So, Varan was on his way in The Eonwyl's ship... ------- Chapter 2 Varan: "You're good at that." I glanced toward my feet and a little outward – carefully, to keep from bashing my head against the access hatch – to see the Eönwyl looking up at me. "I've seen a fair amount of action out on the border, and a lot of it before I was commanding. Replacing shield coils and crystal matrices gets to be pretty much a habit." That won a quick, bright smile from her. "A duty, but one that a lot of people aren't [ Continue reading... ]
Demons of the Past: REVOLUTION Chapter 1
August 29, 2018 By 2 Comments
We begin snippeting Demons of the Past: Revolution now, as its publication is now approaching (an exact date isn't set, but it's coming soon). Varan had escaped Shagrath and his creepy allies with The Eonwyl, but that was only the beginning... Demons of the Past: REVOLUTION By Ryk E. Spoor Section One: The Demon-Haunted Stars Chapter 1 Taelin: He slammed his travel case down on the table. "It's too sinking late to argue it, Trey! We arranged that meeting of the Greater Families a year ago in Osea, and that's not getting [ Continue reading... ]
Just For Fun: What I Have Planned
July 26, 2018 By 3 Comments
A version of this column was one of my All-Patron rewards well over a year ago; I thought it might be of interest here. Minor edits were done for things that have changed since that time. Stories I Have Planned I have a lot of novels in various stages of planning, ranging from essentially finished/in progress to "I've sketched out the idea". This will cover the range – though it doesn't in any way cover *ALL* the ideas I'm working on. Does NOT include things I have contracted with Baen as collaborations with Eric Flint. If you feel inclined, [ Continue reading... ]
On My Shelves: The Martian
May 1, 2018 By 2 Comments
The Martian by Andy Weir almost managed to lose me in the first few pages. Now, that's not so bad as it sounds. As an author who's written a hard-SF novel focused on Mars (Boundary), I came to The Martian with a terrible handicap: I know a lot more about this than probably 99.9% of readers. And one thing that I know very well – that is, in fact, made explicitly clear in one of the scenes of Boundary, in which our intrepid adventurers end up going through a Martian tornado/dust devil which happens to be going at about 180km/hr, faster than [ Continue reading... ]
On My Shelves: The Liaden Universe 1: Agents and Pilots and Trees, Oh My!
April 17, 2018 By 1 Comment
Sharon Lee and Steve Miller have been writing in the Liaden universe for a long time – since 1988, in fact. The series almost died at three books, but was revived by the internet – apparently on rec.arts.sf.written to begin with – demanding more. Possibly it's the first example of such a phenomenon; if not, it's certainly one of the first. I've heard of Liaden, therefore, for a long time. I've even been acquainted with the authors for a fair number of years (as Steve and Sharon both frequent conventions in my general area). But for one [ Continue reading... ]
French Roast Apocalypse: Chapter 19
April 10, 2018 By 1 Comment
We learned a bit more about why the Blackwells are hated... in this chapter, we get to meet another one... ----- Chapter 19. New York City, 1980 “Congratulations, Dyl, you passed your second history exam,” Tina said, leaning against the Muffin House display case. “There actually is a brain in that head of yours.” She smiled and tapped her temple with a thin finger. In her other hand, she held out the purple-dittoed test sheet. A red-ink "85%" was circled at the top. On the table behind her was a stack of books and a binder. For [ Continue reading... ]
Demons of the Past:Revelation, Chapter 30
April 9, 2018 By 9 Comments
And we conclude our snippets of this volume of Demons with an extremely important chapter! ----- Chapter 30. Varan: Torline's Swords, it's been a long day. I thought. Now I get to rest. I headed wearily for my cabin. My Captain's cabin. That did manage to bring a faint smile to my lips still. Other things… I was still awfully conflicted. The depression at my loss wasn't going to go any time soon, that was for sure. I wondered if I'd managed to hide that from Taelin. It wasn't something I could talk about, so I had to hope so. [ Continue reading... ]
Demons of the Past:Revolution, Chapter 29
April 6, 2018 By Leave a Comment
Something had gone wrong with Sasham... ------ Chapter 29. Shagrath: Restraint. Restraint. Patience. Are these not the lessons I have learned over the years of my penance? Do not let them be lost. Shagrath repeated this to himself several times until he was sure he could maintain control. Such things were so contrary to his people's nature. Yet there was no choice. So much had been lost before due to impulsive actions. That was why he was still here, with these creatures, following their actions and mimicking their behaviors. He [ Continue reading... ]
French Roast Apocalypse: Chapter 18
April 5, 2018 By Leave a Comment
Another trip back in time, and we see some other characters when they were younger... and learn just how nasty Mr. Blackwell was.... ----- Chapter 18. New York City, 1980 Anna's Muffin Shop was a small shop, with a large display case filled with many different kinds of muffins ranging from corn to chocolate as well as cupcakes and cookies. The walls were painted pink as a background for black silhouette figures that danced across the wall, figures with finger-wave hair and zoot suits. Apparently the shop had started [ Continue reading... ]
Demons of the Past: Revelation, Chapter 28
April 4, 2018 By Leave a Comment
So Shagrath had said there was a test for Varan... ------ Chapter 28. Varan: I focused on the room beyond and muttered a tired curse. Like many of them the closer I got to the center, this area had a psi-damper. I'd found I could still function in rooms with a standard damper before, in my earlier training, but it was like fighting underwater, or in extra-heavy gravity; you just had a lot less to devote to the cause. Worse, the screens were more than sufficient to scramble even my best attempts to remote-view or listen. As [ Continue reading... ]
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