#atozchallenge Finding Out About Speculative Fiction

My theme this year is blogging about my author brand. Tuesdays are posts on Speculative Fiction.



Finding Out About Speculative Fiction

What is Speculative Fiction? My local Barnes & Noble doesn't have a section with that name. It doesn't have a genre category on Amazon. Does it even exist?

"Speculative fiction is a broad category of fiction encompassing genres with certain elements that do not exist in the real world, often in the context of supernatural, futuristic or other imaginative themes. These include, but are not limited to, science fiction, fantasy, horror, superhero fiction, alternate history, utopian and dystopian fiction, and supernatural fiction, as well as combinations thereof." - Wikipedia -Speculative Fiction

There's a new, more colorful version at annieneugebauer.com

There are images showing what it is. Diagrams that list a few examples. An excellent blog article about it states:
"Speculative fiction is any fiction in which the “laws” of that world (explicit or implied) are different than ours."
https://annieneugebauer.com/2014/03/24/what-is-speculative-fiction/

One runs into some debates where a reader suggests the "speculative" part could be true. The ancient gods might walk among us, a zombie breakout could happen tomorrow, 👽 and there's no concrete evidence that alien life doesn't exist somewhere. Ah, but 🤔, to qualify for the  Speculative Fiction umbrella, the story only needs to be different from the current laws or rules that the majority of people accept at the time of publication.

In other words, you just need enough people to believe it the story world has a fictional element.

Want to try turning your speculative fiction setting into a character?




When did you first hear of Speculative Fiction?

#atozchallenge Education - Character Insight #writing

My theme this year is blogging about my author brand. Mondays' are posts are about characters.



Education - Character Insight

One way to distinguish between characters in fiction is to look at education. Not just how and where they were educated, but how they feel about education. As an example, I'll discuss a few of my characters from the Existence series.

Five of the main characters of Fractions of Existence had attended the Apollo Cheever Academy (a fictional school) in the late 1980s to the late 1990s. The school becomes a setting again in a later book in the series, and in some of the short stories that are floating around the web.

Xavier:

• Apollo Cheever Academy
• Harvard

Xavier was a good student, but not the best student. He wanted to be done with school and move on to doing, to living, and to changing the world. Xavier was bored with school because he remembers more than the others do. He feels everyone should have as much education as they desire.

Heath

• Apollo Cheever Academy
• MIT

Heath is a fantastic student who excels at anything he studies. Were his parents around to give permission, he would have graduated from the Academy in seventh-grade. Luckly, it's a very good school, so he was able to take college-level courses while there.

"Why do people always underestimate how much I know? My IQ is in the ninety-nine point ninth percentile. TNS!"

Heath has multiple degrees, but rarely ever mentions it. He believes learning is a life-long pursuit. Oppressing people by denying them knowledge, or by teaching inaccurate information, angers Heath. No one realizes it, but Heath uses his power, influence, and money to get a lot of people into college. Especially women who are fighting for it. Heath would have you believe that he's going to the private room of a strip club for sex. In reality, he's back there helping the lady with her math homework.

His love of knowledge is his most guarded secret. The porn collection he leaves out in plain view. The floor below his apartment? Only Xavier and one building employee know that it's one of Heath's private libraries.

Gwendolyn (Wend)

Wend is in college because that's the next step in the plan. She majors in music at Moorpark. She didn't attend Apollo Cheever Academy. In fact, she's never heard of it. Wend went to public school. She thinks the current system is fine, that everyone is getting just the right amount of education. Actually, she's never given it a lot of thought. Like most political matters, she doesn't think she matters enough to change anything, so she simply doesn't think about it. (At least not in book one.)

There you have it.
Three characters, three different viewpoints on education. It's one of the many ways that similar characters can be different from each other.



Do you feel that every child should get the best education possible? Should access to knowledge be restricted based on family income?

#IWSG April 2020 update #COVID19Pandemic #COVID19 #CoronavirusPandemic #NativeAmericans

(For A to Z posts, keep scrolling.)

April 2020 update
April 1 question -The IWSG’s focus is on our writers. Each month, from all over the globe, we are a united group sharing our insecurities, our troubles, and our pain. So, in this time when our world is in crisis with the covid-19 pandemic, our optional question this month is: how are things in your world?

My world isn't all that ruined. I'm off from work, which is difficult but logical. Honestly, I could walk away from society and go back to living in the woods. It wouldn't bother me. Overall, I'd prefer it. There are a few reasons I don't, but they aren't mattering nearly as much right now.

Except one.

My Snookums is not so very prepared for days like these. I do worry for my spouse, who has gotten a bit stir-crazy. Is anyone else trying to write (or blog) (or blog on your own blog, a blog where you're a team member, and another blog where you're a co-host and there's a challenge with about 500 people involved right now...) while someone you live with is going crazy?

"Did you clean those keys? Let me just... stop typing! I'm trying to wipe your keyboard..."

Yeah. Third time today. Love you, Snookums.

It must be love, or my 🙄eye rolls🙄 would be committing murder. Just kidding.

Hunting, fishing, making my own clothing, living outside -- I've done all of these things enough in my life. If it comes to it, I'll do it again.

But I hope the world heals. And I hope there's healthcare for everyone in the United States soon. I'm reminded again that I'm a savage, that my people were savages, and that to be a savage meant that we never left one of our own to die because they didn't have money. Leaving the poor to rot is something only civilized people can justify. Then again, a huge chunk of my people were wiped out by pox blankets, so really, what do I know, what do any of us know?

I'm angry that so many tribes are being denied access to healthcare and clean water. Angry, but not surprised. It has been that way for a very long time. The pandemic just sheds extra light on it. It wouldn't shock me if another genocide came to take out the Native Americans that are locked onto reservations. It'll end up being a "recoverable backlash" by the politicians that make the choice. Yes, there's an election coming up. But voting rights of people on reservations have always been dicey.

See, I tried to start this post off lighthearted and positive. But if I think about it, write about it, a lot of darkness comes out. Anyone else use Grammarly? There's a tone detector to tell you how your writing is coming off.

I've scored a sad face.

So maybe I'm not as okay as I say. But really, is anyone these days?

#atozchallenge Dream catchers

My theme this year is blogging about my author brand. Saturdays are posts about Native American interests, or Lenni-Lenape ones.



DREAM CATCHERS

The dream catcher was originally created by the Algonquian-speaking people called the Ojibwe, also known as the Chippewa. The Lakota, part of the Great Sioux Nation, also had dream catchers. As the two are considered rivals, it's impossible to say for certain who came up with them first. (To make matters more complicated, there are also dream catchers in ancient traditions on other continents. Much like several cultures who should have never met all opted to build pyramid-shaped structures.)

Each part of a dream catcher has a purpose. The materials chosen are specific to the individual. It can be as much about inviting good in as about keeping bad away. However, the main function of the dream catcher web is to trap negativity. They are made to protect the sleeper. It's important that dream catchers are exposed to the morning light every day.

Why do people hang them against walls, in rooms without morning light, in cars, or tattoo them on themselves? Why are they sometimes made of plastic? How can something that is meant for an individual be mass-produced? Is this cultural appropriation?

Perhaps there are some who are well-meaning. "I want something that looks Native American, but don't want to take from them." One issue with this statement is that there are many different tribes, nations, people, and cultures being lumped into one. Second, if you buy a plastic one and it doesn't "work," well… duh? Even funnier, if you get one inked on your body and it traps negativity (bonus if you also have a spider tattoo), that probably isn't a well thought out plan. (Or maybe it is, if your goal is a life of pain, terror, darkness, and bad luck.) You might have been well-meaning, but a lack of research could really doom you.

And then there are people who have dream catchers that don't have a round circle. If that's well-meaning, it should have a different name, or at least say it's art "inspired by" dream catchers. These things have a purpose and a reason, a story behind them, and beliefs of people -- too many of which are no longer here to tell their stories.

Native American Communities And COVID-19
How the coronavirus threatens Native American communities

Have you ever thought about dream catchers before?

Councilwoman Clorinda Flizwatter #atozchallenge #Story

My theme this year is blogging about my author brand. Fridays are a story told in parts. This story fluctuates between modern times and centuries ago.



LUMBER OF THE KUWEAKUNKS - part 1

Police arrived before parents did at Tuck Academy. Ricky Turner and May Flizwatter had gone missing in the middle of class.

"Excuse me," Lilia Turner pushed her way through the growing crowd. She squinted against the noonday sun, finally spotting the sheriff and the academy principal. "Where’s my son?"

"Ma’am, it’s going to be okay." The sheriff dropped his beefy hand on her shoulder. She winced, as this pulled her long, black hair. "We’ve got the school locked down and I have someone at every exit. The troopers have roadblocks up just in case."

"In case?" Lilia threw his hand away. "In case what?" She turned to the principal. "How did you lose an eight-year-old boy? He’s supposed to be safe at school." She pointed to the main entrance. "What good is all that security? The cameras, the buzzer, everything we paid thousands of dollars to have installed."

The principal opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by a woman screeching his name.

"You!" Clorinda stomped past Lilia and the sheriff. The edge of her smartphone poked the principal’s chest. "What’s the meaning of this? How do you not know where my daughter is?" The sheriff told her to calm down. The resulting snarl made him take a step back.

"Councilwoman Flizwatter, please, let me explain."

"You better explain! I will have this academy shut down and you jailed for child endangerment. You hear me?" Clorinda spit as she spoke, the spray moistening the principal’s face.

Lilia snapped her pink silicone breast cancer awareness bracelet. She contemplated going head to head with the town rhino, or just letting this charge proceed. "Clorinda, let him talk. We both need to know what happened."

The beast turned, her eyes widened, and her teeth bared. "We? What business is it of yours? My daughter is missing! You plan to use that in your little campaign? How dare you call me thoughtless and ruthless and then have the gall to show up here and attack me when my child is nowhere to be found."

"My son is gone, too. Not everything is about the election."

Clorinda rounded on the principal again. "Two children? You lost two children?"

The sheriff had a brief conversation on his radio before interrupting Clorinda’s rant. "Ms. Miller is coming out to speak with you both."

Ms. Miller, the second-grade teacher, recounted the events. They were doing the history lesson. Students had been put into groups of four. May and Ricky were in a group with William and John. Everyone was working on their history projects. The doors and windows of the classroom were closed. No one had come in or gone out.

"Obviously, that isn’t true." Clorinda scoffed. "Our two children must have gotten past you."

"I was standing between them and the door." Tears streamed down Ms. Miller’s face. "They were there, and then they were gone."

"Children do not vanish. My daughter did not just disappear."

The teacher blew her nose. "They did, I swear it. Ricky had his hand up. I said I would be right over. I finished helping another student, it was less than a minute, and then," she cried harder, "they were gone."

"Did my son take his medicine before this happened?"

Ms. Miller shook her head. "It wasn’t lunchtime yet."

Lilia’s legs gave out. She crumpled to the ground, the sheriff missing as he tried to catch her. 

Come back next Friday for another installment of this story.
Where do you think these children are?

ABC 'Bout J Lenni Dorner #atozchallenge

Thursdays this month are going to be aBout me. If you use Facebook, you've probably seen survey posts where people get to know each other. I'm going to fill out one a week for April.



This one is an ABC. I'll add an extra B option for any question that needs it!

A Age : The estimation is that I'm 40. Best age: 25.
B Biggest Fear : Being caged and burned.
C Current Time : Matters less than people think. Current Behavior: Focused and responsible
D Drink You Had Last : Water Drink with a B: Birch Beer soda
E Easiest Person To Talk To : My Snookums. Easiest B-name Person To Talk To: Bryan
F Favorite Movie : Die Hard or Mallrats Favorite Movie that starts with a B: Braveheart
G Grossest Memory : Melting flesh. Grossest bar you've drank in: Jake's, which has shut-down.
H Hair color: Dark brown, almost black 
I In Love With : My Snookums Interested in: Book reading
J Jealous Of : Bakers who just "magically" know their craft
K Killed Someone : Seriously, who is filling these surveys out and admitting to murder on social media? And who in their right mind is staying friends with the people who are using social media to confess to killing? I'm not saying some people don't have a good reason to kill. But is Facebook, a survey, where you go to talk about it? Are Jason Voorhees and his mom filling this out? Kill time a better way: Board games
L Longest Romantic Relationship : My Snookums. Longest B-word off the top of my head: bloodthirstiness 
M Middle Name : I picked Lenni. (I didn't understand the question at the time. I barely understand it now that I'm adult. Naming customs are so freaking weird.) Best Middle show: Malcolm in the Middle
N Number of Siblings : Biologically, none. But plenty if we count other ways. A few who kept in touch.
O One Wish : More of the Lenni-Lenape ways to be brought back to most of society.
P Person Who You Last Called : I don't make phone calls. Person who you last mailed a letter to: Bonita
Q Question You're Always Asked : "So, you can't speak at all?" Followed by questions ranging from ignorant to personal to medical to 😳 a total lack of social decorum. Question for readers of this: Besides the #atozchallenge, what Blog hops do you enjoy?
R Reason To Smile : There are still trees in the woods, and freshly baked bread smells awesome
S Song Last Sang : I don't sing. Last B song heard: Kill Hannah - Believer
T Time You Woke Up : A little after dawn. Time you went to bed: 1am
U Underwear Color : At the moment, slate gray boxers with dark blue squares.
V Vacation Destination: Just leave me in the woods. Or maybe Bangor, Maine 
W Worst Habit : Being overly critical of myself
X X-Rays You've Had : A few. I don't really remember it all. X-rays are usually of bones.
Y Your Favorite Food : Sushi. Especially ending with tamago or tamagoyaki. I haven't tried Bara sushi.
Z Zodiac Sign: Leo, according to the guessed date. Zodiac Birth twin: The date that was guessed and put on my form is, oddly enough, the same date that someone who would marry my cousin and become my friend was actually born.

 

Let me know your answer to the question I asked in Q!

#atozchallenge #bookreview Ayana by Geetha Krishnan

My theme this year is blogging about my author brand. Wednesdays' posts are for Book Reviews.



Ayana: The Journey by Geetha Krishnan



I absolutely loved this book. I know very little about the many mythologies, legends, and lore from India, but enjoy finding out about them. (I do not know how much of this is a retelling of legends and how much is filled in by the author. Either way, I found it incredibly enjoyable.) My friend suggested this book to me, knowing how much I love these kinds of stories. She was so very right! I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys stories about omnipotent beings disguised as humans. I read the whole book in a few hours, barely able to put it down, wanting to know how it would turn out for Sita.

The plot is complex as some characters have multiple identities and lives, yet it is easy to follow along. The story is entertaining and fun to read. The author, who is from India according to the bio, came off as an authority to me. I would gladly read another work by this author.

I'm not sure where the title comes from or what it means. The cover image with the woman on fire does make sense, and in fact comes in to play in the opening. I'm also unclear as to what a Hala-Hala is, though I'm guessing it's a kind of poison. And what is a Pushpakavimana?  (I found out on Google that it's a self-moving chariot.) I learned myths and a few words from this book.

Third-person POV is used throughout the story, as the thoughts of different characters are needed in some scenes.

A favorite line of mine was, "I am not going to do an unrighteous thing just because I have the power and ability." If I were to guess, I believe that Vishnu is the favored character and diety of this author.

Everything in the book seemed to have a purpose. The settings, especially the paintings, were well done. The friendship between two characters, and the love between two characters, reminded me very much of the similar beings in my own book series. It made me love the story even more. 

I believe the theme, the life-lesson, was not to trick someone into being yours. A very appropriate lesson for this review, which I am writing on April Fools' day. I believe the story about why coveting is frowned upon is beneficial to society.

I don't know this author, but a friend of mine is friends with her on Facebook.


(A missing period, the word 'though' instead of thought, 'on' instead of or, 'life' instead of lift, and the first page of Chapter 63 appears to have been missed by the editor. A shame, as the rest of the writing is so flawless and makes the author seem like a fantastic story-teller. This is well worth ignoring a handful of small typos.)

Twitter @ormakal 


What book has a friend recommended to you lately?