And talking about things Egyptian… did you know that Sudan has roughly twice the number of pyramids of Egypt?
And the whole things looks… incredible.
Hanging Out with Apep
When in need of an evil Egyptian god for fiction, while Set certainly has a worse reputation, most authors go for Anubis. It makes sense: the Jackal God is popular, got a super-cool look, and I can find tons of visual references.
And then, hey, he’s the God of Death, right?
I can quote a lot of resources in that sense, from Roger Zelazny to Johnny Quest by way of Young Sherlock Holmes, Bram Stoker and Valerie Leon.
Fact is, it doesn’t work that way. Anubis, aka Anpu, aka Inpu, sometimes also known as Hermanubis, is the protector of the souls of the dead. He’s not the bad guy, he’s with the good guys! Let that sink in, and then tell me again why fanatics with daggers should serve him.
And really, apart from the philological elements, Anubis as the dark god of Egypt’s been done to death. Which is, I realize, somewhat ironic.
So, when outlining AMARNA, I looked up a few other Usual (Egyptian) Suspects.
And for my money, you want a bad guy in Egyptian myth? Go for Apophis. The Stargate SG1 guys got the snake right.
Continue reading
Free Fantasy Shorts
Free ebooks – what’s not to like about that?
Starting today, and for a full ten days, you’ll be able to download legally dozens of science fiction, fantasy and horror shorts as part of the Robots, Wizards & Zombies Shorts Giveaway on Instafreebie.
Where’s the catch?
There is no catch – but you might like to join the mailing list of some of these authors, and/or leave a review of their stories on Goodreads or anywhere on the web.
Check out the giveaway.
Read a few stories, and help a few indie authors get new readers.
Spread the word!
A little more about AMARNA
I’ve been talking about my forthcoming serial for a while, now.
It will be set in Egypt, it will be called AMARNA.
There will be a guy called Tenn Ford in it.
But what else?
Who are the characters, what odds do they face?
Most important, will it be worth your time and money?
Well, for those that want to know more, I’ve prepared a freebie, a press book of sorts.
Details, ideas, photos, maps.
A full preview of what’s probably the most ambitious project I ever started as a self-publisher.
Plus the opportunity to get the first episode at a discounted price.
DOWNLOAD IT HERE
C is for Cabbage
Great news.
I am proud of being part of C is for Cabbage, a collection of horror short stories for younger (and older) readers. The volume features my story “The day we played at Middle Ages”, and I’m grateful to editor Emma Ennis for getting me on board.
This is not like the other projects I’ve been working on this year, as you can guess from the back cover:
In aid of Aoibheann’s Pink Tie, the national children’s cancer charity.
C is for Cabbage, a collection of 20 short stories from 17 truly terrified authors. Open with care, because the pages are crawling with fairies, lobsters, and strangely hip dinosaurs. There’s magic and enchantment, detective twins and drunken wizards. It’s got ghosts, ghouls, and lovestruck vampires; zombies, secret societies, and strange little men who tinker with toys.
With fun and frolics, and maybe a mild curse or two, (not to mention an extraordinary pair of knitting needles,) C is for cabbage is sure to have something for everyone, children and adults alike.
I am told the book will be available through the usual channels sometimes next week. I will post a heads-up as soon as the book is available.
You keep an eye out.
This book is special.
Here’s the cover, by the way…
The burial place of Osiris
The temple of Isis at Philae used to stand guard at the first cataract of the Nile.
With the construction of the Aswan Dam the area was flooded, and later the temple was moved to a new location.
The original Philae is mentioned by numerous ancient writers, including Strabo, Diodorus Siculus, Ptolemy, Seneca, Pliny the Elder. It was, as the plural name indicates, the appellation of two small islands, and the reputed burial place – one of the burial places – of Osiris, and only priests were allowed to live there.
And right now we can take a look at the temple and surrounding buildings in this fine animation.
The approach by water is quite the most beautiful. Seen from the level of a small boat, the island, with its palms, its colonnades, its pylons, seems to rise out of the river like a mirage. Piled rocks frame it on either side, and the purple mountains close up the distance. As the boat glides nearer between glistening boulders, those sculptured towers rise higher and even higher against the sky. They show no sign of ruin or age. All looks solid, stately, perfect. One forgets for the moment that anything is changed. If a sound of antique chanting were to be borne along the quiet air–if a procession of white-robed priests bearing aloft the veiled ark of the God, were to come sweeping round between the palms and pylons–we should not think it strange.
(Amelia Edwards – 1873-1874)
The price of peace of mind
OK, so I went and did it.
I’ve been on Patreon as a lurker for a while now, but last night I went and did what needed to be done, and I am about to launch my Patreon page on the 1st of December.
For the uninitiated, here’s a quick video overview.
Patreon allows fans to put down some money (as little as 1 buck per month) in order to pay their favorite writers, musicians, artists etc.
And I’ll give it a try. Let me explain why… Continue reading
Karavansara 