Download the E-book for free here.
Listen to the Booked. Podcast review here.
(I will edit in any other relevant links here as they become available)
Hi all.
Love you all for clicking the links and downloading the book. Many thanks.
Well I thought this thread would be a nice idea. A place to discuss any of the stories from Nova Parade, because some of these stories could yield some really interesting conversation. Not least because the majority of the authors post here. We can keep all the talk here and let the other preview thread die and drop off the forum page.
I guess we should just treat it like a kind of book club thread, I have a few discussion points I would love to see some feedback on ;-) Obviously the book is quite long and I don't really expect this thread to pick up for a few days, but hey, feel free to wade in whenever.
WARNING!!! No way round it really. This thread is going to end up containing spoilers about the stories.
So to get stuff rolling,
Favorite stories?
What did you think to the alternating styles? We were aiming for dark and gritty stuff followed by silly and comical. Some of these stories are heavy, real heavy. Some are hilarious. Does that mixture work for you?
Any of the authors want to chime in with an 'about my story' kind of post?
I have a bunch of other stuff I would like to maybe discuss, but I figure first few days at least, general is best. I'll likely post more questions later.
Again, you all rock!
CONTENTS LIST
Richard Thomas – On A Bent Nail Head
Martin Garrity - Walking On Water
Bryan Howie – Tides
Bradley Sands - Giant Monster Attack!
Nathan Pettigrew – Today Our Future Is Born
Tony Rauch – That’s Where Your Real Parents Live
Rebecca Jones-Howe – Blue Hawaii
Andrez Bergen – An Octopus’ Grotto Is His Castle
Jessica Taylor – Just A Man
Paul D. Brazill – Catch As Catch Can
Chris Lewis Carter – Kill Screen
Amanda Gowin – Charlotte & Jolene: How To Make A Baby
Michael Paul Gonzalez – Ingénue
Jason Lairamore – Jack?
Jay Slayton-Joslin – Awkward Mornings Beat Long Lonely Nights
Chester Pane – Dreadlocks™
Joshua D. Moyes – A Stronger Family
Nikki Guerlain - King Neptune Sucks Off The World’s Largest Potato!
Caleb J. Ross – Vertigo Unbalanced
Phil Jourdan – Vomit As A Talent
Laurance Kitts – Poetry
Clint Rhodes – ATTN: Human Resources
Dakota Taylor - A Day In The Life
Jeremy Robert Johnson – The Brilliant Idea
W. P. Johnson - Cold Heart
A NOTE ON SPOILERS: Let's try to structure this like the book club if everyone is okay with that. By that I mean if you mention a major spoiler, make sure you warn the reader.
Example: ****spoilers****
(You guys know what you're doing)
Not finished yet but it's awesome so far!
I read Nathan's story in WAR and when I read it in Nova Parade, it hit me just as hard as the first time. These stories are intense.
Same for Richard's story, it has that Lion King feel to it. You know, the scene where Mufasa dies.
Can't wait to discuss more when I get deeper into the book but it's great to see a lot of these stories came from WAR.
Agreed on the intensity if those two. Really hard hitting stuff. Richard's is kind of touching in a weird way, but sad as it gets. Nathan's is brutal. So tragic.
However
Neither Nathan or Richards stories were WAR efforts bro ;-) Richards was from a battle with Laurance, and Nathans was workshopped with a different name, way back at the launch of the site.
The WAR! Stories (for the record)
Martin Garrity - Walking On Water
Rebecca Jones-Howe – Blue Hawaii
Chester Pane – Dreadlocks™
Joshua D. Moyes – A Stronger Family
Clint Rhodes – ATTN: Human Resources
Utah's had a different title.
Ahh, I see.
Yeah Richard's story does have that sentimental feel to it.
Walking On Water holds a special place in my heart from the first time I read it. Very original!
Rebecca always knows how to dig her claws into the reader and not let go. Her stories drag you down into depths deep enough that you forget you're reading a fiction story.
I think Booked picked a good one when they went with Kill Screen. It didn't grab me at first, but I'm a sucker for watching people play video games (even more than for playing them). That really did it for me. The ending, with the printer, was a great way to end the story.
Overall, 5 out of 5 scared cats
I read Richard's story, and as I was nearing the end I thought, "What's wrong with the Booked guys? This is sad but it's not that bad, and then, well, yeah, it was pretty bad. I just got back from camping, and then I went and had a nap."
Also, Dakota, thanks for saying such nice things about my writing. If I were to compile a list of the best compliments I'd ever received, yours would be in there. I work hard, I really do, and it's nice when people notice. :)
Up now at goodreads - http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15735828-solarcide-presents
I hear from Mr Howie that the pdf actually works pretty well on his kindle. Though to be honest I am not up on my E-readers so it may be that he has a newer model or something.
We are planning to look into getting a proper kindle format made at some point, if only because being listed on Amazon would be nice. Right now I am focusing on thinking of ways to promote this version though.
As for print. Not a prority for me right now. Might look into some kind of limited edition in the future, maybe. Would probably be a proceeds-to-charity affair if I do.
I would love you guys to review and comment over at goodreads, but please, don't feel obliged to sugar coat anything you didn't like. Honest reveiws are just fine by me.
I'm reading the PDF on my Nook. Defaults to really large text and the next step down is super small, so I may try converting to ePub.
Read the first story, Richard's. Damn. Sad and stuff. Though I have to say, not nearly as bad as I was led to believe, so at least I don't have to drink tonight out of depression (I'm just drinking because... yay America?).
Cool, glad some folks are finding stuff they like in here. I am gonna go ahead and post some of my thoughts about the stories, try and kick up a bit more chatter maybe ;-)
I will try and avoid spoilers.
Richard Thomas - On A Bent Nail Head
This was one of the very first stories confirmed for the antho. Cheers Richard for taking the chance on us back then haha. This came from a Beyond Thunderdome battle (agaist Laurance no less) and it struck me right away as being something special. Richard does Noir well, as we all know. He is spot on at hitting creepy and he does gritty too. What stuck with me was that now the guy has proven he can do sad and touching just as well. (though thinking about it, Flowers From Jessica might just give this a run for it's money, I really like that one too) It felt new for him, and it felt fresh. The guys at Booked picked up on how much of an inpact this has. It shows Richard off as the real complete package.
Martin Garrity - Walking On Water
At risk of sounding egotistical I shall now comment on my own story. This was from WAR! and it won the 'best of round 1' poll and I got a lot of lovely comments about it. We were outlining this collection back then and right away I kinda earmarked this story for my contribution.
I think I did pretty well here. I wanted to poke a bit of lighthearted fun at a few things, and connecting the imaginary dots between reality TV and religion seemed weirdly appropriate. And as folk here mostly know, I love wordplay and I got chance for a bit of that here.
Normally I spend ages on my short stories. I re-write sentences ten times over and I drag my feet and some of my stories take months to finish. Not this one. This came out almost entirely in one draft (which was lucky as it was for the WAR duel) and since then I have only given it little tweaks and edits, barely a re-write at all.
Bryan Howie - Tides
Similarly to what I said about Richard's story - this one proves Howie is a more rounded writer than maybe some of us thought. I mean, look at the guy's other Solarcide stories. Your Mother's Smile has a really dirty undertone and Horsepower requires no introduction whatsoever. His tie-in story which is coming soon on the website is the same. The guy raises eyebrows like few else can.
But when I read Tides it left me feeling something new. This is a different Howie, a cocktail of realism and sorrow and tragedy. This story is every bit as melancholy as Richard's, and those two stories really gave us the firm basis for our 'tragedy' end of the theme. For that reason this might actually be my favorite Howie story to date.
Bradley Sands - Giant Monster Attack!
If I had to pick one story as my favorite this might just be it. The first time I read it I about fell of my chair laughing. Over the last year or so I have been reading a lot of bizarro and I have REALLY warmed to the genre. So to have this, a perfect example of what the genre is about, in the collection makes me a very happy bunny. Kudos, Mr Sands, and thank you.
Nathan Pettigrew - Today Our Future Is Born
I asked Nathan to make this story his contribution because I have known it for a long time now and really, it is the epitome of tragedy. Thankfully he agreed with me.
I first read this about a year ago maybe, under a different title. Since then it has been reworked slightly and re-named, and it has been tightened up beyond belief. Damn, parts of this make my skin crawl. If you haven't read much by Solarcide's own interview ninja supreme, then this is a great start. Follow it up by checking out his story Roland the Conqueror over at Dark Media. The man has an uncanny knack for making a reader uncomfortable. He holds nothing back. In fact, he duct tapes your eyes open and forces you to watch his nightmares unfurl.
Okay, that's all for now, but I will be back with comments on some more stories soon.
Oh, and also, Phil's interview is up at the site. You should check that out.
Phil's interview rocks. Got personal, too. Nice work there, Martin. The Original Intervew Ninja, everyone!
And yeah I wasn't going to chime in on this thread, but since things slowed down here for whatever reason, and snce Martin's stepping out... (Apprecate your words by the way, mate. More than you know).
"Tides" for me as well. That one stayed with me. I really enjoyed it, and right, it was far different from what I expected. Shows range. Was glad to see that one in there.
It's just hard because I had the chance to read every story a few times over throughout the process, and there's not a one in there I don't like.
Dig "Blue Hawaii" a lot, but I like all of Rebecca's stories. Laurance, oddly enough, kicked the shit out of my mind with this poetry. I absolutely love Paradise Lost, but that's about it, really. Even in a lot of horror mags that I read online, or just dark stuff like Underground Voices—I usually don't take to the poems, but his in the anthology are tight, gripping, and function very much like any of the other stories where it grabs you and leaves you wanting more. I'd check out a whole book of his poems.
One of the stories that I really took to by the time we wrapped things up was "That's Where Your Real Parents Live" by Tony Rauch. Thing is, I wasn't so crazy about it at first. But there's something endearing about it and I think it ended up being one of my favorites. Something about it I can't quite put my finger on, but I think about it a lot. Think maybe it has something to do with reminding me of a recent incident in the news where all these kids were making fun of their bus driver, like to the point of tears. She was overweight and these little shits are all calling her fat and cursing her out and spitting on her, and you know how these days you can't discipline or put children in their place without it turning into a federal case, so the bus driver has to take it and she's balling after these cruel remarks go on and on. Cool thing about that story real quick is a bunch of the people in the community started a collection for her to retire! Very cool!! But yeah Tony's story seems relevant and there's also a fun side to it, a mysterious aspect that I liked.
Amanda Gowin's story, "Charlotte & Jolene." Smiled through that one :)
Nice thoughts, lads. I still haven't had time to do more than a visual run-through, since I'm working (teaching) 6 days a week at the mo', plus doing writing/music stuff in my free time, which is pretty much non-existent! ;)
However, things will ease up a bit next month, so I'm looking to sit down and go through all the stories. I'm hearing/reading so many good things about this. Well done again.
I noticed a couple mistakes, yeah.
Through the first three stories. Didn't much care for the 2nd one, but the 3rd was fairly thoughtful and subdued, rather like the 1st. I wasn't expecting so much stuff like that. Wish I had more time... making slow progress, but enjoying myself.
@jacks: Hey if you or anyone else pick up on any errors, please send them my way for correction at:
That's my email, and we'll get it taken care of asap. Otherwise, Martin and I picked up on several errors in the Preview Copy that we spent a good week correcting before release. We've read each story a few times now, and so if you do come across any errors, please let us know at that email address for correction.
Well, I hope this thread can be used to discuss the stories rather than report any typos which might have slipped through our net. (proofreading 25 stories was a pretty long and brutal effort)
So yeah, send over notice of errors if you find em' but please , in the meantime, I'd rather this thread be used for discussion.
@ Michael
Through the first three stories. Didn't much care for the 2nd one, but the 3rd was fairly thoughtful and subdued, rather like the 1st. I wasn't expecting so much stuff like that. Wish I had more time... making slow progress, but enjoying myself.
That second one was mine ;-) Why didn't you care for it? Heh, don't worry, I have a thick skin like a calloused foot matey, you can totally fire away and be honest! This is a safe place hehe.
I agree that Howie and Richrd's stories are both really quite touching. Tides rather bummed me out the first time I read it. In a good way though, of course. Great writing.
See, this is how I get in trouble, because I don't know who any of you people are unless your names are plastered to your handle like mine.
So... well, shit. Now you've got me all self-conscious and I kind of feel bad.
If you actually do want feedback, I'll be more than happy to message you some, but I should read it again first.
Also, feel free to punch me in the balls now, if you want. Or read something I posted here and rip it a new asshole.
I certainly won't clog the thread with any errors I find as I'm reading, but I'll try to note whatever comes up and email it to Nathan when I'm done. When do you guys plan to put out an ebook version? I love to edit, so I'm happy to help. If there's anything you guys need an extra hand with, let me know.
The e-book version will be coming at sometime. That's all I can say right now. It's being looked into/worked on.
also
@ Michael - please do not feel bad. I don't. As I said before, I can take a bit o' the critique. Gun away.
No need to message me feedback, the story is done anyhow :-) If you want to post thoughts here feel free! If it is going to generate a potential discussion then I am all game.
i don't really understand how to use the clicky links in there. i opened an issuu account and still couldn't figure it out. i'm just posting in here in case anyone else is having the same problem. is this something that's just supposed to be a copy&paste sort of thing, i get that :) just wasn't sure...
I only really put the thing on Issuu to have an alternative host,so I haven't explored their reader all that much.
However I am a bit confused. The links are not working for you? You just click them as you would an internet hyperlink. Unless something is up with issuu and they are not letting you follow the links? Try downloading the pdf instead maybe.
Hmm.
I'm new to all this ereader business, really, and my Nook won't follow the links. Can't make notes, either, so doing that separately for the edits I'm finding, but I guess the Nook can only do notes with epubs, not PDFs. Makes my life slightly harder, but I never go anywhere without my ipod anyway, so no big deal. I went through the book up to the beginning of Richard's story and made I think 4 or 5 small notes, plus one from "Walking On Water", and I know there was at least one thing I saw in "Tides" beyond the one note I sent to Nathan already.
I've honestly forgotten some of what stuck out to me as I was going through your story, Mr. Garrity. I remember being a touch put off by what I felt was an overabundance of techno-speak. I enjoyed the wicked suggestion at the end, but felt like the whole thing could have gotten there faster. I really should read it again to say anything beyond that. The concept itself was pretty funny and unique.
Definitely try to download the PDF version if you can, because the Kindle edition, while awesome for the e-reading experience, will not have the direct acccessible links that you currently find in the author bios of the PDF.
Sure links and places will be listed, but with the PDF version, you can click the links and those will take you directly to wherever you want to go, be it Amazon's direct link to buy books from Caleb J. Ross, or one of the official author websites. That's why we went with the PDF version first over Kindle, so we can actually promote and provide a means for readers to check out or buy more work from the featured authors. There are lots of great links in the PDF that will take you to other cool places, as well.
Or get 'em all. It's all Free and you can have the PDF version for easy access to other work from the authors, and then the Kindle edition for the straight e-reading experience.
Here's a Direct Link to the PDF if anyone's having trouble: Solarcide Presents... Nova Parade.
Just click that, and you're in. You'll have the PDF version of the Nova Parade anthology.
@redvaughn: I'm not sure why that's happening, as the link works for me and others. However, try opening directly or click the link directly vs. opening in another tab or window.
Also, yeah, I use Google Chrome. Definitely try Firefox and Chrome and if it still continues to give you trouble, I can always email you the PDF version as an attachment. Just let me know. My email is: nathanpettigrew11@yahoo.com.
Internet Explorer (version 8? 9?) I think has a bug when you try to download linked PDF files. We ran into it a few months ago and decided to just say to hell with fixing it, hopefully ie 10 will iron it out. I think it may have something to do with the headers. Ed, try right-clicking and doing 'Save file as...' (or whatever option the right-click menu gives you). The downloaded file should open with Adobe Acrobat instead of the inline ie PDF viewer.
Finished your story the other day while signing up for classes, Andrez. Beautifully written, funny, and unexpected.
Went through and read Martin's again, liked it considerably more on second read. "Giant Monster Attack!", "Catch as Catch Can", and "Kill Screen" were brilliant. I think "That's Where Your Real Parents Live" is still my favorite so far, though. "Blue Hawaii" and "Just A Man" had their moments too.
I wish the PDF was friendlier on my Nook. Links don't work and there's no table of contents, so some of the stories I've forgotten as associated with their name. For the life of me I can't remember what Nathan's story was about reading the title, though I know I enjoyed it.
Guess I'm not quite halfway through. Have about 20 notes I've made regarding the text. Nathan or Martin, if you want these now rather than waiting for me to finish reading, let me know.