Bastard Invades the Internet

I was invited for two guest post recently, coincidentally both of them went live today. My first guest post can be found on the excellent SF Signal site, as I was invited to their latest MIND MELD: A Look at Genre Reviews which was organized by Paul Weimer; I'm sure you've seen him around. Inviting authors and reviewers, he asked this question:

"Q: What does a good review of a piece of genre work do well? Where do reviewers fall down on the job? How can reviewers improve their craft for the benefit of readers, writers and fans?"

Well, in typical Bastard fashion I went on a bit of a rant. You give me free reign to talk about something, and it's hard to shut off the crap that goes around in my mind. In any case, hope you guys have a look and enjoy not only what I had to say, but that of the other guests. Here's the link once again: http://www.sfsignal.com/archives/2012/04/mind-meld-a-look-at-genre-reviews/

My second guest post can be found on The Passionate Foodie blog ran by Richard Auffrey, who shouldn't need any introduction around this little corner of the internet, but got one anyways a couple of weeks ago here. This time I was invited to participate on Authors, Alcohol & Accolades: Volume 6, where Richard asked fellow bloggers to strip naked and do the Macarena. A few of us didn't have webcams, so he asked us in turn to write two paragraphs, the first one about two of our favorite authors, and the second one describing our favorite alcohols.

I found the first portion hard to answer, considering I have many authors I like, so I opted to mention the authors of my favorite novels of last year. As for the alcohols portion, well beer was mentioned obviously, but I didn't leave it at that. Although you wont find any naked Macarena dancing, please visit the following link for a fun post where us bloggers do a cocktail of authors and alcohol: http://passionatefoodie.blogspot.com/2012/04/authors-alcohol-accolades-volume-6.html

Bastard Promotion: Yurine's Pot by Richard Auffrey

Before you go further, download Yurine's Pot by Richard Auffrey for FREE during this weekend.

Anyways, friend of the blog, Richard Auffrey has just published his first short story via Kindle called Yurine's Pot. Before I went into reading fantasy novels and the likes, my background was on things related to anime and manga, and I'm constantly surprised by how much Richard knows about the them. I'm starting to believe more than me, which is not common around my circles. So it's no surprise that this short story deals with a Japanese sake legend, and at the very least I trust that he knows quite a bit on the subject.

For those that don't know, Richard runs a blog known as The Passionate Foodie which focuses on, well, food. Wine, cheese, gourmet food, you name it, he's well informed in the subject, an expert, so I'm curious to see how he seems to mix some of his passions in prose.

Anyways, here's more info on the story:

If your son was dying of cancer, what would you do to save him?

I have taken a big step, self-publishing a new short story for the Kindle. I have always loved writing fiction, and have previously posted five of my food & wine related tales on my blog. I have written plenty of other fiction that has yet to be posted anywhere. It is time to take the next step, to start publishing my work and the advent of the e-book has made that more accessible. So this story is a pioneer, blazing a path for me which I hope will lead to a better realm.

The tale, Yurine's Pot, is a modern fantasy, revolving around an ancient Japanese legend about Sake. A father, whose son is dying of cancer, may have discovered a mystical cure but others are willing to kill for it. Is the legend real or is the father merely deluding himself? What is the father willing to sacrifice to save his son?

This short story is now available HERE and will be Free on Saturday and Sunday, before reverting back to its $0.99 price.

I hope that you enjoy this short story, and if you do, please leave a review on Amazon as well as leave me a comment here on my blog. If you have any constructive criticism, I would love to hear that as well. If this story is well received, it could be the first of more Sake-centric short stories.

Kanpai!

http://passionatefoodie.blogspot.com/2012/03/yurines-pot-new-sake-short-story.html