entertain doomsday preppers, gamers, and cosplayers. But not everyone
who enters is there to play the game the way the creators intended.
Some players don’t belong at all and some enter the game to escape reality.
one goal: survive twenty-four hours of an apocalypse. Instead of game
over at the end, they’re plugged straight into a new game. Then
another. It’s clear to the players the computer has malfunctioned.
What isn’t clear is why.
getting back in.
The Apocalypse Games is a state of the art virtual game designed to
entertain doomsday preppers, gamers, and cosplayers. But not everyone
who entered was there to play the game the way the creators intended.
Some players didn’t belong at all and some entered the game to escape
reality. Whatever the reason, over 100 people were hooked up to the
mainframe computer with one goal: survive twenty-four hours of an
apocalypse. Instead of game over at the end, they were plugged
straight into a new game. Then another. It was clear to the players
the computer has malfunctioned. What wasn’t clear was why.
original location, unsure why or how CyberNexis moved them. Getting
out of the game used to be all that mattered. But not anymore. The
world has changed and CyberNexis is keeping a secret that needs to be
exposed.
Richardson is the creator of ‘Welcome to the Apocalypse’ series as
well as the author of YA fantasy and horror novellas which can be
likened to ‘Goosebumps for adults’.
always in that order. You won’t find the usual tropes in D L
Richardson’s books. You will find unique stories, engaging
characters, and thought-provoking situations.
CHAPTER ONE
Jack Minnow grabbed a brochure off the rack and his eyes scanned the back page.
“It says here that rule breakers are ten times more likely to survive an apocalypse. They’re adaptable and they rely on cunning and instinct.”
Jack was five-foot-eight, and the woman behind the counter, called an operator, was easily six-feet tall. Looking at her was like looking at a marble statue atop a pedestal. All white – her hair, her tight-fitting jump suit, her face, neck, and hands, painted to resemble a computer generated character. He allowed himself to imagine that the stage make-up covered places he couldn’t see.
She smiled at him. “It also says that rule breakers are ten times more likely to die within the first hour. They’re reckless and often act without thinking.”
She pushed a plastic tray towards him, the kind handed out at airports to slip under x-ray machines. Jack dropped his wallet, phone, and car keys into the tray.
“So it’s a win/win day for a guy with a superhero complex,” he said.
Superman, his mother had called him after he’d brought home a stray dog for the fifth time. “Can’t help but save things,” she’d told the dog ranger. Even as a boy, Jack knew what happened to the mutts who were handed over to the ranger, but he still brought dogs home for one last night of fun. His superhero complex was the reason he’d entered The Apocalypse Games. Save everyone. Save the world. Nobody dies. Not for real anyway.
The operator removed the tray and he stood there waiting for a voucher. None came. A warning flared up into his brain. What did he really know about this operation?
“Seriously, about those odds,” he said. “Exactly how much testing has gone into the program? I mean this is opening day. There must be kinks to iron out.”
“We use the same technology as they do at NASA,” she said. “The nutrient tubes and mist emitters feeding into the simulation pods are the same as those used in space travel. The structural integrity of the pods was tested by NASA engineers only last week.” She tilted her head to the side. “We’ll take good care of you, Mr Minnow. I’ll see to it personally.”
He didn’t know her name, or anything else about her, but he felt he could trust her. He had to trust her; he was placing his life in her hands.
She stepped out from behind the counter, slipped her arm through his, and guided him toward a set of doors where he caught flashes of shiny surfaces and bright lights. A sign indicated the room was called The Launch Pad.
“How will you see to it personally?” he asked, dragging his gaze back to her dazzling blue eyes. “Will you be in the game with me?”
She shook her head. Pity. He was sure he’d enjoy cyber-sex.
“You’ve got a good crowd here for the opening. How many players you reckon? Eighty? Ninety?”
“There are one hundred and five players taking part in today’s auspicious event.”
Jack’s mood sank a little. “Won’t it get crowded?”
She placed her other hand on his arm. Others might have found the gesture too friendly, but not him. Attention from a beautiful woman – genuine or as part of a customary service – warmed his insides.
“There are many apocalyptic scenarios on offer,” she said. “Some players have chosen to be placed randomly, in which case we’ll load them into scenarios that other players haven’t pre-selected. It’s highly unlikely you’ll all be playing the same game.” She stopped at a machine similar in size to an ATM and ran a laminated pass across the scanner. “I understand you’ll be teaming up with two other players, Reis Anderson and Kelly Lawrence.”
“Kelly’s my sister,” said Jack, not wanting to give the woman the wrong impression. “I’m being a good brother and chaperoning her.”
The operator nodded. “Have you chosen an apocalypse to survive? Or will you opt for the random selection?”
“I don’t mind surprises, but Kelly’s…let’s just say she’s a novice at this. We’ve decided to play—”
Her fingers swiftly landed on his lips. “Don’t tell me. If I don’t know then I can’t reveal any spoilers.”
She slipped the laminated pass around his neck and continued ushering him toward The Launch Pad. At the doorway, she gently pried her arm away and her azure-blue eyes twinkled.
“I assure you, Mr Minnow. You will be in the greatest of care. Please make your way inside and enjoy your complimentary champagne. It won’t be long until you’re taken to the simulation pod.”
The doubt still niggled at him. “So when we die in the game, what happens?”
She looked off to another player signing up at the desk.
“Miss…Operator?”
At last she turned around and smiled, revealing dazzling white teeth. “You can’t die in the game.”
“But it’ll feel like it. That’s what the brochure says.”
“Yes, it will feel like death,” she said before walking briskly away.
for exclusive excerpts, guest posts and a giveaway!
My guest today is science fiction/fantasy author, Juliana Spink Mills, here to tell you about her exciting novel.
Teenage half-demon Del Raven wears a promise in scarred letters upon her skin. Now, pressured to make her first kill and seal her demon nature forever, she flees her pack and forges a dangerous partnership with young angel-blood Ash.
As I said in my previous post, The Goddess’s Choice, my first novel was published by Reliquary Press in April of 2012, and it was not selling. In October of 2012, Auburn University’s English Department (for which I work) sponsored its first writers conference, and I attended. One of the sessions was on marketing. This session gave me some ideas about what I might do to market my own book.
Another thing common in Goodreads groups is authors offered to trade reviews, meaning you read and review their book, and they do the same for you. I entered into quite a few such agreements, and I absolutely recommend against doing so. Most of those making these arrangements were self-published authors. (I hadn’t even heard the term “Indie” at that time.) I developed a prejudice against self-publishing that has taken me some time to get over. The vast majority of these books had no business being on the market. To begin with, they were riddled with errors. As an English professor, I may be more critical of punctuation and grammatical mistakes than most, but some of them were so bad they were unreadable. And punctuation was just the beginning of the problems with these books. Overall, they were amateurish. While doing this review swap, I read only one novel that I considered good, Serving Time by Nadine Ducca. You can read my review of it on 
I decided to give up on the Big Six (now the Big Five) publishers and send my novel to smaller presses who are often more flexible about what they will publish. It was accepted within a few months by Reliquary Press. I was beyond thrilled. The editor at Reliquary Press gushed over my novel. I felt validated and would have signed any contract he put in front of me. My husband is more cautious, and to stop him from bugging me, I wrote to other Reliquary authors about their experience with the press and researched contracts. Feedback from authors was positive, and the contract looked pretty standard, even a bit generous in its terms. My husband was still not sold because the contract said nothing about what the press would do to promote the book. I wasn’t about to let my long awaited chance at publishing slip through my fingers, so I signed the contract despite my husband’s reservations and waited for my book to appear.
Blood Cursed and Other Tales of the Fantastic has a shining new cover
I’m just a small-town boy living in a lonely world. I grew up in a Kansan town of 300. I graduated in a class with 62 people. I was raised by my grandparents, who took me in at a young age. Now I live with my wife, Grace, and our two cats, Kiwi and Swarley.
Josh is a failure at most things. When he tries to take his own life from atop an overpass, he accidentally kills Cupid, God of Love. Now, he must take up Cupid’s bow and try to spread love through the world.
Blaine, who begins The Goddess’s Choice as an undersecretary in the library, reveals himself through his speech. When he is summoned by the princess, the chief librarian asks him if he has offended the princess. He replies, “I-I don’t know. I-I had no intention of doing so. I-I did see Her Highness in the clerks’ office earlier, but I did bow, and I’m sure I did it appropriately. At least, I-I think I did. I did it exactly as you said I should if I ever passed her in the halls. At least, I think I-I did.” As you can see, he talks too fast, says too much, and stammers. With these few words, the reader sees that he is very unsure of himself. This is further emphasized when the princess makes him her secretary and asks his opinion of her plans for the king’s birthday celebration. He responds, “Well, I’m sure Your Highness knows what she’s doing, and if you like things this way, I’m sure it’s a perfectly fine way to have them. I know I have very little experience, and Your Highness must have a very good reason for having—” The princess has to cut him off to get an answer.
