop, and it gave me a few ideas. It also reminded me of some time travel movies I hadn’t watched in years, so I used the weekend to rewatch Freejack only to discover the jump into the future was from 1991 to… a dystopian 2009! So it wasn’t only Back to the Future Part 2 that promised flying cars when we still have none!

The 2009 New York of Freejack is less dark than the 1997 one of Escape from New York, but it still is badly outdated. So yeah, I guess writing time travel into the future is hard, so I’ll probably stick to the past for the time being. Historical time travel appeals to me more than jumping into the future at this time! 🙂

Or I might try time loops, if I rewatch Groundhog Day… We’ll see. I’ve taken Earth out of a century-long time loop in Star Minds, I should play with shorter time loops, LOL!

And by the way, if you want to do that time travel workshop, WMG is again doing a sale on all their workshops. Stay in and learn, so when we get back to some kind of normal, we’ll have the tools to conquer the world… er… the readers! 🙂 Next week I start the Portals Collections workshop, so I’m already set for the next two months…

“The writer who thinks the whole purpose of writing is suffering isn’t one I’m much interested in. The one that tells a story for the joy of telling it is the one I’m interested in. Writing can be hard, but it shouldn’t be miserable. Some days it might be, but on the whole it should be an exciting, if occasionally, frustrated adventure. A story is made better by style, character, dialogue. All the tools that make it work, but the most important component is joyful passion and a willingness to improve on your passion to make it yours and to have it read well. I like to go to work with a certain excitement that gives me pleasure, and hopefully will give the same to the reader. We are not all pleased by the same thing, but if I can write for myself with joy and enthusiasm, I’m confident readers will feel that in the work and some of them will share that enthusiasm and be swept along by the story. I enjoy writing as well as having written. I enjoy finding my story as I go, figuring it out, and putting it down for myself, and no one else, with the confidence I will find some similar souls out there that enjoy the sort of tale I have told.” (Joe Landsale)

And with these words of wisdom, I wish you a wonderful week! 🙂

by Barb on 28/04/2021  •  Permalink
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Posted by Barb on 28/04/2021

https://creativebarbwire.wordpress.com/2021/04/28/wednesday-weekly-roundup-81/

Wednesday Weekly Roundup


I hope you had a fabulous Easter or Passover or Just Another Weekend! 🙂 I used the time to change all my publishing plans again, LOL! So from next weekend new stories. The box sets have been postponed to the summer. And there might be a break in publishing during June, unless I manage to put together a few collections and book Mighty Editor on time.

I was hoping to be able to put up three paperbacks and order them, but one was stuck “in review” for 3 days, so my order for the first two was deleted after the first 24 hours. I had to wait until the third went live to order them all. Hopefully I’ll get them some time in the next couple of weeks.

Last week I wrote a little over 10K on the Duology and a related story before moving on. Like I said, I need to wait for the months to fly by and I still have to figure out a few kinks and rules necessary to worldbuilding, lest my readers get mad at me for contraddicting myself. It’s a different way of creating a parallel world from what I used to do, which might be why it’s taking me so long.

Remember the Infinite Bard? It still has my short story, The Raven, at the bottom… that list of free reads has grown to some 50 free stories to read online. Go check it out! 🙂 New stories go live on Thursdays, I think.

Spring is here, and next weekend EUR is all closed up for the E-prix. And since last year they couldn’t run, they’re running on both days – with no public whatsoever. They also do a slightly different circuit because this year Fuksas “Nuvola” is a vaccination center. So hopefully it will take them less time to take down everything and allow us to get on with our lives.

I’ve taken the Writing Time Travel workshop, so I might write a few more time travel stories (I already wrote a couple for the Shared Worlds workshop). If you follow me on Bookbub (reviews tab), you can see I just finished a time travel novel and I’m starting on another one (although you won’t know which until I’m done and if I like it enough to recommend it, LOL).

I did write some time travel, precisely in Books of the Immortals – Fire that came out 10 years ago. If you haven’t read it yet, you can get it for free with Newsletter #2 coming out in June. Subscribe at the publisher’s page, as I already said quite a few times.

Soon I’ll be announcing another group effort. Thank you for those who purchased the IASFA sci-fi bundle and stay tuned for more offers, both free and paid. Easing off into the routine after a week off Day Job, I wish you a wonderful week! 🙂

by Barb on 07/04/2021  •  Permalink
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Posted by Barb on 07/04/2021

https://creativebarbwire.wordpress.com/2021/04/07/wednesday-weekly-roundup-78/

Sunday Surprise


And it’s a guest! One of the anthology authors agreed to answer my 6 questions… so please welcome Mary Jo Rabe!

What hopes and fears do you have for our future?

I worry about the exhaltation of ignorance and hope that enough young people can be inspired to learn facts instead of prejudices.

What is your story in the anthology about?

It is about time travel and a cat and the Michigan State University campus.

What inspired your story?

I wrote this for the “write 30 stories in 60 days challenge” back in 2017. I started remembering the time I studied at Michigan State University (1969 to 1973).

What else do you write besides sci-fi (especially if it’s not your preferred genre)?

I prefer science fiction, since that’s what I love to read. However, I also write fantasy and historical fiction occasionally.

What should readers know about you?

Possibly they don’t need to know anything about me. I don’t think I’m that interesting. I grew up on a farm in eastern Iowa and have lived in Germany for more than 40 years where I was a librarian in a small special church library.

Is there anything else you’d like to tell us?

I am so very grateful for the wonderful anthologies you put together!!

Mary Jo Rabe grew up on a farm in eastern Iowa, got degrees from Michigan State University (German and math) and University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (library science) where she became a late-blooming science fiction reader and writer. She worked in the library of the chancery office of the Archdiocese of Freiburg, Germany for 41 years, and lives with her husband in Titisee-Neustadt.

She has had stories accepted for Fiction River and Pulphouse. She has published “Blue Sunset”, inspired by Spoon River Anthology and The Martian Chronicles, electronically and has had poems and stories published in Alternate Hilarities, Pandora, Stygian Articles, The Martian Wave, Astropoetica, The Sword Review, Raven Electrick, Mindflights, and Space and Time.

Personal blog: https://maryjorabe.wordpress.com/

Website: https://www.teedsgalaxypress.com

She indulges in sporadic activity on Facebook and Twitter

by Barb on 05/07/2020  •  Permalink
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Posted by Barb on 05/07/2020

https://creativebarbwire.wordpress.com/2020/07/05/sunday-surprise-253/

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