Friday Writing Fodder

Round 2 of Friday Writing Fodder, my new regular blog feature, includes links both serious and humorous in nature, but all intriguing with possibilities for future stories. I hope many of you find inspiration here.

Asteroids the size of the Pyramid of Giza to fly by Earth https://apple.news/A8l89QdjZRiCuK9lODqUl9Q

NASA finds a planet with 3 suns. https://apple.news/AmrTA2b3EQL-S_kOleQFCQA

Physicist thinks mysterious space object might be an alien spacecraft https://apple.news/Ap17hGr53QpqxipicQ2GN5w

Orangutan steps up as “Mr. Mom” for daughter after mate dies unexpectedly. https://apple.news/ALibfTpNJRoqqSmJD9Mvc1A

Columbia’s Cocaine Hippos Must Be Culled (Follow up from last week’s hippo story) https://apple.news/A4YBKR86rQ4-v29jOmRSNzA

This fossil shows how dinosaurs peed, pooped, and had sex. https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/19/world/dinosaur-fossil-sex-study-scn/index.html and fossilized butthole shows how dinosaurs have sex. https://apple.news/ANuVE3VN1QDO3FzdiQkrLxQ

Spotted and oddly striped zebras may be warning for species’ future. https://apple.news/AgQi61wXHRm6QkLUjBD1_bA

Giveaway: Abraham Lincoln Dinosaur Hunter-Land of Legends (early reader scifi)

AbeLincolnDino_CoverV2My publisher, Delabarre, is giving away 20 copies of the ebo0k (epub or mobi, your choice) for my debut early reader book: Abraham Lincoln Dinosaur Hunter – Land of Legends.

“ABRAHAM LINCOLN: DINOSAUR HUNTER — LAND OF LEGENDS succeeds on almost every level –readability, alternate history, adventure, and excitement.” — Mike Resnick

“Prehistoric action and Abe Lincoln in one rollicking swoop!” — Tamora Pierce

Abraham Lincoln may or may not have fought vampires, but not many people know that when Abraham Lincoln was 10 years old, he fought something much worse – a Tyrannosaurus Rex.

One day young Abe Lincoln is marveling over meeting his hero, Davy Crockett. The next, Davy saves Abe’s life. But when they kindly agree to teenage inventor Nehemiah’s urging to test his newfangled time machine, they wind up sent back in time…to the age of dinosaurs.

When the machine gets broken, adventures ensue as Lincoln and Crockett fight dinosaurs and race to find the materials needed to fix the machine that can take them home. Abraham Lincoln – Dinosaur Hunter: Land of Legends is the first volume in a new action-packed middle-grade series. Science Fiction/Fantasy Adventure with great humor and good lessons about friendship, teamwork and more.

This is the first book of an ongoing series for which I have 7 more planned already. It hit stores in ebook and trade paperback in February 2013.

All you have to do to win is leave a comment as to why you’d like to win a copy, your name, preferred ebook format, and email address. We’ll do the rest. I’m closing the entries March 30th. Winners will be chosen at random and contacted via email.

Easy, right?

Here’s an excerpt to whet your appetities!

 

PROLOGUE
On The Run…

 

Davy Crockett’s eyes widened. He motioned for us to hurry as he cocked the rifle and took aim at the treetops. “Run!” He fired three shots in a row as we took off then turned to race after us.

GRRRRRRRROOOWWWWLL!

I, Abe they call me, looked back as I ran up the hill. A giant cat with two huge, white fangs like swords, extending from its mouth bounded down from a large tree and picked up speed, chasing us.

We broke through the tree line atop the next hill and started down the slope.

GRRRRRRRROOOWWWWLL!

ROOOAAARRR!

The second sound was oddly familiar. I glanced around for the source and my breath caught in my throat.

The giant lizard was back and rushing toward us from the north, following the tree line.

“Scarface! Run!” Nehemiah Winkler, our teenage neighbor, called.

GRRRRRRRROOOWWWWLL!

ROOOAAARRR!

“I wanna go home!” Jacob Carter cried as I grabbed his hand and pulled him along. I had no doubt the rest of us shared that sentiment right then.

Davy stopped atop the hill and fired back at the cat again, then turned to fire at the lizard. None of his shots had any effect. The predators kept after us at top speed. “Get amongst the trees where at least the lizard can’t get to us!” Davy instructed as he started after us again.

I bounced down the slope toward the next tree line like a rabbit in a race and burst through the trees into the shadowy cluster. The cat would have no trouble following, but the closeness of the trees might impede the lizard. If it didn’t just smash them down, that is.

“We’re doomed!” Jacob said.

I nodded, reluctantly agreeing. “There’s nowhere to hide.”

Wait! I’m getting ahead of myself. Let me start at the beginning. We’ll get to old Scarface the T-Rex soon enough. This is the story of how I, Abraham Lincoln, became a dinosaur hunter with Davy Crockett.

 


Beyond Sun Cover.inddBryan Thomas Schmidt is the editor of Blue Shift Magazine and an author and editor of adult and children’s speculative fiction. His debut novel, The Worker Prince (2011) received Honorable Mention on Barnes & Noble Book Club’s Year’s Best Science Fiction Releases for 2011. A sequel The Returning followed in 2012 and The Exoduswill appear in 2013, completing the space opera Saga Of Davi Rhii. His first children’s books, 102 More Hilarious Dinosaur Jokes For Kids (ebook only) and Abraham Lincoln: Dinosaur Hunter- Land Of Legends from Delabarre Publishing.  His short stories have appeared in magazines, anthologies and online. He edited the anthology Space Battles: Full Throttle Space Tales #6 (2012) and is working on Beyond The Sun for Fairwood Press (July 2013), headlined by Robert Silverberg, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Mike Resnick and Nancy Kress, and Raygun Chronicles: Space Opera For a New Age for Every Day Publishing (November 2013). He hosts #sffwrtcht (Science Fiction & Fantasy Writer’s Chat) Wednesdays at 9 pm ET on Twitter and is an affiliate member of the SFWA.

Cover Reveal: 102 More Hilarious Dinosaur Jokes For Kids

Well, here it is at long last, the cover for my upcoming debut children’s book 102 More Hilarious Dinosaur Jokes For Kids.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jeff Rutherford, publisher/editor of Delabarre Publishing sent it over today and I’m quite excited because the illustration samples he’s been sending for a while are really cool. The second in a series of joke book ebooks–Delabarre publishes many of these–I wrote it in February and it’s been in artwork and planning for a while. Expect to see release this Fall. I don’t know Even Peter, the artist, but I think he’s done a great job.

To give you an idea, here’s a couple of sample jokes:

What do you call it when you’re hit by a dinosaur? Dino-sore.

 

What do you call a dinosaur with stripes? Zebrasaurus

 

What do you call a singing dinosaur? A RAPtor.

 

(Yes, this is the cover image, note the gold chains.)

 

What do you call a dinosaur who sings opera? Divasaurus

 

What kind of ghost terrifies dinosaurs? Scare-o-saurus. 

Silly? Yeah. But they’re for kids and hopefully they’re a combination of simple and clever that will keep them entertained. Most of them I made up although I did research a few more popular ones from the web that hadn’t been used in the prior book.

Thanks to the parents and kids who beta read the book and gave feedback and to Jeff and Evan as well.


Bryan Thomas Schmidt is the author of the space opera novels The Worker Prince, a Barnes & Noble Book Clubs Year’s Best SF Releases of 2011 Honorable Mention, and The Returning, the collection The North Star Serial, Part 1, and several short stories featured  in anthologies and magazines.  He edited the anthology Space Battles: Full Throttle Space Tales #6 for Flying Pen Press, headlined by Mike Resnick. As a freelance editor, he’s edited novels and nonfiction.  He’s also the host of Science Fiction and Fantasy Writer’s Chat every Wednesday at 9 pm EST on Twitter under the hashtag #sffwrtcht. A frequent contributor to Adventures In SF PublishingGrasping For The Wind and SFSignal, he can be found online as @BryanThomasS on Twitter or via his website. Bryan is an affiliate member of the SFWA. Bryan is currently at work on the Abe Lincoln: Dinosaur Hunter series of chapter book for Delabarre.