Wednesday, April 20, 2022

WEP - A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall

 It's that time again. 

A new challenge was posted by the gals at the WEP. Write...Edit...Publish

Flash fiction at it's best! Are you game?

Then join the fun!

***

A Hard Rain

She gazes and sighs

at the angry clouds

the surprisingly calm ocean

and the horizon so far

A Hard Rain is Gonna Fall

she questions her motives

is she validated

or just an attention seeker

all she wants

is freedom

independence

a life less hidden

but to achieve that goal

others will suffer

many will shake their heads

and say, what’d you expect

the girl's been off balance

her entire life

never did know

when she had it good

always seeking

never satisfied

I swear

even in death

she'll look for a third option

unsatisfied with Heaven

or Hell…

Yolanda Renee © 2022

****

Your turn, just give it a try. 

A poem, a short story, flash fiction, or another artistic expression!


A Hard Rain’s Gonna Fall has been described as the ‘most idiosyncratic protest song ever written.’ Bob Dylan, the Nobel Laureate and another 60's icon, wrote, composed and sung it in 1962 when he was only 21. It’s been covered by many artistes including Pete Seeger, Joan Baez and has never really stopped being sung ever since. Dylan has sold  more than 125 million records/albums making him one of the most popular artistes of all time.  

The form is modelled on the traditional ballad in the question and answer format, the themes being human suffering – pollution, warfare, isolation, angst. Sixty years after Dylan presented it at a performance at Carnegie Hall, the lyrics are striking in that how relevant they are still, how contemporary their feel and the depth of their appeal. Read more about the song here and here.

This one is wide open to all kinds of interpretations. Because human suffering – it’s as wide, deep and long as life is, of a trillion takes potential.

Use it to zoom in on our current ‘hard rain’ of covid. Chisel out your own pandemic flash from what’s going on around you.

Or weave a tale of some other woe – bleeding hammers, broken tongues, dead oceans, homes in the valley meeting damp, dirty prisons. The lyrics are epic, apocalyptic and offer rich pickings. Set your tale around the climate issues; the refugee crisis; the endless hardships that the hard rains of bullets and bombs, volcanic eruptions, oil spills have brought.

Or bypass all the bleakness and melancholy and simply spin a conversation between a parent and a child on some deep life issue. Or a light-hearted one. A million directions to go. The possibilities are endless.

 A freehand is what we give you,  you give the song a listen and see what happens...

Copied from the WEP Challenges page

**********

 



Monday, April 18, 2022

Murder! Mystery! Mayhem! & CassaDark By Alex J. Cavanaugh

 Welcome, Alex J. Cavanaugh, author of a new space opera, CassaDark. He's here to discuss the elements that make his current book a fitting read for all readers even those that love a good murder mystery. Please, take it away Alex!


Murder! Mystery! Mayhem!

 

Wait a minute…my book is science fiction, space opera/adventure. Nobody is murdered. There’s no mystery to solve. Mayhem? Hmm…maybe my book does have those elements.

 

All right, there isn’t an out-and-out murder. No police or detectives are involved. But there are people being killed. In a way that is hidden to the rest of the galaxy. Many live in a world where death lurks around every corner. And people do die. Maybe not murder, but death happens. (Of course, people on the planet kill one another, so that technically is murder.)

 

Mystery…actually, for the main character, there is a lot. Bassan is a bit naïve. He believes even as he doubts. He begins to see things are not as he assumed. There are mysteries to unravel—what is the truth? So, there is a bit of mystery.

 

Now, mayhem. There is a lot of that! Bassan is sent across the galaxy. He gets dumped on a strange planet. People try to kill him. And the people he’s with. His future is completely in disarray. Dogs and cats, living together—mass hysteria! No wait, that’s Ghostbusters. But you get the idea. There is a lot of upheaval and peril, and Bassan is put through the wringer.

 

So, I guess CassaDark does have a lot of those mystery elements. Who knew?


 

Alex J. Cavanaugh works in web design and graphics, and he plays guitar in a Christian band. A fan of all things science fiction, his interests range from books and movies to music and games. Online he is known as Ninja Captain Alex and he’s the founder of the Insecure Writer’s Support Group.

 

http://alexjcavanaugh.com

https://www.insecurewriterssupportgroup.com/

https://twitter.com/AlexJCavanaugh

 

 


CassaDark

By Alex J. Cavanaugh

 

His world is unraveling…

 

Bassan’s father is stepping down from command. His best friend almost dies when Bassan freezes. Now, he’s being sent across the galaxy to speak at an important conference. Despite saving the eleven races years ago, he’s paralyzed by fear and doubt. Could things get any worse?

Once there, new acquaintance Zendar convinces Bassan to visit his planet for a humanitarian mission. Bassan’s special connection to ancient technology is the key to saving Zendar’s people. One problem though—it’s a prisoner planet.

 

On Ugar, he discovers things aren’t so straightforward. As each secret reveals itself, the situation grows more desperate. If he can’t find the right answers, he might die along with Zendar’s people. Can Bassan summon the courage to be a hero again?

 

Released on–April 6, 2022

$16.95, 6x9 trade paperback, 226 pages

Science fiction - Adventure (FIC028010) / Space Opera (FIC028030) / Space Exploration (FIC028130)

Print ISBN 9781939844842 / Ebook ISBN 9781939844859

$4.99 Ebook available in all format


Buy Links:

iTunes – https://books.apple.com/us/book/x/id1574189874

Amazon – https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0982FL3SH

Barnes & Noble – https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/2940164947033

Kobo – https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/Search?Query=9781939844859

Scribed – https://www.scribd.com/search?query=9781939844859&language=0

Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58461762-cassadark


*****


Thanks so much, Alex, for allowing me to share your exciting news!

Well folks, have you gotten your copy yet?


My Review is HERE!