Attention Sci-Fi Writers!

Farther Stars Than These is the latest of five in magazines edited and maintained by science fiction author E.S. Wynn. Publishing new flash-length science fiction every Thursday, Farther Stars provides a platform for both new and established authors to reach readers based solely on the merit of each individual piece of writing and not on deadlines, reputation, age or any other factor. Farther Stars Than These endeavors to give unheard authors the voices they deserve, all while providing a constant dose of quality science fiction for readers all over the globe.


Writers wanted! Check out Farther Stars Than These Submission Guidelines

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The Smashed Cat

Writers of flash fiction! I've assembled a new venue for you to submit your stories to. Set to offer a weekly new brain squeezing and other stories ripe with irreal strangeness on Tuesdays, Smashed Cat Magazine is the latest of five magazines edited and maintained by me, author E.S. Wynn. My vision is, as always, to create a place where writers who pen the weirdest of experimental writing could get the exposure they need to get noticed within the mainstream of society, all while providing a constant dose of something strange, dreamlike and bizarre for readers all over the globe.

Writers wanted! Check out the Submission Guidelines today!



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RIP Blue Valkyrie

(1985-2011)

She still runs, miraculously enough, but after the radiator and water pump blew out, making it impossible to drive for more than ten minutes without the lakes of oil on top of the engine almost catching fire, I figured it was time to park her for good. This in addition to the fact that the engine sounds like it has one of those metal clapping monkey toys caught in it and the transmission is so shot I have to switch into and out of low gear (from overdrive-- it's an automatic) whenever the engine drops below 2,000 RPMS. Also, every fluid leaks, power steering is going out, front end is way out of alignment, CV joints are about to go (joint boots have been gone for about 50,000 miles), alternator fuse is broken (contacts jammed together so it works. . . kind of) sun roof is busted and painted shut. . . and it needs brakes. About the only thing on it still salvageable are the tires (only 6 mo. of wear!), the starter (brand new!) and the seven gallons of gas in the tank. Oh, and the horn. Luckily I have it parked at mom's while I figure out whether to call pick and pull, vehicle abatement or find someone who wants to buy it and make a project car out of it.

All in all, she's been an incredibly reliable car. Before we met, she was a cruiser and a racer that carried her previous owner all over the interstates and highways of the United States. Later, she was retired to the life of a farm vehicle and patched together wherever she broke instead of being properly fixed. When I bought her in 2004, my father shook his head and said she wouldn't last six months. Almost a year later, I packed everything I owned into her (floor to ceiling) and moved from Roseville to Tuolumne (and then about a month later, from Tuolumne to Tulsa, Oklahoma.) She was there for me all through flight school while I lived in Tulsa, carried me across the bridge from Foxfire to Spartan every day without fail, even when the winter came and the roads got icy. In 2006, when I came back to California with a heart full of broken dreams, she carried me and everything I owned through the night until we came to rest in Lincoln. From there, she carried me to and from Sierra college for two years and to and from Sacramento State for two years. She carried me to my first book signing and a few times to my first job out of college, carried me to some of my first big job interviews after I was laid off and even hung on all the way through the move we just finished this year, from Lincoln into Sacramento, carrying four floor-to-ceiling carloads before the long, hot road became too heavy and her back finally broke.

She's been to Vegas, she's been to Reno, she's been to L.A., she's been to Shelter Cove, she's been to San Francisco, she's been to more Celtic Faires than I can remember, crossed the Stevenot bridge, carried everything from papasan chairs to desks and dressers, and proven herself to be one heck of a work horse. Together we beat out a modded 90's Celica in a street race (it was close), picked up my first traffic ticket (didn't have my lights on while driving on Highway 65 during broad daylight), rescued friends, picked up Lilly from school twice a week (when she was in public school) and made countless trips up to Sonora to see my father. Every time she got new tires I was told the tires would outlast the car (that was at least three sets ago) and every time a mechanic crawled under her, they laughed at how amazing the car was for still being on the road. Friends and I used to jokingly refer to her as the “Blues Mobile” (ironic, since the only station she ever got in anywhere was a Soul station, and it came in with perfect quality.) She was the car that wouldn't quit, and when she finally coasted into her grave, she didn't strand me or put me in danger. She carried me and two bags of groceries to the quiet farmyard of my mother's house and grumbled into a tired and deserved eternal sleep.

Today, her odometer reads 201734.4, and that number marks the end of a profound era in my life.
Blue Valkyrie, trusted friend and car, you will be missed.

Dance One

Five Dances With Death: Dance One (Austin Briggs)

If this book had been my introduction to historical fiction (instead of Johnny Tremain) I might have tried to follow in Austin Briggs' footsteps (instead of Asimov's!) Five Dances With Death: Dance One is a fascinating foray into Nahuatl culture (native Mesoamericans) that captures the ritualistic, spiritual and all-pervasive violence of this distant and (to me) mysterious setting.

I can honestly say that from the start, Dance One grabbed me in a way that few books can, filling my mind with Briggs' exquisite details, the lavish way he paints each elegant element of not only “One World” but also the spirit world that binds and effects everyone who treads into or through Nahua lands. At the core of its fast-paced and exciting narrative, Dance One carries a beautiful expression and exploration of an almost unifying spiritual “theory” which sheds light on and captures the mind within a world of omens, spiritual doubles and persistent, hungry gods who tempt mortals and swallow souls in an endless game of evolution and creation. There is a mysticism that clings to everything (even the names) in Briggs' work that is rich and powerful, one that brings to mind the talent of such great authors as Storm Constantine and Neil Gaiman without losing focus on the story, the setting, or the voracious, visceral, animal heart that makes this book so gripping and so intriguing.

Beginning as a downtrodden hero story introduced by a comprehensive collection of opening notes that translate and explain various terms, names and places mentioned within the story, Dance One starts with action and finishes with action as the main character (Wasp) struggles to get his enslaved daughter back first from the cocky villain (Talon) and later from the clutches of another who is not above using her as a bargaining chip against Wasp and his nation. The invasion of the conquistadors that occurs in the midst of Dance One swells as the story does to become not just as a physical event, but one that has spiritual concequences as well. In the end, the whole thing rolls and swirls into a stirring and profound conclusion that highlights a struggle of ideals-- should Wasp risk the loss of the gods and spirituality of his nation to ally with the untrustworthy “outlanders” (conquistadors) against his sworn enemies, the Mexica (as others have done) or should he instead face the unknown and stand tall, apart from all those who would cast aside their gods or trample the lives of others? To say that Dance One is an incredible work is not to do it full justice. Five Dances with Death: Dance One is a masterpiece, and I can't wait to read the next book in the series.

Do yourself a favor and pick it up over at Amazon today! http://amzn.to/reM8UZ

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Exactly

LIQUIDATION!

Get them before they're gone! Thunderune Publishing's complete audio catalog is being liquidated! Guided meditations, audiobooks, the works-- it'll all be gone soon, so get in here and pick up a disc before they disappear!


Writing and inspiration series:

Disc: $6.95

A collection of creative writing prompts designed and read by author E.S. Wynn. Prepare to be inspired!

Disc: $9.95 What’s the biggest obstacle between a starving artist and a successful one? Coverage! In this audiobook class, I will teach you to take your chosen art form, no matter what it is, to the next level with a ton of marketing techniques that are sure to get you noticed! Want more? Check out www.writingwithwynn.com

Short literature and fiction series:

Disc: $8.99

11 Weird tales written and read by horror master E.S. Wynn. 11 stories so strange they'll make your toes curl.

Disc: $8.99

Classic Literature read by author E.S. Wynn

Track listing:

1. The Windhover (Hopkins)
2. Dulce Et Decorum Est (Wilfred Owen)
3. Tyger (Blake)
4. Kubla Khan (Coleridge)
5. Azathoth (Lovecraft)
6. Chimney Sweeper (Blake)
7. Charge of the Light Brigade (Tennyson)
8. Meeting at Night (Browning)
9. Ozymandias (Shelley)
10. Lady of Shalott (Tennyson)
11. Childe Roland To The Dark Tower Came (Browning)
12. From Beyond (Lovecraft)

Pink Carbide Audiobook:

Pink Carbide, 7 disc audiobook series, read by the author himself.

To read more (or to purchase) follow this link: http://www.thunderune.com/2009/12/pink-carbide-is-now-available-as.html







Meditations For The Soul series:

Disc: $8.99

A series of meditations that can be done separately or together, guiding you in the use of sage-less energetic (auric) cleansing, the awakening of the strength and power of a shaman within yourself, and the creation of energetic tools.

Disc: $8.99

A series of meditations that can be done separately or together, guiding you as you achieve balance in your life and the way that you perceive the world. Includes guided meditations for relaxation, happiness, love, passion, and confidence.

Disc: $8.99

A series of meditations that can be done separately or together, guiding you as you infuse your reality with the power and intent to heal yourself, to heal others, and to heal the planet itself.

Disc: $8.99

A series of meditations that can be done separately or together, guiding you as you infuse your reality with the power and intent to change yourself and your reality for the better.

Disc: $8.99

These meditations will guide you to experience the love within you and the love around you. They can be done singly or with a partner and by those searching for love or those who have already found it. Whatever your approach toward relationships and love, these meditations will help you focus it, grow it, and direct it in wonderful, restorative and positive ways.

Disc: $8.99

A series of meditations that can be done separately or together, guiding you as you enter a deep state of relaxation and achieve true peace within yourself, within your inner sanctum, and within the planetary energy which connects all life on Earth.

Disc: $8.99

A series of meditations that can be done separately or together, guiding you as you explore and utilize some of the techniques for cleansing and protecting yourself and your energy field. These meditations will guide you as you cleanse your own energy field, change the ambient energy in a space or room, and create an energetic shield meant to protect and keep out negative energy.

Disc: $8.99

A series of meditations that can be done separately or together, guiding you as you journey first into the planetary consciousness, then to the universal repository of all knowledge, the Akashic Library, and then make your own astral journey into the known (or the unknown!) Have a question you need answered? This is the meditation set for you.

Disc: $8.99

A series of meditations that can be done separately or together to guide you as you seek out your spirit guide, seek out and come to know parts of your inner and past selves, and remove the obstacles that stand between who you are and who you are meant to be.

Disc: $8.99

A series of meditations that can be done separately or together, guiding you as you infuse your reality with the power and intent to make a journey of the mind into any place you desire in the present, past and future.