18 Thursday Dec 2014
Posted in Fun
Tags
ads, advertising, author, beer, Christmas, Clydesdales, entertainment, fun, horses, humor, lol, seasonal, Stephanie Beavers, writer
A cute seasonal Budweiser ad. I love the Clydesdales. And I do have a soft spot for advertising that’s actually good.
15 Monday Dec 2014
Posted in Life
Tags
author, carols, Christmas, decorations, gratitude, inspiration, life, philosophy, reason for the season, Stephanie Beavers, writer
What is Christmas to me?
There seems to be a strange amount of conflict surrounding Christmas these days. Every is stressed and angry about money or religion or any number of things. These are legitimate things, but I do wish there were less of it.
I love Christmas. I love the decorations (especially the lights), I love wrapping gifts, and picking out the best presents I can for those I love. I love giving people something that they want or need or love. And yes, I do love getting presents too, but that’s not a big part of Christmas to me. I love the food! The seasonal treats and big dinners both. I love that family and friends come together a little bit more often around Christmas than the rest of the year. I love the music. Those songs that we’re only “allowed” to play during this one season, that are beloved for one reason or another. The fun ones and the serious ones. The ones that evoke emotions of joy or worship or, yes, even sadness.
Why concentrate on how we hate the commercialism and the pressure and the obnoxious songs that we can’t seem to escape? We can let those things make us miserable, or we can instead focus on those things we love. Think about the acts of kindness. Think about how, regardless of religion, the season tries to inspire us to be better.
Did I mention I love wrapping presents? I love ribbon. Seriously, whoever invented ribbon was a genius. My cat agrees with me.
What do you love about Christmas?
11 Thursday Dec 2014
Posted in Fun
Tags
archer, archery, author, awesome, bow and arrow, Dude Perfect, fun, lol, Stephanie Beavers, trick shot, trick shots, writer
Just some guys having some fun with archery trick shots:
08 Monday Dec 2014
Posted in Fun
04 Thursday Dec 2014
Posted in Fun
01 Monday Dec 2014
Posted in News
Tags
apocalypse, author, end times, energy, future, innovation, nature, park, parks, post-apocalypse, Science, science fiction, solar power, solutions, Stephanie Beavers, trees, writer
Solar Technology Could Make Underground Parks In Cramped Cities Possible
Good news, everybody! After the surface of the earth has been reduced to a toxic wasteland, these guys will have a way to create scenic nature areas underground. (For those of us who hate how blah and dirty post-apocalyptic refuges are in movies and whatnot, this is excellent news.) The Lowline project seeks to redirect solar energy from the sunlight above on the streets to their underground park, a former trolley terminal. They’re also going to keep some of the terminal’s history alive, adding a little culture to complement the nature they plan to cultivate.
Really though, I think this is an awesome idea. One of the problems with cities is their impact on nature. Parks take up space, precious real estate that people want to capitalize on. “Building up” doesn’t work great with parks… but what about down? I hope these guys get the funding they need to make this underground park a reality. Let’s hear it for a little more nature!
What do you think, readers? Cool and innovative or impractical and silly?
27 Thursday Nov 2014
Posted in Fun
Tags
art, author, entertainment, fun, humor, inspiration, lol, Stephanie Beavers, street, writer
24 Monday Nov 2014
Posted in Recommendations, Writing
Tags
author, books, dragon, dragons, Elizabeth Kerner, entertainment, fantasy, favorite, inspiration, reading, Song in the Silence, Stephanie Beavers, writer
It’s been a while since I’ve done one of these, and I definitely didn’t want to forget about Elizabeth Kerner, so here we go!
Song In The Silence is the book that had a great impact on me. I’m not sure I can pinpoint what exactly it is that impacted me, or even why I love this book so much, but I’ll give it a shot.
I love her dragons. Yeah, that seems like a good place to start. I’m picky about my dragons. To me, dragons are the incarnation of all that is fantasy; they should be magical, powerful, and intelligent. I do like dragons of all stripes, but to me, they’re not truly dragons unless they’re those three things. Unfortunately, not many writers seem to agree with me. There’s a veritable plethora of dragons that are just big beasts, or are entirely evil, or who are completely unmagical. I’m not saying that those writers are wrong… they’re just not my kind of dragons.
In the Song In The Silence universe, dragons fulfill my criteria, so this makes for a happy Stephanie. :D
But Kerner does more than that. She builds a thorough, detailed world. It’s Order versus Chaos, good versus evil, in a very structured fashion. There are clear boundaries set for what can and can’t be done, and who can do it. There’s history, but she manages to keep these details from overwhelming the story. The characters and the story are the most important parts of her novel. I fell in love with her characters and her world.
I don’t know if I’ve done her book justice here, but I definitely recommend Song In The Silence. The two sequels are also very good: The Lesser Kindred and Redeeming The Lost. Love fantasy? Love dragons? These books are for you.
20 Thursday Nov 2014
Posted in Fun
Tags
adorable, animals, author, baby animals, barnyard animals, cute, entertainment, fennec, fox, fun, geep, geeps, goats, Stephanie Beavers, wildlife, writer
Because who objects to starting their day with a few cute animal pictures?
A loaf of baby goat:
This is a baby geep: half-goat, half sheep.
^The above image is also linked to an article on geeps.
17 Monday Nov 2014
Tags
author, Calling On Fire, fantasy, independent author, magic, self publishing, selfpub, Stephanie Beavers, writer
I have some insanely exciting news! (As in I nearly went insane making it happen and now I’m so excited I’m like a chipmunk on a sugar rush. XD)
Calling On Fire is now available!
Two brothers with magical abilities seek to stop an evil mage but find the fate of an entire race in their hands.
For now, the novel is only available in ebook form, but I’m working hard to get it printed as well!
You can buy the ebook here:
Amazon.com | Amazon.ca | Smashwords |
Multiple formats are available through Smashwords. Other retailers will become available as Smashwords distributes them.
Novel description:
For centuries, the evil mage Moloch carved out a swathe of destruction, creative in his use of torture, oppression, and outright slaughter. Families, towns, and even whole kingdoms fell before him. But in one village, one boy survived.
Esset’s adopted brother Toman is that boy. Scarred by the tragedy, the two boys swore to stomp out evil when they grew up.
Now adults, they travel the world, seeking out evil wherever it may lurk. Esset can summon fiery creatures from beyond their world, and Toman can make inanimate objects come to life. Together, they look forward to the day that they’re strong enough to take on Moloch himself.
With every battle they grow stronger, but Moloch’s reach is greater than they imagined, and his minions lurk in the most unexpected places. If Toman and Esset can only barely survive the battles against Moloch’s creatures, how can they hope to stand against the mage himself?
Will they be strong enough to defeat him, or will Esset have to choose between his promise to end evil… and his own life?
Stephanie Beavers 