(If you’re looking for information about the Escapee Release Week giveaway, scroll to the bottom of the page.)

Banff National Park

In yesterday’s release week post, you learned that I stole the place names in Escapee from Banff National Park. Here are some specifics.

Captain Dukelsky’s command at Castle Mountain Fortress is destroyed early in the book.  It is named after the most impressive mountain visible from the Trans-Canada Highway through Banff Park.

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Norquay, where the enemy headquarters lie, is named after Mt Norquay, well known as a ski hill.

Another of the outposts captured by the enemy is Rundle City.  The town of Banff sits at the foot of Mt Rundle. Here is Mount Rundle as seen from Mount Norquay. The town is at lower right.

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The author at Lake Louise

Catt pilots her airship, the Escapee, through Louise Valley, where the airship is attacked by a Proximanian jet copter. Lake Louise is the most famous lake in Banff Park.

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Escapee — The African Queen in Outer Space

Catt Sayer just wants to survive.  The working-class fugitive delivers military supplies on her decrepit airship, but her hard-won livelihood vanishes when invaders overrun her harsh moon. And now an idealistic, upper-class officer wants her to risk her life on a hopeless voyage to attack enemy headquarters – manned by 10,000 soldiers.

Edward Hoornaert’s romantic space opera, Escapee, continues the saga of the Dukelsky family (begun in The Guardian Angel of Farflung Station).  If you like The African Queen and the thrill of underdogs finding love while battling a hostile environment, you’ll love Escapee.

Don’t let this rousing tale escape from you.  Buy Escapee today at:

• Amazon US  |  Canada  |  UK  |  Australia
• MuseItUp Publishing
• Apple iBooks
• Barnes and Noble
• Kobo Books

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The Giveaway

Celebrating the release of Escape: Repelling the Invasion on April 19, 2016, you can enter a Rafflecopter giveaway. To enter the Rafflecopter giveaway, click the travel poster (at right) for the moon called Banff, where Escapee is set.

You can win:

• A $10 Amazon gift certificate
• One of two electronic copies of the prequel to Escapee — The Guardian Angel of Farflung Station.

Have you ever been to Banff National Park?  Or maybe there’s another mountainous region that you love?  Tell us  about it in a comment.

Repelling the Invasion

Escapee was released April 19, 2016. It’s the second book in a loosely connected series called Repelling the Invasion. The books can be read in any order; they’re connected only by focusing on members of the Dukelsky family — first Priam (nicknamed Duke) and then his twin brother Hector (nicknamed Hank).

You don’t have to read book one, The Guardian Angel of Farflung Station, but you’ll enjoy it if you do. Here’s some information about it.

Farflung Space Station is the first line of defense against the space pirates who are getting bolder every year. They haven’t counted on Sandrina, though, who knows so many of Farflung’s secrets that she’s the most powerful person on the entire station…though nobody knows it yet.

They’re about to find out.

Edward Hoornaert’s romantic space opera, The Guardian Angel of Farflung Station begins the saga of the Dukelsky family (continued in Escapee).  If you enjoyed the adventures of Han, Luke, and Leia while on the Death Star, you’ll love The Guardian Angel of Farflung Station.

What Do Readers Think?

Here’s what actual readers have said about Guardian Angel (average Amazon rating: 4.9 out of 5 stars):

• “Space Opera at its best, woven with romantic tension, and an on-station adventure where worlds collide.”
• “I loved this novella. The heroine was the most interesting character to me because she was brave, clever, and intrepid”
• “Get ready for Deep Space Nine meets Andromeda.”
• “The book is strong on many levels, and combines elements of action and romance into the mix.”
• “The dialogue is incredible and the sexual tension is intense.”

Best of all — you can win a free copy of Guardian Angel. Scroll to the end of the post to find out how.

<<  ===  >>

Escapee — The African Queen in Outer Space

Catt Sayer just wants to survive.  The working-class fugitive delivers military supplies on her decrepit airship, but her hard-won livelihood vanishes when invaders overrun her harsh moon. And now an idealistic, upper-class officer wants her to risk her life on a hopeless voyage to attack enemy headquarters – manned by 10,000 soldiers.

Edward Hoornaert’s romantic space opera, Escapee, continues the saga of the Dukelsky family (begun in The Guardian Angel of Farflung Station).  If you like The African Queen and the thrill of underdogs finding love while battling a hostile environment, you’ll love Escapee.

Don’t let this rousing tale escape from you.  Buy Escapee today at:

• Amazon US  |  Canada  |  UK  |  Australia
• MuseItUp Publishing
• Apple iBooks
• Barnes and Noble
• Kobo Books

Here’s Your Chance to WIN

To celebrate the release of Escape: Repelling the Invasion on April 19, 2016, you can enter a Rafflecopter giveaway. Click to enter the Rafflecopter giveaway.

You can win:

• A $10 Amazon gift certificate
• One of two electronic copies of the prequel to Escapee — The Guardian Angel of Farflung Station.

Enter now and enter often!

I describe my new science fiction romance, Escapee, as The African Queen in Outer Space. The 1951 movie, The African Queen inspired the book. My version is set on an inhospitable moon, rather than the African Jungle, but in both tales the hero and heroine battle nature and, ultimately, the invading enemy.

How did I use the movie to inspire a science fiction romance novel? By borrowing its structure while inventing new characters, new enemies, and an entirely new setting.

Analyzing the Movie for Structure

I rented the movie and looked for two things:

• Stages — Charley and Rosie’s relationship go through a number of stages.
• Turning points — The events that caused their relationship to change from one stage to another.

I then devised analogous stages and turning points for Escapee. Here are a few of them, so you get the feel for how the analysis worked.

Stage 1:  Polite disconnect between hero and heroine.

• AQ — Rosie, a missionary in German East Africa, disapproves of Charley, a crude freighter captain who brings supplies, but treats him with chilly politeness.
• Escapee — Hector, a stuffy career army officer, disapproves of the freewheeling, lower-class airship pilot, Catt Sayer, who supplies his base.

Turning point:  The enemy invades. In AQ, it’s the Germans, who leave Rosie alone and stranded — until Charley comes by and saves her.

In Escapee, it’s humans from the Proxima system. While Hector’s on leave, they destroy his entire command, leaving him stranded and alone — until Catt lands, looking for survivors.

Stage 2:  Rosie devises the goal of attacking the Germans. In Escapee, it’s Hector who strives to attack the enemy Proximanians. Both goals require a long, impossibly difficult journey. The lead characters’ genders are reversed.

I won’t try your patience by detailing each goal and turning point, but here are a few high points.

Turning point: When mild danger fails to deter Rosie (Hector) from her purpose, his true feelings come out explosively, causing a rift. In the movie, the danger is rapids; in Escapee, it’s volcanoes.

Turning point:  The rift is healed when Charley (Catt) wholeheartedly agrees to make the impossible journey. The reasons for agreeing are quite different

Turning point: After they make love for the first time, life is gloriously happy for awhile.

Turning point: The dangers of the journey start to take a toll. In AQ,  rapids and a twisted drive shaft threaten to end their journey before they reach the enemy. In Escapee, a storm and a crash landing ‘kills’ Catt’s android co-pilot, whom they need for the journey to reach the enemy.

And so forth.

Escapee — The African Queen in Outer Space

Catt Sayer just wants to survive.  The working-class fugitive delivers military supplies on her decrepit airship, but her hard-won livelihood vanishes when invaders overrun her harsh moon. And now an idealistic, upper-class officer wants her to risk her life on a hopeless voyage to attack enemy headquarters – manned by 10,000 soldiers.

Edward Hoornaert’s romantic space opera, Escapee, continues the saga of the Dukelsky family (begun in The Guardian Angel of Farflung Station).  If you like The African Queen and the thrill of underdogs finding love while battling a hostile environment, you’ll love Escapee.

Don’t let this rousing tale escape from you.

• Amazon US  |  Canada  |  UK  |  Australia
• MuseItUp Publishing
• Apple iBooks
• Barnes and Noble
• Kobo Books

Here’s Your Chance to WIN

To celebrate the release of Escape: Repelling the Invasion on April 19, 2016, you can enter a Rafflecopter giveaway. Click to enter the Rafflecopter giveaway.

You can win:

• A $10 Amazon gift certificate
• One of two electronic copies of the prequel to Escapee — The Guardian Angel of Farflung Station.

Enter now and enter often!

Fart-Fueled Flying Feline, Effing for short, writes the Weekend Writing Warrior / Sunday Snippet posts on Mr. V’s behalf

I, Effing Feline, told you that my cousin, Lee, was coming to visit. He’s here, and I adore Cousin Lee. Having such a marvelous relative makes me feel empowered. Invincible. Strong. When Lee wants something, he takes it — and my pet human, Ed Hoornaert, aka Mr Valentine, is too polite to object. I love it!

After last week’s snippet, Hank explains why he wants to attack the enemy: he yearns to fight evil. Inspired by his idealism, Catt agrees to fly him to the enemy headquarters … if she can.

When their relationship changes, the stiff and proper Hector changes, too. In this snippet, we witness him unbend he explains his name (which, as you know, is very rare and unusual a thousand years from now).

“Only the legendary Achilles could defeat Hector.” His voice took on a measured, lecturing cadence at odds with surviving a crash landing, to say nothing of their mutual lack of clothes. “Hector was known for his courage—peace-loving and thoughtful, but a martyr to loyalty to family and—”

When he paused and said nothing more, Catt bent to scoop up her shirt.

“You know something, Catt? I’m sick of explaining that Hector is a noble, if ancient, name. Call me … what? How about Hank? Somebody called Hank is a guy who knows how to have fun, a regular guy with regular parents who won’t object to him loving a brave peasant woman.”

Effing Feline here again. Lee wants me to post a picture of him, and of course I’ll do whatever he says.

Lee also says he insists that you visit all of the Weekend Writing Warriors and Snippet Sundays posts. You’d better do as he says!

Cousin Lee sharing his best smile

Now available — Escapee
The African Queen in Outer Space

• Amazon US  |  Canada  |  UK  |  Australia
• MuseItUp Publishing
• Apple iBooks
• Barnes and Noble
• Kobo Books

And a Giveaway

Finally, I’m running my first-ever Rafflecopter giveaway in connection with the book’s release. You can win a $10 gift certificate of one of two copies of Escapee‘s prequel, The Guardian Angel of Farflung Station. It would be wonderfully appropriate if some of my Snippet Weekend Warriors would win, so please enter.

Fart-Fueled Flying Feline, Effing for short, writes the Weekend Writing Warrior / Sunday Snippet posts on Mr. V’s behalf

Cousin Lee

I, Effing Feline, still like Cousin Lee … but he’s been here too hissing long.

If he gets to the food bowl before I do, there’s nothing left for me. He broke my cat climber by leaping to the top level. Yesterday we were playing with a catnip mouse, and when I actually got it from him for a moment, he roared at me. My ears are still ringing.  And when he’s hungry, I don’t like the way he looks at me.

I want my bed all to myself. I want my food all to myself. I want Mr V’s lap all to myself. Poor me! Pity poor, poor me!

This is (sob) the last snippet from Escapee. In the movie, African Queen, after Bogart and Hepburn become lovers, offscreen of course, there’s a short stretch of (sob) happiness. Bogart screeches like a monkey and roars like a hippo. At least he doesn’t roar like Lee; my ears couldn’t take it. Here’s an equivalent scene in Escapee.

Although Catt is happy in her love, she worries about her mother and sister back home, whom she supports with her profits. To alleviate her (sob) concern, and fully expecting to die when they attack the enemy, Hank rewrites his Last Will and Testament.

“Hank, you don’t have to do this,” Catt said.

“I want to. Who else am I going to name as my beneficiary?”

“Gee, I don’t know. How about your brother, or your sister, your parents, a pet mizzet, or your favorite charity?”

“Duke has a great job on Farflung Station. Helen is the stingiest person alive even though she’s rich. My parents are both generals, and their combined pensions alone make them richer than most of your hated patroons. I’m allergic to mizzets, and my friend the skoot doesn’t need money. And my favorite charity is, I find, your family.”

Effing Feline here again. Make sure you visit all the Weekend Writing Warriors and Snippet Sundays posts. (Sob.)

I’m really ready for Lee to Leeve. Can he go live with one of you? Purrty please?

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Now availabe — Escapee
The African Queen in Outer Space

Edward Hoornaert’s romantic space opera, Escapee, continues the saga of the Dukelsky family (begun in The Guardian Angel of Farflung Station).  If you like The African Queen and the thrill of underdogs finding love while battling a hostile environment, you’ll love Escapee.

Don’t let this rousing adventure escape from you.

• Amazon US  |  Canada  |  UK  |  Australia
• MuseItUp Publishing
• Apple iBooks
• Barnes and Noble
• Kobo Books

The Escapee Winners

The Rafflecopter giveaway in conjunction with the release of Escapee: Repelling the Invasion is over. Here are the winners:

1. First prize, a $10 Amazon gift certificate: BN100
2. Second prize, a copy of the prequel to Escapee, The Guardian Angel of Farflung Station: Maria Belen Troncoso
3. Third prize, a copy of the prequel to Escapee, The Guardian Angel of Farflung Station: Ashley Martinez

Congratulations to all the winners of my first ever Rafflecopter event!

A Camp NaNoWriMo Winner

I participated in the Camp NaNoWriMo challenge to write a book in the month of April, and I finished with 2.5 hours to spare. My project, tentatively named Constellation XXII, is a space opera novella that
follows Escapee. It’s the adventures of another member of the Dukelsky family who faces invasion by humans from another star system.

You can set your own goal for Camp NaNo. I chose 35,000 words, a good length for a novella.  I ended up writing 35,866.

You Can Still Be a Winner

If you’re into science fiction or fantasy, there’s a big sale coming up next week — over 150 ebooks reduced to 99c. Put it on your calendar or click here to win some great deals. You’ll find my Alien Contact for Idiots right near the top.

Every month, the Science Fiction Romance Brigade highlights some of its brilliant authors.

An Easy Way to Find Lots of Place Names

When writing science fiction or fantasy, you often need a lot of place name. For example, in my recent release, Escapee, my hero and heroine were flying around a Mars-sized moon to attack enemy headquarters. They flew over a lot of valleys and mountain ranges — so I needed names. Lots and lots of names.

I came up with an easy way to find them. A way that has the advantage of hinting at backstory.

I used a map.

A Map? What Kind of Map?

The kind of map you use depends on your story.

Escapee is a space opera set in an indeterminate future, when humans have expanded to the stars. On our Earth, colonists brought familiar names with them: New York, New Zealand, Nuevo Leone, Nieuw Amsterdam. Colonists of the future will likely do the same.

In a previous book in this series, I’d named a planet New Ontario, or Enno for short. Although I never mention that Enno’s culture is derived from North America, the name establishes the connection with no need for explanation.

For the nearly unihabited mining moon where Escapee is set, I chose a Canadian name in keeping with New Ontario: Banff, because I love the national park of that name. I then got out a map of Banff and picked names off it.

The author at Lake Louise in Banff National Park

Voila! Not only did I have all the names I needed, but I enjoyed the process, because I’ve visited most of the places whose names I stole borrowed.

For example, Catt pilots her airship, the Escapee, through Louise Valley, where the airship is attacked by a Proximanian jet copter. Lake Louise is the most famous lake in Banff Park.

You can see other real-life places whose names I chose.

What if I’m Writing Fantasy or an Alien World?

Although I’ve never done it, I can imagine how a map can help — change the names to give them an alien or other-Earthly tinge. To show you what I mean, I took a map of Belgium at random, and played with a few possible transformations:

• Brugge ==> Zarugga
• Tuin ==> Tatuin (!)
• Brussels  ==> Zharuzzel
• Alst ==> Phralst
• Lommel ==> Lommint
• Roeselare ==> Royslar

I didn’t spend long on this, so you could probably do better.  But hopefully you get the idea.

What next?

Be sure to visit the other writers in the SFR Brigade Showcase.

Sometimes it feels like I’ve traveled extensively, but other times I feel like a stick in the mud.

I came across neat little site that displays my travels graphically. Douwe Osinga’s site has a neat little app that creates maps showing the places a person has visited in:

• The world
• The United States
• India
• Canada
• Brazil

Here are the Canadian provinces I’ve visited.

Visited 6 provinces (46.1%)

I feel I should add that I passed through Manitoba and Saskatchewan just once, but have visited the other provinces multiple times.

Here  is my map of US states I’ve visited:

Visited 33 states (66%)

This may look impressive, but except for west coast states and the Great Lakes states, I’ve merely passed through or landed at an airport.

What about you?  Create your own visited map of The United States or Canada.

<<  ===  >>

Escapee
The African Queen in Outer Space

Edward Hoornaert’s romantic space opera, Escapee, continues the saga of the Dukelsky family (begun in The Guardian Angel of Farflung Station).  If you like The African Queen and the thrill of underdogs finding love while battling a hostile environment, you’ll love Escapee.

Don’t let this rousing adventure escape from you.

• Amazon US  |  Canada  |  UK  |  Australia
• MuseItUp Publishing
• Apple iBooks
• Barnes and Noble
• Kobo Books

About Escapee: Repelling the Invasion

The African Queen in outer space

Catt Sayer just wants to survive.  The working-class fugitive delivers military supplies on her decrepit airship, but her hard-won livelihood vanishes when invaders overrun her harsh moon. If that isn’t bad enough, an idealistic, upper-class officer wants her to risk her life on a hopeless voyage to attack enemy headquarters – manned by 10,000 soldiers.

Escapee is the second book in the Repelling the Invasion series.
Book one is The Guardian Angel of Farflung Station,
which features Hector’s twin brother, Duke.

Escapee: Excerpt

The main characters, Hank and Catt, are attacking the enemy headquarters in a small tank, hoping to destroy a shield generator so the invaders can be driven off.  This is from Catt’s POV.

Something pinged off the tank, making it ring like a muffled bell. They’d been hit, but if Hank was right—of course he was right—the enemy couldn’t penetrate the tank’s armor. Yet.

A stream of projectiles slammed the tank, one after the other, in an endless, cacophonous barrage, dozens of them. Hundreds. Then the tank roared and jumped like a giant had swatted it.

What the plark? The enemy had brought up their cannon already? They might not miss their next shot.

But Hank’s face still glowed with savage intensity. “The shield generator is nearby. I need two more seconds.”

It seemed to take a lot more than two seconds—her sense of time had shrunk—but then the tank bellowed again, and the sound was different. Internal, not external. “Missile one, missile two,” Hank shouted. “Three and four.”

Recoil smacked Catt backward into the seat. She was grateful all over again it was so well padded. How was the poor skoot faring? She couldn’t see the animal.

“Got it! Got it!” Hank’s voice sounded tinny after the roar of the missiles.

“We did it? We made a difference?”

“We did it!”

“Hank, I love—”

Before she finished, a mountain jumped onto the tank. Catt’s teeth rattled. Her helmet’s speaker’s hissed with overload and then went silent. The roof disappeared. Something hit her. No, the seat had ejected and she was flying. Spinning through the air. Through dizzy gray sky. And smoke.

And Hank was nowhere to be seen.

If you like The African Queen and the thrill of underdogs finding love while battling a hostile environment, you’ll love Escapee. Don’t let this rousing tale escape you.

Find this book at:

• Amazon  |  Canada  |  UK  |  Australia
• MuseItUp Publishing
• Apple iBooks
• Barnes and Noble
• Kobo Books
• All Romance

About the SFR Brigade

Each month, the Science Fiction Romance Brigade showcases some of its members.  The Brigade is a group of authors who write — what else? — science fiction and romance.

The year in review + a Xmas present for you

2016 was very productive.  I had three new books come out, tied for the most ever, and I sold another that will be out next year. Over the next few days I’ll be showcasing each book, so stop by each day for contests, discounts, free snippets, and more.

• Escapee, released April
  Book two in the Repelling the Invasion series, and the focus of today’s post.
• Future Love, released July
• Newborn, released November

Want to sample one of these three books? Everyone who signs up for my mailing list during the showcase will get the book of their choice in the e-book format of their choice by December 20. So sign up now!

Escapee

The African Queen in outer space

Catt Sayer just wants to survive.  The working-class fugitive delivers military supplies on her decrepit airship, but her hard-won livelihood vanishes when invaders overrun her harsh moon. Now an idealistic, upper-class officer wants her to risk her life on a hopeless voyage to attack enemy headquarters – manned by 10,000 soldiers.

Edward Hoornaert’s romantic space opera, Escapee, continues the saga of the Dukelsky family (begun in The Guardian Angel of Farflung Station).  If you like The African Queen and the thrill of underdogs finding love while battling a hostile environment, you’ll love Escapee.

Don’t let this rousing adventure escape you.  Order Escapee today.

• Amazon US
• Amazon Canada
• Amazon UK
• Amazon Australia
• MuseItUp Publishing
• Apple iBooks
• Barnes and Noble
• Kobo Books
• All Romance

SFR Brigade Showcase Participants:

Be sure to check out the other great writers taking part in the SFR Brigade Showcase.

Fart-Fueled Flying Feline, Effing for short, writes the Weekend Writing Warrior / Sunday Snippet posts on Mr. V’s behalf. Click the pic for info.

I, Effing Feline, have gotten e-mails about my favorite music. Well, actually I haven’t … but I should have. Don’t you people out there have the good sense to be guided by my tastes?

My pet human, Ed Hoornaert, recently signed a contract for a third book in his Repelling the Invasion series. If you missed last week’s peek at the opening of Constellation XXI, Sienna Dukelsky pilots a tugship in charge of guiding incoming freighters to a safe docking at Farflung Space Station — but her brand-new ship has suddenly lost all power, even backup power.

Sienna fumbled through tarry blackness for an emergency torch. With her fingertip, she clicked a compartment open. Good, good; now feel over toward the left.

There!  Pressing the end of the torch, she was rewarded with light, blessed light. The beam’s shadows transformed the bridge into a grotesque parody of safety, but she could see again, and as long as she could see, she could do…

What? In five years as a flight cadet and three years as a tugship apprentice, she’d memorized over a thousand pages of procedures, but there was no procedure for handling a total shutdown. No procedure for a tyrannosaur from old Earth materializing in the mess hall, either. Both things were impossible.

Be sure to visit the other Weekend Writing Warriors and Snippet Sunday posts.

The Repelling the Invasion series

The Guardian Angel of Farflung Station

The space pirates think they succeeded in invading Farflung Space Station — but they didn’t count on Sandrina. The attractive young waif has discovered so many of Farflung’s secrets that she’s the most powerful person on the station … though nobody knows it yet.

They’re about to find out.

• Amazon

Escapee

Catt Sayer just wants to survive.  The working-class fugitive delivers military supplies on a decrepit airship, but her hard-won livelihood vanishes when invaders overrun her harsh moon. Even worse, an idealistic, upper-class officer wants her to risk her life on a hopeless trek to attack enemy headquarters – manned by 10,000 soldiers!

The African Queen in outer space

• Amazon

And coming soon … Constellation XXI

Sienna Dukelsky’s unglamorous job is to guide incoming freighters to a safe docking at Farflung Space Station. But when telepathic aliens with a startling secret seize control of her tugship, Sienna’s job suddenly becomes the most important in the entire galaxy.

Welcome to the Science Fiction Romance Brigade’s first showcase of 2017. Once a month the brigade’s authors highlight snippets from new work, WIPs, cover reveals or other fun things.

Science. Fiction. Romance. Three words that are keys to who I am.

Key 1: Science

Although I love learning about the universe, I’m not a serious science geek. I subscribe to Science News but read only half the articles. I used to subscribe to Scientific American, but read way less than half.

In my science fiction, I’ve come up with only a couple of sorta original ideas (although that’s not to say others didn’t think of them first):

• “The Jungian Extension” — The idea that Jung’s Collective Unconscious would be vastly more powerful on a world of telepaths. In The Trilogy of Tompa Lee, the natives consider Tompa a goddess — and their belief gives her startlingly godlike powers.
• “Tugships” — The idea that incoming spaceships should be escorted to safe docking. Freewheeling ships, traveling at torpedo speeds, are a recipe for disaster unless they land perfectly. In Constellation XXI, tugship pilot Sienna fights to control a runaway freighter headed straight toward the space station where she grew  up.

Key 2: Fiction

Sometimes, I can be really dense. I was nearly 40 before I realized I was a creative person — even though by then I’d been playing oboe in orchestras for half my life. Looking back, how could I not have realized my fundamental nature? Dumb, dumb, dumb.

Indicative of my self-ignorance, my first books were non-fiction programming books for children. As I came to realize I needed to create or die, I finally turned to fiction.

Initially, I wrote contemporary romances for Silhouette books because my wife suggested that “anyone could write one of those.” Yes, she actually said that.

Key 3: Romance

I married my high school sweetheart a week after graduation. We’re still together. We’ll reach FIFTY YEARS when this decade dies and oh my God I’m getting old.

By any measure, our marriage has been better than most. That alone qualifies me to handle love stories with HEAs, but I also prefer Jane Austen movies to superhero flicks. I’m a guy, but I’m a romantic.

So it is that romance shares center stage with science in my SFR’s such as the Alien Contact for Idiots series or the Repelling the Invasion series.

Even in my science fiction that doesn’t quite qualify as romance, such as Future Love or The Midas Rush, love is usually a primary motivation.

****

There you have it — my writing career has been a voyage of discovery. You can launch a discovery voyage of your own by checking out the posts by the members of the SFR Brigade.

Fart-Fueled Flying Feline, Effing for short, writes the Weekend Writing Warrior / Sunday Snippet posts on Mr. V’s behalf. Click the pic for info.

I, Effing Feline, am bereft. Ed, my pet human, has abandoned me to see his son’s dog, Sadie, in some place called Toronto. I suppose he’s visiting with his sons, too — but it’s the dog that bothers me. I’ve been telling cat jokes, but today I’m switching to jokes that make fun of !&*$*# dogs.

Q. What kind of dog eats with his ears?
A. They all do.  I’ve never seen a dog remove its ears before eating.

Q. How do you stop a dog from barking in the back seat when you’re driving?
A. Invite him to bark in the front seat.

Now for another snippet from Mr V’s sci fi romance, Escapee, featuring the skoot, a small, six-legged reptilian pet, rather than boring humans. We also me Lancelot, the android copilot, discussing the skoot. Lance talks first, followed by  the pilot heroine, Catt Sayer.

“I think he likes you, Catt.”

“Keep him away from me, Lance. Use force if necessary.”

“Is that an order?”

Hesitating, Catt glanced toward the ’fresher door, where Dukelsky had
disappeared. Lance must obey orders, and in some circumstances force would
make matters worse.

“No,” she sighed. “Use your discretion. For now, though, just keep that
plarking skoot away from me.”

Lance tightened his grip on the ugly reptile, which strained to leap onto her lap
and wash her face with its snaky, germ-laden tongue. How could
people keep such horrid-looking creatures as pets?

Effing Feline here again. Catt, I completely agree with your sentiments about skoot — and the same thing can be said of DOGS!

Be sure to visit the other Weekend Writing Warriors and Snippet Sunday authors.

Edward Hoornaert’s romantic space opera, Escapee, continues the saga of the Dukelsky family (begun in The Guardian Angel of Farflung Station). If you like The African Queen and the thrill of underdogs finding love while battling a hostile world, you’ll love Escapee.

• Amazon US  |  Canada  |  UK  |  Australia
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Escapee is a finalist for InDTale magazine’s RONE award. Wish me luck.

My short story collection Future Love is one of a hundred books on sale for a short time only.  Click the picture below and look under Space Opera.

Fart-Fueled Flying Feline, Effing for short, writes the Weekend Writing Warrior / Sunday Snippet posts on Mr. V’s behalf. Click the pic for info.

I, Effing Feline, am hissed. Ed, my pet human, went to Toronto. He brought back candy for Mrs V and for his daughter and grandsons. But for me? Nothing.

Nothing!

Hiss to you, Mr V!

But to show I’m a bigger cat than he is, I’ll present a snippet from his sci fi romance, Escapee. Despite his unfeeling snub. Catt’s airship gets caught in a violent updraft from a volcano — and she enjoys the challenge of flying through it. Hector, meanwhile, still broods over losing his entire command in an attack while he was on leave.

“Yee ha,” screeched the madwoman piloting the airship.

Hector had no idea whether they were about to die by crashing or by burning, but one way or another they were going to die. His body feared death but his mind welcomed it.

The skoot quivered where he held it with one hand to keep it from slipping out from the seatbelt he’d jury-rigged. Strange how the animals felt almost like soldiers under his command. He was responsible for their lives, and he would save them even if — or perhaps because — he’d failed to save his human troopers. If he lived long  enough to save the animals, that is.

He put his mouth near the skoot’s ear and whispered soothing sounds. Enough of this ‘welcoming death’ crap. He had troopers, and they were a reason to live.

Effing Feline here again. Remember, folks, that whenever you travel you absolutely must bring back something for your cat. So promise me you’ll pack a dead mouse in your suitcase when you return, okay?

Be sure to visit the other Weekend Writing Warriors and Snippet Sunday authors.

Edward Hoornaert’s romantic space opera, Escapee, continues the saga of the Dukelsky family (begun in The Guardian Angel of Farflung Station). If you like The African Queen and the thrill of underdogs finding love while battling a hostile world, you’ll love Escapee.

• Amazon US  |  Canada  |  UK  |  Australia
• MuseItUp Publishing
• Apple iBooks
• Barnes and Noble
• Kobo Books

Fart-Fueled Flying Feline, Effing for short, writes the Weekend Writing Warrior / Sunday Snippet posts on Mr. V’s behalf. Click the pic for info.

I, Effing Feline, was listening to Mrs V’s music, and it got me thinking. It was from The Sound of Music, and this is the line that got me thinking.

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens
these are a few of my favorite things.

The song’s unimportant, but what is important are my favorite things.

1. salmon
2. naps
3. tuna
4. naps
5. cat treats
6. naps
7. teasing Twiggles the dog

And now, a snippet from Ed’s sci fi romance, Escapee. In the middle of a confrontation between army Captain Hector and supply ship captain Catt, we learn why people tolerate the ugly, lizard-like skoots rather than glorious cats.

“—and in any case, what was I supposed to think when the men were so fervently and furtively looking forward to your arrival, Miss Sayer?”

“That’s Captain Sayer to you, and for your information they looked forward because they liked me and because I smuggled goodies for them.”

For a moment, there was silence except for the gentle creaking of the ship in the wind. Her face remained impassive except for a slight tremor of her lips. He wondered if she wished she hadn’t admitted her guilt. Even he regretted the confession, because it would have to go on his report, if they survived this mission.

The skoot lumbered off the couch and edged toward them, its usual exuberance subdued by distress. People put up with skoots because they sympathized with human moods. It nudged his hand, and when that got no response it nudged Sayer’s knee, as though trying to get the two of them to kiss and make up.

To banish the vivid imagery of kissing Sayer, Hector banished all emotion from his voice. “So, you’re a smuggler: liquor or drugs?”

Effing Feline here again. I remember more of my favorite things: catnip, dead mice, and live birds too crippled to fly. Hey, I’m a cat!

Be sure to visit the other Weekend Writing Warriors and Snippet Sunday authors.

Edward Hoornaert’s romantic space opera, Escapee, continues the saga of the Dukelsky family (begun in The Guardian Angel of Farflung Station). If you like The African Queen and the thrill of underdogs finding love while battling a hostile world, you’ll love Escapee.

• Amazon US  |  Canada  |  UK  |  Australia
• MuseItUp Publishing
• Apple iBooks
• Barnes and Noble
• Kobo Books

“I’ll do it,” she said in a firm, prim voice.

Dukelsky stopped just outside the ‘fresher door, sleep dulling his expression and shadowing his eyes. Claws scrambling, the skoot and the kitten raced each other to reach him first. The skoot won and danced around him on its four hind legs, tongue slathering the air.

“I said, I’ll do it,” she repeated.

He ran a hand through his hair. “Does this mean you had the same dream I did?”

“Pardon?” Glancing at the front of his shorts, her neck and face warmed in a blush.

Effing Feline here again. Did I mention I don’t like dogs?

Be sure to visit the other Weekend Writing Warriors and Snippet Sunday authors.

Edward Hoornaert’s romantic space opera, Escapee, continues the saga of the Dukelsky family (begun in The Guardian Angel of Farflung Station). If you like The African Queen and the thrill of underdogs finding love while battling a hostile world, you’ll love Escapee.

• Amazon US  |  Canada  |  UK  |  Australia
• MuseItUp Publishing
• Apple iBooks
• Barnes and Noble
• Kobo Books

“Hank, you don’t have to do this.”

“I want to. Who else am I going to name as my beneficiary?”

“Gee, I don’t know. How about your brother or sister or your parents? A pet mizzet? Your favorite charity?”

“Duke has a great job on Farflung Station, Helen is the stingiest person alive even though she’s rich, my parents are both generals, and their combined pensions alone make them richer than most of your hated patroons. I’m allergic to mizzets, and my friend the skoot doesn’t need money. My favorite charity is, I suddenly find, your family.”

Effing Feline here again. I’m considering going in search of my sisters. Think I should?

Be sure to visit the other Weekend Writing Warriors and Snippet Sunday authors.

Edward Hoornaert’s romantic space opera, Escapee, continues the saga of the Dukelsky family (begun in The Guardian Angel of Farflung Station). If you like The African Queen and the thrill of underdogs finding love while battling a hostile world, you’ll love Escapee.

• Amazon US  |  Canada  |  UK  |  Australia
• MuseItUp Publishing
• Apple iBooks
• Barnes and Noble
• Kobo Books

Oh — it was the skoot, not Catt. “Get away from me.”

When he shoved it away, it yelped. Instead of running, it whined and dragged a broken rear leg across the floor. This place smelled funny, like spilled food and fear, and it was noisy, too, like . . . like a place that should be familiar.

Suddenly, he knew where he was. On Escapee, which had overturned and yet somehow landed right side up.

Effing Feline here again. Be sure to visit the other Weekend Writing Warriors and Snippet Sunday authors.

Edward Hoornaert’s romantic space opera, Escapee, continues the saga of the Dukelsky family (begun in The Guardian Angel of Farflung Station). If you like The African Queen and the thrill of underdogs finding love while battling a hostile world, you’ll love Escapee.

• Amazon US  |  Canada  |  UK  |  Australia
• MuseItUp Publishing
• Apple iBooks
• Barnes and Noble
• Kobo Books

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The Tribulations of Tompa Lee is on sale for only 99c in this month’s promotion run by Patty Jansen. Check out the science fiction adventure section.