A to Z Challenge – P – Cult Classics: Princes Bride, Pantera, Pink Floyd, Puppet Masters, and More! Plus A to Z Challenge T-shirt and Ninja News

A to Z Challenge – Cult Classics – P

Movies-Music-Sci-fi Book-Bloggers-Dragon Term

Movies –

The Princess Bride
Adapted from William Goldman’s book, this ‘romantic, comedy, fantasy, adventure’ movie is on several, of the American Film Institute’s top one hundred lists.

Plan Nine From Outer Space
This Ed Wood film featured Vampira and Bela Lugosi, and was given the Golden Turkey Award for worst director and worst film ever.

Music –

Pantera – Vulgar Display of Power
Released in 1992, it’s one of the most influential metal albums of the 1990’s. It’s one of the 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die and features the iconic song Walk.

Pink Floyd – Dark Side of the Moon
This album debuted in 1973 and stayed on Billboard’s charts for 741 weeks. One of the bestselling albums of all time, it’s estimated one out of every fourteen people under the age of fifty own it.

Science Fiction Book –

The Puppet Masters – Robert A. Heinlein
This novel was originally serialized in Galaxy Science Fiction. Numerous movies and shows have used Heinlein’s concept, including Start Trek and The Outer Limits. There was also a film based on the book staring Donald Sutherland.

Bloggers –

Patricia Lynne
Enjoy the comical ramblings and insights of an author? Like short fiction and paranormal? Want a cheerful smile to greet you every time? Then visit Patricia today!

Patricia Stoltey
Do you enjoy mysteries and thrillers and want to know more about the process of writing such books? Interested in the Rocky Mountains Mystery Writers of America? Want to meet Katie Cat? Then you need to follow Patricia!

Patsy Collins
Want the latest on writing contests? Enjoy pictures of England and Scotland? Then you need to check out the blog of free spirit and author Patsy!

Dragon of the Stars Term –

Pavott
Ensign Tamsin Pavott is the junior weapons officer on the battleship Ryzell. She is loyal and dedicated, not only to her job but to Lt. Commander Pendar. She is an important part of the mission to find the Dragon.

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.

Ninja News

Elizabeth S. Craig posted about using audio as a means to connect to readers and explains how to use SoundCloud. Check it out!

Brandon Ax just revealed the cover for his next book, Light Bringer, and is celebrating with a sale on Elemental and Ashes. (Both .99 cents until April 21.)

Those of you who’ve been around a while might remember a blogger by the name of Panda Ninja.
Well, she has a new blog and is publishing a serial novel.
Nightmare Chronicles by Brittney Woodson
Find the series at Channillo
Find Brittney: Blog, Twitter, Facebook, and Goodreads

A to Z Challenge Survivor T-Shirt! 

Created by our very own Jeremy Hawkins!

You can order yours from the NETOSHOP.

Can you quote The Princess Bride? Fan of either band? Read Heinlein? (My books have been compared to his which is a great honor.) Following those bloggers? Think you’d like Ensign Pavott? Who’s ready to earn a Challenge Survivor t-shirt? Only ten more posts to go…

(And I might be a little slow commenting today, but I will get there!)

If you missed it, I visited Adventures in YA Publishing yesterday.

A to Z Challenge – I – Cult Classics – The Iron Giant, Iron Maiden, I Am Legend, and More! Plus a Special Tribute…

Today I am visiting Damy at Daily (w)rite. She’s been a very special friend for many years, and I’ve really missed her presence on the A to Z Challenge Team. I’m discussing the ‘What If’ of writing, so be sure to stop by!

A to Z Challenge – Cult Classics – I

Movies-Music-Sci-fi Book-Bloggers-Dragon Term

Movie –

The Iron Giant
Based on a 1968 book, the story harkens back to a more simple and innocent time and features Vin Diesel as the voice of the giant. (It was also the first DVD I ever purchased without seeing the film first - and I was not disappointed!)

Music –

Iron Maiden – Piece of Mind
First album with the iconic Maiden lineup, this Platinum selling album was listed as one of the greatest metal albums of all times and included hits such as The Trooper.

Science Fiction Books –

I Am Legend – Richard Matheson
Influential in developing the zombie genre, this book was adapted at a film three times–The Last Man on Earth (1964), The Omega Man (1971), and I Am Legend (2007.)

The Island of Dr. Moreau – H. G. Wells
Published in 1896, this book explored moral responsibility and animal cruelty. Shortly after the book’s release, the first anti-vivisection groups were formed.

Bloggers –

Holly at I am HR Sinclair
Want to know more about gemstones? Learn some things about blogging? Have access to cookbooks full of tasty treats? Then Holly is your person!

Catherine Stine at Idea City
Want to meet an author of many genres? One who is supportive of others with book features and reviews? Then Catherine is the fire you need!

Dragon of the Stars Term –

Isadore
She is Hyrath’s current Queen, overseeing the Council and all districts. Isadore understands Hyrath’s position of power and wants to keep it at all costs.

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.

And there is a Scavenger Hunt! An autographed copy of the book, bookmarks and swag, and $20.00 iTunes gift cards to the winner. Just visit the sites below and leave a comment – where do you think Mini-Alex is in the photo? Open until midnight April 11 – winner announced here April 13. Now go!

Melissa Maygrove * Eva Solar * Father Dragon Al * Suzanne Furness * Karen Walker * Dianne Salerni * Christine Rains * Nick Wilford * EE Giorgi * Murees Dupe * L Diane Wolfe * Helena * Tyrean Martinson * Robin * Heather Gardner * Jo * Lynda Young * SL Hennessy * Toi Thomas * Lori MacLaughlin * Jess at Author Tracker, * Truedessa, * Annalisa Crawford, * Patricia Lynne, * Lisa at Flash Fiction, * Julie Flanders, * Julie Kemp Pick, * Nicki Elson, * Mark Koopmans, * Sydney Aaliyah!

Special Tribute

This has been a wild week with a book release right in the middle of the challenge. I’d like to thank those who made this week awesome.

Thanks to those listed above who posted for the scavenger hunt. Some of you added it to your Challenge posts, which was awesome.

Thanks to everyone who joined the Thunderclap campaign. I saw the full list of everyone who signed up and it really meant a lot to me.

Thanks to those who pre-ordered or purchased my book! Some of you have already finished reading it, which just blows me away.

Thanks to those who posted on their own about my book -
Cathrina Constantine, Ellie Garratt, Randi lee, Elizabeth Seckman, Lisa Buie-Collard, Susan Gourley, Mina Burrows, Dani at Entertaining Interests, Yvonne Lewis, Elana Johnson, Lanise Brown, and Ella. All links go directly to their posts, which were touching and sweet.

A special thanks to Brandon Ax! He always draws a cartoon of himself with a dragon, and he did one in honor of my book. You rock, Brandon.

And a special thanks to Roland Yeomans for sending me on yet another wild adventure across the stars. Searching for the Dragon with Mark Twain and being accosted by Princess Aura – that could only happen to me!

Bottom line, you guys all rock! As always, I am humbled by the support. And I never even wanted to be an author.

And if you are still wondering about those Kargrandes…

Seen the Iron Giant? Fan of Maiden? Read the books? (Or seen any of the many movie versions?) Following those awesome bloggers? And who has helped you this week? Who would you like to thank?

Don’t forget to visit the awesome Damy!

Cloaked in Fur and Anthropies, CassaStorm Updates, and Ninja News

Some awesome Cassan news and updates today!



But first, I have an awesome guest - TF Walsh.

Alex, thanks for having me on your blog today.

Therianthropy is the ability, or curse, that allows humans to transform into animals. There are many examples of it throughout mythology and folklore and it has become the basis of more and more popular culture. Lycanthropy relates specifically to werewolves and is the most common example, particularly in European cultures, which is why I chose to write about it. But if people were given the choice of an animal they could transform into, would wolves be the most common response. Of the myriad of animals, birds, fish and other beasts inhabiting the planet, it would seem that wolves might not be the most popular, if given a choice that is, considering there was such a choice.

If I had to choose, it would be difficult decision. A swan maiden is another mythological form of Therianthropy and would give me a chance to fly. Selkies are seal-type creatures when in water and human when on land, so I could swim effortlessly through the ocean. But if I had to be honest I think I would chose Ailuranthropy, the ability to turn into a cat. And not one of the great cats, but a simple house cat. Especially when I see how many people love their cats, and how well cats are treated. I would love nothing more than sleeping all day in a warm sunshine. Snuggling up to someone when it gets colder and leaping around the house as if I own it. And not to mention being able to understand just what my cat thinks of me.

Which animal would you choose to shift into if you had the ability?

As a moonwulf, Daciana never expected to fall in love with a human. Hell, she never imagined that she’d abandon her pack, endanger everyone around her, and break the worst rule possible. But she did.

Buy Cloaked in Fur Here: Amazon US, Amazon UK, Barnes and Noble, iBookstore, and Crimson Romance.

T.F. Walsh emigrated from Romania to Australia at the age of eight and now lives in a regional city south of Sydney with her husband. Growing up hearing dark fairytales, she's always had a passion for reading and writing horror, paranormal romance, urban fantasy and young adult stories. She balances all the dark with light fluffy stuff like baking and traveling.
Find her - Website-Blog, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Goodreads, and Amazon.

Ninja News

Brandon Ax is hosting a giveaway in celebration of his latest book, Ashes.

Cherie Colyer’s latest is out – Hold Tight. You can find it anywhere online and add it to Goodreads The first book in the series, Embrace, is now ninety-nine cents for a limited time. Congratulations, Cherie!

Pat Hatt’s latest book is out, Catality - Saving Your Reality.
This is book number eighteen – congratulations, Pat.
To you and your rhyming cat!

Hart Johnson is celebrating the release of the first installment of A Shot in the Light by hosting a blogfest. On September 5, post about her book and your answer to The World Ends HOW!? See her site for details.

Melissa Maygrove is hosting a blogfest September 23-27. Follow Fest is about writers making connections with other writers on other social platforms besides blogging. See her site for details.

Summer Ross is hosting the In Your Pants Blogfest on September 2. Yes, you read that correctly! Visit her site for details.

CassaStorm Updates and News

First, I am happy to say the CassaStorm tour is full – and then some! I have a great mix of guest posts, articles, giveaways, and reviews set, and the lineup of hosts is awesome, including a couple big sites I never thought would host me. (And I’m quite honored to be appearing there!)


September
9 - The Non-Review
11 - The Unicorn Bell
15 - Anne R Allen’s Blog
16 – Literary Rambles
17 – Edi’s Book Lighthouse
18 - Mithril Wisdom
19 - Lynda Young
20 - Tossing It Out
23 - Under the Tiki Hut
27 – Cruising Altitude 2.0
30 - Write Now

October
4 - MsBookish
9 - The Writing Nut
11 - My First Book
14 - Untethered Realms
18 - Sia McKye Over Cofffe
21 - Stephen Tremp
28 - Sandra Ulbrich Almazan

November
4 - Donna Weaver
25 - Leave it to Livia

In addition, I am teaming up with author Lynn Rush for my first ever Twitter party on September 17 from 8-9:00 EST. Hashtag is #RUSHED and there will be chances to win prizes from both of us.

The week of my release, there will be an awesome prize package offered here for anyone who comments. And anyone who signs up to announce my book release that week (Taking the World by Storm) is eligible for this cool prize package: Cassa mug, Cassa mousepad, $25.00 iTunes gift card, and swag. You can sign up HERE. You have the option of just signing up or asking a unique question to go with your announcement post. (In addition to the questions, the information I send for the announcements will be different.)

Special thanks to my publisher who is doing a large campaign through trade magazines, libraries and bookstores, and science fiction cons.

And a big thanks to all of you for helping me launch one final book into the world!

Just to give you an idea how awesome this journey has been, I want to highlight Ellie Garratt’s winning entry into the Cheers Blogfest last December, because it covers some of the cool things that have happened these past few years:



Now, I need to make a video for you guys!! Mini-Alex can host…

Have you picked up Cloaked in Fur? What animal would you become? Picked up the other awesome books? Can you help Take the World by Storm? Can you believe it’s less than four weeks until my last book comes out?!

Dear Lord, help me survive this next month…

Star Trek Movies Ranked, Nolan’s Interstellar, Fuller’s High Moon, Spaceship Trivia, and Ninja News!

Science Fiction News

Caught this on Blastr. Fans at Creation Entertainment's Star Trek Convention in Las Vegas ranked Trek movie from best to worst. Below are the results, from best to worst:

As a die-hard Trek fan, that really surprised me. I would flip the first two around (First Contact will always be my favorite) but I’d rank Into Darkness much higher. I’ll have to see it again, but I’d probably place it third. I won’t even protest the inclusion of Galaxy Quest, because that film just rocked. What do you guys think of the ranking?

Principal photography began on Christopher Nolan’s next film, Interstellar. According to JoBlo, “The new script chronicles the adventures of a group of explorers who make use of a newly discovered wormhole to surpass the limitations on human space travel and conquer the vast distances involved in an interstellar voyage.”
The film will star Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, John Lithgow, Casey Affleck, Michael Caine, Jessica Chastain, and Bill Irwin. It’s set for release November 7, 2014.Yes, I'm excited!

Bryan Fuller’s new science fiction series, High Moon, announced the leads - Chris Diamantopoulos and Jake Sandvig. According to Blastr, it picks up “in a future where many countries have occupied the moon to mine its resources, things somehow go haywire when a new form of life is discovered. The series is loosely based on John Christopher's novel The Lotus Caves. The two will star as a federal investigator and a convict working out hard time, respectively.”
SyFy usually produces good series. Now, if only they could spare more than a hundred bucks for their original movies…

Ninja News

The CK Reader Giveaway continues until Saturday! It’s featured on both CK Readers Giveaway on Facebook and on Ciara Knight’s blog. It’s a mixture of my journey with the series and quotes from the books. And there are prizes!

Robyn Campbell recently switched to Disqus comments and then tried to switch back and is having problems. If anyone here can help her restore her Blogger comment box, please visit her!

Brandon Ax’s latest book is available now – Ashes!
He’s also running a contest with some cool prizes – that starts August 20. See his site for details.
Congratulations, Brandon!



Last week I noticed there were a lot of IWSG posts from people who weren’t on the list. My apologies that I can’t contact every individual personally, but here’s a partial list: TF Walsh, Scribbles from Jenn, Charmaine Clancy, Karen – Coming Down the Mountain, Doralynn – My Publishing Diary, Morgan Shamy, Sher A Hart, Tina @ Life is Good, Julia – Writing Jewels, Hope Roberson, and Rusty Webb.
Perhaps you never signed up or didn’t post a couple months in a row and were removed, but I invite all of you to sign up HERE. That way other members can find you. And I don’t want you to be missed!

Mina Lobo revealed the cover to her upcoming book, That Fatal Kiss, set for release September 24. Looks awesome, Mina!



Finally, thanks to everyone who participated in the Anti-Blogfest Gary Fest. I think we rocked Gary’s anti-blogfest world. All links go directly to the post so you can go back if you missed anyone.
And if you think my Urinal Cake Flavors Blogfest sounded disgusting, you should’ve seen the images that came up in a Google search. Why anyone would bake a tiny cake and set it in a urinal is beyond me…

Spaceship Trivia!

Something new! From the crew members listed, name the SPACESHIP (not the movie):

Movies:

1 - Alex Durant, Harry Booth, V.I.N.C.E.N.T.
2 - Captain Dallas, Warrant Officer Ripley, Science Officer Ash
3 - Pres. Skroob, Dark Helmet, Col. Sandurz

Television:

4 - Fry, Bender, Leela, Amy 
5 - Mal Reynolds, Zoe Washburne, Simon Tam
6 - Don West, John Robinson, Dr. Zachary Smith

Literature:

7 - Arthur Dent, Ford Prefect, Zaphod Beeblebrox
8 - Charlie Bucket, Grandma Josephine, Willy Wonka

Real:

9 - Jim Lovell, Fred Haise, Jack Swigert

Answers Monday!

Eager for Interstellar or High Moon? Enter the giveaway? Can you help Robyn? Are you on the IWSG list? Did you enjoy the Anti-Blogfest? Do you know any of the trivia? And how would you rank those Star Trek films…?