Science Fiction.

Thursday night, SyFy reveals a pilot for a possible new series, Three Inches. It looks similar to Alphas, Heroes, and X-Men. Noah Reid stars with Buffy's James Marsters.

I updated my listing for the gay-themed book Holding Me Together.

I updated my video play list More Science Fiction and Fantasy and will add more to it later. It now includes movie trailers for The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, Wrath of the Titans, John Carter, Prometheus, Battleship, The Darkest Hour, Game of Thrones Season 2, The Dark Knight Rises, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, and The Avengers.

More Science Fiction and Fantasy Trailers, Etc.

Fantasy Movie Trailer.

Wrath of the Titans is coming in March. It looks like fun, with a variety of new or mythical creatures.

This is a so-called "literal video," meaning someone changed the words to a song in a music video, making it comment on the video itself. This one is of an 80's classic, Pat Benatar's Love Is A Battlefield.

Gay Movie Review: Buffering.

Summary:

The makers of Shank and Release change the tone for this funny British import. Boyfriends Seb and Aaron take drastic measures to save their finances, at the risk of ruining their relationship.

Text:

British filmmakers Christian Martin and Darren Flaxstone previously collaborated on the dark and disturbing drama Shank, followed by the ethereal and even darker movie Release. They completely change the tone with Buffering, a racy comedy about long-time boyfriends in a financial bind.

Overspending becomes a problem for boyfriends Aaron (Conner McKenzie) and Seb (Alex Anthony). Even after cutting up their credit cards, they might lose their car, and even their home. Aaron tries the extreme measure of taping their intimate moments for paid internet viewing, but doesn’t tell Seb.

Seb finds out, and their desperate scheme soon involves their handsome next-door-neighbor (Oliver Park as Mitch), their sexually ambiguous friend (Jessica Matthews as Gem), and an adult novelty store. From there, it all gets too crazy for Seb.

Despite some tears and the timely parallels to the real-life global recession, the plot stays light-hearted and playful. The band Nancy provides some fun songs and conveniently appears for a performance at the store.

Most of the scenes take place in or near that store or the boys’ home, though some of the more touching scenes involve Seb leaving those confines. Thanks to a funny script and good casting, viewers should enjoy seeing if it all works out.

Fans of sexy but sweet gay comedies like Longhorns or Trick can add Buffering to their list of repeated DVD viewing. Fortunately, the British accents are never too hard to understand.

Thanks for visiting my blog! Please read about The Acorn Stories and my free eBook, Degranon: A Science Fiction Adventure.

The new HD trailer for The Return of Innocence: A Fantasy Adventure.

Movies.

Please click on the following labels to find links to movie trailers, movie news or reviews (mostly scifi), and my gay movie reviews. I’ll post more reviews soon.

Books.

Please click on the following labels to find information about author resources, new books to discover, and my writing projects.

Acorn, West Texas Fiction.

Visit YouTube to see the new trailer for The Acorn Gathering: Writers United Against Cancer. Movie and book critic Amos Lassen has reposted Living In A Small Town, his review of The Acorn Stories.

Lubbock’s Texas Tech University will be one of numerous institutions around the country to present Standing on Ceremony: The Gay Marriage Plays.

Lubbock Online: Tech to participate in worldwide simultaneous performance.

Tech Announce: Standing On Ceremony: The Gay Marriage Plays.

This is Texas, a new book trailer for The Acorn Stories.

Gay Love Poem has received 250,000 views at YouTube. That video features Home, from my book Holding Me Together.

I redesigned the Degranon: A Science Fiction Adventure book listing.

Here are some 2012 science fiction trailers.

Alcatraz Series Premiere Promo Video.

Touch - Trailer (HD) starring Kiefer Sutherland.

Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance - Movie Trailer (2012) HD.

Underworld: Awakening 3D - Movie Trailer (2012) HD.

Degranon: A Science Fiction Adventure, Trailer #3 is now up at YouTube.

“A must read.” –StoneWall Society.

“An incredible book.” –Rainbow Reviews.

“A fascinating scifi excursion.” –gay author Ronald L. Donaghe.

This video shows flowers in the act of blooming. It looks like they reach toward the camera! Click on the white rose to start the show. Life of Flowers.

Terra Nova fans might enjoy the BBC America series Primeval, which involves anomalies that allow creatures from the past or the future to wander into our time. The fifth season premieres Saturday, November 12. It’s a fun show, despite too many cast changes.

I’ve linked to many reader and writer resources here in the past. Now I want to share a new one with a unique design, GenreBuds.Com. Details from their About page follow.

GenreBuds’s mission is to connect readers with books and friends in fun and effective ways. By using color coded genre tags/bubbles, GenreBuds allows users to quickly and easily see what other members like to read, and befriend them as “buds” to be kept up-to-date on all genre-related books.

Moreover, to encourage the thrill and adventure of reading, GenreBuds uses ribbons and points to reward members for contributing to the site. It is well known that books open new doors in life. Genrebuds believes in spreading literacy and in recognizing all members who help make its online community a vibrant and interactive network for readers around the world.

GenreBuds.Com

Please click on the following tags for more resources.

So far, 127 people added Degranon: A Science Fiction Adventure to their Goodreads lists, and another Goodreads reader has just given it a five-star review. Join the discussion of that diversity-themed scifi novel. Read more about Degranon: A Science Fiction Adventure, and find links to more scifi with gay characters.

Dallas Voice: Lubbock Pride Festival On. It's today.

More information:
http://www.outwestlubbock.org/

Updated FaceBook wall posts:
http://www.facebook.com/lubbockpride2011?sk=wall

Leona L Lee, author of Taxing Tallula, posted a review of Selected Poems, calling the eBook collection “Thoughtful and moving poetry.”

Read the review.

Selected Poems includes the gay love poem “Home,” the strange story of “The Gardener,” and the comical “Angels and Razors,” as well as thirty other poems.

I've revised my page for Degranon: A Science Fiction Adventure. I'll post an update soon about the upcoming sequel.

Blastr: 2011/2012: 52 sci-fi midseason shows, movies and miniseries. Alcatraz, Battlestar Galactica: Blood & Chrome, Being Human, Game of Thrones, Primeval, Stephen King's Bag of Bones, and more!

io9: The Ultimate Guide to Fall 2011’s Science Fiction and Fantasy TV.
uGO: Latest Science Fiction and Fantasy TV Stories.
eGuides.Com: Fall 2011 US Prime-Time Broadcast & Cable TV Schedule .
MovieFone: Science Fiction Movies Coming Soon.
Sci-Fi Movie Page Upcoming Movies.
Cybermage: The New Season for Science Fiction and Fantasy Fans.
Cybermage: Fall and Winter Science Fiction & Fantasy Book Recommendations.
Blastr: Zombies, Jedi and more in 19 returning sci-fi shows.
Blastr: New and Cancelled Shows.
Degranon: A Science Fiction Adventure.

Gay Movie Review: Judas Kiss.

Gay film favorite Charlie David stars as a reluctant movie festival judge who encounters a film with the same title as his past entry, made by a young man who shares his name. David leads an ensemble cast in a tale of magic and possible redemption.

Read my review at ThisWeekInTexas.Com.

Glossary for Degranon and Sons of Taldra

Glossary for Degranon and Sons of Taldra. Revision of post from 8/4/11. Use tags at the end to find related entries.

I don’t actually use all these terms within the books, but they served as part of the imagined worlds for me.

The planets.

Valchondria: Earth, but in another dimension. Its one-world government consists of the Maintainers, the Supreme Science Council, and Leader. Valchondrian, adjective.

Degranon: Valchondria’s only colony. They follow an ancient holy book, Degranon, which provided the name of their religion and their Valchondria-class planet. Degran, adjective.

Wah-edge: a planet that appears in Sons of Taldra, Chapter One.


The terms.

Breathed enough exhaust: fed up. That’s all I can take. Refers to hovercraft fumes.

Ceiling trunks: magnetic storage units.

Clean-ups: custodians.

Colonization: ended 1000 years ago. Valchondrians no longer allow outside contact.

Colorsighted: able to see in color, something the virus prevent in most people. The Maintainers force colorsighteds to hide their ability, because they supposedly want special rights or to disrupt society.


Commanche: Natives.

Control: the leader of a Degran circle/province.

Core rules: most basic laws.

Cosmetic healer: someone who gives facial modifications. A plastic surgeon.

Cradle: Africa, from references to that continent as the cradle of civilization.

Credit box: the Valchondrian version of a debit card, actually worn at all times as a belt buckle. Might include other apps. The Maintainers also have a communication device in their credit box. Instead of money, people keep their earnings at a credit bank.

Creen: a hot, stimulating beverage, high in anti-oxidants. Like an artificial tea.

Credit boxed: recorded as having used one credit box for a particular purchase, leaving an electronic trail.


Crumbled/rusted: crazy, senseless, useless. Common slang.

Danger speak or danger thought: something one might get into trouble for saying, or that simply might offend others.

Declaration of Legally Permitted Language: a sort of politically correct constitution. Not used in Sons of Taldra.

Dethua: tree that provides ugly, soundproof wood with green swirls. Used in construction and as a slow-burning heat source.

Disrupter: a trouble maker.

Docle: one of the few flowers left on modern Valchondria. Its stem makes great bread, while its big white blossoms (real or plastic) often appear in floral arrangements or in women’s hair.

Facial modifications: see Cosmetic healer.

Forgiveness: sorry.

Fully hidden: classified.


Gidalin: Australia. Aborigines accounted for most of the population until Valchondria became more mobilized.

Given name/chosen name: Parents give their child a name at birth. People choose a name when they become married. In most formal titles and settings, people use one’s given names. However, some (including Taldra) hate their given names and insist on their chosen name. No surnames or family names. Degrans call their parents Mother and Father, but modern Valchondrian children refer to their parents by chosen names.

Glide: skim through, usually in reference to wallscreen messages or channels.

Glory: used by Valchondrians as hello and goodbye. Also, some say “by glory” to express surprise or annoyance.

Gossip masters: tabloid media.

Gratitude: thank you.

Grav-free: adjective. Obvious meaning.

Gredga chips: a popular, sweet snack. Available freshly fried or processed.

Hand machine/palm machine: portable computer, but not interconnected with the Wall System.

Hasten: hurry.

Heavy cryptic: mysterious or intentionally vague.

Heavy hazard: dangerous, thought-provoking, or controversial. Something to avoid.

Heavy honor: flatter, compliment, or provoke gratitude. Not as formal as it might sound.

Hiliate: According to Jase-Dawn’s mother, “Hiliates were giant, six-legged creatures that walked on their back four legs but ran on all six legs. They were remarkable creatures, and they never attacked people, but they were hateful toward each other, and rather putrid in their odor.” The term “Son of a hiliate” is an insult or expression of anger.

Holo-casing: holographic wrapping paper for presents.

Holo-casting: illegal use of 3D images, for the purpose of protests or deceptions.

Holo-list: a list to receive holo-ads that spring from one’s credit box. Credit banks rent out the list and allow their system to be used for this purpose, but they only target the rich.

Hover: drive. Also, hovercraft, hoverbus, hoverfumes.

Injia Provina: Europe and Asia.

Iroquois: Natives. Watch for my blog entry about why Taldra’s family is Iroquois.

Largely: very, as in “That’s largely heavy hazard.”

Leader: the president of Valchondria is referred to simply as Leader.

Letherns: small canines.

Life mirroring: a life sentence to a prison of mirrors.

Mallwalkers/mallwalking. Mall shoppers/shopping. Not the same as elderly Americans who walk malls before the stores open.

Maintainers: people who, because of a specific genetic structure, see themselves as genetically superior. They serve as Valchondria’s police, judges, and juries. Uniforms are black and/or gray, listed here in order of ascending rank.

• Trainees (first-year officers): solid gray, except for black headband.
• Lieutenant: gray with black stripe down left arm. Black headband.
• Captain: Thick black stripe down the front. Black headband.
• Capital guards wear solid black suits and protect government officials. No headband. Rank equal to captain.
• General: gray uniform with black arms. No headband.
• Admiral: Two slanted black stripes down the front of shirt. Gray headband.

Mind relaxants: pain killers or sedatives.

Mind surge: flashy and trashy entertainment or propaganda. Dredge.

Morning lounge: room in a rich person’s home, with artificial trees, etc. that create a mock nature environment.

Move your feet this way: “come here” or “hurry.” Also, “Move your feet that way.”

Mohicans: Natives.

Naadloosh, alien shapeshifters. Watch for my blog entry about the Navajo influences on Sons of Taldra.

Navajo: Natives.

New Gidalin: New Zeeland. Aborigines from Gidalin colonize this previously uninhabited island.

North and South Edge: In modern Valchondria, North and South Poles. In the time travel sequence, earlier people saw North Edge as starting around what we would call the Canadian border.


North and South Turtle: North and South America. Inspired by Native American term Turtle Island.

Note: listen, mark my words.

One length: six feet.

The Power Holders: privately-owned company that owns the environmental regulators, the water supply, and the power plants, but not the Wall System.


Pressure Tournament: basketball meets Trivial Pursuit and holograms. Both books include references to it. Played in school. Click here for a deleted scene that involves this game: DuaneSimolke.Com: Pressure Tournament: Scene cut from Gay SciFi Sons of Taldra.

Recognize: think of, consider, understand, or acknowledge, as in “Recognize his efforts” or “I recognize that.”

Red-skinned people: people we might see as Native America, First Nation, American Indian, or the member of a particular tribe. The family at the heart of both novels is red-skinned. Similar terms refer to other ethnicities. I realize that the skin colors my characters refer to aren’t precise or entirely accurate.

Re-filter: mock, overanalyze, misinterpret, or insinuate. Also used in a more literal sense, as in “Re-filter that static-filled broadcast.”

Rock spiders: self-explanatory.

Same-gendered, both-gendered, op-gendered: reference to gender attraction, as in one is attracted to one’s own gender, both genders, or the opposite sex. Gay, bi, heterosexual.

See your aim/see my aim: understand, get the point, get the message.

Side that: never mind.

Solar/lunar: AM/PM.

Speak clearly: don’t equivocate. Also, “I speak clearly.”

Svey stone: a malleable, light-weight stone, initially used for making lamps.

Truthfully: honestly. Often used sarcastically, defensively, or just in explanation.

Two or twenty times: too often, or at least, it seems that way.

Undermall: an area beneath Valcine with illegal drug sales, illegal holo-casting sales, and most of Valchondria’s walkway people (homeless) population. Also used as an adjective for anything black market or otherwise illegal, as in “How undermall” or “drug undermall.”

Up-link wallscreen: upload to a wallscreen. Use hyphen.

The Uubsoov: alien race that attacked Valchondria’s second ship of colonists a millennium ago. (Sometimes called the Uubsoon.)

Valcine: the center of Valchondrian life—essentially, New York City. Valcini, adjective.

Verbal patterns: familiar and safe phrasings or arguments. Talking points.

Vid-chip: video stored on a small, square chip.

The virus: a manufactured illness that supposedly stops illness and delays aging. Besides slowly turning against the human body, it also causes most people to not hear certain musical tones and not see in color.

Vrix: a luminous rock, sometimes found in stalagmites and stalactites.

Walkway: side walk.

Walkway people: homeless people who congregate in Valcine. All other cities have banned walkway living, but Valcine’s size and structure foster it.

Walkway term: street talk.

Wallscreen: a system of video screens, run by the Wallsystem Conglomerate, that provide communication, news, and collected messages, as well as constant entertainment. Also used as a verb, as in “Wallscreen it to me.” Sometimes shorted to screen as a noun or verb.

Wallscreen houses: adults-only video establishments.

Wallscreen room: aka video room. Living room.

Winter plague: early name for influenza.


Read more about Degranon: A Science Fiction Adventure and Sons of Taldra. Note: the earlier working title for Sons of Taldra was Worried.

Entry revised 9/29/16.

Gay Movie Review: Finding Mr. Wright.

A weekend retreat with his train-wreck of a client might lead to love for a Hollywood manager. Matthew Montgomery produces and stars in this romantic comedy. Read my review at
ThisWeekInTexas.Com.

I updated the listing page for The Return of Innocence: A Fantasy Adventure.

Thanks to the many readers and writers who visit my blog!

For readers…
Half off these eBooks through July 31, 2011 at Smashwords:
Degranon: A Science Fiction Adventure. Gay-themed scifi!
Holding Me Together, fighting bigotry and promoting pride.
The Acorn Stories. Comedy, drama, and closet cases in a small town.

For writers…
From Publishing Basics, 3 Things You Can Do Offline to Drive Online Sales.
From author and publisher J. M. Snyder, Cheap & Easy Ways to Market Your Book Online.

The online writing critique sites Writers Cafe and Critique Circle both provide forums, critiques, links, and more for writers.

Children of God Movie Review.

Overlapping stories in the Bahamas involve anti-gay bigotry and other attitudes that keep the characters from happiness. Kareem Mortimer’s multi-award wining film challenges homophobic views while revealing breathtaking scenery. Read my review at ThisWeekInTexas.Com.

http://www.childrenofgodthemovie.com/

Degranon: A Science Fiction Adventure, winner of a Pride in the Arts Award, has been added by a hundred Goodreads readers!


The brilliant scientist Taldra loves her twin gay sons and thinks of them as the hope for Valchondria’s future, but one of them becomes entangled in the cult of Degranon, and the other becomes stranded on the other side of a doorway through time. Can they find their way home and help Taldra save their world?

bn.com
Fishpond.co.nz
Fishpond.co.au
Degranon: Kindle eBook
Germany
Excerpt: We’re Glad Our Son Is Gay
Excerpt: The Maintainers Arrive
Degranon: Reading Group Questions
Book Trailer 1
Book Trailer 2
Gay Science Fiction Worlds
Gay SciFi for Canadian Readers
Gay SciFi UK
Gay Science Fiction at bn.com

Violet Tendencies. Distributed by Embrem Entertainment.

A lovable fag hag enjoys the admiration of her gay friends but also wants true love. Her attempts lead to funny situations in this new Casper Andreas film. Read my movie review at ThisWeekInTexas.Com.

Elks taking over Banff, Alberta! Funny video for nature lovers.

The Degranon Goodreads page includes discussions of its themes, and a chance to mention other gay-themed scifi or fantasy works. Please join in the discussion and suggest more titles! More than 95 Goodreads readers now list Degranon among their Goodreads lists.

My books are now available in eBook formats for Nook, Kindle, and many other eReaders. Most of my books are still available in print, but eBooks account for the majority of my book sales now.

Germany: Books for German Readers. Science Fiction, Fantasy, Classics, Humor, Gay, LGBT, Queer Studies, Self-help, Religion, Religious, Diversity, Multiculturalism, Tolerance, Freedom, Civil Rights, Equality, Conflict Resolution, Peace, Ethnic, Disability, Cancer, Cultural Studies, Degranon, Holding Me Together, The Acorn Stories, Selected Poems, German Literature, German History in English, German History in German, German Travel in English, German Travel in German, German Cooking in English, German Cooking in German, Popular Books in Germany, Popular DVDs in Germany, Popular Music in Germany.

Degranon: A Gay-Themed Science Fiction Adventure. “A must read.” – Joe Wright, for StoneWall Society. “A reminder of the danger of fanaticism.” –Mark Kendrick, author of Stealing Some Time. “Duane Simolke's latest offering is a fascinating scifi excursion into a world as unique as his singular vision.” –Ronald L. Donaghe, author of Cinátis. “This is an incredible book about the human condition and how one person striving for the good can, in the end, be a source of change.” –Rainbow Reviews.

Poetry fans, aspiring poets, and/or romantics might enjoy the blog Love Poem for Him, where Joan shares advice about how to write poems for a boyfriend or husband. She also posts videos of love poems for him (including one of my poems), and might eventually post some of her own poems.

Book Announcement: The Misfit of Supernatural High (Supernatural High Series) by Shawn C. Sproatt, illustrated by Anastasia Cooper.

Description: 15-year-old Wanda Windsor is not the most popular student at Hecate High. In fact, amongst her fellow witches, the fairies, the shifters, the vampires, and the werewolves, she's one of the least popular students. However, she never thought anyone hated her enough to try attack her. During her sophomore year someone uses mind control on other students to force them to hurt Wanda, and she manages to just barely escape each attack. Wanda isn't sure who would want to hurt her, but she's fairly certain it has to do with the introverted new student who has visions of the future.

When she isn't dodging death, Wanda spends her time trying to pass Geometry, avoiding (unsuccessfully) the subject of boys, and getting into mischief with her friends.

Visit ShawnCSproatt.com and her blog Musings of a Writer.

Another resource for readers and authors, Red Room, “where the writers are.” The site helps readers find books, while helping writers find support, advice, and new readers. Please visit my Red Room profile.

Reposted book review: Living in a Small Town: The Acorn Stories (short fiction).

One Writer's Beginnings by Eudora Welty

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This book includes some great passages for reading aloud. She captures her love for words, books, and writing.



View all my reviews

Lloyd Oliver, one of the Navajo Code Talkers, has just passed away, leaving only one more of the original 29. Read more in Yahoo! News. Please also visit
the official Code Talkers site. These Native American heroes dumbfounded the Nazis by creating a secret code based on the Navajo language.

Google News: Code Talkers.

Discovering Texas Tales.

My West Texas fiction collection The Acorn Stories has received another four-star review at GoodReads.

Read the reviews of TAS at Kirkus, Amazon.Com, GoodReads, bn.com (2nd edition), and bn.com (1st edition).

Writing Sons of Taldra, back when I called it Worried

Writing a novel, Part 2: the sequel to Degranon: A Science Fiction Adventure.

I just combined Chapters 24 and 25 of Worried. The scenes in that newly combined chapter set up the nonstop action that carries readers through the rest of the novel. Contrasted pacing has been an important part of Worried, with quiet scenes often set between action scenes, light scenes between darker ones, and romance between tragedy. That counterbalance keeps adding to the intensity. It also makes the reading more unpredictable.

Earlier this week, I added a new scene, with one of the minor characters reflecting on some of the more disturbing elements within the storylines, while also finding comfort in the arms of a friend. Sometimes, I find a need to add or expand scenes, because—as a reader—I often wonder about the responses and impacts of certain events on the characters. These scenes can connect the characters, events, emotions, etc. to each other. It helps make the story more involving and run more smoothly. Connections seam the narrative together and keep it cohesive.

Writing a novel: the sequel to Degranon: A Science Fiction Adventure.

I’m still revising Worried and will probably continue for most of 2011. Worried is my first novel to write from scratch. The others started as short stories that I kept expanding over the years.

After starting with an outline, I wrote Worried’s thirty-three chapters over the past few years. Of course, the final version might contain more or less chapters.

I hand wrote each chapter, later revising them as I typed them. Revisions of each chapter continued, between writing new chapters.

With all of them finished, I went back and added more scenes. One conflict, for example, ended too quickly, so I rewrote that scene. Leaving the resolution incomplete led to new scenes that, I think, provide some of the novel’s most exciting moments.

Worried’s final chapters strayed from the outline, as I knew they might. Some of the relationships between characters also developed in ways other than what I had imagined. I stay open to possibilities. An outline provides a helpful roadmap, but it can always go in the glove compartment—or out the window—in favor of something better.


Other revisions from here largely involve word choice, clarification, and description. They also stress consistency with the novel’s brief timeline, and with the first book in the series.

Will there be more in the series? I would like to write at least one more. I love these characters, and this new book develops them much more, making me want to explore what happens to them next. I might think I know, but I won’t find out until I write it.

For more, see Chapter 1 Draft at Goodreads and Worried Teaser, Spoiler Alert.

Click on the Worried tag below, to read more about writing Worried.

Native American First Nation Men. From Letstalkaboutstuff: "Just a tribute and awareness vid to Native American First Nation men who are very talented actors. It would be nice to see them in even more films."

The video's description page includes several links for learning more about the actors.

"Secretly" - A Vintage Montage Of Guys Together. MJS posted this romantic video, with music by Jimmie Rodgers and black and white photography of men embracing.

Angie Smibert, a member of the YA writing group The League of Extraordinary Writers, posted the blog entry Gay Teens in YA Science Fiction and Fantasy. The entry examines gay-positive depictions in sf/f and asks about others.

According to the their statement, “The League of Extraordinary Writers is a group of debut YA authors who write science fiction and dystopian works. The five of us have works that run the gamut of near-future mind control to far-future space travel, but they do have one thing in common: a future where the Earth we know now is twisted, gone.”

The trailer Gay Science Fiction has received over 6000 views at YouTube. Keywords: adventure Degranon gay books gay writing writers scifi sci-fi sci fi syfy sf fantasy novels race weight discrimination racism oppressive laws war civil war diversity queer LGBT gay-friendly characters fantastic fiction time travel

West Texas fiction review: “The Acorn Stories”–living in a small town.

On Feb. 17, Hero author Perry Moore passed away from an apparent overdose of pain medication. Moore also produced the Narnia movies; details about his projects appear at MovieWeb and doorQ.

The novel Hero involves a gay teen who joins a group of superheroes. I had written an extremely brief review of Hero, which follows.

I grew up loving DC Comics superheroes, so I enjoyed the many nods to them here. Hero pokes a little fun while playing homage, but it also explores the "secret life" themes in engaging ways.

Book and movie critic Amos Lassen has re-posted his review of New Readings of Winesburg, Ohio.

Read the review, Rethinking Gertrude Stein.

Love Those Excerpts features "Daily excerpts for books of all genres - Romance, Horror, Sci Fi, Fantasy, Suspense, Paranormal, Inspirational, Erotica, Mystery, Historical - and everything in between!"

Today's book excerpt involves two gay men in love.

Some recent authors at Love Those Excerpts...
Jules Bennett
Joey W. Hill
Rebecca Royce
Erin Nicholas
by Lori Foster
Lorelei James
L.L. Foster
Sandy Sulivan
Susanne Saville
Desiree Holt
Sam Cheever
April Reid
Sam Cheever
Sandra K Marshall
Charisma Knight
Marie Treanor
Eve Knight
Zetta Brown
Jean Hart Stewart
Carolina Valdez

This video from Dogwork will appeal to many animal lovers: Doggy and Deer.

The video Fight Cancer has received 1300 views at YouTube.

Native American Resources.

We Shall Remain: PBS Series
Native Languages of the Americas: Preserving and promoting American Indian languages
The American West: Native Americans
Kid Info: Native Americans
Native Americans in North Georgia: Moundbuilders, Creeks, Cherokee, Trail of Tears...
42explore2.com: American Indians
Google Timeline for Native Americans
Google News for Native Americans
Native American Chart
Texas Indians
Native American Lore Index Page
Native American Cultures
November is Native American Heritage Month
Native American Legends: First Owners of the American West
Native Tech: Native Technology and Art
Indian Country Today Media Network

To read more, click on the Native American tag below.

SciFi/Fantasy 2011, Part 3.

Stomping on Yeti: 2011 Debuts: Science Fiction

Stomping on Yeti: 2011 Debuts: Fantasy and Steampunk

Fantasy & SciFi Lovin' News & Reviews: Most Anticipated Books of 2011

I’ve just finished the second draft of Worried: A Science Fiction Adventure, the sequel to Degranon. I will probably spend most of the year revising it, but hope to see in print in 2012, if not sooner.

Readers and writers, please visit the Goodreads discussion New Science Fiction and Fantasy Books in 2011. Which new scifi or fantasy books are you looking forward to in 2011? If you're an sf/f author, do you have any stories or novels coming out this year? Join the discussion to share.

Also from Goodreads, Indie Books - 2011 Releases in Paranormal Fiction and Science Fiction for 2011.

Win a gay eBook!

Holding Me Together features many of my poems (including the gay love poem Home) and essays (including the multi-part essay Reactions to Homophobia).

One reader will win a free eBook PDF on Feb. 15, 2011. Contest details.

The contest involves my January 14, 2011 blog entry.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Degranon: A Science Fiction Adventure is the book of the day at AuthorIsland. Visit to read about it, and for a chance to win a PDF eBook.

“This is an incredible book about the human condition and how one person striving for the good can, in the end, be a source of change.” –Rainbow Reviews

“DEGRANON is sci-fi that warrants the attention of any serious aficionado, gay or straight, fascinated by alien worlds that mirror our own world.” –William Maltese, author of Beyond Machu

Use the coupon code TE82T to save half off the eBook of Degranon: A Science Fiction Adventure at Smashwords. Expires 2/15/11.

SciFi/Fantasy 2011, Part 1

SciFi/Fantasy 2011, Part 2:

From Blastr (SyFy):

• How Spielberg's Falling Skies aliens will be DIFFERENT
  
• 55 Movie Trailers
  
• Pics from Spielberg’s Terra Nova
  
• SciFi/Fantasy Novels
  
• 11 TV Shows We’re Looking Forward to in 2011
  
• 11 Movies We’re Looking Forward to in 2011

Mad Hatter’s Bookshelf & Review: Looking Forward to 2011 Science Fiction Novels
io9: 55 Science Fiction & Fantasy Movies to Watch Our for in 2011
io9: Ultimate Guide to Science Fiction & Fantasy Television in 2011

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Role/Play: Gay Movie Review.

Just in time for Valentine’s Day, filmmaker Rob Williams offers a gay romantic comedy that explores issues impacting many of his viewers. Steve Callahan and Mathew Montgomery co-star in a new release from Guest House Films. Read my review at ThisWeekInTexas.Com.

Also for Valentine’s Day, Gay Love Poem.

Start your new year with a laugh!



Waking Up Is Hard to Do. Medical, musical humor from the Laryngospasms.