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Thursday, May 9, 2019

CYBERCON!!!!!

I am pleased to announce that CyberCon is back! The biggest online book fair ever is waiting in the wings, ready to explode once again starting on May 17th. The event this year is being hosted by a new group, OurWriteSide, that has plenty of veterans from the previous CyCons. For personal reasons, Angela had to drop out this year and left this institution to them.
This is my portion of the blog-hop, a traveling side-show where we humble ourselves before our fellow writers. It's our pleasure to bring you information about each other in the hopes that new readers will discover new writers.


About The OWSCyCon Fantasy Blog Tour


As part of the OWS CyCon 2019, we asked our fantasy authors to write about what makes their world, or the world of another author unique. Each of them has come up with very different answers which reflect their writing processes, their research methods, and their views on world building.
We hope you find these insights interesting, and that they maybe give you some new things to think about when you pick up a new book, or even start writing your own.

After reading this interview, be sure to check out the responses from our other fantastic writers: https://owscycon.ourwriteside.com/fantasy-events-at-cycon/fantasy-blog-tour-what-makes-an-authors-world-unique/


I am very proud indeed to introduce you to a man that has no problems crossing realms and genres. His books run from paranormal to science fiction and off into historical fantasy. And like myself, he has a romantic streak that makes him put a little of that genre into each tale. Here are his own words, so pull up a chair and get to know him.

What Makes an Author’s World Unique?
By Stephen B. Pearl

What makes my fantasy world Unique?
I’m going to limit myself to my paranormal romance novel, Worlds Apart:  https://www.amazon.ca/Worlds-Apart-Stephen-B-Pearl/dp/0987972685 , because each of the worlds I’ve crafted is special in its own way.
In Worlds Apart Markus, the male protagonist comes from a world where magic is empowered, but electricity is a mythical belief that under certain circumstances electrons could break free of their atoms and travel along materials know as conductors. Crazy notion, yes? The thought that electrons could do more than combine with other nearby atoms. The psions in the inter-monocular spaces would never allow it.
Imaginary sub-atomic physics aside, I played with how this would affect human society. I began with University degrees. A Witch is a one or two-year trade-collage program. An Enchanter / Enchantress is an undergraduate degree. A sorcerer/sorceress is a Masters and a Wizard is a doctorate.
Empowering magic to the point that it is just another science/technology lends the world that Markus comes from a unique nature.
Instead of cars, magic carpets are common, and the North-South rugway has severe congestion issues. Zombies are used for dangerous tasks such as bomb disposal. People of all walks of life use magic in small and large ways. Markus, who is a wizard of classical magic specializing in the study of chaos magic, is one of the most powerful individuals in his world. Because magic empowers the individual the concentration of power into corporations is less pronounced in Markus’s world. Conversely, a singular individual can have the power to level a building with an effort of will.
In writing Worlds Apart, I took the stance that people are people and that technology must adapt to service human needs. The following quote bears this out. Markus is newly arrived in out world.
“Where is the water closet?” Markus blushed a little.
“There.” Alcina indicated a door with a wave of her hand. Markus opened it and looked in.
“Do you need me to show you how to use it?” she asked.
“Human needs remain the same and engineering must oblige. Aside from the lever being on the wrong side, I think I can figure it out.” Markus grinned and closed the door behind him.
On the other side in Markus’s world, they use undead animals slaved to the investigators will as surveillance devices.
So, what makes my world unique, I think it is the weaving of magic into the everyday in a process similar to how electricity is woven into everyday life on our world. Lightning is impressive, but we hardly notice the flow of electrons that empower the screen you are reading this on. Weaving that circumstance into the world with magic makes it rich and different, rather like visiting a foreign nation with different customs and norms.

Thank you for dropping by and please visit other destinations on the blog tour.

About Stephen B. Pearl

Stephen B. Pearl is an ex-lifeguard, mystic, science enthusiast, home handyman, backyard mechanic, and writer. The face he wears changes with the company he keeps. His cats know him as pride alpha. Well, a servant might be more accurate his wife of over thirty years actually runs the pride, Stephen just tries to stay out of her way.
He brings his varied experiences to the books he writes which range from Paranormal, Nukekubi, Worlds Apart and The Hollow Curse to Science fiction, Tinker’s Plague, Tinkers Sea, War of the Worlds 2030 and Slaves of Love, as well as historical fantasy, Horn of the Kraken.
Being something of a romantic, Stephen likes to weave romantic subplots into his work. Stories of people being empowered by love where the power and security of love allows them to triumph in other areas.
As is stated in many Pagan wine blessings, “For there is no greater power than that of a man and a woman joined in the bonds of love.”
For more about Stephen and his works visit: www.stephenpearl.com.
Meet Stephen Online

Author Website: www.stephenpearl.com

And now, just a bit more about the event...

Learn More About the OWS CyCon 2019 Event

CyCon is the biggest online book event of the year, bringing together authors and readers from all over the world for an entire weekend of book-related fun. Between the organizers, and 230+ writers, you’ll be able to:
·         view live (and recorded discussions),
·         listen to samples of their stories,
·         vote in the various genre tournaments,
·         browse the author booths, and
·         discover some amazing books and writers.
We hope you enjoy this event as much as we enjoy bringing it to you. For more information, and links to all of the activities, visit us at: https://owscycon.ourwriteside.com/about-ows-cycon/
You never know, you may just find your next best read!



Wednesday, May 1, 2019

Wow! Where have I been? There is so much to catch up on, so let's start with where I am.
The move is over. It's been over for some time now. Maybe that's why I haven't been adding to the blog...I'm not perpetually pissed-off any more. We left NC, leaving a few folks that became good friends behind. We also left perhaps the two biggest assholes on the planet, but that was a relief.
In NC, if you remember right, we were invited to stay with "friends". Right. Things went smooth for a bit and then suddenly we were being told when we could go out, what time we had to be back, and admonished for where we went. We were told what we could eat and what wasn't allowed. All this was severely aggravating but manageable.

Then I was told how to discipline my daughter. And folks, that shit didn't float at all.
At least there were no vampires there...I think.
Don't get me wrong. I don't tie her up and belt-whip her till welts form and psychological scars start to criss-cross. I don't lock her in a closet and force her to pray to God for forgiveness. What happened was this; she was playing with her mashed potatoes with her hands. I told her three times to stop it. The fourth time was a slap on the hand. A slap.
This child is the light of my life, the one I would die for, literally die for. The slap wasn't that hard, trust me. The next thing I know, this narcissistic cow of a woman is standing between me and my daughter telling me that my ways are old and don't work and that I am never to lay a hand on the child again.
Needless to say, I was homeless quicker than you could toss the c-word out a second time. We ended up moving to a short-term motel in Raleigh. OK, so it was a hooker hotel. So we got woken up at 3 AM by the cops because there was a murder in the room behind ours. So we got woken up at 2 AM because there were 2 hookers that were cold and tired and wanted to crash with us. OK, so we had to drive for 20 minutes to get to work and since we had one car, sometimes I would have to sit at work for 4 hours before my shift started. No big deal...right?
 So, it took about 3 months of that until we were ready to go. Florida was the next stop and the end of our problems.
We made it to Florida with a plan. A plan that had to be fixed as soon as we got there.
You see, my wife's Uncle was in charge of finding us a place. He picked this small, 2 bedroom place in Opa Loka. Go on, Google it. Better yet, don't. I don't want to frighten any of you. Opa Loka is not what you could call "people friendly". It's the type of place where the FBI shows up to shut down a house filled with guns, explosives, and drugs.
New plan!
Took us almost a year to prepare for the next move, Homestead, FL. That's when the blue skies opened and normalcy took over. Over the next three years, we worked, we fixed our credit, we purchased a vacation club, we got married (yes, she finally made an honest man of me), honeymooned in Disney, and then purchased a new home!
Our daughter is in a great school and is showing serious improvement as a budding young artist. The cat population grew from 2 to 10. Sadly, we lost Biggie almost as soon as we hit Florida. That left the old lady Bebe as our sole cat. I thought I was in the clear.
But no, my wife has a genetic problem that makes her adopt cats. We took in 2 kittens...supposedly, both female. Nope, one of them was hiding his instruments of destruction. Not long after, they had 5 kittens. While we waited for the kittens, my wife's boss needed a temporary home for her two cats. That took us to 10 cats.
Noob the Wonder Dog was thrilled with all the new friends, but I worried he would pick up bad cat habits.
So, enter Harley Quinn.
We went to the store to get a small dog. Small. A chihuahua maybe or a wiener dog. Is that what Harley is? Of course not. Harley is a Saint Bernard. She melted our hearts with her over-sized, cuddly self. Noob was thrilled.
Just to be sure, not every day was a blessing. Some days were more of walking around with a rotten fart smell surrounding you. We went through our first hurricane, scary but we were ok. We got t-boned by a Chevy Silverado but again, we were ok.
We lost someone we loved very much. It still hurts, but we held on as a family and made it through ok. We lost a few more cats, Bebe finally passing away at the ripe old age of 17. Harley grew and now weighs about 125 lbs. Maybe triple what the Wonder Dog logs in at, although he is getting fat now too. Just to be on the safe side, we went out and got another dog, a Rottie named Loki. He's 6 months old now and living up to his name. They both are.
Two criminals living under our roof. And poor Noob in the middle.
I've retired from work, content to help out my wife a couple days a week at her job and spending time at the pool here in our new community. We make decent money, enough to pay the bills, eat, AND have fun. We've arrived as a family to a great time in our lives.
And as I've always suspected, the things that piss you off are there for a reason. To help you grow as a person.
Adversity is a common part of our lives that affect us differently. For some, it's a signal to quit and either try a different route or to give up altogether. For others, it's a test to see if we're ready to move on to the next problem. As a wise man/woman/beast once said, "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger."
Never have words been truer. My wife and I have weathered many storms. More than we care to remember. But now, the seas are calm and the skies are blue. Life is good.