Friday, March 30, 2012

Updates, and a New Novel

Broken links for Laser Firearms and Lightsabers have been fixed.

Please DO NOT ask when new articles will be posted or what they might be, or what they are, because I don't know specifically myself. But harassing me about it--and more than one polite inquiry is what I do consider harassment--will do absolutely nothing to help, and in fact will likely delay new updates even further. Orbital Vector is a hobby, something I generally enjoy doing, and if that enjoyment's going to be sucked away by people demanding things unreasonably, I may delay or abandon updating it altogether.

Please understand that I'm still very busy, and my being able to update Orbital Vector and the Blog here means that things have gone from overwhelming to merely nearly-overwhelming. I'll update when I can with what I can, but it will be on no set schedule, as I still have to prioritize things that go into making a living over this site.

That being said, I do have a new ebook novel available co-written with my occasional collaborator, Phillip Velasquez. Its called DRYAD, a science fiction adventure novelette. Details below, so check it out and buy a copy or seven if you'd like.

Marooned on an unknown planet, xenobiologists Kendra Ling and Mona Favre must confront the mystery of bizarre alien 'dryads' if they are to survive. A fantastic tale of alien contact and transformation.

DRYAD for the Amazon Kindle

DRYAD for other E-Readers and the PC

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

...And We're Back!

Sorry this took a few months longer than I anticipated, but I've finally been able to turn my attention back to Orbital Vector. I just put up a new article on the main site ( Advanced Atmospheric Diving Suits ) and hope to put up a new article about once every two weeks or so from this point on. I have enough material in terms of half-finished articles from the past year (some examples are Spin Gravity, Artificial Gravity Fields, FTL Missiles, Manned Mars Mission, and more), I just need to buy a day here and there in my schedule once in a while finish them and put them online.

I'm still very busy trying to keep financially afloat, and one definitive thing I will be trying to emphasize with Orbital Vector is what commercial opportunities it can afford me, especially for advertising both my novels and freelance commission services. That will take the form mostly of banner ads I'll do up sometime in the next few weeks, so you'll probably see them dissemination through the site as I go along in months to come.

I know that's going to make some of you moan, but think of it as helping to keep me engaged in upkeeping the site that goes beyond just my uber-nerdy interest in awesome futuristic technology. Right now OV makes just enough from google ads to pay for its own webhosting. If it can make the webmaster a few extra dollars beyond that, all the more reason for me to keep updating it. Plus I doubt the changes I'll make toward that goal will have any major impact on the site itself beyond just one or two more banner ads per page.

But as I said in the last entry, one thing that will definitely suffer will likely be this blog. I'll still use it for updates, to promote a new book or such from me, or to point out some neat science or tech article I've read, but I'll be lucky to update it once a month or so.

Of course donations to help keep the site running and healthy are always welcome, and there's a button right on the main site's main page ( http://orbitalvector.com/Index.htm ) for those who'd like to help that way.

But if possible I'd rather have potential donors get something substantial in return for their money, so I'd like to offer the ebooks I currently have online as also a means of donating to OV. Buy the books, all reasonably priced, and you not only get some good stuff to read but also help keep Orbital Vector updated and its webmaster occasionally fed. They're listed below.

THE SHATTERED SKY

A full-length epic science fiction novel. One hundred thousand years in the future, on the vast ruins of a shattered Dyson Sphere, a young Myotan woman's complacent life is forever changed by the arrival of advanced human explorers. Soon plunged into an odyssey of love, terror, and wonders beyond her imagination, she must decide the fate of her people...and perhaps of all humanity as well.

THE SHATTERED SKY for Kindle

THE SHATTERED SKY for other E-Readers and the PC

MARIONETTE

A fantasy romance novelette. In 1870s Italy, misplaced French actress Helen Mauvant finds herself penniless and abandoned. Taken in by a traveling puppeteer, she falls in love with the kindly but frail craftsman. But can even slmed down enough for me to more fully turn some much-needed attention back to Orbital Vector. For everyone who has commented or emailed with their support and concerns during my downtime on the site over the past year, thank you!

MARIONETTE for Kindle

MARIONETTE for other E-Readers and the PC

SELKIE

A science fantasy novelette. In a future Earth where magic has returned, Aileen was a hard working but quiet student, hoping to earn a degree and make a decent living as a licensed wizard. But when a classmate's jealousy entangles her in demonic magic and transformations, Aileen is catapulted into the adventure of her life.

SELKIE for Kindle

SELKIE for other E-Readers and the PC

I also work as a freelance writers (typically ghost writing novels, stories, articles, academic papers, resumes, and so on for clients) and a freelance illustrator (specializing in character and story illustrations, and lately book covers) so if anyone need something like that feel free to contact me at plucas1@hotmail.com

Anyway, hopefully things have calmed down enough that I can more fully turn my attention back to Orbital Vector like it deserves. For every one who commented or emailed me with their support and concern during my down time from the site, thank you!

P.S. I will also address some of the broken links that have been pointed out to me recently.