First Loves Blogfest and Ninja News!

Today is the First Loves Blogfest! Your first movie, first music (song/band,) first book, and first person. Four loves, one blogfest!

(And between my regular blogger buddies and a hundred and seventy blogfest participants, I did not get to everyone on Monday. If I missed your blogfest entry, rest assured I will visit you Tuesday. After two hundred blogs today, it's all beginning to blur...)

First, Ninja News! 

(Because something is always happening around here…)

Jeremy at Geeky Tendencies is celebrating a hundred followers! He has teamed up with GIANTmicrobes to host a giveaway in order to celebrate. Check out his blog for details.

My friend Dafeenah at Indie Designz worked with several others and started Ebook Deal of the Day. They offer low-priced and free eBooks for the iPad and the Kindle. Check out the information and links at her SITE.

This month, Laura Eno is on her Enchanted Life Book Tour. Go visit her for the full schedule. Congratulations, Laura!

Rick at The Writer and the White Cat had a big announcement last week – “White Cat Publications, LLC. is pleased to present the submission guidelines for its first anthology, Airships & Automatons, edited by Charles P. Zaglanis.” Congratulations, Rick!

Diablo III comes out Tuesday! Yes, I might be picking it up at midnight Monday night. Then I can play it all day long on my laptop at work.

Very cool news! CassaFire jumped back into Amazon's Best Sellers for science fiction/space opera last week!!

Due to some mean-spirited, anonymous comments, I’ve had to adjust the security on my comments. Sorry about that – hope it won’t be for long. In the meantime, pray for the anonymous commenter(s).

FIRST LOVES BLOGFEST!

Movie – Jaws
This movie scared the crap out of me. I was even afraid to lift the toilet seat lid. Every time I swam in the deep end of the pool, the music haunted me. Despite all of that, seeing this film in the theater was exhilarating. It was a pure adrenaline rush and the first big summer blockbuster. It made me realize that movies could be major events.

Music – Rush
This was the first band I felt made music specifically for me. It dealt with complex subjects and ideas. The band never dumbed down their music or lyrics – they felt fans were smart enough to keep up. (Which is one of the reasons I so admire progressive rock.) If I was down, I could play a Rush song and it would turn my day around. And that is still true today!

Book – The Sword of Shannara by Terry Brooks
I read The Hobbit and LOTR in grade school but found them ponderous and frustrating at times. Then I discovered this book. Brooks took a similar formula and made it more accessible. It’s one of the few books I’ve ever read more than once. (Read it three times as a matter of fact!) Definitely launched my love of fantasy and of writing.


Person – My wife
Yes, my wife was my first love. She’s been with me so long that I even insert memories of her into my life before we met. She has really taught me a lot about opening up, dealing with others, and becoming a better person. I truly admire her work ethic. She works harder in one day than I do in a month. (Really!) She is an all around joy and I am blessed to have her in my life.

Thank you to everyone who signed up for my blogfest! Please visit others on the list below.

Want to win a GIANTmicrobe from Jeremy? Looking for deals on eBooks? See a good movie this weekend? (Sorry, didn’t go to the theater, but we did watch Hugo again – damn that film is brilliant!) And what are YOUR first loves???

The First Novel That Moved Me

I signed up for Brad Jaeger’s blogfest, The First Novel That Moved Me, and almost forgot! Hey, a lot's happening this month for me! Fortunately, I did remember, and it takes me back a few years… (Okay, more than a few!)

Ever have one of those questions that took all your brainpower to plumb the depths of memory in search of a valid answer? That's not the case with this particular question. I was an avid reader as a kid (mostly Science Fiction) but most of it zipped by like scenery during a long car trip.

That is until I read the epic fantasy work "The Sword of Shannara" by Terry Brooks. It was the summer of 1977 and I was in search of something to occupy my brain when I ran across a book that had nothing to do with alien races and space battles. Instead, I was swept away to a world filled with elves, dwarves and magic. This was a classic high fantasy that helped re-ignite the genre. I had no idea that the novel was homage to "The Lord of the Rings" and even though I now see the book as slightly derivative, it doesn't lessen the impact that this novel had on a young boy.

I have re-read the book several times (one of the only books that I have ever re-read) and it always transports me back to the summer of ‘77. The storyline has been copied a billion times since its initial publishing but I hold this book as the pinnacle that all fantasy novels aspire to achieve.

So, what novel moved YOU?

BIG announcement tomorrow, too!