  Fantasy
This week: What's the Weather like on Your Planet? Edited by: Prosperous Snow celebrating  
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Climate is what we expect, weather is what we get.
Mark Twain
“The storm starts, when the drops start dropping
When the drops stop dropping then the storm starts stopping.”
Dr. Seuss
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| ASIN: B083RZJVJ8 |
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I reviewed a couple of flash fiction stories last week that got me to thinking about the weather and the way it effects our lives. Each of the stories covered the same theme and used extreme weather events as part of the story plot. In each story, the weather had an effect on the outcome of the story or the on the characters themselves. After reading those stories, I started to think about the importance of weather in our lives.
Throughout history weather has caused problems in the lives of individuals and, in some cases it has even changed the expected outcome of battles or caused battles to be delayed. This brings me to the weather on the planet or in the world you created. Is the weather included in your story as a part of the plot? Do weather events effect the lives of the characters? Are the weather events just in the story to make it seem more real without being part of the plot?
If I am reading a story with a weather event, I like to know how it is effecting the lives of the characters. This is because weather has an effect on my life and the things I chose to do each day. In short stories and novels I want to see the weather having some sort of effect on the plot or the characters because it makes the story more exciting and real. I suggest that when putting extreme weather events in your stories that you research the event, even if that event takes place on another planet or in another dimension.
I have a challenge for you. Chose a random weather event and use it as part of the plot. Make it a short story between 500 and 2,000 words and submit it by June 16, 2014. Every one who submits a story will receive a review of the the story and the story link will be in upcoming newsletters.
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| |  | Jupiter's Storm (E)
Writer's Cramp winner of what Jupiter's decreasing storm might mean for Earth. 5/15/2014
#1991844 by Orange1  |
Excerpt: "'This is a nightmare,' Bao whispered."
Excerpt: "On a large screen in the dark auditorium images of the planets played. All kinds of pictures, some marked with pathways of orbits, artist’s renderings of foreign atmospheres, photos from the various satellites and rovers, picture after picture in rapid succession flew by on the screen. Pausing on a distant shot of a planet and then with special effects that rivaled any sci-fi movie the image zoomed in and faded to black. Slowly the screen was illuminated with the Milky Way and the millions of stars in the night time sky."
Excerpt: "Defy all laws. Ignore all bounds. Know no limits. Remove all weaknesses. Surpass all flaws. Suppress your fear."
Excerpt: "There are some definite perks to being a wizard. Flexible hours, interesting work, and a fair amount of prestige. Oh, and the immortality isn't something to scoff at, either."
Excerpt: "Dust stirred under slippered feet as they traveled deeper into the archives. Attached to said feet was a young man barely grown. He wore a robed outfit suggestive of a librarian or records keeper, though he seemed inexperienced at best. With youthful shagy, curly, brown hair of a vibrant shade. His eyes were alost brrown, but a subtle shade of green ringed the pupil. He was a shorter man, only about five and a half feet, with an average build, not skinny, but not bulky either. He clearly did not work out, but didn't look to be lazy and fat either."
Excerpt: "It was a beautiful spring morning when he showed up at the western branch's administration office. It wasn't too spectacular building- three stories of cement and glass casting shadows onto a large, well-kept lawn dotted here and there with low-branched trees. He stood off to the side, on one of the many paved walkways crisscrossing through the grass, his hands in his pockets as he carefully inspected each and every woman coming to and from the building. None of them so far matched the description of the girl he was looking for. It wasn't until he'd already been there a tiring hour and a half before he spotted her, and it was only through coincidence that he did. Bored and restless, he had been following the erratic flight path of a bumblebee when it passed in front of a short, seemingly-scrawny redhead standing on the other side of the throng who looked as if she was ready to murder someone. Him, to be exact."
Excerpt: "Aria was one of those prettier-than-average things whose beauty was never remembered."
| |  | Invalid Item
This item number is not valid.
#1991905 by Not Available. |
Excerpt: "I was just finishing setting the table for dinner when there was a knock on the door."
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Elle - on hiatus  writes: There is a lot to love about ebooks - they're cheaper, take up less space (two things my husband loves), they are delivered instantly and no one can tell what you're reading! Those first two reasons are the primary reasons I will continue to buy ebooks. However, there is something wonderful about printed books. A printed book can become a treasure, an heirloom. It is a tangible work of art. And an author can sign a printed book.  I won't keep every printed book I buy, but I will always have a special collection of printed books, and if a book truly wows me, I will endeavour to get a printed copy to add to my collection. Besides - you can't read an ebook in the bath. 
Eliza Rose writes: Hi! I just wanted to say that I printed books are my number one preference for reading. I just don't like reading e-books all too much. Also, when I'm reading a book where a character just died or something happened that made me really really really angry/frustrated/super sad, than I have the option of slamming the book really hard against the desk. Or just dropping it on the floor and leaving the room. You can't do that with an e-reader. Also, I'm still hoping for my secret library when I'm older.
{suser: elfindragon} writes: It's funny you're writing on this topic today. I was just telling someone the other day just the same thing you're speaking of. There is something about the printed book in my hand that just feels right. The smell of the pages, the texture as I turn each one when I'm finished with the page and even the colors of the cover. And when you set it aside in your library to read another, when you decide to read it again it's like an old friend you've not seen in some time. The memory of the story may be there but you're still surprised by things you've forgotten.
Quick-Quill  writes: I love my bookshelf. It is divided into recreational reading and writing research books. "Forever learning and never coming to the knowledge." I guess that was me at one time. I'm a slow learner. I love my e-reader because I can pull out my phone or ereader and check email, Wdc and read a book. I don't like broken, bent books of my doing. I want them kept nice. I have quite a few on my shelf and still packed in boxes in my storage. I have a number on my e-reader bookshelf. I sometimes get emails with books to try. Some of them are only available in e-format. But they are cheap. I try to read a sample first...sometimes the bad ones get worse as you read on past the sample.
ENB writes: I love books (real ones that is).  They are so much easier to read than ebooks and better for your eyes. I had (and still have) a Nook reader which I read for awhile, but after I read a real book again, I never wanted to go back. And you can't get all the books on a mobile device because some books were not transferred to digital copies. So I say pages and hard covers win.
ANN Counselor, Lesbian & Happy writes: I've wanted to hear from writers about e-book Vs print book. I published at Amazon which connects with Kindle publisher so my book is both; both are selling. I tried reading on Kindle but didn't like doing it; I love holding the book, sometimes flipping back to read something again, the feel of the pages, turning them, and knowing when I put it on the shelf, it looks great; and it's easy to go get it and read it again every few years. May printed books always be available to children and grandmothers. This was a great newsletter, Snow.
Ann
J. A. Buxton  writes: All six of my stories are e-books on both Amazon and Smashwords.com, simply because they were self published during the recent recession. I figured it was easier for people to spend $3.99 for an e-book rather than a much higher amount for a paperback or hardcopy book.
As for me, I still prefer owning a real book and will never forget what an online friend once told us. ""Get High; Sniff a Book!
StephBee  writes: I love ebooks and I love print books. Ebooks are convenient to take places and read, especially in long lines. Ebooks also tend to be cheaper. I want print books if it's one of my favorite authors or if I know it's a book I intent to savor. In those cases, I don't mind paying the extra money, but I'm very selective as to what I'll pick up in print. There's nothing like holding a real print book in your hand and enjoying it.
BIG BAD WOLF is Howling  writes: I like handheld books. Don't need to worry about power too much.
Tileira writes: I think too many people over-thing the subject of print vs e-book. I have an e-reader. All the books I've bought in paper back or hard back I still read, I still buy hard-copy books where I've started the series in hard-copy. If I really like an e-book I go out and get a 'proper' copy to lend out and sit proud on the shelf. I still get books from the library once in a while when I find something intriguing. My e-reader just gives me more access: I can try new authors with smaller reputations who you might not find in a bookstore (sometimes for good reason). I can get new books without burying myself up to my eyeballs in paper which I don't have the space to do anymore. I take more frequent risks in what I buy, reaching outside my normal tastes because the costs are a little lower, and an e-reader gives me more privacy (no more uninvited critiques on the bus). I actually buy books more often now because it's as simple as a download. I can also find a specific book I want to try, whereas going to a library it'd be a gamble about whether I could find it.
I don't believe e-readers are stealing printed book sales. The stats are just skewed because they make reading more accessable. If anything I think selling a printed copy of a book is a higher badge of honour than selling an e-book because it means someone thought you were good enough to warrant shelf-space ;)
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Fantasy: May 21, 2014 Issue [#6329]
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