A couple of weeks ago someone went to all the time and trouble to have my email blasts listed as spam. This is not as easy to do as you might think. Yeah, you can block an email address from sullying your delicate senses, but actually banning someone from the internet takes time, money, and effort. And, even so, they didn’t succeed. Sure, I was inconvenienced, and some people didn’t get their weekly doses of McSciFi until they’d weeded through the glorious offers for Russian brides, bitcoin investments, and Medicare enhancements, I was still there floating amongst the flotsam and jetsam. I know this since some people were kind enough to let me know it had been worth the effort to slog through the mush.
So, I set to work with CONTABO, the nice people who own the VPS I lease for bulk emails, and we were able to counter every complaint, actually upgrade my security, and return McSciFi to the halcyon realms of not spam.
The good news is, this wasn’t personal. They hit over a hundred accounts. The bad news is, people suck.
The fun part is, should they try this again, I’ll find out who they are. My guess is they’re done now.
More below.
Just in case you missed the long, erudite, reviews from experts, all of whom are wonderful, good looking, and smell nice, I thought it might be fun to share what fans think of McSciFi’s literary offerings.
SPLICE: HIT BIT TECHNOLOGYWinner of the Best SciFi Novel of 2020 on the Critters Reader’s Poll.
* – A nonstop thrill ride
* – Fascinating and terrifying
* – The best damn thing I’ve ever read
* – The Desert Eagle seems like overkill for a close shot, but I have no complaints
* – I’m buying popcorn now for when this hits the big screen
The Brittle Riders Series or its Omnibus Edition* – Some of the best world building I’ve ever encountered
* – It sympathetically manages to bridge the gap between faith and technology
* – McCormick packs more in twelve words than others do in twelve paragraphs
* – Fuck McCormick, he made me cry when a cockroach died
* – When I hit book three I surrendered. I had no clue what was going to happen, but I needed to find out
Goptri of the Mists: Kitaab Ek* – There’s a horny squid and nukes. What more could I ask for?
* – I never considered giving my spouse a year’s worth of meat for our anniversary
* – Okay, wow, did not see this villain coming
* – Relentless and riveting
* – He’s always been LGBTQIA+ friendly, but this subtly raises the bar and I, for one, am thrilled
If you feel you may have missed a newsletter, don’t panic, all you have to do is click, and bookmark, THIS HANDY LINK and browse to you heart’s content.
More below.
I’ve talked before about the upcoming Marcie’s Marvels. And copies have left the printer and are headed this way. The thing is, I don’t owns this title, Marcie’s family does.
A woman named Elizabeth Gerald contacted me and told me the story she wanted to tell. It was tough to hear. Even tougher to write. Her teenage daughter, Marcie, had taken her life after being bullied and abused incessantly. However, out of that tragedy, she wanted to share something positive for other girls facing similar dilemmas.
After some back and forth, I drafted the first script. The hero would be a super-powered young girl named Marcie. She would scour her city looking for girls being harassed or abused and rescue them. She would also, and always, let them know none of this was their fault.
The story, unlike much of my other work, is aimed squarely at teenage girls. It will, despite the darker themes we’ll be exploring, have humor and hope in every issue.
All that being said, while I can’t sell you a copy, I can give you one. Next week I will announce a contest so a couple of lucky humans can hold one and enjoy it.
I warned you that knowing me had benefits.
Thanks to the Delta Variant I’m turning down any convention appearances until spring of 2022. Since cons are my main source of income I do not do this lightly. I haven’t pimped my happy ass in public since December of 2019. I can honestly say these decisions hurt me more than you, but I will not risk my family’s well being to sell a few books.
Until next week stay sane, safe, and socially distance like the raging introvert you need to be.
