New Release Tuesday from the Realms of SciFi and Fantasy

Under Heaven by Guy Gavriel Kay
Historical fantasist Kay (Ysabel) delivers an exquisitely detailed vision of Kitan, a land much like Tang Dynasty China.
EDITORIAL REVIEW:
It begins simply. Shen Tai, son of an illustrious general serving the Emperor of Kitai, has spent two years honoring the memory of his late father by burying the bones of the dead from both armies at the site of one of his father's last great battles. In recognition of his labors and his filial piety, an unlikely source has sent him a dangerous gift: 250 Sardian horses. You give a man one of the famed Sardian horses to reward him greatly. You give him four or five to exalt him above his fellows, propel him towards rank, and earn him jealousy, possibly mortal jealousy. Two hundred and fifty is an unthinkable gift, a gift to overwhelm an emperor. Wisely, the gift comes with the stipulation that Tai must claim the horses in person. Otherwise he would probably be dead already...


Instructions by Neil Gaiman, Charles Vess

Trust Dreams.Trust your heart, and trust your story. That about sums it up for this latest offering from Neil Gaiman. A renowned storyteller whose words have transported readers to magical realms and an acclaimed illustrator of lushly imagined fairy-tale landscapes guide a traveler safely through lands unknown and yet strangely familiar . . .
. . . and home again.

What an amazing duo – can’t wait to get my hands on this one!

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Magical Monday: Amulets

Amulets were often used for magical protection. They were used both by the living and the dead. Many amulets have been found in Egyptian tombs. These amulets are in the shape of gods, goddesses, animals, objects, parts of the body, etc. and were believed to contain special powers. Many amulets were wrapped up with the mummy. The mummy of King Tut is a good example and many such amulets were found wrapped in his mummy. Many different substances were also used in the making of amulets which included stone, wood, clay, etc. Since certain substances possessed certain powers, it was important to choose the right substance for a specific type of amulet. Magic writing was also considered an amulet and many such types of magical papyrus have been found in tombs. Thus, wearing of amulets during life was the means of seeking the gods protection and help. After death a special protection was also needed.

Amulets are close cousins to the talisman (from the Greek word “telein” which means “to initiate into the mysteries”. These are objects intended to bring protection or good luck to its wearer. These often have symbols, gems, carvings or even words on them to enforce its magical essence.

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New Releases in the Realms of SciFi and Fantasy

This week's releases are a tribute to the popular series "Dr. Who", a mysterious humanoid alien who travels through time and space righting wrongs in "TARDIS" (acronym for Time and Relative Demensions in Space). This is such a fun series!

The Forgotten Army (Doctor Who) by Brian Minchin

'Let me tell you a story. Long ago, in the frozen Arctic wastes, an alien army landed. Only now, 10,000 years later, it isn't a story. And the army is ready to attack'. New York is one of the greatest cities on 21st century Earth...But what's going on in the Museum? And is that really a Woolly Mammoth rampaging down Broadway? An ordinary day becomes a time of terror, as the Doctor and Amy meet a new and deadly enemy. The vicious Army of the Vykoid are armed to the teeth and determined to enslave the human race, even though they're only seven centimetres high. With the Vykoid army swarming across Manhattan and sealing it from the world with a powerful alien force field, Amy has just 24 hours to find the Doctor and save the city. If she doesn't, the people of Manhattan will be taken to work in the doomed asteroid mines of the Vykoid home planet. But as time starts to run out, who can she trust? And how far will she have to go to free New York from the Forgotten Army? This is a thrilling, all new adventure featuring the Doctor and Amy, as played by Matt Smith and Karen Gillan in the spectacular hit series from BBC Television.


Night of the Humans (Doctor Who) by David Llewellyn
'This is the Gyre - the most hostile environment in the galaxy'. 250,000 years' worth of junk is floating in deep space, home to the shipwrecked Sittuun, the carnivorous Sollogs, and worst of all - the Humans. The Doctor and Amy arrive on this terrifying world in the middle of an all-out frontier war between Sittuun and Humans, and the countdown has already started. There's a comet in the sky, and it's on a collision course with the Gyre...When the Doctor is kidnapped, it's up to Amy and 'galaxy-famous swashbuckler' Dirk Slipstream to save the day. But who is Slipstream, exactly? And what is he really doing here? This is a thrilling, all new adventure featuring the Doctor and Amy, as played by Matt Smith and Karen Gillan in the spectacular hit series from BBC Television.

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Magical Monday - The Art of Alchemy

When we hear the word “alchemist” or “alchemy”, we also tend to think of strange and eccentric individuals who toil away in dark laboratories, trying to concoct fanciful potions. But alchemy is much more than just potions or trying to turn metals into gold.

Alchemy is a field where one tries to isolate the essence of something in order to make it better. Jean Dubuis, a modern French alchemist, has compared alchemy to evolution. He has said that “alchemy is the art of manipulating life and consciousness in matter, to help it evolve or to solve problems of inner disharmony”.

Nature is always evolving in such a way that organisms become more complex as the species grows and strengthens to survive in its environment. All living organisms have evolved to their current forms from much more primitive forms. This process takes a very long time – it takes centuries and millennia to see the minute changes that begin to emerge as the species adapts to its changing world. The goal of alchemy is to find ways to speed up this natural process of perfection. An alchemist believes that everything possesses the blueprint for its own perfection, and that it’s the alchemist’s job to find these essences of perfection trapped inside matter and to bring them to light, thus guiding various materials towards absolute perfection.

One of the most well known examples of alchemy is that of turning lead into gold. In the Middle Ages, many so-called alchemists tried to transform lead, a common and inexpensive base metal, into gold, which was considered to be a purer and more valuable metal because it doesn’t react with other compounds. Alchemists believed that they were simply speeding up nature’s job and some of them used this opportunity to get rich and gain favors from the Nobles and rulers of the day by promising everything from gold from lead and unlocking the secrets of the immortals and the essence of eternal life.

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Magical Monday

Wow!! This has been surreal. First and formost, Bobby and I want to thank everyone for their support and votes in this year's Preditors and Editors Readers Poll. The Destineers’ Journal of Fantasy Nations placed 8th in it's category of Sci Fi and Fantasy. With over 100 nominees in the category...we are speechless and humbled and want to reach out to thank everyone for making this possible. We are definitely going to be celebrating over at the Cybrarie !

Next, I received samples of pictures for my picture book: If Wishes Were Fishes. This book is scheduled for release from my wonderful publisher, 4RV, in October of this year. I am sooooo excited!

Mondays are, indeed, magical!

Destineers Journal of Fantasy Nations Preditors and Editors Nomination!

In case you haven’t heard, Bobby and I have had the good fortune to be nominated in the Preditors and Editors poll for our book The Destineers' Journal of Fantasy Nations. This is really an honor. If you haven’t had a chance yet, I encourage you to stop by the poll and check out all the nominees in the many categories. There are some wonderfully talented authors represented there. Please show your support by casting your votes in the various categories.

The Destineers' Journal of Fantasy Nations is nominated in the SciFi Fantasy category and I’d really appreciate your support – heck, tell your friends, I’ll take all the help I can get! Seriously, I want to thank all of our wonderful friends and readers and everyone who has supported and encouraged us. We really appreciate it.

Voting closes January 14. The link for voting in our category is
http://www.criters.org/predpoll/novelsf.shtml

Thank you so very, very much!

Celebrating Wild Things

As I wrote about Tuesday in the Sci-Fi Fantasy new release feature, a fur-covered edition is being released of the beloved classic 1963 children’s picture book, Where the Wild Things Are by American writer Maurice Sendak.

For anyone who may not be familiar with the book, it tells the story of Max, who one evening plays around his home, in a wolf costume "making mischief" by chasing the dog with a fork and growling at his mother. His mother sends him to bed without supper as a punishment. In his room, a mysterious, wild forest grows out of his very active imagination, and Max journeys to the land of the Wild Things. The Wild Things are fearsome-looking monsters, but Max conquers them "by staring into their yellow eyes without blinking once", and becomes "the King of all Wild Things". However, he soon finds himself lonely and homesick, and he returns home to his bedroom, where he finds his supper waiting for him, still hot.

The cinematic release, based on this book, will be in the middle of October. Today, over on the Destineers blog, “wild things” from the fantastic realm are being featured. As always, you can find more about these fantastical beings in The Destineers Journal of Fantasy Nations and posted in the classrooms in The Cybrarie. I hope you’ll take a moment to stop by and explore some of the more wild fantastical beings for yourself.

Color Me Surprised!

What a wonderful Holiday weekend surprise to find out The Destineers’ Journal of Fantasy Nations has arrived on Barnes and Nobel a couple of weeks earlier than originally anticipated – how cool is that?! Have I mentioned the wonderful reviews we are getting?! We are very humbled yet thrilled!

Well, just a quick reminder that this is the final weekend of our “get your own piece of dragon treasure FREE”. Order The Destineers’ Journal at Amazon…or Barnes and Nobel and email a copy of the sales confirmation to NetherscapeRealm@aol.com to get your choice of FREE silver tone dragon charm pendant OR a FREE silver tone dragon bookmark. Hurry – through this Sunday, April 12, 2009 only. (Clicking on the blog title will take you directly to the Amazon page)

Have a great Easter weekend, everyone! May the bunny bring you all loads and loads of wonderful, delicious chocolate! Just a thought...

Fantasy Creatures Arrive at Amazon!!

It’s here!
“The Destineers Journal of Fantasy Nations” is now available on Amazon.com
We are excited and celebrating with a special sale. This weekend only (Friday, April 3 – Sunday, April 5) buy your copy of “The Destineers Journal” on Destineers.com, Cybrarie.com, NASharpe.com or Amazon.com and forward a copy of your sales confirmation to NetherscapeRealm@aol.com and claim your FREE piece of dragon treasure. That’s right! You get your choice of a FREE silvertone dragon charm pendant OR a FREE silvertone dragon bookmark. This is a $5.00 value, but this weekend only, it is FREE with purchase. Have you got your copy yet? Just a Thought!

If You Build it...They Will Come

Carrollwood Day School in Tampa, Florida is having an Authors Conference on Thursday (February 5). I am very excited to say we have been invited to teach workshops and...wait for it.....sign copies of The Destineers Journal of Fantasy Nations! How cool is that?! I'm telling you....it is surreal.

Someone from the school found our Destineers website (ah, my beloved playground http://Destineers.com and the interactive boards at http://Cybrarie.com) and that initiated the invite.

"If you build it, they will come." Remember that line from Field of Dreams? Apparently...it's true!