A to Z Challenge – Q – Cult Classics: Queensryche, The Quiet Earth, Q, and More! Plus Blood, Boobs and Carnage Blogfest and New Releases!

Today I am visiting author extraordinaire and champion of world naked domination, Hart Johnson, who had a few questions for me…

A to Z Challenge – Cult Classics – Q

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

Movies –

The Quiet Earth
This post-apocalyptic film from New Zealand follows three survivors of The Effect and wraps up with an ambiguous ending.

Q
This cheesy 1982 film stared Michael Moriarty and David Carradine and was directed by Larry Cohen of It’s Alive fame. The poster art was painted by Boris Vallejo.

Music –

Queensryche – Operation Mindcrime
This 1988 concept album ‘rock opera’ is listed as one of the greatest heavy metal albums of all time. It went Platinum and the song ‘I Don’t Believe in Love’ was nominated for a Grammy.

Science Fiction Book –

There wasn’t a cult classic among the Q books, so I decided to give you a unique one:

Quinzinzinzili by Régis Messac
Written in 1935 by a French author, this was one of the first post-cataclysmic novels.

Blogger –

Sheena-kay at Queendsheena
Want to tap into an enthusiastic writer and freelancer? Want a dedicated and caring cheerleader? Then visit this ray of sunshine now!

Dragon of the Stars Term –

Queen
The planet of Hyrath is governed by both a Council and a Queen. The Council functions in much the same way as the Senate or House, with the Queen as the deciding factor. Hyrath’s ruler falls to the oldest, whether male or female. When the story opens, Isadora is the Queen of Hyrath.

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!

Audio Book:
Torn Canvas by Donna K. Weaver
Narrator: Tristan Hunt

Modern-day pirates took more than Jori Virtanen’s friends; they stole his face…

On tour April 20-24, 2015
Find Torn Canvas on audio - Amazon, Audible, and iTunes

The River of Desperation by Sean McLachlan
Sequel to A Fine Likeness
Find it on Amazon

Blood, Boobs, and Carnage Blogfest!

Hosted by me and Heather Gardner.

Yes, Blood, Boobs, and Carnage!

I’d used that phrase last year to describe an upcoming movie release. It amused many people, including Heather. So naturally, we decided to make it a blogfest.

What falls into that category? Here’s a few examples – Conan the Barbarian, Breaking Bad, Fast and Furious, The Watchmen, etc.

Here’s the details, short and simple:

On May 18, 2015, post about a movie, television show, book, or all three that falls into the category of Blood, Boobs, and Carnage. (Or just Blood and Carnage or other mixture.) It can be any genre that fits the bill – fantasy, science fiction, action, adventure, western, thriller, etc. Post the badge and visit other participants.

Sign up below!

What are your Q words? Seen either movie? Have you seen Queensryche perform that album live? Figured out the Kargrandes? Picking up some new books? And are you ready for some Blood, Boobs, and Carnage?

Don’t forget to visit Hart Johnson!

How Do You Follow Blogs? Plus Sharknado at the Ballgame, Video Game Trivia, and Ninja News

Ninja News

Nothing like scrolling through blog post titles on Feedly and seeing this - We Love Ninja Captain Alex! Thank you so much, Sheena-kay. That really caught me by surprise. I’ll try to live up to your kind words!

The Goodreads giveaway for CassaStorm ended Monday, and when I forwarded the winners to my publisher, I noticed two of my blogger buddies had won a copy - Sarah Ahiers, JA Bennett, and Tony Laplume. Congratulations, guys!

The next posting for the Insecure Writer’s Support Group is in two weeks on August 7! My awesome co-hosts will be M. Pax, Karen Walker, and Melissa Maygrove.

Don’t forget the Anti-Blogfest Gary Fest! Short and simple – name three blogfests you’d never participate in. Sign up HERE.

Sharknado Invades Baseball!

It’s everywhere, including the President’s Race! For the first part, keep your eyes on the big screen until the action moves into view.

How Are You Blog Following Now?

How do most of you follow blogs? Has it changed since the death of Google Reader?

I’ve noticed a slowdown in followers via Google Friends Connect this summer. I have that option, plus Feedly, Bloglovin’, Linky Followers, and email in my sidebar. (My blogger profile isn’t linked to my Google+ profile, or I’d have that option in place as well.)

I’m wondering if people aren’t just skipping GFC now? I have several bloggers I follow that way but pulling up their profile reveals they’ve never followed me through GFC. They comment here all the time though, so they're following me somehow.

If the blogger has GFC, I still click to follow, and then go add their link to my Feedly Reader.

Are you guys still using GFC? Using something else instead?

Video Game News and Trivia!

Video games Need for Speed, Assassin’s Creed, Warcraft, and Angry Birds are all coming soon to the big screen – films are in the works.

And on that note, here’s some video game trivia for you:

1 - What is the best-selling iPhone game?

2 - How many Pokemon films have been made?

3 - What’s the highest grossing movie based on a video game?

4 - What is the longest running video game franchise still being made?

Ready for the IWSG and Anti-Blogfest next month? Surprised by the Sharknado craze? Know any of the trivia? And how do you follow blogs?