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Tag Archives: Fun Stuff to Do

Enjoyable things to read or do, places to see or go.

Forged in Fire: Bringer of Chaos #SciFi #SpaceOpera

In my books, the immortal king is Pietas. He’s in nearly everything I’ve written. With good reason — as king of the immortals peopling my stories, he’s a major character even when he’s not present. His influence in my story world is galaxy wide.

I began writing the Bringer of Chaos series to understand him better. As I’ve written and explored his psyche, I’ve learned far more than I anticipated.

My upcoming novel about him (Bringer of Chaos: Forged in Fire) is science fiction with romantic elements. It has no profanity or explicit content, but it does have violence.

The book also has a ginormous “kitty” who adores Pietas and follows him everywhere. Tiklaus, the sentient panther who adopts him, protects Pietas without reservation. Although Tiklaus does not speak, they are able to communicate on a telepathic level, using limited, rudimentary language. For example, Tiklaus sends the word “do” to show a command is heard and understood. “Do” also implies “please” or “thank you” depending on the situation. Wait till you find out what Tiklaus names Pietas! The panther’s name means “loyal warrior.” The animal was great fun to write.

What is the immortal king doing?

This Friday, Nov 10, I start a 20 day tour with Crystal Reviews to show off the cover for this new book. Although the book isn’t releasing until Dec 29th, it will be available on preorder.

One of the giveaways during this tour will be an exclusive download of Endure, a 39 page full color illustrated book of quotes by Pietas. The cover is above. You don’t have to do anything or sign up for anything to get this book. Just visit during the tour.

Here are a few sample quotes from the book:
* Would you conquer? Then learn to endure.
* To forgive means to endure betrayal.
* Friends come and go. Enemies endure to the end.
* I might not prevail over adversity, but I will endure. Adversity will never prevail over me.

Track the immortal king

You’ll be able to find Pietas every day by going to the tour home page or by coming here. If you’d like to host the immortal king, you can sign up for that here. The tour host who gets the most comments during the tour will win a $25 Gift certificate (winner’s choice: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or Starbucks).

Preorder the immortal king

You can preorder between Nov 11th and Dec 28th. http://amzn.to/2ABIcCI

Tweet the immortal king

Click the box below to share a tweet about the king.

Where is the immortal king today? #Pietas #SciFi Click To Tweet

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Antonello Brothers: Immortal #MMRomance #SciFi

Antonello Brothers: Immortal #MMRomance #SciFi
For ultimate savings, purchase the set listed at the end of this page, which contains a bonus novella not for sale elsewhere.

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You'll find these characters mentioned in multiple books in my story universe. Download a printable book list and check them off as you read.

Characters mentioned on this page might be found in multiple books in my story universe. Download a printable book list and check them off as you read.


~ Copyright ©2024 Kayelle Allen. All rights reserved ~ Kayelle Allen participates in the Amazon Services LLC Associates program, an affiliate advertising program which provides the means for sites to earn fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com. If you purchase an item listed on the site from Amazon.com, Kayelle will earn a small commission. Other sites might be affiliate links as well. These will not result in higher prices for you. Thank you for your support!


To experience art, sci-fi, romance, and space opera with unstoppable, unshakeable, unforgettable characters so real you'll swear you've met them, join me on Ream Stories!

Surrender Love by Kayelle Allen #SciFi #MMRomance

StoryOrigin has a new way for authors to share their work with readers
-- even before it's published.
We get feedback and you get sneak peeks.
It's a win-win.
Come try out Beta Reads with one of these books.

Review Ring of the Dragon by Kayelle Allen #SciFi #Fantasy #MMRomance

What is Beta Reads

The StoryOrigin Beta Reads program is an online application that lets readers give feedback and discuss books with authors. The author posts a chapter. The reader reads it, and answers a question or two. Some authors want general feedback, and others want more detail. Overall, it's a way for readers to get deeper into the book and even ask questions.

What would I get out of it?

If you like the program, you can choose to take part in new "beta readings" of books I'm writing. That means you get to read new books even *while* they are being written. Talk about inside information!

Is it expensive?

The cost is covered by authors. Readers pay zip.

What does it take?

In this case, read a chapter of Surrender Love, and then tell me if the material is engaging, if there were typos, or anything made you go... wait, what?

Currently, there are 3 chapters in the test program. Each one has a short two-question questionnaire. I ask things like "what emotion did you feel the character was showing here" or "which character seemed more alien?"

There are no wrong answers. I'm asking for opinions.

Authors rarely get the chance to have such honest input directly from readers. I'm asking questions because I want to improve, so please tell me what you really think, including if you loved or didn't care for a specific part of a chapter.

I'm afraid of offending you.

Trust me. I've learned to deal with negative reviews (because not everyone loves everything I write), and I can take honest feedback. You won't tick me off by being true to yourself.

How long does it take?

That depends. How fast do you read? You can do one chapter, or binge on more. No more than two questions in between.

Can I download it and read it later?

One of the security features is that it can only be read on StoryOrigin. This protects unpublished work. No one may download. However it's only one chapter at a time, so it shouldn't take long. There's no rush. Look at it this way. It's a source of free books that won't clutter up your ereader, computer, or phone.

Who will see what I say?

Only me. Readers cannot see what others thought, which means it's truly a unique viewpoint. I'm the only one who has access to your answers.

Will my feedback make you change anything?

Obviously, if you find a typo, I'm going to fix it. And if more than one person has questions about a detail, I'm going to be taking a good look at it.

Anything else I have to do?

Nope. Just read and say what you think. It helps me (and any author who uses it), and gives you a chance to share your opinion.

If this works as well as I hope it does, I'll share books *as I'm writing them* and give you a chance to help shape the story.

What do you say? If you're ready to give it a try, here's where to sign up.

To read Surrender Love, click this image

He's been alone for centuries. This time, when he falls in love, will it be forever? #WriteLGBTQ #SciFi #MMRomance Read Surrender Love

He's been alone for centuries. This time, when he falls in love, will it be forever?

To read Ring of the Dragon, click this image

Antonello Brothers: Immortal - Because Romance Lives Forever #SciFi #LGBTQ #Romance

For millennia, they fight side by side. Now one king faces a lonely quest.

 


Join the Review Team

Join the Review Team

Get every book before it's published, and read older books as well.

No obligation other than to read and provide feedback on the site of your choosing.

Review SF titles only

How the Review Team works

Review Sci-Fi & Sci-Fi Romance

The Ugly Christmas Sweater, T-shirt version

 

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire...

Scott's parents adore one another, and he loves watching them banter. But this year, it's not just the chestnuts getting roasted.

Excerpt

In his old room, Scott stripped out of his police uniform and put on sweatpants and slippers. On his bed was the loose T-shirt with a blond-haired elf on the front that his mother had given him the year before. The elf was shirtless, wearing red boxer shorts with holly on them, and he was licking a candy cane while dangling a round ornament on one finger of his other hand.

Upon seeing the shirt when Scott unwrapped it, a cousin had started singing, "Don we now our gay apparel..." and had broken into riotous laughter. That didn't stop the family from insisting he wear it. He was sure he'd asked Mary to give it to Goodwill, so how it had shown up again this year he couldn't explain. Yet, there it was. It could only have come from one person.

"The things we do for our mothers." Scott slipped it on over his head and headed for the kitchen.

He leaned against the door jamb, enjoying the sight. His mother was chopping things for the stuffing and adding them to her biggest bowl. His dad sat at the end of the counter, reading a Popular Science magazine. Neither seemed to pay attention to the other, but while his mother was cooking, Dad always kept her company. She'd crochet in a wooden rocker in the garage while he worked on the boat he was building. As if they couldn't bear to be parted from one another, even though they didn't talk much. Maybe they didn't need words.

Scott had thought he and his wife would be the same, but he and Mary had shared a different lifestyle. Both were often busy, and sometimes saw each other only in passing. He'd worked nights, and she'd worked days. She'd had a downtown office, working as an architect for government housing. Time spent outdoors had given her a great tan, but exposed her to hazardous toxins no one had known were in the old buildings being demolished. When she fainted at work, the company sent her in for a check up. After the diagnosis, the project had been shut down immediately, but cancer took a quick toll. Mary was gone in six months. A government investigation into the cause was still ongoing.

Scott now had sole custody of a four-year old daughter and a job that took him into danger every day. He'd shifted to the downtown beat and day shift because it seemed safer, and he could still do what he loved doing: Helping people.

"Well," his dad said, not looking up from his magazine, "Are you going to help your mother or stand there in that dumb elf shirt?"

His mother braced both hands on the counter. "That shirt cost more money than any three pairs of your pants."

"Did not. I paid a pretty penny for these pants."

"Pants were cheaper back in 1982."

His dad snorted, and went back to his reading.

A Romance for Christmas

On Amazon, when you purchase the paperback for a friend, you can get a Kindle version for yourself at no cost. Once you buy the paperback, go to the Kindle version of the book and refresh the page. It will tell you the book is available at no cost. Merry Christmas!

Paperback: http://amzn.to/2nBb37J

 

Image credits: In my honest opinion, this elf is the cutest thing ever!
Created by author/artist Janet E Jones
 

GIVEAWAYS

Thank you for popping in today. Here's the link to the free Christmas cookbook and the free peek inside the book. Both are in Adobe Reader (PDF).

This is not a contest -- everyone who wants one may download it. No sign ups required.
Download a free Christmas Cookbook: https://kayelleallen.com/media/christmas-cookbook-from-kayelle-allen-by-rachel-paxton.pdf
Download Peek Inside A Romance for Christmas: http://bit.ly/rom4cmaspeek
Sign up for my newsletter. You can unsubscribe at any time.


JOIN US FOR BOOKHOOKS
Book Hooks is a weekly meme hosted by Marketing for Romance Writers as part of the MFRW Authors Blog.
It's a chance each week for you the reader to discover current works in progress or previously published books by possibly new-to-you authors.
Thank you for stopping by. Please say hello or leave a note in the comments.

What's a Story Molecule? Trailing Kaiwulf by Kayelle Allen #MFRWauthor #Scifi @MelissaSnarkLike me, my friend Melissa Snark likes the TV Tropes website. What are tropes? They’re devices and conventions that a writer can reasonably rely on as being present in the audience members’ minds and expectations. On the whole, tropes are not cliches. The word cliched means “stereotyped and trite.” In other words, dull and uninteresting. The TV Tropes site isn’t about that. It’s about the creative use of these mega-themes.

The Periodic Table of Storytelling is a site that makes good use of these themes. By putting together all the basic tropes and assigning them a range of colors and letters, it’s possible to create a “story molecule” using the themes of the story.

What's a Story Molecule? Trailing Kaiwulf by Kayelle Allen #MFRWauthor #ScifiMelissa had an idea. Why not take the TV Tropes website and figure out how to apply its amazing concepts to her own story? She hit upon an even better idea. Why not invite other authors to do the same thing? Adding icing to the cake, she contacted the TV Tropes site and asked if they’d like to take a look. They did, she did, and a group of us got together to share the idea of creating a story molecule.

Mine is the last one in the series, so I’m doing my best to make it awesome. I hope you’ll check it out. The book I’m featuring is Trailing Kaiwulf. Why not head over there and take a look? It’s amazing what she put together. Click here: http://is.gd/kaiwulf_molecule

Find an invisible man in another dimension? All in a day’s work at TRAIL.

Travel to a godforsaken planet on the outskirts of space. Check. Hold intrusive military types at bay. Check. Find an invisible man in a different dimension. Check. Finish out the vacation TRAIL yanked you back from to do it? Easier said than done.

Trailing Kaiwulf

Trailing Kaiwulf

Yanked back from their first vacation in ages, Jee and Dane get handed a top priority mission. The pay is better than any they’ve earned before as agents for the Trace, Rescue, and Identification League. With this much money, they might not need jobs. They’re the best there is, and the item, person, or secret hasn’t been invented that these two can’t recover. Until now.

Locating this quarry might be a bit past even their considerable skills. After all, how do you find an invisible man in another dimension? And who, exactly, is footing a bill this steep? Certainly not the archaeologist in charge. The military wants to get involved, but they have no monetary stake either. So who — or what — is behind the request to trail Kaiwulf?

Excerpt https://books2read.com/com-trailing-kaiwulfAmazon https://books2read.com/com-trailing-kaiwulfThis is a Trace, Rescue, and Identification League story.
Download the official TRAIL Facebook cover and other goodies: https://books2read.com/com-trailing-kaiwulf
Learn more about the Periodic Table of Storytelling
http://designthroughstorytelling.net/periodic/

 

 

A World-Building Bible and Guide to Writing a Science Fiction Series, Illustrated by Jamin Allen and Kayelle Allen #SciFi #SpaceOperaWhen I started writing Science Fiction Romance, I needed planets for my characters. Where were they born? What was it like there? This was my strong suit. After all, I’d been thinking about it all my life! I decided to create a “tour” of the Tarthian Empire on my website, and have art and information about each of the planets. This month, Coffee Time Romance designated the tour on my site as one of its elite spots — one of the top twelve for the year. So, when the Just Romance Me blog tour came along, I figured the spookiest planet on Tarthian Tour Company’s site would be perfect.

A little about the Tarthian Tour Company — their slogan is “Where do you want to wake up tomorrow?” They can take you to any of over twenty planets or drop you off on side trips to visit the Conqueror’s palace or see the Droid Discovery Force in action. There’s an interactive star map where you can click the name of a world to visit its page. From each world’s page, you can click the tour logo to return the company’s home page or click the list on each page to visit any other planet in the empire.

Clicking the pictures on the tour itself will open them full-sized, and some are amazing to see. When my son was in art college, I forced him coerced him begged him he volunteered to help me create them. ^_^

The Ministry of Emigration’s official statement reads: “While terraforming is complete, the life-cycle of the planet Drated is not yet within parameters for habitation. Initial investigations revealed a lack of certain necessary nutrients in the soil which will be provided at the proper time. All inquiries should be directed to the Terraformer’s Circle of Fellowship.”

The TCF refuses to comment. Sources inside the corporation say that wild energy fields are not to blame as were previously reported. Speculation abounds.

Gates of Life

Archaeological digs on several barren worlds in the Tarthian Empire and all the non-human ones (Tyris, Felidae, and Ezraki) uncovered the ruins of towering arches. (See picture below) Natives called them the Gates of Life. For an idea of their true size, note the bottom left corner of the drawing.

It is speculated that they originated as monitoring devices for tracking the progress of genetic mutations, but no true use is known. Rituals of “passing through the Gates” after birth are common to Tyrans, Chiasmii, and Kin alike. All three worlds have legends that link the Gates to a god who descends from the sky in a burning chariot. The Tyrans called him Sandargen, the Chiasmii Arjensa, and the Kin Adel Jansaara. When translated to Etymis, the tradestandard language of the empire, all these names mean Saint of Silver.

A detailed description of this saint’s arrival suggests a spacecraft. According to the legends, he was the size of a god, and had white hair. He always wore silver, and demanded a sacrifice of two virgins, male and female, which he took back to the sky with him. Those who did not please him, or had failed in worshiping at the Gates were punished severely, and some were killed. When thousands of years passed without the Saint of Silver’s return, the inhabitants destroyed the Gates. Gates were also found on the planets Ohy and Sanity IV but there is no evidence that intelligent life ever existed on any of these worlds. What happened to the inhabitants is a mystery that is likely never to be solved.

Sanity IV – Gone Forever

Sanity IV is nearing completion of mining. The myth that Sanity I, II, III and IV destroyed themselves in a civil war is false. They were surface-stripped and mined for raw materials, and exist now as asteroids in the Sanity system. The name origin is lost, but legend says Sanity IV began as a slang term in a song often sung by miners. The gravity well in the Sanity system makes it an ideal jump point. Occasionally, an errant asteroid interferes with navigation. It is a myth that jumping into Sanity IV’s space can trigger space time disruptions. If that were true, events would repeat at random intervals. This has never been observed. If that were true, events would repeat at random intervals. The name origin is lost, but legend says Sanity IV began as a slang term in a song often sung by miners. Sanity IV is nearing completion of mining.

Begin your own tour

Click here to see all 22 planets and side trips: https://kayelleallen.com/ttc

Caution: While you’re hanging out on the tour, or perusing the excerpt pages, be on the lookout for little icons that seem out of place. Clicking them might transport you to a hidden rebel base, or land you in the custody of the Praetorian. Whatever you decide, I hope you’ll enjoy the visit to the Tarthian Empire, where Romance Lives Forever.

UPDATE
The winner of the blog contest was Jennifer M. JustRomance.me picked her name from the list as my winner. Jennifer received a puzzle book and the first edition of the Tartian Empire Companion book, a nonfiction look at the tour on my website.
Congratulations, and thank you to everyone who took part.