I grew up in the sixties and loved all things science fiction when it was at its peak. Being a voracious reader, I spent many days in the local library. I wanted to learn how to be good enough to get my books there. I was encouraged by friends and began studying writing at workshops and conventions. There, I met many of my favorite authors, including Anne McCaffery, Orson Scott Card, Lois McMaster Bujold, and A. C. Crispin. I also met scientists and actors. Critique groups honed my craft and expanded my appreciation of books. I learned to read and write outside my comfort zone.
I fell in love with the people of Pern and their struggles to survive. They adapted and overcame the dangers. They battled against the thread and made a home on Pern.
I was amazed that this was a science fiction book, not a fantasy. It had dragons. I was well past my young adult years when this book hooked me like a fish.
In this world, I saw infinite possibilities for more stories. It touched my heart and made me realize that I could overcome any obstacle in my life. It also taught me that, like Pern, my future held infinite possibilities.
Volume I of The Dragonriders of Pern®, the groundbreaking series by master storyteller Anne McCaffrey
On a beautiful world called Pern, an ancient way of life is about to come under attack from a myth that is all too real. Lessa is an outcast survivor—her parents murdered, her birthright stolen—a strong young woman who has never stopped dreaming of revenge. But when an ancient threat to Pern reemerges, Lessa will rise—upon the back of a great dragon with whom she shares a telepathic bond more intimate than any human connection. Together, dragon and rider will fly . . . and…
This book touched my life more than any other novel. It captured my mind and tore my heart apart.
I marvel that one book could say so much about so many things. As a teacher, it brought tears to my eyes to see this gifted boy isolated and manipulated by his teachers. I realize that Earth’s leaders had reasons. Those reasons saved Earth but shone a glaring light on our inhumanity.
I was devastated that instead of welcoming Ender home and helping him heal, they feared his abilities and banished him into space.
Orson Scott Card's science fiction classic Ender's Game is the winner of the 1985 Nebula Award for Best Novel and the 1986 Hugo Award for Best Novel.
In order to develop a secure defense against a hostile alien race's next attack, government agencies breed child geniuses and train them as soldiers. A brilliant young boy, Andrew "Ender" Wiggin lives with his kind but distant parents, his sadistic brother Peter, and the person he loves more than anyone else, his sister Valentine. Peter and Valentine were candidates for the soldier-training program but didn't make the cut―young Ender is the Wiggin drafted…
I loved Lois McMaster Bujold’s Vorkosigan series. By this book; I had become a hopeless fan girl. Not of Bujold, though she is a Grandmaster of writing, but of her character, Miles Vorkosigan. I became a proud member of Miles Minions.
As someone with a genetic abnormality myself, I adored the way he let nothing stop him and careened from one adventure/disaster to the next. The characters and story are so well written that I forgot the author and was immersed in Miles’ life.
This gave me my almost impossible goal as an author. I want to create a character that is as much fun to write as Miles is to read. I was honored to sit near Bujold at a dinner and share my dream with her.
NEW YORK TIMES BEST-SELLING AUTHOR. NEW EDITION OF THE BOOK THAT STARTED THE VOKOSIGAN SAGA LEGEND. WITH AN ALL-NEW INTRODUCTION BY LOIS MCMASTER BUJOLD!
I developed a passion for epic fantasy series when I was introduced to Terry Goodkind’s book.
I passionately followed the story of Richard Cypher and Kahlan the Confessor. I followed their story, book after book. The things that the old wizards knew about people are still true today. It was their first rule and why they created Seekers and Confessors. All I need to do is look at the news, check social media, etc., to see how the rule still stands.
People are stupid; given proper motivation, almost anyone will believe almost anything. Because people are stupid, they will believe a lie because they want to believe it to be true or because they fear it might be true.
A beloved fantasy classic and the beginning of one of the most breathtaking adventure stories of all time
One man, Richard Cypher, holds the key to the fate of three nations and of humanity. But until he learns the Wizard's First Rule his chances of succeeding in his task are slim. And his biggest problem is admitting that magic exists at all ...
A novel of incomparable scope and brimming with atmospheric detail: in a world where heart hounds stalk the boundaries for unwary human prey, blood-sucking flies hunt on behalf of their underworld masters, and where artists can draw…
This book is not from the age of classic SF. However, it and the author perhaps taught me more about writing than any other book. They literally saved my life.
The novel was written for Disney and the Pirates of the Caribbean universe. I was introduced to A. C. Crispin (Ann) at DragonCon. I marveled at her ability to jump into a world and write great stories there. I learned so much about the craft and business of writing from her. The opening advice she gave at her workshops. “Money should flow from the publisher to the author, not the other way around.”
While battling cancer and dying, Ann reached out to me, knowing that I was a diabetic, and warned me to get off a dangerous drug.
Twenty-five-year-old Jack Sparrow is a clean-cut merchant seaman pursuing a legitimate career as a first mate for the East India Trading Company. He sometimes thinks back to his boyhood pirating days, but he doesn’t miss Teague’s scrutiny or the constant threat of the noose. Besides, he doesn’t have much choicehe broke the Code when he freed a friend who had been accused of rogue piracy, and he can no longer show his face in Shipwreck Cove. When Jack’s ship is attacked by pirates and his captain dies in the altercation, he suddenly finds himself in command. The wily sailor’s skillful…
At seventeen, Kelli is a genius with computers and a wanted criminal. What she isn’t is human. Tortured by that fact, Kelli is willing to do anything to find out the truth about the father who abandoned her years ago. DNA had proven that he had been an alien. He was not just someone from a foreign country; he was from another planet, and she was the result of his “first contact” with humans.
Kelli begins her quest to solve the mystery of who and what her father was. She joins the first interplanetary student exchange and travels to Aldebar, a planet with seven sentient species. Her journey includes a notorious info-raider, a sentient computer program with a deadly subroutine, and the honorable, ever-truthful Degg.
The aftermath of human first contact, written from the extraterrestrial's perspective.
Kelvoo is overcome with wonder at the arrival of the humans. With flawless memories and innate curiosity, Kelvoo’s community embraces the benevolent humans and their knowledge of the boundless universe beyond the cloud-covered sky. After the departure of the first contact mission, an unscrupulous human lands in Kelvoo’s village, inviting Kelvoo and eight others to join a “goodwill mission” to faraway worlds. Lured into a trap and enslaved by an outlaw gang, Kelvoo’s group is forced to participate in an interstellar crime spree and subjected to the worst of…
Kelvoo's Testimonial: Surviving the Aftermath of Human First Contact
LISTED AS A BEST INDIE BOOK OF 2022 BY KIRKUS REVIEWSKelvoo is overcome with wonder at the arrival of the humans.
With flawless memories and innate curiosity, Kelvoo’s community embraces the benevolent humans and their knowledge of the boundless universe beyond the cloud-covered sky.
After the departure of the first contact mission, an unscrupulous human lands in Kelvoo’s village, inviting Kelvoo and eight others to join a “goodwill mission” to faraway worlds. Lured into a trap and enslaved by an outlaw gang, Kelvoo’s group is forced to participate in an interstellar crime spree, and subjected to the worst of human…
