books

  • Gun Runner is out today!

    ByJohn Brown

    Gun Runner on Amazon! Order here!
    Autographed copies available from Uncle Hugo’s here!
    Podcast discussion with the authors here!

    The is 100% Brown and Correia, which means it’s action-packed, full of fun characters, and none of that navel gazing business.

    It’s about a guy named Jackson Rook who works on a crew that smuggles weapons. They’re active in a righteous cause, helping the oppressed peoples of various planets stand up for themselves against the whoresons with the money and power.

    But then Jackson learns something about the current job that turns his gut. And he begins to think they might just be working for the wrong team.

    Will he be able to set things right when just about everybody and everything on the godforsaken planet called Swindle wants to kill him or turn him back into the monster he once was?

    Read to find out.

    If you like action and science fiction, I think you’re going to love this book.

    Get Your Copy Today!

  • Your Chance to Win a Signed Copy of Gun Runner

    ByJohn Brown

    Gun Runner, the action-packed sci-fi novel I wrote with Larry Correia, comes out in February. But we already have copies.

    And I’m happy to announce that this week you have a chance to WIN A STACK OF FIVE SIGNED SCI-FI AND FANTASY NOVELS that includes Gun Runner.

    Sign Up to Win!

    Even if you don’t win, you can still get copies at Uncle Hugo’s that were signed by both Larry and I! You can pre-order one now, and get it shipped to you as soon as they’re available in February.

    Uncle Hugo’s is one of those rare indie bookshops that specializes and knows their customers. They’re the oldest independent science fiction bookstore in America.

    Order Signed Copy From Uncle Hugo’s

  • Gun Runner submitted!

    ByJohn Brown

    Gun Runner, the action-packed, science fiction novel Larry Correia and I have been working on, has been delivered to Toni Weisskopf at Baen Books.

    It was a blast to write.

    This song was played, as was appropriate, in celebration.

    The seed came from Larry’s eleven-year-old son. When we sat down to develop an idea for a sci-fi con presentation a number of years ago, Larry asked: “Joe, what’s cool?”

    The answer: “Giant robots, bandits, and murderers.”

    We looked at each other and said, “That IS cool.”

    And thus was a story born.

    The current description Baen has goes like this.

    “Once, Jackson Rook was a war hero. Raised from boyhood to pilot an exosuit mech, he’d fought gallantly for the rebellion against the Collectivists. But that was a long time ago, on a world very far away.

    Now, Jackson Rook is a criminal, a smuggler on board the Multipurpose Supply Vehicle Tar Heel. His latest mission: steal a top-of-the-line mech called the Citadel and deliver it to the far-flung planet Swindle, a world so hostile even the air will kill you. The client: a man known only as the Warlord. Rook has been in the smuggling business long enough to know that it’s best to take the money and not ask questions. But Rook cannot stand by and watch as the Warlord runs roughshod over the citizens of Swindle, the way the Collectivists did on his homeworld. For all his mercenary ways, Rook is not a pirate. And deep within the smuggler, the heart of a warrior still beats.”

    The book should be available February, 2021.

  • Good Stuff! Mr. Holmes and 13 Hours, the book

    ByJohn Brown

    Earlier this month I watched Mr. Holmes.

    Mr._Holmes_poster

    It left me with this fine peace. With this feeling of goodness and light, in spite of, or probably because of, a number of poignant moments. It also surprised me.

    To write a story like this, to give people this kind of gift…

    What a wonderful, powerful thing.

    Now, it was not a thriller. It’s not an episode of Sherlock or Elementary. It’s not a murder mystery. It reminds me of Saving Mr. Banks most, but also of Miss Potter, maybe even The King’s English. It has that kind of tempo.

    Basically, Sherlock Holmes is a much older man. He’s retired. And there’s a case he’s trying to solve. But, again, this isn’t a murder mystery. This story is about Sherlock himself and wisdom and the beauty of change whenever it occurs.

    The story lingered with me, and I avoided reading or watching anything else for a few days to savor it. Give yourselves a treat. Watch this wonderful story.

    *

    The book 13 Hours: The Inside Account of What Really Happened in Benghazi was the answer to so many questions.

    13_Hours_ZuckhoffWant really happened in Benghazi?

    What we’re we doing there?

    Who are the brave men who tried to save the ambassador?

    It was also a thrilling read in the tradition of Marcus Luttrell’s Lone Survivor. As such, it purposely avoids the political aspect of the incident. It’s not about what the officials of the United States government did, said, or knew, or the political firestorm that ensued.

    It’s not a hit piece on Clinton and Obama, nor is it any kind of defense. Instead it simply documents the events on the ground in those last 13 hours, relying most heavily on what the five American security contractors who rushed to give aid said happened. Those men–two former Marines, two former SEALs, and a former Army Ranger—teamed up with Mitchell Zuckoff, the writer, to simply set the record straight.

    I couldn’t put the book down. Not only because the book’s well-written and the characters and situation are compelling, but also because of the insight it shared into some key dynamics within Libya itself. For example, it helps you understand why the revolt against Muammar Gaddafi centered in Benghazi, not Tripoli. It also touches on some of the currents inside these Muslim-majority countries close to the epicenter of Sunni extremism—Egypt and Saudi Arabia–so volatile. And it shares details, large and small, as only those who experience such things first hand can.

    If you want a fascinating account of really happened on the ground in Benghazi, get this book.

     

  • Blindingly white and female!

    ByJohn Brown

    MaryLeonhardt_KeepingKidsReadingThe Guardian just published a report of a survey taken of 34 American book publishers and found that 79% of staff are white and 78% female. Or as The Guardian put it “blindingly white and female” as if it’s some kind of horror show.  The rest of the article bemoans the lack of diversity in publishing and our society in general and quotes the author of the study suggesting that these percentages should be monitored.

    Is anyone up in arms about appropriate diversity percentages in the NBA or NFL?

    Some might roll their eyes and ask me not to trot out that old chestnut. But it’s not a chestnut. It’s a point–nobody cares, me included. So why care about this? Many industries will be skewed toward one gender or race than another. As long as everyone has free opportunity to compete, who gives a flip?

    Maybe that still doesn’t satisfy. Okay, how about this. According to Humanites Indicators, approximately 70% of degrees in English language and literature in America are awarded to…women. And about 82% are awarded to Whites. I’m assuming these percentages are probably pretty good indicators for the gender and race of folks interested in working at publishing companies.

    If so, the survey results don’t reflect some white woman conspiracy at these publishing houses. They simply reflect the choices people make in college.

    By the way, did you know the United States is still 72% White and European. So it’s not surprising to see roughly that many Whites in these jobs. The numbers might be a little high, but minorities seem to be pursuing other degrees in greater numbers (compare the overall percentages here versus those with ELL degrees).

    This is not to say that we don’t want to welcome authors from all different background. We do. But if you want more men and more minorities, then maybe instead of monitoring publishers, you ought to start by seeing if you can attract more men and minorities to ELL degrees.

    Or even better yet, how about reaching out to more boys and minorities at an earlier age and helping them learn the delights of reading and writing? Maybe if they like it, more of them will go into it as a career.

    The best program I’ve seen for helping kids learn to love reading is the one Mary Leonhardt outlines in Keeping Kids Reading: How to Raise Avid Readers in the Video Age. It’s the culmination of the insights she gained over her thirty-five years teaching high school English and focusing on helping kids learn to LOVE reading. What an excellent book!

    Oh, and one other idea. It might be effective to maybe just skip publishers altogether and help folks go directly to readers as indie writers. Amazon’s algorithms are pretty much race- and gender-blind.