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The Fading Twin Cover Reveal

What goes into the front of a book besides a cool image? First, it needs to convey genre at a glance. Genre is a promise of the familiar, and the cover needs to be close enough to other books in its genre while standing out, which is contradictory. Hopefully, the cover here does the heavy lifting needed to let potential readers know what they can expect within the pages. Also, the cover must…

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My Ideal Reader

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Top Five Monsters from a Science Fiction Novel

Science Fiction Monsters? Yes, Please I read science fiction, fantasy, and horror in various measures, and find sci-fi monster tales among my favorites. While the approach to beating the creatures might overlap with the other genres, the solutions (or lack of one) are where the stories excel. There’s an exploration of the nature of the monster often lacking or unnecessary in the horror…

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Favorite Flavor of Apocalypse?

Which books have kicked the world in the shins in a most entertaining fashion?

Starvation Island will be the concluding installment of the End-User Jack series, and I get to explore the cataclysm which has afflicted Jack’s real-world home known as the Tower. It got me thinking about how my favorite post-apocalyptic novels handled their end-of-the-world scenarios, and which ones did it best. In my books, I’ve brought the world to the brink with genetic engineering…

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Chop House Cover Reveal

Here’s a look at the cover of End-User Jack Book Two. Twelve chefs. One killer contest. Who will make it out of the kitchen alive? After the murder mansion, Jack realizes there’s more than his life on the line. The invaders inside the tower are seizing level after level as the corruption virus spreads to every network. Only Mr. Smiley’s latest competition offers a shred of hope. The mysterious…

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Crimson Gauntlet: Factions Release Week

Crimson Gauntlet: Factions is now live! Trapped following the deadly release of Crimson Gauntlet, Eddie Rush must fight to survive against hordes of murder machines and even his former allies. As the game spreads destruction across the globe, Eddie will need to rely on his wits and the help of his guildmate Laura to uncover the truth behind the spreading disaster. But beware. Crimson Gauntlet…

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Crimson Gauntlet by I.O. Adler  

The game can get under your skin… The preorder for Factions is now live! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BR2VR466

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The Year in Review

2022 was my favorite year of writing. It offset so many other things that made it a challenge. I’m grateful to all my readers who made it possible. Some highlights: I released seven books in the Old Chrome series, starting with The Seraph Engine, along with the Dawn Moriti spinoff adventure, Widowmaker Outpost, and the short story The Last Station. Shadows of Mars made it to the finals of the…

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Choose Your Class

Below the image is an excerpt from my litRPG novel Crimson Gauntlet. After surviving the first rush of monsters, Eddie Rush has been presented with a choice of class by the game rig sent to him by the mysterious developer somehow behind the attack. Each offers a unique way to combat the threat. Tell me in the comments which you would choose! Hacker. Learn to control Crimson Gauntlet lifeforms!…

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Reading Gateways Survey Results

Reading Gateways Survey Results

I asked my readers what their gateway was to reading. Here’s some replies: Enid Blyton short stories. History came up a couple of times, including ancient history and the American Civil War. Bookmobiles and libraries played a role with a few of us. The encyclopedia. Dracula. Tarzan by Edgar Rice Burroughs. Sci-fi, including Joan D. Vinge and Robert Heinlein. Three readers mentioned…

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What was your Gateway to Reading?

What was your Gateway to Reading?

What was your Gateway to Reading? I’ve heard the question a couple times lately for recommendations for a new reader in their teens who doesn’t like to read. My answer usually starts with more questions. What are they interested in? What have they read so far? What other interests overlap with genres of books? It got me thinking about how readers start reading. Many of us had parents who would…

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SPSFC Book Review: "Shadow of Mars" by I.O. Adler

SPSFC Book Review: “Shadow of Mars” by I.O. Adler

SPSFC review of Shadows of Mars. Some spoilers.

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Unlikeable Characters

Who’s your favorite odious protagonist? Some characters aren’t warm and fuzzy. Some are downright mean. Others fit into negative redemption arcs and you actively root against them. I read Dan Simmons’ Drood, and the main character goes from snobbish to villainous in the course of the novel, which wasn’t as strong as his others but well worth the read. Who stands out as a character you couldn’t…

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Story Length Survey

Story Length Survey How important is the length of a novel to you? Do you ever purchase novellas, novelettes, or short stories? The Perdition Run is Miles Kim’s sixth adventure, and as of right now it sits at a little over 30k words, a novella. The story is complete and I don’t intend to pad out to hit the 40k mark so I can call it a full novel. But I am curious whether its length will affect…

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The Post-Apocalyptic Purple Prose Contest Winner

Here’s the winning entry: The solitary figure, furtive in his ink-dark garb, sped with the haste of fair Mercury himself across the sun-scoured sand of this arid clime, laid waste by the poison fruits of mankind’s grim loins; yet lo! another, gaunt hips draped like yuletide mantels of yore with infernal machinations of death where scintillating garlands might in more propitious times rest,…

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How tolerant are you of cliffhangers?

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“The world does not care if you want to be an artist. You will always be full of doubt. You will very likely never make a satisfying living. You may get hurt. And yes, it is exhilarating. When it works, when you are firing on all cylinders, and there is a population that is leaning in to see, that can be rewarding in a way you can’t imagine.”

Bill T. Jones, choreographer.