A to Z Challenge – L – Cult Classics: Legend, Living Color, Logan’s Run, and More! Plus Birdman Review and New Releases

A to Z Challenge – Cult Classics – L

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

Movie –

Legend
Directed by Ridley Scott, this surreal fantasy harkens back to darker fairy tales. There is a director’s cut and the original USA theatrical release which features haunting music by Tangerine Dream.

Music –

Living Color – Vivid
This album debuted in 1988 and went Double Platinum, with the song Cult of Personality winning a Grammy.

Science Fiction Book –

Logan’s Run - William F. Nolan and George Clayton
Written by William F. Nolan and George Clayton Johnson, this dystopian story spawned two more books, a movie, a television series, a comic book series, and more.

Bloggers –

LD Masterson
Like a dose of humor every Wednesday with jokes and funny photos? Enjoy connecting with someone with a pure heart? Then LD is your lady!

Liza at Middle Passages
Want to witness the journey of writer through various stages of life? Enjoy beautiful photos from the seaside of Maine? Then you need to connect with this wonderful poet and special lady.

Liesel K. Hill at Musings on Fantasia
Enjoy thrillers, historicals, and science fiction from a multi-genre author? Enjoy Top Ten Tuesday, Feature & Follow, and the Walking Dead? Then you need to connect with the awesome Liesel!

Dragon of the Stars Term –

Lieutenant
Every ship in the Hyrathian fleet has one or more lieutenants on board. On the smaller ships, the lieutenant is second in command to the captain. On the larger battleships, a Lt. commander is second in command. That is Aden Pendar’s rank when the story opens.

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.

New Releases!

Entwined by Cherie Colyer
Book 3 of the Embrace series

Only a few months after embracing her magical powers, defeating a dark witch at her high school, and banishing a faerie prince back to his realm, sixteen-year-old Madison Riley is back in book three of the Embrace series—and doing the bidding of a demon.

Find Entwined here - Amazon, Amazon UK, and Goodreads

Beware the Little White Rabbit anthology
Includes a short story by Medeia Sharif - Mustang Alice
And a short story by C Lee McKenzie

Movie Review

Birdman

From the IMDB: A washed-up actor, who once played an iconic superhero, battles his ego and attempts to recover his family, his career and himself in the days leading up to the opening of his Broadway play.

This Oscar Best Picture winner was very unique. The long stretches of single shots are spectacular to watch. There are very few cuts, so the actors had to get multiple scenes right the first try. That’s impressive.

It does have some really funny lines, including the worst way to describe a relationship ever. (Said by a woman, which made it all the funnier.)

This film will make you feel better about yourself as almost all of the characters are complete train wrecks. Or one hot mess. Either way, you’ll be grateful you’re in a much better place and not so screwed up.

I admired this film, but can’t say I loved it. Like a train wreck, it was fascinating to watch. And once was enough.

Recommended if you enjoy thinking ‘What the heck did I just watch?’

Have you seen Legend and which version, USA or European? Fan of Living Color or Logan’s Run? Following those awesome bloggers? Picking up Cherie’s latest? And have you seen Birdman and what did you think…?

If you missed it yesterday, I visited Literary Rambles!

What Constitutes Quality Blog Content? Plus All I Want for NaNo (Everybody Sing!), Movie Trivia Answers, and Ninja News

I’m welcoming J. A. Bennett today to tell you about a couple amazing things that are happening in conjunction with NaNo. I’ve participated in NaNo and visited the site often, (I wrote CassaFire during NaNo 2010), but I had no idea what the organization was doing for the writing community.

All I Want for NaNo

I first heard about NaNo WriMo three years ago shortly after I started blogging. I thought people were nuts for even attempting to write 50k in a month. Yet, I couldn’t pass up the chance to try it out for myself. Since then, I’ve done NaNo (including camp NaNo) 4 times--this November will make 5.
Because of this, I’ve spent a considerable about of time on NaNoWriMo.org and they’re doing some amazing stuff for people. I have a 14 yr old cousin who went to LTUE last year because NaNo came to his school, and he decided he really liked writing. If that isn’t awesome, I don’t know what is.
In these past three years I’ve felt awful for not giving back when NaNo has been doing so much for writers everywhere. That’s why I decided to write an anthology with a few awesome friends and donate all the proceeds to NaNoWriMo. Since the stories are about Christmas, we’re doing a bloghop entitled “All I Want for NaNo”.

I wanted to kick things off today on Alex’s blog with the Twelve days of NaNo (make sure you sing along)—

On the Twelveth day of NaNo my critique partner gave to me:
Twelve pens a scratching
Eleven beats a beating
Ten backed up hard drives
Nine pages of notes
Eight sprinters sprinting
Seven new ideas
Six hours of writing
Five thousand words
Four plot bunnies
Three metaphors
Two awesome hooks
And a climax that takes place in a tree

The bloghop and book release are taking place on November 1st. Please join us!
On November 1st post what you want for you NaNo and put a buy link to The Spirit of Christmas Anthology, as well as the blog hop code in your post. Get as creative as you like, pictures--flash fiction--video, think outside the box.
Get all the information and the code HERE at JA’s blog.

Congratulations to the contributing authors and good luck to all NaNo participants!
Now to go find that tree…

Ninja News!

Available Monday, October 22nd!

Just in time for Halloween, here's the cover of the latest installment of E.J. Wesley's Moonsongs series, Dragon's Game! (New Adult - speculative - Novelette)

Add Dragon's Game to your Goodreads shelf. And for a limited time, you can catch up on the entire Moonsongs series for just .99 cents (regularly $2.99). Moonsongs Anthology 1 (books 1, 2, & 3) is on sale October 15th - 20th at Amazon and Barnes and Noble

Available now – Courage by Carrie Butler!

Rena Collins never thought she'd long for the past…

Buy it now at Amazon
Also, you can pick up the first book in the Mark of the Nexus series for free through Friday - Strength

Chicken Soup for the Soul - It's Christmas was just released and includes "The Treasure Hunt" by LD Masterson.



Congratulations to all three authors!

Movie Trivia Answers!

1 - “When there’s no more room in Hell, the dead will walk the Earth.” (1978) - Dawn of the Dead
2 - “Be afraid… Be very afraid.” (1986) - The Fly
3 - “Smile, you son of a b____!” (1975) - Jaws
4 - “I will not be threatened by a walking meat loaf!” (1981) – An American Werewolf in London
5 - “Who’s laughing now?” (1987) – Evil Dead II
6 - “Mrs. MacNeil, the problem with your daughter is not her bed, it’s her brain.” (1973) – The Exorcist

What Constitutes Quality Blog Content and What About Hits?

Monday Arlee Bird tossed out a post about being respected as a blogger, most viewed posts, and what makes a post go viral. The comments were just as interesting and went off in several new directions. It sparked some thoughts in me (which can be dangerous) and I thought I’d continue a few idea streams here.

When it comes to page views and viral posts, I’ve blogged long enough that I know what topics are going to generate the most attention. (I know which ones are likely to kick my comment count over two hundred as well.) However, when it comes to page views and hits – I don’t really care! That’s why I don’t have a stat counter. They aren’t accurate anyway. And what does an extra five thousand views really do for me? I don’t get new followers or new people commenting, nor does it do anything for my book sales. Blogging is about community and friends – you guys – not about racking up the page views anyway.

(You want impressive when it comes to blogging? Someone led me to a blog that had 58,000+ followers and each post racked up 5000 comments (the maximum allowed) in one day. And as far as I could tell, it wasn’t someone famous, and the posts weren’t anything out of the ordinary. Heck with page views – that’s just amazing!)

Another aspect discussed was what makes for valuable blog content. Is it information? Controversy? Thoughtful, reaction-inducing posts? I guess it all depends on what you are looking for in a blog and what your goals are with your own.

As you know, I post a variety. My bio on the left states my interests up front, and it’s those things I usually discuss. I feature a variety of things, just so there is something for everyone. (If you come here and can’t find something on which to comment, then I am at a total loss.) It’s rarely anything like this or something that would stir up controversy. This blog is about fun. As it reflects my books and my writing, as I write light space opera, it’s a good fit.

And it’s by no means easy. It takes me two – three hours to put together a post. I put forth the effort because I want to present the best to you guys, my readers. You guys are important – you’re my friends, and that trumps all. And once I get through this month, there will be a little less promo and more cool Ninja stuff here

So there you have it. And I promise never to cop out on a post and slap a kitten photo up just to get hits. (Unless Pat’s cat Cassie poses as a Ninja for Halloween…)

Are you participating in NaNo this year? (Did you sing the song for JA?) Stoked about the new books? Get any of the trivia correct? And are you happy with your blog? What content matters to you? Do you care about page views? What matters most to you when it comes to blogging?

A to Z Challenge – Hellboy and Heroes and Villains by T-Ride, Plus Ninja News

My theme for the A to Z Challenge is Favorite Movies, Bloggers, and Music! I’ll name a favorite movie that corresponds with the letter, and then select a character from the film. I will then name a favorite blogger who reminds me of that character, and then dedicate a song to him. (Also corresponding with the alphabet.) I’ll wrap it all up with trivia and/or fun facts about the movie, the blogger, or the music!

In addition, two lucky commenters this month will receive a review copy of CassaStorm! One comment per day and each is worth one entry except – the first and one hundredth comments on each day will receive ten entries!

Hellboy

Guillermo del Toro is a genius. It takes a director of his caliber to capture the quirkiness of the comics and transfer it to the big screen. The film works on every level – funny, exciting, odd, and wonderful.

Hellboy is crude, funny, and answers to no one. He also has a soft side, as evidenced by his affinity for cats.

Who is Hellboy?

Powdered Toast Man from Just the Cheese!

PTM (real name, Jamie) knows how to push the limits without going off the edge. (Not too far, anyway.) He has a wicked sense of humor and a go for it attitude. He’s also a devoted friend and quite the innovator. Jamie, you are still one cool dude! And you keep me young.

PTM/Jamie is a newlywed, a comedian, and occasionally attacked by birds who are after his toast head.

To you I dedicate Heroes and Villains by T-Ride. (Title leads to YouTube video.)

“Cause breaking the rules that they told, Was something I had to do…”

Trivia and Facts:

Did you know that Powdered Toast Man, a character who appeared regularly on the Ren and Stimpy Show, was based on a Frank Zappa inspired character called Studebacher Hoch?

Who plays Hellboy’s father in the movie?

G’s trivia answer – the Billboard number one hit from Extreme’s Pornograffitti was “More Than Words.”

Ninja News

Cassie Mae just signed TWO book deals! She has a three book deal with Swoon Romance, for her YA books, starting with How to Date Nerd, coming this September. And she has a two book deal with Random House FLIRT for her NA books, starting with Friday Night Alibi, coming July 29th and Pulling the Switch, coming this December. Congratulations, Cassie – big score!

Next Monday is the release day for Flights of Fiction, published by Handcar Press, and one of the eleven stories in this anthology is "Motive" by LD Masterson. Congratulations, LD!

Also, due to blogging situations, two people have new blogs – A to Z Challenge co-host Stephen Tremp and Yvonne Lewis.

Fan of Del Toro or the Hellboy series? Following PTM? Ever heard of T-Ride? Know the trivia answer? Excited for LD and Cassie? Think we should start betting how long it takes the featured blogger to find this post? Wondering how many clones I’m going to burn out this month…?