Holiday Jamboree 2014!

It's Christmas Eve and all across the GZ universe things are getting pretty festive! Some heroes use their amazing powers to bring even more color and joy to the season. Some give gifts like only they know how! On Earth we find PAC and friends sharing in Christmas spirit!

Sandstorm is the one guy who can BE the tree! He visits disabled children over the holidays and lets them decorate him. Fun for all ages! What does he want for Christmas? Sandstorm has a model car collection that impresses the most hard core collectors. The rarer the car the better, but he'll take anything.

Need someone to power the lights? Electrode powers a full light show at Rockefeller center every year. His favorite gift to give? Rechargeable batteries of course! He's a comic book collector with over 30,000 books. He doesn't care what the story is, he just loves comic books. So comic paraphernalia is at the top of his wish list.

Nyhtwulf wants nothing but cream cheese squares in foil since its his favorite treat; but Blacktide has been getting him into classic movies. Nyhtwulf's favorite holiday activity is shredding wrapping paper.

Anubis and Horus are the tricksters to watch out for because you never know what a gift box from them may contain. They once created a peanut butter bomb for King Falcon. Thank goodness for instant cleaning from cosmic powers!

In the deep south, the Gator decorates his own corner of his swamp for the holidays. He holds on to the festive nature known in the south near New Orleans and might even let a guest or two come to visit. All Gator really wants is peace and about 200 lbs of great Cajun eating. Who are we to say no? Would you?

And don't think for one second that there's no one under the mistletoe! Nightfall and Dreamseer are waiting for their guys to find them! Anubis and Atomizer are in for a holiday surprise of epic proportions! They better not have forgotten gifts this year!

So it really goes without saying that the whole of the GZ universe wishes you and yours a very Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Happy Hannukah, Blessed Kwanza, or just a wonderful time! See you next year with the New Year's update!

The Power of Sandstorm!

I'm Lombard Ogleson, leader of the Federal hero team, P.A.C. It stands for Parahuman Activity Commission. I could think of loads better names, but couldn't everyone? They call me Sandstorm. Not to boast, but I'm probably the most powerful member of my team. I'm what they call, a lord class elemental. I can control elements and weather. But I don't stop there. I can actually shape shift into those same elements and weather.

My control is pinpoint accurate down to my very molecules so I can change parts of my body individually. I can be half fire, half ice, if I want to. I can merge with the ground under our feet or dissipate into air. In air form, I can travel at high speeds that carry me from one coast to coast in minutes. I can do the same thing by traveling through the Earth, or in water if I merge with it.

My powers basically just happened to me when I was a grunt in Vietnam. My friends were dead and the enemy was all around me. In my state of stress, I turned into a whirling sandstorm and de-fleshed them all to the bone. I had no idea what I was doing. It just happened. Later on, the CIA recruited me for deep cover missions all over the world.

To look at me, you'd think I'm not old enough to have been in Vietnam. That's because my powers slow my aging. I look like I'm in my thirties somewhere, but I'm actually in my late sixties.

I'm constantly in tune with nature around me. I can detect movement in the crust of the Earth or weather events over a thousand miles away. I can detect pollution levels and sometimes they're toxic to me. I can heal almost any injury by converting myself to an element and back again. Scientists with the Powers Institute think I could even grow back and arm or leg. I'm not eager to try that out.

I've been to places on Earth that no man could reach. I'm talking about the heart of a volcano or the deepest trenches in the sea. I've been to the bottom of the Mariana Trench. I can draw strength from elements around me and even become a giant to get almost any kind of job done.

I take my missions seriously and I have little regard for the crooked scum I have to face. Still, I follow the law. I try to move combat situations away from populated areas and do my best to protect bystanders. I don't know how far my powers can really go and sometimes that scares me. I've never tried to create big earthquakes, but I can become bigger than an F5 tornado.

Sometimes people ask me why I don't control the weather all the time, so it's always a nice day or to prevent tornadoes from forming. Well, for one, messing with the weather has drawbacks and can trigger a domino effect in even worse weather. It's really best to let nature take its course 9 times out of 10. Also, I'm not a god. I can't be everywhere at once, so I don't try to be.

During the Chaos incident, I had to take my powers to their limits, even in outer space. I did things I never realized I could do. It's amazing what necessity and desperate times can bring out of you.

Well, I gotta go. There's a gang fight going on in lower Manhattan and I know who their leader is. If you're ever in New York, and you have powers; use them wisely or we may have to talk.

Sandstorm is in the upcoming novel: Chaos Rising! Be on the lookout!

Crazy Harry Comics

This is going way back for me. I sometimes draw my old buddy Crazy Harry in home made greeting cards. Back in my school days, I got in trouble in almost every class for drawing his misadventures. Crazy Harry Calhoun is a parody name based on Dirty Harry Callahan. Well, he started out that way. Now, he's something else. Harry is a guy the world just won't leave alone. Bozos poke at him and mess with him around every turn until he wigs out and gets justice they way we can only dream of. He's a laughable private investigator with an insane group of friends. The strip I  recolored below is based on the very first Crazy Harry comic I ever did. Now it's fresh and there for you to get a laugh. I hope you enjoy it.

Inspirational Gifts for YOU

I've been working on some inspirational gifts for everyone in my FB friends list that I can reach. Let me tell you, over 3000 people is a lofty goal and I still can't reach them all. But it was a wonderful effort that I'm not done with yet. So here is a selection of inspirational pieces meant to spread good vibes, positive energy, and all that groovy stuff.

The point is, that you can great things. There are so many wonderful people who prove this every day and you can look them. I'm just one person.

So please take these images and share them with who ever you want to. So long as the names stay on the images they are free to pass around!

Of course they are based on my heroes from my books. What kind of author would I be if I didn't plug that? See the links in the upper right for my author's page and ways to get my books for 99 cents each. If you don't have a kindle, you can still get the kindle app!  Past all that, please share these images and enjoy.

Remember, you are a worthwhile person and there is good in you!

Sneak Peek: GZ The Board Game

Chose good or evil. Play as a soldier, sorcerer, psychic, strongman, speedster, or inventor. Travel the universe recruiting powerful allies and fighting dangerous foes. Be the first to complete your goal for your side of the balance and win.

Based on my novel, Chessmen: Opening Moves; anything that happened to the Chessmen in the book could happen to you.

And it's coming along beautifully. Today you get a sneak peek at a few of the cool people you can play as on the board game. Up to 6 players will play one of the character types mentioned completely at random. Each one has their own strengths and weaknesses that you can build on during gameplay (averaging an hour for 4 players). I'm not going to give up all their stats and game mechanics yet, but I think you'll enjoy what they can do.

The Sorcerer: This is the only type that begins the game able to play spells. He's also the major reason that PC types are handed out at random. Also to balance this, it is more than possible for other players to wind up using spells... and losing them. The sorcerer gets a sweet bonus on using his spells towards his goals.

The Strongman: Decent in a fight with a bonus for dealing with monsters. Yes, monsters. The monsters and creatures from Chessmen are just waiting to make a  meal of you. They include, mutant butterflies, stinging swarms, a giant monstrosity, and more. It's a wild universe out there. The strongman is ready for it.

The Soldier: Good in a fight! And there will be several of those for every player. As the soldier you get a special bonus for weapons that you find on your journey. Be ready for anything and seek your fortune.

The Psychic: You gain bonuses to avoiding traps and recruiting allies because you see just a little further ahead than everyone else. Not the best in combat, but recruiting powerful allies is nothing to sneeze at.

The Speedster: With a bonus on movement for the board, you can get places faster than everyone else. You're also harder to hit by enemies Want to stay a few steps ahead and out of range? The speedster does just that.

The Inventor: He's more or less the weakest to start out with, but he's also the easiest to build up on. He gets a bonus to any item (including weapons) to make them more efficient for his needs. Give him an ally and he becomes the underestimated threat on the table.

This is just the tip of the proverbial iceberg when it comes to this game. You'll meet the characters from the novel and go through some of what they went through. You don't have to read the novel to play the game, but it will make the whole experience shine just a little more. But you'll be able to enjoy this game straight out of the box without knowing the story at all. I'll have more peeks coming up as we go, so stay tuned!

Halloween News 2014

Maniac

What better way to kick off Halloween with GZ than an update on the nasties that are about to hit the books? Well, buckle your seatbelt because only the baddest baddies are coming out to play in upcoming stories. You're going to love it.

Two books are coming up. First is Chaos Rising, slated for this holiday season. In it you'll get a ton of super baddies making a hero's day difficult. Maniac, the Hearse, Prof. Zombie, the Engineer, Stormy Knight, and a slew of artifacts that could destroy the world. You won't want to miss out. Aiming for the Kindle price to be .99 cents. Don't know what paperback will be yet.

The second book will be GZ Tales Volume 2. While I don't  know exactly how many stories I'm going to stuff it with, you will see the following baddies:

MAESTRO: He and his castle will make their published debut in, Castle of the Demon King. Anubis and Horus must rescue a female Starknight from his dungeon, but it's a all a game to Maestro. Who will win? This is just the tip of the iceberg for upcoming Maestro storylines!

DEMON JACK: He appeared in volume one and he's coming back. After being hospitalized, Carter Henderson has been on specialized medication to keep him from turning into the monster. That's all about to change when a new doctor doesn't think he needs the medication any more. Blacktide and Nyhtwulf must hunt down Demon Jack or a fair chunk of New York will feel the consequences.

CHESIRE: An invisible killer is mutilating the homeless in New York City. World Legion agents, Anthony James and Panther Steele work to track him down before his body count spikes. All they have are the words of one witness; "Look for the knife in his smile."

THE PIRANHA: We take a trip back into the southern Louisiana swamps where the Gator lives. Someone is killing and eating the peaceful people of the deep swamps. The Gator, reluctant hero, is't standing by for it. It's HIS swamp after all.

That's just four of the awesome tales that will be coming to you sometime in the new year. I'm hoping to also have Chessmen 2 by Summer.  Happy Halloween everyone!

Audio reading: Imaginary Enemy

Today I direct you to the embedded video for a reading of one of the tales from my book of short stories, GZ Tales, Vol 1. Now I do have a couple of spots where I trip up because I have internal spasms from MS, but as you can see, I don't let that stop me. So I hope you enjoy the reading of Imaginary Enemy!

If you would like to get the book for kindle or in paperback, check out the link to my author's page in the upper right of the screen.

Guest Artist: Amie Key!

Today I bring you a talented young lady from Columbus, Ohio. Her guest artist submission was none other than Bast of Ankhforce. Wow, what a job she did! Just look at that! From the interview, I think you'll agree that this lady is up and coming. I think we will all be on the look out for what she comes up with! As always, you can click on an image for a better look!

GZ: So, Amie, how long have you been an artist?

Amie: I've always been doodling. When I was younger I traced stuff by using the light through sliding glass doors. In '94 Lion King came out and I tried drawing those free hand. I had really good art teachers. They taught me a lot.

GZ: Far out. So what kind of career do you want in art?

Amie: I've never really sought out a career in art primarily because I like drawing what I want. My career has been working with animals. I would love to find time to draw and sell art on the side though.

GZ: I think working with animals is really cool. But then, you aren't for hire yet?

Amie: I am coming back into drawing after a 10 year break. Trying to get a tablet/scanner and photoshop/manga pro. So currently not for hire. I'm fast at doing line art and drawing characters, so in the future I will be doing those at least.

GZ: We can see that by the examples here. So what is your favorite style?

Amie: My favorite style is Anime/manga. Jim Lee's pencils I adore though.

GZ: From all of this, do you have any projects you want to pursue?

Amie: Right now I'm writing a story I will make a comic out of. I've been primarily a writer for the last 10 years.

GZ: I bet that will be something to look forward to. What inspires you most in your work?

Amie: I'm inspired mostly by seeing other really nice work and some of my older stuff. I'm hoping to put out a comic worthy of being seen and read.

GZ: Well you seem to be off to a good start. Lots of luck to you!

Big thanks to Amie Key for being a guest artist today! While she's currently not for hire, keep an eye peeled! This young lady is a future talent just waiting to take off!

Guest Artist: Scott "Fuzzy" Joseph!

Independent artists are their own special breed and I love to share space with them. Today's guest has his own style and flair and he's published too! As you know, to be in theme with this blog, guest artists choose a GZ character (any GZ character) and draw up their own rendition of him or her. Scott chose Anhur from Ankhforce and the result is pretty darn cool. But this, as always, is just the tip of the iceberg. 

I asked Scott some questions about his work.

GZ: How long have you been an artist?

Scott:  I've been an artist since I was a child. I would copy the pages from my comics and draw on any surface I could. My father would tell me that I would draw on the underside of tables and the bunk bed that I shared with my brother.

GZ: That sounds like an awesome Dad! What kind of career do you want in art?

Scott: I want a career doing what I love, and I love creating art. I would also love to be part of something that has an impact on someone else. Something that inspires and encourages. Ideally I would love to get into game designs. Conceptual art for characters and monsters for either video games or table top war games.

GZ: I can totally relate since GZ aims to inspire youth with disabilities. Are you currently for hire?

Scott: I'm always for hire. That's what's fun about this whole art business, is that many opportunities come along and you have to decide if it's going to be something you embrace or neglect.

GZ: Speaking of that, I see you are published! What can you tell us about Patch Hawkins?

Scott: Oh man, Patch Hawkins, that's one of my kids right there. It all started out as a LEGO figure I made so that I had a cool hero to play with alongside my 4 year old daughter. I would have him go on adventures it was fun. I then thought about turning him into a comic book. I had recently started Panda Fuzz Ink (A self publishing comic book company) with a good friend Anthony Ray Bench, who is a great writer, and threw the Patch Hawkins comic together.
Patch is your 80's action hero with your 90's comic book violence. There's lots of blood, lots of one liners and lots of Patch getting out of ridiculous situations. What makes Patch real to me is his goal, to avenge the disappearance of his wife and kids during an attack by the beastly race of Khareeshians. I had a Kickstarter for it in 2013 and a lot of friends and family supported it, now as a result, it's on ComiXology, you gotta check it out!

GZ: Well, we are posting the link to that right HERE and echo that sentiment to our readers! Please do check it out, people! It looks way cool! Now, Scott, where is this 'Fuzzy' business from?

Scott: During the Tattoo Apprenticeship I had, my mentor Tattoo Bee, bestowed the nickname of 'Fuzzy' to me. I'm a big hairy guy and throughout the apprenticeship I had these awesome mutton chops.If you want to improve as an artist. you need to find something like a mentor..Surround yourself with artists and creatives better than you, it will push your art in a positive direction. I learned more artistically in my apprenticeship than I did getting a Bachelor's Degree in Fine Art.

GZ: Nicknames always have the coolest stories, don't they? Do you have any upcoming projects we should know about? 

Scott: Currently I'm working on Patch Hawkins Issue #2! It's exciting. I handed over the writing reigns over to Writer Anthony Ray Bench this time around to see where we can go with the book, and it looks like it's gonna be a beast of a book.We're delving deeper into how sick the Khareeshians are and get a look into the supporting cast of characters while also getting to know Patch more.

GZ: Sounds smoking hot.

Here you have it folks, and you definitely need to check out the stylings of Scott "Fuzzy" Joseph. You can do that at the following links:

www.ravenborn.com His personal page, loaded to the gills with art!

His Facebook page, with cool updates!

Links open a new page and as always, click on images for a closer and cooler view! Big thanks to Scott for being with us on GZ!

If you want to be a guest artist, get the details right HERE!

Building in Minecraft?

Yes indeed. It was recently suggested to me that I build locations from Galaxy Zento in Minecraft. And why not? I can give tours of some locations that will be or have shown up in the stories. The first place I'm working on is Maestro's castle. It's one of GZ's deadliest places. Maestro is making his debut in my next book of short stories; GZ Tales Volume 2 (currently in the works). He puts Anubis and Horus through some terrifying ordeals and you won't want to miss it.

It's unfortunate that this tour version of his home will lack the deadly magics hidden in every wall, but you'll get the idea well enough. Maestro loves intruders and enjoys torturing them. If their plight amuses him enough, he may even reward them (usually with their lives).

While the tour version is solid, his actual home is anything but easy to navigate. Rooms shift and change, walls appear to block your progress. Then there's the dungeon.

Eventually, I'll make it so you can tour it yourself (once I figure that out) on your Xbox 360 via online. But you can also bet there will be a ton of pics going onto the Facebook page and Google+.

There will be other cool locations made as well, but I don't want to give away all the goodies here. OH what the heck:

The Radioactive Sandwich (interstellar bar)
King Falcon's Palace
The Royal Palace of Chyssia (Chessmen location)

Just to name a few. Just another way to check out the huge universe of GZ! Stay tuned!

Character Power Meters

The GZ character power meter is a selection of stats that show you just how powerful the character really is (or isn't). Stats in GZ are ranked from 1-10. 1 is your basic human at almost minimum. No one goes lower than 1. 10 is godlike proportions (but there is another scale for gods). These stats fall into 5 categories (pretty simplified).

Strength: This covers not only a characters lifting ability, but some endurance as well. It also tells you how powerful energy blasts can get (though energy types have their own minimum scales of damage that may exceed strength). So if a characters strength is higher than the minimum that an energy type can do, the character can increase the damage of the energy blasts. On this scale you could see a level one lifting around 25-50 lbs with general ease. A level ten has no trouble lifting an aircraft carrier.

Endurance: How long does it take a character to get tired? How long can they hold up that aircraft carrier? A 1 means you may only have a few minutes, while a 10 means you can do it all day long. Its basically how long you can do any one task before you have to stop.

Speed: So how fast can the character travel? 1 is your most basic human speed, maybe 15 mph at the best. 10 is so fast the image of the person lingers after they're gone. Speed is pretty straight forward, but requires the next stat for control.

Agility: From basic balance to acrobatics. This is a characters dexterity and ability to not fall flat on their face when attempting some heroic or villainous feat. While a 1 doesn't make you clumsy, you're no tight rope walker either. A 10 can do a handstand and balance on a fingernail.

Mentality: This is how intelligent a character is and how powerful psychic abilities may be. Problem solving, deduction, and ability to understand what's going on all fall into this stat. Academics govern part of how high it goes. A 1 has general education and understanding, while a 10 has the knowledge of the cosmos.

Coming up I will be doing some Power Meter spotlights so you can see just how powerful some GZ characters are! Compare them with some of your other favorite characters to see how they stack up. I have a complete scale on the the Galaxy Zento Wiki and you can check it out HERE. You can also check out several characters information and power levels on the wiki already! Look up Ankhforce or the Chessmen and see for yourself.

Guest Artist: Ken Davis!

He's a locksmith by day and artist by night. I present to you our next guest artist, Ken Davis! Ken elected to do a version of my Cyborian character Galose and wow. He really knows what he's doing when it comes to mechanical design. I sent Ken a  few interview questions to enhance our presentation and this is how that went:

GZ: How long have you been doing your artwork?

Ken: Since I was a wee child.

GZ: What kind of career would you like to pursue in art?

Ken: When I feel my abilities can produce the story that I have in my head, I hope to self publish several stories that run the gambit from horror to comedy, to science fiction.

GZ: Seeing as you chose Galose, are armored or robotic characters your favorite to draw?

Ken: It just depends on the mood I am in.

GZ: Are you currently for hire?

Ken: Yep, you can reach me at isazacstuidois@outlook.com (Ken also has a DeviantArt page and Tumblr!)

GZ: What are your favorite comics?

Ken: Walking Dead, Invincible, the new X-men, Manhattan Projects, Guardians of the Galaxy, They are my top choices but there are several more.

It is highly advised to check out Ken's range of talents. Pencils, inks, and colors make him a triple threat (or triple treat) in his work. And genre doesn't seem to slow him down at all. Ken's work shows excellent examples of going from superhero to fantasy art.

Check out the range of colors in this piece. I could take tips from him on doing planets and the flame guy is awesome. You can see power in the character and it looks like he WILL command that rocky thing he's standing on to fly him right into space. As raw fantasy images go, this is stellar.

This was a piece he did for someone else, but you have to see it. His form for Optimus Prime is dead on. Lines are solid, view point is sharp and it looks like Optimus is going to jump right out of the picture. He didn't even miss the detailing of the tire treads. On his pages you can see where he does more characters that you will recognize. So don't forget to check them out.

It was hard to chose inkwork to wrap this article up with. I really love this piece. It will take you right to your days of playing DnD in the basement, only way more epic. Look at the detail in the mouth of the serpent and its eyes (click on images for larger view). You just can't miss here.

Be sure to add Ken's pages to your favorites and consider his talents for your art project desires. Big thanks to Ken for being a guest artist!

Want GZ to show of your work as an independent artist? All you have to do is a pic of any existing GZ character and get that to me. I'll put together and interview and the next spotlight will be on you!

Galaxy Zento Universe Update!

Lots of amazing things are happening with the GZ universe and it's time to dish out the news! While building my universe and writing my stories, there's no doubt I want this to go as many places as possible! Lot's of ideas are on the drawing board, but these are the most prominent!

Chaos is rising! Yes, my next novel, Chaos Rising is planned for release around the holidays. You see the prospective cover right here! It's about 95,000 words packed with action from cover to cover. It's the first book of a series as the history of the GZ universe. Eventually, characters in all my books will meet and interact with each other. It's also my best written work to date (in my humble opinion). The mistakes that got missed in Chessmen still distress me and I will eventually review. But the going vote has been for me to move forward rather than back. I have a lot of stories to tell after all! So be on the lookout for Chaos Rising!

Games! Games! Games!

Galaxy Zento the Boardgame heads to art design! After much testing we are moving forward on the artwork for the GZ Chessmen board game. It will be the first in an interlocking series of games that can all be played together. Three editions are currently being planned. Not sure how fast Chessmen will be done, but you can be sure of updates right here. This game has been voted, and I quote, "extremely fun" by play testers. In this game you can fight enemies, recruit allies, gather artifacts, or just beat each other silly. Or do it all! We plan to have a meeting this week to discuss art details. You can bet it will be vibrant and full of color.

Galaxy Zento the Card Game has gone through lots of play testing. It's being held back because of the overwhelming vote on the board game, but it's still there. I will still be playing with designs on the side while working on the board game. Plans for the set include three decks of cards and a few extras for deck building. You get the whole set all at once and ready to play. The first set is Chessmen of course and depicts character battles. You're getting a sneak peek at character card design right here, done by Gray Taylor.

Guest Artists!

I have it on good word that there are 3 artists working on something to show off their talents. I'm not going to spoil names at this time. I would rather let their work do the talking as I post their talents and pages with an interview.

These are definitely exciting times and I'm so glad so many of you are along for the ride! Keep it real heroes!

Why you should be a guest artist for Galaxy Zento

Elkhorn by Joe Garcia

Recently, I posted to several groups on Facebook and Google+ that I am seeking guest artists to write about and interview. The feedback showed me that I  need to explain what is involved a bit deeper. The purpose of this post is help that out. So what's in it for you to be guest artist? Here's what happens:

You visit Galaxy Zento and browse it's characters (or just browse my photos if you are seeing this on Google+). Draw any one of them that catches your fancy and submit it to me on Facebook or at Galaxyzento.gmail.com. In return I will do an article on you, your talents/business in an effort to gain you exposure and basically advertise YOU and your skills. Now, lets dispel a misunderstanding:

Question: Do you just want people to draw your characters for free?:  Absolutely not! What I'm offering is to advertise and showcase YOU on MY page. The name of the blog is Galaxy Zento and you have to admit that keeping with the theme is sound business practice for anyone. So you drawing one of my characters is just keeping in theme and giving me the kick off to start an article on you.  Heck, if I really needed anyone to draw my characters, you wouldn't have access to over 200 illustrations already. Now ask yourself this, what is advertising your talent worth to you?

Nyhtwulf by Robert Mead

Okay, so how good does it have to be? It should show your level of talent accurately. You can just do a pencil sketch if you want. Just make it look as good as your other work because I will want other examples of your work to post right after it. This is about YOU and YOUR talent after all.

Do I have to be professional? Nope. You can be a ten year old beginner and I'll still give you a good write up based on your efforts. Of course, there may be a different category for that eventually. I would love to showcase artists with special talents in the face of disability!

What else will you use the pics for? Nothing. Well, they'll be posted in my guest artist folders on social media so people can always check them out. See HERE. But past that, I won't use your pic for anything else unless you want me to. The only purpose is to be a guest artist (repostings are possible for example purposes or to remind readers of you and others). You are not donating art to me for use in any other way. So I won't use it for the cover of my next book or as illustrations in any other professional works. You have permission to post them where ever you wish. YOU are the artist after all! All I ask is that you post links just like I will for you.

Victor Darksong by
Brian Rogers

What does Galaxy Zento get out of this? A successful blog needs constant material to stay successful. You will help me increase that material and keep me writing. The writing of the post serves us both equally. You could think of it as a colab with me as the writer and you the artist. If you make sure to share your article you'll give us both extra exposure. We both get the same results.

Finally: My work supports a cause: I want to show youth with disabilities that being disabled is not the end. I have multiple sclerosis and Asperger's syndrome (high function autism) and my son has autism as well. Every time I publish a book I show it to him to show him that Dad being disabled doesn't stop success. I point it out to show that we can always go forward in some way. The more writing I get to do, the more that's supported. So if you have a disability, tell me! I have a special category for that and you can help this cause.

Deadline: There is none. Get to me anytime and just let me know you'd like to be a guest artist with your submission. First come first serve! Timing of your article will be based on how many I have ahead of you and my posting schedule that I intend to increase.

For those of you who are already taking this on THANKS! For those of you who added GZ on  Facebook, THANKS!

See the work of the guest artists above at:

Joe Garcia
Robert Mead
Brian Rogers

Character change: Black or White?

I've decided to make a character changing decision with one of my villains. Considering that he's not an established character with 50 years under the belt, I doubt this will be a controversial change. I'm certainly not aiming at controversy, but we'll see what happens.

The character is Professor Zombie, a brilliant scientist who became evil when struck down by a flesh eating virus in Africa. He had to rebuild himself as a cyborg and decided he would rather rule the world than save it.

Now I admit, it's because I'm a white guy that I have so many white characters. Not because I'm racist, rather I just don't think about it that much. But times have changed and good stories need characters from all walks of life. I think the Professor is a good place to start. He's from Africa in the first place and he's kind of a play on black zombie legends. Granted some of those legends are Jamaican in origin, but it still works to make him a unique villain.

In the blog fiction, GZ Legends, I portrayed him as you see above, a white man. Now look at this:

What do you think? I think this adds a depth to his character that wasn't present before. It just makes more sense to make him a black man for the cultural and origin possibilities. This makes him a man who was trying to save people in his own nation before the disease got him. That's what this is about, enrichment of the character. As he appears in my next novel, Chaos Rising, I don't make a big deal about his skin color. I let his attitude and activities do the talking. I just think, he makes more sense as a black man.

Go ahead and let me know what you think in comments. Does he look better black than white? You tell me.

Electrode: Meet the Resistor

Scott McCross, better known as Electrode, ran his daily recon of New York City. At speeds of over 360,000 miles per second, his chore didn't take long. He moved between the obstacles of New York hustle and bustle with the ease of breathing. Any criminal element he found, never knew who found them until it was too late.

Electrode would handcuff muggers and thugs in mid crime. He'd put them in a cell before they could blink. He stopped fights with the snap of  his fingers, creating micro-sonic booms.  He even moved people and animals out of the way of speeding cars.

The bank robbery was nothing new. Five men with guns demanded money and Electrode found them in the act. He removed their guns before he noticed the strange attire of the fifth man. He wore a red and orange body suit with goggles over the eyes. Whenever someone dressed like that, it meant they were either a crackpot or someone flaunting powers. Electrode moved in on the man, but an aura of intense heat forced him back.

"I've been hoping to meet up with you." The man said as Electrode paused to look him over. "Sorry, I'm a little hot to the touch. Especially for you."

"Why especially for me?" Electrode asked. He could tell the man wanted to boast.

"Because you're Electrode, the nuclear electric man. I'm the Resistor!" He held out his fists as he glowed red. Electrode could feel the heat like being too close to a bonfire. "Your power will only make me hotter, so get out of the way. You can't do anything to me without risking the lives of everyone around us."

"Then you can't rob the bank either. You'll burn up the money."

"You fool. Why do you think I brought these men with me? Are you going to make me burn them too? I don't think so. You're an agent of good, Mr. Hero, you couldn't have that on your conscience. And you give of a natural charge that you can't turn off. So getting close to me means heating things up." Resistor laughed.

Electrode grimaced and vanished. Resistor laughed some more. People in the bank looked at each other, wondering where their savior had gone.

"He can't save any of you! Now stay where you're told and you might live to see another day. Men, collect that money."

Electrode raced to the Powers Institute where FBI Agent, Anthony James was working.

"Sorry to interrupt." Electrode said to let the man know he was there.

Anthony sat up from the machinery he was partway under and adjusted his eyepatch. He had a wrench in one hand and grease on his jeans.

"You're always a surprise, I'll give you that. What do you need?"

"I need to borrow something and I need to do it fast."

Across town the men loaded money bags into a van. Sirens sounded in the distance, but they wouldn't be there in time. Resistor smiled as he stood watch over his million dollar haul. The smile faded as all four of his men's bodies launched into the air in different directions.

"Couldn't stay away, eh?" Resistor called out.

A slap to the face spun him to the ground. As he tried to stand, another on spun him the other way. Electrode stopped a few feet away. He wore a rubber face mask with goggles and a different body suit.

"Insulated rubber suit. It's heat resistant too. What do you think of it?" Electrode vanished from sight and hit Resistor again.

Resistor's face jiggled back and forth as mini-slaps battered him. Resistor staggered and fell over. He looked at his hands and found strange handcuffs on his wrists.

"Those are inhibitor cuffs, made by Agent James. You're powers won't work with those on." Electrode pulled off the rubber mask. "Sure gets stuffy and hot in this thing."

"I will get you." Resistor mumbled in a daze.

"What's that?" Electrode responded. "I'm sure you'll try. You know, you did your homework on me but made one crucial mistake. You assumed that I don't know my own powers or how they work. You assumed that your powers would trump mine. And you're a boastful idiot. As soon as you explained yourself I knew exactly what to do. Have fun in prison."

"Next time, Electrode, you won't get the chance."

"You're singing an old tired song. Not interested." Electrode waited for the FBI van to come and pick up Resistor. Agent James had a special cell ready for him.

Electrode returned the suit and went back to work in less than a second. He finished his patrol and went for a cold drink. The forecast called for a hot day after all.