Your Daily Ralph- New release!

Just released- The Cagliostro Chronicles Audio book available at The Cagliostro Chronicles audiobook Get your copy today!

Your daily Ralph- Things to come

Hi all, I know I've been less than 'Daily' about this blog, but I'm going to try to be more on top of it.
Right now, my most recent release is 'The Cagliostro Chronicles III: Into the Heart of Evil' It's the third chapter in the ongoing story of man's first faster than light vessel and the war with the evil Agalum empire. An empire built on control and a never ending lust for power. But there's a new player in the game; the horrific Tahir Ga'Warum. Interdimensional monsters who have come to our universe seeking conquest, as well as a bite to eat. Now the mighty Cagliostro must go behind Agalum lines and seek out an ancient cache' of weapons designs before the Agalum can get their hands on them and decipher them, effectively giving them the upper hand in the war.  Will Mark Johnson and the crew of the Cagliostro be able to uncover and retrieve the ancient weapons designs before the Agalum can? And what of the Tahir Ga'Warum who are looking for new worlds to conquer? How will they be dealt with?  Find out in the pages of 'The Cagliostro Chronicles III: Into the Heart of Evil' http://tinyurl.com/cagchronIII

 

So what else is coming down the pike? I'm working right now on my first real pulp novel. It stars a mysterious agent of the night who must discover more about himself than about his enemies. In 1937 the city of Riverburgh is a small city some 40 miles north of Manhattan, but it's problems are just as big, just as dangerous as its larger cousin's.  It is here that the shiver inducing Grim Spectre hails from. A creature that looks more ghoul than man. His skull-like face forever hidden in shadow beneath his cloak, the Grim Spectre hunts the streets of Riverburgh seeking those that would do innocents harm. Like a glowing, caped ghost he floats above the streets dealing out vengeance with rock hard fists or twin '45's. He walks through walls, and floats through ceilings appearing within criminals very midst to deal out punishment that a corrupt police force is too conflicted to attempt. Where innocents are taken advantage of and beaten or robbed, the Grim Spectre will appear to even the score. But is he man or is he hell spawned demon? Or is he neither and perhaps something in-between? Find out soon within the pages of The Grim Spectre!

 

As always all of my novels are available at http://rlangelojr.com or at http://tinyurl.com/ralphsamazon

 

 

Maine road trip 6/19-6/22/15

Maine

 

 

At 7:10 AM on Friday June 19th I was pulling my FJR1300 out of the shed and getting ready to hit the road when Randy showed up at my gate. He was supposed to meet me at the ferry, but instead came to my house. We said our hellos and I took the FJR out to the road, mounted the saddle bags and the Givi liner and off we went.

A quick 20 minute ride to the ferry and we were standing there waiting, but not too long as the boat was already in and ready to load up.  After the cars (What few of them there were) had loaded onto the big white boat, we followed and took our spots along the right side wall.

We went upstairs and had a light breakfast, then sat around waiting for the boat to cross the LI Sound to Bridgeport.

An hour and fifteen minutes later we disembarked and began to ride. Up rte. 8 and then east on rte. 84 to exit 32 where our third and fourth members of our party were waiting for us. Mike and Maria were ready and raring to go, so off we rode toward Bangor, Maine.

A quick and filling lunch at a Bertucci’s made for a great afternoon stop a few hours later. We continued on 90 then 290 then 495, around Boston before finally entering on to 95. We continued on 95 and then took that into Rhode Island and New Hampshire and finally Maine, where we exited onto 295, which a hundred miles or so later would re-connect to 95 once again. Bangor wasn’t much further from there and soon we were at our motel.

The Howard Johnson’s was clean enough with a recent remodel, but the constant Mexican’s or South American’s hanging out in the hallways and the parking lot was a bit disconcerting. I even found one asleep at one point against the wall.

But that afternoon we hooked up with one of my old high school friends, Carol, who agreed to show us around in exchange for riding on the back of my bike while I was there. That was a fair exchange as far as I’m concerned. The first night (Friday) we ate at a Texas Roadhouse and then headed out to Bangor and a casino there which we walked around in. Carol drove us in her car and we got the guided tour treatment. It was a fairly early night with all of us passing out around 11 or so.

Saturday started out as a bright, sunny day and we took full advantage of it all. We ate at the restaurant in the hotel and quickly hit the road. Carol was there early with us, riding gear in hand. Our first stop would be Acadia National Park and Cadillac Mountain. We rode around the park, making many stops for photos along the way, until finally stopping at the top of Cadillac Mountain, the highest point in the east.

More photos and some walking around the stony peak ensued.  After a while we saddled back up and headed back down to the main road that circled the park. We stopped next at ‘Thunder Hole’ which was not thundering. That was a disappointment.

We continued our loop of Acadia and then exited at loop[s end to head toward Bar Harbor and a lobster dinner. We stopped and ate at one of the many ‘Lobster Pounds’ that dot the road sides, it’s where the locals eat. 

After a (very) early dinner we headed into Bar Harbor proper and walked around for a few hours. Bar Harbor is a bigger town then I thought it was. It’s sort of a much larger and cooler Port Jefferson. The weather was perfect and the town was lively. We stayed there until about 7 PM and decided to hit the road back because we knew it was going to be dark soon.

Riding back toward the motel some forty odd miles away was a constant battle with the sun. It was right in our eyes almost the entire way back. Finally the road curved enough to the right that we were no longer blinded. We finished our ride back, and switched to the car before heading out for the night to Bangor.

In Bangor they had an outdoor concert going with Fallout Boy performing. I couldn’t get anyone to go, so we ended up in a little bar with a band playing in there. It was cool; I had a good enough time. We stayed there until about midnight and headed back.

The next morning we awoke to heavy rain, so the bikes were staying put. Carol picked us all up and we headed to a local transportation museum. After two plus hours of checking out classic cars motorcycles and trains we headed to a mall where we had a quick lunch and then over to the movies where we saw ‘Avengers Age of Ultron.’ After that we made our way back to the mall where we picked up Carols daughter who was joining us for dinner that night. 

After dinner it was back to the rooms. The rain was still ongoing and was scheduled to continue through the night.

The next morning we awoke to more rain that was supposed to be through the area already and done. We were heading home on that day. The sky cleared up after breakfast and we packed up quickly, topping the bikes off at the gas station across the street. The morning started out at about 68 but when we took off at about 8:45 to head home the temp dropped almost continually for the first hour or two as we headed south. A quick gas stop around 11 AM and we were back on the road.

Now the temps began to rise, finally topping out at about 93 by the time we were pulling back into the ferry yard in Connecticut at 4 PM.

It was a fun and fantastic weekend with a little bit of everything thrown into the mix. We totaled about 1000 miles and had the usual huge amounts of fun and laughs. The riding was mostly highway; save for the 150 miles we put on around Acadia and Bar Harbor, and that was okay. The riding went quickly as did the trip in each direction. All in all I had a great time and can’t wait for the next trip out with my riding buddies.

Lisa M Colins Interview on Ralph's Rants.

 

 

 

Hi Lisa, How are you?

I’m good, Ralph. Thank you for hosting me on the site.

 

We’re here to talk about your new novella, ‘The House Bast Made-Reid Cannon Archaeologist.’ What can you tell us about the title character and the story in general?

 

 



The House Bast Made is an adventure where a young archaeologist, Reid Cannon, learns myths need not be fairytales.

Reid is a Ph.D. student in Archaeology from the University of Chicago. He hails from Arkansas and got his bachelor’s from University of Arkansas, Master’s from UCLA. He is fond of the ladies and likes long walks on any beach where they serve drinks with umbrellas. There is a long line of archaeologists and anthropologists in Reid’s family tree. This particular adventure finds him on one of his father’s worksites. Reid got his nose for adventure from his grandmother Jane Roberts (Her story will be in an anthology this fall). Much like grandma Jane, Reid has an uncanny ability to sniff out the fantastical and paranormal. 

 

 

First off, is this a sci-fi story? I know you’re interested in sci-fi.

Science fiction is where my heart lies, but I wouldn’t call this story sci-fi. It is more of a pulp adventure with some paranormal…genres can be hard to nail down. On Amazon it is listed in the paranormal mythology section.

The genre I write is speculative fiction, and I mostly write science fiction or paranormal. Dictionary.com defines speculative fiction as: A broad literary genre encompassing any fiction with supernatural, fantastical, or futuristic elements. In this genre I can write a love story, a mystery, a court drama, or anything really, and then add all the futuristic and fantastical elements that excite my imagination. The main thing I like about that freedom is my stories do not have to be bound to what society calls real life. I can be as audacious or daring as I want!

There are tons of books out there about real life or some snazzed up version of real life. I read books, watch movies, and play video games to escape reality. I want to see new worlds, meet new types of people, to “Boldly go where no one has gone before!” I want adventure and excitement, not day-to-day fiction based on everyday life. I know there are other readers out there who feel the same way I do. I write for them. I write so that maybe for a few hours out of the day my readers can relax and feel the wonders of the universe—to see something new that sparks joy in their soul.

 

Am I correct in assuming this is your first book?

Actually the first book I wrote is still in my “OMG this needs work” file on my hard drive. However, ‘The house Bast Made’ isn’t a novel; it is a novella of around 40 pages.

Some people don’t like writing short fiction, but I enjoy the challenge of writing to a specific word count. I had a friend once say, “I need 10,000 words just to get my stories going.” Today’s readers aren’t going to stick around for you to finally do something exciting 10K down the road. They have already moved on to the next book. Writing short fiction teaches me to get to the heart of the matter.

 

 

What are you writing inspirations? What writers inspire you to take up the keyboard and start typing out a story?

I find inspiration everywhere. Books, TV, Radio, and Movies make my mind feel like a sponge. My WIP (work in progress) was inspired by an article I read online. The article is about the micro apartments some Chinese people are living in today to save on costs and space in the larger cities. Some of these apartments are only around forty…that’s right four zero, 40 square feet! There was even one that only measured 28! That made me wonder what would happen to the world if overpopulation became a global pandemic. What would humans do? The sci-fi, Jedi, Trekkie, Browncoat, Whovian, geek girl in me has a plan. J

There are so many outstanding writers on the scene right now, so it is hard to choose. I would have to go with Hugh Howey and Michael Bunker…their experience in taking a short story and then building an entire world of publishing around a simple idea—that inspires the heck out me. If you don’t know who they are or their books, prepare to be amazed by their industry.

 

Is Reid Cannon your main character that you intend to write about more in the future? Is he your guy, your hero?

I do have plans for more Reid Cannon novellas and perhaps a novel. The next time we see Reid in action he will be going to South America to one of his mom’s dig sites. Archaeology is a family affair in this series.

Reid is a hero…but he isn’t the only one. I wanted him to have a group of people that will cameo in further stories. We meet his best friend Peter who is Southern good ole boy, who is also a bone specialist. There are two girls on the trip, Ashley an outstanding linguist and Pam an anthropologist.  Lastly, we have Ali, the tech geek, and Jason the historian.

 

Is Reid Cannon inspired by someone else? Is there a real world Reid Cannon?

Sadly, there isn’t a real-world Reid Cannon.

I would say Reid is based off four characters I adore, so I wrapped them all up into him. First, would be Indiana Jones. I love the movies and they fire my imagination. Indie is rugged and daring; I wanted those qualities for Reid foremost.

Second, is the book character, Amelia Peabody. She is the main protagonist of the Amelia Peabody (archaeology mystery) series, by Elizabeth Peters. Amelia’s adventures in turn of the 20^th century Egypt are a far cry from my usual fare, but the books are thrilling. She uses her intellect and moxie to solve ancient and modern mysteries, and I want Reid to have her same sense of curiosity about the world.  

The other two characters I based Reid on are in the same movies. The Mummy series starring Brendan Fraser, Rachel Weisz (later Maria Bello) is a Collins household favorite. Rick O'Connell and his wife Evelyn are a powerhouse couple on the screen. I wanted Reid to have Evelyn and Rick’s blend of noting the necessary minutia of archaeology to solve puzzles and to know when brawn should win out on decision making. What can I say, ♫ These are a few of my favorite things! ♫

 

Tell us all about your writing history. What got you into writing in the first place?

In 2008, I was between jobs and decided I would take up my childhood dream and try writing. I came across NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month. I took up the challenge and wrote a fantasy adventure story that tipped the scales at over 50K.

By mid-2009 I was back to full time employment, but the desire to write never left me. Eventually, I had articles, poems, and essays published in non-fiction venues, such as the state newspaper and journals, but my passion was to write fiction. I wanted to recapture the feeling of freedom I felt writing my NaNoWriMo novel, but I was working full time. I needed a plan.

I love goal setting and lists, so I set a goal of writing one short story a month, and a secondary goal to find publishers who might print my work. As you can guess, I got my fair share of rejection letters.

Rejection is hard, but I didn’t let that hold me back. I went back to the drawing board. Read books on craft. Read novels like I wanted to write. The day finally arrived in early 2013 when my first science fiction short story, The Tree of Life, was accepted into the Holdfast 2013-2014 anthology. I was over the moon!

 

Who are your favorite authors right now?

At first I thought this might be the hardest question, but when I gave it a moment three authors sprang to mind. A.G. Riddle, author of ‘The Atlantis Gene’, J.A. Jernay, author of the ‘Ainsley Walker Gemstone Travel Mystery’ series, and Susan Kaye Quinn, author of ‘Debt Collector’ series and she also wrote a book near and dear to my heart—‘The Indie Author Survival Guide’. That is a book I recommend almost daily to my writing pals.

‘The Atlantis Gene’ is A.G.’s first novel and it has sold over One Million copies on Amazon. I have read the book and I must say Riddle knocks it out of the park. I look forward to reading more of the series. And let’s be honest, as writers we know we need to read to become better writers, but time is also a major factor. So when I take the time out of my own writing to read a novel and I plan to read book two as soon as I’m able, you know the series is a winner.

J.A. Jernay’s style is what keeps me coming back for more. This author writes like I hope my own writing comes across. Jernay has a flare for economy with words. Each sentence is a tightly crafted machine leading the reader deeper into the story without a single wasted mark. The best part the Ainsley Walker series is non-stop fun and mystery on every page. I expect a lot from this writer in the future.

Susan Kaye Quinn has several series, but the one that got my attention was the ‘Debt Collector’. The books are dark, gritty, futuristic, noir. That’s a mouthful, but each word is necessary to describe the series. One of the things I like most is Quinn walks right up to the line of eroticism and fear, lets us peer over the edge, then moves on without mucking up her story with unnecessary gore or sex. The books were produced in series form. I had the pleasure of listening to the entire series at one time by audiobook—An experience I highly recommend.

 

 

Let’s find out a little about Lisa Collins herself, what do you do in your spare time?



I work a 40hr a week job, so free time comes at a price. There are days when I get home I want nothing more than a bag of pizza rolls and a Netflix Star Trek binge. I can find time on my breaks or at lunch to jot a few words down, but those times aren’t really productive. I hit my creative stride around 5pm-8pm, and if it wasn’t for the pesky commute I do at 5:30-6:30ish that would be my ideal time to get my word count in for the day. For now, I write after my shift while waiting to be picked up, then again after diner while I’m hanging out with my family, and on the weekends.

I do have a running racing team called Wookiees for Cookies. The Wookiees at this time consist of my good friend and author Bonnie J. Sterling and myself. We do mostly 5k but we have done a half marathon. Our next races are the Race for the Cure in October 2015 and the Little Rock Marathon (Half) in March 2016.

I have an online persona, Tea and Cornbread. I am a foodie…not a food snob…but I like the vittles! My favorite thing to cook right now is roast chicken, which I make in a slow cooker. I have a great selection of recipes and directions on how to slow cook a whole bird in my second cookbook called Five Slow Cooker Recipes Every Southern Cook Should Master. The complete series is available on Amazon for Kindle. http://www.amazon.com/Lisa-M.-Collins/e/B00PPV5QYO

 

 

Is writing a job or business to you or is it a hobby or is it somewhere in-between?

Writing to me is not how I pay my bills (currently) but it is how I want to pay the bills. I have been taking my word production more seriously as of late. I have a Gantt chart for each of my stories. I am a very visual learner and having the bar graphs show me where I am in a project helps me tremendously.  See how the bar goes from hot to cold as the date for finishing part of the project nears? That is a motivator and cue for me to get my rear in gear. J So I guess to answer the question, writing is a business for me, but it is the industry and artistry that makes me happy.

 

What are you writing next and when will we see it?

I have so much in the pipeline right now. Where to begin…I recently got the rights back to reprint ‘The Tree of Life’, so my plan is publish the short story most likely in July. It is a traditional science fiction story about a generational starship from Japan.

In August, if all goes well with my beta readers, I will be publishing my first novel. Chevron is the working title and it is a science-fiction romantic-suspense story. Here is the back cover blurb:

 

Doctor of Psychology and matchmaker extraordinaire, Margaret Morris, leaves her stale academic career on the Moon for a posting on Earth’s only colony outside of the Sol system. As a professional in relational psychology Maggie is hired by Western Federated Military to help colonize the planet Chevron and keep peace on the space station.

Maggie’s quiet life living aboard the station is turned on its head when newly assigned Lieutenant Mac (Toro) Castoro literally crashes into her office. Toro is a no frills uber-Marine. He sees what he wants and takes no hostages.

Dr. Morris’ mandate is to pick the perfect Eve for every Adam. Keeping her clients at arm length has never been a problem, but Maggie finds that she must disavow her own desires to complete her mission.

Not everything is harmonious on Chevron station. As the colonists begin to put down roots someone on the station is working behind the scenes to disrupt Dr. Morris’ best laid plans. Petty officer, Michael Donovan will do whatever it takes to see that Chevron will be cut off from human intervention. Michael’s religious zeal will reach the tipping point, leading him to attempt the destruction of Chevron station. Margaret and Toro must find the traitor and uncover his plot before the new Garden of Eden is cut off to mankind once again.

 

 

 

Thanks so much for joining us here on Ralph’s Rants, Lisa, and good luck with your new novel.

 

 

Ralph

 

Bio:

Lisa M. Collins has always been interested in Outer Space, Adventure stories, and Southern culture. She was born in Dixie and has always lived south of the Mason Dixon Line. She graduated from the University of Arkansas with a bachelor’s degree in history with specializations in American and Russian history. Lisa lives in central Arkansas with her husband and an adorable cat, Baby Girl, who believes she is Lisa’s co-author. They have one adult son who is married to his high school sweetheart.

Lisa’s non-fiction has been published in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and the Dead Mule School of Southern Literature. She copy edited and researched on Understanding Global Slavery by University of California Press. Her science fiction story, The Tree of Life, is in the 2013-2014 anthology by Holdfast Magazine. These days she edits for Metahuman Press, and is an upcoming creative contributor with Pro Se Productions and Mechanoid Press. She is a Sally A. Williams Grant winner from the Arkansas Arts Council for writing.

 

Where can readers find out more about you and where can they buy The House Bast Made?

Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Lisa-M.-Collins/e/B00PPV5QYO/

Twitter http://twitter.com/coolvstar650

Facebook http://www.facebook.com/lisaauthor

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisacollins

Pinterest http://pinterest.com/coolvstar650/

Google+ http://google.com/+LisaMCollins/posts

Instagram http://instagram.com/coolvstar650

Soundcloud https://soundcloud.com/lisa-matthews-collins

Pen and Cape Society: http://penandcapesociety.com/lisa-m-collins/

As always all of my own books are available at http://RLAngeloJr.com or http://tinyurl.com/ralphsamazon

 

 

Subscribe to my blog! Click on the link at the top of the right hand column to get my daily rants delivered to your inbox.

 

 

New release- The Cagliostro Chronicles III: Into the Heart of Evil!

New release! The Cagliostro Chronicles III: Into the Heart of Evil

Available at http://tinyurl.com/cagchronIII  Get your copy today!



My Epic Adventure!

Orlando extended ride report

 

I left my home at 5 AM on Wednesday May 13th and headed west in the darkness, toward Manhattan and beyond to adventure. After as quick gas stop in Islandia to top off the big FJR’s 6.6 gallon tank I continued west with the first vestiges of sunlight beginning to peek over my shoulder. Onward I travelled along the Long Island Expressway, which was slowly becoming more and more congested with those on their way to work. By the time I was into the low 20 numbered exits I was practically crawling along. I was putting my feet down repeatedly for a stretch now and cursing NY area traffic just as repeatedly. After crossing into the midtown tunnel and out the other side into Manhattan itself it was smooth sailing over to, and through the Lincoln tunnel and out the other side. I stopped at the first rest area on the Jersey turnpike and had breakfast. I was basically alone in the building. It was 6:30 AM. It had taken me an hour and a half to go a mere 56 miles.

A quick breakfast over with, I saddled up on the FJR and headed out. There was no traffic here, heading west on 95. It was a clear run right to the Jersey/Delaware border. I gassed up again at the last rest area on 95 and began to roll once more. The plan was to get through Washington DC after the rush hour traffic and it looked like I was going to do just that. While there were other vehicles on the road by this point, it was not packed or slowed to a crawl anywhere I went. By 11AM I was through DC and headed south on 95.

I was following my GPS’s route and it took me off on I295 for a stretch. Originally I was going to ignore it, but I’m glad I didn’t as I would find out why later on. 295 skirts Richmond and avoids all the traffic that goes with it. The worst part of all of this was that I happened upon an accident that had 295 closed down and I had to reroute. The best part about this was that I went past an awesome aviation museum that had an SR 71 Blackbird out front. I was awed by it as I passed by. It was beautiful. I should have stopped and toured the museum. It was near Richmond Airport I believe.

I continued on and quickly passed into N. Carolina at that point. The road closure had cost me an hour of going in circles and stop and go until I figured out where 95 was. It was now nearing night time and I had had enough. By 7 PM I pulled off in Dunn, NC at a Hampton inn. I was actually heading for a Holiday Inn Express as per my GPS, but that was no longer there. I gladly settled for the Hampton inn. I walked across the lot and had dinner at a steak house there. After dinner I returned to my room and settled in, quickly realizing I left my contact lens cleaner at home, along with a couple of other things.

The next morning I ate an early breakfast at the Hampton inn and rode cross town to a Walmart that was open when I arrived at 7:30. I bought my contact lens cleaner, a belt and some toothpaste then headed back to my room where I remounted my saddle bags and rode out. It was Thursday morning and I planned to be at Orlando 600 miles away by nightfall. The day before I was wracked with back, hip and knee pain requiring lots of Ibuprofen to counter. Today was different. I was pain free for some reason and just rode. I was on 95 doing 200 mile legs, with a half hour stop in between. NC and SC were both beautiful states, while I found Georgia to be a bit boring, at least from I95. There was no scenery there, just constant trees on both sides, like a green wall for a long distance with far fewer exits than in the Carolina states. I exited at the end of Georgia for gas once again and made hotel reservations at Disney from there. If you go, try staying at the Coronado Springs resort, it was a gorgeous place built with Mayan architecture and was just a very cool place to stay.

I entered Florida not long after I finished my final gas stop and rode through what appeared to be rush hour. I rolled into traffic before Daytona where there was construction going on. It was slow going, but not terrible. Soon I exited on I4 and headed west toward Orlando. It was a 70 mile ride on a highway very reminiscent of a New York suburb; a bit too built up and congested for my liking. After an hour or so of this I came upon the heavily congested exit for Kissimmee, which was where I was supposed to get off, but the signs said otherwise. I ignored the GPS and followed the signs to Disney itself.

After riding in circles until I finally found where my resort was I pulled in and locked up the GPS and the Sena communicator. Then I walked in and stood in line to secure my room. Soon I was rolling toward where my room was within the complex of the Coronado Springs Resort.

One of the highlights of the trip was the guy who came to take my bags to the room saw my license plate and was amazed that I rode down to Orlando from New York. That was cool.

The next day I met up with my brother, his wife and their kids and spent the day in the Magic Kingdom. I have to say it was great. I didn’t realize how much I missed that place. I had a great time.

The next day they left and headed home and I went to Hollywood studios on my own. I saw a great auto stunt show and the Indiana Jones stunt spectacular. Then I took the Hollywood movie ride and finally I took the Star Wars Star Tours ride. It was also Star Wars weekend there with actors dressed in Star Wars costumes wandering around. It was a very cool day.

On Sunday I had breakfast at the resort and headed out. Of course after three very dry days at Disney, as soon as I was pulling the cover off of the motorcycle it started to pour. I took off anyway. I was already checked out and it was after 11AM  so off I went. The rain stopped after a few minutes and I entered onto I4 and ran quickly into a traffic jam. It turned out there was a minor fender bender a few miles up, but the rain started again while I was standing there on the highway stopped.

The rain passed quickly and I began heading east on I4 for 70 miles. I entered I95 and hesitated about going to Daytona, but I figured I was still some miles away from it. Boy was I wrong! As I passed on the highway I saw the racetrack from 95. I was kicking myself for not getting off and checking it all out, but it was already about 93 out and I wanted to get out of Florida as fast as possible. I exited after a total of a hundred miles and grabbed a quick bite at a cracker barrel. I spent an hour there, not planning on doing more than 500 miles on Sunday, so I was taking my time. After lunch I rolled out and gassed up again. I was averaging almost 46 miles per gallon on the FJR, which is the most I ever did with it. I had switched to high test for this trip, just to see if there was a difference, and there was. I was getting almost 7 MPG more with the high test.

Now I was rolling. There were few cars or trucks around me and I was making great time. I entered Georgia and went most of the way through it before I hit my 200 mile mark. Once there I searched out gas and filled up. I took a short break in Burger King and rehydrated.

After a half hour I was astride the mighty steed once again and heading back to 95. Now I was making time along 95. Within minutes I was back in South Carolina. I rode a bit further than I wanted to. I had come upon a town whose name escapes me, but it had lots of hotels and restaurants there. I should have called it a night there but instead I kept going.

I passed ‘South of the Border’ once again and was entering North Carolina. I rode now looking for either a Holiday Inn Express or Hampton Inn, and passed a Hampton that did not have a sign on the road. Cursing, I continued on as the next exit to turn around at was some miles away. I just kept heading north. Now I was using my GPS as I rode to find a hotel. I was almost at the 600 mile mark for the day when I came upon Fayetteville, NC. I saw there was a Hampton Inn off of the exit according to the GPS and headed for it. Once there I found there was a ‘Ruby Tuesday’ in the same lot. I locked the bike up after emptying the bags and covered it for the night. I walked over to the Ruby’s and started talking to the bar tender. When I asked about how safe the area was I got an odd look. I was told that it was not so safe. He pointed down the road and told me it was kind of sketchy in that direction. Great. That meant sleeping with one eye open and on the bike all night.

But I had nothing to worry about. The night passed quickly, I checked outside my door several times and never saw a problem. Monday morning I was on the road by 10AM after breakfast, and heading north toward Richmond. The plan today was NOT to go through DC and then Jersey, but instead to head North West on I64 to I81 and then end up in Pine Grove, Pa for the night.

Mother Nature had different ideas though. I ended up running into on hell of a downpour on 95 going through Richmond. Of course there was an accident ahead so I was trapped and unable to go anywhere for cover. I pulled off at an exit into what appeared to be a ghetto. I rode for several blocks and the area cleaned itself up visibly. The rain had also stopped, even though I was soaked at this point. I found my way back to 95 and finally veered off at 64, heading away from Richmond. 64 was a nice two laner with trees and good views of the surrounding mountains. I headed toward 81 at a good clip and after a few hours ran back into another soaking storm right around Waynesboro, Va. Enough was enough, I had only covered 300 miles for the day, but that would have to do. I pulled off and found a Holiday Inn Express that I had stayed at a few years ago with some friends and parked it for the night.

Tuesday morning I ate inside the Holiday inn and was on the road by 8:45.  I headed up 81 and continued for hours, crossing first the West Virginia state line, then the Maryland and finally the Pennsylvania border. I continued on for another 200 mile leg and stopped in Pine Grove, Pa for lunch and gas. After a half hour I was back to it. I had approximately 90 miles to go to get to the 81/84 interchange and that was my destination. I kept checking the Sirius traffic reports for NYC and as usual crossing into and through the city was a disaster, so screw it I’d take the long way that I never had to stop moving on.  I was soon rolling onto 84 and heading east. I was 75 miles from 684 and moving. The countryside up this way is beautiful with lots of mountains and great curves in the highway.

After a short while I was heading down 684 to the hutch which was a mess as usual. But it cleared up past Scarsdale. Soon I was crossing the Whitestone Bridge and then on to Cross Island Parkway which was at a dead stop. I moved across the parkway slowly and finally came upon the Long Island Expressway. It was rush hour, I was screwed. They had the overhead signs lit up telling about the road being closed at exit 56, and I was at exit 30.

Traffic was heavy up to exit 41 and then it cleared up. I rolled until exit 52 where it began to slow down. I exited at 53 and headed south to the southern state parkway and then the Sunrise Highway and continued east to Nicolls rd. and home.

It was a 2700 mile adventure that I loved every minute of (Well, just about every minute of. The down pours really sucked.)

I can’t wait for the next great adventure!

Videos from the ride  https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLSH6uA9IPOHvn6_3O7-3Oo02duJty4-bo

Photo's from the ride https://www.dropbox.com/sh/72x8r9hwokombs2/AADAncz4vPKk6_ztTh_fMVgBa?dl=0

 

Ralph’s Rants interviews Chuck Dixon

 

This week on Ralph’s Rants we have the pleasure of interviewing a man who really needs no introductions if you’ve read comics or novels in the past 20+ years. Chuck Dixon wrote Batman and many of the titles in the Batman family (Nightwing, Robin, Birds of Prey etc.) for many years. He and his equally well-known artist/collaborator/friend Graham Nolan created Bane, the villain who broke Batman’s back in the early 90’s.

Bane has since gone on to be featured in ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ as well as the deplorable George Clooney Batman movie, ‘Batman and Robin’.

Chuck also wrote many comics for Marvel comics including extensive runs on the Punisher and Moon Knight.

Chuck currently writes an exciting and action packed novel series called ‘Bad Times’ which features a group of time traveling ex-army rangers. Chuck also continues to write comics for companies such as IDW and their GI Joe series in particular.

 

Hi Chuck, how are you? It’s a real pleasure to talk to you today.

 

Good to talk to you, man!

 

 

Chuck, what was your first scripting gig in comics?

 

Other than my fanzine work the first paying job was doing the writing and art for an eleven page story for a heavy Metal knock-off called Gasm. It was back in ’78. The first time I got paid just for scripting was on Evangeline for Comico.

 

 

 

What comics did you grow up being a fan of?

 

Batman, Sgt. Rock, lots of monster comics. I fell in love with Ditko’s Spider-man and the fantastic Four were big favorites.

 

 

A personal favorite of mine, which I felt was overlooked, was your Moon Knight series. To me it was the last great Moon Knight run. What were your thoughts on that series?

 

It was fun when Carl Potts was editing it. Mercenaries were big in the news at the time and Carl wanted to ditch the multiple personality thing. So I doubled down on Marc Spector being a former merc turned urban vigilante. It was fun action stuff with an attempt to keep it topical like my work on Airboy. When Carl left the book I butted heads with the new editor until he finally fired me. Or, as we say in comics, “he decided to go in another direction.”

 

 

 

 

Your Punisher run is considered one of the best. Looking back how do you see that series?

 

I still wish I’d come up with a cop character who pursued him. An Inspector Javert to his Jean Valjean. It would have provided the kind of continuity that a recurring villain usually provides. But Frank was always killing his villains!

 

But I loved my time on the character.

 

 

Let’s talk Batman and friends; when you took on that book, did you think you’d be writing pretty much the entire Bat-universe?

 

 

Never. I recall telling Denny O’Neil that I wasn’t sure I had all that many Batman stories in me. I wound up being the most prolific writer ever to tackle the character.

 

 

How did that come about? Did they (DC) just really like what you were doing and decided they wanted more?

 

Denny (and later Scott Peterson) simply found me easy to work with. I was the Batman go-to guy. They needed material and I had tons of ideas. It was my Elvis years. It all ended when Archie Goodwin pass and Denny retired.

 

 

Some of your best Bat universe stories were done in Robin’s series, in fact you actually returned to that at a later date and re-introduced Stephanie Brown (The Spoiler). She was obviously a favorite of yours; if I remember correctly (and I think I do) she was your creation, right?

 

Tom Lyle and I created her as a one-time plot device. She was the Cluemaster’s daughter. We wanted to do a story showing a villain’s private life and how that impacted those close to him. Especially a screw-up, back bencher like Cluemaster. But she took on a life of her own and the fans just assumed that she was here to stay.

 

I know you’re no longer working for DC on anything, and that just surprises me because you (and Graham) had such a rich history with the company. Did they just move in another direction with the characters or did you decide it was time to move on to other things?

 

We grew apart, as divorcing parents tell the children. My contributions were no longer sought after and I had no real interest in the kind of comics they were doing and continue to do? I mean, have you seen their “new” Superman? He looks like a sissified gym rat.

 

 

Today you’re doing more work for IDW with GI Joe and a new project called ‘Winterworld.’ What’s Winterworld about?

 

It’s about the near future, a generation or two away, when the entire planet is frozen over. It’s really the story about Scully and Wynn; two people who form a bond in a world hostile to them. Oh, and a pet badger. It’s bloody, down stuff for the most part with some dark laughs here and there.

 

 

You wrote a series of novels called ‘Seal Team Six’, are those based in fact?

They’re based on my own research and whole bunch of stuff I made up. It’s what I imagine those guys do and what they’re like.

 

Are you still writing anymore Seal Team Six novels?

 

We’re talking.

 

Let’s move on to ‘Bad Times.’ This has been a personal favorite of mine since you started writing them I think almost two years ago. They are a quirky action packed series of books about these ex-soldiers who are hired by a brother and sister team of scientists that have created a time machine and are able to traverse the past. These are great reads full of danger and action/adventure. How did they come about? What made you think “Hey time travel and soldiers, that’s gotta be fun?”

 

I love time travel stories with a passion. And I have a toy soldier fascination with anything military. And I’m a history nut. It seemed like a no-brainer. Though my wife hates it when I write time travel and alternate universe stuff. She says it makes me schizoid. She might be right. The Bad Times books give me an excuse to do research and imagine the world of the past. They’re problem solver stories both for me and the characters. The logistics of small unit ops in the past fascinates me. Apparently others share that fascination as they sell steady.

 

 

 

 

There are three books in the ‘Bad Times’ series so far, the most recent being ‘Avenging Angels.’ When will the fourth be out? After that amazing ending I know I’m waiting for it.

 

I’m two weeks from completing Bad Times Book Four. It’s called Helldorado. The Rangers go back for a man they left behind. It’s their longest exposure yet to the past and especially prehistory. It gets nasty and bloody and primeval. I’m dedicating it to Edgar Rice Burroughs. I rarely dedicate books but couldn’t help myself this time.

 

 

So what have you planned for the future, beyond more ‘Bad Times’, anything you can share with us at the moment?

I have the first of my Levon Cade books out. It’s called Levon’s Trade, It’s a return to the kind of vigilante action stuff I used to write on the Punisher and my fastest selling novel to date. There’s also Joe Frankenstein by me and Bane co-creator Graham Nolan. It’s our 21^st Century take on the classic monster genre.

 

 

I'm really looking forward to reading both of these! They look fantastic!

Chuck, it’s been a real pleasure chatting with you. You’re one of the great ones. Best of luck in whatever you do and thanks very much for agreeing to do this interview.

 

Thank you, Ralph!

 

You're very welcome Chuck!

 

 

As always all of my own books are available at http://RLAngeloJr.com or http://tinyurl.com/ralphsamazon

 

 

Subscribe to my blog! Click on the link at the top of the right hand column to get my daily rants delivered to your inbox.