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INSURGENCY - Finale

“The infiltrator,” she said knowingly.

Sawyer smiled brightly. “That’s me sweetheart. Now toss over that gun you got, real slow.”

She clenched her teeth in anger, reaching to her waist and pulling her weapon from its holster before throwing it over. Moving forward carefully, he kicked it down onto the tracks, far out of her reach. And to think she had just saved his life. She was really going to have to have a word with Aseel about her new recruits. From the corner Akila growled threateningly, ears laid back as his reflective eyes glared at the man.

“Better quiet that mutt,” he warned.

She put out a hand, calling Akila to her. The wolf slowly walked over, never taking his eyes from the man. Once he reached her, she put quieting fingers to his fur, stroking softly.

“So what do you want?” she asked calmly.

“You,” the man replied. “The famous Shadow. You’ve got one hell of a bounty on your head.”

“So I hear,” she retorted. “I’m sure Omaha would be real proud of you right now.”

He laughed aloud.

“I’m set to be the richest man from there in a short while.”

“Thirty pieces of silver is all it took.” She spat in disgust. “You’d sell us all out for some money. We’re fighting to be free here. Don’t you understand that? That’s got to be worth more—”

“Oh spare me the fucking propaganda speech,” he sneered. “I’ve heard it all before. It’s what made me come here, thinking that I could do something to free the planet. A luta continua !” He lifted a fist mockingly before lowering it again. “It was all bullshit. There’s no glory in this, just a lot of running around in the dirt, living like worms.”

“That’s the nature of a guerilla war,” she responded coolly.

“War?” He laughed aloud. “That’s what you think this is? We’re mosquitoes. That’s it. We’re just mosquitoes buzzing in their ears. So you snipe a Rag here, blow up one of their ships, wipe out a small battalion—don’t make no difference. There’ll just be more of them, with better weapons. This ain’t no war—it’s just a slaughter waiting to happen.”

“You can’t defeat an insurgency on its own ground,” she told him. “We have the advantage.”

“Please…” he said derisively.

“Motomura was right,” she pressed. “Not all Ragnarok are behind this occupation. Protests have been growing daily against it on their world. Even their soldiers are getting weary. There’ve been suicides, mental breakdowns, some are deserting—they can’t keep this up forever. Maybe a shift in power in their government will bring new policies. I don’t know. Can’t say what the future holds. It might take years. It might take decades. But I know we’ll outlast them. All we have to do is believe we can win.”

“Decades?” he scoffed. “Sweetheart I ain’t got that long. And come to think of it, neither do you.”

She let out a deep breath, shaking her head. There was no convincing him. He was too far gone.

“So what you plan on doing with me?”

“Well that all depends,” he mused. “See the Rags want you for several reasons. First off, you’ve just been a pain in their ass. Capturing you they think’ll demoralize the resistance—the celebrated Shadow. But, they also want you for what you know.”

Her heart suddenly stopped as she listened.

“They haven’t been able to break that encryption code of yours. They know you made it with your friend—the DJ who sends out music across the underground pirate airwaves, with messages encoding within—calls himself the Digital Guerilla. Tracked him down to his base in Atlanta, but he had disappeared by then. Way they figure it that leaves you as the only other person with that information. And they want it real bad.”

She remained silent, glaring at him with a burning hatred. He was right. She had been one of the ones that helped make the code, the very one now used by the resistance. It was made by software that continuously caused it to shift, changing repeatedly. If the Ragnarok got their hands on that….

“Now you can just tell me—”

“Go to Hell,” she spat. “I’m not giving you anything.”

“You might want to think that over,” he warned with a playful smile. “The Rags. They’ll get the info outta you, one way or another. You seen them images of torture that came out from Sing Sing on detainees? And those were men. Don’t even want to think what they’ll do to a pretty little thing like you….” He paused, seeming to enjoy himself. “Now, you tell me, and I promise I’ll just shoot you right here—quick and simple. A death like that beats what they’re sure to put you through.”

She yet said nothing, simply watching his movements. He was right in his own way. The Ragnarok would certainly torture her to get everything they wanted. And though she doubted she would talk, they had other ways of pulling information, right out of your minds. If she allowed herself to fall into their hands, who knew what she could unwittingly reveal to them. No, that couldn’t happen. Yet to be taken out by this traitorous filth, that wasn’t the way she planned on leaving this world. She sighed to herself. Thank God she always kept a third option.

“So you have it all figured out,” she said.

“Not bad for a kid from Omaha huh?” he asked with a bright smile.

“I’ve seen better,” she replied dryly. “Shame I’m going to have to make this a little more complicated for you.”

He frowned, not seeming to understand.

“Tell you what,” she smiled. “I’ll make you a deal. Walk away now, and you live.”

The man stared at her incredulously.

“And if I don’t?”

Her smile disappeared. “You die.”

The seriousness in her voice must have unnerved him because a hint of fear crossed his face before he put on a brave look once more. Laughing heartily he took a few steps towards her.

“And how do you plan on doing that sweetheart?”

She smiled again, and began to laugh with him.

“Kind of like this.”

Releasing the glow stick, she let it fall suddenly to the ground. It shattered to a dozen pieces, plunging them into darkness. There was a curse from the man as he stumbled about, trying to figure out what had happened. He managed to find his own glow stick, breaking it and quickly bringing it to bear. But by then it was too late.

She remained where she had stood, never moving from place. But now in her hands was a plasma gun as well, pointed at her foe. He stared at her in shock, still holding his own weapon threateningly. She figured at the moment he was trying to figure out where the gun had come from. Stupid rookie really thought that she only carried one. If he had any wits at all, he would have searched her. As it was, all she needed was a diversion to reach into her cloak to retrieve it.

“How…?” was all he could manage.

She smiled deviously.

“You didn’t think I got my nickname for nothing did you?”

He frowned now, angry and uncertain of what to do in the face of the unexpected Mexican standoff.

“Why don’t you drop the gun,” she suggested, “before somebody really gets hurt.”

“You’re bluffing!” he accused. “You shoot me, I shoot you. We’ll both be dead!”

She shrugged.

“I’ve been dead before.”

She took a step forward. He hastily took several back.

“Why so jumpy?” she taunted.

“Stay the fuck away from me!” he stammered.

“But you sought me out,” she went on, still walking forward slowly as he stumbled back. “You came looking for Shadow. Seven years of bounty hunters from different worlds, Ragnarok traps, and more—and you really thought you’d stroll up from Omaha to do the job?”

The man was scared now, his gun hand trembling.

“I said stay away!” he yelled. “You come any closer and I swear, I’ll put a hole right through you!”

“No. You won’t.”

She stopped in her tracks. She hadn’t said that.

Sawyer went pale, as he realized much the same. Spinning about in the darkness he seemed intent on firing—but never had the chance. A blast of hot light lit up the tunnel platform, striking the man squarely. He blinked once before looking down, noticing the wide yawning space that stood where his chest once did. Emitting a strangled sound he fell forward flatly, his dead body going immediately still.

Shadow looked on, as her savior stepped forward.

Motomura.

The man limped a bit, his clothes and skin singed from the plasma fire of the drone craft. Looking down at Sawyer, he kicked the still corpse before looking up to her.

“I thought you were dead,” she said.

“No sir. Just got separated.”

“Sawyer—you knew he was the infiltrator?”

Motomura nodded.

“Commander Aseel suspected it. But wasn’t certain. When Sawyer volunteered to come help find you, she sent me to keep an eye on him.” He paused. “Sorry for dropping the ball sir.”

She cast a gaze down to the dead body on the floor.

“I’d say you did a damned good job. Aseel picked you well.”

A look of surprise came across the man’s face, accompanied by a sheepish smile.

“Thank you sir—Commander.”

She bent down to pick up Sawyer’s still operable glow stick, and his gun—prying both from his hands. Akila came to her side, sniffing the body with distaste. Gladly, he didn’t eat just anything. Gathering herself, she jumped down to the tracks, beginning the trek to the underground’s hiding place. Motomura fell in behind. Walking in silence for a short while a sudden thought came back to her. Turning about she walked up to the man.

“Hope,” she told him. “My name…you wanted to know. It’s Hope.”

Motomura smiled, nodding in understanding.

Resuming her walk she let Akila lead the way. She’d rest well tonight. Tomorrow would bring a new day, and she had a war to fight.

End- 1st story- Shadow & Akila

2nd story- Motomura

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Calculating the rise and fall of science fiction books, television shows, and movies, I've determined the obvious. Science fiction is no longer dismissed easily as distractions for geeky misfits or as fanciful tales for children, and that may be because the world's observed science fiction over the years become science fact.


Photo from Flickr, by kodiax


So, here I am at 50, a Star-Trek-Twilight-Zone-Outer-Limits-Lost-in-Space-fed child of the 1960s. When I finished high school in the 70s, universities anxiously pitched computer science to graduates with the right test scores, hoping potentials could be drafted to the future. My generation may be part of the reason television's pushing out science fiction shows -- the retired Lost; Fox'sFringe; CBS's FlashForward, which has been cancelled; and the return of V and Battlestar Galactica. The last on the list has given birth to a prequel, Caprica.

My generation grew up on television, pressed the on-buttons of the first personal computers, made playing video games the cool thing to do as we nursed our Pac-Man addictions, and passed our growing dependence on technology onto our children who flock to movie theaters jonesing for special effects and silver screen spectacles that make them believe not only can Superman fly, but so can they. And they dream it into their visual arts, dance, music, and want so much more.

My daughter, 29, is working on a novel about a female general in a matriarchal society, and I am working on a novel about humans in peril on another planet. She and I had a discussion a few months ago about technology. I said ... Please read more of this post at BlogHer.com.

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Lots going on these days but this review was special to me in that I doubt any book published by DAW has ever been reviewed in Ebony Magazine. That's just changed and I love the idea that I had something to do with that. I hope I'm the first of many.

Here's the review. See it for yourself in stores now. :-). It's the issue with Prince on the cover.

Ebony Magazine
Page 48, July 2010
Editor's Pick
This Month's "Out-Of-The-Box" Read:

"In WHO FEARS DEATH, by Nnedi Okorafor, the setting is a post-apocalyptic Sudan in which tattered computers, a strict caste-by-race system and desert-roaming nomads coexist. In this sandy landscape, the Okeke people are slaughtered by the Nuru and a child is born from a violent rape. This child, Onyesonwu, whose name means “who fears death,” leads a mystical life in which she is both shunned and admired for her biracial heritage and the elusive magic bestowed upon her as a result of it. This magic jumps out of Onyesonwu, sometimes against her bidding. Harnessed correctly, it could help stem the ongoing genocide. The book is an untraditional fantasy novel; it actually features Black people in an alternate reality that is set in the Motherland. It also skews more toward the Octavia Butler end of the fantastical spectrum with believable, nuanced characters of color and an unbiased view of an Africa full of technology, mysticism, culture clashes and true love."
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Trolling for Reviews...


Ok, my new novel, Banjo Strings, is out in ebook form and the next step in my marketing campaign is seeking good, objective reviews for my controversial and colorful adult epic. Instead of shelling out big bucks to 'pay for review' sites for results that certainly wouldn't be considered 'objective,' I'm choosing this option:

The ebook is on sale (among other places) at Smashwords for $4.95, and to submit a review you have to purchase the book first. So here's the deal...

I will refund the cost of the book for up to five serious, objective reviews by genuine Erotic Horror / SciFi / Southern Gothic / Dark Fantasy fans who will:


1. Read the book sample.
2. Notify me afterward that you intend to purchase and read for review (don't buy the book until after I register you as a 'review reader').
3. Read the entire book.
4. Sign the review and allow its use in promotions.


The book sample covers the first third of the novel, more than enough to gauge your interest in participating. Once the review is officially published at Smashwords, I'll send a crisp (or wrinkled) Abe Lincoln your way either electronically or through snail mail with my thanks.

That's the deal. Holla back. BTW, I've posted this notice at my Facebook, Author Nation and Assn. of Poetry Podcasting pages, and hope to fill the slots by month's end.
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Great African Civilizations by Kathy Henry

There have been many misconceptions about the lives of Africans before the advent of European and American colonization. According to some historians, Africans were nothing more than savages whose only contributions to the world were farming and slaves. This is not true. The history of ancient Africa is just as interesting, complex, and sophisticated as any other ancient civilization, yet almost without exception; it is only Egypt that receives any consideration at all when writing history. Because of this mentality, European and American historians have long espoused that Africa and its inhabitants had no culture or history of their own, except what was given to them by outside factors.

However, long before the colonization of Europeans, Africans built kingdoms and monuments that rivaled any European monarchy. Nevertheless, because of racial prejudice, much of Black African history has been distorted and ignored to give justification to the enslavement of millions for financial profit. This paper will be discussing the ancient African kingdoms of Meroë, Ghana, and the Swahili and their rich contributions to the pages of history.

The kingdom of Meroë started around 1000 BC when Nubian rulers built up a politically independent state known to the Egyptians as Kush. Eventually, the rulers of Kush would move to Nubia and establish the kingdom of Meroë (Davis & Gates, p. 30). These rulers established their capital at Meroë around 300 B.C., and the kingdom lasted there for more than nine centuries.

However, some historians feel that because Meroitic culture imitated the Egyptian culture so closely, the Meroitës brought no culture of their own to the pages of history. This is not true According to archaeological evidence discovered in North Sudan that is over 2,500 years old, there was an old civilization along the Nile River at lower and Upper Nubia (modern day Sudan) that was older than the civilizations in the North (Egypt). Also, there is evidence that proves that the known Old Egyptian Civilization was an advanced stage of an even older civilization located in the Sudan (Davis & Gates, p. 35).

This evidence proves that Meroë had a culture and history that was even older than of the Egyptians. If anything, Egypt was a carbon copy of Meroë. This kingdom also had its own language. Most historians however, attributed their language and alphabet system to the Egyptians. It was a common belief that ancient Black Africans could not and did not develop a written language. However, inscriptions in a distinct indigenous alphabet appear in Meroë as early as the 2nd century B.C, proving that these assumptions are not true (Davis & Gates, p. 110).

This written Meroitic language was used into the 5th century, when Old Nubian eventually replaced it. Widespread use of Meroitic on monuments indicates that a significant percentage of the population was able to read it. However, the meanings of these inscriptions remain unknown, as this hieroglyphic-derived script is as yet untranslatable.

Another little know fact about the Meroitës is that they had a unusually high number of queens who ruled without male intervention. One queen, Queen Amanirenus led her army against a Roman invasion in 24 BC. She won the first battle, and despite losing a second battle, the Romans had enough, agreed to a truce and went back to Rome. Rome never did conquer Meroë, and this kingdom continued to thrive for another 200 years. Actually "queendom" would be more accurate, since the leader of Meroë was usually a warrior queen, called a "kandake" which means "queen mother" or more simply "gore"meaning "ruler"(Fairservis. p.60).

In terms of economics, Meroë was famed for its massive iron production, the first large-scale industry of its kind in the Nile Valley and had extensive trade with Greece and Rome. Because of the production of iron, the armies had better weapons to use during battle and the farmers had better axes and hoes to work their lands. Meroitë traders exported ivory, leopard skins, ostrich feathers, ebony, and gold and soon gained direct access to the expanding trade of the Red Sea (Shillington, p. 40).

The kingdom of Meroë eventually went into decline. Causes for the decline of the Meroitic Kingdom are still largely unknown. The Meroitic kingdom faced formidable competition because of the expansion of Axum, a powerful Abyssinian state in modern Ethiopia to the east. About A.D. 350, an Axumite army captured and destroyed Meroe city, ending the kingdom's independent existence.

The West African Empire of Ghana is another kingdom whose history was downplayed and attributed to outside factors. Although the Berbers originally founded Ghana in the fifth century, it was built on the southern edge of Berber populations. In time, the land became dominated by the Soninke, a Mande speaking people who lived in the region bordering the Sahara (McKissack & McKissack, p. 112). They built their capital city, Kumbi Saleh, right on the edge of the Sahara and the city quickly became the center of the Trans-Saharan trade routes.

Ghana accumulated great wealth because of the Trans-Saharan trade routes. This wealth made it possible for Ghana to conquer local chieftaincies and demand tribute from these subordinate states. This tribute, however, paled next to the wealth generated by the commerce of goods that passed from western Africa east to Egypt and the Middle East. This trade primarily involved gold, salt, and copper (Koslow, p. 70).

A hereditary king called the Ghana ruled Ghana. The kingship was matrilineal (as were all Sahelian monarchies to follow); the king's sister provided the heir to the throne (McKissack & McKissack, p. 115). In addition to military power, the king appears to have been the supreme judge of the kingdom.

Although northern African had been dominated by the religion of Islam since the eighth century, the kingdom of Ghana never converted (McKissack & McKissack, p. 120). The Ghanaian court, however, allowed Muslims to settle in the cities and even encouraged Muslim specialists to help the royal court administer the government and advice on legal matters.

The original founders of Ghana ultimately proved to be its demise. Unlike the Ghanaians, the Berbers, now calling themselves Almoravids, fervently converted to Islam and in 1075, declared a holy war, or jihad, against the kingdom of Ghana. Little is known about what exactly happened but nonetheless, Ghana ceased to be a commercial or military power after 1100. The Almoravid revolution ultimately ended the reign of Ghana.

Europeans and Arabs alike have portrayed the history of the Swahili kingdom as one of Muslim-Arab domination, with the African people and its rulers playing a passive role in the process. However, recent archaeological evidence found shows that the Swahili people are descendants of the Bantu speaking people who settled along the East African coast in the first millennium (Horton & Middleton, p. 70). Although both Arabians and Persians intermarried with the Swahili, neither of these cultures had anything to do with the establishment of Swahili civilization. These cultures became absorbed into an already flourishing African civilization founded by ancient Bantu Africans.

The eastern coast of Africa changed profoundly around the close of the first millennium AD. During this time, Bantu-speaking Africans from the interior migrated and settled along the coast from Kenya to South Africa. Next, merchants and traders from the Muslim world realized the strategic importance of the east coast of Africa for commercial traffic and began to settle there (Horton & Middleton, p. 72). Marriage between the Bantu women and men of the Middle East created and cemented a rich Swahili culture, fusing religion, agricultural architecture, textiles, food, as well as purchasing power. From 900 A.D., the east coast of Africa saw an influx of Shirazi Arabs from the Persian Gulf and even small settlements of Indians. The Arabs called this region al-Zanj, "The Blacks," and the coastal areas slowly came under the control of Muslim merchants from Arabia and Persia (Horton & Middleton, p. 75). By the 1300's, the major east African ports from Mombaza in the north to Sofala in the south had become thoroughly Islamic cities and cultural centers.

The language that grew out of this civilization is one of the most common and widespread of the lingua franca: a lingua franca is a secondary language that is a combination of two or more languages. Swahili or Kiswahili comes from the Arabic word sawahil, which means, "coast." Swahili belongs to the Sabaki subgroup of the Northeastern coast Bantu languages. It is closely related to the Miji Kenda group of languages, Pokomo and Ngazija (Horton & Middleton, p.110). Over at least a thousand years of intense and varied interaction with the Middle East has given Swahili a rich infusion of loanwords from a wide assortment of languages. Even with the substantial number of Arabic loanwords present in Swahili, the language is in fact, Bantu.

The Swahili civilization expanded southwards until they reached Kilwa in Zanzibar (from the Arabic word al-Zan). Later, its inhabitants carved out a small territory even further south around Sofala in Zimbabwe (Horton & Middleton, p. 140). While the northern cities remained localized and had little influence on African culture inland from the coast, the Sofalans actively went inland and spread Islam and Islamic culture deep in African territory (Horton & Middleton, p. 150).

The major Swahili city-states were Mogadishu, Barawa, Mombasa (Kenya), Gedi, Pate, Malindi, Zanzibar, Kilwa, and Sofala in the far south (Horton & Middleton, p. 155). Kilwa was the most famous of these city-states and was particularly wealthy because it controlled the southern port of Sofala, which had access to the gold, produced in the interior (near "Great Zimbabwe"), and its location as the farthest point south at which ships from India could hope to sail and return in a single monsoon season.

These city-states were very cosmopolitan for their time and they were all politically independent of one another. In fact, they were more like competitive companies or corporations, each vying for the lion's share of African trade. The chief export was ivory, sandalwood, ebony, and gold. Textiles from India and porcelain from China were also brought by Arab traders (Horton & Middleton, p. 175). While the Arabs and Persians played a role in the growth of the Swahili civilization, the nobility was of African descent and they ran the city-states (Horton & Middleton p.195). However, the nobility were Muslims and it was the Muslims who controlled the wealth. Below the nobility were the commoners and the resident foreigners who made up a large part of the citizenry.

However, Islam itself penetrated very little into the interior among the hunters, pastoralists, and farmers. Even the areas of the coast near the trading towns remained relatively unaffected (Horton & Middleton p.198). In the towns, the mud and thatch houses of the non-Muslim common people surrounded the stone and coral buildings of the Muslim elite, and it seems that most followers of Islam were wealthy, not poor.

Still, a culture developed for the Swahili that fused African and Islamic elements. Family lineage, for example, was traced both through the maternal line, which controlled property, an African practice, and through the paternal line, which was the Muslim tradition. Swahili culture had a strong Islamic influence but retained many of its African origins.

These city-states began to decline in the sixteenth century; the advent of Portuguese trade disrupted the old trade routes and made the Swahili commercial centers obsolete. The Portuguese wanted native Africans to have no share in African trade and busily set about conquering the Islamic city-states along the eastern coast (Horton & Middleton, p.225). In the late seventeenth century, the imam (religious leader) of Oman drove the Portuguese from the coast, and gradually established his authority over the coast.

The existence of these ancient Black African civilizations proves once and for all that Africa had a culture and a history of its own other than Egyptian that endured for centuries before the advent of outside factors. The kingdom of Meroë ruled for centuries before the Egyptians and deserves its rightful place as one of the premier ancient civilizations of the world. The kingdom of Ghana proved that Africans were capable of managing their own affairs without the intervention of Europeans. The Swahili and their language were around for centuries before Arabians and others "discovered" them.

These civilizations had their own culture, language and commerce before the advent of Europeans and Muslims in Africa and for the most part, the world does not know anything about them. That is a major crime against the study of history and hopefully, through more archaeological studies and writings, the rich and interesting history of these magnificent civilizations will be told and treasured for future generations.

Bibliography Fairservis, Jr., Walter A. The Ancient Kingdoms of the Nile. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell, 1962.

Davis, Lynn. Gates, Jr. Henry Louis. Wonders of the African World. New York: Random House Publishing, 1999.

Horton, Mark & Middleton, John. The Swahili: The Social Landscape of a Mercantile Society (Peoples of Africa). Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing. 2001.

Koslow, Philip. Centuries of Greatness - The West African Kingdoms: 750-1900. London: Chelsea House Publishers, 1995.

McKissack, Patricia & Fredrick Mckissack. The Royal Kingdoms of Ghana, Mali, and Songhay - Life in Medieval Africa. New York: Henry Holt and Company, Inc., 1994.

Shillington, Kevin. History of Africa. Oxford: Macmillan Education, 1995.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kathy_Henry
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Black SCI-FI Film in Production

About this project:

The reason I write and produce stories featuring black characters is because their are very little heroes in mainstream media that look like african americans. So I am creating a film called "The Flying Bullet: Peril of the Phoenix Planet" which will be a SCI-FI adventure film dealing with a Tuskegee Airman being transported millions of mile away from Earth in 1943. This film is a 100% science fiction story. I took the rich history of african americans and combined it with the science fiction genre. The story deals with the struggles of african americans to be counted as full citizens of the United States in defense of their country during WWII. Curt Master soons discovers that the planet Earth is entangled in a bigger intergalactic struggle to remain free from a nefarious Warlord.

My screenplay is already complete. I plan to begin shooting in June of 2010. I have enlisted aid from other african american actors, illustrators and visual effects personnel. The film will be
shot in a studio using green screen technology, on location in Hunstville, Alabama for outdoor scenes and at the U.S Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama for interior sci-fi scenes. The film should be complete by February 2010. I plan on entering it in the the Atlanta Film Festival in April of 2011 in Atlanta, Georgia for its premiere. Also I will premiere it at the Boys and Girls Club of Huntsville, Alabama for free to all the kids. Then the film will go on sale for the public in June 2011.

Special bonus features will include upcoming projects and a "making of/ director commentary."

The cost will cover studio time, CGI work, fees, software. I have several actors involved in the project doing it for free. They are doing it because they love sci-fi and want to see a project like this so all kids and adults can enjoy. But I would like to have something left over in order to pay them a nominal fee.
Heroes Like Me Entertainment wil produce original, low-budget, short films in the action, adventure and sci-fi genre starring african americans. I'm not asking for a hand-out but an opportunity to market the films to cable companies like TV-One, BET, SCI-FI Channel, Nickelodeon, and others networks.
Check out my website at heroeslikeme.com where you can see my other published work and content. If you have any further questions plesase email me at chris@heroeslikeme.com

I believe that everyone deserves heroes that look like them.


Project location: Huntsville, AL

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McKenzie Files-2 Advance Sneak Preview.

It took a while for me to get this done, but here it is for all my fans. A first and only early glimpse of McKenzie Files-2. Assasination Anxiety. As our Heroes, Colin, Diane and Kelly face off against The Enforcers. Publishing date to be announced. Remember, this is still a work in progress. But keeping within my writing zone and trying to keep my nose away from my X-Box 360, this work should be completed soon. But if you feel that you're not caught up into what's happening then perhaps you need to run out and buy a copy of the first McKenzie files book. Published by Leucrota Press and still on sale now. Enjoy.The location is the city of Kendridge, on the planet Tacoma Three. Secret Service agent, Mike Stevers scanned the multitude of faces in the crowd that gathered here to see the United Protectorate’s President Sandra Drennen. Stevers stood with a line of five other Secret Service agents in their ever conspicuous black suits and dark glasses, to guard the stage where Drennen was giving her campaign speech to the crowd for the ongoing Presidential election. The wooden stage where Drennen stood was adorned with a row of posters baring her smiling face and the face of her running mate. Vice President, Paul Zona. A smiling, youthful blond haired man wearing square glasses. Drennen, wearing a bright red dress, stood on stage behind the black wooden podium and addressed the crowd. Speaking into the twin, tubular microphones on top of the podium, her crisp voice boomed out from the black, rectangular speakers that stood six feet tall at the left and right of the stage.While standing on stage Drennen was given the extra protection of a kinetic repulse shield. Four flat cables on the stage floor were connected in a square formation around her. Generated by the cables, Drennen was surrounded by a cube of protective energy that resembled thick, blue glass. The shield would provide her with a large degree of protection against small arms fire and would have limited strength against explosives before it would weaken. In spite of this added security measure Stevers felt that this was a bad location to hold a campaign speech. At the edge of a park, across the street from a federal courthouse. Drennen was completely out in the open with only a few trees behind her and facing the courthouse and a row of other buildings that could provide a tempting perch for a potential sniper.Stevers and the other agents kept in touch with each other and received updates on the status of Drennen’s security through the headsets that they wore. Small earphones with thin, tubular microphones that extended down from the right side of the headset. The agents carried small remote keypads on their belts that enabled them to switch channels and communicate with different parties. Stevers watched the huge crowd, observing their cheers and applause to Drennen’s address. He was confident that no one here would present a threat to the President’s security. Everyone attending this rally was walked through a tight security checkpoint. Everyone underwent a full physical scan for any weapons. As well as chemical and biological agents. All purses were searched. Cameras were scanned to determine if they could be disguised weapons.Both sides of the street leading to this area were blocked off by the police. The airspace over the entire city was restricted during Drennen’s visit. And patrolled by police assault shuttles. Stevers watched as one of these shuttles made a slow pass several feet overhead. It’s long, black tubular body ending in a sharp point. It’s large cylindrical engines mounted on the sides of it’s body, with broad triangular wings attached to them. Mounted underneath each wing was a long barreled laser cannon and a large rectangular shaped missile launcher that carried six Hellstrike missiles. Protected by thick armor and a deflective energy shield this was one of five police shuttles that were patrolling the airspace while at the same time keeping a close watch on the ground with their sensitive scanners.Police and Secret Service agents strolled through the crowd to be on guard for anything that appeared to be suspicious. In Stevers opinion the President’s security was so tight that she would need a tracheotomy to breathe. Stevers asked himself earlier, what kind of fool would even think about challenging these security measures to try to threaten the President?A female voice addressed Stevers through his earphones. “Stevers. Sector Zero. What’s your status?”Sector Zero was Stevers’ assigned area where the President stood. Stevers pressed a button on his keypad and responded. “Stevers. Sector Zero all clear,” he spoke into his microphone. Through an open frequency in his earphones Stevers listened to a chorus of status reports dealing with the security here. Agents from different sectors so far repeating his statement, all clear.As Drennen spoke the crowd responded with roaring cheers to her words of defiance against the Brelac and victory in the war that they waged against Humanity. She spoke of her vision to bring greater prosperity to the United Protectorate as it would expand to colonize new worlds. Stevers caught few of Drennen’s words. His focus was on the diversity of faces within the crowd. Stevers would like to think that a majority of the people here were good and loyal citizens of the Protectorate. But the mandate of the Secret Service dictated that he and the other agents be aware of any potential threat to the President’s safety. Lurking among this boisterous crowd of supporters could be one or more Vendetta agents waiting for a chance to strike.Looking to the sky again Stevers watched the police assault shuttle make a slow pass high above the heads of the crowd. Then it banked to the left and flew over the roof of a grey, brick apartment building. Then to Stevers’ surprise the rear section of the shuttle exploded. Stevers’ body froze. Helpless as he watched the now flaming craft spinning out of control on it’s descent towards the street. Screaming people on the ground fled the area before the shuttle slammed into a silver car that was parked below. A flaming explosion was created that shattered the windows of a nearby building. For a moment the sound of the blast drowned out the crowd’s panicked screams that rang through Stevers’ ears.What the hell’s going on? Stevers asked himself. Wondering what could have taken down that shuttle with it’s armor and shields with such ease. The rally, that was peaceful had now become chaotic as mobs of screaming people scurried in different directions to escape the area. The state of disorder became even more clear to Stevers as he listened to the round of male and female voices through his earphones.“This is Johnson. Sector Three to Sector Two. Do you see anything?”“Mitchell. Sector Two reporting. We didn’t see any shooter. We’re still looking.”“Romans. Sector Five reporting. No shooter in sight. Repeat, no shooter in sight. Everybody stay sharp.”A stern male voice addressed Stevers over his earphones. “Command to Sector Zero. Prepare for the President’s evac. Repeat. Prepare for the President’s evac. Sector’s One and Two are falling back to your position to get the President to her limo.”Command is taking no chances, as Stevers expected. “Stevers. Sector Zero. Understood. we’re standing by.“ At the first sign of trouble the President was to be driven out of the area with a heavily armed escort. It was the job of Stevers’ and his fellow agents here in this security sector to keep everyone back until the agents in Sector’s One and Two arrived and formed an armed Human shield around the President while they escorted her to her limousine. Her black limousine was parked at the side of the street just a few yards at the left of the stage. Along with the five other agents, Stevers drew out his large, Tempest 9 laser pistol from the holster strapped to his right and focused his attention on the crowd. He listened to the excited voices over his earphones.“This is Donegan. Sector Seven. I’m moving through the crowd. I don’t see anything. There’s too many people here.”“Ortez. Sector Seven. I see a light.”A second later Stevers heard a man’s voice screaming in agony.“This is Donegan. What is that? Get those people out of here.”The Stevers heard Agent Donegan’s voice as he screamed. Joined by the voices of at least two other persons. Sector Seven was located at Stevers’ right. Further down the street past the courthouse. There was talk of a strange light. It’s got to be a weapon, he thought. Might be what took down the police shuttle. looking at his right, while shoving panicking people away from the stage area, Stevers saw dozens of people now running away from a bright red light. The light seemed to grow in size and intensity. He could see cars parked at the side of the street catch fire and explode within it's glow. Through the chaos of the panicking crowd he was horrified at the sight of people being caught within this light and their bodies bursting into flame. He witnessed five people catching fire and dying where they stood. There was nothing that he could do to help them, as his duty was clear. Remain at his position with his fellow agents at all costs and protect President Drennen with his life.Stevers received a message over his earphones. “Sector Zero. Get ready for the President’s evac. Repeat. Get ready for her evac.”Stevers was relieved to see a group of ten men and women in black suits rushing towards his position. The agents of Sector’s One and Two had arrived. Each agent carrying their laser pistol. Stevers looked back to the stage at Drennen. Still encased within the protective energy cube she was crouched down behind the podium as she watched the chaos. Stevers took a small remote keypad out of his suit pocket. He pointed it at Drennen and pressed a button. The energy cube surrounding her faded away just as the group of agents stormed over the stage.“Move! Go! Go!” Stevers shouted. Pointing at his left towards the waiting limousine.With great haste the agents surrounded Drennen and escorted her off the stage.Then the building in front of the police shuttle crash site exploded. Huge chunksof flying masonry, along with broken metal and wooden beams showered the area. Stevers and the five other agents ducked down, raising their arms to protect their heads as several bricks pelted the area where they stood. Stevers caught the sight of a large metallic sphere being hurled into the air by the blast. It was heading for the stage. Stevers dove down as the sphere hit the ground near the left side of the stage with the sound of a loud thud. Stevers jumped back to his feet. In the distance he could see the group of agents running with the President as they reached her limousine. Two red police cars with prominent white stripes along their sides were parked in front of the limousine. Their blue and red bar lights were flashing. In the air three of the police shuttles converged in the area and hovered over the cars in a triangular formation.Stevers turned his attention back to the thing that was hurled out from the explosion. “Stevers. Sector Zero. We’ve got something here,” he spoke into his microphone. He moved past the other agents to get a closer look at the object. It had embedded itself halfway into the ground as it landed. It appeared to be a large ball of metallic debris. Long, pointed shards of shiny metal covered the object. Stevers rough estimate was that the object was five feet in diameter. And it also appeared to be moving. Then Stevers jumped back when he saw a blue stream of energy burst from the object. Already in an excited state he felt his racing heart beat faster and heavier. Several more streams of energy shot out from the thing. They were like small electric arcs. The word, Bomb, flashed through his mind.“Get down!” Stevers shouted to the other agents. He ran for a few short steps, then dove to the ground. A second later a deafening blast went off near the stage. Sharp pain stabbed through the left side of Stevers’ body. He was unable to move his left leg. He turned to see that several of the metal shards that covered the object had embedded themselves in his left leg, his back, and his left arm. He yelled out in pain, now feeling his flowing blood soaking his clothes. He looked about to see that the other agents in the area were still on the ground. The body of a man laying at his far left was shredded and penetrated with the long metal shrapnel.A report came in through Stevers’ earphones. “We’ve got the President aboard. we’re heading out.”He heard more screams coming in through his earphones. A woman’s voice cried out, “It‘s coming! Look out! Shoot it! It’s coming!”Looking at his left Stevers could see the flashing blue and red lights of the two police cars as they lead the President’s motorcade down the street and away from the area. The two police cars followed by the limousine and three black cars carrying Secret Service agents. While the three police assault shuttles flew overhead to deal with any threats in the air as well as on the ground. That was the plan. Now the President was safe.Stevers looked back towards the stage. Or what was left of it. Half of the stage was ripped apart by the blast. There was a thick stream of black smoke rising into the air. From behind the shattered remains of the stage he could see something moving. It was long, dark. Squirming. Like a snake. Or a long tail. Stevers looked over at the exploded building. The area was littered with metal and stone debris. A cloud of dust and smoke obscured his view of the building. But through the cloud he saw something move. The shape of a large person. Very large. Standing close to eight feet tall by his estimate. This person appeared to be wearing some sort of long flowing cape or a robe. At this person’s sides were thick, muscular arms with hands balled into massive fists. This person also had a long tail, thrashing from left to right.A tail? That thought blared through Stevers’ mind. That same instant he recalled the other tail-like appendage that he spotted near the wreckage of the stage. He reached a swift conclusion. “Brelac!” he cried out. He repeated that word into his microphone. “Brelac! We’ve got Brelac in the area!”Stevers quick instinct was to open fire at this alien threat. But his hands were empty. He had dropped his gun. He looked around, seeing it laying on the ground a foot in front of him. He reached for it, then a loud commotion at his right caught his attention. An unfortunate man who’s entire body was set ablaze came running towards him while belting out a continuous loud scream. Stevers screamed himself as this Human torch came running towards him. Then the man collapsed to the ground just six feet away from Stevers’ head. This was still too close for Stevers’ comfort as the skin of his face felt the heat from the burning body. The smell of burning Human flesh, like a sickening sweet, greasy odor, clung to the insides of his nostrils.Stevers had no time to even think as he looked past the burning body and saw that strange red light. Another car near the light exploded into flames. In the sky above a police assault shuttle soared in and stopped to hover over the area. The twin laser cannons on it’s wings fired crimson bolts down on the vicinity of the light. But that did not stop the light as it was moving towards Stevers. Laying helpless on the ground Stevers could do nothing except scream out in pain under an intense heat as the sickening sweet odor was now coming from his own burning skin and flesh.
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DREAMNASIUM

It's been out for a couple months now and things are going okay. I formed THE WINTERMAN PROJECT to, first, have a way of publishing my own work without going through a middle man but also, to be allowed to release the work as I first created it, before having to accomodate the desires of editors.

There's nothing wrong with editors; they're signing the checks so, if they want changes, they should be entitled to ask for them. But there's something about letting folks see stuff the way I meant it originally that appeals to me.

If things go well with this first book I'll be doing more via TWP and not just my own stuff.

Anyway, here's the official pitch.

HURRY! HURRY! HURRY!

ESHU... A lonely god at the end of the universe? Sounds like a party.

DR. EIDLING... A scientist with a physics problem that just might be murder.

ANTIOPE... A young girl with a secret bundle, monsters in the dark woods? Not your grandmother's fairy tale.

Geoffrey Thorne, author of Star Trek: Titan: Sword of Damocles, assembles these tales and many more under one tent for the first time.

Bring your friends! Bring your lovers! Bring your cats! There's something in the Dreamnasium for everybody!

you can get the book on amazon.com or via the official web page @
http://http://wintermanproject.blogspot.com/


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I have started my response to the movie: Avatar. I have created a short story called: Revival. The scenario starts out the same -- greedy humans invade peaceful people on beautiful, unspoiled planet. But I added a few land mines into the story. This is part one, I hope you enjoy it. Also, you can get a free copy of my E-book, " A Cup of Paradise" at the site.


Go to: http://www.sbattle.com



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Yes, if it come from your tap,in a bottle,or from reverse osmosis,because that water is acidic. Our body needs "ALKALINE" water........To be blunt,"Kangen water is radically changing the lives of so so many around the world.....Kangen means "Return To Black Orgin" and that's exactly what this water does....By no means am i trying to make money.....However, " What If Something as simple as changeing the water you drink could have a profound impact on the health of your family............ www.drinkangen.org

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A Call to Write

I've noticed since the inauguration of President Obama an uptick in therhetoric and even veiled threats to the president and our country.Fueled by talking heads like like Sean Hannity, Alan Keys and RushLimbaugh, as they argued that President Obama must be stopped at anycost, it has progressed into the formation of a political party (theTea Party), who's sole purpose seems to be to "take our country back",which sounds more like ralling cry for a coup than a tagline for apolitical movement. Many in this movement are quick to associate anyhumility or deference to the needs of the world at large, as treasonessor at a minium unpatriotic. Those who have lit this fuse appear willingto say anything, to keep their ratings up and their pockets lined onthe pretext of preserving the american way.

First, let me saythat I do not wish to exists at any cost. If I must cast off all that Iam, and myself become an abomination to myself and others, I wouldrather that I not have been born at all. And likewise for this country,if we yield to the vulgar nature of fear and loathing to continue ourexistence then we have already forsaken all those things we claim tobe, and we make a mockery of the creed "One Nation Under God".

Secondly, it seems equally clear to me that "we" must push against thecurrent of hate and rage, with all the vigor of our beings, that allthat we have worked for may not perish from the face of the earth. Yes,this country is at great risk right now, but not from anythingpresident Obama has done, but rather from the lips of those who opposefreedom when the candidate of their choice is not elected. Where werethese voices the previous eight years? With very few exceptions, thoseclamoring the loudest to that we are on the wrong track, are the verysame ones who sold and embarrassed themselves for the preivousadministration. Where was their outrage then?

Thirdly, we mustconfess that we are a country of morally dishonest people when it comesto politics. We take up truths that line up with our predeterminedposition or affiliation. Many know the truth but they are too afraid tosay it. The truth is, that President George H Bush (the father) was agood president. He corrected the fiscal policies for President Reagan,that led to the last major recession. President Reagan was a greatleader, but his policies were very flawed. President Clinton benefitedfrom President Bush's fiscal policy, but had the good sense to buildupon them. And as the years pass and the media spin wears off,President Carter will look better and better. While not right oneverything, he was right on so much, that we as a nation were just notready to hear (he called for energy independence before it was a coolthing to do).

So, the question in my mind is just how do wechange the conversation? How do we affect change, such that we speakand act upon real issues and not rhetoric and blind ideology born outof fear of those different from ourselves?

We write.

We write upon this gigantic blackboard called the Internet. We write tonewspapers large and small. We write to the radio stations thatbroadcast programs that prey upon our fears and promote incivility. Wewrite to our legislators and congress persons. We write articles,opinion pieces and letters to national and local magazines. We writeanywhere where we have the right to express ourselves and our sharedbelief of a better existence here in this life. We write the truth, nomatter how painful it may be, whether it benefits us personally or not,and whether it offends or not. We must have faith in the truth, andthat by its inherent power; we will be delivered from this currentclimate of bitterness and deceit.

Lastly, let us remember thatnothing is impossible for those who have faith in what is good andjust. Whether we see the harvest in our generation, does not matter incomparison to the preservation of the process, built upon the beliefthat all men are created equal, and that we might pass this hope alongto future generations, granting them the faith to continue on...

Sincerely,
Alan Jones
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The Lost Prince

This story has its origins in my dreams. Let us hope it inspires the makings of a wonderful narative.




Night was fast approaching and I felt compelled to go outside. I think I lived alone and I do not know why I needed to go outside.

As I came out of the building I saw on my left two people, one atop a camel, robed completely in black. Only his dark eyes were visible. The other, in a dirty white Arab outfit and a turban, looked directly at me and smiled. I walked towards him. I had instantly trusted him, almost like I knew him. And then the ground beneath me shifted, turned into sand, and it seemed like we were in a small desert heaped high with with dunes, right here in the outskirts of this lush green town. I approached the pair on unsteady feet. The one atop the camel reached into the inner folds of his black robes and retreived what looked like a black cloth wrapped around an uneven wooden stick.

"Perhaps he will do better this time," he intoned in a deep but gentle voice that gave me the sense of ages, eons, as he handed me the stick. His companion urged me to unwrap it. I did.

It was like my eyes opened for the very first time; almost like I had been asleep the whole time and new sensations were stirring in me and all around me.

When I looked up, the black-clad man was gone. So was the sand. His white-clad companion, however, remained. He asked me what to do. His name came to me-Andreshan-was this a memory? Or was it the scroll? He lifted his hand and pointed. I followed it and spotted a little girl who was beckoning to me. She was sitting on the veranda of a nearby house, regarding me expectantly as I approached. Something above the house distracted me. Night had now fallen, save for slight silver splashes on the clouds now illuminated by the moon. A small chubby dragon flapped its wings and flew towards us. I looked at Andreshan who smiled still, nodding.

"Can everyone see this?" I asked, feeling as though I was rapidly losing my grip on reality.
Andreshan shook his head. The dragon hovered in the air in front of me, smiling as it stretched out its hand.

"Hello, Henry," the dragon said, as I took its hand for a firm handshake. Then it was gone. My attention once more returned to the little girl. It seemed not at all unusual to her to be talking to an imaginary being.

She pointed at the sky,covered with scattered clouds. It seemed to be bigger. The moon, peeping from behind a cloud, was now grander and more magnificent than I had ever imagined. "I saw it yesterday." She was pointing at a constellation of three bright stars. "Right there, I saw the comet." But I could not see it.

The clouds had almost completely obscured the constellation when the three stars formed a triangle with more glittering stars. It then began an acrobatic dance in the sky, drawing multiple white rays of light. Then the rays of light changed, seemed to be emanating from a rotating house floating in the sky. Again it seemed that only I and my new companion saw this.

Angreshan urged me toward this unreal wonder. Our flight of sand would have to wait.
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Creating Your Own Book Trailer

The moment I responded to a comment about one of my book trailers, I knew I had to follow through and write about how to create your own. So I'm going to put it down recipe style and start with the things you need to make it happen.

Tools:
Movie editing software (Windows Movie Maker WMM, Wax, imovie [I think that's what the Apple version is called]). I list these options, because they are free, easy to use and with a little creativity can give good results.

A picture of your book cover

You may want to include a picture of yourself if you like.

The blurb from the back of your book

Royalty free images and music

Time patience and practice!


I'm just going to imagine that some of us are clueless about computers here and explain the process using WMM. Go to Start > Programs > WMM.

When the program opens you will see at the bottom of the window, a Timeline. At the upper right, a screen. At the upper left a Task panel and in the center, a section where you will be see your images/music that you will be working with. This middle pane can also show the different options offered in Effects/Transitions found under the Edit section of the Task panel.

I would recommend that you start off with playing around with the options so as to get a general idea of what everything does. From the Import section of the Task panel, click on pictures, find the ones you want to use. When you have made your choice (press and hold the Ctrl key to select more than one at a time), they will become visible on your center panel, same for any other media you import. Bear in mind if you are going to use a film clip (say of yourself speaking about your book), WMM only caters for wmv and avi formats. Any other formats will have to be converted. I use the free version of Any Video Converter to do this (Google it).

Click and drag your pictures onto the Timeline, do the same with your audio/music files. You might want to juggle them around a bit, make the duration of a particular picture longer than another, trim down the music etc. Try right-clicking on your files in the Timeline to see other options, like fade in/out. Click on an image that you have dragged into the timeline and select Effects from the Edit section. Have a go at applying each one and seeing how it works, and which is best for to highlight on the story you are trying to tell with that image. Do the same with Transitions.

Like anything it might take a little practice to get things the way you want it, but simple works best. Also bear in mind that a good trailer lasts about 60-90 seconds. You don't want your audience to zone out before you get your message across. Think of the way tv commercials work.

Things to consider:
Copyright. You don't want to shoot yourself in the foot before you even get anywhere. Using a track from 50cent or any other artist without prior (written) permission will get you in trouble.

Use royalty free music and pictures. Images can be found for free using advanced search options on google. Being that our genre is predominantly sci-fi, bear in mind many of NASA's image stock are under creative commons license (free to use), but do cross check to make absolutely sure.

Most of my images are my own personal photos that I took myself. Even if you don't have much to work with, the fonts used can make your trailer eye catching. Notice in the book trailer for my second novel (Let Sleeping Gods Lie), at times I have used capitals to give the sentence a different visual appeal and break the monotony of it.

I get royalty free music from a site called Incompetech - http://incompetech.com/m/c/royalty-free
You are invited to make a donation, but if nothing else the owner of the tracks Kevin Macleod appreciates if you give his name a mention or add a link back to his site.
For sounds, like the shots heard at the end of my most LSGL trailer, I go to soungle.com they have hundreds on offer, all free to use.

Its a good idea to watch as many trailers as you can, both for books and movies. Learn from other peoples mistakes, how would you improve on my trailer for example? Too long, okay make yours shorter and snappier. Boring music? Choose something lively, but be sure it compliments your story line.

When choosing music, I try to keep it neutral, I love RnB, but I don't use it on my main trailer. If I really think something fits, I might do a second trailer so it appeals more to the market of readers who would benefit from knowing my book has a soulful vibe to it.

I hope this helps, feel free to ask questions if you find yourself needing further clarification on anything.
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The eBook

Over the weekend I finished work on the ebook version of my novel and submitted to Smashwords and Amazon. The Smashwords link is up (http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/14829), but at the moment both sites have me in "pending" mode. I like Smashwords because I have the opportunity to register an ISBN number under my own publishing imprint!

The formal publication launch is set for Memorial Day. The eBook is priced at $4.95. Here's the updated cover:


The next step in this literary experiment will be daunting indeed - marketing the ebook as if it were an already printed self-published novel while searching for an agent and / or traditional publishing company to make that Herculean goal a reality. This is exciting!
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Listen to In Like Flynn on internet talk radio


Your favorite Soul Train Era 70's, 80's or 90's?! Back up your choice with your favorite Soul Train performances! Conquering the Yips...How to get beyond those career stuttters that paralyse your progress. And How dumb can people be? When a scam or con is right in front of their faces...Why can't people see it?! The 100% grown folks weekly update by Penelope & Otto on all you need to know to competently discuss what's news in entertainment politics, current events and finance.


From Politics, to relationships to Jobs we'll help you get through it!

Saturday 5/15/2010 9:30pm CST 90 Minutes CLICK ON THE LINK or call 718/508-9683 and TELL US WHAT'S ON YOUR MIND!

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Greetings,

This is a new concept to me, but in light of the last seven years of my life, I feel compelled to post this. I am a 38 year old author, musician, educator, entreprenuer with hundreds of creative concepts that I am positive would net millions of dollars in revenue for anyone willing to invest in me. I am not skilled in marketing myself or managing my creativity because it flows out of me so fast I don't have time to grab a hold of it.

I have written eight books (seven can be found at www.lulu.com/karaam and my first work, The Human Race Bible can be found anywhere online). I write about what inspires me from within the Human perspective with an emphasis on what affects Nubian/African-American people. I do inspirational speaking for youth and am currently working on a newsletter for children (interested investors can get more info).

I started a cultural/private learning center for children in 2004 and am currently working on an online aspect of the school so that children globally can partcipate in the curriculum which developed myself. I currently teach and administrate and am looking to establish my center in a suitable location.

I created three card games for children and adults, two of which I am working on trademarking so they can be presented to casinos.

I created a musical group with members of my family (my wife and seven children) and we released a double cd in 2007 completely in an ancient African language, which my family and I speak amongst each other (language is culture and I am all about culture).

I am working on an outdoor game for children and adults that I will be unveiling in June of this year (2010).

I have a ton of other ideas and concepts that pop into my head on a daily basis and basically...

I NEED HELP!!!

What I am looking for is someone to assist me in managing and marketing my ideas, concepts and potential. I am also looking for investors who are looking for a gold mine of creative ideas that have a global span (I haven't given you any of my ideas).

But here's a teaser...

In 1996 when the Olympics came to Atlanta, I came up with a commercal concept for Coca Cola while walking to work. Having no idea where and how to submit a commercial idea, I called Coca Cola in California who told me that they get their ideas from an advertisement company but asked me to give them my idea (yeah, right!) I dropped it but about two years later, an ice tea company came out with a commercal similar (but not exactlyI) to mine. To bad for Coca Cola...

Here was my idea...

A cut-away shot of a mountain (probably Stone Mountain in Atlanta, GA) is shown with a man or woman climbing to the top. The camera focuses on his hands, his backpack and maybe his shoes. When he reaches the top of the mountain, he takes off his back pack and reaches in. He pulls out a small tape recorder, a microphone and a can of something (you can't see what it is yet). He sets the recorder down and presses the REC and PLAY buttons and holds the microphone out from the mountain. The camera zooms to an elderly gentlemen who is working in his yard who begins to hum the Coca Cola song. The camera zooms to another part of the world where some schoolgirls are on their way to school and they are humming the tune as well, but in harmony with the first gentleman. Camera zooms again to a shopowner sweeping the front of his shop and singing in harmony. The camera zooms to maybe two or three more places and goes back and forth as the crescendo of the song picks up. As the song reaches its climax you see people heading to the Olympic parks in Atlanta and as the song finishes, the camera zooms back to the microphone. The person clicks the recorder off and takes a drink from his can, which of course is Coca Cola. On the screen, you see, "Coca Cola, uniting the world in Atlanta, GA, Olympics 1996) or something to that effect and...fini

...and that's just one idea!!

if you are an investor or someone who feels you can assist me please contact me through email first at drkaraam@yahoo.com. We can take it from there.

I thank you in advance and look forward to much success and prosperity.

Dr. Karaam

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I am over at my other favorite site, Blacks In Technology http://www.socialbit.net/home, in the forum a discussion is brewing about folks who don't believe we Blacks can be expert computer technicians and engineers, especially other Blacks. The image of the Black geek ie computer enthusiast and/or professional is hammered in mind and reality. I know we have made image strides in the movies but on the ground there seems to still be a disconnect of unbelief and much ridicule. Smart Blacks are seen as an alien threat by normal folk and the baddies. Blacks with displays of discipline and intellect are seen as having given in and sold out to the "other" culture.

We are not anomalies as suggested by todays media and we are not having lost our "Blackness" just because we are techno smart. What I have found is that among us there are a lot of late bloomers because we have believed the "BS" ourselves. When we discover we are smarter than we've been told all our lives, we instantly start making up for lost time. Because we've needed lawyers in our civil-rights struggles and needed doctors for our specific health demands, we see them but we are not sure about needing computer techs and also how many Black architects can you recall? If Black scientist, architects and computer technologist are science fiction to them, it is ten times still strange to us.

Also most times we are so busy proving ourselves and our skills over and over to people that we posthumously make a name for ourselves. Give'em hell while their breath'n, thank'em at their funeral.

As you all write into the world's story, you are also writing us into the future, at least that is how I see it. When you visualize it in fiction, we might actualize it in hardware/software.

Here's what I saw on the BIT site, a Black man wearing a dashiki, He is a Christian, a Computer professional. This is not possible if you stereotype it all out. There are over a hundred different persona's on this site alone that don't match the white media geek stereotype, which is a rouse to deflect us. We watch lots of media, we don't want to appear stupid as that, we avoid that. Simplistic? Yes. True, you judge.
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Greetings fellow film buffs. I can’t count the number of films I’ve watched over the years in which I’ve thought to myself, “hey that was a great film, but the ending just killed it”. (Yeah, I’m talking to you, M Night Shyamalan.) I’ve started this blog because I’ve just discovered a remedy to this problem. A friend of mine who has had her movies screened at prestigious film festivals such as Sundance and Cannes led me to www.imadeamovie.com. I am so stoked about this website that I’ve created this blog solely for the purpose of documenting my experience with imadeamovie.com.
Ok, so here’s how it works: $50 makes you an associate producer on any of the movies on imadeamovie.com. As an associate producer you’re entitled to give your input to the executive producer, thereby affecting the outcome of the film. You vote on casting, location, music, style (you all know I prefer Noir), and other important decisions, like choosing the appropriate ending! You also have the option to communicate directly with the crew via video. During the process, you learn the roles of the important, but often overlooked behind-the-scenes crew (who knows what a key grip does?). As an added bonus, they send you a bunch of schwag: hats, t-shirts, and, when the movie is completed, a DVD with your name in the credits.
Imadeamovie.com also provides an awesome opportunity for up-and-coming actors/actresses to break into a virtually impenetrable industry. All an aspiring actor needs to do to be considered for a part in a film is upload their audition video to the website. The “big break” which once consisted of headshots, an agent, and flying to LA, has been reduced to a digital camera, your bathroom, and a computer.
So what have I done so far, you ask. Without divulging too much information about the film, we’ve chosen the lead actress, the set, and the script. We’re still collaborating on the style, music, and a couple other aspects of the film. However, the ball is rolling, and we’re on schedule to begin filming at the end of this month. I’d have to say that I’m pretty active on this project… let’s just say the director hears my input on a daily basis.
Overall, this is turning out to be a pretty interesting experience. I mean, short of joining the film industry (no easy feat!), how else could a guy, far-removed from the glitz of Hollywood, affect the outcome of a film?
Stay tuned, I’ll be sure to keep you all updated on my movie...
Oh, and if you have film fanatic friends, a membership at imadeamovie.com makes a unique gift for movie lovers. $50 to be a part of the movie making experience, an experience that spans months + lots of goodies to boot = not a bad deal.

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By Mikki Kendall -- Publishers Weekly, 4/12/2010 12:00:00 AM

Nnedi Okorafor’s gentle demeanor is so disarming that it’s impossible not to relax in her company. The Chicago State University professor has a sweet smile, three graduate degrees, numerous awards and prize nominations for her writing, and a razor-sharp mind that is changing the face of speculative fiction. The latter soon becomes apparent when the discussion turns to genocide, rape, female circumcision, fantasy, and Nigerian culture.

Born in the U.S. to Nigerian immigrants, Okorafor, 36, grew up in the same suburb of Chicago where she now resides with her own daughter. As a child, she was mostly interested in sports and the sciences, dreaming of becoming an entomologist, but she was always fond of reading, and by age 12, she found her mind had been “corrupted by genius white male storytellers” like Stephen King and Clive Barker. “I was working my way through the library reading whatever caught my eye,” Okorafor recalls fondly. “I read a lot of books that I definitely had no business reading at that age.” A writing class in college sparked her creativity and while obtaining an M.A. in journalism and an M.A. and Ph.D. in English, Okorafor began to write the stories she always wanted to read.

Okorafor’s books feature the cultural and social touchstones of her youth: Nigeria, strong girls and women, and the strange, beautiful lives of plants and insects. The YA novel Zahrah the Windseeker (Houghton Mifflin, 2005), which won the Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature, is a classic magical quest set in a world in which Earth is a legend and everything from clothing to computers grows from seeds. In the Parallax Award–winning The Shadow Speaker, her second YA, a Muslim teen in West Africa must avert interplanetary war.

Okorafor’s first adult novel, Who Fears Death, which will be published in June by DAW Books, combines science fiction and fantasy in the story of Onyesonwu, a young sorceress making her way in a postapocalyptic future Saharan Africa where men use rape as a tool to eradicate a culture on the genetic level. “Who Fears Death addresses the push and pull in African culture that powerful women face when their culture has certain duties and beliefs that can stifle them,” Okorafor says.

As she channels the past, present, and future into one complex tale, Okorafor walks a fine line between sincere respect and unstinting examination of tradition: mixing futuristic technology with magic rooted in the beliefs of Nigerian, Tanzanian, and other African cultures, exploring why many women willingly practice female circumcision and see it as a necessary rite of passage even as others find it horrific. These somber themes seem a drastic departure from her previous work, but Okorafor refuses to gloss over the realities on which she builds her fiction.

“What initially brought me Onyesonwu’s character,” she explains, “was reading a Washington Post news story: ' “We Want to Make a Light Baby”: Arab Militiamen in Sudan Said to Use Rape as Weapon of Ethnic Cleansing.’ I wondered what these children would be like, what would their struggles be, how would they survive, who would they grow up to be. And that’s when Onyesonwu came to me to tell her story.” Okorafor adds, “I am not trying to be shocking or exceedingly graphic. Onyesonwu’s story was told to me in just this way and she is not one to tell lies, embellish, or mince words.”

Okorafor’s upcoming projects include a YA novel that Penguin will publish in 2011, Akata Witch, with a focus on the tension between African-Americans and Africans as well as “deep, deep Nigerian witchcraft”; two screenplays in collaboration with award-winning Nigerian film director Tchidi Chikere; and a science fiction novella set in Nigeria. She also has plans for another adult novel. “I’ll know what that one is about when I start writing it,” Okorafor says. “When it comes, it’ll come like a tidal wave.”

Author Information
Mikki Kendall is an occasional adult and constant writer.
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