Transportation of the future

TRANSPORTATION OF THE FUTURE

by Jessica E. Subject

While some members of my family are fascinated by automobiles and other vehicles of the past, I prefer to look to the future, especially concept vehicles from car companies, aircraft, and spacecraft.

Both my previous and upcoming series take place in a part of the universe far from here. And transportation is far more advanced than what we have on Earth. There are hovercraft that run on batteries the way of electric vehicles on this planet. These vehicles cannot leave the planet they are on. In fact, they don't fly any higher than a couple hundred feet off the ground. The space racing jets fly higher in the atmosphere, using hydrogen and ion power cells. While they have the power to leave the atmosphere, they usually don't hold enough power to reach another planet, especially after a race. Then there are the space shuttles, which fly between various planets in the quadrants of my fictional universe.

But what's ahead for the future of vehicles here on Earth?

A couple years ago, when I was writing my Shifter Towers series, I learned about the Hyundai Prophecy Concept EV. And while the company has since redesigned and released it as the Ioniq 6, maintaining the streamlined look that I love, there were features in the Prophecy that I was really looking forward to seeing in a vehicle that weren't included in the Ioniq 6. The most notable being the twin joysticks used to steer the vehicle, taking the place of the steering wheel. Many construction vehicles are already steered in the same way, as well as some helicopters and jets. I think it will be interesting when this way of steering can be found in everyday vehicles.

And last month, I watched a video from NASA about the future of aircraft. Right now, they are working on developing different types of Uncrewed Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) working to deliver packages and fight fires to being used as taxis and ambulances. And they are also in the process of building more supersonic aircraft while developing more complex air traffic control systems and collision avoidance systems.

Speaking of supersonic aircraft, startup company, Boom Technology has already received approval to test their XB-1 supersonic jet over the Mojave desert. The XB-1 is designed to travel at Mach 2.2, which is 2.2 times the speed of sound.

Also, did you hear about the office chair that Volkswagen designed? While not destined for production, the electric-motored drivable chair is heated, has LED headlights, storage compartments, and an infotainment system. If it hovered, it would be like the chairs people spent their days in from the movie Wall-E.

So, while we don't know for sure what the future holds (Why aren't hoverboards like in Back to the Future 2 a thing already?), I am excited to see all the different concepts the various companies and organizations are working on.

What kind of vehicles would you like to see in the future?

Read more about the vehicles in my futuristic universe in the Kaddim Brothers series, and my upcoming release, 4 UNITED, the first book in my Romance Tales from the Quadrants series.

  

Holidays and Space Exploration by Diane Burton

Several years ago, I wrote a short story titled "Christmas in Space" for a holiday anthology on The Roses of Prose blog. I did a lot of research for this short story just to be sure I had facts straight. I even forced myself to rewatch movies like Avatar, Oblivion, Interstellar, and Passengers to learn about the effects of cryosleep. If you've read any of my blog posts, you know what a hardship that was. 😊

After the holidays, I couldn't let that story go. I was fascinated by teams from Earth who were willing to leave everything behind. So, I expanded the short story into a novella, MISSION TO NEW EARTH. What reasons would be so compelling to find a new home for humans? I came up with global warming, depletion of natural resources, earthquakes and resulting tidal waves, even the possibility of a supervolcano in Yellowstone. 

With info from the Mars One Mission, I discovered the requirements and training for my characters who would take a one-way trip to a "Goldilocks" planet--one that is just right for humans. In my story, our moon and Mars had already been colonized, but it wasn't possible to evacuate all Earth's inhabitants there. They needed a place where humans could live as we do here.

United Earth Space Agency was sending three teams that represented the United Americas, Euro-Africa, and Asia to find three Goldilocks planets. The final training for the teams took place on Titan (Saturn's moon).

Even with expanding the story, I kept one detail the same. One team reached a planet beyond our solar system on Christmas Day. I gave that a lot of thought. Not all the inhabitants of Earth are Christian, not even the majority. Since the three teams preparing to locate Goldilocks' planets represented all of Earth, I thought it was important to include mention of other religions.

It was our last Christmas in civilization. That evening, we celebrated with the other teams. A party that combined Earth’s December celebrations—Christmas, Chanukah, Kwanzaa, Mawlid an-Nabī, Dhanu Sankranti, Bodhi Day, even Omisoka because none of us would be here for New Year’s Eve. Secular symbols made sure those who didn’t follow a religion weren’t left out.

World-building for this story took as much time and energy as a full-length novel. I don't regret the effort. The book may be small (in length), but the "message" is important.

One of the characters summed it up at the end of the story.

“As you already know, I’ve never been a religious man.” Tom had made that clear on many occasions. “This voyage has changed me. Since we came out of cryo, I keep thanking God for letting us survive. Now I thank Him . . . or Her—” He glanced at Gloria who had strong beliefs about gender neutrality with regard to the Supreme Being. “—for providing humankind with a new beginning. May we not screw it up the way we did Earth.”

No matter how you celebrate at this time of year, I wish you much happiness.

Would you go on a one-way trip to explore a new planet? Would you do it to save humankind?

In 2172, Earth’s overpopulation and dwindling resources force the United Earth Space Agency to expedite exploration of new planets for a possible new home. When new crises ensue—a giant tsunami and the threat of nuclear winter—the timeline changes. Eight years of training crammed into four.

Sara Grenard and her team prepare for launch, but are they ready for the one-way trip? Will the Goldilocks planet prove just right for Earth’s inhabitants? Before time runs out.

Amazon ~ Amazon UK ~ Kobo ~ iTunes ~ Smashwords ~ Barnes & Noble

Fantastic holiday hints for your nerd(s)

Every year around September one of my brothers-in-law starts poking at me for my birthday/Christmas list. The best thing Amazon ever did for our family was provide the shareable wish list option. I can’t tell you how happy this makes my BIL. Now, instead of poking at us to give him an actual list, he pokes at us to update our online lists. If we don’t, then he just buys what’s still on them…and odds are that it’s the same thing he bought us the previous year because he doesn’t exactly use the wish list feature correctly.

He’s kind of adorable like that.

This year I decided to get a jump on him and update my list now (i.e., stop him from buying me another DVD of I Am Dragon, etc.**) Yes, I realize it’s only August, but my birthday is in November and he likes to buy early. I must redirect him before it’s too late! Just trust me on this, I know what I’m doing.

Oddly, my practical mind has veered in the direction on crazy-nerd-lady this year. As hard as it is to believe, this is not normal for me. Usually I ask for things like a wall calendar for scheduling my writing deadlines, or Amazon gift cards, or books, or music (last year it was all Imagine Dragons), or socks. Stuff I need and use. For some reason "practical" flew out the window the moment I typed “Sci-fi” in Amazon's search box.

Have you ever done this search before? If you haven’t, you must! There are some pretty amazing items of the sci-fi kind out there. If you are a nerdist like me, or you’re shopping for one this holiday season, here are a few of the cool ideas I came across…some of which may or may not be on my list:

“Must Haves” for every Star Trek fan on your list:

 

Ever wonder What Would Capt. Kirk Do? Here’s an insightful book of witty advice from everyone’s favorite Star Fleet captain. https://www.amazon.com/What-Would-Captain-Kirk-Intergalactic/dp/0399539549/

What space cadet wouldn’t want this for their desk? https://www.amazon.com/Star-Original-Sticky-Notes-Booklet/dp/B01F7OO9U0/

For the discerning and social nerd. Alcohol not included. (You can find Romulan ale on eBay, or from Harry Mudd…but you didn’t hear that from me. That stuff’s illegal!) 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B072K47WY8/

For your loved ones battling the evil Empire:

Start 'em out right. (Available in 12 different colors!)

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0115VZ3VS/

They will thank you every morning when they wake up to Boba Fett's—Star War’s new hottest character—sultry voice murmuring, “As you wish.” Or “Han shot first.” (I don’t really know this, but it sounds cool.) https://www.amazon.com/LEGO-Minifigure-plastic-display-official/dp/B000KFCZGC/

If you or your nerd are more the Time Lord type:

Coveted by Whovian chefs everywhere! https://www.amazon.com/Doctor-Who-Official-Wibbly-Wobbly-Timey-Wimey-ebook/dp/B01LX02Q0Z/

The cuddly blanket inspired by van Gogh’s lesser known painting, Wibbly-Woobly Night. https://www.amazon.com/Doctor-Who-Throw-Blanket-Exploding/dp/B00937SK4O/

Sci-fi B-movie collector?

This is the pin collection for 2018! 

https://www.amazon.com/MOVIE-BUTTONS-science-fiction-horror/dp/B00JI02YTS/

And finally, in honor of humanity’s greatest entertainment loss:

Draw your grieving nerd from the depths of despair and angry letter writing with a friendly game of Firefly Yahtzee. https://www.amazon.com/USAopoly-YZ006-398-Firefly-Yahtzee-Game/dp/B00L9OPEHU/

I could go on, there are so many unusual and fun items out there (including tons of t-shirts for every nerdtastic member of your family!) and only a limited amount of space on this blog. However, over the next couple of months, I will post some of them on my Facebook page if you’re looking for more creative gift ideas.

~*~*~*~*~*~

USA Today Bestselling Author Lea Kirk loves to transport her readers to other worlds with her science fiction romance Prophecy series. She’s an avid Trekkie, Gryffindor, and wannabe space explorer. She’s made one foray into paranormal romance with her Magic, NM vampire novella, Made for Her, and hopes to write more stories in this world.

When she’s not busy writing, she’s hanging out with her wonderful hubby of twenty-eight years, their five kids (aka, the nerd herd), and a spoiled Dobie mix pup.

Live Long and Prosper

A long, long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…

This was my first science fiction memory, the beginning of my journey on a path toward space ships, aliens, and a sense of open-mindedness.  Let me put on my geek hat. *dusts it off*

I am a trekkie, brown coat wearing whovian. I can’t speak Klingnon but when my oldest was two he seemed fluent. My youngest owns the one ring and will one day rule us all. At least once every few days the words “You shall not pass” are cried out in my household.

My husband, who was raised by normal people, is somewhat naïve and will declare he is the red shirt of the family. When I’m feeling trapped by mundane life I singing

“Take my love, take my land
Take me where I cannot stand
I don't care, I'm still free
You can't take the sky from me.” (Theme song to Firefly)

I find it helps me pull the ball and chain of reality.

If aliens landed would I run to their ship to say welcome them? No.  I think we would be the Native Americans to their European colonist. I do get really excited when I hear things like NASA is working on a faster than light engine! Will I be alive when they use it? I doubt it but I’d sure love to retire on the Moon.

 

 

Life on the run can be very lonely.

Hunted to near extinction by an alien race called the Ko, my people have run from Earth and drifted so far among the stars we can’t remember the way back. We live everywhere, but call nowhere home. The Ko want us erased from existence and memory. They don’t even want our DNA in the space dust. Humans disguise themselves as other alien species and hide in plain sight. It’s the only way we can survive.

 

I believe in the myth of Earth. I’ve even discovered a bona fide book written in the dead language of my people. My man, Brody, dreams of a secret human colony. He’s searched for years, hunting any rumor we’ve run across, and finally he’s made contact. Usually, he’s the one grounding me to station and keeping my head out of the atmosphere. Time for me to return the favor…that is, if I can ditch the Ko who’ve discovered me, thanks to my incessant artifact-hunting. If we don’t make our rendezvous, and the Ko don’t kill me, Brody just might…

CONTENT WARNING: Aliens, cargo ships, and a fast paced race against all odds.

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Annie Nicholas

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To Space And Beyond

A few years ago, I put out the first version of At Drogan's Command, the first book in the Hades Helmet Crew series. I loved diving into Sci Fi and trying to see where the future would take us. With this newly revised edition coming out from Etopia Press-- the book has been streamlined with parts improved-- I've found a new excitement for the genre as well as new creative ideas on where I can take the world. I'm even plotting a spin off that was inspired by an interview I did with the lovely Tilly Greene. This book is special to me. It was my first Sci-Fi book and now I get go back into that world and build it up even more. There are two more stories that I've already written and turned into my editor for his take on things and I have at least four more stories in the HH main verse to kick out that I've found new life in. So many ideas are bouncing around my head and I love that I can dive back into this world with a new view of things.  

Here's a snippet of what you can find in my latest re-release: 

Coming Sept. 20th to ARe, Kindle and Nook. 

Blurb:  

One little disc...  

One little disc contains the only evidence of Rena's wanton weekend where she enacted every sexual fantasies she's ever had and a few about her crush Drogan Carter, Captain of the Hades' Helmet. What will she do when the disc falls into the wrong hands? 

When Drogan finds the disc and watches the contents, at first he feels guilt but soon that turns to need. He wants the carefree, sexual woman on the disc in his bed. He forms a plan that will get her right where he wants her¦ at his command. 

  

But will her heart become part of the deal? 

Excerpt: 

Captain Drogan Carter groaned inwardly. He tried not to stare at the firm backside of his assistant as she bent over to retrieve a paper. He clenched his teeth and tried to focus on what his second in command was saying, but out of the corner of his eye he watched Rena straighten up and place the paper back on the pile in her arms. She brushed a stray dark-brown tendril of hair out of her face and punched her access code into the security panel. 

“So, the mission would be a good idea. We get to recharge our solar panels, fuel up, and buy supplies all at the same time. What do you think? Should we stop at Green-23t?” 

Drogan blinked and pulled his attention back to his second in command, Lieutenant Jason Mercy. 

“Sounds like a good idea. Have Rena put it on the schedule. We’ll do the run after we stop at Earth in the next few weeks.” 

Jason nodded and made his way toward the captain’s private office. 

Drogan blew out a breath. He wasn’t sure how much longer he could continue ignoring his attraction to Rena Morrigan. His assistant was driving him crazy. From day one, when he first hired her, he had been attracted to her. Now things were out of control. He couldn’t even smell the scent of jasmine without getting hard. If he thought he heard her voice, he would track down the source just to see if it was her. He found himself taking the long way to his quarters just to catch a glimpse of her. 

He was obsessed and there were only two options before him: fuck her and get them both fired, or fire her and then fuck her. Neither option appealed to him. He loved his job as captain of the Venetian S89-class spaceship Hades’ Helmet. He wasn’t about to let some crush jeopardize his career. But his attraction to Rena had become a dangerous distraction. He wasn’t just dreaming or fantasizing about her at night. Now his mind would wander during the day, and he would find himself thinking about all the things he’d like to do to her. 

He sighed. Damn it. She was one of the best assistants he had ever had. She put up with all his demands, and if he got even a toe out of line she would straighten him out in no time flat. More than that, she was a person he could confide in, have a laugh and a drink with, and just be himself around. The thought of being without Rena actually scared him. 

Drogan looked over to his office and watched the doors slide open. Rena stepped across the threshold, smiling at Jason. Her smile warmed Drogan, even as he frowned. Jason Mercy was known to be one of the lady-killers of the crew. Was he flirting with her? Drogan glowered at the thought that Jason was after Rena. He almost stood up to tell his second in command to back off. Instead, he remained seated and gritted his teeth. 

Rena looked up at him, her smile faltering on her lush, full lips. 

“Captain, sir. Is something wrong?” 

Drogan found himself pleased by her worried tone. “No, no, just tired. Been a long journey.” 

“Oh, well, you should get some rest, sir, if you don’t mind me saying.” 

He watched her look away shyly. Her concern touched him. His heart expanded in his chest and he grinned. The evil voice of a man who had gone six months with only his hand as a form of release slipped into his mind. He wouldn’t mind geting some rest after fucking her.

Science Fiction =/= Paranormal

Please allow me a mini rant and a wall of text as I become a bit of a stick in the mud. :-)

I'm not quite sure where it began but I notice a change in publishing industry genre labels. Of course, it's to be expected with the rise of urban fantasy and paranormal romance selling like hotcakes. And naturally the industry would want to label it best so the readers can find it more. But I notice a lot of mislabeling in doing so which has lead to a bit of confusion for books that are normally "out of the ordinary".

Science Fiction fans have been a bit miffed that the section in the bookstore has lessened over the years with the amount of fantasy and "romance" crowding the shelves. I would imagine romance readers would feel the same if the romance section was taken over by straight fantasy. The genres have blended so much that it's lead to the overall umbrella to be called 'speculative' fiction encompassing paranormal romance, sci-fi, fantasy and horror since books usually have elements of one or all. Unfortunately, I've seen some folks call things sci-fi when it wasn't. This is like the debacle that went down when Juno Books' former Best Paranormal Romance anthologies originally translated romance as adventure rather than a love story between a hero and heroine with an HEA. PR fans were in an uproar and went crazy because they went in expecting a paranormal romance: a love story with an HEA centered around supernatural characters and/or happenings.

Although I understand both sides, the popular fiction industry has changed much of the old time definitions to fit a new mold. Sci-fi fans are going through something similar as romance fans did in that situation, especially with SF romance still finding it's grounding. I sometimes hear readers recommend sci-fi and/or fantasy books. I'm all jazzed getting my list ready to take down some good reads when I notice they aren't sci-fi but urban fantasy or paranormals. Hmph. When I sit down and want some sci-fi I'm expecting some futuristic elements, dystopia goodies, social commentary to mirror our own and some high techie goodness amidst awesome world building. Sure there may be some things that are possible in that world rather than ours, but instead of the magic that is shown in fantasy and it's subgenres, this is happening through science. Of course you get a little bit of both if say, you get a vampire via genetics or a wizard uses "magic" with advanced nanotechnology but that's when it gets all sketchy.

Basically, it's all about reader expectations. Readers, no matter what they enjoy, expect a certain book when they grab some titles. Sometimes they're in the mood for one genre over another and if you go in expecting one to get another, that can be pretty disappointing right out the gate. Which is a bummer for the author because the story doesn't even get a chance. But in this crazy, pressed for time world you often get that one shot to grab the reader.

I know there are tons of sites out there chatting about the difference between paranormal romance and urban fantasy but I'll go ahead and reiterate the two along with adding some descriptions of science fiction and fantasy.

While writing my world building chapter for the upcoming Complete Guide to Writing Paranormal (plug, plug), I had to explore what exactly "Paranormal' was genre wise. After all world building in paranormals have a different approach than it does in Fantasy and SF. Here's a snippet:

The Paranormal genre can lie in reality with a hint of the extraordinary. Science fiction usually employs science and technology as a reason for the ‘what if’ whereas fantasy often uses magic to explain everything, the paranormal creates a world that makes use of our world while adding elements of the supernatural. This can be explained with science or magic, yet it takes the story beyond these realms to make a genre of its own.

The genre usually includes such creatures as ghosts, witches, shape-shifters, vampires, or werewolves among others. These beings can also be found in straight fantasy; however, most fantasy worlds take place in ancient times such as the medieval period or lands far off that mirror our own world in the past.

The April 2008 issue of Writer's Digest is one that's fascinating in that it talks about the rise of paranormal in current trends. But it also shows a great Genre Tree.

Check it out:

Click to enlarge

The Writer's Digest website even has a wonderful subgenre list to match the tree, complete with extensive definitions under each main genre umbrella. You can check that out here.

As more stories explore various aspects of each genre in one single story, I can feel it's going to get more complicated to label the books. For instance, steampunk is a niche that's gaining popularity as we speak and, as mentioned before, Sci-Fi Romance is still tapping the line between paranormal fiction, romance and futuristic sci-fi.

Welcome to the land of the speculative!

Welcome welcome readers!

I'm Rae Lori and I'm delighted to be blogging with such a great and talented group of authors. I love to dabble into different genres myself with a various mix of vampires, aliens, fairies, shifters, weres and all sorts of goodies. I love to write about strong heroines and handsome heroes in all sorts of times whether it's the distant past, the far future or a contemporary tale.

So sit right back, pull up a subscribe feed and enjoy the posting! :-)