Authorpreneur Dashboard – KM Aul
TA'AM
Science Fiction & Fantasy
Time has run out. The world as we know it is coming to an abrupt end. Six heroes are all that stand in the way of our complete obliteration. One young child holds the key to our past, a past, and history steeped in myth and purposeful deception. This past is our only pathway into the future as it may contain the information needed to halt the imminent destruction of our world. Raised in a nonhuman world, one child with an ability to travel instantly to any place and any time may be mankind's only hope. Born amid a horrible tragedy, burned and disfigured, she will emerge to join with five more heroes and take a stand against the darkness. Reality is not what you think.
Book Bubbles from TA'AM
The Feral
While it may be a staple of fiction, there are very few historical instances of real 'feral children' being found. One of the oldest stories is that of Romulus and Remus. These twins were the supposed founders of Rome and were set left to die but discovered by a she-wolf who suckled them and raised them as her own. Perhaps the most famous of the feral ones is the story of Tarzan. Tarzan's parents perish after being marooned in Africa and Tarzan is raised by the 'Great Apes.' The odds of any child surviving in the wild for any length of time approach zero. Human infants are just not built strong enough to withstand the elements or obtain the necessary food required for such extremes. In TA'AM, the situation is slightly different as she is raised by an intelligent, if wild, species.
The Savage Child
All but one of the books in the series start with the protagonist as a child. In TA'AM, we have a little girl that is raised by non-humans and is still a child at the end of the novel. The actions that each of these children carry out while still young enough to not fully understand the implications of what they are doing puts them into a special class. They are under 'the age of grace' and not really responsible to God for the sins that they commit...yet. TA'AM, or Judith, is raised by creatures as, or more intelligent than humans. They are still savage by our standards and she, even more so. In this particular passage she admits that she knows of God, but doesn't not really know God. The entire purpose of this 'layer' of the book is to show that while many people may believe that they are Christians, there is a difference between acknowledging and committing. Which kind of Christian are you?
All Dogs DO go to heaven
The misunderstanding about animals and heaven has been a dividing point among people for a long time. I personally know people who refuse to believe on the basis that Christianity teaches that only people have souls. Both are true. People are the only ones that have been imbued with the breath of God, that's stated in Genesis 2:7. But, animals were also created by God and given a spirit. While the two are fundamentally different, they speak to the concept that God does not throw His creations away. Horses are seen throughout scripture as being in heaven. Jesus is often referred to as the 'Lamb of Heaven.' Besides, heaven is a place of eternal joy, how could you, as someone who loves their pet, be happy in heaven without them?
Who We Are
Have you ever looked at your own face and wished you looked different? A better nose, more hair, fuller lips, anything? One thing that I learned a while ago is that our faces and our bodies are only a part of who we are, and not the most important part. We are the sum total of our mind and our experiences. I know that there are some people who seem to value physical beauty above all else. I also know that many people encourage this, they want to watch the beautiful actress and handsome actor. It fuels their imaginations and makes them wonder, "What if..." There is also a movement afoot to help temper this and help people, women mostly, accept and be happy with their bodies and faces. If we look back, standards of beauty change over time. What is beautiful today may not be even close in 100 years. But who we are, our intelligence and imagination, those will always be prized.
Sugar and Spice
Anger, hatred, revenge, all emotions that are hard, if not impossible, to square with Christian beliefs. Does destroying a demon count as murder? If something is not really alive, how can you kill it. These are the questions that our hero in TA'AM faces. When you consider that she is only about seven-years-old, the problem becomes more complex. Isn't a child so young under the age of grace still? My point in writing this wasn't about what TA'AM feels and does, it is about us. I wanted to point out that all of us, every single one, has felt anger, maybe even hatred, even after we have become Christians. Jesus has told us that these feelings are the same as murder. That has to mean the sin isn't in the action, it is in the condition of our soul. We are human and we will sin as long as we live in a fallen world. The only thing we can do is ask Him for forgiveness. After all, isn't that the reason He came into the world?
Repeating History
George Santayana said, "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." Sometimes, those who do remember, purposely repeat it. In the novels we run across, what can only be described as, internment camps. These are similar in nature to the Nazi death camps of WWII. If you don't believe that such a thing is possible in the United States of American, I refer you to the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II with the forced relocation and incarceration in camps in the western interior of the country of between 110,000 and 120,000 people of Japanese ancestry, most of whom lived on the Pacific coast. It is a reminder to us all of the dark nature of fear that resides in all of us.
The Others
It may not seem to fit well with Christianity to say that there is another intelligent species dwelling among us, but I have yet to find anything in the Bible that says otherwise. In fact, both the Old Testament and the New speak of at least one, angels. Of course, this invariably leads us to the question of, why haven't we ever found them? I give one possible solution in TA'AM. More than any other book in the series, TA'AM touches on fantasy while trying to stay true to my Christian values. The book also tries to ask and answer some of the hard questions that nonbelievers ask and/or use as excuses for not believing. I talk about the soul a lot in this book. What it is, and why it is. Of all the books in the series, I think that TA'AM is my personal favorite.
Fighting the Evil
In this third installment of the Senses Novels series, we find our heroine, a child by the name of TA’AM, facing the true enemy for the first time. This is our introduction to IT, the manifestation of purist evil on our world. I wanted to confer a sense of something so overwhelming as to be unbeatable by any normal means. While the worst demons are often the ones that we must face and fight inside of us, IT represents an external evil that influences those monsters. The courage and strength that it takes for TA’AM to even speak in the face of this horror is enormous. We all face these kinds of trials; it’s whether we allow them to break or strengthen us that makes the difference.
SYNESTHESIA
Science Fiction & Fantasy
Time has run out. The world as we know it is coming to an end and a handful of heroes are all that stand in the way of the final darkness. Born in an age of brutality and miracles, Eli was raised from the dead to start a new life unlike any other. His touch can heal; his pain can destroy. He has not only seen the rise and fall of civilizations, his power has been the cause of them. Prepare yourself for an adventure through time, prepare to face the greatest challenge humankind has ever known.
Book Bubbles from SYNESTHESIA
War Through Terror
I recently read an article that talked about how the concept of 'all out nuclear war' was outdated. Instead, the article surmised, we are faced today with the probability of a singular atomic weapon either being detonated within a city or delivered via missile from a 'rogue nuclear country,' such as North Korea. The thrust of the article was, back in the 1960's through the early 1980's, people would look for and seek refuge in Fallout Shelters. Today, these places have fallen into disrepair and the signs for them are disappearing. Basically, the author stated that the experts recommended that in the event of a nuclear terrorist act, people stay indoors. Try to find places without windows and that have a lot of concrete walls. Unfortunately, this ignores the greatest weakness of any such structure, the roof. The fiberglass insulation in an attic is great for trapping and holding small particles of radioactive dust. Not exactly someplace that you really want to be around. The point I am trying to make is that the only sure way to survive a nuclear incident is to prevent one from happening.
HC SVNT DRACONES
The title of is from the only Roman map known to contain this phrase. It means, "Here are dragons." In ancient times when this was placed on maps, it typically meant that the area was unexplored or unknown. I have to wonder at the fact that it was on a Roman map as they tended to be pretty literal in what they said. Dragons and Christianity are nothing new. What is different in Synesthesia is the way that dragons are viewed. The West has always seen the beasts to mean something evil, while in Eastern cultures they are beings of wisdom, certainly to be avoided if possible, but not usually inimical to man. While I have never seen them worshiped, dragons in places such as China are treated with respect. They have a prominent place in their arts. In Synesthesia, I look at Job and the description of Leviathan, and I see a dragon, something that God seems to be proud of by the way it is worded.
Cities Lost In Myth
In Synesthesia you will find a lot of history. You will also find much possible history and some outright myth. The story of Liqian is in the category of possible history. In extreme northern China, supposedly, archaeologists have uncovered evidence that suggests there may have been a city founded by Romans. Small statues and coins have been found. Other archaeologists say that it is a fake and that no Roman city was or could ever have been built in China. Still, the story persists. There were wars with the Parthians and Rome did not always come out the victor. The account of the loss of over 10,000 soldiers was recorded by Rome. That is a lot of people to have to guard and feed. It is entirely possible that they were freed to live or die and that they tried to make a life for themselves in China, eventually being absorbed into the native population.
Color Blind
In this volume from the series, our hero encounters people of many races. One of the things that you may notice as you read is that he does not treat anyone any different. That's because, to his mind and eye, they are not. It is interesting to note that in the ancient world, there didn't seem to be anything that we would call discrimination today. This kind of 'hatred' is not instinctual or natural, it is a learned behavior, usually passed down within a family. It most often stems from fear. That's right, prejudice and discrimination are indications of a coward. And, don't kid yourself, it is found in every race and every color. It's time that we took a page from our ancient history and outgrew such stupidity.
WIN A FREE AUDIOBOOK
He can heal with a touch and destroy without a thought. Your pain is his pain, his pain is an unstoppable force. Win a FREE Copy of SYNESTHESIA, the Audio book by signing up to receive contest notifications and freebies by going to my Blog: http://www.kmaulsbookshelf.com This contest is open to members on my special email list only. No purchase is necessary. The winner will be randomly drawn and announced on December 1, 2017.
Ark-aeology
The lost Ark of the Covenant evokes images of an ornate golden box with two angels atop it. What people seem to forget is that this was a holy object built by hand in the wilderness. The gold was hammered, not cast, and it is likely that it none of the renderings that we have of it today look anything like the real thing. Was the ark real? I have to believe that it was. I say this not only because I believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God, but because we have been archaeological evidence of many places and things in the Bible. Anyone with even a small amount of reason would find it hard to believe that the detailed description for the building of the ark was just something written down as a lark. In Synesthesia, I give one possible explanation as to what happened to the ark. Will we ever really know? That's up to God.
Love Is Eternal
A fair portion of Synesthesia is as much romance novel as it is science fiction/fantasy. I am convinced that men are more romantic than women, most just won't admit it. I know several romance novel authors, we all tend to hang around the same circles, and every one of them is male! In the novel, death does not break the bond of love that our hero has for the woman that he married. The pain of this is only made more acute by the fact that Eli has a lifespan 25 or 30 times that of the average person. Most of us will face a time of loss. Will you bemoan the fact that you lost the person, or will you celebrate the life that you had together?
We Have A Friend
I recently wrote a Blog post about knowing Jesus in the flesh. This is one of the parts of the novel where I show how much of a real person He was. Remember that, even though He was God incarnate, He was also a man living among men. Far too often we forget that this is one of the reasons that we can have a personal relationship with Jesus. He is not a deity made of stone or impersonal nature, He was a living, breathing person while He was among us. I read something recently that I think would be exactly the kind of thing He would have done: Jesus at the last supper; "Really, someone brought wine?" That would have had the entire room laughing if you think about it.
Ages of Miracles
We live in an age of technological miracles. Is it so hard to believe that there may have been other ages similar to ours? We know that the ancients had machines that told them the positions of the stars and planets. Many mythological figures had intelligent owls as companions. Merlin was one example. In the novels, I wanted to bring some wonder back into our world. While Synesthesia has its share of war, pain and tragedy, it also has a measure of joy and laughter. I want to share this with you, the reader. To that end, I am running a special Kindle Countdown starting Monday, Sept. 11, 2017. For a couple of days you will be able to download Synesthesia at a substantially reduced price (starting with $0.99!) Please use the Buy button to access the book.
Battle
Before the invention of night-vision technology, warfare was limited to the hours of dawn to dusk. While some 'sneak attacks' were carried out under cover of darkness, this was risky as your own troops stood as much chance of being in harm's way as the enemy. In SYNESTHESIA there are many battles as war is one of the constants in mankind's history. From a historical perspective, we tend to think in terms of numbers wounded and killed in war. From the viewpoint of the warrior on the field, it was and is about their own survival at that moment. People who have no care for their own life or safety cannot be trusted to worry about anyone else. Still, it stirs the heart to see one's own leader take part in the fight.
The Curse of Immortality
At least once in our lives we all wonder what it would be like to live forever. It is part of what draws so many people to 'good vampire' stories, if there are such a thing. In Synesthesia, our hero has such a long life as to be considered immortal. Imagine though, living for over 2000 years, watching everyone you have or could ever love turn to dust while you continue on. Imagine not only the wonders that you would see in that time, but the wars and inhumanity. Eli, the hero, is tempered in his feelings by having a very real relationship with Jesus, forged when Jesus still walked the earth. Consider how lonely Eli's life must be. Could you, could any of us, walk in his shoes?
DULCET-Book Two of the Senses Novels
Science Fiction & Fantasy
Born deaf, her song will change the destiny of our world. Like each of the six heroes that have chosen to stand in defense of our world, Laya has a handicap that has somehow endowed her with a unique talent, an ability far exceeding anything that humanity has ever known. The Senses Novels continues with Dulcet where you will meet Laya, a girl with an almost unimaginable power. In this second installment of the Senses Novels series, you will experience Laya’s life as she attempts to learn how to deal with an immense ability that she cannot control. Reality is not what you think.
Book Bubbles from DULCET-Book Two of the Senses Novels
Conspiracy
Conspiracy theories have been with us since ancient times. Rulers in Egypt would have people routinely killed on the mere suspicion that they were plotting against them. It has been so all through history. The problem is that most of the time, people are just too busy to worry about being part of some silly conspiracy. I can tell you without a doubt that the concentration camps existed, I had relatives that were in them. The moon landing was real, my own father helped to make it a reality. The twin towers were hit by two planes, a friend of mine saw it and saw the result. Was there a second assassin on the 'grassy knoll' and was the Lusitania purposely set up? I can't answer those, but the simplest answer is usually the correct one.
Terror In The Streets
Terrorism is murder. Dignifying it by giving it a special name seems ludicrous to me. The killing of innocents is not sanctioned in ANY holy book including the Koran. Humans, justify their despicable acts in so many ways that to try to list them here is impossible. But, to say that one is murdering in the name of God or for the sake of freedom is to put yourself at the level of basest criminal. In DULCET, 'They' revel in death and pain. 'They' are not human. Perhaps that is the problem, the ones committing these acts of terror are no longer human either.
Mourning
Imagine having the power to shatter the planet and not knowing how to control that ability. Now ask yourself, what kind of pain would it take to do such a thing? When we lose someone that we love, a person that is so close to you that the it feels as though you are being ripped apart at the loss, what can you do? There is a saying, 'Pain shared is diminished, love shared is multiplied.' In DULCET, I have attempted to bring both of these elements into play. This is complicated by our hero not having any kind of conscious control over what her ability does. She only knows that it WILL do something. I have often wondered why Christians mourn when they know that they will see their loved one again? In a sense, it is selfishness. But it is also an expression of love. Read my blog at http://www.kmaulsbookshelf.com/ and enter to win a free audiobook worth $25.00 when you join my email partners.
Is There Evil In All Of Us?
I came to Christianity later in life than most. To be honest, I struggle with the concept of 'being born into sin.' This hearkens back to the idea that the sins of the father must be passed on to the next generation. This is a burden of guilt laid upon our entire species. I don't expect the world to be fair, but what are our chances if the deck is that heavily stacked against us? I know that Christ paid the price for the sins of man, or at least for those that accept Him, still, are we really born with evil as a part of our nature? I would have to say, based on some of the cruel actions I've seen the youngest of children do, that it looks that way. I think that it may be a part of the survival instinct. It may just be that we have this duality built into our genes. We are capable of such greatness and such great wrong. We always have the choice.
History Repeats
All through mankind's history, we repeat the same horrors. I try to make this point in Dulcet with the introduction of life in the Internment Camps. If you know anything about World War II, then you know about the death camps. For some reason that I will never fathom, there are people today that are trying to deny that these camps ever existed. I can tell you that they were real. I knew people (since passed on) that had the numbers tattooed into their arms from the camps. They were real and they were terrible. If you don't believe that such a thing could happen here, I would suggest that you look at our own history of that not-so-distant war. We created our own camps, we put Japanese Americans in them out of completely unjustified fears. Pray for our species, pray that we learn from our mistakes.
AURA
Science Fiction & Fantasy
There is nothing you can do and no place that you can hide. Your comfortable existence is about to vanish forever. Darkness is falling, and none of us may survive. Near the end, a handful of heroes will emerge that may or may not be able to save us. The evil that we face is all-consuming, and those that stand between it and us are so very few. Each of these heroes has a disability that is tied to their unique talent. Jacob is blind since birth, yet able to see and manipulate the very life-force that is in and surrounds each living thing. He, along with Rachel and Clarisse, will battle the human shaped simulacrums that their real enemy uses. Survival isn’t just winning this battle; it’s finding others like them to help and winning the war. Reality is not what you think.
Book Bubbles from AURA
Sending Signals
Everyone sends signals throughout their lives. A baby cries, children demand attention, teens change hair color, young adults get tattoos and piercings, etc. Everyone, sends signals. The ones that we most often miss are the ones that are most important. Did you ever have a friend or loved one fighting a silent and lonely fight, depression, addiction, or worse, send you a signal that you missed? Evil loves when you miss those important signals; that is when evil wins. When you make yourself oblivious to others, evil has already gained a solid foothold. Signs and portents, signals we often miss.
Relics
The Senses Novels, the entire series, is meant to be viewed on multiple levels. In this excerpt we see the importance that a small relic has to a number of people. We all have 'relics' in our lives, the things that we cherish and consider of greater value than they appear on the surface. The questions that are raised as the story progresses are meant to point out the fact that little things, no matter what we might believe, can carry a power and destructive nature of their own. How many people have died throughout the course of history for 'things?' I have yet to discover a material object that is worth more than a life. So, I guess the question is, what relics do you have in your life?
Blind-Sight
The hero of the novel AURA, Jacob, is blind in the conventional sense of the word. He does not see with his eyes. Rather, Jacob views the living world around him through the life-force that all creatures emit. For eons it has been known as the human aura. In Western cultures, it is often depicted as a halo. Jacob takes this a step further. Because of his unique talent, our young hero is able to manipulate this life-force. Our perceptions define our realities. However, Jacob's talent comes at a cost. While he is able to see and manipulate the energy of living things, he cannot see that which has never lived. Rock, metal and, yes, glass are opaque to him. Pick up a copy of AURA today for only $0.99 and discover a world that will astound you.
Finding Our Past
There are some who refuse to believe that the Bible is history. This isn't unexpected, but it is foolish since so many of today's archeological finds relate directly back to Biblical times and incidents. There are even some people that think the Ark of the Covenant is nothing more than a myth. You would be hard-pressed to convince the Ethiopians that the Ark never existed, they say that they have it to this day. Is that possible? In Matthew 19 we read, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." So, I would say yes, it is quite possible that the town of Axum (Aksum on the oldest maps) holds the one true Ark of the Covenant. As for the omer of manna, we can only speculate who might have taken it and when.
Knowing Evil
For those of you that have never come face-to-face with evil, I would say that this excerpt probably has little meaning. The day will come when you have a better feel for it. No on in this life escapes it without being touched by true evil at least once. The sad part is that many don't survive that first encounter. There have been a spate of 'mass murders' recently. In some cases these can be traced back to a known mental illness or violent past. In others, there doesn't seem to be any known motive. What drives a seemingly normal person to take the lives of the innocent? In other bubbles I have talked about the root of anger and hate. In every case that I can think of it, these two emotions stem from fear. The greatest tool that our enemy has is fear. If you look into our own history, fear has been used time and again as a weapon of war. If we fear the ghosts, the demons and the monsters, how easily can we be manipulated?
Killing With Economics
As I was writing Aura, I began to look at how the world economic systems were interlinked. Events that effect on economy always seem to affect everyone else. That change can be for good or ill, but there will be an impact. If there is a significant disaster an one of the large or even moderate Stock or Currency Markets doesn't open, all of the Markets show a ripple effect. What is even more interesting, up until recently, when a Market was depressed, gold would rise, when it was doing well, gold would fall. That does not look to be the case anymore, at least not for the smaller changes. Severely depressed economies can cause horrible inflation. When the currency has less value, more and more people will start to go hungry. If you doubt this, I would submit Venezuela as a prime example.
Killing Ground
The idea of a survivable or limited nuclear exchange is laughable. There can simply be no such thing. Any country that has nuclear weapons and either makes the decision to attack or is attacked by them, is going to use their entire arsenal. This would probably mean the end of most life on earth. There is no place on the planet that would be untouched by the fallout of an atomic war. Movies and books such as 'On The Beach' don't even begin to express the results of such a war. Years ago there were two 'made-for-television' movies that came much closer, 'Threads' and 'The Day After.' Even those only touched on a few aspects of the horrors that the world would face. Starvation, burns and wounds, and death on a scale that staggers the imagination are just the beginning. Would you like to win a free Audiobook ($25 value?) Visit my Blog and sign up for my spam-free emails! http://www.kmaulsbookshelf.com/
The Meaning of Life
What, if any, meaning has or does my life have? This is and always has been a hard question, hard to answer, and hard to ask ourselves. Some people ask out of despair, others after introspection. One thing to keep in mind is that the question should not be viewed as a judgement. On the contrary, reviewing the meaning of our lives, what difference we've made, can be used as a goad to do better. Someone who looks at their life and determines that they have made little or no contribution has an unlimited opportunity before them. As long as we view what lies before us a challenge to be taken up, we have the chance to make a real difference for ourselves and others.
Politics As Usual
In Aura I try to depict America slowly descending into a tyrannical state. A time-tested method for doing this, is by instilling fear in the populace. People seem, not just willing, but eager to give up their freedoms if it means that the 'government' will keep them safe. Unfortunately, when a crisis is past, or the threat diminished, the freedoms are never returned. It is a sad example of how some are desperate to avoid personal responsibility and let someone else 'take care of them.' There is a terrible price to pay when all people want are 'bread and circuses.'
Vision and Sight
Our hero, young Jacob, does not see the world as most people do. By any normal standards, he would be considered blind. Yet, he has the ability to see what we truly are. That is the difference between vision and sight. While sight is what allows you to view the world through your eyes, vision is what lets you interpret and define that world. How you define the world is what creates your reality and it is a little different for everyone. We all come to agreement on most things that we can see, feel, touch, smell or taste, but that is all they are, an agreement. I wanted to let you all know that until September 29, 2017 there is a SALE on AURA. The regular price is $1.99, right now, you can get a copy for $0.99! This is a limited time offer, so you'd better hurry!
Depression
I wanted to bring depression into the novels not only because they are, to some degree, dystopian in nature, but because it is relevant to our everyday lives. There are more people that suffer with and have suffered with depression in one form or another than can be imagined. Nearly 7% of the population of the United States suffers with depression, that's 16 million Americans. That is almost twice the number of people that live in New York City alone. Depression is both a condition and a disease. Normally, it is treated with a combination of drugs and therapy. Prayer helps too. I do want to say to all the people who are suffering with depression, you are not alone and there is help and understanding. All you need to do is look for it.
Perception
Some readers have complained to me that everything in the book, up to our hero's college years, seems like an overly long prologue. The concepts behind the book deal with perception and how they affect our reality. In Jacob's case, he does not 'see' the world as normal people do. His world is one of shifting colors and patterns. Most of the definitions that we use for things are nothing more than agreed upon conventions. There is no way for us to know what another person is really seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling, or feeling. We have agreed that certain things are 'red' or 'square' or 'salty.' This doesn't mean that we see it or feel it or taste it the same way. Each person's perception defines their reality. Imagine if someone's was so radically different that their reality was outside the bounds of our world.
Meditation
There seems to be a stigma attached to many of the martial arts when it comes to Christianity. While it may seem in Matthew 18: 21 - 22 that Christ tells us to accept being struck, the passage is really about forgiveness. There is nothing wrong with protecting yourself and the ones that you love. The sin is to do so in anger.
Resurrection
It's hard to imagine someone coming back from the dead. It is harder to imagine someone coming back from a massive head wound where the brain itself has been destroyed. As I wrote this part, I had to wonder how both the victim and the one doing the resurrecting would feel. What, if anything, would the victim remember? Throughout the series, I try to explore the concepts of life and death in ways that I think are different and unique while still staying true to my Christian beliefs.
