Unwanted Visitors by Harriette Sheffer Abels

 

Unwanted Visitors by Harriette Sheffer Abels is a science

fiction children's adventure book that features the Emergency Ship M88 and it's crew coming into contact with a not so new group of lifeforms. 

I have to say that I love science and I love to dream so science fiction is my jam. This was a fun little book I would have loved to have had as a child. I understand that there are many more books about the M88 crew and if it were not for that fact that I have books piled everywhere in my home I would certainly go looking for them. 

Who should read this book? Geeks who love to dream.

Books read:  calculate

Seeking High-Concept Stories

This was a letter responding to an ad for 'High-Concept Stories' to be turned into a graphic novel. I'm going to grant you that 'high-concept' means that it's easy to explain but the truth is that high-concept and lowest common denominator are closely related marketing terms. 

This is one of those situations where I can show the reply to the letter and you tell me if you think I should have spoken to any of my friends about this fellow.

26th December 2017

Hay there (Publisher),

I read your ad on Craigslist for material for a Graphic Novel. Well, I have my own work which is not published, and I happen to know a fellow who is a bestselling Sci Fi author who was thinking of turning his work into a graphic novel.

I’m sure you’d be most interested in the bestselling author, well, I’m going to need to see some art work before I recommend you to him. He’s not the kind of man I’d like to have mad at me.

As for my own work, I have a film/novel I’ve been trying to market. It’s a Cabin in the woods style slasher. It got me an A+ in college as a film script, and then I rewrote it as a novel. I’ve never been good about marketing these things, but it’s definitely high concept. These would be characters you’d like to see face off with Jason or Freddy. The novel goes a step further to include evil bikers and men in black.

I wrote this to be a lowest common denominator kind of work with a possibility for merchandising. I also have some harder Science Fiction but it would be a much more involved project.

In any case, let me know if any of that sounds interesting,


Richard Leland Neal
Reply:
"Lowest common denominator" kind of stuff really doesn't sound too appealing to me. But I would be interested to know what your author friend might be pitching. But I don't want to pretend that my operation is any bigger than it is. I have self-published a handful of comic books and graphic novels over the last decade, nothing big. I don't do any of the artwork myself, and instead hire artists that are a good fit for the material. I act more as the publisher and editor.

My Response to Reply:
"Lowest Common Denominator" is how Shakespeare wrote so you're not interested in anyone who has a 'bestselling Author' stamp and he's not pitching anything. We just had a conversation about turning one of his earlier works into a graphic novel.

Book Review: 'Dry Water' by Eric S. Nylund

What can be said about Eric S. Nylund's novel 'Dry Water'? It's inspiring. I loved this book and have read it at least three times. Each time I see more and get sucked into the deep rich world of the book.

This is the story of Larry a writer who can see the future. He's on his way to a small town to finish his next novel but what he finds their transcends the world of time and space. 

This book is the door to a wold of witches, spirits, and magic but told in a way that will make a Sci Fi geek want to keep reading. 

I know because I'm a Sci Fi geek and I would normally never pick up a book like this, but I'm glad I picked up this one.

You can see that Nylund as something of a Dungeons and Dragons background with the number of magics from different parts of the world mixed together and how the characters evolve. The magic is very well done and understandable. 

Who should read this book: People who like to read.

Total Books Read: 14 of 5000

Pages 311

Total Pages Read for 'The 5,000 Project': 2770

Sci Fi Editors

One of the pitfalls of posting letters daily as opposed to three times a week is that good, bad, whatever, you have to post.

The hope is that I can keep up daily posting for at least sixty days in order to get a good base going. The one thing I do have to say about that is that if you read something you don’t like wait a day and you might find something you do.

9^th November 2011

Dear Editors,

I am an unpublished author in any paying market, but I did place a few poems in my High School publication back in the day.

My story is called ‘Prodigal’ and runs 7,515 words. It involves an alien life form from a hive culture and his struggle for life.

There is only one human character who plays a very small part in this odd story. The story is certainly not new but it plays into the modern feelings of fear, uncertainty, and isolation that permeate today’s life. 

Thank you for your time,

Richard Leland Neal