A little snippet / mostly done / I’m fine.

In reverse order: Some folks got worried since I don’t communicate frequently. I understand. I’m 74 and the COVID virus is particularly hard on old people. I’m also fat but I have none of the co-morbidities associated with that. My blood sugar is normal and blood pressure under good control. Our county was hard hit as all of them were neighboring Detroit. Now however while the chart for Oakland county shows a Delta surge the graph of deaths is flat and declining. Being an antisocial curmudgeon is beneficial for exposure. So many are upset they can’t jam in sporting events or airliners – while they’d have to pay me to do so.

The invasion book is at 200k words + and mostly done. It’s been fun and I’ll go back and finish the next April book next. It may be the last or next to last bridging to the Family Law books. I’ll probably take some time to create more paper editions after that. I can do it now but it was a huge deal to learn how to satisfy Amazon’s demands – especially on covers.

Here’s a little snippet.

“What is it? I’m in conference with the scholar,” Three Fingers said irritated.

“Your pardon, sir. This is the scholar’s assistant. We are still on limited emissions and he neglected to plug in his communicator. We have news we thought he should have that he’d want to tell you.”

“Well, out with it then man,” Three Fingers encouraged.

“The sensor module you had parked on the backside of the big moon has detected emissions. It isn’t anything from out-system. The natives have several devices returning video and data from the next planet in the system.”

“Next in or out?” Three Fingers demanded. “I thought there was no other radio noise?”

“Out. It is smaller, red in appearance, has very little atmosphere, and with no active magnetic field. A very inhospitable chill desert planet. The video it shows is being sent from vehicles but there is no speech being transmitted or any indication it is manned. In each case, it seems to be showing the area around a wheeled vehicle, and the tracks it made to get there are sometimes visible. They seem to be robotic devices,” the underling speculated. “We missed them at first because the power level being used is very low for planetary distances. What the interest could be in such a desolate rock is beyond me.”

“Thank you, Beelus. We’ll tap the feed if we want to see more,” the scholar said, dismissing him.

The man didn’t immediately leave.

“There is news about the other devices recovered if you want to hear it.”

“Certainly, go ahead,” Three Fingers invited.

“The large flat device that was attached to the computer turns out to be a very specialized antenna. We know how to make them but they are only used for long range radar installations at a fixed ground site. Those are purpose-built, but the technicians insist this has all the hallmarks of a mass-produced consumer product like a music player. It has several very high-density semiconductor devices we don’t understand, and contains tiny servo motors to aim it.”

“To aim it at what?” Three Fingers asked pointedly.

“It was in an open area pointed at the sky. There is very little air traffic in that remote area of their planet for it to connect to aircraft. The only theory advanced by one person was that it tracks and communicates with satellites, but nobody else agrees. They are all holding out for an alternative explanation. Oh, and the skinny pliers? They were shown to the head of maintenance without telling him their source. He tried them out bending some wire and removing some lock clips and declared them of very good quality. So good we had a hard time getting him to release them back to us.”

“Very close to our level of technology,” Three Fingers told his scholar.

“Yes, that is becoming disturbingly evident. I’ll have more to report soon, I’m sure.”

24 Responses to A little snippet / mostly done / I’m fine.

  1. Samuel August 28, 2021 at 8:59 am #

    Nice to hear you are well!

    The snippet makes me want to read more of it…

  2. Jennifer August 28, 2021 at 2:02 pm #

    Glad you’re doing well. Looking forward to buying the latest release. I love how long your books are!

  3. Dorcas Gray August 29, 2021 at 8:52 am #

    Love these snippets. Glad you are fine.

  4. Michele Starr August 29, 2021 at 1:24 pm #

    Thanks for the update. Keep safe, write on!

  5. Jim August 29, 2021 at 9:33 pm #

    Thanks for the update, crazy world out there, am with you, dont get out much even before the insanity. Looking forward to all your books!

  6. Cheryl August 29, 2021 at 9:41 pm #

    Thanks for the snippet, looking forward to the book. I’m with you being careful. Got polio and smallpox vaccines in the 50’s and have a hard time understanding the hesitancy now but just were my mask and don’t go about much

    • Mac August 31, 2021 at 9:08 am #

      I’m old enough I had the smallpox too but it’s really hard to find the scar now.

  7. Cheryl August 29, 2021 at 9:42 pm #

    Oops WEAR I won spelling bees shame on me

  8. Mac August 30, 2021 at 5:53 pm #

    I removed a comment and didn’t allow a counter comment because it was about the vaccines. I haven’t shared my own thoughts or status here because that’s not the purpose of this site. There are lots and lots of places to get into back and forth on vaccines – politics – religion and other contentious issues. Not here. I also have to remove quite a bit of spam you folks never see. Just letting you know – It’s a shame to write out a big old heartfelt rant and the effort is all wasted. – Mac’

  9. Anonymous August 30, 2021 at 6:40 pm #

    oh thank god!

  10. audeo August 31, 2021 at 6:19 am #

    Fair enough 🙂

  11. Big Ben August 31, 2021 at 9:13 am #

    Now there’s a vaccine we could ALL get behind … a spam vaccine! And junk mail. And robo-marketing phone calls that spoof the system to make it seem like they originate in your area code, which makes you wonder if it’s someone you know so you pick up the phone …
    (sigh …) Imagine an advanced society without all that annoying nonsense. Now that’s really science fiction!

    Thanks for the snippet, Mac. Looking forward to clicking “buy now” on the finished product.

  12. Down-under Dave September 3, 2021 at 10:56 am #

    Hi from tropical down-under! Thanks for the update and snippet. You have a couple of decades on me, however I reckon I have a fair amount of lard on you and I do have Type 2 diabetes (under control) and my son has a degenerative condition which makes us nervous, although we have had both our AZ Vaccine shots. My disabled son and I haven’t left our little flat except for medical appointments since this shit-show started. We also barely noticed the isolation. Too many books for me to read and reread, a new veg garden and endless YouTube channel, PlayStation games and Comic Book Movies for the gen Y son. Here’s hoping you stay hale and hearty and interested in writing. Your books have been a pleasant diversion and I truly appreciate. I am forever thankful for the day my mother introduced a bored 15-year-old to Louis L’Amour and Georgette Heyer giving me the joy of reading.

    • Mac September 3, 2021 at 11:37 am #

      Indeed what damages one business boosts another. Sales of amusements has been good with people at home and not socializing. My wife worked from home for several months. I understand during the Great Depression movies were doing very well. Hope you stay all stay well and well entertained.

  13. Brad September 3, 2021 at 8:21 pm #

    Just a quick note to say it doesn’t matter how often you communicate; your writing is very much appreciated.

    Looking forward to being able to collect the full set of hardbacks across the April and Family Law saga

  14. Ron Wright September 12, 2021 at 3:30 pm #

    I just read Family Law and you are now one of my favorite authors. Unfortunately I am also old and don’t do ebooks, only paper. Are the rest of the Family Law books ever coming out as paperbacks? You are giving Robert Heinlein a run for his money.

    • Mac September 12, 2021 at 10:07 pm #

      As I am able. it’s difficult and time consuming. I tried hiring it out and that bombed several times. If I take time to format it takes time away from writing. Also it pays almost nothing. Sorry to tell you that. April and Down to Earth are also in print though. I’m going to do some corrections on the Down to Earth paperback when I send the current book to beta readers. I’ve been reading it in the park and found some errors.

      • Ron Wright September 23, 2021 at 8:44 pm #

        I am reading April right now. This is Robert Heinlein meets Tom Swift (I think you are old enough to now who that is). Terrific. I think you are now my favorite author after David Weber. Just ordered the second book. Thank you for writing these adventures.

    • John Leggett September 14, 2021 at 11:26 am #

      Ron, I am also old 79 I switched to a Kindle several years ago. The things I like best about e-books are: You never run out of something to read at a doctors office. e-books are cheaper and quickly pay for the cost of the reader. you can adjust the print size to your eyes. It has gotten hard for me to read paper backs. Something like a Kindle is much lighter that a hard back. e-books take up much less room the either paper backs or hard covers.

  15. bill fain January 23, 2022 at 2:20 pm #

    Is there more April in out future?

    • Mac January 24, 2022 at 1:28 pm #

      April number 13 is at about 44k words. I don’t think I can close the gap to the Family Law series with just one book. I anticipate #14 then maybe another Family Law book or two. I’ve already started sequel to ‘Fair Trade’. That’s planning a lot right there at 74 years old. My wife and I do have enough health issues we are doing the which doctor do we see this week thing…

  16. BRUCE HARRINGTON January 28, 2022 at 6:45 pm #

    I’ve read most of your books. I just turned 85, have a 10″ Kindle, and hope to read some more April and Family Law. Having learned how to live with Alzheimer’s for about 8 years, I don’t get out much. But it’s a lot of fun to reread books year after year and still be surprised! I also like David Weber’s Honorverse, and all the original Jack Reacher novels by Lee Child. Carry on……

  17. Shelley Holroyd March 24, 2022 at 12:11 pm #

    I discovered your writing last January on Kindle Unlimited, thank you for the hours of enjoyment. The Wizards Butler was my first read; are you considering sequel?
    I hope you and your family stay healthy.

    • Mac March 24, 2022 at 4:46 pm #

      Shelley I thank you for the kind words but “The Wizard’s Butler” was written by Lowell. Having looked at the preview I bought it so thank you for that. – Mac’

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