A Taste of Steampunk

It is time for another post related to All Things Writing.  My blogger buddy, Jay Noel, has experienced many ups and downs in his journey to getting published.  However, at long last, that moment of gratification has arrived.  I encourage you to visit him at his site for even more insight on the characters in his book Dragonfly Warrior.  Isn't this cover amazing????

Dragonfly Warrior Blurb:

The Mechanica Wars: Savage Machines Are Afoot...

At the age of twenty, Kanze Zenjiro's bloody footprints mark the bodies of those who stood in his way to protect the throne of Nihon. Now, the tyrannical Iberian Empire is bent on destroying his kingdom, and they send their steam-powered giants and iron spiders against him.
Zen embarks on a quest that takes him on the most dangerous journey of his life. To succeed, Zen must live up to his nickname, the Dragonfly Warrior, and kill all his enemies with only a sword and a pair of six-guns. He is called upon to somehow survive a test of faith and loyalty in a world so cruel and merciless, it borders on madness.

Book Information: Dragonfly Warrior is a steampunk adventure like no other. It's a dynamic mix of Asian and European mythology, the Wild West, martial arts, traditional fantasy, and high powered steam action that will keep you turning the pages.

Dragonfly Warrior is the first book of The Mechanica Wars, and will debut on January 6, 2014.

Author Bio:

After doing some freelance writing and editing for more than a dozen years, Jay decided to stop procrastinating and pursue his dream of being a novelist. He's been blogging for over eight years, and even had a comedy podcast syndicated all over the internet. All of that was fun, but all the steampunk-inspired stories in his head just wouldn't leave him alone. Jay spends his days working in medical sales, but he can be found toiling over his laptop late at night when all is quiet.
He draws inspiration from all over: H.G. Wells, Jules Verne, Shakespeare, Ray Bradbury, Douglas Adams, and Isaac Asimov.

And Jay loves cookies.

Jay Noel's website: www.jaynoel.com

Facebook

Twitter

HERE'S TO YOU THURSDAY

Before I get down to the trick or treat dedications, I want to apologize for my sporadic visiting this week.  My computer is sick and I am having to use my mom's and well... that just hasn't been the easiest.  Unfortunately, that reading problem also made today's post a bit of a scramble.  It all came out in the end, but I wasn't sure until about five minutes ago.  Yeah, like that.

I also want to let you know that I posted my Battle Of The Bands bout early.  You can click on it here to go to that post and cast your vote for your favorite.  This week YOU get to be the owner of Motown records.   So, get on over there and vote!!!  Now, let's get down to business...


If you don't know what I am blabbering about, it is Thursday.  And that means another post dedicated to all of you and the excellent blogging you have done this week.  So, sit back and enjoy.  It's HERE'S TO YOU DAY!!!

This is a weekly event landing typically on Thursdays.  The best (or worst) part is that I am not going to explain why I chose "whatever" footage for each of you. If, you watch your footage and are scratching your head at the end, well that means I didn't do a very good job. However, all is not lost. You can email me at rarichards68@gmail.com and ask me what I was thinking when I chose that particular piece of footage off of youtube and connected it to you. And then I will tell you. Then I will start sending up prayers that I haven't offended the crap out of whoever is on the receiving end of that email....lol. Because, honestly, I will tell you right now... I admire all of you enormously so I really hope that doesn't happen.

Also, this is not an exclusive venture by any means. I hope that you will take the time to watch ALL of the footage because I don't pick bad footage:-) I also hope that you might check out the blog of the person I dedicated the footage to because they are pretty darn awesome. If you haven't figured this out yet... I pick the footage based on something that you've written or something that I've gleaned from your personality. Think on that for a while... If you are having trouble watching the entire video (meaning it is being cut off on one side), click on it a couple of times and it will take you straight over to youtube. If you click on the four squares at the bottom corner of the video, it will enlarge it to fill your screen. The escape key will bring it back to normal size. The back arrow will bring you back to my page.

Now, let's get this PARTY STARTED!!!!

This one is for everyone:


This one is for Red Shoes at Red Shoe's Chronicles:


This one is for Alex J. Cavanaugh:


This one is for L.G. Smith at Bards and Prophets:


This one is for Arlee Bird at Tossing It Out:


This one is for Al Diaz at Father Dragon Writes:


This one is for Susan Gourley/Kelley at Susan Says:

BATTLE OF THE BANDS TAKE VII

For those of you not keeping up with this sort of thing, my HERE'S TO YOU post falls on Thursday the 31st.  Battle of the Bands is on the 1st of each month.  That is just not working out well for this blog.  So, I am going to run my Battle of The Bands post a few days early so that it isn't backing right up on my Thursday post.  Make sense?  Yeah, I thought so.

So, today is another face-off in Battle of The Bands.  Woohoo!

I am going to take just a moment and tell you that blogs, like life, simply do not go as planned.  I had a totally different match-up slated for today.  That all changed when I posted on Monday (Spin City).  At the end of that post I referenced some lyrics from the song I Heard It Through The Grapevine.  And then THAT song was on my brain.  I quite unintentionally did an Arlee Bird tease about my BOTB song.  Ha!

So I went on to Wikipedia to see what light it had to shed on this song.  The song was written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong for Motown Records in 1966.  First to record it was Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, but Motown Owner, Berry Gordy, rejected it.  Marvin Gaye then recorded it but Berry Gordy rejected it.  Gladys Knight & The Pips recorded it and Berry Gordy decided that was the Winner!  It went to #2 on the Billboard charts.  They released it as a single in September 1967.  However, Marvin Gaye must have really liked the song because he added it to his 1968 album In The Groove.  Radio disc jockeys started playing the song and Gordy finally agreed to release it as a single.  It went to the top of the Billboard Pop Charts and stayed there for seven weeks AND became the biggest hit single on the Motown label.

As an aside, Credence Clearwater Revival (CCR) also recorded the song on their 1970 album Cosmo's Factory.  You can go listen to it if you want on YouTube.  It sounds very CCR.  Not saying that is a bad thing... or a particularly good thing, in the case of this song. (source)

Today's match-up is Marvin Gaye vs. Gladys Knight & The Pips.  Barry Gordy took a pass on Marvin Gaye's version in favor of Gladys & The Pips.  The public (by and large) disagreed with him, but that was back in the late 60s.  The question is this: Was Gordy right to choose Gladys & The Pips over Marvin Gaye????  Today, we will pretend that you are the owner of the Motown label.  Which version is better?  You be the judge!

The man who recorded it second... Marvin Gaye:



And Gordy's favorite... Gladys Knight & The Pips:


Remember YOU are the owner of Motown this time around, so vote in the comments.  And PLEASE tell me why you think one song is better than the other.  You have until the 7th to get your votes in... it will be in that week's Thursday post.

Blogs that will be posting Battle of The Bands on the 1st:
Far Away Series, FERRET-FACED FASCIST FRIENDS, Tossing It Out, DiscConnected,
and Alex J. Cavanaugh

I hope you check them all out.  In the case of the first three there are prizes to be won just for voting!