Movie Books: A Princess of Mars (John Carter)

There are about a thousand different paper editions of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ John Carter series and there are almost as many ebook editions.  Probably the best was put together with loving care by ebook lover HarryT at Mobile Read Forums.  He has painstaikingly crafted a single volume with all eleven Barsoom novels together.  You don’t have to be a Mobile Read member to get it, but Mobile Read is definitely worth your time.  Here is a link to the ebook:

http://www.mobileread.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=34895&d=1251219101

The Dark and Forbidding Land: Graham Dokkins

As I mentioned the other day, Graham comes into his own in book 2.  Graham really is a hero, even as a kid.  How many ten year olds are willing to stand up to a pair of utahraptors.

Graham carefully aimed down the length of the barrel.  He squeezed the trigger, but nothing happened.  Lowering the weapon, he flipped the safety to the fire position, and then sighted again.  This time when he fired there was a satisfying crack.  The utahraptors stopped, startled, for a moment, but seemed uninjured.  Graham worked the action and fired again.  This time Senta saw the bullet strike the trunk of a massive redwood about twenty feet above the ground and quite a bit behind the predators.

“It’s not sited in right,” muttered Graham, as he pulled back the bolt.

This time, as with the first shot, they were unable to determine where the missile hit.

“Um, aim at their feet and a bit to the right of them,” advised Senta.

This time the bullet hit a tree just to the right of the foremost creature.

“The next one is in your head!” called Graham as if he had intended the previous shots as warnings. 

The utahraptor did not look at all impressed.  He and his cohort were not much more than fifty feet away.  When they charged they could clear that distance in the blink of an eye.  For the moment though they were still being wary of the strange little creatures which made loud booming noises and refused to run.

“You better stand behind me,” said Graham bravely.

The Dark and Forbidding Land: Senta

I screwed up.  I started talking about the characters in The Drache Girl and went right by The Dark and Forbidding Land– probably because I wrote The Drache Girl first.  So, I’ll switch gears and talk about book two of the series and then go back and finish book 3.

Senta is the first person to appear in book 2.  In fact, in both book 2 and book 3, the four friends– Senta, Graham, Hero, and Hertzal– are the first characters.  These two books, unlike the others, have a kind of Harry Potter feeling to them as the four friends are together throughout most of the story and play a key role in the plot.  In book 1 of course, the four of them meet for the first time, and although all appear in books 4 and 5, they aren’t together in the same way.

In The Dark and Forbidding Land, Senta is ten years old– she has her 11th birthday just after the story ends.  She’s precotious, but not as confident as she will be.  On the other hand, she’s not too afraid to stand up to Zurfina, not that she was even in book 1.  She’s learning all about magic and reveals that she has potential even beyond her guardian.

Also in this book, Senta comes into contact with the Reine Zauberei for the first time.  They are the Freedonian wizards whose racism has poisoned their country for the Zaeri.  The play a much bigger part in books 4 and 5.

John Carter

As I write this, I just finished watching John Carter.  It was a fantastic movie, but then I’m prejudiced.  I first read a Princess of Mars 41 years ago and it became a part of me.  Edgar Rice Burroughs influenced my writing of course, but he and his character John Carter influenced my outlook on life too.  This really is a story for the ages, one that has been copied again and again.

I thought the movie did a good job of bringing the book to life.  There were some changes in the story and a few elements were brought in from book two of the series, but for the most part, they were understandable changes, keeping today’s movie-goer in mind.  The actors were all believable in their roles, the special effects were top-notch, and the story-telling pace was good.

I would recommend this movie to anyone, but you really should read the books.  They are great.

Incidentally, I went with my wife, daughter, and son– the first movie the whole family has been together for, for more than a year.  We saw it in 3-D.  Despite it all costing an arm and a leg for us to have an evening together, it was very nice.

Update: The Young Sorceress

I just finished the first draft for The Young Sorceress.  It clocks in at 65,000 words, which makes it the shortest book in the series (with the exception of book 0), but I think there are a few chapters I need to add to flesh out the story a bit.   I feel pretty good about it.  Chapters 11-14 really came together well.

This has been the most difficult of the series to write.  At times I felt like I was running out of steam for the series.  I love the characters and the setting, but after I finish book 5, I’m going to take a long break before I write any more. 

Watch this spot.  I’ll let you know when I finish the first revision.  In the meantime, here is the chapter list as it stands now.

1. Spring
2. The Blond Girl
3. Nellie Swenson
4. Birthday
5. Birthday Part II
6. The Real Senta
7. Predators
8. Gods
9. Sorceresses and Witch Doctors
10. The Two Sentas
11. Pirates and Princesses
12. The End
13. Mallontah and Hell
14. All Your Fault

The World of Senta and the Steel Dragon

I have a huge notebook filled with maps of Senta’s world.  Many of them are political maps of different times in the world’s history.  Others cover parts of the world which do not appear in the series (though they might in a subsequent series).  Here is the part of the world where our story takes place.

Sumir is a fully settled continent that I usually think of as my stand-in for Europe, though as you can see, geographically it is quite different.  Greater Brechalon, Mirsanna, and Freedonia are the most powerful kingdoms.  You can think of them as stand-ins for Britain, France, and Germany.  Zur was once the seat of an empire that covered the continent, but is now relatively insignificant.  Argrathia is an even older society, now surviving off its history.  They are akin to Italy and Egypt.  Arbrax and the northern islands are sparcely inhabited and quite cold.

The northern half of the map is temperate to arctic, though due to ocean currents and possibly magic, Enclep and the southern part of the Mullien Islands are tropical.

Mallon is a huge landmass.  When I imagine it, I think of Asia, with Birmisia being China and Mallontah being India, at least as far as climate goes.  As far as populations, they are more like North America and Central America at the time of European contact, if the Americans had been cold-blooded reptiles.  The aborigines of Birmisa are different than those of Mallontah, though they are both reptilian.  The lizzies of Birmisia are taller, stronger, and more alien to humans.  Those in Mallontah have been completely subjugated by man and fill the slums of crowded human-controlled cities.

My Den Nearing Completion

I am writing this from my new den.  I’ve been working on it for weeks.  It was originally my den, then became my daughters bedroom for about 18 years, now it’s my den again.  I am so happy.  Everything in it is used (or recycled). My mother gave me the chair when she bought a new one.  My son and I got the desk when a neighbor was throwing it away.  But it’s still all mine.

His Robot Wife : 5,000 Sold

Obviously this is a big deal for me.  5,000 copies of His Robot Wife have been sold as of sometime in February.  Sales have slowed a bit, but it still selling better than my other books.  Hopefully when I have His Robot Wife: Patience is a Virtue done, sales will hop a bit more.  In the meantime, thanks to everyone who purchased my book.

The Drache Girl on Sale

As part of Read an Ebook Week, The Drache Girl is on sale at Smashwords for $2.24.  Be sure to use coupon code REW25 to get the sale price.  Follow this link: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/19309 .  I hope everyone had a great Read an Ebook Week.

The Voyage of the Minotaur on Sale

I mentioned the other day that I am dropping the price of Senta and the Steel Dragon Book 1: The Voyage of the Minotaur to $1.99, but this week during Read and Ebook Week, you can pick up a copy at Smashwords for 99 cents.  Be sure to use coupon code REW50 to get the sale price.  Follow this link:
http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/11536