A to Z Challenge
– Cult Classics – K
Movies-Music-Sci-fi Book-Bloggers-Dragon Term
Movie –
This quirky 2004 Chinese film mixes action, comedy, and martial arts, and it won numerous awards.
Music –
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The band’s most successful album made them an FM staple and was certified Quadruple Platinum. Its biggest hit was the iconic Dust in the Wind.
One of the finest from the band, this concept album features Christian themes and fan favorite song, Over My Head.
Science Fiction Book –
Published in 1979, her bestselling book is a cross between science fiction and slave narrative, and it has been used in many college courses over the years.
Bloggers –
Enjoy flash poetry and beautiful pictures? Like shadows and cats? Then you need to follow this delightful lady from the West Coast!
Want to know how a writer juggles her craft, a husband, and five little boys? Want some fun and an insight to ‘This Writer Mom?’ Then follow the beautiful and fun Kristen!
Dragon of the Stars Term –
Kargrandes
The million dollar question – What Are the Kargrandes? Natives of the planet Kavil, they play a huge role in the story. These creatures have unique abilities, one of which could be both a power source and a weapon. What else can they do? That would be a spoiler! You’ll have to read to find out.
Dragon of the Stars is out now!
Check out the site What Are the Kargrandes? for clues as to how they tie into the story.
Science Fiction Cons
My publisher has been doing promotional work with several upcoming science fiction cons, including ads in program books and sponsorship. If you attend any of the following cons, you can score bookmarks and possibly some of my books:
RavenCon - Richmond, VA - April 24-26, 2015
Treklanta - Atlanta, GA – April 24-26, 2015
OASIS - Orlando, FL – May 1-3, 2015
MobiCon - Mobile, AL – May 22-24, 2015
BaltiCon - Hunt Valley, MD – May 22-25, 2015
ConCarolinas - Concord, NC – May 29-31, 2015
Scavenger Hunt Answers and Winner!
First, where was Mini-Alex in each photo?
Melissa Maygrove - in the bathtub.
Eva Solar - with one of my guitars.
Father Dragon Al - hanging with friends in a chair.
Suzanne Furness - in the fridge’s vegetable bin.
Karen Walker - in the oven.
Dianne Salerni - in the sink.
Christine Rains - on a bush.
Nick Wilford - hanging by a tree.
EE Giorgi - on the hood of my car.
Murees Dupe - on a bench.
L Diane Wolfe - with his favorite t-shirt.
Helena - in a pile of leaves. (And due to hacks, her site’s high security meant it was unavailable to some of you, and she’s sorry you weren’t able to visit. I didn't include it in the hunt totals.)
Tyrean Martinson - on the sidewalk.
Robin - in the driver’s seat of my car.
Heather Gardner - hanging with my favorite CD’s.
Jo - with a Canadian beaver.
Lynda Young - hanging with my MST3K DVD collection.
SL Hennessy - hanging with my Firefly game.
Toi Thomas - in the fireplace.
Lori MacLaughlin - on exercise equipment.
Jess at Author Tracker - in the dishwasher.
Truedessa - hanging with his favorite poster.
Annalisa Crawford - in front of my guitar’s amp.
Patricia Lynne - on my front steps.
Lisa at Flash Fiction - in my sock drawer.
Julie Flanders - driver’s seat of lawn mower.
Julie Kemp Pick - on another bench.
Nicki Elson - in the dryer.
Mark Koopmans - at the beach.
Sydney Aaliyah - in my computer chair.
Many of you followed along for the scavenger hunt, and seven of you visited every single site.
And from those seven, Random.org picked this winner:
Congratulations, Truedessa! You get an autographed copy of Dragon of the Stars, a bunch of swag, and $20.00 in iTunes cards.
Thanks to everyone who posted, played along, gave me a shout out, or bought the book. You guys rock!
Seen Kung Fu Hustle? Fan of those bands? Read Kindred? Following the bloggers? Have you read Dragon yet and figured out What Are the Kargrandes? Going to an Sci-Fi cons? And how’d you do in the scavenger hunt?
Don’t forget to visit Literary Rambles!
125 comments:
I love Kung Fu Hustle. It was so funny and over-the-top.
Today I am Kignorant (the K is silent).
Off to visit a few sites and improve my knowledge (and that K is also silent).
I'm no#3 today? Things are looking up... LOL
Off to check out your interview at Literary Rambles!
Great "K" have you passed out yet? K-grats to the winner "Truedessa" and all those who made it the distance. I know I almost did them all. I have all the King's X albums and I want to build a greatest hits?
How do we get an autographed set of all of the books?
take care!
Jeremy
Wow, I'm actually not familiar with any of the films or books today! I need to educate myself. :)
Love all the various hiding spots for mini-Alex...what a cool idea!
Not up to date with films, but I still enjoy reading about what I have missed,
Congrats to Truedessa a worthy winner I'm sure,
Have a lovely day.
Yvonne.
Thanks for the shout out about your post on my site.
Awesome your publisher is going to some of those science fiction cons. Hopefully you'll get some new readers from it.
Haven't heard them for years, but I used to love Kansas. too bad no spoilers,I was looking forward to learning about: K for Kargrandes.
Congrats, Truedessa!
None of the Cons in my area, unfortunately.
Mini-Alex in your sock drawer? Perhaps he prevents them from going solo, a constant problem in my household.
I had no idea there were so many sci-fi conventions out there!
I love Natalie over at Literary Rambles. I've found more good books through her blog. I just wish more of them had audiobooks so I could do more than add them to my TBR list.
Loved Kansas, the band not the state. I have a bff named Kristen Smith:) I checked out her blog. Hope you're getting some rest in this atoz challenge!
Now I'm going to have "Point of No Return" and "Dust in the Wind" in my head all day.
I've read some of Butler's works, but not Kindred.
Congrats to Truedessa! And yay for K day. Kung Fu Hustle was so hilarious. Have a great week!
Great interview over with Natalie!
Congrats to Trudessa :)
I'm going to be singing Dust in the wind al day now :)
I loved Kung Fu Hustle. That nasty old landlord woman with the cigarette dangling out of her mouth was hilarious.
So the Kargrandes are creatures, eh? I've got my copy, and I'm looking forward to reading more about them once DotS reaches my reading pile... which is currently a reading mountain. But it should be soon!
Michael, that it was.
Elephant, that made me chuckle.
Jeremy, I'll look into that request. And I think you only missed one stop. You were that close!
Natalie, I hope so as well.
Sorry, Rhonda - it would be a major spoiler.
Lisa, the dryer still eats them, but fortunately I only wear two kinds of socks.
Donna, sorry mine isn't an audio book.
Jennifer, I rested yesterday.
Sandra and Jemi, could be worse songs to have stuck in your head!
I haven't heard of any of K's cult offerings - interesting :-)
Nope, out of the loop with your cult classics today. Delighted Truedessa won the Scavenger hunt.
Kung Fu hustle sounds like a fun watch!
I had figured the Kargrandes were some sort of creature, but I was thinking monster type. It seems they have a much deeper identity. Can't wait to find out what they can really do. :)
Those cons are waaay too far away from me haha Never watched Kung Fu husstle. My few guesses were umm wrong, I suck lol on the reading pile indeed
I love Dust in the wind. Kansas was one of my favorite bands. Just got to half way the Scavenger hunt but I will check all the pics first chance I get. :) this comment is a voucher for certain knight, you know. Dragon hugs!
Hi, Alex! Chocolate-Dragon hugs!
Congrats Trudessa!
I have not seen the Kung Fu movie. Probably won't.
Big fan of Kung Fu Hustle here! It's so ridiculous, it's funny. Dust in the Wind was the top song around the time I was in first grade!
Congrats to Truedessa!!!!
And I was wondering about Helena's site. I couldn't get on there, and I thought it was me.
Great books and movies, again. I should connect with Kristin. I have four boys, but they're growing up already!
Congrats to Truedessa! LOL I never would have guessed that mini-Alex was on a lawn mower in the pic for my blog.
Exciting that your books will be part of so many cons coming up.
Kung fu will always be a firm favorite mainly because of the actions! And congrats to Truedessa!
Hank
That was a good interview. I think it takes time for new bloggers to figure out that getting comments comes after writing comments. In the past year, I blogged only during April and blog hops. I think that's fine as long as I find a few more blog hops to fill out the month.
Yay for Truedessa! The Scavenger hunt was so much fun! I'm so glad I got to be a part of it. And I know what the Kargrandes are, but no spoilers...
Brandon and Bryan, thanks!
Kathryn, it will surprise you!
Thank you, Al. There was a documentary recently on Kansas - you would enjoy it.
Jay, sorry! Wasn't just you.
Julie, some were more difficult than others.
Tamara, check back Monday then!
Lauren, awesome. Thanks for playing - you visited every site.
Good luck with the promotional tour. Already been to Literary Rambles earlier.
Sadly I don't live anywhere near any of those cons. I just got an Amazon gift card so I'm thinking I'll snag your book today.
I don't know any of those K's except Kristin Smith. :P
Congrats to all of the winners!
Hopping over to Natalie's now!
I knew what your K would be! That's awesome that you're getting publicity at all those cons. HUGE!
Kung Fu Hustle was quite entertaining. I haven't attended a convention in quite some time, but it's good that your publisher is thrashing the bushes for you. That's a great way to get introduced to new readers. Lots of nerds at conventions.
That's a long list of winners! Congrat to all of them. I"ve already been at Literary Rambles. Great job, Alex.
Aw, thanks so much for the shout-out and your kind words. You made my day!! Seriously. :)
Sarah, thank you!
Stephanie, it's rather cool.
Michael, they've always been good about sending material to cons.
Kristin, you're welcome!
I wish I were going to a Con. Would love to sometime but it won't be this year. Who doesn't love the band, Kansas?
Congratulations, Truedessa.
Have fun on the tour.
That was a BIG scavenger hunt. Congrats to Truedessa!
That Mini-Alex sure does get around:)
Good luck with sales at the cons.
Kansas! I loved that very album and it almost got on my list today.
Looks like you have a great bunch of "cons" lined up. Hope they're a great success.
I don't know a single one of these Cult Classics. Go figure!
During the 70s, some local businessman got the bright idea to combine the disco craze with that for Bruce Lee movies. We hated going there. Nobody could ever dance because of all the Kung Fu fighting.
Congrats to Truedessa! That was a fun scavenger hunt. Love the Kansas album. Point of Know Return is one of my favorite songs. I follow Kristin Smith. I'll have to check out Kathe. Great interview at Literary Rambles!
Now we know what a Kargrande is, woot! :)
Congrats to Trudessa on the win!
Congrats to Truedessa! The Kargrandes are awesome!
Have a great day, Alex! Will check out Literary Rambles
YAY! You finally got to the kargrandes! And I've heard of Kindred--looks like one I'd like to read.
Awesome! Congratulations, Truedessa! Happy to have introduced you to #1000Speak, Alex. Perhaps you'll become part of the community blogging for compassion! All the very best with your book promotion!
Brandy from Brandy's Bustlings
Yay for Truedessa! I had fun reading thru the list of where Mini-Alex has been. He must be tired. Does he have clones?
Kansas - I had college neighbors who played their albums non-stop. I never did get sick of their music. Missed out on Kung Fu Hustle and I'm okay with not putting it on my Netflix list. Happy Monday
My supervisor was wild about Kung Fu Hustle during his Kung Fu film stage!
I wish you well on all those conventions, Alex. Wish me well as I speak at one, CyPhaCon, on April 18th. The topic is how to create worlds of wonder in your fantasy and science fiction.
About all I know from those ones is the song "Dust in the Wind." ;)
Robin, it was so big, I was running out of places to put Mini-Alex.
Cherdo, hope it spurs a lot of interest in my book.
Al - funny!
Hart, the story sounds intense.
Thanks, Brandy!
Robyn, he wants a clone of Mini-Kate Beckinsale...
Joanne, their music is just so accessible and hard to hate.
Roland, that is really awesome!
Sounds like you have a great publisher!
Kongrats to Truedessa! And all the best for the conventions to come.
Unable to locate you (not just DOTS, asked for the CS series also) so far, but Keeping Kalm and not giving up.
Congrats Truedessa!
I hadn't seen any of those movies or really heard of them.
~Patricia Lynne aka Patricia Josephine~
Member of C. Lee's Muffin Commando Squad
Story Dam
Patricia Lynne, Indie Author
Hi Alex - congratulations to Trudessa - and well done to all who guessed where mini Alex was. I loved Christine Rain's review of your book .. you did us proud writing it, and she did you proud with her review.
Good for your publisher .. and yes I must visit a couple of the sites you mention .. cheers Hilary
Hi Alex - congratulations to Trudessa - and well done to all who guessed where mini Alex was. I loved Christine Rain's review of your book .. you did us proud writing it, and she did you proud with her review.
Good for your publisher .. and yes I must visit a couple of the sites you mention .. cheers Hilary
Kristen is great! And congrats on your book release, Alex!
With two boys it can be overwhelming! I can't imagine writing and looking after five of them!
Your cons are all on the wrong coast.
I really liked Kung Fu Hustle. Shaolin Soccer was also great, worth checking out.
mood
Congratulations to Truedessa! Yippee! You can count 8, in that total for who saw all of them! Just made it to the last few today! What a fun idea for a book release! Know it took a LOT of work to set it up... Lisa, co-host AtoZ 2015, @ http://www.lisabuiecollard.com
Kung Fu Hustle is a cool movie!
Congratulations on the release of your book!Your trivia hunt sounded like fun. I was on vacation, so I missed it. Great idea, though!
Kung Fu Hustle is a cool movie!
Congratulations on the release of your book!Your trivia hunt sounded like fun. I was on vacation, so I missed it. Great idea, though!
wonderful selection of K words.
The scavenger hunt was lot of fun! Congratulations Trudessa :)
I did see Kung Fu Hustle since I have a copy of the DVD. I'm probably due to watch it again since I only saw it once and that was several years ago.
I've been a fan of Kansas since they first appeared on the scene. I try to keep up with groups that have a violinist in the line-up.
Arlee Bird
A to Z Challenge Co-host
Tossing It Out
Congrats on the release. Must be exciting to be a part of so many cons! What awesome news! Have heard of Kung Fu Hustle, but I don't believe I've seen it.
I do love that song "Dust In The Wind" it is so haunting. I have not see then film though. Look where Mini Alex was! Wow he gets into all sorts of places. Congrats to the winner:) Kristen is excellent and now I will go over to the other blogger:)
I do love Kung Fu Hustle :) And I need to read Octavia Butler, she keeps coming up in conversations...
@TarkabarkaHolgy from
Multicolored Diary - Epics from A to Z
MopDog - 26 Ways to Die in Medieval Hungary
I'm back in Canada and knowing my internet connection. Very happy to see Dragon of the Stars at so many blogs. Excellent coverage.
Nilanjana, thanks! Where are you trying to find my books?
Hilary, she wrote a great review!
Andrew, sorry, can't control that.
Lisa, awesome! I knew you were close. It took a lot of time to go read and count all of them yesterday, that's for sure.
Sherry, hope you had a good time.
Lee, and that made them unique.
Birgit, that song came from finger exercises of all things!
Joylene, welcome home!
I being a mother of 5 as well must see how Mrs. Smith fares all in a good day's work! I seem to crash and burn when my career is in full swing. ;)
btw, I am still impressed you can find a letter to each alphabet for your book!
Elizabeth Mueller
AtoZ 2015
My Little Pony
I was once addicted to Dust in the Wind by Kansas, couldn't get enough of it.
Great intrview.
Congrats to Truedessa;)
Love Kung Fu Hustle lots. So much fun to rewatch. Your creatures are so to hold our attention Alex.
That's really impressive - seriously - that seven people went to all the scavengers (!!)
I tried, but yeah, it's me, so I only made it to a couple.
Congrats to Truedessa :)
(Did you realize you had Kansas and Nebraska as the albums... free geography lesson :)
I haven't heard of Kindred before and now I definitely want to rectify that.
You're such a tease about the Kargrandes :)
Point of No Return was a great song. The pictures of mini Alex were a lot of fun. Clever idea. =)
I can see I'll have to update my sci fi cons corner of the universe. I got through half of the Mini Alex scavenger hunt, great hideout reveal. How do people do it? Five kids, a husband and a writer, no way!
Congrats to Truedessa, and to you on an epic launch!
That's a packed schedule of cons. Will you be attending in full ninja attire?
Elizabeth, I had to get creative with a couple of them.
Mark, there were eight, as Lisa just finished today. And I just now realized that! Bonus.
JE, you have to read the book...
Spacerguy, you visited a lot of them.
Nick, most I will not be attending I'm afraid.
Mini Alex is everywhere. EVERYWHERE I tell you! :)
Kung Fu Hustle is one of my all time favorite films. I chuckle every time I see it.
For a second there, I thought you were going to say you were going to BE at those cons. I'd take a trip up to Orlando to meet the enigmatic Mr. Cavanaugh. I've never heard of OASIS, but being only an hour south, I might still check it out since we skipped MegaCon this year.
off to read your interview!! :) and LOVE Kristin!
Love Kansas' Dust in the Wind! Thanks for bringing these bloggers to my attention!
I'm SO SORRY about my site being unavailable to some of your scavenger hunt participants, Alex. I'm still working with my tech friend to reverse the (extreme?) security he's locked around my blog.
Still enjoy Kansas. Dust in the wind is a really good song
Congratulations on the Richmond RavenCom conference. I've never been but have heard good things about it!
Kindred sounds really intriguing. I love sci-fi that blends with history like that. Enjoyed seeing your interview over at Literary Rambles today!
Kindred sounds really intriguing. I love sci-fi that blends with history like that. Enjoyed seeing your interview over at Literary Rambles today!
"Dust in the Wind"... Sigh.
Congrats, Truedessa.
Your scavenger hunt was fun. I love Kansas and totally grew up with Point of Know Return. Octavia Butler is awesome, too, though I have only read Parable of the Sower by her, an apocalypse story that really made me want to have a "go bag" ready.
WOW - I won! The scavenger hunt was fun and a few were difficult like the exercise equipment. So there were 7 of us who visited every site and the release was on the 7th talk about synchronicity.
Thanks to everyone for the congrats much appreciated.
I have met Kathe out and about in the blogsphere.
Mark, you should go! You might win some books.
Helena, no worries! Some people got through.
Mary, it's coming up very soon.
Shell, thanks for visiting every site in the scavenger hunt.
Truedessa, that is eerie...
How exciting to be on Literary Rambles...I'm headed over there next. And wow to 7 people going to all scavenger hunts - impressive. I'd love to go to a sci-fi con, but no such luck.
Kung Fu Hustle was funny. Have listened to Kansas.
The past few years I haven't attended many writer conferences. Hope to get back to some of them this coming year.
Sia McKye Over Coffee
Mini-Alex definitely got around! Congratulations to the winner!
Hey, Alex,
Just visited Natalie and read your interview... Congrats on Dragon again! I'm so glad you're continuing your writing!
LOVED KANSAS, and had that album!!!!!!! Nice to see it again.
Sorry I missed the scavenger hunt, but I was running all over South Tampa for two weeks.. LOL. But it was worth it. Going back in a month to close on my new place. I can't wait.
Glad to see the A-Z is going strong. I must admit I miss doing the challenge, but I need to focus on life right now....
I'll drop back again soon. I may have a new EA post coming within the next few days..... I finally found one!
I don't know most of your K's featured here - but I do know one or two Kansas songs and love them :) And of course I have heard of the Kargandes...but don't yet know what they *are* :)
I love Kansas! Congrats to Truedessa~
I have to visit those photos-how fun you are Karma Kaptain! Sorry, couldn't resist the K-okay~
Your hunt was so much fun, Alex! Great way to promote and fun for you and mini-Alex, too!
I'm going to have to do some listening research on King's X. I've heard great things about them.
Congrats again on your successful campaign!
Heather
I am not a Christian, but I rather liked KingsX.
--
Tim Brannan, The Other Side Blog
2015 A to Z of Vampires
http://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/
Loved Kung Fu Hustle, haven't heard the albums or read the book (boo on me!)
I'm so thrilled to finally learn the answer to the question that's been plaguing me all month. Though, much like the answer to life, the universe and everything it raises more questions than it answered!
Congrats to Truedessa on the win!!!
Like Elephant's Child, I am Kignorant. Kungfu Hustle sounds like fun, though.
That's a lot of winners!! Congrats to all and the number one winner T!!
Alex- thanks for mentioning my blog- it's an honor! Mille gracia!
It's a real honor to be featured by Literary Rambles!
Congratulations to all the winners!
I missed Kindred somehow. Thank you for posting. This challenge is chock full of books. In May, I'll be starting my own read-a-thon.
You can find me here:
ClarabelleRant
You chose some very creative hang-outs for Mini-Alex! Congrats to Truedessa!
Julie
I should know about the Kung-Fu Hustle, but I don't. Drat!
Octavia Butler was an amazing writer.
Belle, yes he did! That was a lot of photos.
Michael! Hey, you have a house to close on and in the town you so wanted. Focus on that.
Thanks, Heather. Wasn't sure I'd find enough interesting places to pose Mini-Alex for all those shots.
Beverly, thanks for visiting all the scavenger hunt spots.
Kathe, you are most welcome!
Carrie-Anne, yes it is!
Clarabelle, that one might last you all year...
I didn't read Kindred in college, but I discovered Octavia Butler accidentally while I WAS in college, and Oh my God, Kindred! Such a great book.
And Oh Man! to your Kargrandes clue. :D
Very cool that your publisher is working on promotional stuff as well. I don't read about publishers doing much of that these days. Cool beans that they've made time for you.
Happy Selling.
I wanted to know what are the Kargrandes and my curiousity has been sated :)
Man, the lawnmower seat. Oh well.
Kungfu Hustle was great.
Kindred is on my TBR list.
Congratulations to Truedessa!
My goodness, mini-Alex sure travels a lot! :-)
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