Author: Jim McGowan

James McGowan Reader Group- Shaking the Magic 8 Ball

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Howdy!

Things might be looking up.  Or maybe we’re actually upside down and we’re looking down.  I have no idea.

Will things get to a point where we can… gasp… safely visit friends in family in small to medium groups?  Will the quaran-times endure?  Let’s find out with the magic 8 ball.

Me: “Magic 8 ball, when shall the plague at last break?”

(Shaking motion)

Magic 8 ball: “Outlook hazy.  Ask again later.”

Me: “Some help you are…”

In all seriousness, find fun and happiness where you can.  Sooner or later, this season shall end.
Recommendation Corner
How To by Randall Munroe

XKCD is one of my favorite web comics.  Munroe’s prior book, What If, asked absurd questions such as what would happen if the oceans of Earth were transferred to Mars.  This book takes the opposite track by asking sensible questions and providing absurd answers.  One of my favorites is how to throw things.  It eventually devolves into an exercise where quarterbacks are throwing blenders, and singers throwing microwave ovens.  Silly stuff that’s absolutely worth a read.

Powers: The Best Ever by Brian Bendis and Michael Oeming

This graphic novel is most likely the conclusion of the Powers saga.  I’ve been a fan of this comic book since the late 90’s.  It’s a street level homicide detective story that takes place in an exceptionally violent and unsafe world of superheroes.  One of the detectives, Christian Walker, used to have powers that granted him flight and strength.  But those are gone now, and he is aging.  An old enemy with an old grudge doesn’t care.  He will make Walker pay. It’s a great send off for the characters of the series.  Really well done.  Check it out.
That’s all for this time.

Stay smart.  Stay safe.

Jim

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James McGowan Reader Group- The New Players are Coming.

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Hey there!

Things just might be turning a few corners.  The weather’s getting warmer.  I got my second jab.  And I got a new book coming out next month.

It’s called “The New Players”.  They live in a brighter world. But their future is dark.
 
Here’s a preview of its cover with Ed Burnhelt and his ally Tamona facing off against the cyborg goddess, Hekati.  It’s part of the promo below and you can also purchase it on Amazon in June.
Recommendation Corner
The Unmade Podcast

I got into this podcast a few months ago and it is fantastic.  Brady Haran, an educational Youtuber, and Tim Hein, his old buddy from grade school, each talk about ideas for new podcasts.  But that’s just the frame work.  It’s mostly about two old friends joking around with made up sports, spoons of the week, and a glorious number of renditions of the Sofa Shop jingle.  Their jolly banter is very much something the world needs right now.  Give it a listen.

Later by Stephen King

Say what you will, but King is a first-rate storyteller.  The story involves a boy who can see dead people.  King steers into the skid by getting the Sixth Sense comparison out of the way early.  Jamie is a great character, and his interactions with both living and dead characters are believable and gripping, especially with a particular mad bomber.  The audio book narrator, Seth Numrich, gives a great performance as well, both nuanced and punchy.  Check it out.
That’s all for this time.

Stay smart.  Stay safe.

Jim

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Ed Burnhelt does what is hard.

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Ed is one of the main characters in the upcoming “The New Players” novel, Book 3 in the series.  He hails from the advanced and isolated nation of New Grelland, and is the youngest member of a powerful and influential family.

He is gifted with Flames of Tumult that generate within his body, which grant him hyper speed and strength, and the capability to think faster than most computers.  He can also vent the electric fire from his eyes.  He is also a skilled duelist, wielding his deceased mother’s sword.

But there are draw backs to this power.  He had to spend a year in sensory deprivation to accustom himself to his enhanced perception of time.  His fellow Grells fear him, seeing an unstable weapon, rather than a person.

All of this was by design, not chance.  His family engineered his lot in life, knowing the consequences it would inflict on him.

They had to.

Corsis always lurks on the periphery.  And the Burnhelt’s need every advantage they can get to fight him.  It will not be easy, but Ed has spent his life girding himself for the trials to come.

He does what is hard.

James McGowan Reader Group- LitCon Weekend

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Howdy, all. LitCon is this weekend.  If you’re interested in taking a look at the works of other indie authors, feel free to take a look at their site and the Youtube channel.  I’ll also be participating in a panel or two. Also, check out the books on the LitCon 2021 Giveaway.  Cool stories await!
LitCon.org LitCon on Youtube LitCon Book Giveaway
Players of the Game Artist Spotlight
I work with a few artists for cover and website content with my Players of the Game series.  Mikhail Palamarchuk is especially good, and I’ve featured a few of his finished works in the past.

I’ll provide him a description of a character along with images that match the vibe of what I’m wanting.

Here’s a great example with Violet.  She’s a Skin Bot, an android-type character who appears in the upcoming New Players novel.  First, I get a rough sketch:
Then I give Mikhail feedback, and he provides me iterations based on my notes to arrive at the finished version.

I have him give me a variety of styles, either a higher-detail airbrush style, or a lower-detail comic book style. 

The finished version of Violet is the latter. Mikhail’s stuff is just plain rad.  That’s right.  Rad.
You can view more of his even better stuff including several of my Players of the Game characters on his ArtStation page.
Mikhail Palamarchuk’s ArtStation Page
That’s all for this time.

Stay smart.  Stay safe.

Jim

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James McGowan Reader Group- Looking Down the Road

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Howdy, all.

Much of my neck of the woods got the deep freeze treatment for the past few weeks.  If you were affected by the polar vortex in the US, I hope things have gotten better for you as time has gone on.  Things seem to be getting better as somewhat warmer temperatures creep back in.

As spring peeks around the corner, I have a positive outlook for the future right now.  After months of being cooped up indoors with the cold, and many months more of doing the social distance thing, I am hopeful that things might get back to some form of normalcy toward late summer and fall.  More vaccines appear to be ramping up in the US, which is a welcome development.

I will be attending another virtual round of LitCon in early March (5th through 7th).  Check out their site.  It’s free to attend.  I have a virtual booth in the fantasy section.  In April, I’ll be attending the Nebraska Writers Guild virtual conference as well. 

On top of that, I’ll be releasing The New Players in March or April.  It will focus on new characters who must contend with Corsis and his ally, Hekati the Unmaker.
Players of the Game Character Spotlight: Hekati
Hekati has many guises.  The cyborg goddess is but one.  She cultivates flowers that twist bodies and minds to her will.

She is featured prominently on the upcoming New Players cover.  More on that next month, or you can get an advanced peak of it on my LitCon virtual booth with the link above.
Recommendation Corner
Onward

This Pixar movie came out last March just as the pandemic was really hitting the US.  It’s a shame that it didn’t get more recognition.  My wife and I recently watched it on Disney+.  It takes place in a world populated by mythological people like elves, satyrs, and centaurs where magic was shunted aside by technology because tech is easier.  The plot focuses on two elf brothers voiced by Tom Holland and Chris Pratt who go on a quest involving their deceased father.  If you want to see a buddy/brother movie with Spider-Man and Starlord (or at least their voices), check it out.

Autonomous by Amalee Newitz

This novel takes place a few hundred years from now where nations appear to have reorganized in alignment with giant pharma companies.  Human life has been extended, but inequality still reigns with designer medicines largely unavailable to the larger populace.  One main character, a female rogue scientist named Jack, tries to help the downtrodden with free medicine that she pirates from pharma companies.  She finances it with her side business of selling recreational drugs, but that goes wrong when people start working themselves to death as a result of a side effect of a drug she pirated.  Eliasz, a stoic government agent, hunts for her while having an increasingly confused working relationship with his robot partner, Paladin.  It’s a believable future that could totally come to pass.  Good stuff.
That’s all for this time.

Stay smart.  Stay safe.

Jim

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James McGowan Reader Group- The New Music Binge-o-rama

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Happy New Year, everyone.

Winter is here.  Lots of snow.  Lots of fear and anger.  Show someone that you care about them however you can. Perform a little act to kindness. If Gandalf says it keeps the darkness at bay, then I think it’s worth a try.

I’ve been trying out other new inputs as well.  I go through phases where I listen to music while I’m writing.  Other times I need it quiet.  Right now is definitely a music kinda mood for me. 

The big trends for me right now are epic sounding instrumental stuff like the Mad Max Fury Road soundtrack, Archangel by Two Steps from Hell, the Darkest Dungeon soundtrack, and many others.  I will also admit that I’m fond of some non-screamy metal these days.  I’ve been digging some classic Iron Maiden and another band I’ll specifically call out in recommendation corner below.

If you have any epic instrumental music that you like and want to recommend, feel free to let me know.
New Players of the Game Release
The Brigands: The Favor is now available on Kindle for just 99 cents.  The novella focuses on ViRauni.   You can’t go home again, especially when it’s infested by a brain-hacked horde. Get it now.
Recommendation Corner
Theater of Dimensions by Xandria

I’ll preface this with the admission that metal is not for everyone.  This German group transcends the genre in my reckoning.  The leader singer channels powerful operatic melodies akin to Tarja, with a lot of cool riffs and drums from the rest of the band.  Wikipedia says that the band is inactive after the lead singer left the group.  If the band is done, then they left on literal and figurative a high note.

Thin Air by Richard K Morgan

I do enjoy dystopian cyber punk when it’s done right.  This novel definitely falls in that category.  Hakan Veil is an enhanced human enforcer called an Over Rider who is stuck in the urban sprawl of the Mars colony.  He gets drafted by a local cop to babysit a colonial auditor, and conflicting agendas from multiple sources quickly raise the stakes.  Colin Mace reads the audio book version with world-weary grit.  Very compelling stuff.
That’s all for this time.

Stay smart.  Stay safe.

Jim

Click here to view the original format.