The Stars: What's Out there? E

Credit: NASA / Artist concept of the James Webb Space Telescope

At last, at last! There's a new space telescope out there to get better looks at the origins of the universe, distant planets, and galaxies, plus our own solar system. The James Webb Space Telescope is an orbiting infrared observatory. It will complement and extend the discoveries of the Hubble Space Telescope with longer wavelength coverage and massively improved sensitivity.

Herbig-Haro / Credit ESA/Hubble & NASA, B. Nisini

The James Webb is bigger and more powerful, and I'm sure we'll learn things we have yet to imagine. The telescope will orbit Earth 1.5 kilometers away. It is an international program led by NASA with its partners, ESA (European Space Agency) and the Canadian Space Agency.

Webb has a primary mirror made of 18 segments comprised of ultra-lightweight beryllium. Its biggest feature is a tennis court-sized five-layer sunshield that attenuates heat from the Sun more than a million times. The telescope’s four instruments - cameras and spectrometers - have detectors that can record extremely faint signals. One instrument has programmable microshutters, which enable observation up to 100 objects simultaneously. How Cool!

Exciting news! James Webb has now reached its orbit and successfully deployed the mirrors. Its first target is star HD 84406 in the Big Dipper. Can you hear me squealing? 

Although we don't have flying cars yet or live on the Moon, amazing discoveries about our solar system, galaxy, and universe have been made in recent years. There's water on the moon and Mars. There are possible signs of life on Venus. So, I'm excited to see what James Webb will discover. What do you think we might find?

Speaking of stars and space, I have a new book out! Endpoint, Backworlds Book 8 is now available!

GET ENDPOINT

Direct from M. Pax

Buy direct from me and get 25% off all purchases. Use coupon code 4XCZKXTR2W / Referral Bonus: When you refer any purchased product to a friend who becomes a customer, you both get 10% off.

What are you willing to lose in order to win?

Craze can no longer keep the evil Quassers contained, and winning the war gets harder. The Quassers unite forces with another enemy and become more threatening, more destructive, and more murderous.

Planet after planet falls, and Craze is desperate. The only chance he has is a glimpse at little hopes that might grow into a viable strategy. But only if the other planets work with him. So far, everybody is still looking out for themselves and hates him for the gut-wrenching decisions—the deaths of innocents in exchange for all of humanity’s survival.

Backworlds Box Collection Books 4, 5, and 6 Now Available! #99c for a Limited Time. #scifi

 The Backworlds Box Collection Books 4, 5, and 6 is now available for preorder. The box set releases March 12, 2021, and its 99 cents for a limited time. Grab your copy!

Available at all ebook retailers: Amazon, B&N, Kobo, GooglePlay, Apple, Smashwords, and more. Just click the link below.

BACKWORLDS BOX SET 4, 5, 6

The galaxy beyond the Backworlds is rife with trouble. The desperate search to save a friend ends in the discovery of an unstoppable enemy. This boxed set contains books 4, 5, and 6 in the Backworld series: Beyond the Edge, Worlds on Edge, and Precipice.

Beyond the Edge

Some truths are better left unfound. For two years, Lepsi has been missing. A haunted spaceship has a message from him. Maybe Lepsi isn’t dead. Craze and Captain Talos travel to uncharted worlds, searching a region of the galaxy beyond the Backworlds. Out there, they stumble upon a terrible truth.

 

Worlds on Edge

Home is worth the fight. War is coming. A horde of merciless aliens poise just beyond the Edge. Racing ahead of the apocalypse, Craze rushes to warn his people and plan a defense. Only, he can’t go home. Banned from Pardeep Station, he must wage another war to save his home.

 

Precipice

Salvation comes at a price. A new enemy wants to destroy the galaxy. The Fo’wo’s want another war. Annihilation is coming to the Backworlds, and Craze’s option to prevent the genocide of his people is a nightmare. The best chance for survival is to overcome a century of hate and forge an alliance with the Fo’wo’s. If he succeeds, Craze will be the most hated man in the galaxy.        

Huzzizzle of the Realm.Introducing June #SciFi #fantasy & #Horror Deals & Reads #amreading

Get your summer read on!

The 6th installment of the Backworlds series is here!

Available in ebook from: Amazon or Amazon.com / B&N / iBook or main iBook / Googleplay / Smashwords / Kobo / inktera / Scribd

In the far future, humanity settles the stars, bioengineering its descendants to survive in a harsh universe. This is the sixth book in the science fiction series, The Backworlds. A space opera adventure.

The Backworlds hang by a Quantum string, a thread about to snap. Annihilation is coming if Craze can’t stop it.

The genocidal alien he had trapped breaks free, destroying a ship belonging to the Backworlds’ oldest enemy, the Fo’wo’s. The murderous alien wants to overtake the galaxy. The Fo’wo’s want another war.

The Backworlds’ best chance to survive is to overcome a century of hate and forge an alliance with the Fo’wo’s. Because of his history with the alien, Craze is recruited to represent his people. Now he’s the most hated man in the galaxy.

The looming war will be a holocaust unless Craze can stop it, knowing salvation comes at a price.

* * * * *

Geeks are sexy.

The second book in the Dice & Debauchery series will be released on May 29th!

Amateur cosplayer Emily Solis is determined to win the costume contest and the heart of her biggest competition.

It isn't the first time Emily has shed her costume with the gorgeous Russell Morrison. Not even her best friend knows she's been having wild convention sex with him for over a year. It was supposed to remain physical, but Emily couldn't help falling for him and his kinky ways. In a moment of passion, she rolls the dice and tells Russell she loves him. He doesn't say it back. Can she convince him they're perfect together or will she roll another critical failure?

Buy the book:

Ellora's Cave * Amazon * B&N * Kobo

Add it to read on Goodreads.

Get Loose Corset, the first book in the Dice & Debauchery series:

Ellora's Cave * Amazon * B&N * Kobo

* * * * *
Six Stories of Fantasy and Weirdness

"Blood and Beauty"

      satyr's tragic love for a dryad

"Sutter’s Well"

      Lovecraftian monster in Appalachia

"Morphine and Chocolate"

      weird rendition of Pearl

"The Facts in the Case of M. Hussman"

      Poe meets steampunk

"Shafts to Hell"

      gold miner gone mad

"Good King David"

      Hamlet meets Absalom in Biblical fantasy

Amazon US * Amazon UK * Goodreads

Precipice, 6th Book in the Backworlds Series is Now Live! #SciFi To Lepper Where No One Has Leapt Before

To travel from star to star in science fiction, there has to be a device or engine that allows the starship to accelerate beyond light speeds. Otherwise, traveling between star systems isn't very feasible.

Star Wars has hyperdrive, Star Trek has warp engines, Stargate has a stargate, Farscape has a living ship that can starburst, and Babylon 5 has jump points.

Firefly inspired many elements in the Backworlds series, but not how my people travel. For one, Firefly never really said how they accelerated the ship or whether they were traveling between stars. Sometimes I had the impression they were traveling within one solar system. Shrug. Whatev. I needed a way to get my ships from star to star.

I borrowed from Babylon 5 and used an accelerator or 'jump points'. I call it the Lepper System. A ship can travel faster within the Lepper System than outside it.

My planets are all clumped in one arm of the galaxy, still the arm Earth is located in -- the Orion Arm -- and they're fairly close together. Humanity has colonized space in the Backworlds, but we haven't moved terribly far yet.

There's still a lot of wonder to discover... as the discovery of planets beyond our system reveals - planets made of diamonds, super Earths, planets more habitable than our own. Wouldn't it be marvelous to go there and see them? I think so. That's why I love writing stories set in space.


Precipice, Backworlds Book 6

Amazon / Amazon.com / B&N / iBook / Googleplay / Smashwords / Kobo / inktera / Scribd

In the far future, humanity settles the stars, bioengineering its descendants to survive in a harsh universe. This is the sixth book in the science fiction series, The Backworlds. A space opera adventure.

The Backworlds hang by a Quantum string, a thread about to snap. Annihilation is coming if Craze can’t stop it.

The genocidal alien he had trapped breaks free, destroying a ship belonging to the Backworlds’ oldest enemy, the Fo’wo’s. The murderous alien wants to overtake the galaxy. The Fo’wo’s want another war.

The Backworlds’ best chance to survive is to overcome a century of hate and forge an alliance with the Fo’wo’s. Because of his history with the alien, Craze is recruited to represent his people. Now he’s the most hated man in the galaxy.

The looming war will be a holocaust unless Craze can stop it, knowing salvation comes at a price.

Edited by Kelly Schaub

Cover by: EDHGRAPHICS

Graphic Artist Erin Dameron-Hill

A to Z Challenge - P is for Price and Precipice

The A to Z Blogging Challenge is underway!

If you haven't heard of it, check out the A to Z blog and join in the fun.

Here at Untethered Realms, we're taking on the Challenge as a group. Each day, one of us will be sharing with you a teaser from one of our books.

Precipice, Backworlds Book 6 by M. Pax. Coming May 11th.

The publisher of Boing Boing gives The Backworlds 5 stars. "This is a fun, fast paced novel that reminded me a bit of early Heinlein."

Happenings in the Realm, Huzzizzle July 2014 #specfic #fantasy #scifi #horror

Untethered Realms Huzzizzle

We celebrate you, our awesome friends joining us on this journey with a spectacular speculative fiction giveaway. Enjoy!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

M. Pax Huzzizzle

July Sale! 7/1 - 7/31 on Select Ebooks

Backworlds series on sale, books 1-5 50% off at Smashwords. Use coupon SSW50 at checkout. Get caught up! HERE 

The Renaissance of Hetty Locklear also 50% off. Use coupon SSW50 at checkout. Check it out HERE

**

Cherie Reich Huzzizzle

July Sale! 7/1 - 7/31 on Select Ebooks

Smashwords is having its annual Summer/Winter sale. You can purchase Reborn, Gravity: The Complete Trilogy, and The Nightmare Collection for 50% off their retail prices with coupon code SSW50.

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Christine Rains Huzzizzle

July Sale! 7/1 - 7/31 on Select Ebooks

The 13th Floor Complete Collection is 50% off retail price during Smashwords' July sale with coupon code SSW50. The Collection includes "The Shadow," a bonus story rated 5 stars which is only available with the book. Yet if you only need to catch up on a few of the novellas, use the same code with them and get them for FREE!

**

Catherine Stine's Huzzizzle

Summer Sale on Ruby's Fire!

Ruby's Fire is still priced at only $0.99. And it just earned a finalist spot in the Next Generation Indie Awards for YA. Grab it from Amazon for your kindle!
“A world full of magic & unexpected romance!” –Teen Blurb
“A thrilling adventure led by an exciting cast of characters & the romance is really well handled.” -YA’s The Word

My First Alien

Marvin the Martian was my first, and I confess to being scared of him. Granted, I also believed mailboxes came alive after sundown and ate small children.

I grew up during the astronaut age, so the idea of aliens didn't seem very foreign to me. They seemed inevitable.

These days I make up my own. Coming up with something unique can be a tough task. I often use art to come up with ideas. Pinterest has been a huge help with that.

I invented Ims recently, which live in close to absolute zero temps. I did a really bad drawing of one. I think I'd run if I encountered this. lol

They control the ice, which allows the people on that planet to survive. I had that idea from watching ice creep along in this video:

That was really weird looking and alien. I like weird.

What attributes do you like in your alien?

By the way, Worlds on Edge, Book 5 in the Backworlds series is now out, and it has the ice aliens in it.

Here's an excerpt from Captain Talos's encounter with them:

Chapter 18

◙ Talos

As if an engine hit him in the head, Talos teetered. The pain drove in so instant, building to his unquestionable annihilation. Today he would die. Speckles danced in his eyes like sunspots. They flared and dimmed until they consumed him.

He forgot about cold and death, forgot about Quasser and Pardeep Station. The Ims had brought him into their world, the air ripe with energy. It popped in his blood vessels, tingling. He dared to take a breath.

The flares of light coalesced into colors, coordinating, bellowing in a low hymn. Together the brilliant confetti and song formed thoughts that hit like bolts against his temples.

Touch. Touch. Met.

Time went backwards. Talos and Lepsi ran to the spaceport on Elstwhere, laughing. The hideous ship was theirs. It resembled two beetles back to back with six worms squiggling out from the center. Talos had never seen anything more beautiful. Soon the Backworlds and all the things he dreamed about would be navigated on his whim.

Too far. Come forward.

Quasser loomed above Talos, roaring, raining fire on Ronu, on Pardeep Station, and worlds Talos had never seen. A gal very much like Rainly and Prezsha sat on top of the cloud-like vessel holding a finger to her lips.

Secrets.

What did she know? Who was she? Talos reached for her hand and tumbled into a lake of ice. The cold fell heavily into his lungs. He clawed at the depths, unable to gain hold. He sank farther.

The Ims stood beside beings resembling sticks. They stood beside proud folks with squid limbs and fish eyes and some with tentacles for hair. Farther in the icy depths an alien with three necks wailed to the heavens, clutching onto a being made from spheres and squares that bunched together and spread apart in a steady rhythm. Whispers surrounded them and fire. They disappeared into the Ims.

We join.

One Im merged into Talos, blazing his veins into a brilliant blue. Talos shivered.

Worlds on Edge

War is coming. A horde of merciless aliens poise just beyond the Edge. In a matter of weeks they will devour the worlds.

Racing ahead of the apocalypse, Craze returns to the Backworlds to warn them and plan a defense. Only he can’t go home. Banned from Pardeep Station, he must wage a more urgent battle. His moon is under siege, and his friends are dying.

Bad things come in threes, and the galaxy is no exception. An old enemy returns, attacking moons and defenseless globes, leaving a wake of destruction. Worse than that, they threaten to join forces with the alien horde.

Defeat seems inevitable. Craze may not be able to stop it. Yet home is worth the fight.

Available in ebook:

AmazonUS / Amazon UK / Nook / Smashwords / iTunes / Other Outlets

How I Got the Local Paper to Run a Story on Me

My local newspaper interviewed me and ran a story on me this past weekend. Here's the link: http://www.bendbulletin.com/home/1762504-151/bend-author-makes-sci-fi-waves

The reporter didn't pick me at random. We met at a meeting of Central Oregon Writers Guild, my local writing group. He was the guest speaker at the meeting, and we ended up having a very intense discussion on publishing. Eight months later, he contacted me about an article.

As any self-respecting author, I jumped at the chance for exposure and publicity.

Was it luck we ended up having that conversation? No. He asked a question and I asserted myself. I love talking about writing and publishing and anything related to it. I don't regret that I did. If we don't become advocates for ourselves, well, no one else is going to do it.

Once I had the interview, I shared the limelight with two of my lovely fans and my local critique group. I won't ever forget that I won't make it anywhere alone. I'm ever so grateful for the wonderful folks I've met along the way - fellow writers and fans.

So get out there and network. Talk to people. Talk to your fans. You never know when opportunity will come along...

What steps have you taken to get out there?

Coming March 2014

Worlds on Edge

War is coming. A horde of merciless aliens poise just beyond the Edge. In a matter of weeks they will devour the worlds.

Racing ahead of the apocalypse, Craze returns to the Backworlds to warn them and plan a defense. Only he can’t go home. Banned from Pardeep Station, he must wage a more urgent battle. His moon is under siege, and his friends are dying.

Bad things come in threes, and the galaxy is no exception. An old enemy returns, attacking moons and defenseless globes, leaving a wake of destruction. Worse than that, they threaten to join forces with the alien horde.

Defeat seems inevitable. Craze may not be able to stop it. Yet home is worth the fight.

 Support a Great Cause - Beyond the Binding

All proceeds of the Composers for Relief album and Beyond the Binding companion ebook will go to Gawad Kalinga (“give care”) and GVSP (Gualandi Volunteer Service Program), to support the relief efforts for victims of the deadliest natural disaster in Philippines’ history, Super Typhoon Yolanda.

 Embark on an exciting journey “Beyond the Binding” of the imagination with 29 authors from across the globe, in a groundbreaking collaboration where music meets fiction. Surrender to soaring compositions as they surge through the veins of every story, capturing the triumphant pulse of the notes in heart pounding sci fi, enchanting fantasy and gripping slices of realism.

Available from Amazon