C. Gockel's Blog, page 144

ibringthefireodin:

ibringthefireodin:

In the Balance - An I Bring the Fire Novella 
NOW AVAILABLE ON ITUNES

Called into ADUO’s offices to identify a magical artifact, Amy is taken on a journey beyond the universe itself. She comes face to face with the good and the bad of the forces of order and chaos, and has to chose for herself which of many imperfect paths to take.

The fate of the Nine Realms is in the balance. This time, it’s in Amy’s hands.

An I Bring the Fire novella that takes place after Chaos.

Download it Now From iTunes>

(Also available at Smashwords & Amazon)

Now available at Barnes & Noble too!

Also available for Sony Reader (and damn, I need to update my sidebar.)

vaneluzimoura:

By Jane Friedman:

Most new authors, upon securing a book contract or planning a book launch, are advised they need to establish a Twitter account, a Facebook page, or [list social media channel here]. Why? To market their book, of course.

This presents an immediate dilemma: If the author is not already active on these channels, of her own interest and volition, she now has the mindset of using these tools to “market”—and the new author may have no idea what that means beyond telling people to like their page or follow them.

No one I know enjoys being a marketer on social media, not any more than people want to be marketed to. It poisons the experience, for everyone.

You might respond: Yeah, tell us something we don’t know, right?

Yet authors continue to use social media—and their online networks—as blunt instruments, posting things that beg people to pay attention and become a buyer or follower. Unfortunately, asking for such attention on a social media network is likely to ensure you won’t be getting any, except for those who already adore you or feel obligated to support you.

Here’s the much better alternative to begging: […]

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The name of the man in the upper left in this post is Sendhil Ramamurthy. He’s from Chicago, and a bit of a clown…But sadly a little too old for the role I’ve got in mind for him. Sigh.

He’s too old! He’s 39, and Bohdi is in his twenties…But yeah, he is a very attractive man. Wish I could find some pictures of him when he was just starting out, and maybe a little wirier and babyfaced.

I’ve looked for stars from India—Sendhil is actually American. In India they seem to like leading men to have Thoresque physiques…which is definitely not Bohdi.

(Actually, the model for Bohdi is an Indian college student I used to see  walking by the University of Chicago—but saying, “Hey, can I have your picture to post on my blog” seemed a little creeperish. Even if he always smiled at my children and me).

olafski:

My take on the king god of Norse mythology. Got a little tired of seeing depictions of him as this old guy with a short white beard and golden armour. In the myths, Odin spent a great deal of his life travelling the world to learn and gain knowledge. The antlers were added because I think an ancient god should be a bit more “primal” than the stories made up by men in the viking age.

This is the design that will be used in a comic I am planning to make called The Eye of Odin.

[X]

Odin accepted the antlers from baby Baldur with good grace. When Loki offered him the glowing red nose however, he said no. 

Why yes, it’s in print! I’ll be sponsoring a Goodreads giveaway of an autographed copy in a few days, but if you know anyone who exclusively reads print it’s on Amazon and eligible for Amazon Prime right now.

I’ve looked into Giveaways here, but they’re only allowed for U.S. citizens and apparently you’re not allowed to trade likes/reblogs/or follows for entry (?!) (The rules.)

If you’re not familiar I Bring the Fire, it’s a Loki story with a heavier mythological slant than Marvel—but with dinosaurs. Currently, it has over sixty 5 star reviews at Amazon. You can download the free ebook at Amazon, B&N,, Apple, and Smashwords.

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sixthrock:

lavastormsw:

bolinsboo:

razzledazzy:

The photo above is the closest humanity has ever come to creating Medusa. 

If you were to look at this, you would die instantly. End of story.

The image is of a reactor core lava formation in the basement of the Chernobyl nuclear plant. It’s called the Elephant’s Foot and weighs hundreds of tons, but is only a couple meters across.

Oh, and regarding the Medusa thing? This picture was taken through a mirror around the corner of the hallway. Because the wheeled camera they sent up to take pictures of it was destroyed by the radiation. 

I wonder if they could get pictures in colour now or maybe get an accurate heat reading off of that thing, if it’s still all there.

It’s crazy to think that something can be that strong that it would kill you by just looking at it. Though it’s understandable. I’d like a heat reading off of it.

Oh my god

I have such a science boner right now

Do you know how fucking dense that must be to weigh hundreds of tons?

Pretty fucking dense.

Wow.

I found this video for anyone who wants to see a video of the thing (although it’s not the best quality). This thing is a serious monster. I have a little trouble deciphering this Wikipedia article, but from what I gather, this thing weighs 1,200 tons (2,400,000 pounds - a number I cannot even begin to fathom) and is only losing about 22 pounds of uranium per year. It resists its environment and if the shelter is improved, that loss is expected to drop.

Holy shit.

I am simply astounded by the sheer power and properties of radiation and nuclear power plants. This is seriously scary stuff. Not to mention its effects on humans. i find deformed humans very, very unnerving. The mutations that radiation cause are the worst, in my opinion, than say, genetic mutations. This video shows some of the mutations from the Chernobyl meltdown (warning: these are very disturbing images, so view at your own risk).

Here’s another website with a collection of Chernobyl pictures, mostly of the building itself (no mutation pictures, so unless you’re upset by major destruction, this is a really cool look-through). This is my favorite picture because it really shows the dripping of the radioactive fuel/debris lava out of the valve. I just find it so absolutely terrifying that something like this could ever happen. Radiation is seriously scary stuff. What I want to know is how they took that picture.

Oh holy shit this is terrifying. The color just makes it worse. It’s like a volcano erupted indoors. Which is probably a pretty accurate analogy, plus tons of radiation to go with it. “”Corium” is only formed during a reactor meltdown as a product of the solid fuel fissioning uncontrollably. This super-hot fuel turns into a liquid and melts its way through steel, concrete, and whatever else that might be in contact with it. So it’s a mixture of fuel and various building materials,” the admin says in the comments.

This article says that Chernobyl will stay radioactive for 100,000 years.

Radiation is just unfathomably scary stuff.

Daaaaamn.

All of this is just so incredibly terrifying and amazing at the same time. Just to think of the things humans are capable of now, and all the various horrible ways everything could go very very wrong if we’re too careless for just a second…

okay yeah fine I didn’t need to sleep tonight anyway ;_;

John this is for you.

My favorite new term is science boner.

More than tangentially related to I Bring the Fire Part IV

At this point, with print on demand, physical books aren’t more expensive for authors or publishers to produce than ebooks (excepting the price for more costly cover art for print versions). However, paperback books are more expensive for consumers to buy. Also, ebooks offer consumers convenience that paperbacks can’t match. I read ebooks in my kids bedroom at night when I put them to sleep. My friends read ebooks when they commute on the bus or train. If the ebook you’re reading disappoints it is easy to download another from the cloud in minutes. It’s important to note that you don’t even really need to purchase a dedicated device for ebooks; Amazon and Barnes & Noble have free readers for cell phones and tablets.

Has this changed publication issues for authors? Yes, with the start-up costs for publishing being as low as $0, many more authors are skipping the traditional route and jumping in head first—whether they are ready or not.

Which brings me to the quality issue of your question. I think that ebooks have increased the variety and quality of books at both ends of the spectrum. On the one hand, there are a lot of books with authors who break the most basic of writing conventions—switching multiple POV within one paragraph is not uncommon! On the other hand, you get niche authors who could never make it in the traditional publishing world. When it came to publish I Bring the Fire I didn’t even try to go traditional. It isn’t the traditional paranormal romance, it has some heavy sci-fi elements, and along with magic it also has dinosaurs (they’ll be important in the final installment of the series, promise!)

Because ebooks cost so little, consumers are willing to take a shot on unknowns like me. So far my reviews have been good, and I’m building a loyal fanbase (the hardest part of self-publishing is getting name recognition). I think within a few years time I might actually be able to make writing my main source of income.

At this point, with print on demand, physical books aren’t more expensive for authors or publishers to produce than ebooks (excepting the price for more costly cover art for print versions). However, paperback books are more expensive for consumers to buy. Also, ebooks offer consumers convenience that paperbacks can’t match. I read ebooks in my kids bedroom at night when I put them to sleep. My friends read ebooks when they commute on the bus or train. If the ebook you’re reading disappoints it is easy to download another from the cloud in minutes. It’s important to note that you don’t even really need to purchase a dedicated device for ebooks; Amazon and Barnes & Noble have free readers for cell phones and tablets.

Has this changed publication issues for authors? Yes, with the start-up costs for publishing being as low as $0, many more authors are skipping the traditional route and jumping in head first—whether they are ready or not.

Which brings me to the quality issue of your question. I think that ebooks have increased the variety and quality of books at both ends of the spectrum. On the one hand, there are a lot of books with authors who break the most basic of writing conventions—switching multiple POV within one paragraph is not uncommon! On the other hand, you get niche authors who could never make it in the traditional publishing world. When it came to publish I Bring the Fire I didn’t even try to go traditional. It isn’t the traditional paranormal romance, it has some heavy sci-fi elements, and along with magic it also has dinosaurs (they’ll be important in the final installment of the series, promise!)

Because ebooks cost so little, consumers are willing to take a shot on unknowns like me. So far my reviews have been good, and I’m building a loyal fanbase (the hardest part of self-publishing is getting name recognition). I think within a few years time I might actually be able to make writing my main source of income.

At this point, with print on demand, physical books aren’t more expensive for authors or publishers to produce than ebooks (excepting the price for more costly cover art for print versions). However, paperback books are more expensive for consumers to buy. Also, ebooks offer consumers convenience that paperbacks can’t match. I read ebooks in my kids bedroom at night when I put them to sleep. My friends read ebooks when they commute on the bus or train. If the ebook you’re reading disappoints it is easy to download another from the cloud in minutes. It’s important to note that you don’t even really need to purchase a dedicated device for ebooks; Amazon and Barnes & Noble have free readers for cell phones and tablets.

Has this changed publication issues for authors? Yes, with the start-up costs for publishing being as low as $0, many more authors are skipping the traditional route and jumping in head first—whether they are ready or not.

Which brings me to the quality issue of your question. I think that ebooks have increased the variety and quality of books at both ends of the spectrum. On the one hand, there are a lot of books with authors who break the most basic of writing conventions—switching multiple POV within one paragraph is not uncommon! On the other hand, you get niche authors who could never make it in the traditional publishing world. When it came to publish I Bring the Fire I didn’t even try to go traditional. It isn’t the traditional paranormal romance, it has some heavy sci-fi elements, and along with magic it also has dinosaurs (they’ll be important in the final installment of the series, promise!)

Because ebooks cost so little, consumers are willing to take a shot on unknowns like me. So far my reviews have been good, and I’m building a loyal fanbase (the hardest part of self-publishing is getting name recognition). I think within a few years time I might actually be able to make writing my main source of income.

At this point, with print on demand, physical books aren’t more expensive for authors or publishers to produce than ebooks (excepting the price for more costly cover art for print versions). However, paperback books are more expensive for consumers to buy. Also, ebooks offer consumers convenience that paperbacks can’t match. I read ebooks in my kids bedroom at night when I put them to sleep. My friends read ebooks when they commute on the bus or train. If the ebook you’re reading disappoints it is easy to download another from the cloud in minutes. It’s important to note that you don’t even really need to purchase a dedicated device for ebooks; Amazon and Barnes & Noble have free readers for cell phones and tablets.

Has this changed publication issues for authors? Yes, with the start-up costs for publishing being as low as $0, many more authors are skipping the traditional route and jumping in head first—whether they are ready or not.

Which brings me to the quality issue of your question. I think that ebooks have increased the variety and quality of books at both ends of the spectrum. On the one hand, there are a lot of books with authors who break the most basic of writing conventions—switching multiple POV within one paragraph is not uncommon! On the other hand, you get niche authors who could never make it in the traditional publishing world. When it came to publish I Bring the Fire I didn’t even try to go traditional. It isn’t the traditional paranormal romance, it has some heavy sci-fi elements, and along with magic it also has dinosaurs (they’ll be important in the final installment of the series, promise!)

Because ebooks cost so little, consumers are willing to take a shot on unknowns like me. So far my reviews have been good, and I’m building a loyal fanbase (the hardest part of self-publishing is getting name recognition). I think within a few years time I might actually be able to make writing my main source of income.