Return to the Wastelands? excerpt

The day he surrendered to Captain Bryan Howard was supposed to be the best day of young Robert Jenkins’ life, and maybe it was, but something never felt quite right to him.

The young Captain, who had also once been a member of the Rose Clan, had taken him back to a mobile unit, and Robert couldn’t believe everything he saw. Wherever he looked, there were soldiers, and these weren’t like the gang members he was used to seeing; these people were heavily armed. Robert had seen a few military style weapons in the Wastelands, but nothing like what these people were carrying, and even though he got a few weird looks, everyone was nice to him once Captain Howard explained his situation.

“Go ahead,” Captain Howard had said, pointing at what he had called a tub that was now filled with steaming water and bubbles. Robert didn’t understand.

“You’ve never had a bath, have you?” the Captain asked.

“I’ve heard of them,” Robert said, “But, I’ve never seen anything like this…what am I supposed to do?”

“You take your clothes off, and you get in and soak. There’s more soap there and a wash cloth. You clean yourself, and then you get out and dry off, and there’s some clean clothes over there that you can put on.”

The idea of a clean body and clean clothes was odd to him. He’d taken numerous showers, but most of them had been very cold, so he’d gotten out as fast as he could, and he’d often washed his clothes in a sink before, but Robert could actually smell a fragrance coming from the clothes that were sitting next to the toilet.

“You can stay in as long as you want,” the Captain said with a smile.

Robert suddenly felt his stomach turn and he started to tremble. “Where will you be?” he cautiously asked.

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Fight or Flight excerpt

Robert Jenkins cowered in the corner of the disheveled building, sweat pouring from every pore. His grungy clothes were even dirtier than normal as he desperately tried to catch his breath. The patrol had almost caught him, and he knew what would happen. If he was lucky, a life in a Rocky Mountain States of America prison, but if the patrol had been too busy, or didn’t feel like following the “rules,” he’d be just another dead kid from the Wastelands left on the side of a street in Campo, Colorado.

The Rocky Mountain States were supposed to be so great, at least that’s what he’d heard, but what he had seen so far in Campo, abandoned buildings, dust, and high winds, reminded him a lot of Boise City in what used to be Oklahoma, but that had been long before Robert had been born. Now Boise City was just a series of ruins run by various gangs. His, the Rose Clan, had sent him to Colorado. He was supposed to make his way to Springfield, where he was supposed to steal some resources. That had been the plan, anyway. That had been when there were four of them. Jackson got fried in an electric fence while crossing the border. Evans was shot dead by some random hunter who thought he was a dear, or some shit like that. And Billings got hit by a truck just outside of Campo. They hadn’t seen any traffic since they’d entered Colorado, so Billings had thought it would be safe to walk down the middle of what had been Highway 287…maybe it was still called that in Colorado. In what used to be Oklahoma, it was just called The Road, a place where the gangs could try to take out the occasional truck going between the Rocky Mountain States and Texas, and those were few and far between.

Billings had been walking down the middle of the Highway when the truck came out of nowhere and took him out at 200 miles per hour. Now Robert was left alone to complete a mission that would probably require at least two of them, but if he returned to the Rose Clan empty handed, Jim Bob, the head of his clan would probably have him killed.

“Talk about lose-lose,” he mumbled to himself, and then quickly put his hand over his mouth as he heard a noise outside the “door.” The boarded over relic of a door had offered no resistance to his entering, and he’d hoped that he’d put everything back into place so that no one would notice that there might be someone inside.

But now the movement had stopped right outside of the door. Robert thought he could hear breathing, but maybe it was just his own.

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One More Good Trade is the deal of the day for October 22nd

 

For one day only, you can pick up One More Good Trade for just $1.50 at https://www.drivethrufiction.com/product/365386

Your name is Anthony Jones. You’re a Human free Trader. Your ship is called The Longest Night, and you have two crewmates, Tora-no, a four-armed Althani Soldier and Creeoona, a Tulmath Cyber Wizard. Three adventures lie open to you, which one will you pick, and what will happen along the way? You get to decide what happens in this story, as you pick your way through various plot twists.

A Taste of the Madness Vol. 4 is here

For a limited time, you can download A Taste of the Madness Vol. 4, and if you're an Amazon Unlimited member, the download is free. Pick it up today at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CLJ4LC54

The fourth volume is here!
A collection of six previously published short stories, that are available only for a limited time. Travel to distant planets and travel to different mad visions that prize-winning sf author J Alan Erwine has come up with, but beware, you can never be sure where his weird mind might take you.
Again, this collection is only available for a very limited time.

One Night at Sharon's excerpt

It was a Tuesday night, but Sharon’s was packed. Sharon’s was the only place on Artemis Station to get a real drink, and every ship in the Solar Federation knew it was the place to be. It wasn’t for Sharon’s hospitality. No, the proprietor was not always the friendliest of people. She wasn’t mean by any stretch of the imagination, but she had a tendency to tell people exactly what was on her mind, and she didn’t care if they were enlisted, officers, or even admirals. No one was safe from Sharon’s honesty…but if she ended up liking you, you had a friend for life.

One of those people she liked was Ensign Marie Haggerman, who was currently sitting in a booth with three crewmates. A few months earlier, Ensign Haggerman had almost been run out of the service, now she was one of the most important ensigns on her ship, the SFS Carter, and the Ensign insisted on constantly thanking Sharon for her help. She raised her glass in a small toast towards Sharon, who just growled slightly, waving a dismissive hand towards the Ensign before turning away from the bar and smiling slightly.

At the end of the bar sat Sonny. He wasn’t sitting on a barstool. No, he was actually sitting on the bar, and that was because Sonny was Sharon’s dog, and no one questioned his right to sit on the bar. Those who did, didn’t have the dog to fear. No, they had Sharon to fear, and that was far worse. More than a few officers had been overheard saying they’d rather face a fleet of rebels, or a meteor swarm than face Sharon’s wrath. Still, almost everyone that came in the bar loved Sharon; they always knew where they stood with her, and those that had really faced her ire, just chose to stay away.

Order today: https://amzn.to/46Rqj12

The Expanded Rocks on the Other Side Skill and Equipment List

From the Nomadic Delirium Press Blog:

In any game, there's always room to add more, so we've put together a few new skills and some new equipment that you can add to what was included in the core rulebook. This supplement contains all of the skills and equipment from the core rulebook, plus several new things you can incorporate into your game.

Order today at https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/457306/

A Thin Line excerpt

The SFS Arizona lay crumpled on the surface of the asteroid Hygeia. The hull was ruptured in several places, and gasses slowly leaked out of chambers that had once held life sustaining air. Bodies lay next to some sections of the ship, killed by the impact, or killed by the lack of atmosphere on the asteroid.

On the bridge of the Arizona, Captain John Lee slowly came to with alarm claxons and red lights flashing all over the bridge. For the moment, he couldn’t hear the sound of air escaping, but how could he be expected to hear anything over the noise of the claxons and the moans and screams of his wounded bridge crew? His hand slowly found its way to his aching head. Pulling it away from his scalp, he wasn’t surprised to find his hand covered in blood.

“That explains the warmth,” he said quietly. “Status,” he tried to call out, but only managed a feeble croak. He cleared his throat several times, and then managed, “Jenkins, status?”

A quiet feminine voice said through what was obvious pain. “We have no communications, internal or external. Sensors are showing that more than half of the ship has been vented. The bridge is intact, and I think most of us are alive, but I’ve got a broken leg.”

“Understood,” the Captain said. “Keep trying to get status reports from the sectors that haven’t been vented, and keep me updated.”

“Understood,” his first officer said. He couldn’t see Commander Jenkins, and for the moment, he figured it was best for him not to try to move because his head wouldn’t stop spinning, and his eyesight was very blurry. There were also pains in his chest and abdomen that didn’t seem like any pain he’d ever had before. That probably wasn’t good, but he didn’t have time to worry about that right now. His ship was dying, and his crew with it.

Order today: https://amzn.to/3s82i7c

Random Encounters of the Radioactive Kind

 

From the Nomadic Delirium Press Blog:

Are you in need of encounters for your Rocks on the Other Side RPG? We have just the supplement for you...

Looking for encounters to add to your Rocks on the Other Side game? Herein you will find 50 encounters that you can plug into any game as regular encounters, or as random encounters to keep the characters on their toes.

Sorted by level, you’ll find brief descriptions of each encounter, as well as stats, and any items the encounter might give the characters.

In addition, you’ll also be introduced to two new beasts that will really keep the characters guessing.

Order from DriveThruRPG: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/457187/

Order from Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CLDNJFD9

Order from Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1468427

Your absolute last chance!

There are mere days left for you to download A Taste of the Madness Vol. 3. After that, this collection will no longer be available! And remember, if you are a Kindle Unlimited member, the download is free.

The third volume is here!
A collection of six previously published short stories, that are available only for a limited time. Travel to distant planets and travel to different mad visions that prize-winning sf author J Alan Erwine has come up with, but beware, you can never be sure where his weird mind might take you.
Again, this collection is only available for a very limited time.

Order today at https://amzn.to/3FmA63A

The NDP Fiction Bundle

From the Nomadic Delirium Press Blog:

We've updated the NDP Fiction Bundle at DriveThruFiction. You can now get 17 books for just $25. These aren't individual short stories. These are novels, anthologies and collections. That's a lot of reading for only $25.

You get Just Because and The Poet by James Baker...Seedlings on the Solar Winds and Manic Musings of a Maniacal Mind by J Alan Erwine...Crisis Averted by Laura Givens...Federation and Empire and The Spirit of Mars by Eamonn Murphy...Quantum Women, The Butterfly and the Sea Dragon, The Thursday Child and The Moth and the Flame by Tyree Campbell. You also get all of the following collections: Delirious Doubles, Disharmony of the Spheres, Ecotastrophe II, Future Syndicate II, Taurin Tales and The Divided States of America Vol. 1. That's a lot of fiction for just $25, so download this bundle today at https://www.drivethrufiction.com/product/65749/

It's a birthday sale

My birthday is this month, but my readers get the presents. You can save 50% off of my titles at DriveThruFiction. Download novels for less than two bucks, and get individual short stories for just 50 cents. Now is a great time to stock up on everything at https://www.drivethrufiction.com/browse/pub/16618/

You're almost out of time to get your third Taste of the Madness

There's a little more than a week left before A Taste of the Madness Vol. 3 will no longer be available, so you need to order now at https://amzn.to/3RYSA1A, and if you're a Kindle Unlimited member, the download is FREE!

A collection of six previously published short stories, that are available only for a limited time. Travel to distant planets and travel to different mad visions that prize-winning sf author J Alan Erwine has come up with, but beware, you can never be sure where his weird mind might take you.
Again, this collection is only available for a very limited time.

The immorality of Atheists

I've often heard religious people say that Atheists can't be moral beings because they don't believe in God. To me, this has never made sense. This seems to imply that in order to be moral, one has to be afraid that God is watching, afraid of eternal damnation, or striving for eternal salvation. Shouldn't morality come from within instead of from without?

I would argue that an Atheist who chooses to be moral with no imperative from any kind of higher being is making a more moral stand that a religious person that is only choosing to be moral because of a fear of God. This is not saying that all religious people are only moral because God tells them to be. There are a great number of moral religious people that act as they do because it's the right thing to do as a human being. I do believe, however, that there are numerous religious people out there that only choose to be moral because they're afraid of what could happen to their eternal soul. Without that exterior imperative, these individuals would actually choose to be immoral.

This has always been something that I've believed in, and recently I started re-reading Towing Jehovah by James Morrow. In this book, which is obviously satirical, God has died and his two-mile long body must be towed to the Arctic by a super tanker to preserve it. During the voyage, many of the crew decide to start doing things that are immoral because God is no longer watching, and I honestly believe that this is something that would happen. Many, but not all, people would choose to do what's in their best interest if they didn't think there was a God. This isn't true of the Atheist. An Atheist chooses to be moral or immoral because it's what they want to do, not what they feel they're being forced to do. And I'm not trying to make the argument that Atheists are moral by nature...there are plenty of bad Atheists out there. I'm just saying that those that choose morality do so because of their own nature.

If you don't think that some people would choose to be immoral if given the chance, take a look at how quickly our society is deteriorating. People have so much less respect for one another today than they used to...and if they believed there was no God overseeing their actions, just how low would they sink...

If you're interested in checking out Towing Jehovah, I would highly recommend it if you like good satirical fiction...and you're not easily offended...

Check it out at https://amzn.to/48Lc3Zs

The Martian Wave Boxed Set

From the Nomadic Delirium Press Blog:

For six years, Nomadic Delirium Press published The Martian Wave. This was a magazine that focused on short stories and poems about the exploration and colonization of space, with a special focus on stories about our solar system. Now, all six issues have been gathered into one boxed set for a very low price.

Order from Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CKKDNNDJ

Order from Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1461770

Choices

Ereven is on the run. Having abandoned the dictatorial governor of Ganymede, he now finds himself pushed and pulled in directions he doesn’t want to go as he tries to flee the brutal hands of the governor. Where will he go? The inner solar system seems to be the only choice, but does he have any chance of getting there? He’s never had choices, and now that he does, every one of them seems to lead to death, imprisonment, or both…

Order from Amazon: https://amzn.to/3ZKPv75

Order from Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1461598

Order from DriveThruFiction: https://www.drivethrufiction.com/product/455589/

 

September Bestseller

 

My bestseller for September was a re-release of an older collection, Marionettes on the Moon.

Do Humans control their destiny, or are they merely victims of the circumstances that surround them?
A collection of short stories from prize winning SF author J Alan Erwine examines whether we have freedom of choice, or are merely puppets on strings subject to the whims of the universe.
This newly reworked version of Marionettes on the Moon features the original 13 short stories, plus two recent releases.

Order from Amazon: https://amzn.to/3Q3MzPT

Order from Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1430178

Order from DriveThruFiction: https://www.drivethrufiction.com/product/447457/

Birthday sale at DriveThruFiction

 I have a birthday in October, and no, we aren't going to talk about how ancient I've become, but I figure if there's a birthday, there should be presents, right? So, for the month of October, all of you get the presents in the form of 50% off of any of my fiction titles at DriveThruFiction. Head over to https://www.drivethrufiction.com/browse/pub/16618/J-Alan-Erwine and start downloading today!

Have you checked out Smashwords lately?

 If you're looking for a great place to download books, then Smashwords is the place to be. Major authors, indie authors, they have them all...and yeah, of course they sell my stuff as well. Check it out at https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/jaerwine

Don't forget my Amazon Page

If you'd like to keep up with all of my future releases, and there should be a couple of new short stories very soon, then please make sure you're visiting my Amazon page often at https://amzn.to/3t5N3fi...or better yet, just follow me on Amazon that way you'll get the updates automatically.

Thanks to everyone who supports my work!

Patreon Stories

 

Now that I'm able to sell titles directly through Patreon, without they buyer being obligated to become a patron, I decided to put together a special collection of ten stories that will only be available on Patreon. Although I have dabbled in horror, dark fantasy, children's fantasy, and even mainstream/literary, I decided to make the collection a collection of just science fiction, since that's my main passion...and I only play around in other fields when I come up with a really good idea. So if you're interested, here's the write-up for the collection:

Available only for download on Patreon, I give you Patreon Stories. This is a collection of 10 of my stories that best represent my various science fiction writing styles. Kind of gives you a taste of what you could expect if you become a patron.
The collection includes: The Galton Principle, Origins, Forgive Men Their Trespasses, The Limit of Tolerance, Lowering One's Self Before Fate, On the Word of Ancients, Reality, Mission Unknown, It's In the Water, and Fight or Flight.

Buy it today at https://www.patreon.com/jalanerwine/shop