The End is Near! (thank goodness)

Outside I hear the garbage truck hefting the dumpster up and over to empty our collective trash. It is Monday, after all. However, this time it is New Year's Eve--the final Monday of the year. And the garbage is being removed. We will be able to start fresh, filling the dumpster again, tomorrow.

Seems an appropriate metaphor for the way this year as ended.

Starting with so much promise (as usual, I suppose), 2012 rolled along pretty much as expected, as desired, as best as it could be for several months. Even the summer (complex schedule and all) went better than planned--due to my detailed planning, of course. I achieved a few things of smaller scale during the year. I had hopes for bigger things in the autumn, and more rolling into winter and the holiday season.

For example, I relaunched my literary fiction novel AFTER ILIUM as an ebook for Kindle through my new publisher, Myrddin Publishing Group. I'm now working to make the print edition available. At the start of December, I pushed out my latest baby, the first volume of my science-fiction trilogy THE DREAM LAND also as an ebook for Kindle. Now I'm all set to also get a print edition out into the cruel, cruel world. (Thanks for your support, dear readers!)

Then, quickly on the heels of my launch, came the tragedies that deflated the world. Shootings in shopping malls! Shootings in elementary schools! Brutal rapes in India! People being shoved in front of subway trains! Plus whatever local crimes and atrocities each of us heard about or, pray not, experienced directly or even second-hand. Isn't this is the season of good will to men? (meaning mankind, a.k.a. humanity, all of us homo sapiens inhabiting this spherical bookshelf). What is going on?

I tried to avoid news reports yet, like so many of my fellow living beings, we could not turn away. Evil attracts our attention. We want to know why something happens. There must be reasons, motivations, flaws we never noticed, or simply the devil at work. And why did God not prevent these acts? Nobody knows. Why this season? Mayan Apocalypse? Nothing bad seemed to happen, no acts perpetrated by anyone fearing the end of the world by solar flare or pole shift, eager to get out ahead of the crowd. No, nothing that would make sense. Just random atrocities.

On this last day of the year, I find myself still holding my breath, still shaking a little as images flash through my mind's eye. In some moments they seem like dreams--nightmares, really. In others, the reality sits on my eyelids and dares me to look. As a writer--like all artists, I suppose--I sit on a fence, keeping a delicate balance, awaiting the Muse, who is subject to my mood, influenced by events happening around me. I am blessed with the strange ability to visit other worlds, other realities, and to create the same for others to visit. It is also a curse: the painful urge to push out the story while events around me threaten to claw away my creation and my ability to create.

And yet I can, if I work very hard to fold myself inward and light a candle to all those who have passed, then I, too, may be able to run away to a fantasy world, even if it looks the same as some contemporary neighborhood with ordinary people going about their business--yes, run away and hide, pretend that the world isn't so bad, and that more good has been done and will always be done than those few acts of evil.

May you all be blessed with as much goodness as you can carry, and may you also find an appropriate-sized cart to carry whatever overflows in 2013!

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(C) Copyright 2010-2012 by Stephen M. Swartz. All Rights Reserved. No part of this blog, whether text or image, may be used without me giving you written permission, except for brief excerpts that are accompanied by a link to this entire blog. Violators shall be written into novels as characters who are killed off. Serious violators shall be identified and dealt with according to the laws of the United States of America.

Introducing the Dream-opedia for THE DREAM LAND Trilogy!

THE DREAM LAND is a genre-mashing epic of interdimensional intrigue and police procedural, a psychological thriller marbled with twisted humor, steampunk pathos, and time/space conundrums.

Want to know more about THE DREAM LAND? about Interdimensioanl Travel? about creating alternate worlds? alien languages? the deep, dark origins of The Dream Land universe? 

Then read these previous posts on this blog:

Background


A Quick Summary of THE DREAM LAND (2 Mar. 2011)

The Juvenile Origins of THE DREAM LAND (6 Apr. 2011)


Literary


Excerpt from THE DREAM LAND ("The Dissolution of Reality") (2 Feb 2011)

A whole page of excerpts from THE DREAM LAND!

On the Amazon.com page, you can read the first seven chapters in the "Look Inside" feature.


History

On the Council of Five (Sekuatean government) (10 Oct. 2012)

The Sekuatean Empire, Part 1 (23 Aug. 2012)

The Sekuatean Empire, Part 2 (5 Sept. 2012)

On Alien Politics (4 Nov. 2010)


Science

News reports of inhabitable Earth-like planets out there somewhere. (18 May 2011)

The Physics of Alternate Worlds (27 Jan. 2011)

How Interdimensional Travel Works (30 Sept. 2012)

The Dark Side of Interdimensional Travel (2 Dec. 2012)

This post is about sound waves and colors but includes an excerpt from THE DREAM LAND (19 Sept. 2011)


Linguistics

On Creating Alien Languages, Part 1 (21 July 2011)

On Creating Alien Languages, Part 2 (31 July 2011)

On Creating Alien Languages, Part 3 (10 Aug. 2011)


Geography

A Map of Sekuate before it was an empire (3 Nov. 2010)


A Map of Northern Zissekap ("Gotanka") prior to the Sekuate Empire (3 Nov. 2010)

Criticism

Noted Comparisons between THE DREAM LAND and the Stargate movie and TV series (3 Sept. 2010)

Noted Comparisons between THE DREAM LAND and the Inception movie (29 July 2010)

Next: THE DREAM LAND, Book II: Dreams of Future's Past

A look ahead: scene from THE DREAM LAND, Book II: Dreams of Future's Past (24 Aug. 2011)

"Interludium" - Excerpt from Book II


Media

A quickly thrown together book trailer for THE DREAM LAND (YouTube).


THE DREAM LAND, Book I: Long Distance Voyager available for Kindle on AMAZON.COM (US) and Amazon UK.

After considering several indie publishers, the Author felt that none was right for publishing THE DREAM LAND trilogy. Wishing for more creative control, the Author created TANGENTIAL BOOKS to publish the trilogy and related books and materials. 
For distribution and promotion, the Author has teamed with Myrddin Publishing Group. The name 'Tangential' of course refers to the interdimensional doorways the hero and heroine of the trilogy use to go back and forth between the two worlds; thus, it seemed a particularly appropriate name.

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(C) Copyright 2010-2012 by Stephen M. Swartz. All Rights Reserved. No part of this blog, whether text or image, may be used without me giving you written permission, except for brief excerpts that are accompanied by a link to this entire blog. Violators shall be written into novels as characters who are killed off. Serious violators shall be identified and dealt with according to the laws of the United States of America.

Have you visited THE DREAM LAND?

THE DREAM LAND

A genre-mashing epic of interdimensional intrigue, alien romance, and world domination by a pair of nerdy sweethearts, spiced up with some police procedural and psychological thriller, then marbled with twisted humor, steampunk pathos, and time/space conundrums.

Read the first 1/5 of this epic tale (7 chapters!) for Free in the "Look Inside" feature!
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AH1V78Q

How far would you go to save the love of your life? Through a doorway to another world?

Sebastian, that quiet tax examiner at the corner desk in the IRS service center, carries a dark secret: once upon a time he and his high school sweetheart Gina found a rip in the universe and stepped through it to a strange world of magical beauty.  
 
Far from being a Disney-esque playground, the world of Ghoupallesz bursts with cosmopolitan elegance, alien perversions, and political strife. Gina, the adventurous one, falls in love with the adventurous possibilities. Not Sebastian; always practical, he insists they return to Earth. Gina refuses so he goes back alone, vowing never to return. Yet he finds himself drawn back repeatedly--he calls it “research”--and often crosses paths with Gina. Sometimes he saves her, sometimes she saves him, forever soul mates. 
 
Now years later, life on Earth hasn’t gone well for Sebastian. Then the headaches revisit him, with flashes of memories from Ghoupallesz. Gina is in trouble again, he senses, and he must, as always, save her. 

Meanwhile, a pair of too-curious IRS co-workers have accidently overdosed on the Elixir of Love he brought back on his last trip and the antidote exists only on Ghoupallesz. With these co-workers in tow, Sebastian returns through the interdimensional portal, fearing it may be his final adventure. He must gather his old comrades from the war, cross the towering Zet mountains, and free Gina from the Zetin warlord’s castle before her execution. Perhaps then she will stay with him.  
 
But are his adventures to the other side real? Or are they just the dreams of a psychotic killer? That’s what the police want to know when Sebastian returns without his co-workers.  



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(C) Copyright 2010-2012 by Stephen M. Swartz. All Rights Reserved. No part of this blog, whether text or image, may be used without me giving you written permission, except for brief excerpts that are accompanied by a link to this entire blog. Violators shall be written into novels as characters who are killed off. Serious violators shall be identified and dealt with according to the laws of the United States of America.

The Dark Side of Interdimensional Travel

A Primer for Readers of THE DREAM LAND Book I: Long Distance Voyager coming out this month.

A previous blog post promised a discussion of the dark side of interdimensional travel, which caused many to question what the heck I’m even referring to. So I thought it better to offer this time an explanation of interdimensional travel. It’s really not as mysterious as it seems.

Interdimensional travel is possible through an interdimensional tangent, which is alternatively  called an interdimensional doorway (but not, erroneously, a “wormhole”). Such a tangent appears to be a natural phenomena without regularity or structure. Some Voyagers have speculated they consist a vast network or pattern similar to the grid of “ley lines” connecting ancient monuments around the world. Interdimensional Voyager Sebastian Talbot has further considered that certain places around the world (speaking of Earth) possess conglomerations of tangents; in essence, a “tangent dump” where multiple avenues of interdimensional travel exist within a small geographic area. For example, Talbot discovered such a tangent dump in an abandoned quarry on the east side of Independence, Missouri in July 1975, along with fellow Voyager Gina Parton. Talbot was eventually able to identify 165 separate tangents within the arena of the quarry.

The tangent presents as a thickening of the air. Whereas one might swing a hand through the air and feel no resistance, the tangent will offer slight resistance in the form of a tangible anomaly. Talbot has described it as anywhere from pea sized to walnut sized, invisible to the naked eye, and of a texture similar to gelatin. Only a sensitive touch can determine the presence of such a tangent. At night, however, it may be possible to see indications of a tangent’s presence. Certain deep sonic vibrations directed toward a suspected tangent will cause the point to glow in primary colors; the stronger the vibration the brighter the specks of flickering pinpoints of light. Excessive vibration has been observed to occasionally break open a tangent without the Voyager touching the point.

Once located, the Voyager will gently pry the tangent open using either forefinger and thumb or, if larger, both hands. Rather like salt-water taffy, the tangent when pulled open will have a tendency to draw closed, so great care must be taken to pull at an appropriate pace and strength, not too quickly nor too roughly lest it snap shut instantly. Once opened sufficiently, a view of the world of the other side should be visible through the breach, ghostly at first then with greater definition. It is possible sometimes to feel the weather of that other world through the breach, as well (e.g., wind, rain). It has been reported that a low roaring sound similar to the sound of a tornado may accompany the opening of the tangent. The sound recedes quickly as one moves away from the tangent breach, such that only the Voyagers involved will notice it. As the breach closes the roaring becomes a louder, rushing noise which increases then lessens to nothing as the breach closes completely.

Ideally, once the tangent is opened, it can be stretched further and provide a suitable sized breach, large enough for a human to pass through. Usually, a foot or arm goes through the breach first, each portion separately, the head last of all. It has been recommended that the last part to pass through be the fingertip on the initiating hand. Attempting to switch hands may cause the breach to close. Using the initiating fingertip as the final contact point allows the tangent breach to close at a slower pace, lessening the adverse effects on Voyagers. Rather like being instructed to close the door gently and not slam it shut. Talbot has reported several multiple Voyager passages, including transportation of non-experienced travelers (girlfriends, co-workers, etc.). When more than one is expected to pass through, the optimal procedure is for the Primary Voyager to locate the tangent, instigate the breach, maintain the opening while others pass through, then close the tangent after the Primary Voyager completes his/her passage. Again, hold the door open for your guests.

Interdimensional Doorways never appear as doorways!

Talbot eventually accumulated enough data to be able to make a grid at the primary site (“Pink Hill Road quarry”) which marked various tangent anomalies within a 3-dimensional space in the quarry. It is an inexact science yet one which did make subsequent passage easier by being able to identify which tangent led to which location and time zone. Through this local terminal, Talbot was able to pass back and forth to visit different places and time periods on the other world, known by its inhabitants as Ghoupallesz. Talbot did not indicate any other planet was involved in the “quarry” tangents. In this way, Talbot, using the name Set-d’Elous, was able to insert himself into the history of Ghoupallesz, first becoming involved in its culture and society and then in the military campaigns of the Sekuatean Empire, and later involved in the attempt to prevent those years of warfare, albeit to further tragic results.

For the most part, passage through a tangent breach is effortless and without negative consequences. However, Talbot has noted several possible adverse effects which should be noted. Loss of clothing and supplies during passage has been noted. Also, occasional excessive vibration has simulated sexual arousal and resulted in climax at the conclusion of passage. (Note: It is not recommended to attempt passage through an interdimensional tangent solely for the purpose of attempting sexual gratification; it is not confirmed for every passage.) It has also been noted, especially upon return passage to Earth, that headaches can occur and linger; they may be of varying severity and duration. The headache effect has been described by Talbot as “gravity working in both directions.” It is believed that the effect becomes increasingly worse as the number of passages increases.

Like most human endeavors, any action or deliberate behavior as possibilities for both positive and negative effects. Adding a second world to the equation increases the likelihood of greater effect in both directions. Only certified Interdimensional Voyagers should attempt passage through a tangent and only those Voyagers of First-Class grade should be allowed tin influence the societies and history of their adopted world. Anything else would be highly immoral and certainly unethical. It is a warning which has gone mostly ignored, however.

THE DREAM LAND  Book I: Long Distance Voyager 

comes out 1 December 2012 for Kindle

from

in association with Myrddin Publishing Group.

 And don't forget the literary fiction adventure AFTER ILIUM for Kindle!

(More information at Myrddin Publishing Group's website.)

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(C) Copyright 2010-2012 by Stephen M. Swartz. All Rights Reserved. No part of this blog, whether text or image, may be used without me giving you written permission, except for brief excerpts that are accompanied by a link to this entire blog. Violators shall be written into novels as characters who are killed off. Serious violators shall be identified and dealt with according to the laws of the United States of America.