Monthly Archives: November 2012

Astrid Maxxim

Posted on by
Reply

Astrid is the title character and the main character in Astrid Maxxim.  As a character, she has two facets.  On the one hand, she has to be interesting, so she has her foibles and flaws, but on the other hand, it is her eyes from which we see her world.  Therefore, she has to have a solid center.

Astrid is extremely intelligent, but she is also intuitive and empathetic.  She is kind and friendly, but shy and unassuming.  She loves science and technology and is easily frustrated by superstition and silliness.  She is supremely confident about herself, but not so confident in her interactions with others.  This along with a certain rigidness regarding change, I associate with her being an only child.

Astrid is a fun character to write and I hope to do a fairly long series of her stories.  It all depends on how long I last, I suppose.

The Many Adventures of Eaglethorpe Buxton now at Diesel Ebooks

Posted on by
Reply

The Many Adventures of Eaglethorpe Buxton is now available at the World Famous Diesel Ebook Store.

Eaglethorpe Buxton Updated

Posted on by
Reply

A new version of The Many Adventures of Eaglethorpe Buxton is now available at Smashwords, and will soon be available everywhere else.  If you are one of the 3 people 🙂 who purchased the first version, you can download an error free updated version for free.  The new version is labeled 11-20-12 on the copyright page.

Thanks to Moe the Cat for sending me a list of errata to be fixed (and this is not the first time he’s done so either).  There is a special thanks to Moe, and my son John who performed a similar service, on the dedication page of the new version.

His Robot Girlfriend Soundtrack

Posted on by
1

Alright, since I’m thinking about soundtracks, how about this for a His Robot Girlfriend/ His Robot Wife movie?

Daffodil Lament – Cranberries

All is Full of Love – Bjork

From a Shell – Lisa Germano

Settle Down – Kimbra

The Greatest – Cat Power

Trouble is a Friend – Lenka

I Like You So Much Better When You’re Naked – Ida Maria

This Guy’s in Love with You – Herb Alpert

He Needs Me – Shelley Duvall

Everybody Hurts – R.E.M.

Blood Trade Soundtrack

Posted on by
1

I usually don’t listen to music with lyrics when I’m trying to write, though I listen to instrumentals.  I do listen to songs when I’m thinking about plots and ideas though and there are a few songs that remind me of events in stories, and that I think would make great soundtracks to movie versions of my books.  Here is what might be included in a Blood Trade Movie.

You’ve Been Flirting Again – Bjork

9 Crimes – Damien Rice

All I Want from You is Love – Let’s Go Sailing

Dirty Laundrey – Bitter:Sweet

I Want to be Your Dog – Joan Jett

Bad Girls – M.I.A.

Paper Planes – M.I.A.

Werewolves of London – Warren Zevon

Paradise – Coldplay

Mad World – Michael Andrews

Little Sister – Queens of the Stone Age

Eaglethorpe Mug

Posted on by
Reply

My son, who is the biggest Eaglethorpe Buxton fan, surprised me for my birthday with an Eaglethorpe Buxton mug that he ordered with my promo picture.  He also had made a His Robot Wife t-shirt.  Awesome.

The Many Adventures of Eaglethorpe Buxton now at Kobo Books

Posted on by
Reply

The Many Adventures of Eaglethorpe Buxton is now available for $2.99 at Kobo Books for your Kobo reading device or Kobo ebook app.

Follow this link to check it out.

Astrid Maxxim: Toby Bundersmith

Posted on by
Reply

I usually enjoy creating characters that have some major flaw in their personalities.  In fact my favorite characters are those who are seriously twisted in some way.  For one character in Astrid Maxxim, I went a completely different way.

In the Tom Swift books I read as a kid, my favorite character was Tom’s best friend Bud Barclay.  Bud was totally reliable and faithful, completely unwavering in his friendship and belief in Tom.  I patterned Toby Bundersmith after Bud in that respect.

Of course Toby has to be different in one way– he’s not just Astrid’s best friend– he’s her boyfriend.  In fact, she often daydreams of one day being Dr. Astrid Bundersmith, so he has to not only be great, but dreamy as well.  Toby is my perfect boy.  He never wavers, he’s always supportive, he’s always reliable, and always responsible.  He can’t save the day, because Astrid is the hero of the story, but he’s always there to back her up.  If someone has to come to Astrid’s aid, it will be Toby.  In truth, he’s pretty boring.  Fortunately, there are enough other characters who can cause chaos, doubt, and trouble for our girl inventor.

Astrid Maxxim: Main Characters

Posted on by
Reply

When I planned out the characters for Astrid, I knew I wanted a group of core friends.  I also like threes, so I planned the characters in triads.

Astrid has two femaile friends at the start of the story– Valerie and Denise.  So Astrid, Valerie, and Denise form a triad.  Then Astrid has a boyfriend, Toby.  Toby’s best friend is Christopher.  Christopher is also super smart and competes with Astrid at school.  So Astrid Toby and Christoper for a triad.  Austin is the new kid in school and forms the third boy in the group– making a Toby, Christopher, Austin triad.

In addition, each of the characters relate to each other in different ways.  Austin has a special connection to Denise and especially Valerie, who are his first female friends.  Astrid and Toby both take Austin under their wings, in different ways.  And there is the second Valerie, which adds a whole ‘nother layer to the Astrid-Valerie relationship.

Astrid Maxxim: Maxxim Industries

Posted on by
Reply

Tom Swift Jr. created his inventions on the grounds of Swift Enterprises, though there was a Swift Construction Company not too far away.  Swift Enterprises was supposed to be four miles square.  When I was a kid, I spent a great deal of time wondering if that was four square miles (two miles by two miles) or four miles by four miles (sixteen square miles).

One of the other things I was fascinated by when I was a kid was Disneyworld.  I had been to Disneyland, but the idea that Walt had this huge expanse that not only included a Magic Kingdom, but also campgrounds and lakes and other parks really touched my imagination.

For Maxxim Industries therefore, I created a huge expanse of 180,000 acres, dotted here and there with industrial parks and business campuses, as well as power plants, its own airfield, and even a spaceport.  Of course it also had rivers and a lake, a cactus park, convential parks, and for some strange reason, the high school from the adjascent Maxxim City was also on the Maxxim Industries grounds.  This allowed the students to take a monorail train to school every morning.

I made a great map, but lost it in the move to my den this past summer.  As soon as I find it, I’ll post it here.