Michael G. Munz

The official website of Seattle sci-fi/fantasy author and geek Michael G. Munz

Archives for August 2015

Writing Update: A Dragon at the Gate & Zeus Is Dead 2

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Writing a story never quite goes the way you think it will.

Something always changes along the way, even if you plan ahead of time. Things occur to you while writing, characters take control in your head, and sometimes just the act of getting an idea on paper brings out its negative points that didn’t seem nearly so problematic beforehand. And that’s not a bad thing; often this leads to something better in the end.

A Dragon at the Gate

Coming in 2015?

Yet that voyage of discovery takes time, especially when you–and here when I say “you” I mean “me”–are not the fastest writer in the world. How I long for the prolific rate of Stephen King, but that’s just not how my mind works. (Also, Stephen King doesn’t have a non-writing day job taking up his time.) And all that is my lead-in to saying that A Dragon at the Gate is not progressing as quickly as I’d like. [Read more…]

Guest Geeks: Brittni Williams & the Top 5 Video Game Movies

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Guest GeeksGuess what time it is! Then again, who cares what time it is, because here’s another Guest Geek post! (People are way too obsessed with this whole space-time continuum thingy we live in anyway.) Today actually combines two features here on Geek Notes: The Guest Geek post—but we already covered that—and the less-frequent geek-related Top 5 List. Today’s guest is Brittni Williams, who’s selected what I think is a rather difficult topic: the Top 5 Best Video Game Movies. That’s a heck of a minefield right there, and let’s be honest, the pickings are pretty slim. Turning video games into movies (and, frankly, vice-versa) has rarely turned out well, and a list like this is sort of like listing the top 5 healthiest foods at McDonald’s. Still, I think Brittni manages to make some good picks out of what’s available, though I differ a little on the details. Yet enough of my blatherskite! Here’s Brittni…

[Read more…]

XCOM2: A Look at the Strategic Layer

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So the folks over at XCOM.com just tossed up a new video with a look at the strategic side of the upcoming XCOM sequel. Obviously I’m looking forward to this one, or I wouldn’t be talking about it here. I’m a tad bit biased. I’ve played countless hours of XCOM with the Enemy Within expansion–well, technically Steam has counted exactly how many hours, but I’m keeping that triple-digit number a secret–and as far as I’m concerned, November can’t come soon enough.

Here’s the video, for starters… [Read more…]

Michael Reads Percy Jackson: The Titan’s Curse – Ch 18

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Michael Reads The Titan's Curse - Ch 18

For the record, I still think Biaca’s alive somewhere…

And now we get a bit of a bittersweet breather in the 18th chapter for Michael Reads Percy Jackson: The Titan’s Curse, known to us mortals as…

A Friend Says Good-bye

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Zeus Is Dead is a 2015 IAN Book of the Year Award Finalist!

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Zeus Is Dead: A Monstrously Inconvenient Adventure just got its first big honor: a FINALIST in the 2015 Independent Author Network Book of the Year Awards! And there’s even a snazzy looking seal to prove it…

Zeus Is Dead: 2015 Independent Author Network Book of the Year Finalist

See what all the fuss is about: Click the image to grab your copy!

So of course I’m taking the opportunity here to re-plug the book, which fantasy author Jody Lyn Nye called “full of laugh-out-loud moments, lashings of sly wit, moan-worthy puns, and a complex, fast-paced storyline.”

“I have not enjoyed a tongue-in-cheek comedy book this much in a long, long time.”
–Abyss & Apex Magazine

THE GODS ARE BACK.
DID YOU MYTH THEM?

Book Review: Crooked by Austin Grossman

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Crooked, by Austin Grossman

My rating: ★★★☆☆ (3 out of 5)

“What if our nation’s worst president was actually a pivotal figure caught in a desperate struggle between ordinary life and horrors from another reality? What if the man we call our worst president was, in truth, our greatest?”

These are the questions posed by the new novel Crooked by Austin Grossman—indeed, the quoted text is from the official book description—into which I recently immersed myself.

The moment I heard Crooked’s premise, it grabbed my interest: a supernatural, Lovecraftian layer to not just the Watergate scandal but to Nixon’s full political career, the entire Cold War, and the institution of the U.S. Presidency itself. (Note: The novel is alternative history, and not meant as some sort of non-fiction conspiracy exposé.) I knew I was going to read it. What I got was a book with a fantastic first half that stumbles toward the end and ultimately leaves me disappointed. [Read more…]

Guest Geeks: How Geekery Saved K. Williams

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Guest GeeksToday I return to the Land of the Guest Geeks, this time with fellow geek, author, and collector K. Williams. (Seriously, look at all those geek collectables! The best I can do is a tribble, a LEGO X-Wing and a Dalek Christmas tree ornament. …Well, and some few other things.) We all gravitate to our own particular flavors of geekdom, each of us drawing particular rewards, enjoyment, and encouragement. Today, she shares some of her own journey. Her story especially resonates with me as a writer—I can relate far too much to the gauntlet-O-rejection that is the publishing world. But even if you’re not a writer, I think you’ll love this one… [Read more…]