BLOGS

When I first joined the Black Science Fiction Society earlier this year, I was a looking for a home to share my speculative fiction short stories. I'm a nerdgirl from way back, and I was reading MAD magazine, Stephen King and Dean Koontz in my bedroom at age 11. I began experimenting with spec fiction in grad school, and I saw the genre as a way to tell funky and futuristic tales blended with racial politics. When I posted excerpts of my writing for feedback, BSFS members provided a constructive and supportive forum and inspired me to stretch my imagination to the limit.

I recently published a collection of short stories, Escape from Beckyville: Tales of Race, Hair and Rage that grew out of the stories I posted here as well as several that I completed in my master's program. I'm free falling into this new realm as indie author and publisher with no safety net, and I believe in my mission so much, that I walked away from a career at a top-rated talk show to become a full-time writer.

I'm selling the print copy of Escape from Beckyville exclusively on my website nicolesconiers.com. The digital version is available for immediate download on Smashwords. Because the Black Science Fiction Society always supported me and was the first place I ran to to post my stories and to build with other sci-fi and fantasy writers of color, I'm offering all my BSFS peeps a 20 percent discount on the $14.95 print copy of the book. To take advantage of the 20 percent discount, click here!

Thanks in advance for supporting my work. Continue to write and dream on!

Nicole D. Sconiers, author
Escape from Beckyville: Tales of Race, Hair and Rage
http://www.nicolesconiers.com
http://youtu.be/5ABjaDFwrjo - "Beckyville" video promo
http://www.twitter.com/nicolesconiers

I highly recommend putting this on your “next book to read” list. Definitely five star material here.

This is available for Kindle, which is great, because you will definitely want to take this book with you and steal time to read it at every opportunity until you are done. Then you will want more.

Malcolm “Rage” Petteway

Owner, Rage Books Publishing LLC

This review is posted on amazon.com and www.ragebooks.blogspot.com

Fans of Laurell K. Hamilton’s Anita Blake and L.A. Banks Damali Richards will love Ivory Blaque, the new and exciting femme fatale from author John F. Allen. Ivory is a professional thief who has in her possession twin US Army Colts with extraordinary attributes that give her a significant edge in her profession. Ivory is a dynamic character whose style and charm is sure to entertain fans for years to come.

BE SURE TO PURCHASE A COPY OF IVORY, THE FAST PACED, ACTION EXTRAVAGANZA BY JOHN F. ALLEN. IVORY IS AVAILABLE AS AN EBOOK THROUGH BARNES & NOBLE (www.bn.com)  FOR DOWNLOAD ON YOUR NOOK, PC OR SMARTPHONE. IT’S ALSO AVAILABLE IN PDF FORMAT AT MY BLOG: www.johnfallenwriter.blogspot.​com
DON’T WAIT, ORDER TODAY!!!

http://http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/ivory-john-f-allen/1031459326?ean=2940012951953&itm=3&usri=ivory

BSFS has some of the most brilliant writers in the world. So I decided to list my favorite authors that I found right here:) Centuries from today they will still be spoken of.

Charles Saunders author of the Imaro series... his most recent release is Damballah

Edward Uzzle author of Neters and Retro-KM

Quinton Veal author of Her Black Body I Treasure

Milton Davis author of Meji I and Meji II... his most recent release is Changa's Safari

Joe Bonadonna author of Mad Shadows

B. Sharise Moore author of Taste: An Erotic Fantasy Series

Ronald Jones his most recent release is Warriors of the Four Worlds

Angela Nicole Parker her most recent release is Specter of War: Guardians of Destiny

D.K. Gaston author of The Friday House

Larry Winfield author of Banjo Strings

"Valdar is city of swordslingers and necromancers, witch cults and half-human races. It's a city in a world of darkness... This is my city. This is my world." Mad Shadows, Joe Bonadonna 

Take a wisecracking detective who's handy with both sword and dowsing rod. Take a mosaic of deadly villages with evil lurking in every alleyway. Take a hoard of supernatural villains. Take all this and more and you've got Joe Bonadonna's Mad Shadows, one of the most amazing reads of my summer! 

I had a blast matching swords with "Dorgo's" enemies, hunting down treacherous beasties and seeking out magic with his dowsing rod. In short, I give Mad Shadows an enthusiastic five stars as a thoroughly enjoyable and exciting read!!! Check it out and tell them Sister moon sent you :)! 

Pick up Mad Shadows here

This event is about bringing the Black Age to the masses.  To this end we will be at the Annual free outdoor "Back To Our Roots" Arts & Crafts Festival at the DuSable Museum in Chicago July 9th & 10th.  This will expose several thousand folks to the Black Age over the week end.  Plus Friday July 8th we will host signings at Graham Crackers and the First Aid Comic Book stores.  One in downtown Chicago the other in the same 'hood as President Obama & Minister Farrakhan's personal homes and the birthplace of the Black Age movement.

After 30 plus years of Black Aging I see that progress, profits & pride are winning in this war for minds & marketshares!!!!

Along with my 12 years of being an Art Therapist plus over twenty of being a Public School Teacher and Coach I am glad to be so honored to be in this struggle. Indie today: Black Age forever!!

What it do BSF folks?! This community is growing so quickly its beautiful to see. i could see some great things blossoming from so many minds. A Black Science Fiction event? Online store w/ books from all the members who are already there w/ their game? Maybe a distribution company? Anyways, love and light to you all. here is the 7th in a series of short stories Im working on. Please let me know what you think.

-Rob (live from the Bay Area-California!)

To see more of the process please check out my blog, and add me here on BSFS!

Hello, fellow writers! My name is Elwin Cotman. I was recommended to this site by Charles Saunders, and I can't wait to meet everybody!

I'm an author from Pittsburgh, PA currently living in California. My first short story collection, The Jack Daniels Sessions EP, was published recently by Six Gallery Press. It's a collecton of folklore, urban fantasy and horror stories. Here's the blurb:

"A Washington D.C. punk club gets a visit from very ancient--and dangerous--guests. The mythic and the mundane collide at a general store in the segregated South. A young boy becomes apprentice to the Angel of Death. In the debut collection of fantasy author Elwin Cotman, the humorous mixes with the historical and the epic mixes with the deeply personal. Cotman combines the language of high fantasy, urban fantasy, black folklore, teen angst, punk rock and horror to create American fairy tales with landscapes all their own."

And it's on Amazon! Check it out! http://www.amazon.com/Jack-Daniels-Sessions-EP/dp/1926616170/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1309718539&sr=1-1

Doing readings is one of my favorite things and I've toured across the country. I've also been a guest at several conventions. My influences are way too numerous to mention, but here's the short list: Robert E. Howard, Richard Wright, Toni Morrison, Mary Gaitskill, Clark Ashton Smith, Hans Christian Andersen, Jhumpa Lahiri, Warren Ellis, Wendy Pini, Neil Gaiman, Peter S. Beagle, Margaret Weis & Tracy Hickman. I love Greek myth, African-American folklore, Japanese anime and Germanic fairy tales. I'm excited to rap with all of you.

Here's an excerpt from the second story in my book. It's a series of vignettes based on black folklore. Enjoy!

The Right Way to Worship

It came to be, sometime in the year nineteen twenty-three, when Jim wuz wukkin the gen'ral stow one morn. Jim wuz a good sort, a skinny-bone fella with gray sidewhiskers and his apron alluz dusted in flour. He carried on him the stow's smell o' wheat and garlik, so's that evuhwhar he went he left a li'l scent o' stow. Folk round them parts said Jim had wukked there a hunnerd years. You would guess he'd never been young at all.

Fact wuz, he hadn't been. Many years ago, he burst forth full-growed, right in the middle o' the gen'ral stow, in a great sploshun o' fire. It wuz a feat he'd grown tired o' talkin bout and, to evuhbody's disappointment, the ole clerk never came close to doin it agin.

He wuz stackin bags o' fertlizer when in come Miss Molly, all mad and fussed-like, draggin her son Jeremiah by the horns. Now, that boy wuz half-boy, half-bull: he had two giant horns curvin on top his head and hooves instead o' hands. They said his mama wuz right awful to a tree witch one day, so she put a hex on her that made her baby come out with horns and hooves. His face wuz red from cryin so hard.

"Mawnin, Miss Molly," sez Jim. "Wut'choo need t'day?"

"I don't know wut to git," she sez, slappin the boy's behind. "This boy done embarrassed me at revival."

"Now wut did he do?" Jim ast, smilin at the li'l fella.

"When it came time to give praise," sez Molly, sez she, "this li'l heathen pulled down his pants. Then he starts gruntin like a pig. Then, in front o' the whole congregation, he takes a piss. But that ain't the end of it! He starts screamin and throwin things at evuhbody, jumps up and lands right in the mud. He embarrassed me in front o' Reverend Hawkins and the whole town. Lawd! Why wuz I cussed with such a wicked son?"

"Well," said Jim, "that is a right strange way to worship. Why don't you 'splain y'self, young man?"

The li'l half-bull boy sniffed, tuckin his cow-tail tween his legs. "That's how you give praise, I swar! I wuz jest doin wut Mister Young over by the creek tole me to do."

"Wut Mister Young tole you to do, huh?" Jim knew all about that sinner.

"I wuz fishin," said Jeremiah, "and I sees him walk up to that yallah lady's house, and he knocks on the doh' and takes his pants off. Then he goes inside and he starts gruntin. Then he comes out and pees on a tree. I knows I shouldna been so curious, mama, but I followed him back to his cabin. He's creepin round, and Missus Young opens the doh' and starts throwin things at him, and she's screamin and hollerin. Then Mister Young runs away and falls down right in front o' me in the mud. Then he tells me that evuhthin I jess saw wuz how he and his friends give the glory, and I shouldn't tell nobody."

Jim laughed. "Boy, I don't think wut you saw wuz worshippin."

"But that's how you worship," the boy insisted. "Cuz Missus Young got the spirit at revival. When I 'splained m'self to the reverend, I went to go talk to him by the Youngs, and when she heard me she started screamin and throwin things at Mister Young all over agin. So it must be the right way!"

Hello Black Science world!

I am an erotic romance and urban fantasy author and I’m super excited to be here. My boy, Sean Harley told me about this site and I came right on over to check it out. I wanted to share with you an excerpt from the first book of my urban fantasy novel Black Rayne Silent Screams (Dragon Queen Series).

It’s on sale now at Red Rose Publishing - http://redrosepublishing.com/books/product_info.php?products_id=805

And on Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/Black-Silent-Screams-Dragon-ebook/dp/B0047DW5JA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1309569296&sr=8-1

R&B sensation Sharayna “Rayne” Piers lives a life dedicated to her music. On stage and in the studio, she pours her heart and soul into the lyrics of her songs. But every since her twentieth birthday, her seemingly
normal life has taken a turn to the dark side.

Piercing screams and horrid visions of horrendous acts of murder haunt her night and day. Women similar to her in age are vanishing all over the world without a trace, leaving Rayne wondering if the mass of disappearances are connected with her visions.

Soon she will discover that the world she was raised in is just a cover to what really hides in the shadows, and that her life as a human is a deception to mankind, a guise to conceal her true nature. Will she shun the
darkness that has befallen her or step up to the throne to become what she was created to be…the Dragon Queen?

Rayne’s heart began to thump erratically. A static charge started at her head then worked its way down to her toes. In waves, it rolled back up her body and left the center of her back pulsating. Bewildered, she dropped her eyesto the ground and reached back to brush her fingers over the dragon tattoo she had slapped on her back years ago in Hong Kong.

Why was it throbbing?

In the thick of her confusion, time shifted in slow motion, and then everything went mute. No longer could she hear the sounds of cars whizzing by, or the chatter of the people walking along the strip. She could only hear the rapid heartbeat knocking against her chest.

A presence, she felt a presence that made her insides churn. She’d felt this presence before, in her mind. Could it be him? Demetri? Had he actually found her? Nervously, she clutched the end of her shirt and scanned the area for just a glimpse of him. No one stood out. No one even looked her way.

Was he teasing her, or was her mind truly playing tricks on her? Damn!

Along the side of the street, a cab pulled up next to her. The driver, a middle aged man with a cropped haircut and broad smile, stepped out of the car, trotted around it and opened the back door for her. Compelled, she found herself sliding into the vehicle without a question asked.

It was a quiet ten minute ride to the beach. Still smiling, the driver helped her out then waved for her to follow him. The rubber soles of her Tims dug into the sand as they trudged along the deserted beach.

Off in the horizon, the pale pink tint from the moon beamed over the small waves in the ocean and the light grains of sand. They sparkled under her appraisal like a trillion tiny diamonds in the spotlight.

The driver led her to a small gazebo with sheer red curtains covering the openings. Through the transparent fabric, a chaise lounge sat in the center of it. On the side was a tall bucket filled with ice, chilling a large bottle of wine. Long metal torches set on either side of the shelter added to the glow already cast from the orb above.

She turned to question the driver to find him nowhere in sight.

A sudden breeze blew ripples over the water and pushed the curtain back, as if to welcome her into the cozy enclosure. Swallowing hard, she moved forward.

“Do you like it?” A deep croon brushed the side of her neck.

Startled, she whirled around and tumbled back. Before she could hit the ground, a pair of hands caught her. She was drawn against a hard body. Her breath came out in shorts spurts as his arms circled her waist.

“Oh God,” was all she could whimper.

Deathly afraid to look up in his face, she clutched the lapels of his jacket and squeezed her eyes shut. Panic picked at her nerves then she realized she was holding her breath.

Breathe Rayne, breathe.

This was no dream, nor vision. It was actually happening. The alluring scent of him swirled around her. He smelled so good she almost passed the hell out.

His fingers slipped beneath her chin and tilted her face up to his. “At your request, I am here for you.”

She opened her eyes and her next breath got caught in her throat.

Jet black, wavy hair draped his broad shoulders, and framed his porcelain face. Accented by a fan of thick black lashes, bright and exotic eyes, shimmering like the ocean beneath a full moon, were fixed on her.

Never in her life had she seen a man so incredibly beautiful. Just looking at him made every muscle in her body tingle.

“Demetri?” she whispered, giving into the shudders ripping up and down her spine.

His sexy lips curved up in a smirk, enhancing his beauty as he slowly removed her shades. “Hello, Angel.”

Book 2 Black Rayne Scarlet Moon will release this year at RedRosePublishing.com.

I also want to share with you a wicked image done my boy, and brilliant comic artist, Sean Harley of the two main characters from the Dragon Queen Series, Rayne and Demetri. I wanted to post the image on this blog, but I believe the image size was too big. You can view it on my wordpress blog. http://yvonnenicolas.wordpress.com/2011/02/24/awesome-artwork-from-sean-vincent-harley/

If you love this image as I do, you’ll surely love his Lucero comic Book. http://indyplanet.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=4595

For more on Sean, check out Plan B Comics. http://planbcomics.com/about/

And for more on the Dragon Queen Series, check out my website. http://yvonnenicolas.com/

Hello,

      My name is Sean V. Harley. I am an indepentant comic artist and the creator of the character Lucero. I currently work with a group of artist and we call ourselves Plan B Comics. Currently I am working on some pages for "The Plan B Showcase II" , "Lucero #0", and the cover for Yvonne Nicolas's next book. The names of the books that I have been involved with that are currently published are as follows:

The Acadia Anthology issues 1-5  http://indyplanet.com/store/advanced_search_result.php?keywords=arcadia+anthology&osCsid=0eot4a1kekhi215liohc02n1o3

The Plan B Showcase  http://indyplanet.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=5230

The Plan B Pin-Up Book(cover A)  http://indyplanet.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=5146

The Plan B Pin-Up Book(cover B)  http://indyplanet.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=5269

Z Pin-Up Book  http://indyplanet.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=4529

A799 (Lucero's Origin Story)  http://indyplanet.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=4595

I also put out a few T-shirts as well and they are as follow:

Lucero Black T-Shirt  http://indyplanet.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=4902

Lucero White T-Shirt  http://indyplanet.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=5018

Deviant By Design T-Shirt  http://indyplanet.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=5318

On another not, I want to be honest with you guys. I do this out of my passion to create books and at the moment not as a living. I am currently in the US Navy. I am about to retire really soon after 20 years of service and am about to be a civilian. My wife sometimes gets on my case because between working and my art I dedicate a lot of hours towards what I do, but in all she is very supportive of me. Well that is me in a nutshell folks. Before I forget I did mention my friend Yvonne Nicolas and it wouldnt be right if I didnt give you the link to her website. Well here it is: http://yvonnenicolas.com/  and   her facebook page http://www.facebook.com/people/Yvonne-Nicolas/1438221740#!/yvonnenicolas09

Ok peeps. Thanks for taking the time to read this.

Sean

Being an artist is hard at times. Try being a scientist, heck, the bottles of chemicals, the clash of molecules, the expectation, the failures but damn that's fun. “Dude, it's time to take your pills!” “OK”, I say to my companion. “We doing the blood check today?” “No, all your systems are stable”.

It started innocently, a blog about PCs being too slow. People have a hunger for instantaneous response from their PCs, even talk of anticipation response. It was the topic of all conversations and being the sci- er, artist that I am, I coaxed a stem cell into boot-strapping some personal DNA. It produced a mini-brain sort of a four function calculator version a full size brain. When the paper was published I got slapped with a restraining order to cease development and ethics violations got me this house arrest. Damn those creative judges, incarcerated me with my device to learn the error of my ways. It would have worked except a near by lighting strike ramped up the energy potential in my yard. I ran out holding a Blackberry and the “Stem-D'NA device. Man, I blacked out, hit by I don't know what. I awoke in a clinic, my stuff in a box. While the nurses scurried about I cleaned the Blackberry but the Stem-D'NA device was fused to the back. I made it home and while watching the news realized only my blood was spilled. My blood, I thought, “Yeah, and you oozed all over me!”, in a muffled voice that sounded a lot like myself. I am hearing myself think, “No, not really!” My eyes open wide, taking a deep pondering breath, started to laugh. “No, wait, let me do it, Wwhhoowawaahaaaa!” Where'd you learned to do that? “It's a standard backyard sci- er, artist talk, everybody knows.....” Never mind.

Just saw this one on PBS' "The History Detectives."  Very touching story about Douglas Roach, an African-American who volunteered to fight against the fascists during the Spanish Civil War. He was killed in action in 1938, I believe it was. His touching eulogy was written and delivered by his friend and comrade-in-arms, Sol Feldman. It's a sad and wonderful story.

You can read the eulogy at www.kpbs.org 

If you Google Douglas Roach Spanish Civil War, you can read all about this formerly unsung hero who, thanks to "The History Detectives" and the InterNet, will no longer be forgotten. He was a member of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade -- all American volunteers who risked life and U.S. citizenship to fight in Spain against the DeFranco Fascist Regime.

Check out -- video.pbs.org/video for more info.