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September 16, 2023
Quick Reads
Hello again, {$name|default:'reader'}. Or welcome, if you're new!
As I mentioned in the last newsletter, I've given myself the challenge of writing a piece of flash fiction every week. Each time is a different letter of the alphabet, and for A I chose the legend of Ashipattle and the Meester Stoorworm. Here's what I came up with:
The deck heaved under his bare feet, threatening to spill the iron bucket of burning coals onto the warped timbers. A sharp tweak of the sail, a careful angling of the rudder, and Ashipattle nudged the tiny vessel back towards the Storm Worm's gaping maw. He swallowed his fear, fought down the rising bile-filled dread, and wished for the dozenth time that he'd been able to find a sword.
If he could just get over the palisade of teeth, Ashipattle hoped, he could dump his cargo down the Worm's throat and save the princess. And the Kingdom. He realised that he'd misjudged the monster's breathing again, and would reach the teeth just as it started exhaling.
Ashipattle yanked the tiller over, the rudder creaking in protest, and snatched the sail round. Too slowly, the tiny boat turned, the waves from the Worm's approach threatening to plunge the boy and his fire into the bitter northern ocean. He didn't dare look back; seeing how close it was wouldn't make the boat faster. The hairs on his neck prickled, he smelt the brimstone in the sea air, and flung himself flat on the deck. An instant later, the mast and sails dissolved in an acrid green cloud, and smoke rose from the planks that had shielded him.
The boy lay still as death, waiting for the burning gas to fill his lungs, or the planks to splinter and dunk him into the frigid sea. When neither happened, he raised his head; saw the Worm's head rise above the water, triumphant. Ashipattle leaped to his feet, ignoring the rocking of the boat, and flapped his arms above his head. "Come and get me!" he screamed.
The Worm swallowed him and his tiny boat whole.
The burning coals cast a flickering, crimson glow around him, but he had no time for fear. He grasped the bucket, felt the flesh on his hands burning, and flung the embers over the side. The Worm's stomach lurched, heaved, and even the muffled echoes of its roar of pain caused Ashipattle to cover his ears. The beast vomited hard, attempting to rid itself of the agony within, but only the boy and his boat emerged. As he broke off the rudder to use as an oar, Ashipattle wondered how for how many years the Storm Worm would burn.
Each week I'll be posting the latest instalment to my journal. Head over there now to check out what I did for 'B'. As a little bonus, I'm also recording them as audio! So if you ever wondered what I sounded like, that's your chance to find out. markhoodauthor.com
Would you be interested in this becoming a podcast? A 3-5 minute episode once a week, just telling you a story?
Reply to this email and let me know!
Space News
Signs of possible life 120 light years away
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) just keeps on surprising us. The latest (and very tentative) discovery is of a chemical called dimethyl sulphide (DMS). As best we know, the only way to create this compound is by the processes of life. Naturally there might be some other chemistry at work that we're not yet aware of, or the readings might be misinterpreted. But if there is any truth to the discovery, we might be on the verge of an extremely remarkable breakthrough.
As Arthur C. Clarke once said:
Two possibilities exist: either we are alone in the Universe or we are not. Both are equally terrifying.
Source: BBC News
Other Books To Check Out
I've gathered a few great books from independent authors like me, I hope you'll check them out.
And let me know if you have any books to recommend! I'm particularly interested in indie authors, but anything you've read and loved would be awesome.
Monster Hunter
When you make your living on the open road fighting monsters, love is barely in the rearview mirror.
With family lore and urban legends as their guide, hunters track banshees through bogs, exorcise demons, and try to find the best dry cleaner to get pixie dust out of their favourite jacket. Finding out you're fated to fall in love with the monsters you're meant to destroy is just adding insult to injury. Falling in love with your best friend who's also a monster hunter is almost as bad, and that incident with the cursed object and the succubus doesn't even bear mentioning. Follow these hunters in this action packed anthology filled with your favourite authors as they defend humanity from creatures that go bump in the night and find love along the way.
Buy it now!
Unite, Fight, Survive
A High-Stakes Mission to Rescue Loved Ones, Stop an Alien Invasion and Take Down an Evil Corporation Elliot: Trained from birth to be a killer, he's the best in the business. But when his only two friends are kidnapped by a shadowy corporation, he'll have to use his deadly skills to bring them home. Arthur: Life as a D-list celebrity has left him wanting more. But when Hellinix kidnaps his wife and daughter, he'll stop at nothing to get them back. When these two men with nothing to lose cross paths, they'll have to rely on each other to take down the evil corporation and stop an impending alien invasion. Get ready for non-stop action and thrills in Splice, the must-read science fiction adventure of the year. Buy now and join the ride!
Buy it now!
Wedding of the Torn Rose
A merchant who abandoned his birthright... A princess with a dark secret... And an encounter destined to change their lives forever...
Down on his luck, Kaine Khalia was gathering mushrooms in the forest to sell in the nearby capital. A young woman's screams were the last thing he expected to find. Dashing to her rescue, Kaine finds himself face to face with a monster that should not even exist, fighting for his life as well as hers.
His world only gets crazier from there. Kaine returns with Princess Lydia to her father's castle, where he discovers himself in the king's good graces. Confused and leery by a reward beyond gold, Kaine reluctantly agrees to remain and help with Lydia's younger siblings. Life could not have thrown him more.
Plunged into a world of magical intrigue, unrest, and political maneuvering, each new event leaves Kaine feeling out of place and, worse, dangerously exposed to a growing threat. The Darian Kingdom stands at the crossroads. Lydia's upcoming wedding to the prince of the Throatian Kingdom will soon become the defining moment in Kaine's life.
Free!
Strange News
What do we really know about the Druids?
The Romans ran into the Druids during its expansion into Britain and Gaul, and viewed them as a threat to their empire. As such, they painted them as depraved bogeymen, keen to bathe in the blood of their sacrifices. Since the Druids had no written records of their own, there's no narrative to counter that propaganda.
Enter archaeology. While it can't tell us everything, this article does an extremely thorough job of dispassionately examining the evidence that has been unearthed. In particular the Lindow Man, an apparent victim of ritual murder in Cheshire.
Source: aeon.co
Other Books To Check Out
Get Free Sci-Fi!
A remarkable collection of free Science Fiction books.
Get these books fast -- this giveaway ends October 1st!
Miscellany
'Ritual Mass Murder' reported in Lincolnshire, turns out to be a yoga retreat.
Source: BBC News
A model of the International Space Station that accurately mirrors the position of its solar panels at all times.
Source: hackaday.com
The official US Government website to explore UAP and UFO reports.
Source: aaro.mil
And Finally
You've probably noticed that this newsletter looks a little different. Hopefully it's still chock-full of all the things you've come to expect from me.
Mailerlite (the service I use to handle the mailing list) are nudging us all towards their new and improved next-generation engine, and I've finally made the move. I think everything should be working OK - but if you come across any links that aren't right, or see some other problems, please do let me know!
As part of the migration, links from the last newsletter stopped working briefly. Apologies if you got caught out by that - it wasn't you!
And special thanks if you filled out the survey that I included. It seems as though most of you are on Facebook, with the next largest selection being 'None of the above'... I do have a Facebook page which I've not been using very much. Thanks to your feedback, I'll make sure it gets more of my attention!
Feel free to follow me there: https://www.facebook.com/markhoodauthor/
Source: facebook.com