Enough is enough

I am so tired of everything that happens in the world being politicized. Yes, politics plays a big part in the world, but every time something happens, we don't have to blame "the other side."  Why does there have to be "the other side?"  Seriously, how many republican voters actually agree with everything their party does? Or how many democratic voters actually agree with everything their party does?  The majority of us lie somewhere between these extremes.  Although I am quite liberal on a lot of things, there are other things that I am more conservative about.  I don't actually consider myself to be a liberal, and we need to stop trying to label ourselves and everything around us.
The truth is, the two political parties and the media have spent decades poisoning our minds, trying to send us back to the tribal days when we had to fear "the other."  The truth is before we're liberals or conservatives, Christians, Muslims, Atheists, or whatever other description you want to label us with, we're human beings.  We have more in common with "the other" than we think.  It doesn't matter what we believe or who we voted for, we should all be striving to make the HUMAN RACE better.  If we're not willing to do that...then what the hell is the point of all the senseless finger pointing and bickering?
THERE IS NO POINT
 

Free audio book

Would you like a free copy of the audio book version of my short story "It's In the Water?"
I'm looking for people that would be interested in reviewing the audio book version of my short story "It's In the Water." If you have 40 minutes of spare time, reply here and I'll DM or e-mail you instructions on what you need to do. But please do hurry, as I only have a few codes for free downloads!
https://www.audible.com/pd/Sci-Fi-Fantasy/Its-in-the-Water-Audiobook/B0714L2326

3 of a Perfekt Pear

From the Nomadic Delirium Press blog:
3 of a Perfekt Pear by Daniel C. Smith
3 of a Perfekt Pear brings you three stories from the mind of Daniel Smith. Take two trips into space and a trip into the mind. These stories will have you questioning what reality is, and also what our future holds for us. In the end, you’ll be asking yourself, should we embrace the future, or run from it. No matter what, you’ll know that the future will be 3 of a Perfekt Pear…
http://nomadicdeliriumpress.com/blog/product/3-of-a-perfekt-pear/

Can't Go Home Again

From the Nomadic Delirium Press blog:
Debra Mucklow returns to The Wastelands to face her past and her father, but she finds things have changed a great deal in twelve years, and now she has to determine if there is an immediate threat to her team and to the Rocky Mountain States of America, while fighting the demons of her past.
http://nomadicdeliriumpress.com/blog/product/cant-go-home-again/

May recap

Divided States of America sale
The Ephemeris Encyclopedia Galactica: Sector 45 (Alexan Space)
Ecotastrophe II is still looking for submissions
The Divided States of America is still seeking submissions
Order the June issue of The Fifth Di... early
It's In the Water news
The Divided States of America is not liberal propaganda
Order the print edition of The Fifth Di... early
The June issue of The Fifth Di... is here!

The June issue of The Fifth Di... is here!

From the Nomadic Delirium Press blog:
A soul collector is murdered and taken into the “city” his father designed for the dead, now he must plot to escape and get revenge on his murderer in Dale Carother’s “Haunting the Painted City.” A magical mirror allows an unexpected glimpse into the past in Matthew Spence’s “The Mirror.” In the future, corporations still control elections, but what about when politicians decide to fight back is what awaits you in Eamonn Murphy’s “Campaign Trail.” Finally, one man is sent to the great void between galaxies and forced to face his own loneliness in Robert N. Stephenson’s “The Black Canvas.”
http://www.nomadicdeliriumpress.com/fifth.htm

Order the print edition of The Fifth Di... early

From the Nomadic Delirium Press blog:
The new issue of The Fifth Di... won't be released for a few more days, but the print issue is now available for order at https://www.createspace.com/7202635, so go ahead and pick up your copy.
A soul collector is murdered and taken into the "city" his father designed for the dead, now he must plot to escape and get revenge on his murderer in Dale Carother's "Haunting the Painted City." A magical mirror allows an unexpected glimpse into the past in Matthew Spence's "The Mirror." In the future, corporations still control elections, but what about when politicians decide to fight back is what awaits you in Eamonn Murphy's "Campaign Trail." Finally, one man is sent to the great void between galaxies and forced to face his own loneliness in Robert N. Stephenson's "The Black Canvas."

The Divided States of America is not liberal propaganda

A couple of weeks ago, I received an e-mail accusing me of publishing liberal propaganda with the project I'm editing...The Divided States of America.
First of all, if I want to publish liberal propaganda, that's my right as a citizen of the United States. You know, we have these things called freedom, and one of those freedoms allows me to write or publish whatever I want to.
Second of all, The Divided States of America is not liberal propaganda. It was pretty obvious to me that this guy had not actually read the guidelines or read about the nation-states I created for this project. The guidelines clearly state that I'm not looking for a specific political viewpoint, but rather looking for a good story. The nation-states are not all liberal, there are plenty of conservative nation-states. The guy also accused me of being a Trump-hater who created this project because I was unhappy with Trump winning the election. Now, while I may consider Trump the worst thing that has ever happened to this country, this project was actually created before the election, because I thought we were screwed no matter who won...and furthermore, the background for the DSA states that the problems might have started before the 2016 elections, which is how I really feel. Anyone that reads this blog on a regular basis knows that I think the two-party system is the worst thing happening in America and I have been arguing this point for a couple of decades now.
So, this guy is entitled to his opinion, even if it's wrong, but before you accuse me of something...perhaps you should get the facts before you do...but unfortunately that no longer seems to be the way for most conservatives...or even most liberals anymore. What a sad state we live in...might even say what a sad divided state we live in...

It's In the Water news

So, you don't have time to read my new story, "It's In the Water?" Why not listen to it? The story is now available as an audio book through Audible...
https://www.audible.com/pd/Sci-Fi-Fantasy/Its-in-the-Water-Audiobook/B0714L2326?qid=1495907183&sr=1-1

Order the June issue of The Fifth Di... early

It's still a little over a week until the "official" release of the June issue of The Fifth Di..., but you can order and start reading the e-book version right now...and it's only $1.49 if you order before June 1st at http://nomadicdeliriumpress.com/blog/product/the-fifth-di-june-2017/

A soul collector is murdered and taken into the “city” his father designed for the dead, now he must plot to escape and get revenge on his murderer in Dale Carother’s “Haunting the Painted City.” A magical mirror allows an unexpected glimpse into the past in Matthew Spence’s “The Mirror.” In the future, corporations still control elections, but what about when politicians decide to fight back is what awaits you in Eamonn Murphy’s “Campaign Trail.” Finally, one man is sent to the great void between galaxies and forced to face his own loneliness in Robert N. Stephenson’s “The Black Canvas.”

The Divided States of America is still seeking submissions

No one can say with any reasonable certainty when the United States of America began to fall apart.  Many point to the presidential election of 2016, but most believe the breakup started long before this.  Now, in the year 2110, the former United States is made up of 13 nation-states and The Wastelands.  Some of the nation-states have prospered under self-rule, while others have declined.  Some nation-states are very accepting of outsiders, while others trust no one…sometimes not even their fellow citizens.  There is chaos in some places, and order in others…sometimes too much order.
The first state to break away from the USA was, not unexpectedly, Texas, and from there, things continued to spiral out of control as the national government tried to hold on to control that the state governments wanted back, and eventually, the federal government was no longer able to control the states, and the break-up came about.
Some of the nation-states kept the name “America” in their new names.  Some did this as a tribute to where they had come from, while others did it to remind their citizens of what they were breaking away from.  Others adopted new names, or took on names that were given to them.
Borders in some areas are heavily patrolled, even walled in places, while other borders have no protection at all…mostly it depends on the views of the new government and its citizens, even though sometimes those two groups still don’t agree.  Let’s face it, greed and independence are bred into the human race, and even allying with others that have similar viewpoints does not necessarily mean that they will always get along.
What we’re looking for: Stories must be at least 2,500 words…with no upper limit.  Stories must be science fiction, in the sense that they take place in the future, but depending on the nation-state that you’re writing about, the science may or may not be as important.  Obviously, we’ll be focusing more on “soft” sf, but we certainly have room for “hard” sf.
How we will publish: This will not be an anthology (at first).  We will be publishing each story as an individual e-story, and these stories will be distributed to all of the usual sales markets.
Pay: This will depend entirely on how the story sells.  We will be doing a 50/50 split with each author of the profits from the story, with royalties being paid on our normal quarterly schedule.  If this project takes off, we will be doing a print anthology, or possibly many print anthologies, and then there will be further payment at that point for reprint rights.
Rights: We are looking for first rights on any story.  This probably makes sense, since this is a unique setting, and we doubt that you have stories written about any of these nation-states lying around in your desk.
Price of stories: The pricing of stories will depend on their length. Stories from 2,500 words to 5,000 words will be priced at 99 cents.  Stories that are 5,001 words to 10,000 words will be priced at $1.49, and stories that are over 10,000 words will be priced at $1.99.  Obviously the longer the story, the higher the royalty, but we prefer quality over length.
Overall theme: We are not looking for an overall theme to the stories.  We want quality stories.  If you write a story with a conservative slant, or a story with a liberal slant, we don’t care.  We just want good stories.  Some places are more likely to have liberal stories, while others are more likely to have conservative stories, but that doesn’t mean you have to write that way.  You don’t even have to have a political agenda in your story because we’re more interested in how people are surviving in these new nation states.
Where to send your gems: Once you have your amazing stories written, we ask that you send them to editor (at) nomadicdeliriumpress (dot) com.  Please include “Divided States” in the subject line.
Further questions: If you have any questions please send them to the same address.

Ecotastrophe II is still looking for submissions

There are only a few spots left!
In 2006, Sam’s Dot Publishing released an anthology about the effects of global climate change on humanity called Ecotastrophe.  Now that it’s been more than ten years since the release, and global climate change still seems a possible threat to humanity, Nomadic Delirium Press has decided to release Ecotastrophe II.  Like the original collection, this one will be edited by J Alan Erwine.
What we’re looking for: We want science fiction stories between 3,000 and 10,000 words that look at the effects of global climate change (preferably the extreme effects) on humanity and the other creatures of Earth.  We’re not looking for stories about the change, but rather the effects of the change.  Although we’d love to have a lot of stories that look at the hard science of climate change, we also want stories that look at the soft sciences.  It’s important that the stories focus on the people, rather than the science, but we still want the science to be plausible.
What we’re paying: We will pay $10 for first rights to any story.  We will also pay two contributor copies.  If possible, we will increase this payment…but we can’t guarantee that.
Poetry Submissions: We've decided that we will be accepting four, and only four, poems for this collection. They must meet the same criteria as story submissions, and we will pay $5 per poem for first rights, plus one contributor's copy. Please keep in mind that we will only accept one poem per poet.
Where to send your little gems: All submissions should be sent to editor (at) nomadicdeliriumpress (dot) com.  Your subject should be “Ecotastrophe Submission”.
Response times: We will respond to all submissions within two months.
Other questions: If you have any other questions, please send them to the submission address.

The Ephemeris Encyclopedia Galactica: Sector 45 (Alexan Space)

The exploration of “Deep Space” continues.
Welcome to Sector Forty-Five, the home system of the Alexans. Here you’ll find their homeworld, and many of the worlds they’ve colonized. You’ll also find worlds that have been conquered by the Khruntha, and worlds that even the Alexans and the Khruntha won’t get close to.
The Alexans want to be a peaceful species, but some of these systems show that they are clearly preparing for war.
http://nomadicdeliriumpress.com/blog/product/the-ephemeris-encyclopedia-galactica-sector-45-alexan-space/

Divided States of America sale

From the Nomadic Delirium Press blog:
For the rest of the month, save 25% off of any of our Divided States of America stories. Simply go to http://nomadicdeliriumpress.com/blog/shop, pick out the Divided States stories you want and use the coupon code "dsa" at checkout.
There are six stories so far:
The Dustbin by Tyree Cambpell
The Wall is Beautiful by Mike Morgan
Green in 2110 by Debby Feo
It's in the Water by J Alan Erwine
What Lies in the Wastelands by Ian Brazee-Cannon
Calivada Dreaming by Debby Feo

April recap

What Lies in the Wastelands
Calivada Dreaming
Why you should buy from the publisher
Two week sale
It's In the Water for free
Crazy pharmaceutical companies

Crazy pharmaceutical companies

Earlier this month we went to pick up one of Rebecca's prescriptions. A prescription that for the last six months, we had been paying $10 a month for. To our surprise, the prescription was $80 this time, and that's with our insurance. Apparently, the reason for this is the discount you can get from the pharmaceutical company only drops it to $10 for three months out of the year. The reason we got it for six straight months was because it was October-December of last year and January-March of this year...thus three months out of each year.  There's no way we can afford that.
According to the pharmacy tech, the price for this prescription without insurance is over $1000 a month. Sorry, that's insane. I understand that it takes a great deal of time and money to get a new medication to market, and I have no problem with a company trying to recoup what they invested in time, research, trials, and everything else that goes into creating medications, but I can't seriously believe that they need to charge that much for a medication. They would have easily regained their investment long before a generic can be made of the drug. Given that this medication helps to dramatically reduce the possibility of her disease turning into cancer, the pharmaceutical company basically has her and others like her over a barrel. There are basically only two medications that are available to Rebecca due to the fact that she does not have a mild condition, and the other medication will greatly weaken her immune system, which isn't good considering we have three kids and she works in a hospital. Unfortunately, it looks like there is probably a generic available for this med, so most likely her doctor will have to switch her over to it.
So, now she has to risk getting sick from everything that she's exposed to because we can't afford the one medication. This is one of the many things that are wrong with healthcare in America. The pharmaceutical companies and the insurance companies have way too much influence in everything that goes on with us. It's almost like they have the power of the Gods to decide who lives and who dies, and like so many things in America, it's the poor who suffer the most.
That's just beyond insane!

It's In the Water for free

From the Nomadic Delirium Press blog:
We're offering five free e-copies of J Alan Erwine's "Divided States of America" story, "It's in the Water." The first five people to go to http://nomadicdeliriumpress.com/blog/product/its-in-the-water/ and use coupon code "dsa" at checkout get the e-story for free.
So, what are you waiting for...they'll go quick!
Richard hated being a corporate drone, but what else was there to be in Corprotopia? After losing his girlfriend to the government, Richard struggled with just surviving, but when he learns a deep secret, a secret of resistance, he suddenly finds a reason for his life…or does he?

Two week sale

For the next two weeks, you can pick up e-titles from my store and save 50% off of your entire order. Simply go to http://www.jalanerwine.com/blog/shop and start ordering titles. When you're done, use the code "sale" at checkout to get your savings.
This includes stories, magazines, novels, anthologies, collections, and more. Basically, it includes almost everything that I've written or edited over the many years of my career.
So, order today, and be sure to tell all of your friends...

Why you should buy from the publisher

I'm not sure how it works with the large publishers, but with the small press, it's always best to buy your print and e-books directly from the publisher, as opposed to buying from an online retailer like that "A" store. The simple reason for this is money. Most small press publishers are doing it out of love...the majority of them don't make enough money to keep them from needing a day job, and the retailers, especially the "A" store take a big percentage from each sale.
As an example, at Nomadic Delirium Press we're now doing a line of stories around an idea I came up with called "The Divided States of America." Most of these shorter stories are selling for 99 cents, not an amount that's going to allow us or the authors to retire, but still, we're all in this to at least make a little pocket change.  With the DSA stories, we have an agreement that we divide the profits in half. Nomadic Delirium takes half, and the author gets half. Now, if one of these stories sells through the NDP bookstore, the profit from that is usually around 66 cents. However, if one of these stories sells through a retailer, the profit is usually around 35 cents. Looking at one story, it's not a huge difference, but if 100 of these stories sell it starts to become significant, and if it's 1000 stories sold, then we're definitely talking about a big difference.
Now, if you take this up to an anthology that sells for $14.95 or a similar amount, you should suddenly be able to see the difference. Even if you just multiply 66 or 35 by 15, you can see that the publisher, and thus the author are making a lot more money when the sale goes through the publisher's store.
So, if you're thinking about buying from the small press, please think about buying directly from them...as opposed to going to one of THOSE sites...

Calivada Dreaming

From the Nomadic Delirium Press blog:
Our latest "Divided States of America" story is now available..."Calivada Dreaming" by Debby Feo.
Fred Selkerson has left the Green States of America to start his exploration of what had once been the United States. Along with his android assistant, Pat37, Fred heads south, where things are somewhat different, but still recognizable…and it’s not long before Fred finds himself Calivada Dreaming.
http://nomadicdeliriumpress.com/blog/product/calivada-dreaming/