July 2012 PKD Otaku

It’s HERE! The famous 25th Issue of PKD Otaku! It was actually out on the 25th, too ๐Ÿ˜‰ I have three pieces in this issue: 1) my essay “Explaining the Inexplicable 2.0” (this is an update of the blog post mentioned previously here.) 2) a book review of Tessa Dick’s “Allegro’s Mushroom” 3) a letter to the editor regarding Ray Bradbury’s 1999 book signing at Page One Bookstore in Albuquerque, where I asked Ray about PKD. And, just look at the amazing eye candy in this issue. Looks amazing on the iPad! Enjoy!

My trade paperback version of A Kindred Spirit (the novel) will be on display at the huge NEA Expo in Chicago, June 30 – July 2!!

I’m very excited because nearly 20-thousand attendees will pass through the book expo and several MILLION will have information about the books and materials at the event. It’s an excellent opportunity for exposure. If anyone SEES the book there, please let me know: jami@aksbook.com

Also, I just lowered the price on the eBook to $4.99 While some authors have dropped even lower (to 99 cents!) many to $3.99, I decided to step down more slowly. I can knock off another buck this summer or fall, but for now it’s $4.99

After all, AKS is nicely formatted with graphics and art. I spent beaucoup bucks getting it in perfect format for iBook and Kindle and for distribution through Ingram as both trade paperback and eBook, so you get what you pay for, right? Some of the cheap-o books are truly self-published with little attention to detail. AKS had many hands involved and is published through a local consortium of professionals. It’s worth a buck more, trust me!

AKS available on iTunes, too!

A Kindred Spirit,the novel,ย  is now available as an iBook on Itunes! That link is a preview, with book info, which can be viewed even if you don’t have an iTunes account.

To buy from Apple, you must have iTunes via some Apple product — iPad, MAC, iPhone, etc. (if that’s wrong, then someone correct me.) I can access iTunes on my PC but I think it’s best to buy the iBook on the device where you will read it. Anyway, it’s on iTunes along with a Free Sample (yes, of iBook!) The entire book is less than $5.00 USย  (about the price of a fancy cup of Joe, makes you more euphoric and lasts MUCH longer .)

AKS is also available via Ingram for Nooks, Kobos, Sony’s eReader, and other eReaders. Of course, it’s also available for Kindleย  on Amazon with FREE sample chapters (and also under $5.00)ย ย  ENJOY!!!

AKS is an eBook!

Here it is — the eBook edition of AKS!! For just a few bucks, you can own the hot, new revised eBook! or get a sample!! If you don’t have a Kindle, no problem. You can get the FREE Kindle app for your PC, phone, iPad, whatever…
then get a lengthy FREE sample of A Kindred Spirit!
(prologue, ALL of chapter 1, including art of PKD in his chair, and a bit of Chapter 2, too!!) Just do it! Thank you!!
Oh, and please post what you think of the eBook!

Final Version Errata

Anyone who has read, is reading or can help, a few of us are pushing through AKS again (the 9.16.2010 print version, not FDO) for final corrections. Maureen, leader of the pack, finds errors on practically every other page. I know some people say I can’t write, but that’s a moot point now (and yes, moot not mute, as some folks say.) I am trying to find and fix as many typos, glaring punctuation issues, and the most abhorrent grammar at this point.

Here’s what has been discovered thus far. Comments with page #. If I have a return comment (other than simply fixing it) mine will be bold:

p 108: in the quote, “Without Peace there will be No Future” – Done
Pg. 110 fixed formatting around Pike’s final sentence.
Pg. 111 Removed Pre-Civil War reference – redundant Mars Hill
Pg. 113 several word changes including “Pike’s persistent pestering.” cause I love me some more alliteration ๐Ÿ˜‰
p 115 line 3: “pretty damn difficult” should that be “damned”? no, do a Google on that phrase
p 117 “the open road sounds better than it is” … s/b “sounded”, right?, since the rest of the context is past tense — If so, it would be “was” not is.
p 119 line 13: “and thought the of a travel column” … word missing? maybe “idea”? (this was supposed to be: Phil had been watching “and thought the travel column was…” typo
p 121: line 2 you say “redhead” but line 3 you say “red head” … s/b redhead
p 121 line 8: you break “thoughts” at end of line … it doesn’t look right
p 122 line 11: “all she wanted a hot shower” … missing a word? perhaps “was”? YES (to all typos/hypens, etc.)
p 123 line 2: since you’re using “fake leather” as an adjective, i think it should be hyphenated?
p 125 line 28: “with landscape like this to enjoy” … like what?
p 125 line 32-33: “apple pie for desert” .. s/b “dessert”
p 126 line 15: “interstate rest-stops” … rest stops is not hyphenated
p 127 5th line from bottom: in 1982 would the young boy have been referred to as “native american” or as “indian”? GOOD — SEE EXTENSIVE COMMENT BELOW
p 128 last line: “that is not the dream that she awoke with” … s/b “that WAS not the dream”

p 126, line 24 … “the ocean lie ahead” – her note said it may be correct as is, but it caught her eye (i think “lie” is right here) Kay thinks lay ahead Her thoughts: I have a strong feeling that “lie” is NOT correct, because when we say “it looked as though ” followed by anything, the verb is never in the present tense. examples: It looked as though the road turned (not turn) ahead. It looked as though better weather was (not is) in store. I reserve the right to be wrong though. ๐Ÿ˜‰

Mo’s third batch (the OMG batch ๐Ÿ˜‰
p 130 line 14: “Indian culture” – you see, here you say Indian, not indian or native american
p 130 4th para: “this travel log idea” — should be travelog or travelogue, per dictionary.com … and this phrase is used numerous times Only when Pike says travelogue
p 131 lines 20-21: “no Need” … s/b “no need”
p 133 line 12: “Remind me Phil, how …” s/b “Remind me, Phil, how …”
p 133 end of 3rd para: “self righteous” s/b “self-righteous”
p 134 para 3 line 8: “writing the Native American” feature … again, that’s a foreign phrase in 1982, right?
p 137 para 4: you use the terms “indian” (l/c )
SEE BELOW — ALL NA REMOVED!!
p 138 line 5: “pony-tail” … i looked it up s/b “ponytail”
p 138 2nd para from bottom, line 1: “Flags-taff” — s/b “Flag-staff”
p 140 line 4: “back-pack” — s/b “backpack”
p 140 3rd line from bottom: “who” … should that be “whom” ???

p 141 para 7: “i didn’t bring any water or supplies”, followed by Koteen tossing her a canteen of water and a bundle of supplies — like what? (added details there.)
p 142 para 4 line 1: “bellagonna” — often used derisively?? YES, supposed to be “dig” of sorts at the white woman
p 143 line 1: “flat-lander” — i think you’re hyphenating it, because you refer to flat land in the next line, but i’m not sure since it’s also a break in the line, but it should be one word “flatland” and “flatlander”
p 143 para 9 line 5: you say “Old Ones” (capitalized) but earlier (not sure where, sorry) you used “old ones” (no caps)
p 143, 7th line from bottom: “marauders destroyed, them” … delete the comma, s/b “destroyed them”
Yes, fixing all typos, commas, Caps/consistency issues, etc.
p 144 para 7 line 1: “alright” … i think that’s a colloquialism, and s/b “all right” instead ??
p 144 para 7 line 2: “some tribes do not” … s/b “some tribes did not” … i think, given the context, but not sure
p 144 para 12 line 1: “flat-lander girls” …. s/b “flatlander girls”
p 145 2nd para from bottom, last line: “he advised she conserve” … s/b “he advised that she conserve” or possibly “he advised her to conserve”
p 145 last para line 3: “well manicured hands” …. i think that s/b “well-manicured hands” since you’re using a 2-word adjective
p 147 2nd para from bottom, line 2: “vision quest” … in previous references you say “Vision Quest” (capitalized)
p 148 line 10: “gathered his incense, and drums and spread blankets” … s/b “gathered his incense and drums, and spread blankets”
Some places I have changed a few words for better flow, resolves some of the “auto hyphen” issues, and improves context. BUT no time now to enter ALL of them here.

p 150 para 1 lines 4-5: “here’s what WAS happening” plus “constant drumming produces” … conflict of tenses
p 150 para 3 line 2: “he could easily tune-in” … s/b “tune in” without hyphen
p 150 picture: i’m assuming the top of the head is not there on purpose, right? it fit perfectly with the text, but i’m just askin’
p 151 line 3: “he spent” … s/b “he had spent”
p 151 para 4 line 4: line break on “po-werful” … can only break at pow-er-ful
p 151 para 5 line 1: “high pitched flute sound” … i believe that s/b “high-pitched” since it’s a 2-part adjective
p 152 para 6: the paragraph starts with “Phil’s mind ….” but then about halfway thru the para you say “he got up to get Niki …” — it took me a moment to realize you’d switched to Koteen, so i don’t think that’s clear enough? Easy fix, new para.

p 153 para 3 line 1: awkward sentence — perhaps “handed a pair of his loose cotton pants with a drawstring top through the door, along with a big cotton shirt” ???? One word fix: handed HER
p 153 para 8: “the girls is also bird clan” — shouldn’t that be “Bird Clan” (capitalized) AND since you say “also”, was there an earlier reference to Koteen being Bird Clan? i didn’t find it, i flipped back to when he first appeared, but i coulda missed it ๐Ÿ˜‰ Made a FAB FIX here on pg. 153 by interrupting Koteen’s confession: “It’s the old way,โ€ Koteen continued. โ€œThe girl is Bird Clan, andโ€”โ€
โ€œDonโ€™t tell me…”
p 154 para 6 line 1: “And, I’ve got …” — should that perhaps be without the comma ?

Betty’s Suggestions:
p 146, line 3 … “learn more how the Vision Quest”
p 169, line 10 … “blindingly” – she thought the word was incorrectly divided at end of line; instead of “blin-dingly” she thought it should be “blind-ingly” … initially i thought breaking it between two consonants was right, but looked it up and i think betty is right. I have to check this specific example, but in general the auto-hyphen function created these. Sometimes I had room to adjust them, but not always. So, I’ll check this and other alleged “hyphen violations” to see how I can adjust them.

p 200, line 16 … “… the agree” s/b “they”
p 214 ejm adds “With them?” to line 3 for context
p 215, line2 s/b cap on Grand (Kiva)
p 215, line 12 … “her pulsed quickened” s/b “pulse”
p 216 star gazer s/b stargazer
ejm findings:
Pg. 222 added “I found outโ€ฆโ€ to solve one of the comment Qs
p. 250 “Come again?,” Jake said. (s/b NO comma)
p. 255 “…the planet Sirius?” it’s a star, not a planet
p. 256 Valis s/b All caps on VALIS (for consistency and because PKD capped it. And this ref IS the actual book. NOTE: when Niki is first hearing the term, and it’s not a book title, it can be “valis” — just a vague term.)
p. 259 “Okay, just tell…” this s/b “just LET ME tell” (it was correct in FDO and I messed it up in final version.)

p 274, line 13 … “where would we eve start” s/b “even”

If you have corrections (not just commentary) please post below. Thanks in advance for your help!