Reading the news these days makes me feel like I’m in some sort of alternate timeline. It’s like the past 40 years never happened and I’m right back to hearing about Russian invasions and nuclear war and World War III.
As a kid growing up in New Jersey, I was doing air raid drills in elementary and middle school much later than many of my peers. New Jersey was home to Bell Labs (now Nokia Bell Labs, but in the ’80s it was Bell Telephone Laboratories until 1984 and then AT&T Bell Laboratories). Bell Labs was considered a major target for a nuclear attack.
So, every few months, there we were, responding to a sound I’ve never heard associated with any other kind of emergency drill and quickly making our way into the hallways to get on our knees, facing the wall, with our heads down in the junction where wall and floor meet and our hands laced over the backs of our heads. I was told at one point that this was because the anus was the safest orifice for nuclear exposure. I suspect that was bull. In reality it was probably more a physical representation of the metaphorical: bend over and kiss your ass goodbye…
Nothing like an apocalypse drill to make an impression on your school day.
And while we did manage to escape the ’80s without triggering an apocalypse, I’ve been drawn to apocalyptic fiction ever since. And space travel. Because I’ve always figured that if we can conquer space travel—true space travel—we’d be smart enough and united enough as a planet to stop threatening each other with nuclear war. At least one can hope…
Naturally, WMG has a book series that addresses all of that. It’s Dean Wesley Smith’s Seeders Universe series and it’s the subject of our latest Kickstarter, the Rescue Two: A Seeders Universe Kickstarter.
This Kickstarter, in case you haven’t checked it out yet, has really taken off, and we couldn’t be more thrilled.
Since, as of this morning, we’ve already hit eight stretch goals, here’s what you will get with any reward you choose:
Ebooks
A Billion Earths: A Seeders Universe Collection
Life of a Dream: An Earth Protection League Novel
Ball of Confusion: An Earth Protection League Novel
The End Might Be Interesting After All (short story collection)
Time for Cool Madness: A Marble Grant Collection
A Case for Aliens (short story collection)
Playing a Hunch: A Poker Boy Collection
The Big Tom: A Pakhet Jones Short Novel
Writing workshops on Teachable (valued at $150 each)
Pop-Up #70: WORLD BUILDING INSIDE OUR SOLAR SYSTEM
Pop-Up #71: WORLD BUILDING INSIDE OUR LOCAL GALAXY SECTOR
Pop-Up #72: WORLD BUILDING INSIDE OUR FULL GALAXY
Pop-Up #73: WORLD BUILDING ON A COLONY PLANET
Pop-Up #74: WORLD BUILDING IN NEAR FUTURE SCIENCE FICTION
Pop-Up #75: WORLD BUILDING IN FAR FUTURE SCIENCE FICTION
Pop-Up #76: WORLD BUILDING IN HISTORICAL SCIENCE FICTION
That’s a galaxy of great stuff with every reward.
Click here to read more about the Kickstarter. But don’t wait. The Kickstarter ends Thursday.
And if you want another out-of-this-world deal that you can start reading right now, check out the Aliens Among Us StoryBundle, curated by Dean.
This bundle includes three WMG titles—Aliens Among Us: Stories from Pulphouse Magazine, edited by Dean; Alien Influences by Kristine Kathryn Rusch; and a short story collection by Dean called Alien Vibrations—as well as nine other awesome books.
As always with StoryBundle, you name your own price and can choose to stick with the four included books or go all in for the full 12-book bundle. Plus, you can donate to the incredible AbleGamers charity while you’re at it.
You have a little bit longer to get in on this great deal, but only an extra week, so don’t dally.
Click here for more information.
If there is alien life out there, I sure hope it proves to be smarter than we humans seem determined to be these days.
Allyson Longueira is publisher of WMG Publishing. She is an award-winning writer, editor and designer, working mother, and brain tumor survivor.