Drawing with Words

<This is awesome.>

So... this is a trial.   I'm not writing about the authors, and this is a start.  I'm going to add them as I do research.   Plus, I will link to Amazon and Barnes and Noble; if someone isn't on the list, it's because I haven't done research, or read samples yet.  

It will not be based on my likes, however.   It will be based on if the writing is competent and meets a bare minimum of being coherent.   If they've attacked and continue to attack reviewers, I will not add them to this list. 

If you have questions about why an author is missing, feel free to comment.   I'll research and put them on or not.   If you find something I missed about an author attacking, let me know and I'll take them off the list. 

Here we go: 

1. Edward Lorn.   Or E. 

http://www.amazon.com/Edward-Lorn/e/B0073M9ILU

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/edward-lorn?store=ebook&keyword=edward+lorn

http://edwardlorn.booklikes.com

2. Linda Hilton

http://www.amazon.com/Linda-Hilton/e/B003ZO69O4

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/linda-hilton?store=ebook&keyword=linda+hilton

http://lindahilton.booklikes.com

3. Marie Hall

http://www.amazon.com/Marie-Hall/e/B008J4SSIU/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/marie-hall?store=ebook&keyword=marie+hall

4. T.L. Haddix

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=ntt_athr_dp_sr_2?_encoding=UTF8&field-author=T.%20L.%20Haddix&search-alias=digital-text

5. Andrew Buckley

http://www.amazon.com/Andrew-Buckley/e/B00AIS6T2W

6. Nenia Campbell

http://www.amazon.com/Nenia-Campbell/e/B00AWVRKMS/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

7. Derrolyn Anderson 

http://www.amazon.com/Moon-Tide-Marinas-Tales-ebook/dp/B004UC5RVG/ref=la_B004ULHF62_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1397321078&sr=1-1

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/derrolyn-anderson?keyword=derrolyn+anderson&store=ebook

8. R.S. Carter

http://www.amazon.com/R.S.-Carter/e/B007PMML4E/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

9. H.P. Mallory 

http://www.amazon.com/H.P.-Mallory/e/B003VI5C60

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/hp-mallory?store=ebook&keyword=hp+mallory

10. Charlotte E. English 

http://www.amazon.com/Charlotte-E.-English/e/B005LN6JNS

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/charlotte-e-english?store=ebook&keyword=charlotte+e+english

11. Samantha Young

http://www.amazon.com/Samantha-Young/e/B004W7FT94/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/samantha-young?store=ebook&keyword=samantha+young

12. Kate Danley 

http://www.amazon.com/Kate-Danley/e/B004HXIXGY/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/kate-danley?store=ebook&keyword=kate+danley

13. Dannika Dark

http://www.amazon.com/Dannika-Dark/e/B005LXWZWM/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/dannika-dark?store=ebook&keyword=dannika+dark

14. Gemma Halliday 

http://www.amazon.com/Gemma-Halliday/e/B001IGOLXC

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/gemma-halliday?store=ebook&keyword=gemma+halliday

15. Karinna Halle

http://www.amazon.com/Karina-Halle/e/B0050KE63C/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/karina-halle?store=ebook&keyword=karina+halle

16.  L.M. Ironside

http://www.amazon.com/L.-M.-Ironside/e/B00BS3C9J8/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/l-m-ironside?store=ebook&keyword=l.m.+ironside

17. Jordan L. Hawk

http://www.amazon.com/Jordan-L.-Hawk/e/B00A2336YC

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/jordan-hawk?store=ebook&keyword=jordan+hawk

18. Julio-Alexi Genao

http://jgenao.wordpress.com

I can't find a list of his writing in one place.   If anyone has one, let me know and I'll link it here.

19.Mallory Kellog

http://www.amazon.com/Mallory-Kellogg/e/B00J7INXXW

20. Mark Matthews

http://www.amazon.com/Mark-Matthews/e/B0058HDKC0/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/mark-matthews?store=ebook&keyword=mark+matthews

21. Dani Alexnader

http://www.amazon.com/Dani-Alexander/e/B00745MGMY/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/dani-alexander-?store=ebook&keyword=dani+alexander+

22. Rose Summers

http://rosepetals1984.booklikes.com

I can't find Rose either on Kindle or Nook since she doesn't have anything out that I can see.   If I'm wrong, please correct me.   Also, she does have excerpts and talks about what she's working on on her BL.   I know I wouldn't say anything about authors, but she's a friend of mine, and I'm eagerly looking forward to her cyberpunk novel since she said there's a character relevant to me in that one!

23. Patricia Reding

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=ntt_athr_dp_sr_pop_1?_encoding=UTF8&field-author=Patricia%20Reding&search-alias=books

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/patricia-reding?store=ebook&keyword=patricia+reding

24. Olga Godim

http://www.amazon.com/Squirrel-Magic-stories-Olga-Godim-ebook/dp/B00JNFG750/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1397392730&sr=1-1&keywords=olga+godim

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/olga-godim?store=ebook&keyword=olga+godim

25. Rick Gualteri

http://www.amazon.com/Rick-Gualtieri/e/B00596NITU

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/rick-gualteri?keyword=rick+gualteri&store=ebook

26. *possibly your favorite author*

January 

Aloha from Hell

Ocean at the End of the Lane

Specter: A Zoe Martinique Investigation

Double Dead

Jack and Jill

February  5 Down

Hero

Night Film

March 7 Down

The Devil Said Bang

The Shinning

Doctor Sleep

Two Steps from Hell

April 11 Down

Spellwright

Emperor's Edge

Blackbirds

Brain Eater Jones

Shadow Ops:Breach Zone

The Goblin Market

I've bent over backward trying to find a topic today, but I feel as if I'm barking up the wrong tree. Racing against the clock, I finally found a post I don't want to eighty-six. I know you're foaming at the mouth, but bear with me while I get down to brass tacks. I'm working the graveyard shift on multiple projects and not one of them are close to being in the bag. I think I've bitten off more than I can chew. Sometimes I want to pass the buck, I do, but it makes me sick as a dog when I consider finding a scapegoat for my problems. Am I wagging the dog? Perhaps. Without a doubt, I'm on the fence. Alas, a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush, so I've buckled down to get myself off the hook. Off the record, I'm on pins and needles over here. Make no bones about it, I'm not playing with a full deck. So, before I get too long in the tooth, I shall level the playing field. If idle hands are the devil's playthings, it would serve you well to remember that it takes two to tango. If it's not one thing, it's another, right?

~DISCLAIMER~

~Grammar is my weak point. All of my A to Z challenge post will need editing. I am aware of this. I will try my best to clean them up, and learn from each, but don’t expect anything close to perfection. I’m putting out too many of these this month to ask people to spend time editing. Thanks for understanding. ~

This is a topic near and dear to my heart. I started drawing when I was a wee lad in first grade. It start off as simple stick figure drawings. Those evolved into living breathing stick figure battles with square tanks and triangle planes. Before long I was drawing the stuff I saw in comic books. I can’t say that I was great, not ever, but I was good. I had raw talent. Unfortunately talent alone is not enough. I didn’t want to put in the work to turn talent into skill. I still doodled every now and then, up until I was in my mid twenties. I found myself stationed at a reserve unit in the northern suburbs of Chicago. The Art institute has two campuses in the Chicago area. I was in the right place, with an employer that had a decent tuition assistance program. I enrolled for a BA in Multimedia and Animation. Then 9/11 happened.

My studies were interrupted because Saddam Hussein had “weapons of mass destruction.” Over a four year period, I deployed twice, and managed to get two years of higher education. Then my time was up. I was done with being an active duty Marine. I was honorably discharged and tried going back to school. Turns out the G.I. Bill by its self was not enough to cover my tuition. The security job I had didn’t pay enough to make up for the difference. I had to drop out.

So that brings us to the present. I still found myself drawing when the mood struck me. But more important I figured out that telling stories was more important to me than drawing. So I write. But now, I find myself in a position where I can use my mediocre skills to produce a webcomic. Turns out that the artwork for a webcomic doesn’t have to be all that great. I’ve seen some that look horrible. I’ve also seen some that look spectacular. Even seen a few that went from being mediocre to fabulous. So I have started the character designs and brainstorming. I’ve even included a pic I just finished today.

I haven’t done anything with Photoshop for a long time. I was surprised by what I was able to produce. I have a lot of practice ahead of me to get anywhere near good with photoshop, but I am well on my way.

A to Z post 4, D.

Thanks again for stopping by.

I read this book and thoroughly enjoyed it. 

~Re-blogged from Edward Lorn~

For the two people out there that do not have a copy of my debut novel, BAY'S END, it is currently free for the next couple of days. Click on the cover to get your copy from Amazon.com today!

If you're so inclined, share away. Thanks!

CRAP

~DISCLAIMER~

~Grammar is my weak point. All of my A to Z challenge post will need editing. I am aware of this. I will try my best to clean them up, and learn from each, but don’t expect anything close to perfection. I’m putting out too many of these this month to ask people to spend time editing. Thanks for understanding. ~

Well, time is up and I have not figured out a topic starting with the letter, “C.” So I’m just going to freestyle this joint.

While I’m on the subject of crap, why not bring up the crap that makes me want to pluck out my eyeballs and fling them like monkey poo. Well, maybe I shouldn’t. Doing so would take me into religion and politics. No one wants to hear, or read about my views on those touchy subjects.

So instead I’m going to talk about the crap in the mind. I mean the dark useless stuff that fits between your memories, and cognitive functions. The crap I’m referring to is the stuff self doubt and loathing are made of. I bring this up because I had something, which I will not be going into, happen recently that has effected me more than I knew. I don’t think I’ve ever experienced depression, or allowed the small stuff to get to me, until that event. My wife would say that nothing gets to me, and I am too laid back. Almost to the point of not caring, which isn’t the case. I feel if it’s not going to kill me it can’t be that bad. Life is too short after all.

But now, right this moment, I’m not feeling like my normal indifferent self. The event burst open some mental dams. The flood of dark crap has hit me hard. The thing to suffer the most, has been my writing. That crap full of self doubt and loathing is doing exactly what it does. It’s hard to start writing, or continue writing a story, when looking at the page reminds me of just how good I am not. I mean, why would anyone want to read my shit?

Let me stop you here. I’m not looking for pity. I’m just getting out something that needs to be aired. I hope doing so will free me of some of this crap that has crippled me.

I did mention that the crap was not only full of self doubt, but loathing as well. Let’s face it. At one point or another were going to do something stupid. Were human after all, and that’s just a part of what makes us human. Were going to do something that we might regret, if not for the rest of our lives then maybe for a long time. Either way, the crap is still there, slowly eating away at us. Infecting more of that empty space in our heads. We build walls, emotional barriers in our Psyche to hide that stuff. A way to protect us from ourselves. The walls are a lie. Turning our backs on the worst part of our selves doesn’t make it go away. It gives the crap a chance to multiply and devise it’s own machinations while we turn a blind eye.

This is the part where I’m supposed to tell you how to get over it. Where to find the courage and strength to face an aspect of yourself you’ve hidden from. But I can’t. I’m sill looking for those myself. This is my first step to cleansing the crap. I’m admitting, and accepting the crap. Now I have o figure out where I go from here.

I realize this maybe to TMI, but fuck it. That is the power of the Internet. Any one can pour their heart out to perfect strangers and never have to worry about looking them in the eye. That could be both the best and worst part of it. Oh well. Thanks for stopping by and have a good day.

A to Z challenge post 3, C.

Coming soon, CRUELTY: Episode Five, by Edward Lorn

IN THE EXPLOSIVE MID-SEASON FINALE…

Nell Morgan, Trooper Natalie Holden, and State Investigator Frank Markum find the fragile thread of reality unspooling.

Things go real bad, real quick as it becomes painfully obvious to Twon and Ollie that escaping Kerr County Medical Center unscathed will be a task far more difficult than they could have imagined.

Still reeling from his run-in with Forgiveness, Sheriff Randy Miser is called to a hostage situation in progress. Can this day get any worse?

With Forgiveness out about town, temptation draws Cruelty out of hiding.

So many playthings. So little time.

Anime

I started watching Anime long before I knew what it was. My earliest memories are of me waking up, sliding to the edge of my modest bed, and flipping on my small black and white T.V.. For reasons I absolutely do not know, the local channels not only played the usual gambit of Loony Tunes and the like, but also Japanese cartoons. At the time I had no clue that they were Japanese as they were all English dubs.

While I found the same joy as every one else in a bully rabbit picking on a hunter with down-syndrome, they just were fulfilling. Shows like, Grandizer, and Force Five satisfied my need for action and adventure. What did I get from those shows? Heroes putting it all on the line for a cause far bigger than themselves. It was exciting and dangerous combined with giant robots and kick-ass space ships. For this, I woke up early everyday to get my next fix.

When I was approximately twelve, I found a feature length Anime show that changed my perception of cartoons. Up until that point I was a happy passenger on the, “cartoons are for kids,” bandwagon. I was a kid after all. This movie, Space Station Dallos(that’s pronounced with a hard O sound), as it was titled, was a sci-fi movie in space with some very adult themes. By which I mean politics and commentary on the human condition. I know some people tend to think tentacles and boobs when anyone mentions the words adult and Anime, but most of the time that is not the case. For the first time I saw a cartoon character die and it had a real emotional impact on me. I was in a position where I could not only empathize with the heroes, but also with the bad guys. Both sides had people fighting for what they believed in, and made good arguments for their cause. I was enthralled, it was like watching the world’s worst car wreck, and there was no way in hell I was going to look away.

The small mom and pop video rental place a block from my house is where I found Space Station Dallos. They had a small collection of Anime films and shows, probably just ordered randomly from a catalog. I found my self in that section often. For the first time I began to read the copy on the back of the VHS box to see what the movie or show was about. I wanted more intrigue, and meaningful violence. Sure I still enjoyed the action adventure shows with little to no philosophical value, and even the American toons that were just kinda stupid. I was still a kid after all.

Not till I was in Jr. High that I came to learn the cartoons I really loved were not made in the U.S. In fact, cartoons were looked down upon by adults and I would probably never see cartoons of that caliber that were home grown. Some of that bias still holds true today. While he U.S. has come a long way in taking cartoons seriously as a multi-generational genre we still come no where close to Japan. This saddens me. Cartoons are a tool for story telling that is underutilized, and I would like to see that change.

I just found an option to allow for automatic updates of books on my kindle. To be more exact, under the Manage Your Devices, tab at the Amazon site. This means when books are updated, spelling errors, or format issues fixed, the changes are sent to my device. It's about damn time.

Thought you might like to know.

January

Aloha from Hell

Ocean at the End of the Lane

Specter: A Zoe Martinique Investigation

Double Dead

Jack and Jill

February

Hero

Night Film

March

The Devil Said Bang

The Shinning

Doctor Sleep

Spellwright

Kill City Blues

Off Season

Crimes against Magic

April

Two Steps from Hell

Emperor's Edge

Blackbirds

Brain Eater Jones

Shadow Ops:Breach Zone

The Goblin Market

After realizing how difficult it is to find new blogs to follow, I decided to do a Follow Tuesday Shout Out on my blog every single Tuesday. 

I will randomly pick 3 active bloggers from my follower list and post their blog name with a link as well as their blog description. If even one person connects with someone new due to my shout outs, it will all be worth of my time (and oh yeah, I can post Pinhead's pictures while at it, lucky me). 

Here we go:

Stacia in Progress: http://stacia.booklikes.com/

"Sparkling water fanatic. Lover of random crap. Goodreads member curious to see if the grass really is greener on the other side."

Hadeer's Ranting: http://hadeer.booklikes.com/

"Awkward, shy, weird girl with strange, impulsive actions that makes me look ridiculous. Good thing i don't care, because living true to yourself is more important than fitting with the crowd."

Book Cottage: http://jolene.booklikes.com/

"My Little Kitty Cave"

Aloha from Hell by Richard Kadrey

In the interest of full disclosure, let me start by saying I love the Hades out of Sandman Slim. I just finished reading the fourth book in the series so I have decided to give a little sample of how the first three affected me before talking about the latest one I read.

Book 1: Sandman Slim

Oh damn, this is good! Wait… is this present tense? Oh damn, it is, but it’s sooooo good. Screw it, read on.

Book 2: Kill the Dead

Oh no not zombies. Really? Huh? Did that zombie just talk? Can’t stop reading….

Book 3: Aloha from Hell

OMG she’s back! OMG she’s back! OMG she’s back! What the What? Did Sandman Slim just say what I thought he said? Yup, Sandman Slim is officially my mutha-fuckin Hero!

Book 4: Devil Said Bang

Damn! It just keeps on going. How the heck does he do it? I almost expect my interest in this series to start to wane by now, but no. Richard Kadrey just keeps pulling me back in.

Sandman Slim, or Stark as he prefers to be addressed, is not a nice guy. Not to say he’s evil, because he’s not. From day one Stark has been dealt a shitty hand and the crap cards just keep coming. Stark makes decisions that are not always the nicest or politically correct… Who am I kidding, he’s a fucking dick. That’s part of his charm. He does the right thing for the sake of doing it, but he does it his way. If you have a problem with that, you can go fuck yourself as far as he is concerned. This, in my opinion, is one of the things that make him a good character. Add on the fact that the author has done a stellar job of writing this book in present tense, and just writing it period, and you have a book well worth your time. Assuming you don’t have a problem with the word fuck. If you don’t like the word fuck, don’t fucking read it.

Double Dead, by Chuck Wendig

This book is full of interesting concepts and possibilities. I just wish the execution was better.

The protagonist of this story is a vampire that calls himself Coburn. Coburn wakes up after a long slumber to find the world in the grip of a zombie apocalypse. I cared so much for Coburn that I couldn’t care less what happened after that. Not to say there isn’t some character development during the story, because there is, he’s just such a plain Jane boring character. I did read the book from start to finish, guess I like torturing myself, but I don’t recommend you do the same. With that, I end this review.

January 5 read/5 total

Aloha from Hell

Ocean at the End of the Lane

Specter: A Zoe Martinique Investigation

Double Dead

Jack and Jill

February 2 read/7 total

Hero

Night Film

March

The Devil Said Bang

The Shinning

Doctor Sleep

Spellwright

Kill City Blues

April

Two Steps from Hell

Emperor's Edge

Blackbirds

Brain Eater Jones

Shadow Ops:Breach Zone

The Goblin Market

I'm really digging this book. That King guy should think about making this a career.

Come give some author love to the fabulous Edward Lorn, who is the spotlight on the blog today!

In my opinion? His interview questions totally rock. I'm pretty sure he wins for best interview so far :).

Check it out.