You Should Buy Shadow Of The Gallifreyan, Book One

This is going to be a short one, so short in fact that I'm actually just typing it up in Blogger as opposed to my word editing suite of choice. I will keep things quick and to the point: Altrix Books has just released Shadow of the Gallifreyan, Book One and I am suggesting that you spend your money on a copy. Before I give my reasons why, what is this book? This is a Doctor Who flash fiction anthology book, featuring something like 170 very short stories (we're talking within the realm of 1000 words here) focusing on supporting characters in the Doctor Who universe, and how they and their lives and worlds were affected by the titular time traveller. They run the gamut from historical figures, to ordinary humans, to aliens and all other sorts of beings all across time and space. Even with such a small canvas of just a few words, the authors of these stories flesh out the answer to the hypothetical "what happens next for these people, after the Doctor Who story ends?" in brilliant and creative ways.

Here are just a few reasons why you should buy a copy of this book, if you have any interest in the blue phone box franchise. First of all, it's a charity project. All sales of the book will go to Shelter, a UK charity focused on giving aid to homeless children. Already that's a good cause, and worth your money. This book will be making a real difference to people, and it genuinely warms my heart to think of that. In addition to that, of the 65 authors with stories in this book, some of them happen to be very good friends of mine who share a love of Doctor Who. Critics and authors like Christa Mactire, Sean Dillon, and Brent O'Shea are in this book, and it's enriched by their voices. This is not to diminish the other authors in this book, but I know the three I've mentioned and am very happy to see their work represented in the book. Of course I'm going to recommend supporting a book like this with my friends in it, but that's not the whole story. Of the remaining 62 authors who have collaborated for the book, there's a very special one in particular who I am asking you to support by getting a copy. Who is this mystery author who I'd like you to support? 

It's me.

That's right, all. I have been sitting on this news for a year and a half, and now that the book has been released I can shout it from the rooftops. I, Frezno Inferno, have two stories in this anthology! My words are in this book! I wrote "The Praesidium vs. Sirius Conglomerate" and "Revolution Day", and they're in the published book right now and you can read them. The past year and a half has been a hazy dream, from Altrix Books accepting my pitches to me writing the stories to them coming back with minor edits and me incorporating them into the second draft... to here, where they've been published! My work's been published, in the company of both friends and critics who I respect and 60 other incredibly talented authors whose stories I enjoyed reading, and all of it for a charity cause making a real material difference in the world. I couldn't be happier sitting here thinking about it. It's a dream come true, and with full disclosure I humbly ask that you not only support Shelter, my author friends, and 61 other authors in this book... but me, the raving ranter with a dream that became reality.

You can find all the info and purchasing links here, on the Altrix Books blog post announcing the anthology. So, please. For the homeless kids of the UK, for the talented authors I both know and don't know... and for me. Buy a copy of this book.

The Fandom Vs. George Lucas

There's no other way to get a wedge into this than to just straight up start. God help me, I'm going to talk about Star Wars on the Internet. As of late, such things have become kind of a festering cesspool. I'm aware of that, but this is yet another attempt at an exorcism. I've been doing very good at un-fucking my personal headspace in 2023, thanks in part to how engaging with David Lynch and Criterion movies has kind of rewired me, but this is some shit that's been stuck swirling around in here for like a month. You see, I'm not going to complain so much about the films as I am their fandom. It's a specific part of their fandom, as even I'm smart enough to draw the line at pre-Disney. Just as well, anyway, because at the forefront of the discussion is the man who sold the films to Disney. I need to get out my thoughts on the legacy of George Lucas, interrogate a little the specific ways the bigger Star Wars fandom has reacted to it, and try to hypothesize why they react the way they do.