Oct 19 2014

I Think She’s Sleeping WRECK OF THE NEBULA DREAM Weekend Writing Warriors

A fun way to sample new books and find new writers! Here’s the link to the Weekend Writing Warriors central page, so you can visit all the participants sharing excerpts today…

The luxury ship Nebula Dream has suffered a middle of the night catastrophe in space. My hero, Nick Jameson, has fought his way to the nearest lifeboat and found chaos. Some creative editing and punctuation has occurred. As he’s just about finished loading the lifeboat, businesswoman Mara Lyrae arrives, much to his relief. But she refuses to get on the lifeboat, as there are children in need of rescuing…after a brief argument, Nick sends the lifeboat on its way. He and Mara set out to rescue the children, accompanied by Khevan, a D’nvannae Brother (think bodyguard/assassin sworn to serve an alien goddess).

This snippet is after they’ve reached the family’s cabin and discovered a growing hull breach.

The door suddenly released completely, and the two men half fell into the cabin. Mara shoved past them, stumbling over them in her haste, calling to the children.

“Paolo? Gianna, where are you, sweeties?”

“In here, with Mommy, in our bedroom. She’s on the floor. I think she’s sleeping a while now,” the high-pitched voice, choked with repressed sobs, said from the darkness.

The three adults exchanged glances in the gloom of the main cabin.

The Story
Traveling unexpectedly aboard the luxury liner Nebula Dream on its maiden voyage across the galaxy, Sectors Special Forces Captain Nick Jameson is ready for ten relaxing days, and hoping to forget his last disastrous mission behind enemy lines. He figures he’ll gamble at the casino, take in the shows, maybe even have a shipboard fling with Mara Lyrae, the beautiful but reserved businesswoman he meets.

All his plans vaporize when the ship suffers a wreck of Titanic proportions. Captain and crew abandon ship, leaving the 8000 passengers stranded without enough lifeboats and drifting unarmed in enemy territory. Aided by Mara, Nick must find a way off the doomed ship for himself and several other innocent people before deadly enemy forces reach them or the ship’s malfunctioning engines finish ticking down to self destruction.

But can Nick conquer the demons from his past that tell him he’ll fail these innocent people just as he failed to save his Special Forces team? Will he outpace his own doubts to win this vital race against time?

Oct 12 2014

I Gave My Word WRECK OF THE NEBULA DREAM Weekend Writing Warriors

A fun way to sample new books and find new writers! Here’s the link to the Weekend Writing Warriors central page, so you can visit all the participants sharing excerpts today…

(I’ve now set a new record of 9 days without a trip to the hospital or ER so I think I’m making good progress out of the woods. Thanks for all the support and encouragement, Warriors! It has definitely helped.)

After hearing about trapped children, Nick knew he’d stay on board as long as it took to free them. But first, she needs to be safe. “Tell me exactly where on the Second Level and I’ll go – you get in this LB.” Nick reached out to take her by the arm, intending to guide her through the portal.

“No,” She took a hasty step away from Nick, shaking her head vehemently, “I promised that little boy I’d come for them myself, as soon as I found their father, or someone -if you’re going to help me with this, then we have to hurry.”

“I swear to you I’ll go up there and do my best to get them out of whatever trouble they’re in, but I want to see you safely off this ship first,” Nick said. “Now please take your place in this lifeboat so I can seal it and send it – you may not have another chance at a seat on an LB later.”

“I gave them my word – I can’t leave them.”

And she doesn’t……

All his plans vaporize when the ship suffers a wreck ofTitanicproportions. Captain and crew abandon ship, leaving the 8000 passengers stranded without enough lifeboats and drifting unarmed in enemy territory. Aided by Mara, Nick must find a way off the doomed ship for himself and several other innocent people before deadly enemy forces reach them or the ship’s malfunctioning engines finish ticking down to self destruction.

Oct 5 2014

Trapped! WRECK OF THE NEBULA DREAM Weekend Writing Warriors

A fun way to sample new books and find new writers! Here’s the link to the Weekend Writing Warriors central page, so you can visit all the participants sharing excerpts today…

(Friday night was another ER trip (that’s three in three weeks due to medication side effects, for those who are counting – can’t wait for life to settle down a bit), doing ok again now, so just going to continue posting from WRECK, which was my first SFR….)

The luxury ship Nebula Dream has suffered a middle of the night catastrophe in space. My hero, Nick Jameson, has fought his way to the nearest lifeboat and found chaos. Some creative editing and punctuation has occurred. As he’s just about finished loading the lifeboat, businesswoman Mara Lyrae arrives, much to his relief. (Do I need to mention he’s been distracted by her since they met on the shuttle coming to the ship at the start of the novel?) She’s shouting for help.

He’d been prepared to search the entire ship for her if necessary, but now here she was.

Sensibly dressed but disheveled, her hair loose around her shoulders, Mara worked her way through the rapidly thinning crowd, gaze locking onto him. “Please, I need someone to come to Level Two.” His men let her through the cordon and she grabbed at Nick’s arm. “I’m so glad you’re still aboard. It’s the family who was on the shuttle with us – I can hear the children crying in their cabin, but I can’t get the door to open far enough to get in. The boy says his mother is trapped under something,” Mara bit her lip, shoving her hair away from her face, “And they can’t get out of the back bedroom, or won’t try.”

Don’t expect Mara to be getting into the lifeboat, is all I can say!

All his plans vaporize when the ship suffers a wreck of Titanicproportions. Captain and crew abandon ship, leaving the 8000 passengers stranded without enough lifeboats and drifting unarmed in enemy territory. Aided by Mara, Nick must find a way off the doomed ship for himself and several other innocent people before deadly enemy forces reach them or the ship’s malfunctioning engines finish ticking down to self destruction.

Sep 27 2014

No One’s Going to Make It WRECK OF THE NEBULA DREAM Weekend Writing Warriors

A fun way to sample new books and find new writers! Here’s the link to the Weekend Writing Warriors central page, so you can visit all the participants sharing excerpts today…

(Last night was another ER trip, doing ok now, so just going to post something from WRECK, which was my first SFR….)

The luxury ship Nebula Dream has suffered a middle of the night catastrophe in space. My hero, Nick Jameson, has fought his way to the nearest lifeboat and found chaos. (SMT is the name of the shipping line.) Some creative editing and punctuation has occurred. I hope this is only eight sentences, kinda struggling with the medicines and a flu variation I picked up!

“Quiet down now,” he said, watching the people in the front row of the mob, getting eye contact, to personalize his commands, make them feel like responsible individuals, not a mindless, panicking herd.

The blaring sirens and recorded emergency warnings cut out, resumed briefly and then died away in a slowly fading gibberish. The lights in the corridor flickered, causing gasps here and there in the crowd.

“Are there any SMT officers or crew here?” Nick said.

Desperation, fear, and puzzlement on the faces in front of him, many sidelong glances, mute head shakes.

Silence.

“All right, then, I’m Captain Jameson, Sectors Special Forces and I’m taking charge of this LB portal. You can’t all get into this LB – no one’s going to make it off unless you keep your heads and we go about this calmly and quickly.”

Aug 28 2014

Interview with The Audiobook Narrator ESCAPE FROM ZULAIRE

Over at the USA Today Happily Ever After blog, my current SciFi Encounters column is about making science fiction romance audiobooks. I’m talking to actor Michael Riffle and actress Mary Fegreus, the stars of Escape From Zulaire, my newest book to be made into the audio format. The’re discussing how they prepared to bring the book to life and how it was to work together, including on the steamier scenes!

I’ve interviewed Michael before on this blog, when he narrated my Wreck of the Nebula Dream in 2013. I thought it might be fun to pull a few tidbits from the Archives, regarding things he shared with us then, about himself and that novel.

Excerpted From the March 2013 Archives:

Did you have a favorite scene in Wreck of the Nebula Dream? A scene that was especially challenging?
I think the most challenging scene was (SPOILERS!) in chapter seven when [Character X] didn’t survive. I have a really close relationship with my mother, and when the Character thought Nick was her son at the end I visualized my mother saying that and I actually had to stop recording for a few minutes because I got choked up. The dangers of making the work too personal, I guess!
VS: I remember when you were doing the recording you’d tweeted that Chapter made you a bit sad. I’m touched that the scene had such an effect.

I really enjoyed the way you brought each of the characters to life – not only Nick the hero but also wide variety of people he was trying to save from the wrecked ship. What goes on in your mind as you create each unique voice?
I think the biggest influence on what I try to do with my voice comes from your description of the characters. Not just how their voice is described, but how they hold themselves, what sort of personality do they have, how they are feeling during the whole process. I try to equate each character to someone I know, or a character I’ve seen in a movie or television, something to ground it in reality. I might be a little selfish by giving my own voice to Nick. It’s hard to NOT want to be the modest, able-bodied hero who gets the girl.
VS: I had a number of auditions submitted for the book and I have to say I knew you were Nick from the first word you said! It was amazing to “hear” my character and I was in no doubt who I HAD to have narrate the book LOL.

I came up with some unusual words and names, given that Wreck of the Nebula Dream was a science fiction novel. Was there anything or anyone you wished you could rename? (I promise it won’t hurt my feelings LOL)
Hahaha, I was so worried about mispronouncing things. I said D’nvannae wrong so many times when I started this. I think if I could change anything I’d change Mellure, and only because I had a terrible habit of adding a Y to it for no good reason. My mouth always wanted to say Meh-lyoor.
VS: And even though we did some advance discussion about pronunciation, we never discussed the name of the alien pirate race, Shemdylann. You say it differently than I heard it in my head when I wrote the book but the first time I heard how you said it, I knew you had it right, not me!
MR: Haha, and I changed my mind about it halfway through the chapter and had to go back and rerecord a big section.

What was the best piece of advice you ever received?
My mom said to me (on more occasions than she should probably have had to) “You only truly fail if you don’t try.” It’s a lesson I have a hard time learning, but it’s damn good advice.

A few quickfire questions:

Can’t live without: Technology – I’m a nerd to the bone.
Would love to work with: Nathan Fillion VS sez: Wouldn’t we all 🙂
Show I can’t miss: I’ve got Netflix, HuluPlus, and Crackle. I binge watch whole seasons of anything.
Best dinner I ever ate: Went outside of my price range to Cube on La Brea. Good lord. Delicious.

Nick drinks interstellar brandy and ice planet vodka (not in the same glass) – what’s your favorite drink?
I learned this one at the Irish Village in Brighton, Mass.
1 part Powers Irish Whiskey, 1 lemon wedge with cloves, 1 barspoon full of raw sugar, splash of Sandeman port
muddle in glass
add 4 parts boiling water
You have yourself a Hot Whiskey (or Hot Toddy) – Cures all ills, improves ailing throats, and is basically magical.

Buy Links for the audiobooks:

WRECK OF THE NEBULA DREAM Amazon Audible.com

ESCAPE FROM ZULAIRE Amazon Audible.com

Jun 9 2014

Science Fiction Romance Favorite Lines and Guilty Pleasures

Over at the USA Today/HEA blog I’m featuring two interviews on my SciFi Encounters column – (1) Linnea Sinclair and (2) the husband-and-wife duo that make up “Ilona Andrews” . I always like to know what an author regards as their guilty pleasure (if they own up to one). Mine would probably be nutella, straight from the jar. Not that I’ve ever actually eaten it that way (ahem) of course. Linnea shared that Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream was hers and when I went over to see the website, I could totally understand! Talk about the lusciousness of desserts! Wow. Probably don’t go over there unless you have lots of calories to spare or just don’t care! I wanted it all…

I’ll let you read my column to find out what “Ilona” regards as their guilty pleasure….

Both authors share lines from upcoming books, which is always fun.

I don’t tend to collect favorite lines so it’s a good thing I don’t ask myself that question. I do kinda like this from my Wreck of the Nebula Dream, which comes after the hero (who’s a Sectors Special Forces officer) awakens in the middle of the night to find the engines on the brand new luxury spaceliner have been shut off:

“Ship, I want to know what’s going on.” Nick strode to the direct interface console in the bulkhead, keying in a quick inquiry.

“There is nothing to be concerned about, Passenger Jameson. We apologize for disturbing your sleep. Please resume your slumbers now, with no further care.” The AI’s voice was smooth, glib as always. “Do you require a sleep inject, Passenger Jameson?”

“No, I do not.” Nick allowed his considerable annoyance to creep into his tone. “Why are the engines off?”

“Merely some required maintenance, sir.”

“Yeah, right. And I’m a Bengaz silk trader.” Nick glared at the interface. “No one does engine maintenance in the middle of the shipping lanes.”

Silence from the AI.

But then the next night the ship has suffered another catastrophe that will ultimately destroy her and the captain is trying to reassure the passengers. My hero isn’t buying.

“Again, I must apologize to you, my passengers,” the image was saying. “We have experienced a small malfunction –”

“Not from where I’m standing, pal,” Nick said grimly. “Small is not the word for it.”

I guess you can probably see why this novel gets referred to as “Titanic in space”…..

Now if we were talking favorite SF movie lines, I’m always waiting for either Kyle Reese or a Terminator to show up and say to me, “Come with me if you want to live!” I’d go!

Apr 14 2014

Talking Titanic Here and at USA Today

I’ve always been fascinated by the sinking of the Titanic and this year is the 102nd anniversary of the ship striking the iceberg and foundering. Over at the USA Today Happily Ever After blog today I’m talking about why I believe the sinking has captured the public’s interest for so long and also recommending some newer books about the tragedy, both fiction and nonfiction.

One in particular, “The Girl Who Came Home” by Hazel Gaynor, is a fictionalized account of a group of Third Class passengers from the same small town in Ireland, which I highly recommend. I’ve never seen the Titanic Third Class experience brought to vividly to life as Ms. Gaynor achieves in her novel.
A nonfiction book I read a long time ago was “Titanic Survivor” by Violet Jessop, a stewardess on the ship, who survived. She was often referred to as Miss Unsinkable because not only did she make it through the Titanic disaster, she had also been on board the Olympic during its collision with another vessel in 1911 (although either ship sank). And Ms. Jessop was working for the British Red Cross on the Britannic in 1916 during World War I when that ship was either attacked by a submarine or struck a mine (stories vary) and sank. Again, she survived, living to be 83.

I remember her book was very matter of fact about all the adventures she had, including Titanic, and gave a fascinating picture of being a working woman on the great cruise ships in a bygone era. To illustrate the calm way in which she approached her life’s adventures, when the Britannic sank, she took time to grab her toothbrush because, she’s quoted as saying, that was the thing she missed right after Titanic sank! When Britanic foundered, Ms. Jessop had gotten into a lifeboat, which she then had to abandon because the ship’s propeller was threatening to slice the boat in half. Suffering a blow to the head as she was sucked under the water, Violet’s thick hair provided cushioning to save her from serious injury. Eventually another lifeboat picked her up.

Apparently very modest as well as matter of fact, prior to her death, Violet told a friend of hers about a phone call she’d received late on a stormy evening, where a voice asked if she’d saved a baby’s life on the Titanic, to which she replied she had. The person on the other end of the line said they were that baby, laughed and hung up! The friend felt this was probably a prank call, and Violet informed them she actually had saved a baby, on Lifeboat No. 16, but had never revealed that fact to anyone before.

Violet’s Titanic experiences have been touched upon in most of the movies about the sinking, particularly any scene where Thomas Andrews, the shipbuilder, tells a young stewardess to put on her lifebelt to set a good example for the passengers.

I hope you’ll check out my post over at USA Today/HEA for some more book recommendations!

And if you enjoy science fiction adventure, my Wreck of the Nebula Dream is a loose retelling of the Titanic sinking, set in the far future aboard a luxury spaceliner on its maiden voyage. An SFR Galaxy Award and Laurel Wreath winner…

Available from Amazon Barnes & Noble All Romance eBooks iTunes Google Play Kobo

Audiobook, narrated by Actor Michael Riffle – Available Now at Amazon and iTunes

Apr 12 2014

A Small Malfunction WRECK OF THE NEBULA DREAM SFR Brigade Presents

(The link is here to find this week’s excerpts from novels or WIP written by other Science Fiction Romance Brigade group members. A fun way to sample new books!)

Today’s selection is from WRECK OF THE NEBULA DREAM, my SFR Galaxy and Laurel Wreath Award winning novel, loosely based on the Titanic, but set in the far future, on a luxury spaceliner. April 14th marks the 102nd anniversary of Titanic’s tragic encounter with the ice berg, leading to the sinking.

This excerpt is from the moment of the crash, on the second night. We’re in the POV of Nick Jameson, the main character, a passenger aboard the ship:

For the second straight night, Nick was awakened by a ship malfunction. This time he was hurled abruptly out of bed, landing halfway across the cabin, instinctively curling to break his fall even as he transitioned from sleep to full wakefulness in midair. The deck pitched violently underneath him, and Nick was thrown the other direction, fetching up against the bed platform shoulder first with bruising force.

Rubbing his shoulder, Nick glared around the cabin. “Ship, what the hell is going on?”

No answer.

The Nebula Dream pitched to starboard, but not as drastically, and then slowly returned to near vertical. Getting cautiously to his feet, Nick grabbed for his scattered clothes, pulling them on as fast as possible.

“Ship, I want status.” Nick fastened his blue shirt as the deck wobbled underfoot again. The engines are down again, for one thing. Determined to wrest some information from someone, he made his way to the interface panel.

Just as he got there, clinging to the molded desk as the ship shuddered again, the image of Captain Bonlors appeared. Flickering once, the holo stabilized. Amazingly, the captain continued to project unshakable calm. If I hadn’t met the man, I’d be wondering if he was nothing but a well-designed hologram. Reassuring to the passengers or not, no one should be this serene while in charge of a ship pitching and rolling in space like the Nebula Dream.

“Again, I must apologize to you, my passengers,” the image was saying. “We have experienced a small malfunction –”

“Not from where I’m standing, pal,” Nick said grimly. “Small is not the word for it.”

Available from Amazon Barnes & Noble All Romance eBooks iTunes Google Play Kobo

Audiobook, narrated by Actor Michael Riffle – Available Now at Amazon and iTunes

Apr 5 2014

Why Are the Engines Off? WRECK OF THE NEBULA DREAM SFR Brigade Presents

(The link is here to find this week’s excerpts from novels or WIP written by other Science Fiction Romance Brigade group members. A fun way to sample new books!)

Today’s selection is from WRECK OF THE NEBULA DREAM, my SFR Galaxy Award winning novel, loosely based on the Titanic, but set in the far future, on a luxury spaceliner. I’m switching off to excerpts from this book for a while, because April 14th marks the 102nd anniversary of Titanic’s tragic encounter with the ice berg, leading to the sinking.

This excerpt is from early in the cruise, the first time the Nebula Dream experiences some difficulties. We’re in the POV of Nick Jameson, the main character, a passenger aboard the ship:

Moving seamlessly from the depths of a dream into alert awareness, he came awake in the middle of the night. He lay in the center of the bed for a second, trying to assess what had changed in the environment, triggering his reflexes.

“The engines are off,” Nick realized, sitting up and throwing off the covers. He raised his voice to a conversational tone. “Ship, what happened to the engines?”

No response.

“Ship, I want to know what’s going on.” Nick strode to the direct interface console in the bulkhead, keying in a quick inquiry.

“No, I do not.” Nick allowed his considerable annoyance to creep into his tone. “Why are the engines off?”

“Merely some required maintenance, sir.”

“Yeah, right. And I’m a Bengaz silk trader.” Nick glared at the interface. “No one does engine maintenance in the middle of the shipping lanes.”

Silence from the AI.

Available from Amazon Barnes & Noble All Romance eBooks iTunes Google Play Kobo

Audiobook, narrated by Actor Michael Riffle – Available Now at Amazon and iTunes

Veronica Scott

Science Fiction & Fantasy Romance Author

Tag Archives: Wreck of the Nebula Dream

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I Gave My Word WRECK OF THE NEBULA DREAM Weekend Writing Warriors

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Trapped! WRECK OF THE NEBULA DREAM Weekend Writing Warriors

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No One’s Going to Make It WRECK OF THE NEBULA DREAM Weekend Writing Warriors

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Interview with The Audiobook Narrator ESCAPE FROM ZULAIRE

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Science Fiction Romance Favorite Lines and Guilty Pleasures

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Talking Titanic Here and at USA Today

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Why Are the Engines Off? WRECK OF THE NEBULA DREAM SFR Brigade Presents

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