Justin Macumber’s Blog

I’m done! After over a year and countless hurdles, I’m done. The first draft of “Digital Decay” (working title) is done! Today I wrote a little over 2,800 words to finish this sucker up. Whew! And, I have to say, I’m pretty damn happy with the ending. Much better than I thought it’d be. I’m pleased that I’m pleased. Now I get to let it sit for a week or so before I go back for my first editing pass. Can I get a w00t?!

Over this past Christmas holiday my wife Krista and I went to London. It was a trip we’d been planning for a long time, and originally it was going to be not only London, but also Paris. Then, somewhere down the line, we thought adding Rome to the itinerary would be a good idea. The Rome decision was reversed soon after, and eventually Paris was nixed as well (too many other things needed to be done here at home to take more than a week off). The vacation was almost canceled, though, when the cabin workers’ union for British Airways voted to strike over the Christmas and New Years time frame. Luckily for us and our trip, the British government stepped in and said they couldn’t strike. Now, several weeks later, I’ve finally gotten around to posting up some pictures. This batch represents barely a fraction of the photos I took, but I think they represent the highlights without boring you. So, here we go. I hope you enjoy…

This is my wife standing in front of the hotel we stayed at. I booked the place because I wanted something… authentic, not commercial or big business. After a day of climbing stairs and not having 24/7 access to vending machines and ice, not to mention a broken door to a balcony we would have liked to use, I was ready to head to the nearest Radison.

Here we are at the Tower of London, with Tower Bridge just over Krista’s shoulder. I love taking pictures of her, and getting a nice snap of the bridge was a bonus.

Here’s the Tower of London. I’m not here to give you a history lesson, but I will say that it was fascinating to walk around. Here in America we think we have history, but we’re really just children compared to places like this.

Most of our traveling around London was done via the Underground, also called the Tube. All things considered, we didn’t have any trouble with it. Most areas are clearly marked, and I don’t know if we ever spent more than fifteen or twenty minutes getting from one place to another. We only took cabs when we were either too tired to make it to a tube station, or during Christmas when the subway system was shut down.

Something you constantly hear in the Underground is, “Always remember to…”

Here is the outside of the British Museum. It’s a really nice museum, and completely free. I took loads of pictures inside it, but I’ll only post a couple.

This is something Krista really wanted to see – the Rosetta Stone. Seeing it in person was remarkable.

I just thought this was pretty. It’s Aphrodite taking a bath from water in a vase. It looks so soft, which I guess is the artist’s gift to the stone.

One day we went walking around Hyde Park, and the Memorial Fountain for Princess Diana was there. This is Krista taking a brief rest there. It was a nice place to sit and enjoy the park.

“Look, kids, Big Ben…”

Buckingham Palace was closed, which was a bummer. Looks like a pretty swank pad.

Here is Krista and I standing at the gate for Buckingham Palace.

This is just one of the many outside shots I took of Westminster Abbey, and it does not do the place justice. It is an amazingly beautiful building.

Here’s another shot.

This isn’t the original Globe Theatre (it burned down a long time ago), but it is as close a recreation as is possible. I think Shakespeare is one of the greatest literary minds in the history of mankind, and being able to absorb some of his atmosphere was wonderful.

Here’s the inside of the Globe. Not a bad seat in the place. I’d *LOVE* to see a play performed there.

I wanted to let everyone know that my short story series, “The Ties That Bind – Tales of the Breaking Dawn” is now available as an iPhone/iTouch app. The cost is $1.99, and it turned out so well. I hope those of you who have either device give it a download. I couldn’t be happier with how good it looks.

Well, I’ve finally gotten everything put together, and now my short story collection, “The Ties That Bind – Tales of the Breaking Dawn” is now available for purchase. Right now I have it in the following formats:

Printed Chapbook

CD – this is a little different from the audio version I podcasted

Kindle

Free PDF Download

An iPhone/iTouch version is in the works as we speak.

Now, some of you might have read parts #1 – #3 of this story in the previous three issues of Ray Gun Revival (#4 will hit in the next issue), so you might be wondering what makes the printed version special (other than the amazing cover art created by my brother), or you might have listened to the free podcast version and now wonder what the CD has that’s so special? Well, first, the chapbook and Kindle versions of the story have an essay at the end that tells how the story came to be, from its small beginnings to what it is now. The CD has brand new opening and closing credits, and there is a final track that contains hilarious bloopers and outtakes from the voice recording sessions. I hope those spark your interest.

And listen, don’t just take MY word for it. Here are just a few of the kind words that have been said about the story…

“Hard-hitting space opera in the golden age tradition, relentless and full of dark action.”
– David J Williams, author of The Burning Skies

“Whether regaling us with tales of anti-gravity pirate ships sailing an ocean of sand, or putting us aboard a cargo runner racing through coven gates and deep space perils, Justin Macumber delivers one hell of a fun story. What more can any reader ask?”
– J.F. Lewis, internationally published author of ReVamped (Void City, Book Two)

“The Ties That Bind is some of the best sci-fi I’ve read all year and the crew of the Breaking Dawn will have you rooting for their success on every page. Exciting, smart and well written, this is a story that is seriously worth reading.”
– Jeremy Robinson, author of Pulse and Antarktos Rising

Anyway, I’m really proud of what I’ve put together here, and I hope some of you decide to check it out. This story won Honorable Mention in last year’s Writers of the Future contest, and this year it was in Ray Gun Revival, so I couldn’t be more happy with what it’s done for me.

Thank you for reading this. And, if you buy a copy, thank you especially for that.

Oh, and by the way, if you want to see a higher rez version of the front and back cover, click HERE.

* Download File *

Hello all, Justin here. We’ve made it! It’s taken longer than I thought it would, but now you can listen to the fourth and final part of my four-part series “Tales of the Breaking Dawn: The Ties That Bind,” a science fiction story about the star-freighter Breaking Dawn and its crew. I hope you’ve enjoyed the story thus far, and that you’lll find the ending satisfying. Please send me feedback letting me know what you think. My email address is justin@justinmacumber.com

Here is the cast list:

Justin Macumber – Narrator
Kimi Alexandre – Captain Jessica Quimbly
Terry Mixon – Boo
PG Holyfield – Cam
Ryan E Stevenson – Ferron
John Mierau – Duka
Keith RA DeCandido – Yinushan Captain
Amanda Cales – Traxal Captain
Jonathan Schiefer – Tol Defense Command
Mur Lafferty – Tolesian Captain
Nathan Lowell – Gorawnie Caller

* Direct Download *

Hey, everyone, Justin here. Well, we’re nearly to the end. Here is Part Three of my four-part series “Tales of the Breaking Dawn: The Ties That Bind,” a science fiction story about the star-freighter Breaking Dawn and its crew. I hope you enjoyed Parts One and Two, and that you’lll be back for the exciting finale. Please send me feedback letting me know what you think. My email address is justin@justinmacumber.com

Here is the cast list:

Justin Macumber – Narrator
Kimi Alexandre – Captain Jessica Quimbly
Terry Mixon – Boo
PG Holyfield – Cam
Ryan E Stevenson – Ferron
John Mierau – Duka
Matthew Wayne Selznick – Coven Gatekeeper

When I first thought about doing a podcast, one of the areas that I thought I’d be able to cover well was geek culture. I mean, I’m a geek. Hardcore. Just ask around. But, I didn’t do a geek podcast because there were several great ones out there already, and for me the best of the bunch was Geekscape. Jonathan London, who created and hosts the show, is an even bigger geek than I am, and I mean that in the nicest possible way. His show, which you can get in either audio or video format, is a weekly podcast about comics, games, movies, TV shows, and everything else geek related. He always has knowledgeable guests on to help him delivery the latest news and reviews, and you never know what’s going to happen next. I actually had the pleasure of meeting Jonathan last year at Comic-Con, where he was kind enough to sit down with me to talk about being a young writer/director trying to make it in Hollywood. He was as nice in person as he seemed on his show.

Anyway, when I published my “Pirates of the Crimson Sand” chapbook and was looking for ways to promote it, I knew that Geekscape would be a great place to do that. When I contacted Jonathan about it he was incredibly gracious, and he said he’d feature it on his show. And, not only did he do it once, but after I sent him a copy of it he mentioned it again. I cannot thank him enough for that. Jonathan, you’re a gentleman and a scholar, and I sincerely hope that we meet again soon. Thank you so much.

To return the favor, allow me to mention a TV show he’s created called Singledom. It airs on Hulu.com, and I urge all of you to give it a try. You can also find Jonathan on Facebook and Twitter.

Thank you, again, Jonathan, and the best of luck to you and all you do.

* Download File *

Hey, everyone, I am excited to announce the release of the audio version of my short story, “Pirates of the Crimson Sand.” I had a great cast of voice actors to help along the way, and they deserve a round of applause. They are:

Philippa Ballantine as Shana
J Daniel Sawyer as Braka
James Durham as Chim
Terry Mixon as The Skulper Captain
and Justin Macumber as the narrator and Swain

If you enjoy the story and would like a text version of it, you can go to my site and get it in a variety of formats, including PDF and a signed chapbook.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy the story, and if you feel up to it, please let me know what you thought of it. Thank you!

* Direct Download *

Hey, folks, Justin here. As promised, here is Part Two of my four-part series “Tales of the Breaking Dawn: The Ties That Bind,” a science fiction story about the star-freighter Breaking Dawn and its crew. I hope you enjoyed Part One, and that this one whets your appetite for more. Please send me feedback letting me know what you think. My email address is justin@justinmacumber.com

Here is the cast list:

Justin Macumber – Narrator
Kimi Alexandre – Captain Jessica Quimbly
Terry Mixon – Boo
PG Holyfield – Cam
Ryan E Stevenson – Ferron
J Daniel Sawyer – Jack
Philippa Ballantine – Zen
Abbie Hilton – Vimm’skka Traffic Control

Hey, everyone. I just wanted to let you know that I am offering my very first chapbook. I was inspired by what Matt Selznick had come up with for his short stories, so I thought I’d give it a shot myself. If you would you like to own a chapbook of my short story entitled “Pirates of the Crimson Sand,” click on the button below. The chapbook is something that I, my brother Scott, and friend John put together, and I’m really excited to see the end product come out as well as it did. Hopefully in the future we will be able to do the same with other short stories. If you would like me to autograph the chapbook, which I will be printing and mailing from my own home, please make a note when you order it. The chapbook is $5, and that covers the book AND the shipping. I hope you like the story, and I hope you decide to order a copy of it for your collection.

The story is also available on the Kindle for $0.99. Click *HERE* to go to Amazon and purchase it.

If you would like a free PDF of the story, just right-click *HERE* and save yourself a copy.

Or, if you’d just like to read it right now online, go *HERE*.