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GOD'S COUNTRY by Steven Travers GOD'S COUNTRY by Steven Travers May 10, 2011 774875 words Read a sample
Author bio:
Steven Travers has always been entrepreneurial. “I was turned down by my high school newspaper because they didn’t allow freshmen,” says the sixth-generation Californian, “so I started my own!” Aside from journalism, Travers was a star pitcher, playing three years of varsity baseball for the same suburban California high school that USC football coach Pete Carroll graduated from years earlier. Travers helped lead his team to the mythical national championship of high school baseball, according to polls conducted by Collegiate Baseball magazine and the Easton Bat Company. Travers attended college on a baseball scholarship, where he was an all-conference pitcher, and played collegiate summer ball in Colorado, Nevada and Canada. The 6-6, 225-pound Travers played professionally for the St. Louis Cardinals' organization, where he was a teammate of Danny Cox. Travers once struck out 1989 National League Most Valuable Player Kevin Mitchell three times in one game (he K’d 14 that night). In the Oakland Athletics' system, he played alongside Jose Canseco. “Punching out K-Mitchell was great,” he recalls, “but the highlight of my career may have been when I was with the A’s against the Giants in a Major League exhibition game at Phoenix Municipal Stadium. I struck out the side and went nine-up, nine-down in three innings. Bill King and Lon Simmons announced it on the radio.” Steve later coached at USC, Cal-Berkeley and was recruited to manage a team in Berlin, Germany. After pro baseball, Travers returned to college. He studied in the University of Southern California School of Cinema-Television, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in communications. At USC, he was a classmate of Mark McGwire and Randy Johnson. After graduation, he traveled extensively to New York City, Washington, D.C. and to Europe: London and Paris. “I almost went to work for Dean Witter in the World Trade Center,” he recalled. “After 9/11 I really started to think about ‘what might have been.’ ” Travers also went to Western State University College of Law, the Hollywood Film Institute, and was part of the UCLA Writers' Program. He served in the U.S. Army during the Persian Gulf War, and was a political consultant, speechwriter and campaign manager for a California Congressional candidate. Travers was also a sports agent, co-founding San Francisco Sports Management, Inc. The agency represented Pittsburgh Pirate outfielder Al Martin. Another client, ex-Angels' playboy pitcher Bo Belinsky, was at that time being approached by Hollywood producers about a movie depicting his tempestuous life. Travers wrote the screenplay. That script, Once He Was An Angel, was a quarterfinalist in the Quantum Leap screenwriting contest before getting optioned by a Hollywood producing group that included Frank Capra Jr. and Frank Capra III (son and grandson of the famed It's A Wonderful Life director). Thus began Travers' embarkation into a full-time professional writing career in 1994. “I’ve punched a lot of tickets,” Travers says of his background, “and I bring real-world experience to my writing.” A veteran of Hollywood, Steve has written 15 screenplays, teleplays and stageplays. His credits include The Lost Battalion (the true story of a World War I unit during the Argonne Offensive, the subject of a film starring Rick Schroder), Wicked and Baja California. His additional writing awards are for Bandit, an America’s Best quarterfinalist, and Rock 'n' Roll Heaven, a Writers Network Screenplay & Fiction quarterfinalist. He appeared in the film The Californians, starring Noah Wylie and Illeana Douglas. Travers worked closely with legendary Hollywood producer Edgar Scherick, the original producer of The Lost Battalion. Scherick started ABC’s Baseball Game of the Week and Monday Night Football with Roone Arledge. Travers also wrote for the Los Angeles Times, the Los Angeles Daily News, and was a sports stringer on San Diego’s XTRA 690 AM radio station. Steve has freelanced for magazines, newspapers and web sites. He produced Steven Travers’ Journal on the Internet. Eventually, Travers became the number one columnist at StreetZebra, an L.A. sports magazine where he covered the USC beat and wrote a monthly "Distant Replay" of great events in the Southland's rich sports history. “I have encyclopedic knowledge of history,” Steve says. “I am truly versatile as a writer, able to use my knowledge of the past to understand the present. I have also survived as a freelancer; written extensively for the Internet and the so-called New Media; and have up-close knowledge of the ‘dot-bomb’ era that was the 1990s.” In 2001, Travers was hired as the lead sports columnist for the San Francisco Examiner. While writing for the Examiner, Travers was an eyewitness to Barry Bonds' historic 73-home run season of 2001. He got Bonds to agree to authorize the writing of his autobiography, but a business deal with the publishers was not worked out. Eventually, by 2002 Travers wrote the Best Seller Barry Bonds: Baseball’s Superman from Sports Publishing L.L.C. (www.sportspublishingllc.com). Actor Charlie Sheen wrote the foreword. It has gone through multiple re-prints, is now in paperback, and was nominated for a Casey Award for Best Baseball Book of the Year. A sequel, covering Bonds' alleged steroid use, additional MVP awards, and chase of Hank Aaron's career home run record, is in the works. In 2004, Travers wrote a proposal for the book that eventually became Game of Shadows by Mark Fainaru-Wada and Lance Williams, who landed the deal he did not. An avid reader, Travers poured through books, at least one a month; classics, biographies, history, sports, novels, philosophy. He was also a Christian, but had never read The Holy Bible. "Sometime around March or April of 2004, I decided to read The Bible," he says. "Two pages a day. I started out with the New Testament. After a while I began to read out loud, which made a difference. Then the Old Testament. It took a little less than a year to read the entire book. As soon as I read it through, I started again. Two pages per day, out loud. At this point I have read it twice through. I am beginning to understand it. I am not an expert on it, but the Holy Spirit has come to me and inspires me each day that I read God’s Word. I will read that book until the day I die, God willing and I am able, until some day I will have read it so many times I will be an expert. . .” In 2006, Taylor Trade, a division of Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. (www.RLPGTrade.com), published his book The USC Trojans: College Football's All-Time Greatest Dynasty, which argues that the University of Southern California has replaced Notre Dame as collegiate football's greatest tradition. USC legend Charles "Tree" Young graciously wrote the foreword, and the book ascended to Amazon.com “top seller” and National Book Network “top 100 seller” status. It was re-released in paperback in 2010. Taylor Trade released One Night, Two Teams: Alabama vs. USC and the Game That Changed A Nation in 2007 (foreword by Forrest Gump author Winston Groom). It was re-released in paperback in 2010. This is the true story of how the 1970 USC-Alabama football game ushered in desegregation of the American South. A film is in development. USC graduate Kerry McCluggage, a top Hollywood producer (Craftsman Films); former president of Universal and Paramount TV divisions; founder of UPN; with credits that include Star Trek, Star Trek: The Next Generation and Miami Vice, has optioned it with plans for a major theatrical release. The co-producer is Barry Kemp (Coach, Patch Adams, Catch Me If You Can). Potential directors include Taylor Hackford (An Officer and a Gentleman, Delores Claiborne, The Devil’s Advocate) and Kevin Costner (Dances With Wolves), with Costner possibly starring as John McKay, Tommy Lee Jones as Bear Bryant. Travers is a member of a “producer team” that includes Trojan football legend Anthony Davis and USC graduate Jim Starr. The deal was masterfully put together by Lloyd Robinson (USC ’64) of Suite A Management in Beverly Hills; Steve’s former literary agent, Craig Wiley; and Rowman & Littlefield president Rick Rinehart. Davis is on board to promote the project along with other former Trojans. When the film is released, Travers, Davis and Starr will be executive producers. In the past, Steve was repped by Peter Miller of PMA Literary & Film Agency in New York City. His agent is now Ian Kleinert of Objective Entertainment in Manhattan (who negotiated the huge Jerry West autobiography and Michael Savage’s Trickle Up Poverty). In 2009, Taylor Trade published Pigskin Warriors: 140 Years of College Football’s Greatest Traditions, Games, and Stars. In 2009, major publishing house The Globe Pequot Press published Travers’s book The 1969 Miracle Mets (foreword by Buddy Harrelson). Also in 2009: Dodgers Past & Present, Voyageur Press and A Tale of Three Cities: The 1962 Baseball Season in New York, L.A., and San Francisco. In 2011: The Poet: The Life and Los Angeles Times of Jim Murray, an authorized biography through Potomac Books. Triumph Books (www.triumphbooks.com), a division of New York publishing giant Random House, released five of Travers's books in 2007: A's Essential: Everything You Need to Know to Be A Real Fan! (foreword by A’s GM Billy Beane), Dodgers Essential (foreword by the late, great Bud “The Steamer” Furillo), Angels Essential (foreword by ex-L.A. Times sportswriter Ross Newhan), Diamondbacks Essential (foreword by Phoenix radio personality Andy Dorf), and The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly Los Angeles Lakers (foreword by longtime sports columnist Art Spander). In 2008 Triumph/Random House published Trojans Essential (foreword by ex-Coca-Cola/North American President Terry Marks) and The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly Oakland Raiders (foreword by radio personality Bruce Macgowan). In 2009 from Triumph/Random House: The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly San Francisco 49ers (foreword by 49er Hall of Famer Bob St. Clair) and What It Means to Be a Trojan: Southern Cal’s Greatest Players Talk About Trojans Football (foreword by Pete Carroll). Steve is the author of five unpublished books. These include From the Frat House to the White House to the Big House; God's Country, a three-volume conservative, Christian worldview of how history formed the U.S. Empire and America's manifest destiny for the 21st Century; Ambition: My Struggles to Fail and Succeed in Baseball, Politics, Hollywood, Writing . . . and The Rocky Path I’ve Walked With Christ (his autobiography); a novel, Angry White Male; and a compilation of his work over the years, The Writer’s Life. Travers contemplated an authorized autobiography of former New York Mets’ superstar Tom Seaver; a book about fascinating baseball pitching subjects; and a study of the modern nature of American politics and media manipulation, using the Whittaker Chambers case of the 1940s as its “Genesis.” The telegenic Travers has made numerous appearances on television and radio, being interviewed for the books, articles and screenplays he has written over the years. His national appearances have included "The Jim Rome Show", CNN, ESPN, and the Armed Forces Radio Network. He has appeared on TV and radio stations in major markets such as New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. In September 2005, Steve was interviewed on College Sports Television (www.cstv.com), a division of CBS, as part of a program devoted to the 35th anniversary of the 1970 USC-Alabama game. In February 2006, CSTV featured Travers prominently in their documentary Tackling Segregation, which aired throughout Black History Month. His work was also the subject of a 2005 CSTV documentary on Alabama football coach Paul “Bear” Bryant. In 2006, Travers was a guest speaker, leading a panel of distinguished former USC football players and coaches, for Professor Dan Durbin’s popular class “Sports, Culture & Society” at the University of Southern California Annenberg School for Communications. The subject was the 1970 USC-Alabama game, with Steve’s book a focal point. Out of this have come discussions with USC regarding Steve’s possible hiring as an adjunct professor. Travers made numerous other speaking and booksigning appearances through USC, which included appearances at the USC Bookstore, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, and the USC Collections at the South Coast Plaza Shopping Center in Orange County. In 2007, he addressed the USC East Bay Trojan Club in Walnut Creek, California; the incoming freshmen and parents during Parent’s Weekend at USC; the USC Orange County Trojan Club; as well as more signings at the USC Bookstore and USC Collections; and an address of the Hollywood Congress of Republicans; and the annual banquet of the GMAC Bowl in Mobile, Alabama. Professor Durbin invited him back for a retrospective of the 1972 USC national champion football team at Annenberg School for Communications. In 2008 Travers addressed Republican political groups in support of U.S. Senator John McCain (R.-Arizona). During the 2008 football season, Travers was again a guest lecturer in Professor Durbin's class. The subject was his book Angels Essential, and focused on "the old Pacific Coast League and the early Angels). He was the November speaker at the prestigious Pasadena Quarterback's Club next to the Rose Bowl (past speakers have included Pete Carroll), and signed books at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for the third consecutive year. In 2009 Travers again was a guest panelist in Professor Durbin’s class, centered around a re-union of the USC players interviewed in What It Means to Be a Trojan. Steve is the scion of a distinguished California family. The Travers’s came to colonial America, fought in the Revolutionary War, and settled into New York and Massachusetts. They founded the Travers Stakes horse race. One ancestor, a Captain Edgerly of the Union Army, was reputed to be President Abraham Lincoln’s “personal spy” during the Civil War. Steve’s side of the family came West during the time of the 1849 Gold Rush. His grandfather, Charles S. Travers, covered the 1906 Great Earthquake as a journalist, started a silent film magazine in Hollywood, and was President of the San Francisco Press Club. Steve’s great-uncle, Reginald Travers, was a noted Shakespearean actor. His father, Donald Travers, is a retired attorney and track coach who served as a Naval officer during World War II. His mother, Inge Travers, is a renowned artist. Steve’s brother, Donald Travers II, is a former Naval officer. Daughter Elizabeth Travers is a college student. Inside Berkeley’s Memorial Stadium is the Colonel Charles Travers Big Game Room (named after Steve’s late uncle, who served during World War II) to accommodate press conferences, and (named after Steve’s late aunt) is the Louise Travers Memorial Club Room. Colonel Travers also founded a wing of the university’s political science department, dedicated to fair and balanced analysis of public affairs. Members of the Travers family have served in the military during the Revolution, the Civil War, World War II, the Korean War, Vietnam and the Persian Gulf War. His books and further information be found at http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=steven+travers&x=11&y=12 or via http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q==STEVEN+TRAVERS+USC+METS+DODGERS&btnG==Search His web page is http://www.redroom.com/author/steven-robert-travers/ Steve is a board member of the USC NorCal Trojan Club, the Hollywood Congress of Republicans, and worships at Christ Lutheran Church. Steve tutored foreign students trying to learn English, as well as jail inmates, through the Marin Literacy Program. "I always wanted to give of my time," he explained, "but was too selfish to really do it. I found excuses. If at the beginning of 2006, if you had told me how busy I would be, I never would have signed up, but I did. I was assigned to a Korean divinity student named Kyung-Taek Hong. We became friends and shared Christian fellowship despite the language barrier. Almost as soon as I started tutoring Kyung, incredible good fortune began to reign down on me. Book deals, the movie deal, speaking engagements, ‘top seller’ sales, maybe a professorship at USC. As busy as I was writing, I met him every Wednesday for an hour and a half at the library. I consider him my ‘angel.’ After Kyung moved on to a Ph.D. program in Chicago, Travers taught a class at the Marin County Jail, then volunteered to work with high school kids. “As Jim Hill always says as his signature signoff on of his sports show, ‘Keep the faith.’”
AMBITION by Steven Travers AMBITION by Steven Travers May 16, 2011 707251 words Read a sample
Author bio:
Steven Travers has always been entrepreneurial. “I was turned down by my high school newspaper because they didn’t allow freshmen,” says the sixth-generation Californian, “so I started my own!” Aside from journalism, Travers was a star pitcher, playing three years of varsity baseball for the same suburban California high school that USC football coach Pete Carroll graduated from years earlier. Travers helped lead his team to the mythical national championship of high school baseball, according to polls conducted by Collegiate Baseball magazine and the Easton Bat Company. Travers attended college on a baseball scholarship, where he was an all-conference pitcher, and played collegiate summer ball in Colorado, Nevada and Canada. The 6-6, 225-pound Travers played professionally for the St. Louis Cardinals' organization, where he was a teammate of Danny Cox. Travers once struck out 1989 National League Most Valuable Player Kevin Mitchell three times in one game (he K’d 14 that night). In the Oakland Athletics' system, he played alongside Jose Canseco. “Punching out K-Mitchell was great,” he recalls, “but the highlight of my career may have been when I was with the A’s against the Giants in a Major League exhibition game at Phoenix Municipal Stadium. I struck out the side and went nine-up, nine-down in three innings. Bill King and Lon Simmons announced it on the radio.” Steve later coached at USC, Cal-Berkeley and was recruited to manage a team in Berlin, Germany. After pro baseball, Travers returned to college. He studied in the University of Southern California School of Cinema-Television, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in communications. At USC, he was a classmate of Mark McGwire and Randy Johnson. After graduation, he traveled extensively to New York City, Washington, D.C. and to Europe: London and Paris. “I almost went to work for Dean Witter in the World Trade Center,” he recalled. “After 9/11 I really started to think about ‘what might have been.’ ” Travers also went to Western State University College of Law, the Hollywood Film Institute, and was part of the UCLA Writers' Program. He served in the U.S. Army during the Persian Gulf War, and was a political consultant, speechwriter and campaign manager for a California Congressional candidate. Travers was also a sports agent, co-founding San Francisco Sports Management, Inc. The agency represented Pittsburgh Pirate outfielder Al Martin. Another client, ex-Angels' playboy pitcher Bo Belinsky, was at that time being approached by Hollywood producers about a movie depicting his tempestuous life. Travers wrote the screenplay. That script, Once He Was An Angel, was a quarterfinalist in the Quantum Leap screenwriting contest before getting optioned by a Hollywood producing group that included Frank Capra Jr. and Frank Capra III (son and grandson of the famed It's A Wonderful Life director). Thus began Travers' embarkation into a full-time professional writing career in 1994. “I’ve punched a lot of tickets,” Travers says of his background, “and I bring real-world experience to my writing.” A veteran of Hollywood, Steve has written 15 screenplays, teleplays and stageplays. His credits include The Lost Battalion (the true story of a World War I unit during the Argonne Offensive, the subject of a film starring Rick Schroder), Wicked and Baja California. His additional writing awards are for Bandit, an America’s Best quarterfinalist, and Rock 'n' Roll Heaven, a Writers Network Screenplay & Fiction quarterfinalist. He appeared in the film The Californians, starring Noah Wylie and Illeana Douglas. Travers worked closely with legendary Hollywood producer Edgar Scherick, the original producer of The Lost Battalion. Scherick started ABC’s Baseball Game of the Week and Monday Night Football with Roone Arledge. Travers also wrote for the Los Angeles Times, the Los Angeles Daily News, and was a sports stringer on San Diego’s XTRA 690 AM radio station. Steve has freelanced for magazines, newspapers and web sites. He produced Steven Travers’ Journal on the Internet. Eventually, Travers became the number one columnist at StreetZebra, an L.A. sports magazine where he covered the USC beat and wrote a monthly "Distant Replay" of great events in the Southland's rich sports history. “I have encyclopedic knowledge of history,” Steve says. “I am truly versatile as a writer, able to use my knowledge of the past to understand the present. I have also survived as a freelancer; written extensively for the Internet and the so-called New Media; and have up-close knowledge of the ‘dot-bomb’ era that was the 1990s.” In 2001, Travers was hired as the lead sports columnist for the San Francisco Examiner. While writing for the Examiner, Travers was an eyewitness to Barry Bonds' historic 73-home run season of 2001. He got Bonds to agree to authorize the writing of his autobiography, but a business deal with the publishers was not worked out. Eventually, by 2002 Travers wrote the Best Seller Barry Bonds: Baseball’s Superman from Sports Publishing L.L.C. (www.sportspublishingllc.com). Actor Charlie Sheen wrote the foreword. It has gone through multiple re-prints, is now in paperback, and was nominated for a Casey Award for Best Baseball Book of the Year. A sequel, covering Bonds' alleged steroid use, additional MVP awards, and chase of Hank Aaron's career home run record, is in the works. In 2004, Travers wrote a proposal for the book that eventually became Game of Shadows by Mark Fainaru-Wada and Lance Williams, who landed the deal he did not. An avid reader, Travers poured through books, at least one a month; classics, biographies, history, sports, novels, philosophy. He was also a Christian, but had never read The Holy Bible. "Sometime around March or April of 2004, I decided to read The Bible," he says. "Two pages a day. I started out with the New Testament. After a while I began to read out loud, which made a difference. Then the Old Testament. It took a little less than a year to read the entire book. As soon as I read it through, I started again. Two pages per day, out loud. At this point I have read it twice through. I am beginning to understand it. I am not an expert on it, but the Holy Spirit has come to me and inspires me each day that I read God’s Word. I will read that book until the day I die, God willing and I am able, until some day I will have read it so many times I will be an expert. . .” In 2006, Taylor Trade, a division of Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. (www.RLPGTrade.com), published his book The USC Trojans: College Football's All-Time Greatest Dynasty, which argues that the University of Southern California has replaced Notre Dame as collegiate football's greatest tradition. USC legend Charles "Tree" Young graciously wrote the foreword, and the book ascended to Amazon.com “top seller” and National Book Network “top 100 seller” status. It was re-released in paperback in 2010. Taylor Trade released One Night, Two Teams: Alabama vs. USC and the Game That Changed A Nation in 2007 (foreword by Forrest Gump author Winston Groom). It was re-released in paperback in 2010. This is the true story of how the 1970 USC-Alabama football game ushered in desegregation of the American South. A film is in development. USC graduate Kerry McCluggage, a top Hollywood producer (Craftsman Films); former president of Universal and Paramount TV divisions; founder of UPN; with credits that include Star Trek, Star Trek: The Next Generation and Miami Vice, has optioned it with plans for a major theatrical release. The co-producer is Barry Kemp (Coach, Patch Adams, Catch Me If You Can). Potential directors include Taylor Hackford (An Officer and a Gentleman, Delores Claiborne, The Devil’s Advocate) and Kevin Costner (Dances With Wolves), with Costner possibly starring as John McKay, Tommy Lee Jones as Bear Bryant. Travers is a member of a “producer team” that includes Trojan football legend Anthony Davis and USC graduate Jim Starr. The deal was masterfully put together by Lloyd Robinson (USC ’64) of Suite A Management in Beverly Hills; Steve’s former literary agent, Craig Wiley; and Rowman & Littlefield president Rick Rinehart. Davis is on board to promote the project along with other former Trojans. When the film is released, Travers, Davis and Starr will be executive producers. In the past, Steve was repped by Peter Miller of PMA Literary & Film Agency in New York City. His agent is now Ian Kleinert of Objective Entertainment in Manhattan (who negotiated the huge Jerry West autobiography and Michael Savage’s Trickle Up Poverty). In 2009, Taylor Trade published Pigskin Warriors: 140 Years of College Football’s Greatest Traditions, Games, and Stars. In 2009, major publishing house The Globe Pequot Press published Travers’s book The 1969 Miracle Mets (foreword by Buddy Harrelson). Also in 2009: Dodgers Past & Present, Voyageur Press and A Tale of Three Cities: The 1962 Baseball Season in New York, L.A., and San Francisco. In 2011: The Poet: The Life and Los Angeles Times of Jim Murray, an authorized biography through Potomac Books. Triumph Books (www.triumphbooks.com), a division of New York publishing giant Random House, released five of Travers's books in 2007: A's Essential: Everything You Need to Know to Be A Real Fan! (foreword by A’s GM Billy Beane), Dodgers Essential (foreword by the late, great Bud “The Steamer” Furillo), Angels Essential (foreword by ex-L.A. Times sportswriter Ross Newhan), Diamondbacks Essential (foreword by Phoenix radio personality Andy Dorf), and The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly Los Angeles Lakers (foreword by longtime sports columnist Art Spander). In 2008 Triumph/Random House published Trojans Essential (foreword by ex-Coca-Cola/North American President Terry Marks) and The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly Oakland Raiders (foreword by radio personality Bruce Macgowan). In 2009 from Triumph/Random House: The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly San Francisco 49ers (foreword by 49er Hall of Famer Bob St. Clair) and What It Means to Be a Trojan: Southern Cal’s Greatest Players Talk About Trojans Football (foreword by Pete Carroll). Steve is the author of five unpublished books. These include From the Frat House to the White House to the Big House; God's Country, a three-volume conservative, Christian worldview of how history formed the U.S. Empire and America's manifest destiny for the 21st Century; Ambition: My Struggles to Fail and Succeed in Baseball, Politics, Hollywood, Writing . . . and The Rocky Path I’ve Walked With Christ (his autobiography); a novel, Angry White Male; and a compilation of his work over the years, The Writer’s Life. Travers contemplated an authorized autobiography of former New York Mets’ superstar Tom Seaver; a book about fascinating baseball pitching subjects; and a study of the modern nature of American politics and media manipulation, using the Whittaker Chambers case of the 1940s as its “Genesis.” The telegenic Travers has made numerous appearances on television and radio, being interviewed for the books, articles and screenplays he has written over the years. His national appearances have included "The Jim Rome Show", CNN, ESPN, and the Armed Forces Radio Network. He has appeared on TV and radio stations in major markets such as New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. In September 2005, Steve was interviewed on College Sports Television (www.cstv.com), a division of CBS, as part of a program devoted to the 35th anniversary of the 1970 USC-Alabama game. In February 2006, CSTV featured Travers prominently in their documentary Tackling Segregation, which aired throughout Black History Month. His work was also the subject of a 2005 CSTV documentary on Alabama football coach Paul “Bear” Bryant. In 2006, Travers was a guest speaker, leading a panel of distinguished former USC football players and coaches, for Professor Dan Durbin’s popular class “Sports, Culture & Society” at the University of Southern California Annenberg School for Communications. The subject was the 1970 USC-Alabama game, with Steve’s book a focal point. Out of this have come discussions with USC regarding Steve’s possible hiring as an adjunct professor. Travers made numerous other speaking and booksigning appearances through USC, which included appearances at the USC Bookstore, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, and the USC Collections at the South Coast Plaza Shopping Center in Orange County. In 2007, he addressed the USC East Bay Trojan Club in Walnut Creek, California; the incoming freshmen and parents during Parent’s Weekend at USC; the USC Orange County Trojan Club; as well as more signings at the USC Bookstore and USC Collections; and an address of the Hollywood Congress of Republicans; and the annual banquet of the GMAC Bowl in Mobile, Alabama. Professor Durbin invited him back for a retrospective of the 1972 USC national champion football team at Annenberg School for Communications. In 2008 Travers addressed Republican political groups in support of U.S. Senator John McCain (R.-Arizona). During the 2008 football season, Travers was again a guest lecturer in Professor Durbin's class. The subject was his book Angels Essential, and focused on "the old Pacific Coast League and the early Angels). He was the November speaker at the prestigious Pasadena Quarterback's Club next to the Rose Bowl (past speakers have included Pete Carroll), and signed books at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for the third consecutive year. In 2009 Travers again was a guest panelist in Professor Durbin’s class, centered around a re-union of the USC players interviewed in What It Means to Be a Trojan. Steve is the scion of a distinguished California family. The Travers’s came to colonial America, fought in the Revolutionary War, and settled into New York and Massachusetts. They founded the Travers Stakes horse race. One ancestor, a Captain Edgerly of the Union Army, was reputed to be President Abraham Lincoln’s “personal spy” during the Civil War. Steve’s side of the family came West during the time of the 1849 Gold Rush. His grandfather, Charles S. Travers, covered the 1906 Great Earthquake as a journalist, started a silent film magazine in Hollywood, and was President of the San Francisco Press Club. Steve’s great-uncle, Reginald Travers, was a noted Shakespearean actor. His father, Donald Travers, is a retired attorney and track coach who served as a Naval officer during World War II. His mother, Inge Travers, is a renowned artist. Steve’s brother, Donald Travers II, is a former Naval officer. Daughter Elizabeth Travers is a college student. Inside Berkeley’s Memorial Stadium is the Colonel Charles Travers Big Game Room (named after Steve’s late uncle, who served during World War II) to accommodate press conferences, and (named after Steve’s late aunt) is the Louise Travers Memorial Club Room. Colonel Travers also founded a wing of the university’s political science department, dedicated to fair and balanced analysis of public affairs. Members of the Travers family have served in the military during the Revolution, the Civil War, World War II, the Korean War, Vietnam and the Persian Gulf War. His books and further information be found at http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=steven+travers&x=11&y=12 or via http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q==STEVEN+TRAVERS+USC+METS+DODGERS&btnG==Search His web page is http://www.redroom.com/author/steven-robert-travers/ Steve is a board member of the USC NorCal Trojan Club, the Hollywood Congress of Republicans, and worships at Christ Lutheran Church. Steve tutored foreign students trying to learn English, as well as jail inmates, through the Marin Literacy Program. "I always wanted to give of my time," he explained, "but was too selfish to really do it. I found excuses. If at the beginning of 2006, if you had told me how busy I would be, I never would have signed up, but I did. I was assigned to a Korean divinity student named Kyung-Taek Hong. We became friends and shared Christian fellowship despite the language barrier. Almost as soon as I started tutoring Kyung, incredible good fortune began to reign down on me. Book deals, the movie deal, speaking engagements, ‘top seller’ sales, maybe a professorship at USC. As busy as I was writing, I met him every Wednesday for an hour and a half at the library. I consider him my ‘angel.’ After Kyung moved on to a Ph.D. program in Chicago, Travers taught a class at the Marin County Jail, then volunteered to work with high school kids. “As Jim Hill always says as his signature signoff on of his sports show, ‘Keep the faith.’”
THE WRITER'S LIFE by Steven Travers THE WRITER'S LIFE by Steven Travers May 12, 2011 667623 words Read a sample
Author bio:
Steven Travers has always been entrepreneurial. “I was turned down by my high school newspaper because they didn’t allow freshmen,” says the sixth-generation Californian, “so I started my own!” Aside from journalism, Travers was a star pitcher, playing three years of varsity baseball for the same suburban California high school that USC football coach Pete Carroll graduated from years earlier. Travers helped lead his team to the mythical national championship of high school baseball, according to polls conducted by Collegiate Baseball magazine and the Easton Bat Company. Travers attended college on a baseball scholarship, where he was an all-conference pitcher, and played collegiate summer ball in Colorado, Nevada and Canada. The 6-6, 225-pound Travers played professionally for the St. Louis Cardinals' organization, where he was a teammate of Danny Cox. Travers once struck out 1989 National League Most Valuable Player Kevin Mitchell three times in one game (he K’d 14 that night). In the Oakland Athletics' system, he played alongside Jose Canseco. “Punching out K-Mitchell was great,” he recalls, “but the highlight of my career may have been when I was with the A’s against the Giants in a Major League exhibition game at Phoenix Municipal Stadium. I struck out the side and went nine-up, nine-down in three innings. Bill King and Lon Simmons announced it on the radio.” Steve later coached at USC, Cal-Berkeley and was recruited to manage a team in Berlin, Germany. After pro baseball, Travers returned to college. He studied in the University of Southern California School of Cinema-Television, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in communications. At USC, he was a classmate of Mark McGwire and Randy Johnson. After graduation, he traveled extensively to New York City, Washington, D.C. and to Europe: London and Paris. “I almost went to work for Dean Witter in the World Trade Center,” he recalled. “After 9/11 I really started to think about ‘what might have been.’ ” Travers also went to Western State University College of Law, the Hollywood Film Institute, and was part of the UCLA Writers' Program. He served in the U.S. Army during the Persian Gulf War, and was a political consultant, speechwriter and campaign manager for a California Congressional candidate. Travers was also a sports agent, co-founding San Francisco Sports Management, Inc. The agency represented Pittsburgh Pirate outfielder Al Martin. Another client, ex-Angels' playboy pitcher Bo Belinsky, was at that time being approached by Hollywood producers about a movie depicting his tempestuous life. Travers wrote the screenplay. That script, Once He Was An Angel, was a quarterfinalist in the Quantum Leap screenwriting contest before getting optioned by a Hollywood producing group that included Frank Capra Jr. and Frank Capra III (son and grandson of the famed It's A Wonderful Life director). Thus began Travers' embarkation into a full-time professional writing career in 1994. “I’ve punched a lot of tickets,” Travers says of his background, “and I bring real-world experience to my writing.” A veteran of Hollywood, Steve has written 15 screenplays, teleplays and stageplays. His credits include The Lost Battalion (the true story of a World War I unit during the Argonne Offensive, the subject of a film starring Rick Schroder), Wicked and Baja California. His additional writing awards are for Bandit, an America’s Best quarterfinalist, and Rock 'n' Roll Heaven, a Writers Network Screenplay & Fiction quarterfinalist. He appeared in the film The Californians, starring Noah Wylie and Illeana Douglas. Travers worked closely with legendary Hollywood producer Edgar Scherick, the original producer of The Lost Battalion. Scherick started ABC’s Baseball Game of the Week and Monday Night Football with Roone Arledge. Travers also wrote for the Los Angeles Times, the Los Angeles Daily News, and was a sports stringer on San Diego’s XTRA 690 AM radio station. Steve has freelanced for magazines, newspapers and web sites. He produced Steven Travers’ Journal on the Internet. Eventually, Travers became the number one columnist at StreetZebra, an L.A. sports magazine where he covered the USC beat and wrote a monthly "Distant Replay" of great events in the Southland's rich sports history. “I have encyclopedic knowledge of history,” Steve says. “I am truly versatile as a writer, able to use my knowledge of the past to understand the present. I have also survived as a freelancer; written extensively for the Internet and the so-called New Media; and have up-close knowledge of the ‘dot-bomb’ era that was the 1990s.” In 2001, Travers was hired as the lead sports columnist for the San Francisco Examiner. While writing for the Examiner, Travers was an eyewitness to Barry Bonds' historic 73-home run season of 2001. He got Bonds to agree to authorize the writing of his autobiography, but a business deal with the publishers was not worked out. Eventually, by 2002 Travers wrote the Best Seller Barry Bonds: Baseball’s Superman from Sports Publishing L.L.C. (www.sportspublishingllc.com). Actor Charlie Sheen wrote the foreword. It has gone through multiple re-prints, is now in paperback, and was nominated for a Casey Award for Best Baseball Book of the Year. A sequel, covering Bonds' alleged steroid use, additional MVP awards, and chase of Hank Aaron's career home run record, is in the works. In 2004, Travers wrote a proposal for the book that eventually became Game of Shadows by Mark Fainaru-Wada and Lance Williams, who landed the deal he did not. An avid reader, Travers poured through books, at least one a month; classics, biographies, history, sports, novels, philosophy. He was also a Christian, but had never read The Holy Bible. "Sometime around March or April of 2004, I decided to read The Bible," he says. "Two pages a day. I started out with the New Testament. After a while I began to read out loud, which made a difference. Then the Old Testament. It took a little less than a year to read the entire book. As soon as I read it through, I started again. Two pages per day, out loud. At this point I have read it twice through. I am beginning to understand it. I am not an expert on it, but the Holy Spirit has come to me and inspires me each day that I read God’s Word. I will read that book until the day I die, God willing and I am able, until some day I will have read it so many times I will be an expert. . .” In 2006, Taylor Trade, a division of Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. (www.RLPGTrade.com), published his book The USC Trojans: College Football's All-Time Greatest Dynasty, which argues that the University of Southern California has replaced Notre Dame as collegiate football's greatest tradition. USC legend Charles "Tree" Young graciously wrote the foreword, and the book ascended to Amazon.com “top seller” and National Book Network “top 100 seller” status. It was re-released in paperback in 2010. Taylor Trade released One Night, Two Teams: Alabama vs. USC and the Game That Changed A Nation in 2007 (foreword by Forrest Gump author Winston Groom). It was re-released in paperback in 2010. This is the true story of how the 1970 USC-Alabama football game ushered in desegregation of the American South. A film is in development. USC graduate Kerry McCluggage, a top Hollywood producer (Craftsman Films); former president of Universal and Paramount TV divisions; founder of UPN; with credits that include Star Trek, Star Trek: The Next Generation and Miami Vice, has optioned it with plans for a major theatrical release. The co-producer is Barry Kemp (Coach, Patch Adams, Catch Me If You Can). Potential directors include Taylor Hackford (An Officer and a Gentleman, Delores Claiborne, The Devil’s Advocate) and Kevin Costner (Dances With Wolves), with Costner possibly starring as John McKay, Tommy Lee Jones as Bear Bryant. Travers is a member of a “producer team” that includes Trojan football legend Anthony Davis and USC graduate Jim Starr. The deal was masterfully put together by Lloyd Robinson (USC ’64) of Suite A Management in Beverly Hills; Steve’s former literary agent, Craig Wiley; and Rowman & Littlefield president Rick Rinehart. Davis is on board to promote the project along with other former Trojans. When the film is released, Travers, Davis and Starr will be executive producers. In the past, Steve was repped by Peter Miller of PMA Literary & Film Agency in New York City. His agent is now Ian Kleinert of Objective Entertainment in Manhattan (who negotiated the huge Jerry West autobiography and Michael Savage’s Trickle Up Poverty). In 2009, Taylor Trade published Pigskin Warriors: 140 Years of College Football’s Greatest Traditions, Games, and Stars. In 2009, major publishing house The Globe Pequot Press published Travers’s book The 1969 Miracle Mets (foreword by Buddy Harrelson). Also in 2009: Dodgers Past & Present, Voyageur Press and A Tale of Three Cities: The 1962 Baseball Season in New York, L.A., and San Francisco. In 2011: The Poet: The Life and Los Angeles Times of Jim Murray, an authorized biography through Potomac Books. Triumph Books (www.triumphbooks.com), a division of New York publishing giant Random House, released five of Travers's books in 2007: A's Essential: Everything You Need to Know to Be A Real Fan! (foreword by A’s GM Billy Beane), Dodgers Essential (foreword by the late, great Bud “The Steamer” Furillo), Angels Essential (foreword by ex-L.A. Times sportswriter Ross Newhan), Diamondbacks Essential (foreword by Phoenix radio personality Andy Dorf), and The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly Los Angeles Lakers (foreword by longtime sports columnist Art Spander). In 2008 Triumph/Random House published Trojans Essential (foreword by ex-Coca-Cola/North American President Terry Marks) and The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly Oakland Raiders (foreword by radio personality Bruce Macgowan). In 2009 from Triumph/Random House: The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly San Francisco 49ers (foreword by 49er Hall of Famer Bob St. Clair) and What It Means to Be a Trojan: Southern Cal’s Greatest Players Talk About Trojans Football (foreword by Pete Carroll). Steve is the author of five unpublished books. These include From the Frat House to the White House to the Big House; God's Country, a three-volume conservative, Christian worldview of how history formed the U.S. Empire and America's manifest destiny for the 21st Century; Ambition: My Struggles to Fail and Succeed in Baseball, Politics, Hollywood, Writing . . . and The Rocky Path I’ve Walked With Christ (his autobiography); a novel, Angry White Male; and a compilation of his work over the years, The Writer’s Life. Travers contemplated an authorized autobiography of former New York Mets’ superstar Tom Seaver; a book about fascinating baseball pitching subjects; and a study of the modern nature of American politics and media manipulation, using the Whittaker Chambers case of the 1940s as its “Genesis.” The telegenic Travers has made numerous appearances on television and radio, being interviewed for the books, articles and screenplays he has written over the years. His national appearances have included "The Jim Rome Show", CNN, ESPN, and the Armed Forces Radio Network. He has appeared on TV and radio stations in major markets such as New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. In September 2005, Steve was interviewed on College Sports Television (www.cstv.com), a division of CBS, as part of a program devoted to the 35th anniversary of the 1970 USC-Alabama game. In February 2006, CSTV featured Travers prominently in their documentary Tackling Segregation, which aired throughout Black History Month. His work was also the subject of a 2005 CSTV documentary on Alabama football coach Paul “Bear” Bryant. In 2006, Travers was a guest speaker, leading a panel of distinguished former USC football players and coaches, for Professor Dan Durbin’s popular class “Sports, Culture & Society” at the University of Southern California Annenberg School for Communications. The subject was the 1970 USC-Alabama game, with Steve’s book a focal point. Out of this have come discussions with USC regarding Steve’s possible hiring as an adjunct professor. Travers made numerous other speaking and booksigning appearances through USC, which included appearances at the USC Bookstore, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, and the USC Collections at the South Coast Plaza Shopping Center in Orange County. In 2007, he addressed the USC East Bay Trojan Club in Walnut Creek, California; the incoming freshmen and parents during Parent’s Weekend at USC; the USC Orange County Trojan Club; as well as more signings at the USC Bookstore and USC Collections; and an address of the Hollywood Congress of Republicans; and the annual banquet of the GMAC Bowl in Mobile, Alabama. Professor Durbin invited him back for a retrospective of the 1972 USC national champion football team at Annenberg School for Communications. In 2008 Travers addressed Republican political groups in support of U.S. Senator John McCain (R.-Arizona). During the 2008 football season, Travers was again a guest lecturer in Professor Durbin's class. The subject was his book Angels Essential, and focused on "the old Pacific Coast League and the early Angels). He was the November speaker at the prestigious Pasadena Quarterback's Club next to the Rose Bowl (past speakers have included Pete Carroll), and signed books at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for the third consecutive year. In 2009 Travers again was a guest panelist in Professor Durbin’s class, centered around a re-union of the USC players interviewed in What It Means to Be a Trojan. Steve is the scion of a distinguished California family. The Travers’s came to colonial America, fought in the Revolutionary War, and settled into New York and Massachusetts. They founded the Travers Stakes horse race. One ancestor, a Captain Edgerly of the Union Army, was reputed to be President Abraham Lincoln’s “personal spy” during the Civil War. Steve’s side of the family came West during the time of the 1849 Gold Rush. His grandfather, Charles S. Travers, covered the 1906 Great Earthquake as a journalist, started a silent film magazine in Hollywood, and was President of the San Francisco Press Club. Steve’s great-uncle, Reginald Travers, was a noted Shakespearean actor. His father, Donald Travers, is a retired attorney and track coach who served as a Naval officer during World War II. His mother, Inge Travers, is a renowned artist. Steve’s brother, Donald Travers II, is a former Naval officer. Daughter Elizabeth Travers is a college student. Inside Berkeley’s Memorial Stadium is the Colonel Charles Travers Big Game Room (named after Steve’s late uncle, who served during World War II) to accommodate press conferences, and (named after Steve’s late aunt) is the Louise Travers Memorial Club Room. Colonel Travers also founded a wing of the university’s political science department, dedicated to fair and balanced analysis of public affairs. Members of the Travers family have served in the military during the Revolution, the Civil War, World War II, the Korean War, Vietnam and the Persian Gulf War. His books and further information be found at http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=steven+travers&x=11&y=12 or via http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q==STEVEN+TRAVERS+USC+METS+DODGERS&btnG==Search His web page is http://www.redroom.com/author/steven-robert-travers/ Steve is a board member of the USC NorCal Trojan Club, the Hollywood Congress of Republicans, and worships at Christ Lutheran Church. Steve tutored foreign students trying to learn English, as well as jail inmates, through the Marin Literacy Program. "I always wanted to give of my time," he explained, "but was too selfish to really do it. I found excuses. If at the beginning of 2006, if you had told me how busy I would be, I never would have signed up, but I did. I was assigned to a Korean divinity student named Kyung-Taek Hong. We became friends and shared Christian fellowship despite the language barrier. Almost as soon as I started tutoring Kyung, incredible good fortune began to reign down on me. Book deals, the movie deal, speaking engagements, ‘top seller’ sales, maybe a professorship at USC. As busy as I was writing, I met him every Wednesday for an hour and a half at the library. I consider him my ‘angel.’ After Kyung moved on to a Ph.D. program in Chicago, Travers taught a class at the Marin County Jail, then volunteered to work with high school kids. “As Jim Hill always says as his signature signoff on of his sports show, ‘Keep the faith.’”
An Index to the Qur'an by Harun Yahya - Adnan Oktar An Index to the Qur'an by Harun Yahya - Adnan Oktar June 23, 2011 599131 words Read a sample
Author bio:
Now writing under the pen-name of HARUN YAHYA, Adnan Oktar was born in Ankara in 1956. Having completed his primary and secondary education in Ankara, he studied arts at Istanbul's Mimar Sinan University and philosophy at Istanbul University. Since the 1980s, he has published many books on political, scientific, and faith-related issues. Harun Yahya is well-known as the author of important works disclosing the imposture of evolutionists, their invalid claims, and the dark liaisons between Darwinism and such bloody ideologies as fascism and communism. Harun Yahya's works, translated into 60 different languages, constitute a collection for a total of more than 45,000 pages with 30,000 illustrations. His pen-name is a composite of the names Harun (Aaron) and Yahya (John), in memory of the two esteemed Prophets who fought against their peoples' lack of faith. The Prophet's seal on his books' covers is symbolic and is linked to their contents. It represents the Qur'an (the Final Scripture) and Prophet Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), last of the prophets. Under the guidance of the Qur'an and the Sunnah (teachings of the Prophet [may Allah bless him and grant him peace]), the author makes it his purpose to disprove each fundamental tenet of irreligious ideologies and to have the "last word," so as to completely silence the objections raised against religion. He uses the seal of the final Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), who attained ultimate wisdom and moral perfection, as a sign of his intention to offer the last word. All of Harun Yahya's works share one single goal: to convey the Qur'an's message, encourage readers to consider basic faith-related issues such as Allah's existence and unity and the Hereafter; and to expose irreligious systems' feeble foundations and perverted ideologies. Harun Yahya enjoys a wide readership in many countries, from India to America, England to Indonesia, Poland to Bosnia, Spain to Brazil, Malaysia to Italy, France to Bulgaria and Russia. Some of his books are available in English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Urdu, Arabic, Albanian, Chinese, Swahili, Hausa, Dhivehi (spoken in Mauritius), Russian, Serbo-Croat (Bosnian), Polish, Malay, Uygur Turkish, Indonesian, Bengali, Danish and Swedish. Greatly appreciated all around the world, these works have been instrumental in many people recovering faith in Allah and gaining deeper insights into their faith. His books' wisdom and sincerity, together with a distinct style that's easy to understand, directly affect anyone who reads them. Those who seriously consider these books, can no longer advocate atheism or any other perverted ideology or materialistic philosophy, since these books are characterized by rapid effectiveness, definite results, and irrefutability. Even if they continue to do so, it will be only a sentimental insistence, since these books refute such ideologies from their very foundations. All contemporary movements of denial are now ideologically defeated, thanks to the books written by Harun Yahya. This is no doubt a result of the Qur'an's wisdom and lucidity. The author modestly intends to serve as a means in humanity's search for Allah's right path. No material gain is sought in the publication of these works. Those who encourage others to read these books, to open their minds and hearts and guide them to become more devoted servants of Allah, render an invaluable service. Meanwhile, it would only be a waste of time and energy to propagate other books that create confusion in people's minds, lead them into ideological confusion, and that clearly have no strong and precise effects in removing the doubts in people's hearts, as also verified from previous experience. It is impossible for books devised to emphasize the author's literary power rather than the noble goal of saving people from loss of faith, to have such a great effect. Those who doubt this can readily see that the sole aim of Harun Yahya's books is to overcome disbelief and to disseminate the Qur'an's moral values. The success and impact of this service are manifested in the readers' conviction. One point should be kept in mind: The main reason for the continuing cruelty, conflict, and other ordeals endured by the vast majority of people is the ideological prevalence of disbelief. This can be ended only with the ideological defeat of disbelief and by conveying the wonders of creation and Qur'anic morality so that people can live by it. Considering the state of the world today, leading into a downward spiral of violence, corruption and conflict, clearly this service must be provided speedily and effectively, or it may be too late. In this effort, the books of Harun Yahya assume a leading role. By the will of Allah, these books will be a means through which people in the twenty-first century will attain the peace, justice, and happiness promised in the Qur'an. The works of the author include The New Masonic Order, Judaism and Freemasonry, Global Freemasonry, The Kabbala and Freemasonry, The Knight Templars, Templars and Freemasonry, Israel's Policy of World Domination, Islam Denounces Terrorism, The Black Clan, Terrorism: The Ritual of the Devil, The Disasters Darwinism Brought to Humanity, Communism in Ambush, Fascism: The Bloody Ideology of Darwinism, The 'Secret Hand'in Bosnia, Holocaust Violence, Behind the Scenes of Terrorism, Israel's Kurdish Card, Communist China's Policy of Oppression in East Turkestan, Palestine, Solution: The Values of the Qur'an, The Winter of Islam and The Spring to Come, Islam and Buddhism, The Philosophy of Zionism, Articles 1-2-3, Romanticism: A Weapon of Satan, The Light of the Qur'an Has Destroyed Satanism, Signs From the Chapter of the Cave in the Qur'an to the Last Times, The End Times and the Mahdi, Signs From the Qur'an, Signs of the Last Day, The Last Times and The Beast of the Earth, Truths 1-2, Idealism The Philosophy of Matrix and the True Nature of Matter, The Western World Turns to God, The Evolution Deceit, The Perfect Design in the Universe Is Not by Chance, Why Darwinism Is Incompatable with the Qur’an, Darwinism Refuted, New Research Demolishes Evolution, A Definitive Reply to Evolutionist Propaganda, The Quandary of Evolution I-II (Encyclopedic), The Error of the Evolution of Species, The Blunders of Evolutionists, The Collapse of the Theory of Evolution in 50 Steps, The Errors of The NAS:A Reply to the National Academy of Sciences Booklet Science and Creationism, Confessions of Evolutionists, Perished Nations, For Men of Understanding, Love of Allah, Allah's Art of Affection, The Glad Tidings of the Messiah, The Prophet Musa (as), The Prophet Yusuf (as), The Prophet Muhammad (saas), The Prophet Sulayman (as), The Prophet Ibrahim (as) and the Prophet Lut (as), Maryam (as) The Exemplary Muslim Woman, The Golden Age, Allah Exists, Allah's Artistry in Colour, Magnificence Everywhere, The Importance of the Evidences of Creation, The Truth of the Life of This World, The Nightmare of Disbelief, Knowing the Truth, Eternity Has Already Begun, Timelessness and the Reality of Fate, Matter: Another Name for Illusion, The Little Man in the Tower, Islam and Karma, The Dark Magic of Darwinism, The Religion of Darwinism, The Collapse of the Theory of Evolution in 20 Questions, Allah is Known Through Reason, The Qur'an Leads the Way to Science, Consciousness in the Cell, Biomimetics Technology Imitates Nature, The Engineering in Nature, A String of Miracles, The Creation of the Universe, Miracles of the Qur'an, The Design in Nature, Self-Sacrifice and Intelligent Behaviour Models in Animals, Deep Thinking, Never Plead Ignorance, The Green Miracle: Photosynthesis, The Miracle in the Cell, The Miracle in the Eye, The Miracle in the Spider, The Miracle in the Mosquito, The Miracle in the Ant, The Miracle of the Immune System, The Miracle of Creation in Plants, The Miracle in the Atom, The Miracle in the Honeybee, The Miracle of Seed, The Miracle of Hormones, The Miracle of the Termite, The Miracle of the Human Body, The Miracle of Human Creation, The Miracle of Protein, The Miracle of Smell and Taste, The Miracle of the Microworld, The Secrets of DNA, The Miracle in the Molecule, The Miracle of Creation in DNA, The Miracle of Talking Birds. The author's childrens books are: Wonders of Allah's Creation, The World of Animals, The Glory in the Heavens, Wonderful Creatures, Let's Learn Our Islam, The World of Our Little Friends: The Ants, Honeybees That Build Perfect Combs, Skillful Dam Constructors: Beavers, Tell Me About Creation, The Miracle in Our Body, A Day in the Life of a Muslim, Children This is for You I-II The author's other works on Quranic topics include: The Basic Concepts in the Qur'an, The Moral Values of the Qur'an, Quick Grasp of Faith 1-2-3, Ever Thought About the Truth?, Crude Understanding of Disbelief, Devoted to Allah, Abandoning the Society of Ignorance, Paradise: The Believers' Real Home, Learning from the Qur'an, An Index to the Qur'an, Emigrating for the Cause of Allah, The Character of the Hypocrite in the Qur'an, The Secrets of the Hypocrite, Names of Allah, Communicating the Message and Disputing in the Qur'an, Answers from the Qur'an, Death Resurrection Hell, The Struggle of the Messengers, The Avowed Enemy of Man: Satan, The Greatest Slander: Idolatry, The Religion of the Ignorant, The Arrogance of Satan, Prayer in the Qur'an, The Theory of Evolution, The Importance of Conscience in the Qur'an, The Day of Resurrection, Never Forget, Commonly Disregarded Qur'anic Rulings, Human Characters in the Society of Ignorance, The Importance of Patience in the Qur'an, Perfected Faith, Before You Regret, Our Messengers Say, The Mercy of Believers, The Fear of Allah, Jesus Will Return, Beauties for Life in the Qur'an, A Bouquet of the Beauties of Allah 1-2-3-4, The Iniquity Called "Mockery," The Mystery of the Test, Real Wisdom Described in the Qur'an, The Struggle Against the Religion of Irreligion, The School of Yusuf, The Alliance of the Good, Slanders Spread Against Muslims Throughout History, The Importance of Following the Good Word, Why Do You Deceive Yourself?, Islam: The Religion of Ease, Zeal and Enthusiasm Described in the Qur’an, Seeing Good in All, How do the Unwise Interpret the Qur'an?, Some Secrets of the Qur'an, The Courage of Believers, Hopefulness in the Qur'an, Justice and Tolerance in the Qur'an, Basic Tenets of Islam, Those Who do not Heed the Qur'an, Taking the Qur'an as a Guide, A Lurking Threat: Heedlessness, Sincerity Described in the Qur'an, The Happiness of Believers, Those Who Exhaust Their Pleasures During Their Wordly Lives, A Sly Game of Satan, Passivism in Religion, The Religion of Worshipping People, Agonies of a Fake World, How a Muslim Speaks, The Silent Language of Evil, The Ruses of the Liar in the Qur'an, Loyalty in the Qur'an, The Solution to Secret Torments.
Leigh Brackett (ology) Volume 1 by Blue Tyson Leigh Brackett (ology) Volume 1 by Blue Tyson June 08, 2010 521113 words Read a sample
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Free SF and Not Free SF MegaBlog : http://freesf.strandedinoz.com/wordpress Website : http://leighbrackett.blogspot.com Twitter : http://www.twitter.com/bluetyson Facebook : http://www.facebook.com/BlueTyson Paolo Bacigalupi (ology) : http://paolobacigalupi.blogspot.com Laird Barron (ology) : http://lairdbarron.blogspot.com Leigh Brackett (ology) : http://leighbrackett.blogspot.com Ted Chiang (ology) : http://tedchiang.blogspot.com Greg Egan (ology) : http://borderguards.blogspot.com James Enge (ology) : http://jamesenge.blogspot.com Alastair Reynolds (ology) : http://alastairreynolds.blogspot.com Cordwainer Smith (ology) : http://cordwainersmith.blogspot.com Charles Stross (ology) : http://charlesstross.blogspot.com Free SF Reader : http://freesf.blogspot.com Not Free SF Reader : http://notfreesf.blogspot.com Super Reader : http://superprose.blogspot.com Space Opera Reader : http://spaceoperareader.blogspot.com Year's Best SF Reader : http://yearsbestsf.blogspot.com Free SF Best : http://freesfbest.blogspot.com Australian SF Reader : http://ozsfbest.blogspot.com SF Watcher : http://sfwatcher.blogspot.com See here for more :- http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=creator%3A%22Blue%20Tyson%22
The USC Trojans: College Football's All-Time Greatest Dynasty by Steven Travers The USC Trojans: College Football's All-Time Greatest Dynasty by Steven Travers May 17, 2011 439971 words Read a sample
Author bio:
Steven Travers has always been entrepreneurial. “I was turned down by my high school newspaper because they didn’t allow freshmen,” says the sixth-generation Californian, “so I started my own!” Aside from journalism, Travers was a star pitcher, playing three years of varsity baseball for the same suburban California high school that USC football coach Pete Carroll graduated from years earlier. Travers helped lead his team to the mythical national championship of high school baseball, according to polls conducted by Collegiate Baseball magazine and the Easton Bat Company. Travers attended college on a baseball scholarship, where he was an all-conference pitcher, and played collegiate summer ball in Colorado, Nevada and Canada. The 6-6, 225-pound Travers played professionally for the St. Louis Cardinals' organization, where he was a teammate of Danny Cox. Travers once struck out 1989 National League Most Valuable Player Kevin Mitchell three times in one game (he K’d 14 that night). In the Oakland Athletics' system, he played alongside Jose Canseco. “Punching out K-Mitchell was great,” he recalls, “but the highlight of my career may have been when I was with the A’s against the Giants in a Major League exhibition game at Phoenix Municipal Stadium. I struck out the side and went nine-up, nine-down in three innings. Bill King and Lon Simmons announced it on the radio.” Steve later coached at USC, Cal-Berkeley and was recruited to manage a team in Berlin, Germany. After pro baseball, Travers returned to college. He studied in the University of Southern California School of Cinema-Television, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in communications. At USC, he was a classmate of Mark McGwire and Randy Johnson. After graduation, he traveled extensively to New York City, Washington, D.C. and to Europe: London and Paris. “I almost went to work for Dean Witter in the World Trade Center,” he recalled. “After 9/11 I really started to think about ‘what might have been.’ ” Travers also went to Western State University College of Law, the Hollywood Film Institute, and was part of the UCLA Writers' Program. He served in the U.S. Army during the Persian Gulf War, and was a political consultant, speechwriter and campaign manager for a California Congressional candidate. Travers was also a sports agent, co-founding San Francisco Sports Management, Inc. The agency represented Pittsburgh Pirate outfielder Al Martin. Another client, ex-Angels' playboy pitcher Bo Belinsky, was at that time being approached by Hollywood producers about a movie depicting his tempestuous life. Travers wrote the screenplay. That script, Once He Was An Angel, was a quarterfinalist in the Quantum Leap screenwriting contest before getting optioned by a Hollywood producing group that included Frank Capra Jr. and Frank Capra III (son and grandson of the famed It's A Wonderful Life director). Thus began Travers' embarkation into a full-time professional writing career in 1994. “I’ve punched a lot of tickets,” Travers says of his background, “and I bring real-world experience to my writing.” A veteran of Hollywood, Steve has written 15 screenplays, teleplays and stageplays. His credits include The Lost Battalion (the true story of a World War I unit during the Argonne Offensive, the subject of a film starring Rick Schroder), Wicked and Baja California. His additional writing awards are for Bandit, an America’s Best quarterfinalist, and Rock 'n' Roll Heaven, a Writers Network Screenplay & Fiction quarterfinalist. He appeared in the film The Californians, starring Noah Wylie and Illeana Douglas. Travers worked closely with legendary Hollywood producer Edgar Scherick, the original producer of The Lost Battalion. Scherick started ABC’s Baseball Game of the Week and Monday Night Football with Roone Arledge. Travers also wrote for the Los Angeles Times, the Los Angeles Daily News, and was a sports stringer on San Diego’s XTRA 690 AM radio station. Steve has freelanced for magazines, newspapers and web sites. He produced Steven Travers’ Journal on the Internet. Eventually, Travers became the number one columnist at StreetZebra, an L.A. sports magazine where he covered the USC beat and wrote a monthly "Distant Replay" of great events in the Southland's rich sports history. “I have encyclopedic knowledge of history,” Steve says. “I am truly versatile as a writer, able to use my knowledge of the past to understand the present. I have also survived as a freelancer; written extensively for the Internet and the so-called New Media; and have up-close knowledge of the ‘dot-bomb’ era that was the 1990s.” In 2001, Travers was hired as the lead sports columnist for the San Francisco Examiner. While writing for the Examiner, Travers was an eyewitness to Barry Bonds' historic 73-home run season of 2001. He got Bonds to agree to authorize the writing of his autobiography, but a business deal with the publishers was not worked out. Eventually, by 2002 Travers wrote the Best Seller Barry Bonds: Baseball’s Superman from Sports Publishing L.L.C. (www.sportspublishingllc.com). Actor Charlie Sheen wrote the foreword. It has gone through multiple re-prints, is now in paperback, and was nominated for a Casey Award for Best Baseball Book of the Year. A sequel, covering Bonds' alleged steroid use, additional MVP awards, and chase of Hank Aaron's career home run record, is in the works. In 2004, Travers wrote a proposal for the book that eventually became Game of Shadows by Mark Fainaru-Wada and Lance Williams, who landed the deal he did not. An avid reader, Travers poured through books, at least one a month; classics, biographies, history, sports, novels, philosophy. He was also a Christian, but had never read The Holy Bible. "Sometime around March or April of 2004, I decided to read The Bible," he says. "Two pages a day. I started out with the New Testament. After a while I began to read out loud, which made a difference. Then the Old Testament. It took a little less than a year to read the entire book. As soon as I read it through, I started again. Two pages per day, out loud. At this point I have read it twice through. I am beginning to understand it. I am not an expert on it, but the Holy Spirit has come to me and inspires me each day that I read God’s Word. I will read that book until the day I die, God willing and I am able, until some day I will have read it so many times I will be an expert. . .” In 2006, Taylor Trade, a division of Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. (www.RLPGTrade.com), published his book The USC Trojans: College Football's All-Time Greatest Dynasty, which argues that the University of Southern California has replaced Notre Dame as collegiate football's greatest tradition. USC legend Charles "Tree" Young graciously wrote the foreword, and the book ascended to Amazon.com “top seller” and National Book Network “top 100 seller” status. It was re-released in paperback in 2010. Taylor Trade released One Night, Two Teams: Alabama vs. USC and the Game That Changed A Nation in 2007 (foreword by Forrest Gump author Winston Groom). It was re-released in paperback in 2010. This is the true story of how the 1970 USC-Alabama football game ushered in desegregation of the American South. A film is in development. USC graduate Kerry McCluggage, a top Hollywood producer (Craftsman Films); former president of Universal and Paramount TV divisions; founder of UPN; with credits that include Star Trek, Star Trek: The Next Generation and Miami Vice, has optioned it with plans for a major theatrical release. The co-producer is Barry Kemp (Coach, Patch Adams, Catch Me If You Can). Potential directors include Taylor Hackford (An Officer and a Gentleman, Delores Claiborne, The Devil’s Advocate) and Kevin Costner (Dances With Wolves), with Costner possibly starring as John McKay, Tommy Lee Jones as Bear Bryant. Travers is a member of a “producer team” that includes Trojan football legend Anthony Davis and USC graduate Jim Starr. The deal was masterfully put together by Lloyd Robinson (USC ’64) of Suite A Management in Beverly Hills; Steve’s former literary agent, Craig Wiley; and Rowman & Littlefield president Rick Rinehart. Davis is on board to promote the project along with other former Trojans. When the film is released, Travers, Davis and Starr will be executive producers. In the past, Steve was repped by Peter Miller of PMA Literary & Film Agency in New York City. His agent is now Ian Kleinert of Objective Entertainment in Manhattan (who negotiated the huge Jerry West autobiography and Michael Savage’s Trickle Up Poverty). In 2009, Taylor Trade published Pigskin Warriors: 140 Years of College Football’s Greatest Traditions, Games, and Stars. In 2009, major publishing house The Globe Pequot Press published Travers’s book The 1969 Miracle Mets (foreword by Buddy Harrelson). Also in 2009: Dodgers Past & Present, Voyageur Press and A Tale of Three Cities: The 1962 Baseball Season in New York, L.A., and San Francisco. In 2011: The Poet: The Life and Los Angeles Times of Jim Murray, an authorized biography through Potomac Books. Triumph Books (www.triumphbooks.com), a division of New York publishing giant Random House, released five of Travers's books in 2007: A's Essential: Everything You Need to Know to Be A Real Fan! (foreword by A’s GM Billy Beane), Dodgers Essential (foreword by the late, great Bud “The Steamer” Furillo), Angels Essential (foreword by ex-L.A. Times sportswriter Ross Newhan), Diamondbacks Essential (foreword by Phoenix radio personality Andy Dorf), and The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly Los Angeles Lakers (foreword by longtime sports columnist Art Spander). In 2008 Triumph/Random House published Trojans Essential (foreword by ex-Coca-Cola/North American President Terry Marks) and The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly Oakland Raiders (foreword by radio personality Bruce Macgowan). In 2009 from Triumph/Random House: The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly San Francisco 49ers (foreword by 49er Hall of Famer Bob St. Clair) and What It Means to Be a Trojan: Southern Cal’s Greatest Players Talk About Trojans Football (foreword by Pete Carroll). Steve is the author of five unpublished books. These include From the Frat House to the White House to the Big House; God's Country, a three-volume conservative, Christian worldview of how history formed the U.S. Empire and America's manifest destiny for the 21st Century; Ambition: My Struggles to Fail and Succeed in Baseball, Politics, Hollywood, Writing . . . and The Rocky Path I’ve Walked With Christ (his autobiography); a novel, Angry White Male; and a compilation of his work over the years, The Writer’s Life. Travers contemplated an authorized autobiography of former New York Mets’ superstar Tom Seaver; a book about fascinating baseball pitching subjects; and a study of the modern nature of American politics and media manipulation, using the Whittaker Chambers case of the 1940s as its “Genesis.” The telegenic Travers has made numerous appearances on television and radio, being interviewed for the books, articles and screenplays he has written over the years. His national appearances have included "The Jim Rome Show", CNN, ESPN, and the Armed Forces Radio Network. He has appeared on TV and radio stations in major markets such as New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. In September 2005, Steve was interviewed on College Sports Television (www.cstv.com), a division of CBS, as part of a program devoted to the 35th anniversary of the 1970 USC-Alabama game. In February 2006, CSTV featured Travers prominently in their documentary Tackling Segregation, which aired throughout Black History Month. His work was also the subject of a 2005 CSTV documentary on Alabama football coach Paul “Bear” Bryant. In 2006, Travers was a guest speaker, leading a panel of distinguished former USC football players and coaches, for Professor Dan Durbin’s popular class “Sports, Culture & Society” at the University of Southern California Annenberg School for Communications. The subject was the 1970 USC-Alabama game, with Steve’s book a focal point. Out of this have come discussions with USC regarding Steve’s possible hiring as an adjunct professor. Travers made numerous other speaking and booksigning appearances through USC, which included appearances at the USC Bookstore, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, and the USC Collections at the South Coast Plaza Shopping Center in Orange County. In 2007, he addressed the USC East Bay Trojan Club in Walnut Creek, California; the incoming freshmen and parents during Parent’s Weekend at USC; the USC Orange County Trojan Club; as well as more signings at the USC Bookstore and USC Collections; and an address of the Hollywood Congress of Republicans; and the annual banquet of the GMAC Bowl in Mobile, Alabama. Professor Durbin invited him back for a retrospective of the 1972 USC national champion football team at Annenberg School for Communications. In 2008 Travers addressed Republican political groups in support of U.S. Senator John McCain (R.-Arizona). During the 2008 football season, Travers was again a guest lecturer in Professor Durbin's class. The subject was his book Angels Essential, and focused on "the old Pacific Coast League and the early Angels). He was the November speaker at the prestigious Pasadena Quarterback's Club next to the Rose Bowl (past speakers have included Pete Carroll), and signed books at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for the third consecutive year. In 2009 Travers again was a guest panelist in Professor Durbin’s class, centered around a re-union of the USC players interviewed in What It Means to Be a Trojan. Steve is the scion of a distinguished California family. The Travers’s came to colonial America, fought in the Revolutionary War, and settled into New York and Massachusetts. They founded the Travers Stakes horse race. One ancestor, a Captain Edgerly of the Union Army, was reputed to be President Abraham Lincoln’s “personal spy” during the Civil War. Steve’s side of the family came West during the time of the 1849 Gold Rush. His grandfather, Charles S. Travers, covered the 1906 Great Earthquake as a journalist, started a silent film magazine in Hollywood, and was President of the San Francisco Press Club. Steve’s great-uncle, Reginald Travers, was a noted Shakespearean actor. His father, Donald Travers, is a retired attorney and track coach who served as a Naval officer during World War II. His mother, Inge Travers, is a renowned artist. Steve’s brother, Donald Travers II, is a former Naval officer. Daughter Elizabeth Travers is a college student. Inside Berkeley’s Memorial Stadium is the Colonel Charles Travers Big Game Room (named after Steve’s late uncle, who served during World War II) to accommodate press conferences, and (named after Steve’s late aunt) is the Louise Travers Memorial Club Room. Colonel Travers also founded a wing of the university’s political science department, dedicated to fair and balanced analysis of public affairs. Members of the Travers family have served in the military during the Revolution, the Civil War, World War II, the Korean War, Vietnam and the Persian Gulf War. His books and further information be found at http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=steven+travers&x=11&y=12 or via http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q==STEVEN+TRAVERS+USC+METS+DODGERS&btnG==Search His web page is http://www.redroom.com/author/steven-robert-travers/ Steve is a board member of the USC NorCal Trojan Club, the Hollywood Congress of Republicans, and worships at Christ Lutheran Church. Steve tutored foreign students trying to learn English, as well as jail inmates, through the Marin Literacy Program. "I always wanted to give of my time," he explained, "but was too selfish to really do it. I found excuses. If at the beginning of 2006, if you had told me how busy I would be, I never would have signed up, but I did. I was assigned to a Korean divinity student named Kyung-Taek Hong. We became friends and shared Christian fellowship despite the language barrier. Almost as soon as I started tutoring Kyung, incredible good fortune began to reign down on me. Book deals, the movie deal, speaking engagements, ‘top seller’ sales, maybe a professorship at USC. As busy as I was writing, I met him every Wednesday for an hour and a half at the library. I consider him my ‘angel.’ After Kyung moved on to a Ph.D. program in Chicago, Travers taught a class at the Marin County Jail, then volunteered to work with high school kids. “As Jim Hill always says as his signature signoff on of his sports show, ‘Keep the faith.’”
Cyclopedia of Philosophy by Sam Vaknin Cyclopedia of Philosophy by Sam Vaknin Jan. 03, 2010 389526 words Read a sample
Author bio:
Sam Vaknin ( http://samvak.tripod.com ) is the author of Malignant Self Love - Narcissism Revisited and After the Rain - How the West Lost the East as well as many other books and ebooks about topics in psychology, relationships, philosophy, economics, and international affairs. He served as a columnist for Central Europe Review, Global Politician, PopMatters, eBookWeb , and Bellaonline, and as a United Press International (UPI) Senior Business Correspondent. He was the editor of mental health and Central East Europe categories in The Open Directory and Suite101.
Torres de medianohce by jesser rose Torres de medianohce by jesser rose Dec. 14, 2011 375247 words Read a sample
Author bio:
PIGSKIN WARRIORS: COLLEGE FOOTBALL'S GREATEST TRADITIONS, GAMES AND PLAYERS by Steven Travers PIGSKIN WARRIORS: COLLEGE FOOTBALL'S GREATEST TRADITIONS, GAMES AND PLAYERS by Steven Travers June 04, 2011 335251 words Read a sample
Author bio:
Steven Travers has always been entrepreneurial. “I was turned down by my high school newspaper because they didn’t allow freshmen,” says the sixth-generation Californian, “so I started my own!” Aside from journalism, Travers was a star pitcher, playing three years of varsity baseball for the same suburban California high school that USC football coach Pete Carroll graduated from years earlier. Travers helped lead his team to the mythical national championship of high school baseball, according to polls conducted by Collegiate Baseball magazine and the Easton Bat Company. Travers attended college on a baseball scholarship, where he was an all-conference pitcher, and played collegiate summer ball in Colorado, Nevada and Canada. The 6-6, 225-pound Travers played professionally for the St. Louis Cardinals' organization, where he was a teammate of Danny Cox. Travers once struck out 1989 National League Most Valuable Player Kevin Mitchell three times in one game (he K’d 14 that night). In the Oakland Athletics' system, he played alongside Jose Canseco. “Punching out K-Mitchell was great,” he recalls, “but the highlight of my career may have been when I was with the A’s against the Giants in a Major League exhibition game at Phoenix Municipal Stadium. I struck out the side and went nine-up, nine-down in three innings. Bill King and Lon Simmons announced it on the radio.” Steve later coached at USC, Cal-Berkeley and was recruited to manage a team in Berlin, Germany. After pro baseball, Travers returned to college. He studied in the University of Southern California School of Cinema-Television, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in communications. At USC, he was a classmate of Mark McGwire and Randy Johnson. After graduation, he traveled extensively to New York City, Washington, D.C. and to Europe: London and Paris. “I almost went to work for Dean Witter in the World Trade Center,” he recalled. “After 9/11 I really started to think about ‘what might have been.’ ” Travers also went to Western State University College of Law, the Hollywood Film Institute, and was part of the UCLA Writers' Program. He served in the U.S. Army during the Persian Gulf War, and was a political consultant, speechwriter and campaign manager for a California Congressional candidate. Travers was also a sports agent, co-founding San Francisco Sports Management, Inc. The agency represented Pittsburgh Pirate outfielder Al Martin. Another client, ex-Angels' playboy pitcher Bo Belinsky, was at that time being approached by Hollywood producers about a movie depicting his tempestuous life. Travers wrote the screenplay. That script, Once He Was An Angel, was a quarterfinalist in the Quantum Leap screenwriting contest before getting optioned by a Hollywood producing group that included Frank Capra Jr. and Frank Capra III (son and grandson of the famed It's A Wonderful Life director). Thus began Travers' embarkation into a full-time professional writing career in 1994. “I’ve punched a lot of tickets,” Travers says of his background, “and I bring real-world experience to my writing.” A veteran of Hollywood, Steve has written 15 screenplays, teleplays and stageplays. His credits include The Lost Battalion (the true story of a World War I unit during the Argonne Offensive, the subject of a film starring Rick Schroder), Wicked and Baja California. His additional writing awards are for Bandit, an America’s Best quarterfinalist, and Rock 'n' Roll Heaven, a Writers Network Screenplay & Fiction quarterfinalist. He appeared in the film The Californians, starring Noah Wylie and Illeana Douglas. Travers worked closely with legendary Hollywood producer Edgar Scherick, the original producer of The Lost Battalion. Scherick started ABC’s Baseball Game of the Week and Monday Night Football with Roone Arledge. Travers also wrote for the Los Angeles Times, the Los Angeles Daily News, and was a sports stringer on San Diego’s XTRA 690 AM radio station. Steve has freelanced for magazines, newspapers and web sites. He produced Steven Travers’ Journal on the Internet. Eventually, Travers became the number one columnist at StreetZebra, an L.A. sports magazine where he covered the USC beat and wrote a monthly "Distant Replay" of great events in the Southland's rich sports history. “I have encyclopedic knowledge of history,” Steve says. “I am truly versatile as a writer, able to use my knowledge of the past to understand the present. I have also survived as a freelancer; written extensively for the Internet and the so-called New Media; and have up-close knowledge of the ‘dot-bomb’ era that was the 1990s.” In 2001, Travers was hired as the lead sports columnist for the San Francisco Examiner. While writing for the Examiner, Travers was an eyewitness to Barry Bonds' historic 73-home run season of 2001. He got Bonds to agree to authorize the writing of his autobiography, but a business deal with the publishers was not worked out. Eventually, by 2002 Travers wrote the Best Seller Barry Bonds: Baseball’s Superman from Sports Publishing L.L.C. (www.sportspublishingllc.com). Actor Charlie Sheen wrote the foreword. It has gone through multiple re-prints, is now in paperback, and was nominated for a Casey Award for Best Baseball Book of the Year. A sequel, covering Bonds' alleged steroid use, additional MVP awards, and chase of Hank Aaron's career home run record, is in the works. In 2004, Travers wrote a proposal for the book that eventually became Game of Shadows by Mark Fainaru-Wada and Lance Williams, who landed the deal he did not. An avid reader, Travers poured through books, at least one a month; classics, biographies, history, sports, novels, philosophy. He was also a Christian, but had never read The Holy Bible. "Sometime around March or April of 2004, I decided to read The Bible," he says. "Two pages a day. I started out with the New Testament. After a while I began to read out loud, which made a difference. Then the Old Testament. It took a little less than a year to read the entire book. As soon as I read it through, I started again. Two pages per day, out loud. At this point I have read it twice through. I am beginning to understand it. I am not an expert on it, but the Holy Spirit has come to me and inspires me each day that I read God’s Word. I will read that book until the day I die, God willing and I am able, until some day I will have read it so many times I will be an expert. . .” In 2006, Taylor Trade, a division of Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. (www.RLPGTrade.com), published his book The USC Trojans: College Football's All-Time Greatest Dynasty, which argues that the University of Southern California has replaced Notre Dame as collegiate football's greatest tradition. USC legend Charles "Tree" Young graciously wrote the foreword, and the book ascended to Amazon.com “top seller” and National Book Network “top 100 seller” status. It was re-released in paperback in 2010. Taylor Trade released One Night, Two Teams: Alabama vs. USC and the Game That Changed A Nation in 2007 (foreword by Forrest Gump author Winston Groom). It was re-released in paperback in 2010. This is the true story of how the 1970 USC-Alabama football game ushered in desegregation of the American South. A film is in development. USC graduate Kerry McCluggage, a top Hollywood producer (Craftsman Films); former president of Universal and Paramount TV divisions; founder of UPN; with credits that include Star Trek, Star Trek: The Next Generation and Miami Vice, has optioned it with plans for a major theatrical release. The co-producer is Barry Kemp (Coach, Patch Adams, Catch Me If You Can). Potential directors include Taylor Hackford (An Officer and a Gentleman, Delores Claiborne, The Devil’s Advocate) and Kevin Costner (Dances With Wolves), with Costner possibly starring as John McKay, Tommy Lee Jones as Bear Bryant. Travers is a member of a “producer team” that includes Trojan football legend Anthony Davis and USC graduate Jim Starr. The deal was masterfully put together by Lloyd Robinson (USC ’64) of Suite A Management in Beverly Hills; Steve’s former literary agent, Craig Wiley; and Rowman & Littlefield president Rick Rinehart. Davis is on board to promote the project along with other former Trojans. When the film is released, Travers, Davis and Starr will be executive producers. In the past, Steve was repped by Peter Miller of PMA Literary & Film Agency in New York City. His agent is now Ian Kleinert of Objective Entertainment in Manhattan (who negotiated the huge Jerry West autobiography and Michael Savage’s Trickle Up Poverty). In 2009, Taylor Trade published Pigskin Warriors: 140 Years of College Football’s Greatest Traditions, Games, and Stars. In 2009, major publishing house The Globe Pequot Press published Travers’s book The 1969 Miracle Mets (foreword by Buddy Harrelson). Also in 2009: Dodgers Past & Present, Voyageur Press and A Tale of Three Cities: The 1962 Baseball Season in New York, L.A., and San Francisco. In 2011: The Poet: The Life and Los Angeles Times of Jim Murray, an authorized biography through Potomac Books. Triumph Books (www.triumphbooks.com), a division of New York publishing giant Random House, released five of Travers's books in 2007: A's Essential: Everything You Need to Know to Be A Real Fan! (foreword by A’s GM Billy Beane), Dodgers Essential (foreword by the late, great Bud “The Steamer” Furillo), Angels Essential (foreword by ex-L.A. Times sportswriter Ross Newhan), Diamondbacks Essential (foreword by Phoenix radio personality Andy Dorf), and The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly Los Angeles Lakers (foreword by longtime sports columnist Art Spander). In 2008 Triumph/Random House published Trojans Essential (foreword by ex-Coca-Cola/North American President Terry Marks) and The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly Oakland Raiders (foreword by radio personality Bruce Macgowan). In 2009 from Triumph/Random House: The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly San Francisco 49ers (foreword by 49er Hall of Famer Bob St. Clair) and What It Means to Be a Trojan: Southern Cal’s Greatest Players Talk About Trojans Football (foreword by Pete Carroll). Steve is the author of five unpublished books. These include From the Frat House to the White House to the Big House; God's Country, a three-volume conservative, Christian worldview of how history formed the U.S. Empire and America's manifest destiny for the 21st Century; Ambition: My Struggles to Fail and Succeed in Baseball, Politics, Hollywood, Writing . . . and The Rocky Path I’ve Walked With Christ (his autobiography); a novel, Angry White Male; and a compilation of his work over the years, The Writer’s Life. Travers contemplated an authorized autobiography of former New York Mets’ superstar Tom Seaver; a book about fascinating baseball pitching subjects; and a study of the modern nature of American politics and media manipulation, using the Whittaker Chambers case of the 1940s as its “Genesis.” The telegenic Travers has made numerous appearances on television and radio, being interviewed for the books, articles and screenplays he has written over the years. His national appearances have included "The Jim Rome Show", CNN, ESPN, and the Armed Forces Radio Network. He has appeared on TV and radio stations in major markets such as New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. In September 2005, Steve was interviewed on College Sports Television (www.cstv.com), a division of CBS, as part of a program devoted to the 35th anniversary of the 1970 USC-Alabama game. In February 2006, CSTV featured Travers prominently in their documentary Tackling Segregation, which aired throughout Black History Month. His work was also the subject of a 2005 CSTV documentary on Alabama football coach Paul “Bear” Bryant. In 2006, Travers was a guest speaker, leading a panel of distinguished former USC football players and coaches, for Professor Dan Durbin’s popular class “Sports, Culture & Society” at the University of Southern California Annenberg School for Communications. The subject was the 1970 USC-Alabama game, with Steve’s book a focal point. Out of this have come discussions with USC regarding Steve’s possible hiring as an adjunct professor. Travers made numerous other speaking and booksigning appearances through USC, which included appearances at the USC Bookstore, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, and the USC Collections at the South Coast Plaza Shopping Center in Orange County. In 2007, he addressed the USC East Bay Trojan Club in Walnut Creek, California; the incoming freshmen and parents during Parent’s Weekend at USC; the USC Orange County Trojan Club; as well as more signings at the USC Bookstore and USC Collections; and an address of the Hollywood Congress of Republicans; and the annual banquet of the GMAC Bowl in Mobile, Alabama. Professor Durbin invited him back for a retrospective of the 1972 USC national champion football team at Annenberg School for Communications. In 2008 Travers addressed Republican political groups in support of U.S. Senator John McCain (R.-Arizona). During the 2008 football season, Travers was again a guest lecturer in Professor Durbin's class. The subject was his book Angels Essential, and focused on "the old Pacific Coast League and the early Angels). He was the November speaker at the prestigious Pasadena Quarterback's Club next to the Rose Bowl (past speakers have included Pete Carroll), and signed books at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for the third consecutive year. In 2009 Travers again was a guest panelist in Professor Durbin’s class, centered around a re-union of the USC players interviewed in What It Means to Be a Trojan. Steve is the scion of a distinguished California family. The Travers’s came to colonial America, fought in the Revolutionary War, and settled into New York and Massachusetts. They founded the Travers Stakes horse race. One ancestor, a Captain Edgerly of the Union Army, was reputed to be President Abraham Lincoln’s “personal spy” during the Civil War. Steve’s side of the family came West during the time of the 1849 Gold Rush. His grandfather, Charles S. Travers, covered the 1906 Great Earthquake as a journalist, started a silent film magazine in Hollywood, and was President of the San Francisco Press Club. Steve’s great-uncle, Reginald Travers, was a noted Shakespearean actor. His father, Donald Travers, is a retired attorney and track coach who served as a Naval officer during World War II. His mother, Inge Travers, is a renowned artist. Steve’s brother, Donald Travers II, is a former Naval officer. Daughter Elizabeth Travers is a college student. Inside Berkeley’s Memorial Stadium is the Colonel Charles Travers Big Game Room (named after Steve’s late uncle, who served during World War II) to accommodate press conferences, and (named after Steve’s late aunt) is the Louise Travers Memorial Club Room. Colonel Travers also founded a wing of the university’s political science department, dedicated to fair and balanced analysis of public affairs. Members of the Travers family have served in the military during the Revolution, the Civil War, World War II, the Korean War, Vietnam and the Persian Gulf War. His books and further information be found at http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=steven+travers&x=11&y=12 or via http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q==STEVEN+TRAVERS+USC+METS+DODGERS&btnG==Search His web page is http://www.redroom.com/author/steven-robert-travers/ Steve is a board member of the USC NorCal Trojan Club, the Hollywood Congress of Republicans, and worships at Christ Lutheran Church. Steve tutored foreign students trying to learn English, as well as jail inmates, through the Marin Literacy Program. "I always wanted to give of my time," he explained, "but was too selfish to really do it. I found excuses. If at the beginning of 2006, if you had told me how busy I would be, I never would have signed up, but I did. I was assigned to a Korean divinity student named Kyung-Taek Hong. We became friends and shared Christian fellowship despite the language barrier. Almost as soon as I started tutoring Kyung, incredible good fortune began to reign down on me. Book deals, the movie deal, speaking engagements, ‘top seller’ sales, maybe a professorship at USC. As busy as I was writing, I met him every Wednesday for an hour and a half at the library. I consider him my ‘angel.’ After Kyung moved on to a Ph.D. program in Chicago, Travers taught a class at the Marin County Jail, then volunteered to work with high school kids. “As Jim Hill always says as his signature signoff on of his sports show, ‘Keep the faith.’”
Melody and the Pier to Forever: Book One by Shawn Michel de Montaigne Melody and the Pier to Forever: Book One by Shawn Michel de Montaigne April 20, 2011 315454 words Read a sample
Author bio:
Writing has always been a part of my life, even from the time I was a young boy. There were periods, some of them stretching to several years apiece, when I didn’t write a thing. But I always returned to the art. I read lots, too. Rarely fiction, mind you, but moral philosophy, education, history, religion, politics, economics. My favorites: Erich Fromm, Jiddu Krishnamurti, Lao-tse, Henry David Thoreau, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Ray Billington, David C. Korten, E.F. Schumacher, Michel Eyquem de Montaigne (my all-time favorite). I read the occasional science-fiction novel (Jerry Pournelle, Larry Niven, Robert Heinlein, and Frank Herbert); I picked up my first fantasy book, The Sword of Shannara by Terry Brooks, when I was 19 and working in a tiny gas station booth and needing something to do with the long hours. But overwhelmingly nonfiction of the variety I listed above ruled my bookshelves and my thoughts, and does to this day. If you'd like to read more about me, please go to ThePiertoForever.webs.com.
People Of The Tiger - Metric Edition by Wayne Edward Clarke People Of The Tiger - Metric Edition by Wayne Edward Clarke Sep. 02, 2010 315258 words Read a sample
Author bio:
I was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, on Sept 21, 1963. I'm estranged from my father, having met him one since I was a toddler. I've lived in Calgary, Alberta, Canada since 1980. I have three brothers and a sister. My sister is married, she and her husband each have two grown sons. All of us and my mother live in Calgary and are quite close. I'm married to a lovely girl from the Philippines named Jema Tuyor Clarke, and I look forward to enjoying my life with her as soon as two governments stop putting us through their interminable and expensive bureaucratic processes. I'm intensely and compulsively self-educated, I read at about 300 words per minute, and I've increased my IQ to about 160. I've always enjoyed inventing and designing machines. Most of the machines I've designed are new types of vehicles. I was a professional musician for about nine years. My musical skills include lead and harmony vocals, most styles of guitar and bass guitar, some drums and keyboards, songwriting, mixing, and production. I spent about fifteen years researching and designing a comprehensive change in society and culture that will solve all the world’s major problems, guided by the principles of bio-sociology as introduced and developed by Prof. Edward O. Wilson, and influenced by Dr. Desmond Morris’ human sociobiology. I haven't worked on it like a fanatic over the last eight years like I did for the previous fifteen, but I have continued to develop my work in this field. Over the last eight years I've spent most of my intellectual and creative energies in writing sciences fiction and fantasy novels. I’ve been a hard sci-fi fan my whole life, but everyone else I know who’s an avid reader are all fantasy fans. Over the years I’ve borrowed all their books, and learned to love that genre as well. My science fiction influences include the old masters; Heinlein, Asimov, Niven, Bradbury, Clarke, etc. Also William Gibson, Iain M. Banks, and Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card. My favorite relatively unknown author is Daniel Keyes Moran, and if you like sci-fi you should read his Continuing Time trilogy; Emerald Eyes, The Long Run, and The Last Dancer. They might be out of print, but I think you can still get them as ebooks online. My fantasy influences include Raymond E. Feist, David Eddings, and Jaqueline Carey. I’ve also been influenced as a fiction writer by my sociological work, and my science fiction novel People Of The Tiger (and the rest of The Rational Future Series) is set in a utopian future where my social policies have been implemented, which is a good way to get those ideas out into the public consciousness. Much of my social thinking permeates my fantasy novel Blessings Of A Curse as well, though it’s a lot harder to notice there. I’ve also included my ideas on the law and legal reform in that book, though those policies were appended to the back of the book in an excerpt, for the sake of smooth readability.
People Of The Tiger - USA Edition by Wayne Edward Clarke People Of The Tiger - USA Edition by Wayne Edward Clarke Sep. 01, 2010 315257 words Read a sample
Author bio:
I was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, on Sept 21, 1963. I'm estranged from my father, having met him one since I was a toddler. I've lived in Calgary, Alberta, Canada since 1980. I have three brothers and a sister. My sister is married, she and her husband each have two grown sons. All of us and my mother live in Calgary and are quite close. I'm married to a lovely girl from the Philippines named Jema Tuyor Clarke, and I look forward to enjoying my life with her as soon as two governments stop putting us through their interminable and expensive bureaucratic processes. I'm intensely and compulsively self-educated, I read at about 300 words per minute, and I've increased my IQ to about 160. I've always enjoyed inventing and designing machines. Most of the machines I've designed are new types of vehicles. I was a professional musician for about nine years. My musical skills include lead and harmony vocals, most styles of guitar and bass guitar, some drums and keyboards, songwriting, mixing, and production. I spent about fifteen years researching and designing a comprehensive change in society and culture that will solve all the world’s major problems, guided by the principles of bio-sociology as introduced and developed by Prof. Edward O. Wilson, and influenced by Dr. Desmond Morris’ human sociobiology. I haven't worked on it like a fanatic over the last eight years like I did for the previous fifteen, but I have continued to develop my work in this field. Over the last eight years I've spent most of my intellectual and creative energies in writing sciences fiction and fantasy novels. I’ve been a hard sci-fi fan my whole life, but everyone else I know who’s an avid reader are all fantasy fans. Over the years I’ve borrowed all their books, and learned to love that genre as well. My science fiction influences include the old masters; Heinlein, Asimov, Niven, Bradbury, Clarke, etc. Also William Gibson, Iain M. Banks, and Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card. My favorite relatively unknown author is Daniel Keyes Moran, and if you like sci-fi you should read his Continuing Time trilogy; Emerald Eyes, The Long Run, and The Last Dancer. They might be out of print, but I think you can still get them as ebooks online. My fantasy influences include Raymond E. Feist, David Eddings, and Jaqueline Carey. I’ve also been influenced as a fiction writer by my sociological work, and my science fiction novel People Of The Tiger (and the rest of The Rational Future Series) is set in a utopian future where my social policies have been implemented, which is a good way to get those ideas out into the public consciousness. Much of my social thinking permeates my fantasy novel Blessings Of A Curse as well, though it’s a lot harder to notice there. I’ve also included my ideas on the law and legal reform in that book, though those policies were appended to the back of the book in an excerpt, for the sake of smooth readability.
Shattered Remnants of a Dream [Volume I: The Death Jam Exordium] by Dan Luffey Shattered Remnants of a Dream [Volume I: The Death Jam Exordium] by Dan Luffey June 21, 2010 311190 words Read a sample
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My name is Dan Luffey, author of Shattered Remnants of a Dream, which is updated weekly at http://s-r-o-a-d.blogspot.com . I am also a professional translator and graduate student at Kyoto University of Art & Design. You can find reviews of SROAD here: http://webfictionguide.com/listings/shattered-remnants-of-a-dream/
Leigh Brackett (ology) Volume 2 by Blue Tyson Leigh Brackett (ology) Volume 2 by Blue Tyson June 08, 2010 306551 words Read a sample
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Free SF and Not Free SF MegaBlog : http://freesf.strandedinoz.com/wordpress Website : http://leighbrackett.blogspot.com Twitter : http://www.twitter.com/bluetyson Facebook : http://www.facebook.com/BlueTyson Paolo Bacigalupi (ology) : http://paolobacigalupi.blogspot.com Laird Barron (ology) : http://lairdbarron.blogspot.com Leigh Brackett (ology) : http://leighbrackett.blogspot.com Ted Chiang (ology) : http://tedchiang.blogspot.com Greg Egan (ology) : http://borderguards.blogspot.com James Enge (ology) : http://jamesenge.blogspot.com Alastair Reynolds (ology) : http://alastairreynolds.blogspot.com Cordwainer Smith (ology) : http://cordwainersmith.blogspot.com Charles Stross (ology) : http://charlesstross.blogspot.com Free SF Reader : http://freesf.blogspot.com Not Free SF Reader : http://notfreesf.blogspot.com Super Reader : http://superprose.blogspot.com Space Opera Reader : http://spaceoperareader.blogspot.com Year's Best SF Reader : http://yearsbestsf.blogspot.com Free SF Best : http://freesfbest.blogspot.com Australian SF Reader : http://ozsfbest.blogspot.com SF Watcher : http://sfwatcher.blogspot.com See here for more :- http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=creator%3A%22Blue%20Tyson%22
Finding Charlie by Lon Lovett Finding Charlie by Lon Lovett Aug. 24, 2011 298765 words Read a sample
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Ôtahc by Damaru Kalli Ôtahc by Damaru Kalli Feb. 14, 2010 288368 words Read a sample
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In A Time Of Darkness by Gregory James Knoll In A Time Of Darkness by Gregory James Knoll Nov. 23, 2011 287245 words Read a sample
Author bio:
I prefer a certain level of anonymity so if you came here hoping to discover who I am, what I do in my free time or where I'm from I am sorry to disappoint. I simply allow my work to speak for itself. All other matters are trivial.
Life equal to death - Poems on life , death by Nikhil Parekh Life equal to death - Poems on life , death by Nikhil Parekh Sep. 05, 2010 278580 words Read a sample
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Nikhil Parekh, 33 years of age, from Ahmedabad, India- is a Love Poet and Eight-time World Record holder with the Limca Book of Records India (Only 2nd in Official World Rankings to Guinness Book of World Records) for his poetry. These Eight World Records held by Parekh with the Limca Book of Records are for - (1) "Being the First Indian Poet to be published/featured in McGill English Dictionary of Rhyme which is the World's Number 1 English Rhyming Dictionary-for his poem: Come Lets Embrace our New Religion" (2) "Being the First Indian Poet to have won Poet of the Year Award at the Canadian Federation of Poets which is Canada's National Poetry Body endorsed by Governor General of Canada" (3) "Being the First Indian Poet to be published in a Commonwealth Newsletter for his poem on AIDS which is 'Aids doesn't kill. Your Attitude kills." (4) "Being the First Indian Poet to win an EPPIE award for best poetry e-book" (5) "Writing the most number of letters to and receiving the most number of replies from World Leaders and World Organizations". (6) "Being the First Indian Poet to be Goodwill Ambassador to the International Goodwill Treaty for World Peace - GoodwillTreaty.org". (7) "Being the First Indian Poet whose Poems have been made into Films at Youtube.com - The World's largest video sharing website". (8) " Being the 1st Indian Poet to be featured for his Poetry Book - 'Love versus Terrorism- Poems on Anti Terror, Peace' , at Wattpad.com - The World's most popular ebook community and largest website for reading books on mobile phones". * Images and Details of Parekh's complete World Records in Poetry and Awards can be visited at - www.worldrecordsandawards.blogspot.com . Parekh has composed thousands of poems on - God, Peace, Love, Friendship, Life, Anti Terror, Death, Mother, Father, Environment, Lovers, Humanity, Brotherhood, Philanthropy . He is also an author of several Poetry Books which include : "1 God" , "Love Versus Terrorism", "You die; I die", "Life = Death", "The Womb", "The Power of Black", "Hide and Seek", "If you cut a tree; you cut your own mother", "Longest Poem by Parekh-Only as Life"- These comprise of over 7000 pages of his Poetry in totality . His Poems and Poetry Books have had millions of viewers and downloads on the Internet and his collected Poems have been Awarded "FEATURED" at Scribd.com (The World's Largest Document website) . Parekh's Poetry has had the patronization and support of several World Leaders including U.S. President and Nobel Peace Prize Winner Barack Obama & the Queen of England . A complete compilation of the Poet's poems, poetry books, awards and works can be visited on the Internet at - nikhilparekh.org or nikhilparekh.com .
Gennaro's Children - the Gathering. by Jessica Simpson Gennaro's Children - the Gathering. by Jessica Simpson Nov. 13, 2010 264696 words Read a sample
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Writer, Theologies. I love my cats and my cats love me!
Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Genre and Rating Guide by Blue Tyson Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Genre and Rating Guide by Blue Tyson May 06, 2009 263145 words Read a sample
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Free SF and Not Free SF MegaBlog : http://freesf.strandedinoz.com/wordpress Website : http://leighbrackett.blogspot.com Twitter : http://www.twitter.com/bluetyson Facebook : http://www.facebook.com/BlueTyson Paolo Bacigalupi (ology) : http://paolobacigalupi.blogspot.com Laird Barron (ology) : http://lairdbarron.blogspot.com Leigh Brackett (ology) : http://leighbrackett.blogspot.com Ted Chiang (ology) : http://tedchiang.blogspot.com Greg Egan (ology) : http://borderguards.blogspot.com James Enge (ology) : http://jamesenge.blogspot.com Alastair Reynolds (ology) : http://alastairreynolds.blogspot.com Cordwainer Smith (ology) : http://cordwainersmith.blogspot.com Charles Stross (ology) : http://charlesstross.blogspot.com Free SF Reader : http://freesf.blogspot.com Not Free SF Reader : http://notfreesf.blogspot.com Super Reader : http://superprose.blogspot.com Space Opera Reader : http://spaceoperareader.blogspot.com Year's Best SF Reader : http://yearsbestsf.blogspot.com Free SF Best : http://freesfbest.blogspot.com Australian SF Reader : http://ozsfbest.blogspot.com SF Watcher : http://sfwatcher.blogspot.com See here for more :- http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=creator%3A%22Blue%20Tyson%22
The Migrant by Nicholas Stanton The Migrant by Nicholas Stanton Jan. 06, 2011 262727 words Read a sample
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NICHOLAS SHERIDAN STANTON was born in Yuma, Arizona, and has lived in Southern California and Texas. After a twenty-five-year career in the aerospace industry, he is now a writer by choice and spends his time observing and living life as fully as possible with his wife and two children in San Diego
You die , I die - Love Poems ( Part 1 ) - Poetry on Romance, divorce, friendship, lovers by Nikhil Parekh You die , I die - Love Poems ( Part 1 ) - Poetry on Romance, divorce, friendship, lovers by Nikhil Parekh Sep. 05, 2010 261664 words Read a sample
Author bio:
Nikhil Parekh, 33 years of age, from Ahmedabad, India- is a Love Poet and Eight-time World Record holder with the Limca Book of Records India (Only 2nd in Official World Rankings to Guinness Book of World Records) for his poetry. These Eight World Records held by Parekh with the Limca Book of Records are for - (1) "Being the First Indian Poet to be published/featured in McGill English Dictionary of Rhyme which is the World's Number 1 English Rhyming Dictionary-for his poem: Come Lets Embrace our New Religion" (2) "Being the First Indian Poet to have won Poet of the Year Award at the Canadian Federation of Poets which is Canada's National Poetry Body endorsed by Governor General of Canada" (3) "Being the First Indian Poet to be published in a Commonwealth Newsletter for his poem on AIDS which is 'Aids doesn't kill. Your Attitude kills." (4) "Being the First Indian Poet to win an EPPIE award for best poetry e-book" (5) "Writing the most number of letters to and receiving the most number of replies from World Leaders and World Organizations". (6) "Being the First Indian Poet to be Goodwill Ambassador to the International Goodwill Treaty for World Peace - GoodwillTreaty.org". (7) "Being the First Indian Poet whose Poems have been made into Films at Youtube.com - The World's largest video sharing website". (8) " Being the 1st Indian Poet to be featured for his Poetry Book - 'Love versus Terrorism- Poems on Anti Terror, Peace' , at Wattpad.com - The World's most popular ebook community and largest website for reading books on mobile phones". * Images and Details of Parekh's complete World Records in Poetry and Awards can be visited at - www.worldrecordsandawards.blogspot.com . Parekh has composed thousands of poems on - God, Peace, Love, Friendship, Life, Anti Terror, Death, Mother, Father, Environment, Lovers, Humanity, Brotherhood, Philanthropy . He is also an author of several Poetry Books which include : "1 God" , "Love Versus Terrorism", "You die; I die", "Life = Death", "The Womb", "The Power of Black", "Hide and Seek", "If you cut a tree; you cut your own mother", "Longest Poem by Parekh-Only as Life"- These comprise of over 7000 pages of his Poetry in totality . His Poems and Poetry Books have had millions of viewers and downloads on the Internet and his collected Poems have been Awarded "FEATURED" at Scribd.com (The World's Largest Document website) . Parekh's Poetry has had the patronization and support of several World Leaders including U.S. President and Nobel Peace Prize Winner Barack Obama & the Queen of England . A complete compilation of the Poet's poems, poetry books, awards and works can be visited on the Internet at - nikhilparekh.org or nikhilparekh.com .
Rhuddlan by Nancy Gebel Rhuddlan by Nancy Gebel Aug. 24, 2011 249134 words Read a sample
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Le cronache militari del Regno di Napoli e l'evoluzione tecnico-tattica della guerra verso il declino dell'egemonia spagnola (1668-1707). by Guglielmo Peirce Le cronache militari del Regno di Napoli e l'evoluzione tecnico-tattica della guerra verso il declino dell'egemonia spagnola (1668-1707). by Guglielmo Peirce Aug. 12, 2010 248029 words Read a sample
Author bio:
Guglielmo Peirce è nato a Napoli nel 1943 e vive a Pesaro, Italia, UE; da sempre appassionato di studi di filologia militare, ha pubblicato nel 1993 "Origini delle uniformi militari nel Regno di Napoli" (co-autore ing. Giancarlo Boeri) e negli anni seguenti on-line i tre saggi ora offerti in questo sito. Sta attualmente lavorando al completamento di un'altra sua opera dal titolo: "Gente di galera. La guerra marittima nel Mediterraneo tra quindicesimo e diciassettesimo secolo", da pubblicare entro il 2012. Inoltre si propone di presentare più tardi un ampio studio sullo sviluppo tecnico-balistico dell'artiglieria tra Rinascimento e Controriforma, un altro che ha per oggetto l'evoluzione tecnico-tattica degli eserciti nella seconda metà del Cinquecento, una già approntata versione in lingua inglese del summenzionato saggio del 1993 e infine un suo primo breve lavoro giovanile con il probabile nuovo titolo di "Tracce storiografiche di un effimero ordine cavalleresco napoletano: la Compagnia del Nodo".
Angry White Male by Steven Travers Angry White Male by Steven Travers May 13, 2011 246571 words Read a sample
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Steven Travers has always been entrepreneurial. “I was turned down by my high school newspaper because they didn’t allow freshmen,” says the sixth-generation Californian, “so I started my own!” Aside from journalism, Travers was a star pitcher, playing three years of varsity baseball for the same suburban California high school that USC football coach Pete Carroll graduated from years earlier. Travers helped lead his team to the mythical national championship of high school baseball, according to polls conducted by Collegiate Baseball magazine and the Easton Bat Company. Travers attended college on a baseball scholarship, where he was an all-conference pitcher, and played collegiate summer ball in Colorado, Nevada and Canada. The 6-6, 225-pound Travers played professionally for the St. Louis Cardinals' organization, where he was a teammate of Danny Cox. Travers once struck out 1989 National League Most Valuable Player Kevin Mitchell three times in one game (he K’d 14 that night). In the Oakland Athletics' system, he played alongside Jose Canseco. “Punching out K-Mitchell was great,” he recalls, “but the highlight of my career may have been when I was with the A’s against the Giants in a Major League exhibition game at Phoenix Municipal Stadium. I struck out the side and went nine-up, nine-down in three innings. Bill King and Lon Simmons announced it on the radio.” Steve later coached at USC, Cal-Berkeley and was recruited to manage a team in Berlin, Germany. After pro baseball, Travers returned to college. He studied in the University of Southern California School of Cinema-Television, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in communications. At USC, he was a classmate of Mark McGwire and Randy Johnson. After graduation, he traveled extensively to New York City, Washington, D.C. and to Europe: London and Paris. “I almost went to work for Dean Witter in the World Trade Center,” he recalled. “After 9/11 I really started to think about ‘what might have been.’ ” Travers also went to Western State University College of Law, the Hollywood Film Institute, and was part of the UCLA Writers' Program. He served in the U.S. Army during the Persian Gulf War, and was a political consultant, speechwriter and campaign manager for a California Congressional candidate. Travers was also a sports agent, co-founding San Francisco Sports Management, Inc. The agency represented Pittsburgh Pirate outfielder Al Martin. Another client, ex-Angels' playboy pitcher Bo Belinsky, was at that time being approached by Hollywood producers about a movie depicting his tempestuous life. Travers wrote the screenplay. That script, Once He Was An Angel, was a quarterfinalist in the Quantum Leap screenwriting contest before getting optioned by a Hollywood producing group that included Frank Capra Jr. and Frank Capra III (son and grandson of the famed It's A Wonderful Life director). Thus began Travers' embarkation into a full-time professional writing career in 1994. “I’ve punched a lot of tickets,” Travers says of his background, “and I bring real-world experience to my writing.” A veteran of Hollywood, Steve has written 15 screenplays, teleplays and stageplays. His credits include The Lost Battalion (the true story of a World War I unit during the Argonne Offensive, the subject of a film starring Rick Schroder), Wicked and Baja California. His additional writing awards are for Bandit, an America’s Best quarterfinalist, and Rock 'n' Roll Heaven, a Writers Network Screenplay & Fiction quarterfinalist. He appeared in the film The Californians, starring Noah Wylie and Illeana Douglas. Travers worked closely with legendary Hollywood producer Edgar Scherick, the original producer of The Lost Battalion. Scherick started ABC’s Baseball Game of the Week and Monday Night Football with Roone Arledge. Travers also wrote for the Los Angeles Times, the Los Angeles Daily News, and was a sports stringer on San Diego’s XTRA 690 AM radio station. Steve has freelanced for magazines, newspapers and web sites. He produced Steven Travers’ Journal on the Internet. Eventually, Travers became the number one columnist at StreetZebra, an L.A. sports magazine where he covered the USC beat and wrote a monthly "Distant Replay" of great events in the Southland's rich sports history. “I have encyclopedic knowledge of history,” Steve says. “I am truly versatile as a writer, able to use my knowledge of the past to understand the present. I have also survived as a freelancer; written extensively for the Internet and the so-called New Media; and have up-close knowledge of the ‘dot-bomb’ era that was the 1990s.” In 2001, Travers was hired as the lead sports columnist for the San Francisco Examiner. While writing for the Examiner, Travers was an eyewitness to Barry Bonds' historic 73-home run season of 2001. He got Bonds to agree to authorize the writing of his autobiography, but a business deal with the publishers was not worked out. Eventually, by 2002 Travers wrote the Best Seller Barry Bonds: Baseball’s Superman from Sports Publishing L.L.C. (www.sportspublishingllc.com). Actor Charlie Sheen wrote the foreword. It has gone through multiple re-prints, is now in paperback, and was nominated for a Casey Award for Best Baseball Book of the Year. A sequel, covering Bonds' alleged steroid use, additional MVP awards, and chase of Hank Aaron's career home run record, is in the works. In 2004, Travers wrote a proposal for the book that eventually became Game of Shadows by Mark Fainaru-Wada and Lance Williams, who landed the deal he did not. An avid reader, Travers poured through books, at least one a month; classics, biographies, history, sports, novels, philosophy. He was also a Christian, but had never read The Holy Bible. "Sometime around March or April of 2004, I decided to read The Bible," he says. "Two pages a day. I started out with the New Testament. After a while I began to read out loud, which made a difference. Then the Old Testament. It took a little less than a year to read the entire book. As soon as I read it through, I started again. Two pages per day, out loud. At this point I have read it twice through. I am beginning to understand it. I am not an expert on it, but the Holy Spirit has come to me and inspires me each day that I read God’s Word. I will read that book until the day I die, God willing and I am able, until some day I will have read it so many times I will be an expert. . .” In 2006, Taylor Trade, a division of Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. (www.RLPGTrade.com), published his book The USC Trojans: College Football's All-Time Greatest Dynasty, which argues that the University of Southern California has replaced Notre Dame as collegiate football's greatest tradition. USC legend Charles "Tree" Young graciously wrote the foreword, and the book ascended to Amazon.com “top seller” and National Book Network “top 100 seller” status. It was re-released in paperback in 2010. Taylor Trade released One Night, Two Teams: Alabama vs. USC and the Game That Changed A Nation in 2007 (foreword by Forrest Gump author Winston Groom). It was re-released in paperback in 2010. This is the true story of how the 1970 USC-Alabama football game ushered in desegregation of the American South. A film is in development. USC graduate Kerry McCluggage, a top Hollywood producer (Craftsman Films); former president of Universal and Paramount TV divisions; founder of UPN; with credits that include Star Trek, Star Trek: The Next Generation and Miami Vice, has optioned it with plans for a major theatrical release. The co-producer is Barry Kemp (Coach, Patch Adams, Catch Me If You Can). Potential directors include Taylor Hackford (An Officer and a Gentleman, Delores Claiborne, The Devil’s Advocate) and Kevin Costner (Dances With Wolves), with Costner possibly starring as John McKay, Tommy Lee Jones as Bear Bryant. Travers is a member of a “producer team” that includes Trojan football legend Anthony Davis and USC graduate Jim Starr. The deal was masterfully put together by Lloyd Robinson (USC ’64) of Suite A Management in Beverly Hills; Steve’s former literary agent, Craig Wiley; and Rowman & Littlefield president Rick Rinehart. Davis is on board to promote the project along with other former Trojans. When the film is released, Travers, Davis and Starr will be executive producers. In the past, Steve was repped by Peter Miller of PMA Literary & Film Agency in New York City. His agent is now Ian Kleinert of Objective Entertainment in Manhattan (who negotiated the huge Jerry West autobiography and Michael Savage’s Trickle Up Poverty). In 2009, Taylor Trade published Pigskin Warriors: 140 Years of College Football’s Greatest Traditions, Games, and Stars. In 2009, major publishing house The Globe Pequot Press published Travers’s book The 1969 Miracle Mets (foreword by Buddy Harrelson). Also in 2009: Dodgers Past & Present, Voyageur Press and A Tale of Three Cities: The 1962 Baseball Season in New York, L.A., and San Francisco. In 2011: The Poet: The Life and Los Angeles Times of Jim Murray, an authorized biography through Potomac Books. Triumph Books (www.triumphbooks.com), a division of New York publishing giant Random House, released five of Travers's books in 2007: A's Essential: Everything You Need to Know to Be A Real Fan! (foreword by A’s GM Billy Beane), Dodgers Essential (foreword by the late, great Bud “The Steamer” Furillo), Angels Essential (foreword by ex-L.A. Times sportswriter Ross Newhan), Diamondbacks Essential (foreword by Phoenix radio personality Andy Dorf), and The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly Los Angeles Lakers (foreword by longtime sports columnist Art Spander). In 2008 Triumph/Random House published Trojans Essential (foreword by ex-Coca-Cola/North American President Terry Marks) and The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly Oakland Raiders (foreword by radio personality Bruce Macgowan). In 2009 from Triumph/Random House: The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly San Francisco 49ers (foreword by 49er Hall of Famer Bob St. Clair) and What It Means to Be a Trojan: Southern Cal’s Greatest Players Talk About Trojans Football (foreword by Pete Carroll). Steve is the author of five unpublished books. These include From the Frat House to the White House to the Big House; God's Country, a three-volume conservative, Christian worldview of how history formed the U.S. Empire and America's manifest destiny for the 21st Century; Ambition: My Struggles to Fail and Succeed in Baseball, Politics, Hollywood, Writing . . . and The Rocky Path I’ve Walked With Christ (his autobiography); a novel, Angry White Male; and a compilation of his work over the years, The Writer’s Life. Travers contemplated an authorized autobiography of former New York Mets’ superstar Tom Seaver; a book about fascinating baseball pitching subjects; and a study of the modern nature of American politics and media manipulation, using the Whittaker Chambers case of the 1940s as its “Genesis.” The telegenic Travers has made numerous appearances on television and radio, being interviewed for the books, articles and screenplays he has written over the years. His national appearances have included "The Jim Rome Show", CNN, ESPN, and the Armed Forces Radio Network. He has appeared on TV and radio stations in major markets such as New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. In September 2005, Steve was interviewed on College Sports Television (www.cstv.com), a division of CBS, as part of a program devoted to the 35th anniversary of the 1970 USC-Alabama game. In February 2006, CSTV featured Travers prominently in their documentary Tackling Segregation, which aired throughout Black History Month. His work was also the subject of a 2005 CSTV documentary on Alabama football coach Paul “Bear” Bryant. In 2006, Travers was a guest speaker, leading a panel of distinguished former USC football players and coaches, for Professor Dan Durbin’s popular class “Sports, Culture & Society” at the University of Southern California Annenberg School for Communications. The subject was the 1970 USC-Alabama game, with Steve’s book a focal point. Out of this have come discussions with USC regarding Steve’s possible hiring as an adjunct professor. Travers made numerous other speaking and booksigning appearances through USC, which included appearances at the USC Bookstore, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, and the USC Collections at the South Coast Plaza Shopping Center in Orange County. In 2007, he addressed the USC East Bay Trojan Club in Walnut Creek, California; the incoming freshmen and parents during Parent’s Weekend at USC; the USC Orange County Trojan Club; as well as more signings at the USC Bookstore and USC Collections; and an address of the Hollywood Congress of Republicans; and the annual banquet of the GMAC Bowl in Mobile, Alabama. Professor Durbin invited him back for a retrospective of the 1972 USC national champion football team at Annenberg School for Communications. In 2008 Travers addressed Republican political groups in support of U.S. Senator John McCain (R.-Arizona). During the 2008 football season, Travers was again a guest lecturer in Professor Durbin's class. The subject was his book Angels Essential, and focused on "the old Pacific Coast League and the early Angels). He was the November speaker at the prestigious Pasadena Quarterback's Club next to the Rose Bowl (past speakers have included Pete Carroll), and signed books at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for the third consecutive year. In 2009 Travers again was a guest panelist in Professor Durbin’s class, centered around a re-union of the USC players interviewed in What It Means to Be a Trojan. Steve is the scion of a distinguished California family. The Travers’s came to colonial America, fought in the Revolutionary War, and settled into New York and Massachusetts. They founded the Travers Stakes horse race. One ancestor, a Captain Edgerly of the Union Army, was reputed to be President Abraham Lincoln’s “personal spy” during the Civil War. Steve’s side of the family came West during the time of the 1849 Gold Rush. His grandfather, Charles S. Travers, covered the 1906 Great Earthquake as a journalist, started a silent film magazine in Hollywood, and was President of the San Francisco Press Club. Steve’s great-uncle, Reginald Travers, was a noted Shakespearean actor. His father, Donald Travers, is a retired attorney and track coach who served as a Naval officer during World War II. His mother, Inge Travers, is a renowned artist. Steve’s brother, Donald Travers II, is a former Naval officer. Daughter Elizabeth Travers is a college student. Inside Berkeley’s Memorial Stadium is the Colonel Charles Travers Big Game Room (named after Steve’s late uncle, who served during World War II) to accommodate press conferences, and (named after Steve’s late aunt) is the Louise Travers Memorial Club Room. Colonel Travers also founded a wing of the university’s political science department, dedicated to fair and balanced analysis of public affairs. Members of the Travers family have served in the military during the Revolution, the Civil War, World War II, the Korean War, Vietnam and the Persian Gulf War. His books and further information be found at http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=steven+travers&x=11&y=12 or via http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q==STEVEN+TRAVERS+USC+METS+DODGERS&btnG==Search His web page is http://www.redroom.com/author/steven-robert-travers/ Steve is a board member of the USC NorCal Trojan Club, the Hollywood Congress of Republicans, and worships at Christ Lutheran Church. Steve tutored foreign students trying to learn English, as well as jail inmates, through the Marin Literacy Program. "I always wanted to give of my time," he explained, "but was too selfish to really do it. I found excuses. If at the beginning of 2006, if you had told me how busy I would be, I never would have signed up, but I did. I was assigned to a Korean divinity student named Kyung-Taek Hong. We became friends and shared Christian fellowship despite the language barrier. Almost as soon as I started tutoring Kyung, incredible good fortune began to reign down on me. Book deals, the movie deal, speaking engagements, ‘top seller’ sales, maybe a professorship at USC. As busy as I was writing, I met him every Wednesday for an hour and a half at the library. I consider him my ‘angel.’ After Kyung moved on to a Ph.D. program in Chicago, Travers taught a class at the Marin County Jail, then volunteered to work with high school kids. “As Jim Hill always says as his signature signoff on of his sports show, ‘Keep the faith.’”
Amanda Ackers and The Deep Forest Elves by GlennAndSasha Gabriel Amanda Ackers and The Deep Forest Elves by GlennAndSasha Gabriel Jan. 03, 2012 244305 words Read a sample
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Special Note: Hello everyone, and thank you for visiting our Authors Page. We are delighted to announce that we have just published our first novel, Amanda Ackers and The Deep Forest Elves. We are still in shock that so many people had liked our short stories. From November 14th of 2011, to January 1st of 2012, our little short stories have been downloaded over 2,200 times! We are very thankful to you all, for supporting our work, which we do for the enjoyment of it. Our thanks also, to the many of you who have emailed us, with kind comments on our stories, and those who had requested receiving a prerelease version of our novel. We had never thought of doing that, but what a great idea. It gave many a chance to read the novel before we actually published it. Thanks to all of you! We are most humbled by the response we have received, and thank you from the top, middle and bottom of our hearts! Book Two of the Amanda Ackers series, Amanda Ackers and The Realm Of The Witches, will be out near the end of the year. Should any of you like a prerelease version, please let us know. As you know, we do require you to sign a non-disclosure agreement and fax it back to us… it’s just good business practice. Please let us hear from you when you get the chance. Email us at: GlennAndSasha@gmail.com -------------------------------------------- Hello and thank you for visiting our Smashwords.com page. My name is Sasha Gabriel, and I would like to take a few moments to say a little about Glenn and myself. They say that creativity belongs to the young. Well, not always. Young at heart, I’ll buy, but nothing else. Writing is relatively new for me. I’ve been an avid reader for most of my 60+ years. But writing seemed daunting. How do you write an idea to get over to other people without boring them to death? How do you write conversations that sound like the people who are speaking them? Once I studied the “how to’s” a bit, and with the encouragement from Glenn, my wonderful husband and best friend, I started writing. And I love it. So does Glenn. Writing has opened a door for me that nothing else has – my imagination has soared and I’m absolutely thrilled and thankful, from the bottom of my heart, that others like my writing, as well. Both Glenn and I have been submitting very, very short stories (no more than 600 word stories) because these are also being entered into a writing contest with that directive. At the same time, both Glenn and I are writing novels (Glenn’s is awesome!!!! Think the depth of Lord of the Rings with the immediacy of Harry Potter and you’ve got it!). But I want to share something with you all… Glenn has battled Dyslexia, Dyscalculia and Dysgraphia almost his entire life. That’s a mouthful, for sure, but try living with them on a daily basis! Even so, Glenn has worked to overcome the more serious side effects and his talent in writing, painting, and all over creativity is nothing short of staggering. Honestly… I’m running to keep up with him but I’m mostly just out of breath! So… the bottom line is… we’re all just human with all our challenges and it’s those challenges that make what we create that much better. Please… If you like to read… then write. If you like to paint… then paint. Pick up that paintbrush and start. For writing, get to your keyboard and begin. We think you’ll surprise yourself at your talents. And, again… Thank You all for your kind and generous words of appreciation for our stories! It means the world to us! ----------------------------- Glenn here. Just wanted to add that we never thought anyone would even read our work, let alone have downloaded our little stories hundreds of times in less than a month. Because of the kind words from you all, I will continue to write. I have, as Sasha had mentioned, been writing a novel which I was writing for fun, for our grandson Logan. I was not going to publish it, just print it out to give to him. Now… once the first book of that series is finished, I’ll publish it here for FREE. My thanks to all of you. Feel free to contact Sasha and I at the following email address. We would love to hear from you: GlennAndSasha@gmail.com
Nature Abhors a Vacuum by Stephen L. Nowland Nature Abhors a Vacuum by Stephen L. Nowland Sep. 09, 2011 239086 words Read a sample
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I am often astonished by the sheer amount of ideas that go through my head. I have tasked myself to grab hold of as many as I can, weave them into stories, shaping them to my will, and like, writing them down, because people can't read thoughts. I spent over fifteen years dealing with poor health, including chronic fatigue syndrome (a symptom of other stuff, but annoying nonetheless) which gave me ample time for thinking, but slowed me down in the way of actually writing. My first novel was actually done back in aught three, but I didn't care for that sort of thing at the time, so I scrapped it and started writing a new story for Neverwinter Nights, that RPG video game thing you may or may not have heard of. The story was so successful (filled with rich, creamy character development) that I lamented that only people playing the game would ever see it. In 2009, with my health improving, I resolved to novelize the stories I'd written, in addition to developing the world in which they exist, for fun and profit. Thus was my first novel conceived, and lo, it was published online, for the enjoyment of all! The saga will be five books in total, with another 4-5 books after that as a second saga that's in the pipeline. Oh, I also paint. Expect to see more cover art with each title, probably becoming more technically sophisticated each time.
Quran - The Final Testament - Authorised English Version by Dr. Rashad Khalifa Ph.D. Quran - The Final Testament - Authorised English Version by Dr. Rashad Khalifa Ph.D. Dec. 16, 2010 236630 words Sample 30%
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DR. RASHAD KHALIFA was born in a religious family on November 19, 1935 in a small town in Egypt, Kafr El-Zayat. His father was a religious leader for a large Sufi group, made of thousands of followers. His father named the Sufi group after his son ,Rashad, when Rashad was still a child, Tariqat Ar-Rashad Al-Shathlya. It is interesting to know that it was the same Sufi group with their idolization of the Muslim Saints (Wali ), the prophet and his family, and their upholding of other books with the Quran that might have started Dr. Khalifa on the road to evaluate the TRUE WORSHIP of GOD ALONE. Dr. Khalifa finished his university education in Egypt, graduating with honor degree from Ain Shams University, College of Agriculture, before coming to the United states in 1959, where he continued his higher education. He received his Master Degree in Biochemistry from Arizona State University and his Ph.D. from University of California, Riverside. He held several jobs in the United States and in the Middle East. All his jobs were in his field of Biochemistry including his work as a senior advisor in Agriculture and Biochemistry for the United Nations. Early on, during his life in the USA he was active in the Muslim communities where he lived. He published few Islamic newsletters and publications. He was still attached to the teachings of Islam (Submission) as he learned it from his father as well as the Sufi teachings he was brought up with. He went back to Egypt to work for few years after finishing his PhD before settling in the USA with his wife and two children. He always maintained his Islamic religious activities and appreciated by many who got to know him closely and even adopted his name, e.g. Ahmad Rashad, the former Minnesota Vikings wide receiver/sportscaster. After many years in the USA and after reading different English translations of the Quran, he was not happy with any single one, specially that his mother tongue was Arabic, the original language of the Quran..All these translations had some violation of some of the basic teachings of the Quran. None of those who translated the Quran spoke Arabic as his mother tongue. Dr. Khalifa was also met with a challenge from his children, while studying Quran with them. They asked him about the meaning of the letters at the beginning of Sura 2 in the Quran, i.e., A,L, M. He did not have an immediate answer for them and did not find a good answer with all the Muslim scholars he asked. He started searching the Islamic text books and references, but he never was satisfied with any of the explanations. The closest explanation he could accept was that these letters represent the miracle of the Quran . Since his job at that time required contact with the computer he was inspired into using the computer to study the Quran and its mysterious letters (initials) at the beginning of the chapters of the Quran. He decided to put all the Arabic Quran in the Computer and specifically study these initials. He also decided to begin his own translation of the Quran.With his mother tongue being Arabic, he began to translate the Arabic Quran into, the best available to date, English translation of the Quran. None of his predecessors, for whom he read translations, actually spoke the language of the Quran, i.e., Arabic. Dr. Khalifa's study of the Quran with the computer, the first of its kind then, resulted in the discovery of one of the greatest miracles of the Quran, as God described it in 74:35. This miracle is based on number 19, mentioned in sura 74. MATHEMATICAL MIRACLE OF THE QURAN . He published the results in several books, magazines and newspapers, and gave many lectures in many countries of the Muslim world. The Muslim scholars and governments cheered him and treated him like a hero and supported the new discoveries in the Quran. The momentous discovery that "19" is the common denominator of the Mathematical Miracle of the Quran became a reality in January, 1974. This was coinciding with Zul-Hijjah 1393 A.H. The Quran was revealed in 13 B.H. (Before Hijrah). This makes the number of years from the revelation of the Quran to the discovery of its miracle (in 1974), 1393+13=1406 years. It was more than interesting to notice that 1406 = 19 X 74. The only time number 19 was mentioned in the Quran is in sura 74. The correlation between 19X74 lunar years and 1974 solar years could not escape notice, especially with number 19 mentioned only in sura 74. . Dr. Khalifa continued his service to the Muslim community and continued his Islamic studies. The Mathematical Miracle of the Quran provided a physical proof beyond doubt that the Quran is the word of God. MATHEMATICAL MIRACLE OF THE QURAN . Through his work, research and study, Dr. Khalifa re-confirmed what God has been saying about the Quran (1) is complete, perfect and fully detailed, (see 6:19, 38, 114, 115; 50:45) (2) is he ONLY acceptable Hadith, (see 7:185, 10:36, 31:6, 39:23, 45:6, 52:34, 68:44, 77:50, 39:29..., etc.). (3) Quran called on the Prophet Muhammed to deliver, preach, live and rule by the Quran ALONE, (see 5:48-50). With his clear understanding of the Quran and the fact that the hadiths books are vastly corrupted, Dr. Khalifa delivered his brave and Quran-supported understanding to the Muslim community. He proclaimed that Quran is the ONLY acceptable law in this great religion. He also emphasized the fact that all the known hadiths books are corrupted beyond recognition and can only be used for its historical value and not for religious guidance or laws. Dr. Khalifa called on the Muslims to follow the Quran alone and to disregard all the fabrications and lies that filled the Hadith and Sunna books. Dr. Khalifa did not consider the angry reaction of the traditional Muslim scholars and their followers. Dr. Khalifa felt that the truth is more important than the fear of the people's reaction or its result. The Muslim scholars, shocked by his stand after they supported him and his Mathematical discoveries in the Quran, considered him a great risk for their traditional teachings. The risk was specially greater after he received a world wide recognition and support for his discoveries of the Mathematical Miracle of the Quran. When Dr. Khalifa's view about Quran alone was published, QURAN, HADITH AND ISLAM, a campaign of intimidation, insults, fabrications, and accusations of misconduct against him started. Many of the Muslim Scholars who cheered him for the Mathematical Miracle of the Quran tried to play down its significance even at the expense of the truth. Despite the fierce attacks by the traditionalists on his views that was totally and only Quranic, Dr. Khalifa refused to change his position. He was even offered a large sum of money by one of the Royal Governments in the Middle East to change his position but he refused. He believed that the truth cannot be bought by any sum of money and that the truth belongs only to God ALONE. During his life in serving the Muslim community, he published one of the best English translations of the Quran available to us today. He never forgot to acknowledge the help and contribution to his translation of some of his close friends and associates. Some of them are still active in preaching the same message of worshipping God alone and following the Quran alone. Even those who criticize his translation for some of its errors still admit to its clarity, simplicity and pure guidance. Dr. Khalifa called his translation of the Quran "Authorized English version." In doing so, he was clearly declaring his defiance to any man-made authority in giving the permission to translate the Quran, such as those called Islamic councils, committees, government agents or centers. Many of these places consider themselves as having a monopoly on giving the authorization to translate the Quran. Dr. Khalifa flatly rejected such man-made authorization and strongly believed that such authorization belongs only to the author of the Quran Himself, God. With this belief in his mind, he went ahead with his translation, seeking only the approval and acceptance of God ALONE and called it, "Authorized English Version" Few years before his death, Dr. Khalifa declared that he is the messenger of the covenant , Messenger of the Covenant, prophesied in the Quran in 3:81. He presented a lengthy document with proofs of his messengership from the Quran. He defended the fact that the Prophet Muhammed was the LAST Prophet according to the Quran but not the LAST messenger, (The Difference between Prophet and Messenger ) also according to the Quran, see 33:40. He emphasized the fact that God is teaching us that, the Prophet Muhammed was one of the prophets who took the covenant mentioned in 3:81. The Prophet Muhammed took it along with the other prophets as per 33:7. Dr. Khalifa put the proofs of his messengership in the appendix of his translation of the Quran for those who would seek such proofs. He challenged the Muslim scholars in their definition of the word prophet and messenger. Their definition has been totally opposite to what God teaches in the Quran. See 3:81; 3:79; 6:89; 29:27; 45:16; 57:26; 19:51; 19:54..., etc. He declared that a messenger of God would advocate the worship of God alone and not ask for wage. See 10:72; 11:29; 11:51; 26:109; 26:127; 26:145.....etc. He asked everybody to verify his Quranic proof. See 17:36.
The Three Musketeers For All by Alexandra Dumas The Three Musketeers For All by Alexandra Dumas Aug. 16, 2010 232361 words Read a sample
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Evoguía by Steven Lyle Jordan Evoguía by Steven Lyle Jordan July 21, 2011 232193 words Read a sample
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Steven Lyle Jordan originally took up science fiction writing as a hobby. Over 15 years and more than a dozen books later, he is a rapidly rising star with an incisive and realistic look at the future, and an international following. He has been interviewed for articles in the New York Times and in various blogs, including DigiReader and The Tainted Archive. He has also lent his web production talents and support to the Read an E-Book Week website, elucidating on and encouraging ebook reading around the world. He is loved by his wife, fondly spoken of by his family, and tolerated by his cat.
THE 1969 MIRACLE METS: THE IMPROBABLE STORY OF THE WORLD’S GREATEST UNDERDOG TEAM by Steven Travers THE 1969 MIRACLE METS: THE IMPROBABLE STORY OF THE WORLD’S GREATEST UNDERDOG TEAM by Steven Travers June 08, 2011 225242 words Read a sample
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Steven Travers has always been entrepreneurial. “I was turned down by my high school newspaper because they didn’t allow freshmen,” says the sixth-generation Californian, “so I started my own!” Aside from journalism, Travers was a star pitcher, playing three years of varsity baseball for the same suburban California high school that USC football coach Pete Carroll graduated from years earlier. Travers helped lead his team to the mythical national championship of high school baseball, according to polls conducted by Collegiate Baseball magazine and the Easton Bat Company. Travers attended college on a baseball scholarship, where he was an all-conference pitcher, and played collegiate summer ball in Colorado, Nevada and Canada. The 6-6, 225-pound Travers played professionally for the St. Louis Cardinals' organization, where he was a teammate of Danny Cox. Travers once struck out 1989 National League Most Valuable Player Kevin Mitchell three times in one game (he K’d 14 that night). In the Oakland Athletics' system, he played alongside Jose Canseco. “Punching out K-Mitchell was great,” he recalls, “but the highlight of my career may have been when I was with the A’s against the Giants in a Major League exhibition game at Phoenix Municipal Stadium. I struck out the side and went nine-up, nine-down in three innings. Bill King and Lon Simmons announced it on the radio.” Steve later coached at USC, Cal-Berkeley and was recruited to manage a team in Berlin, Germany. After pro baseball, Travers returned to college. He studied in the University of Southern California School of Cinema-Television, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in communications. At USC, he was a classmate of Mark McGwire and Randy Johnson. After graduation, he traveled extensively to New York City, Washington, D.C. and to Europe: London and Paris. “I almost went to work for Dean Witter in the World Trade Center,” he recalled. “After 9/11 I really started to think about ‘what might have been.’ ” Travers also went to Western State University College of Law, the Hollywood Film Institute, and was part of the UCLA Writers' Program. He served in the U.S. Army during the Persian Gulf War, and was a political consultant, speechwriter and campaign manager for a California Congressional candidate. Travers was also a sports agent, co-founding San Francisco Sports Management, Inc. The agency represented Pittsburgh Pirate outfielder Al Martin. Another client, ex-Angels' playboy pitcher Bo Belinsky, was at that time being approached by Hollywood producers about a movie depicting his tempestuous life. Travers wrote the screenplay. That script, Once He Was An Angel, was a quarterfinalist in the Quantum Leap screenwriting contest before getting optioned by a Hollywood producing group that included Frank Capra Jr. and Frank Capra III (son and grandson of the famed It's A Wonderful Life director). Thus began Travers' embarkation into a full-time professional writing career in 1994. “I’ve punched a lot of tickets,” Travers says of his background, “and I bring real-world experience to my writing.” A veteran of Hollywood, Steve has written 15 screenplays, teleplays and stageplays. His credits include The Lost Battalion (the true story of a World War I unit during the Argonne Offensive, the subject of a film starring Rick Schroder), Wicked and Baja California. His additional writing awards are for Bandit, an America’s Best quarterfinalist, and Rock 'n' Roll Heaven, a Writers Network Screenplay & Fiction quarterfinalist. He appeared in the film The Californians, starring Noah Wylie and Illeana Douglas. Travers worked closely with legendary Hollywood producer Edgar Scherick, the original producer of The Lost Battalion. Scherick started ABC’s Baseball Game of the Week and Monday Night Football with Roone Arledge. Travers also wrote for the Los Angeles Times, the Los Angeles Daily News, and was a sports stringer on San Diego’s XTRA 690 AM radio station. Steve has freelanced for magazines, newspapers and web sites. He produced Steven Travers’ Journal on the Internet. Eventually, Travers became the number one columnist at StreetZebra, an L.A. sports magazine where he covered the USC beat and wrote a monthly "Distant Replay" of great events in the Southland's rich sports history. “I have encyclopedic knowledge of history,” Steve says. “I am truly versatile as a writer, able to use my knowledge of the past to understand the present. I have also survived as a freelancer; written extensively for the Internet and the so-called New Media; and have up-close knowledge of the ‘dot-bomb’ era that was the 1990s.” In 2001, Travers was hired as the lead sports columnist for the San Francisco Examiner. While writing for the Examiner, Travers was an eyewitness to Barry Bonds' historic 73-home run season of 2001. He got Bonds to agree to authorize the writing of his autobiography, but a business deal with the publishers was not worked out. Eventually, by 2002 Travers wrote the Best Seller Barry Bonds: Baseball’s Superman from Sports Publishing L.L.C. (www.sportspublishingllc.com). Actor Charlie Sheen wrote the foreword. It has gone through multiple re-prints, is now in paperback, and was nominated for a Casey Award for Best Baseball Book of the Year. A sequel, covering Bonds' alleged steroid use, additional MVP awards, and chase of Hank Aaron's career home run record, is in the works. In 2004, Travers wrote a proposal for the book that eventually became Game of Shadows by Mark Fainaru-Wada and Lance Williams, who landed the deal he did not. An avid reader, Travers poured through books, at least one a month; classics, biographies, history, sports, novels, philosophy. He was also a Christian, but had never read The Holy Bible. "Sometime around March or April of 2004, I decided to read The Bible," he says. "Two pages a day. I started out with the New Testament. After a while I began to read out loud, which made a difference. Then the Old Testament. It took a little less than a year to read the entire book. As soon as I read it through, I started again. Two pages per day, out loud. At this point I have read it twice through. I am beginning to understand it. I am not an expert on it, but the Holy Spirit has come to me and inspires me each day that I read God’s Word. I will read that book until the day I die, God willing and I am able, until some day I will have read it so many times I will be an expert. . .” In 2006, Taylor Trade, a division of Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. (www.RLPGTrade.com), published his book The USC Trojans: College Football's All-Time Greatest Dynasty, which argues that the University of Southern California has replaced Notre Dame as collegiate football's greatest tradition. USC legend Charles "Tree" Young graciously wrote the foreword, and the book ascended to Amazon.com “top seller” and National Book Network “top 100 seller” status. It was re-released in paperback in 2010. Taylor Trade released One Night, Two Teams: Alabama vs. USC and the Game That Changed A Nation in 2007 (foreword by Forrest Gump author Winston Groom). It was re-released in paperback in 2010. This is the true story of how the 1970 USC-Alabama football game ushered in desegregation of the American South. A film is in development. USC graduate Kerry McCluggage, a top Hollywood producer (Craftsman Films); former president of Universal and Paramount TV divisions; founder of UPN; with credits that include Star Trek, Star Trek: The Next Generation and Miami Vice, has optioned it with plans for a major theatrical release. The co-producer is Barry Kemp (Coach, Patch Adams, Catch Me If You Can). Potential directors include Taylor Hackford (An Officer and a Gentleman, Delores Claiborne, The Devil’s Advocate) and Kevin Costner (Dances With Wolves), with Costner possibly starring as John McKay, Tommy Lee Jones as Bear Bryant. Travers is a member of a “producer team” that includes Trojan football legend Anthony Davis and USC graduate Jim Starr. The deal was masterfully put together by Lloyd Robinson (USC ’64) of Suite A Management in Beverly Hills; Steve’s former literary agent, Craig Wiley; and Rowman & Littlefield president Rick Rinehart. Davis is on board to promote the project along with other former Trojans. When the film is released, Travers, Davis and Starr will be executive producers. In the past, Steve was repped by Peter Miller of PMA Literary & Film Agency in New York City. His agent is now Ian Kleinert of Objective Entertainment in Manhattan (who negotiated the huge Jerry West autobiography and Michael Savage’s Trickle Up Poverty). In 2009, Taylor Trade published Pigskin Warriors: 140 Years of College Football’s Greatest Traditions, Games, and Stars. In 2009, major publishing house The Globe Pequot Press published Travers’s book The 1969 Miracle Mets (foreword by Buddy Harrelson). Also in 2009: Dodgers Past & Present, Voyageur Press and A Tale of Three Cities: The 1962 Baseball Season in New York, L.A., and San Francisco. In 2011: The Poet: The Life and Los Angeles Times of Jim Murray, an authorized biography through Potomac Books. Triumph Books (www.triumphbooks.com), a division of New York publishing giant Random House, released five of Travers's books in 2007: A's Essential: Everything You Need to Know to Be A Real Fan! (foreword by A’s GM Billy Beane), Dodgers Essential (foreword by the late, great Bud “The Steamer” Furillo), Angels Essential (foreword by ex-L.A. Times sportswriter Ross Newhan), Diamondbacks Essential (foreword by Phoenix radio personality Andy Dorf), and The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly Los Angeles Lakers (foreword by longtime sports columnist Art Spander). In 2008 Triumph/Random House published Trojans Essential (foreword by ex-Coca-Cola/North American President Terry Marks) and The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly Oakland Raiders (foreword by radio personality Bruce Macgowan). In 2009 from Triumph/Random House: The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly San Francisco 49ers (foreword by 49er Hall of Famer Bob St. Clair) and What It Means to Be a Trojan: Southern Cal’s Greatest Players Talk About Trojans Football (foreword by Pete Carroll). Steve is the author of five unpublished books. These include From the Frat House to the White House to the Big House; God's Country, a three-volume conservative, Christian worldview of how history formed the U.S. Empire and America's manifest destiny for the 21st Century; Ambition: My Struggles to Fail and Succeed in Baseball, Politics, Hollywood, Writing . . . and The Rocky Path I’ve Walked With Christ (his autobiography); a novel, Angry White Male; and a compilation of his work over the years, The Writer’s Life. Travers contemplated an authorized autobiography of former New York Mets’ superstar Tom Seaver; a book about fascinating baseball pitching subjects; and a study of the modern nature of American politics and media manipulation, using the Whittaker Chambers case of the 1940s as its “Genesis.” The telegenic Travers has made numerous appearances on television and radio, being interviewed for the books, articles and screenplays he has written over the years. His national appearances have included "The Jim Rome Show", CNN, ESPN, and the Armed Forces Radio Network. He has appeared on TV and radio stations in major markets such as New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. In September 2005, Steve was interviewed on College Sports Television (www.cstv.com), a division of CBS, as part of a program devoted to the 35th anniversary of the 1970 USC-Alabama game. In February 2006, CSTV featured Travers prominently in their documentary Tackling Segregation, which aired throughout Black History Month. His work was also the subject of a 2005 CSTV documentary on Alabama football coach Paul “Bear” Bryant. In 2006, Travers was a guest speaker, leading a panel of distinguished former USC football players and coaches, for Professor Dan Durbin’s popular class “Sports, Culture & Society” at the University of Southern California Annenberg School for Communications. The subject was the 1970 USC-Alabama game, with Steve’s book a focal point. Out of this have come discussions with USC regarding Steve’s possible hiring as an adjunct professor. Travers made numerous other speaking and booksigning appearances through USC, which included appearances at the USC Bookstore, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, and the USC Collections at the South Coast Plaza Shopping Center in Orange County. In 2007, he addressed the USC East Bay Trojan Club in Walnut Creek, California; the incoming freshmen and parents during Parent’s Weekend at USC; the USC Orange County Trojan Club; as well as more signings at the USC Bookstore and USC Collections; and an address of the Hollywood Congress of Republicans; and the annual banquet of the GMAC Bowl in Mobile, Alabama. Professor Durbin invited him back for a retrospective of the 1972 USC national champion football team at Annenberg School for Communications. In 2008 Travers addressed Republican political groups in support of U.S. Senator John McCain (R.-Arizona). During the 2008 football season, Travers was again a guest lecturer in Professor Durbin's class. The subject was his book Angels Essential, and focused on "the old Pacific Coast League and the early Angels). He was the November speaker at the prestigious Pasadena Quarterback's Club next to the Rose Bowl (past speakers have included Pete Carroll), and signed books at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for the third consecutive year. In 2009 Travers again was a guest panelist in Professor Durbin’s class, centered around a re-union of the USC players interviewed in What It Means to Be a Trojan. Steve is the scion of a distinguished California family. The Travers’s came to colonial America, fought in the Revolutionary War, and settled into New York and Massachusetts. They founded the Travers Stakes horse race. One ancestor, a Captain Edgerly of the Union Army, was reputed to be President Abraham Lincoln’s “personal spy” during the Civil War. Steve’s side of the family came West during the time of the 1849 Gold Rush. His grandfather, Charles S. Travers, covered the 1906 Great Earthquake as a journalist, started a silent film magazine in Hollywood, and was President of the San Francisco Press Club. Steve’s great-uncle, Reginald Travers, was a noted Shakespearean actor. His father, Donald Travers, is a retired attorney and track coach who served as a Naval officer during World War II. His mother, Inge Travers, is a renowned artist. Steve’s brother, Donald Travers II, is a former Naval officer. Daughter Elizabeth Travers is a college student. Inside Berkeley’s Memorial Stadium is the Colonel Charles Travers Big Game Room (named after Steve’s late uncle, who served during World War II) to accommodate press conferences, and (named after Steve’s late aunt) is the Louise Travers Memorial Club Room. Colonel Travers also founded a wing of the university’s political science department, dedicated to fair and balanced analysis of public affairs. Members of the Travers family have served in the military during the Revolution, the Civil War, World War II, the Korean War, Vietnam and the Persian Gulf War. His books and further information be found at http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=steven+travers&x=11&y=12 or via http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q==STEVEN+TRAVERS+USC+METS+DODGERS&btnG==Search His web page is http://www.redroom.com/author/steven-robert-travers/ Steve is a board member of the USC NorCal Trojan Club, the Hollywood Congress of Republicans, and worships at Christ Lutheran Church. Steve tutored foreign students trying to learn English, as well as jail inmates, through the Marin Literacy Program. "I always wanted to give of my time," he explained, "but was too selfish to really do it. I found excuses. If at the beginning of 2006, if you had told me how busy I would be, I never would have signed up, but I did. I was assigned to a Korean divinity student named Kyung-Taek Hong. We became friends and shared Christian fellowship despite the language barrier. Almost as soon as I started tutoring Kyung, incredible good fortune began to reign down on me. Book deals, the movie deal, speaking engagements, ‘top seller’ sales, maybe a professorship at USC. As busy as I was writing, I met him every Wednesday for an hour and a half at the library. I consider him my ‘angel.’ After Kyung moved on to a Ph.D. program in Chicago, Travers taught a class at the Marin County Jail, then volunteered to work with high school kids. “As Jim Hill always says as his signature signoff on of his sports show, ‘Keep the faith.’”
Under The Blue, The Blue Series Volume 1 by Josephine Dillon Under The Blue, The Blue Series Volume 1 by Josephine Dillon Sep. 18, 2011 219810 words Read a sample
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Josephine Dillon was born March 9th, 1969 in Kenitra, Morocco, to parents Patricia and Eugene Godfrey. She grew up in Oceanside, one of the northern suburbs of San Diego, California, graduating from Vista High School. She later attended San Diego State University, where she obtained a bachelor's degree in nursing. She has been a registered nurse since graduating in 1995, working in the profession for the past sixteen years. As a novice writer, Josephine wrote the first three books from The Blue Series during the years 2006 through 2009 and is currently writing the fourth and final book in the series. The story was created in the early 1980's, when she was a young teenager. These novels are her first work of fiction. Please note that all the characters and story are fictional and only a few isolated incidents paralleled my existence at the time. The Irish Setter Reuben, the high school, and the home address were all from my childhood and not fictional. I attended and graduated from Vista High School, (survived is more like it), and I lived and grew up in Oceanside. The failed attempt to drown was my experience, and I will admit to wanting desperately to be a boy when I was growing up. Along with that, I also had a very vivid imagination. My family, however, were not at all similiar to the Smiths - I had loving, caring, nonjudgemental parents who adored me. Hope you enjoy the book and if you're 40 something, you'll understand and probably relate to the 80's being the 'Decade of Silliness.'
The Moghul by Thomas Hoover The Moghul by Thomas Hoover Aug. 19, 2010 218584 words Read a sample
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Live in New York City. Have published nine books. All available from Smashwords or my web site.
Tam Ä°lmihâl Seâdet-i Ebediyye Üçüncü Kısm by Hüseyn Hilmi Işık Tam Ä°lmihâl Seâdet-i Ebediyye Üçüncü Kısm by Hüseyn Hilmi Işık Nov. 30, 2011 218245 words Read a sample
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Din bilgilerinde derin âlim ve tasavvuf marifetlerinde kâmil ve mükemmil olan kerametler, harikalar sahibi Seyyid Abdülhakim Arvasi hazretlerinin yetiştirdiği yetkili bir âlimdir. Kitapları bütün ülkelerde okunmaktadır. Tam İlmihal Seadet-i Ebediyye başta olmak üzere, 14 Türkçe, 60 Arapça ve 25 Farsça ve bunlardan tercüme edilen, Fransızca, İngilizce, Almanca, Rusça ve diğer dillerdeki yüzlerce kitabın yazarıdır. 8 Mart 1911’de, Eyüp Sultan’da doğdu, 26 Ekim 2001’de vefat etti. Çok sayıda insanın katıldığı cenaze namazından sonra Eyüp Sultan’daki aile kabristanına defnedildi. Von Mises’den yüksek matematik, Prager’den mekanik, Dember’den fizik, Goss’dan teknik kimya okudu. Kimya profesörü Arndt’ın yanında çalıştı, takdirlerini kazandı. Arndt’ın yanında altı ay travay yaptı ve İstanbul Üniversitesi’nde çalışarak, Phenyl-cyan-nitromethan cisminin sentezini yaptı ve formülünü tespit etti. 1936 senesi sonunda 1/1 sayılı Kimya Yüksek Mühendisliği diplomasını aldı. Albaylığa kadar Türk ordusunda zehirli gazlar mütehassıslığı ve kimya öğretmenliği yapmıştır. Siyasete hiç karışmadı, hiçbir partiye bağlanmadı. Bölücülüğe ve kanunlara karşı gelmeye karşı idi. Bunu eserlerinde açıkça bildirmiştir. Dünyanın her yerine gönderdiği çeşitli dillerdeki kitaplarında, İslam dininin doğru olarak anlaşılması, İslam ahkâmının ve ahlakının yayılması için çalıştı. Bunun için, dini dünya çıkarlarına alet edenlerin ve mezhepsizlerin iftira oklarına hedef oldu. (Eczacı, kimyager, dinden ne anlar? O mesleğinde çalışsın, bizim işimize karışmasın) diyenler oldu. Evet, bu zat, eczacı ve kimya yüksek mühendisi olarak milletine 30 yıldan fazla hizmet etti. Fakat din tahsili de yaparak ve geceli gündüzlü çalışarak, büyük İslam âliminden icazet almakla da şereflendi. Hiçbir zaman kendi görüşünü, kendi fikrini yazmayıp, daima Ehl-i sünnet âlimlerinin, anlayabilenleri hayran eden kıymetli yazılarını Arapça ve Farsça’dan tercüme ederek kitaplarında yayınlamıştır. Seyyid Ahmet Mekki Efendi, Tam İlmihal Seadet-i Ebediyye kitabına yazdığı takrizde buyuruyor ki: (Asrımızın fadıllarından, zamanımızın bir tanesinin yazmış olduğu Seadet-i Ebediyye kitabına göz gezdirdim. Bu kitapta, kelâm, fıkıh ve tasavvuf bilgilerini buldum. Bunların hepsinin, bilgilerini nübüvvet kaynağından almış olanların kitaplarından toplanmış olduğunu gördüm. Bu kitapta, Ehl-i sünnet itikadına uygun olmayan hiçbir bilgi, hiçbir söz yoktur. Ey Temiz gençler, dini ve milli bilgilerinizi, bu latif, benzeri bulunmayan, belki de, ileride bir benzeri yazılamayacak olan, bu kitaptan alın!) Hüseyin Hilmi Işık Efendi, Ehl-i sünnet âlimlerinin kitaplarını okuyup anlayabilecek salih kimselerin azaldığını ve cahil kimselerin din adamları arasına karışarak, bozuk kitaplar yazıldığını görerek üzülmüş, (Fitne yayıldığı zaman, hakikati bilen, başkalarına bildirsin! Bildirmezse, Allah’ın ve bütün insanların laneti ona olsun) hadis-i şerifinde bildirilen tehditten dehşet duymuştur. İnsanlara olan şefkat ve merhameti de, O’nu hizmete zorlayarak, Ehl-i sünnet âlimlerinin kitaplarından seçtiği yazıları tercüme etmiş ve herkesin anlayabileceği şekilde açıklamaya çalışmıştır. Aldığı sayısız tebrik ve takdir yazılarının yanı sıra, tek tük cahilin serzeniş ve iftiralarına da hedef olmuştur. Rabbine ve vicdanına karşı ihlâsında ve sadakatinde bir şüphesi olmadığı için, Allahü teâlâya tevekkül ve Resulünün ve salih kullarının mübarek ruhlarına tevessül ederek, hizmete devam etmiştir. Bütün bu hizmetlerin, İslâm âlimlerine olan aşırı sevgi ve saygısının bereketi ile olduğunu söylerdi. Her sohbetinde İslâm âlimlerinin kitaplarından okur, İmam-ı Rabbani ve Abdülhakim Arvasi hazretlerinin sözlerini aktarırken gözleri yaşarır ve (Kelâm-ı kibâr, kibâr-ı kelâmest), yani büyüklerin sözü, sözlerin büyüğüdür buyururdu. Hüseyin Hilmi Efendi, maddî ve manevî, dünyevî, uhrevî ve bilhassa fen, tıp ve eczacılık ilimlerinde zamanın ileri gelenlerinden idi. Her sözü ilme, fenne ve tecrübeye dayanan ve bu bilgilerini, tecrübelerini dinin temel miyarlarıyla karşılaştırıp tartarak söylediğinden, hikmet konuşan yani her sözünde dünyevi veya uhrevî faydalar bulunan, belki eşi bir daha zor bulunabilecek, âlim bir zat idi. En kıymetli kitaplardan tercüme ve derlemelerle, telif eserler vücuda getirdi. Akaid hususunda, bilhassa Ehl-i sünnet vel-cemaat inancını sade bir dille açıklayıp, bu inancın yayılmasında, öncülük etti. Hanefi, Maliki, Şafii ve Hanbeli mezheplerinden birinde bulunmanın Ehl-i sünnetin alameti olduğunu, herkesin kendi mezhebine göre amel etmesinin şart olduğunu, zaruret ve ihtiyaç halindeyse, hak olan dört mezhepten birinin taklit edilebileceğini, Ehl-i sünnet kitaplarından alarak açıkladı. Seadet-i Ebediyye ve diğer kitaplarında, binlerce mesele yazdı. Unutulmuş ilimleri ihya etti. (Ümmetim bozulduğu zaman bir sünnetimi ihya edene yüz şehid sevâbı verilir) hadis-i şerifini hep göz önünde tutarak, farzları, vacibleri, sünnetleri, hatta müstehabları uzun uzun yazdı. Dünyanın her tarafındaki insanlara İslamiyet’i doğru olarak tanıttı. Ehl-i sünnet âlimlerince tasvip edilen ve övülen, yüzlerce Arabî ve Fârisî eseri, Hakîkat Kitabevi vasıtasıyla yedi iklim, dört bucağa yaydı. Vehhabi, Hurufi, Kadiyani gibi bozuk fırkaların doğru yoldan ayrıldıkları noktaları, bütün dünyaya vesikalarla tanıttı. Ehl-i sünnet itikadı canlanmaya, kıpırdamaya ve yeşermeye başladı. Bu bakımdan yaptıkları işi, dini tecdid ile isimlendiren zatlar oldu. Tecdid, dini yenileyip kuvvetlendirmek demektir. Başarılarının sebeplerini soranlara, "(Helekel müsevvifun) yani (Sonra yaparım diyenler helak oldu), hadis-i şerifine uyarak bugünün işini yarına bırakmadım ve kendi işimi kendim gördüm, yapamadığım işi bir başkasına havale ettiğim zaman neticesini takip ettim" cevabını verirdi. (Bu zamanda İslamiyet'e hizmeti başarıyla yapabilmek için muhatabın anlayacağı gibi konuşmalı ve herkese tatlı dilli güler yüzlü olmalıdır) buyururdu. Gerçek bir tevazuya sahipti. Kendisini asla başkalarından üstün görmezdi. Kendisinden büyüklerin yanında konuşmaz, kimseyle münakaşa etmez, edebi gözetir, ekseriya iki dizi üzerine otururdu. Bursa’da, eski müderrislerden Ali Haydar Efendiyi ziyaretinde, saatlerce iki dizi üzerinde oturunca, Ali Haydar Efendi talebelerine, (Hilmi Beyden edeb öğrenin, edeb!) demişti. Hüseyin Hilmi Işık Efendi, ailesinden Osmanlı terbiyesi, Abdülhakim Arvasi hazretlerinden de tasavvuf edebi almıştı... "En büyük keramet istikamet üzere olmaktır" buyururdu. Namazı ve diğer ibadetleri birinci vazife olarak görür, altını çize çize "Namaza mani olan işte hayır yoktur", derdi. Hüseyin Hilmi Işık "rahmetullahi aleyh" dine zararı olmayan şeylere üzülmezdi. Çocukların yaramazlıklarını tabii görürdü. Ama onlara dinlerini öğretmekte gevşek davranılmasını hoş görmezdi. Şahsî malı, serveti yoktu. Çok çalışkandı. Nesi varsa, kitaplara ve kitapların dünyaya yayılmasına harcadı. Hakikî bir tevazuya sahip idi. Kendisini asla başkalarından üstün görmez, sevenlerine "Benim günahım hepinizden çoktur, çünkü ben hepinizden daha yaşlıyım" derdi. Evine gelen misafirlere lâyıkıyla hizmet ederdi. Evinin alış verişini bizzat yapar, odununu ve kömürünü kendi alır, fatura ve vergilerini kendisi yatırırdı. Hüseyin Hilmi Işık, çok nazik ve kibardı. Mamak Maske fabrikasında vazife yaparken, orada Cemal adında bir genç çalışıyordu. Babası Diyanette heyet-i müşavere azası Konyalı Eyüb Necati Perhiz idi. Genç evde de efendimli konuşmaya ve ibadetlerini yapmaya başlayınca babası bu değişikliğin sebebini sordu. Bizim bir kumandanımız var, çok kibar birisidir. Efendimsiz konuşmaya alışırım da onun yanında da öyle konuşurum diye korkuyorum dedi. Babası şaşırdı. Oğlu ile, Hüseyin Hilmi Efendiye, kendisini ziyaret edip teşekkür etmek üzere haber gönderdi. Hilmi Efendi "babanız yaşlıdır. Buraya gelmesi de uygun olmaz, biz ona gidelim" dedi; ve ziyaret etti. Seâdet-i Ebediyye kitabını ilk çıkardığı sıralar, subaylara, senede bir kaç defa çift maaş verirlerdi. Çift maaşın tekini biriktirip, bu kitabı çıkarmak için harcardı. Hüseyin Hilmi Işık'ın "rahmetullahi aleyh", sabır ve tahammülleri çok idi. İnsanlardan, bir eziyet, sıkıntı gelse katlanır, mukabele etmezdi. Yerine göre pamuktan yumuşak, ama küfre, bid'atlere ve günâha karşı da çelik gibi sert idi. Dinimizin öngördüğü derecede cesûr idi. Kitaplarında doğruyu yazmaktan kaçınmaz, "Korkulacak yalnız Allahü teâlâdır" der, ama fitne çıkmamasına da çok dikkat ederdi. Devletin kanunlarına uymada çok titiz davranırdı. Müslüman dine uyar, günah işlemez; kanunlara uyar, suç işlemez derdi. Sık sık "Vatan sevgisi imandandır" hadis-i şerîfini okurdu. Hüseyin Hilmi Işık "rahmetullahi aleyh", maddî ve mânevî, dünyevî ve uhrevî ve bilhassa fen, tıb ve eczacılık ilimlerinde zamanın ileri gelenlerinden olduğu için, gerçek bir âlim idi. Her sözü ilme, fenne ve tecrübeye dayanan ve bu bilgilerini ve tecrübelerini dinin temel ve asıl miyarları ile karşılaştırıp, tartarak, söylediğinden, hikmet konuşan, yâni her sözünde dünyevi veya uhrevî faydalar bulunan, belki eşi bir daha çok zor bulunabilecek olan bir zât idi. IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE Hüseyn Hilmi Işık, 'Rahmat-allahi alaih’, publisher of the Waqf Ikhlas Publications, was born in Eyyub Sultan, Istanbul in 1329 (A.D. 1911). Of the one hundred and forty-four books he published, sixty are Arabic, twenty-five Persian, fourteen Turkish, and the remaining translated books consist of French, German, English, Russian and other languages. Hüseyn Hilmi Işık, 'Rahmat-allahi alaih' (guided by Sayyid Abdulhakim Arvasi, ‘Rahmat-allahi alaih’, a profound scholar of the religion and was perfect in virtues of tasawwuf and capable to direct disciples in a fully mature manner; possessor of glories and wisdom), was a competent, great Islamic scholar able to pave the way for attaining happiness, passed away during the night between October 25, 2001 (8 Shaban 1422) and October 26, 2001 (9 Shaban 1422). He was buried at Eyyub Sultan, where he was born.
The Upraised Hand by Michael Steptoe The Upraised Hand by Michael Steptoe March 03, 2011 217898 words Read a sample
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Der Kaiser ohne Namen by Peter Marnet Der Kaiser ohne Namen by Peter Marnet Sep. 17, 2011 212543 words Read a sample
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Bin verheiratet. Habe zwei erwachsene Kinder (die typischen Internet-Junkies). Auf dringenden Wunsch meines familären Umfeldes pseudonym unterwegs. Beruf: bis 05/2011 Einzelhändler in Düsseldorf (25 Jahre selbständig)
Macedonia: A Nation at a Crossroads by Sam Vaknin Macedonia: A Nation at a Crossroads by Sam Vaknin Jan. 03, 2010 211918 words Read a sample
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Sam Vaknin ( http://samvak.tripod.com ) is the author of Malignant Self Love - Narcissism Revisited and After the Rain - How the West Lost the East as well as many other books and ebooks about topics in psychology, relationships, philosophy, economics, and international affairs. He served as a columnist for Central Europe Review, Global Politician, PopMatters, eBookWeb , and Bellaonline, and as a United Press International (UPI) Senior Business Correspondent. He was the editor of mental health and Central East Europe categories in The Open Directory and Suite101.
رساله توضیح المسائل آیت الله العظمی موسوی اردبیلی by hossein lookzadeh رساله توضیح المسائل آیت الله العظمی موسوی اردبیلی by hossein lookzadeh Sep. 18, 2011 208697 words Read a sample
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Osmanet by Osman Nuri Topbas Osmanet by Osman Nuri Topbas Jan. 15, 2011 207735 words Read a sample
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America Disarmed: Inside the U.N. and Obama’s Scheme to Destroy the Second Amendment by Wayne LaPierre America Disarmed: Inside the U.N. and Obama’s Scheme to Destroy the Second Amendment by Wayne LaPierre Dec. 06, 2011 207683 words Read a sample
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Wayne LaPierre is the Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Officer of the National Rifle Association of America. In his leadership position, Mr. LaPierre conducts the affairs of an over 3.5 million member association through a staff of over 550 employees with an annual budget of over $120 million. Under the direction of a 76-member board of directors, he is responsible for implementing NRA policy as well as serving as president of the National Firearms Museum Fund and trustee of the NRA Foundation. An avid sport shooter, he holds an executive position with the North American Wetlands Conservation Council, the world's largest wildlife program, and officiates each year at NRA events nationwide. Mr. LaPierre joined the staff in 1978, as a state liaison in the NRA Institute for Legislative Action, the lobbying arm of the Association. Initially responsible for a 10-state region, he was promoted twice in two years and named the Director of State & Local Affairs in 1979. The next year he accepted a position as the Director of Federal Affairs, where he was responsible for the planning and execution of all NRA initiatives before Congress and the executive branch. In 1986, Mr. LaPierre was again promoted to Executive Director of NRA-ILA. It was in this position that he took to the forefront as the leader and spokesperson for all NRA legislative activities at every level of government. Wayne LaPierre serves on the board of directors of the American Association of Political Consultants. He holds a master's degree in American government and politics from Boston College and a bachelor's degree in education and political science from Siena College in New York. After accepting his current position in 1991, Mr. LaPierre became the chief national spokesperson for the National Rifle Association which, under his leadership, has achieved the most dramatic growth in membership since NRA was founded in 1871.
English Translation of the Qur'an by Dr Muhammad Muhsin Khan English Translation of the Qur'an by Dr Muhammad Muhsin Khan Jan. 26, 2012 206171 words Read a sample
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Personalıtetı Shembullor Hz. Muhammed Mustafa (s.a.v.s.) by Murat Kaya Personalıtetı Shembullor Hz. Muhammed Mustafa (s.a.v.s.) by Murat Kaya April 23, 2011 206025 words Read a sample
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Жар объятий by Dukenbai Doszhan Жар объятий by Dukenbai Doszhan June 07, 2011 204367 words Read a sample
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Первый рассказ писателя увидел свет, когда его юному автору было лишь пятнадцать лет. На сегодняшний момент из-под его пера вышли 11 романов, 22 повестей, около 100 рассказов. Дукенбай Досжан имеет свидетельство самого читаемого писателя Книжной палаты. В настоящее время книги писателя переведены на все основные языки мира, были изданы общим тиражом в объеме 7,7 миллионов. Начав свой трудовой путь младшим редактором в областной газете «Жетысу», в 1966–1975 годы работает старшим редактором в государственном издательстве художественной литературы «Жазушы», в 1976–84 годы заведует отделом издательского комитета РК. В 1984–91 годы он советник прозы Союза писателей Казахстана. 1994–96 годы заведущий отделом Агентства авторских и смежных прав РК. В 1996–2002 годы открыл Музей национальной валюты – тенге Национального банка РК, исполнял обязанности первого директора. С 2002 года и по настоящее время – главный редактор журнала «Мәдени мұра – Культурное наследие» в Президентском центре культуры РК. По итогам электронного опроса-исследования Министерства связи и информации 2010 года, проведенного по 14 областям страны, занял первое место как самый читаемый писатель Казахстана. Д. Досжан своими первыми крупными произведениями «Отрар», «Аль-Фараби», «Шёлковый путь» (1965–76 гг.) открыл новый этап в развитии казахстанской литературы и был назван пионером исторической темы. Он первый писатель, внедренный в закрытый архив Комитета национальной безопасности. Вследствие этого была написана основанная на фактах, по судебным документам повесть «Тюрьма» (1992 г.), а также по следам Декабрьских событий 1986 года – художественный роман «Площадь» (1993 г.). Эти произведения более не переиздавались, только несколько экземпляров хранятся в фонде редких книг. Повесть «Аль-Фараби» написана на основе реальных фактов. Выходец из Отрара Абунасыр в поисках знаний едет в Бухару и заканчивает медресе Бухары, Багдада, в последние годы жизни он оседает в древнем Куддусе, нынешнем Дамаске. Служивший секретарем-визирем при эмире Саиф ад-Даула, он переводит на арабский язык эллинских ученых. Пишет коментарии на труды Аристотеля, Платона. В конце своей жизни Абунасыр в караване эмира по возвращении из похода сильно заболевает и умирает на середине пути. Его отрывистые размышления между потерей сознания и бредом о своей прожитой жизни передается литературным методом – потоком мыслей. Повесть была опубликована в журнале «Жұлдыз» и принесла автору известность. «Аль-Фараби» сразу переводилась на русский, немецкий, мадиарский, английский, монгольский, украинский, турецкий языкий, вышла в свет отдельной книгой. Роман «Шёлковый путь» – историческое художественно-философское произведение. Богатое торжество средневекового города Отрар описывается с сыновней гордостью и любовью. Идея романа заключается в том, что причиной разрушения прекрасного города послужили порочные пристрастия жителей, и он превращается в пыль, уходит в небытие, словно затонувшая Атлантида. Богатая фабула и напряженная сюжетная линия вызвали интерес иностранных читателей. Произведение переводилось на русский, украинский, немецкий, венгерский, монгольский, пуштунский языки. По сюжету книги Ардак Амиркулов снял двухсерийный художественный фильм «Гибель Отрара». Исследователи творчества Д. Досжана делят его прозу на три этапа. Первый – произведения, написанные в начале 60-х годов на историческую тему, из глубины веков воскресившие дух мужественных тюрков– «Шёлковый путь», «Отрар», «Аль-Фараби». Второй – галерея образов наших современников, повести, показывающие обнищание духа, раскрывающие духовную экологию: «Трудный шаг», «Большая река», «Поклонись своему порогу», «У тигра своя тропа», «Долг людской». Третий этап – романизированные биографии замечательных людей – «Путь Мухтара» (1988 г.), «Дух Абая» (1994, 2008 гг.), «Судный день» (1997 г.). Дукенбай Досжан видит мир своими глазами, рисует его свойственным только ему внутренним восприятием. Он один из немногих писателей, пишущих о своих замечательных современниках, углублённо рисующим характер своих современников – героев ХХІ века. Рассказывающий историю независимости роман «Ак Орда» («Елорда» баспасы, 2005 жыл) тепло приняли читатели. Документальная повесть «Главный архитектор Астаны» была опубликована в «Роман-газете» (2007 г.), став для русскоязычных читателей важной публикацией. За книгу «Трудный шаг» в 1974 году от издательства «Молодая гвардия» писатель получил премию «Лучший современный роман». В 1988 году издательство Украины «Дніпро» удостоило его премией «Лучшая книга на историческую тему» за роман «Шёлковый путь». Имя Дукенбая Досжана было занесено во второй том энциклопедии «Люди искусства и литературы» США (1999 г.), в третий том Казахской Национальной энциклопедии (2001 г.), в энциклопедию Абай (1994 г.). В 1983 году в Москве трёхсоттысячным тиражом изданы его роман «Шёлковый путь» и избранные рассказы как приложение к журналу «Дружба народов». В 1990 году читатели получили избранные произведения в двух томах с предисловием О. Сулейменова, изданные по госзаказу в издательстве «Жазушы» тиражом 20 тыс. По заказу областных библиотек в 2002-2003 гг. вышел в свет тринадцатитомный сборник произведений в издательстве «Білім». Предисловие к сборнику написал видный критик Зейнолла Сериккалиев, а редактировал и снабдил издательским аппаратом писатель Жарылкасын Нускабаев. Спонсорами проекта выступили деятели из облкультуры Карагандинской и Павлодарской областей и реализовали эти книги в своих регионах. После переезда в 2002 году в Астану у писателя открылось второе дыхание. Если ранее писатель больше уделял внимания историческим темам, описанию жизни своих учителей, то в последнее время Д. Досжан написал цикл рассказов, окидывающих жизнь философским взглядом, глубоко раскрывающих психологические мотивы поступков человека. Немаловажен его вклад в развитие казахского художественного слова, он раскрыл потенциал его неисчерпаемого духовного богатства. В последнее время он намного расширил свои творческие горизонты. Например, построенная на жестоком столкновении в верхних уровнях власти повесть «Страх» толкует о противостоянии чиновников, стремящихся чуть что – поставить палки в колеса друг другу, чуть что – задеть друг друга злословием. Упасть с вершины власти для них равносильно смерти. И вас завораживает подпольная борьба карьеристов. Мухтар Ауэзов однажды говорил: «Я пережил две общественные формации». В повести «Смерть пророка» главный герой переживает три общественные ступени. Сначала Мыркы представлен в образе зажиточного бая, держащего в страхе всю Сарыарку. Потом подвергается конфискации во времена красной империи и еле-еле приходит в себя. Затем он, переживая эпоху социализма, попадает на рыночную площадь капитализма. Прежнее богатство растаяло, отец давно на том свете. В своём полусонном состоянии он попадает на удочку красивой, соблазнительной женщины, берет кредит в банке и открывает с ней небольшой бизнес. Беспринципная женщина обманывает Мыркы, закладывает дом его отца и пропадает. Много довелось испытать герою бедствий, и в эпилоге мы видим, как, с трудом добравшись в Мекку, Мыркы, упав пластом у подножия горы Арафа, обращает свой взор к небесам и оплакивает свою грешную жизнь. Ужасающая метаморфоза героя, пережившего три общественных строя, повесть читается с трепетом. Критик сказал: «Первый раз прочитал в казахской прозе такое произведение, в котором 150-летнюю историю переживает один и тот же герой, попадавший три раза в такую психилогическую встряску». Некоторое время назад один корреспондент газеты спросил его: «На какое место вы поставите себя в ряду современных прозаиков?» Писатель ответил: «По совершенствованию своих произведений и поисках лучшей формы вперед пропущу только Кекильбаева и Магауина, а сам встану тертьим», – ответил он. («Аламты ақшамы», №46, 2005 год, 21 апреля). В этом высказывании – истина. Написанные в последнее время рассказы писателя «Прощение», «Человек–зеркало», «Библиотека Александрии», а также повести «Гореть–угасать», «Происшествие в Кызыл-кенише», «Жизнелюб» рассказывают о судьбах неординарных людей, в них использованы необычная окраска живых слов, литературные приёмы магического и философского реализма. Дукенбай Досжан (09.09.1942) – лауреат Государственной премии (1996), лауреат Национальной премии имени М. Ауэзова (1987 г.), является почетным гражданином города Туркестан, Жанакорганского, Сырдарийнского, Сузакского, Отрарского районов. Обладатель орденов «Парасат», «Құрмет». По произведениям Д. Досжана были защищены диссертации, рассматривающие языковую стилистику и феномен человека писателя. Увидели свет монографии Сауле Сейденовой «Судьба писателя» 2008 г, Алпысбая Мусаева «Художественные приёмы в произведениях Д. Досжана» 2010 г. Была издана книга Х. Коктанди «Гладиатор мысли» 2005 г. О стилистике Д. Досжан: видит мир по-своему, в присущем только ему спектре. Часто прибегает к мистике, потоку мыслей. Раскрывает духовный мир героя, мастерски изображая его душевные переживания. О характере Д. Досжан: не принадлежит ни к какой группе, не вступил ни в какое политическое движение, имея своё видение мира. Иногда его не понимают некоторые оппоненты, либо не хотят понимать, поэтому изредка злословят, критикуя. На это писатель не реагирует, полагая, что все это суета сует, что время расставит всё на свои места, и берется за новое произведение или же приступает к чтению хорошей книги. Каждый день браться за перо – в его характере. Прекрасные рассказы писателя увидели свет отдельным сборником на английском, русском, японском, китайском, шведском, чешском, мадиарском, монгольском, украинском, пуштунском языках. Писатель активно ведет переписку с архивистами библиотеки Гувер США и им. Л. Толстого в Ясной Поляне. У него хранятся все письма исторических личностей. Является владельцем богатого архива времён Алашорды, включающим в себя письма и документы лидеров этой партии.
The Aeolian Master Book One Revival by John Northern The Aeolian Master Book One Revival by John Northern Sep. 18, 2010 203078 words Read a sample
Author bio:
I love good science fiction and deplore the bad. I write science fiction novels, and I hope no one deplores them. My novels are marketed online, on TV, and in the newspapers. My marriage is great, and my wife's name is Lou Ann. We have four sons who are grown and gone. We live in Las Vegas, Nevada. But we don't gamble - too smart for that. I play tennis - mediocre. I love sci fi movies, but my wife doesn't, so I have to go by myself. (She did like "Iron Man".) Although I love to write, I had to find a profession which would support me and my family---I was a Chiropractic physician for 29 years. I hope things are going well for you. We need more peace and love in the world - violence needs to stay in fiction.
Documents of the Right Word by Abdullah Suwaydî Documents of the Right Word by Abdullah Suwaydî Dec. 20, 2011 202918 words Read a sample
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[The book HUJAJ-I-QAT’IYYA was written in the Arabic language by Abulberekât Abdullah Suwaydî of Baghdâd. It was printed in Egypt in 1323 [A.D. 1905], and reproduced by offset process in Istanbul. Its Turkish translation, by Allâma Yûsuf Suwaydî, was printed in the Kurdistan printhouse in Egypt in 1326 [A.D. 1908]. Suwaydî Abdullah Efendi was born in Baghdâd in 1104. After performing his duty of hajj in 1137, he was given an ijâzat (certificate, diploma) from Abdulghanî Nablusî [1050-1143] (A.D. 1730) Damascus], and another ijâzat by Alî Efendi of Istanbul [1099-1149]. He taught for years in Baghdâd. He wrote many valuable books. His thirtieth grandfather is Abû Ja’fer Abdullah Mensûr, one of the Abbâsî Khalîfas. Nâdir Shâh [1099-1160 (A.D. 1746)], an Iranian ruler, convoked the scholars of Iran and Bukhara and commanded them to discuss and come to a bilateral conclusion on which one of the Sunnî and Shi’î groups was right, and they appointed him as president of the debate. The book HUJAJ-I-QAT’IYYA, which gives an account of the talks made in this assembly, is very valuable. After a long discussion with the Shiite scholars in this assembly, he (Abdullah Suwaydî) proved that the Sunnîs were right. The Shâh liked this and congratulated him. He passed away on the eleventh day, Saturday, of (the Arabic month) Shawwâl in 1174 [A.D. 1760]. He was buried near the tomb of Hadrat Ma’rûf-i-Kerhî ‘rahmatullâhi aleyh’, who had passed away in 200 [A.D. 815].
Illusion by Lynn Allen Illusion by Lynn Allen May 06, 2011 202782 words Read a sample
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Lynn Allen was born in the northeast of Scotland into a family that has lived in the region of Brechin for centuries. In the 1960s she migrated to Perth, Australia, where she now lives and works as an independent thinker, writer and coach. During her more than 20 years as an executive in the information services sector, including the computer industry and 12 years as a government CEO, Lynn has written many papers on leadership, strategy and the use of technology. She has studied and loved the novel all her life, believing in the power of story to illuminate and explore the human condition. Her particular interests are women's literature and feminism. Lynn's novel, Illusion, is a contemplation of what can happen when a single woman's integrity is challenged while working as a public servant in politically charged environments. She is currently writing a novel that explores what highly educated, professional baby-boomer women might do after they leave paid employment. Is the world ready for this group of women and their wisdom? Are the women themselves prepared to generate another feminist agenda?
Inferno of Life by Duane Watson Inferno of Life by Duane Watson Aug. 16, 2011 201179 words Read a sample
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Tam Ä°lmihâl Seâdet-i Ebediyye Birinci Kısm by Hüseyn Hilmi Işık Tam Ä°lmihâl Seâdet-i Ebediyye Birinci Kısm by Hüseyn Hilmi Işık Nov. 30, 2011 200470 words Read a sample
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Din bilgilerinde derin âlim ve tasavvuf marifetlerinde kâmil ve mükemmil olan kerametler, harikalar sahibi Seyyid Abdülhakim Arvasi hazretlerinin yetiştirdiği yetkili bir âlimdir. Kitapları bütün ülkelerde okunmaktadır. Tam İlmihal Seadet-i Ebediyye başta olmak üzere, 14 Türkçe, 60 Arapça ve 25 Farsça ve bunlardan tercüme edilen, Fransızca, İngilizce, Almanca, Rusça ve diğer dillerdeki yüzlerce kitabın yazarıdır. 8 Mart 1911’de, Eyüp Sultan’da doğdu, 26 Ekim 2001’de vefat etti. Çok sayıda insanın katıldığı cenaze namazından sonra Eyüp Sultan’daki aile kabristanına defnedildi. Von Mises’den yüksek matematik, Prager’den mekanik, Dember’den fizik, Goss’dan teknik kimya okudu. Kimya profesörü Arndt’ın yanında çalıştı, takdirlerini kazandı. Arndt’ın yanında altı ay travay yaptı ve İstanbul Üniversitesi’nde çalışarak, Phenyl-cyan-nitromethan cisminin sentezini yaptı ve formülünü tespit etti. 1936 senesi sonunda 1/1 sayılı Kimya Yüksek Mühendisliği diplomasını aldı. Albaylığa kadar Türk ordusunda zehirli gazlar mütehassıslığı ve kimya öğretmenliği yapmıştır. Siyasete hiç karışmadı, hiçbir partiye bağlanmadı. Bölücülüğe ve kanunlara karşı gelmeye karşı idi. Bunu eserlerinde açıkça bildirmiştir. Dünyanın her yerine gönderdiği çeşitli dillerdeki kitaplarında, İslam dininin doğru olarak anlaşılması, İslam ahkâmının ve ahlakının yayılması için çalıştı. Bunun için, dini dünya çıkarlarına alet edenlerin ve mezhepsizlerin iftira oklarına hedef oldu. (Eczacı, kimyager, dinden ne anlar? O mesleğinde çalışsın, bizim işimize karışmasın) diyenler oldu. Evet, bu zat, eczacı ve kimya yüksek mühendisi olarak milletine 30 yıldan fazla hizmet etti. Fakat din tahsili de yaparak ve geceli gündüzlü çalışarak, büyük İslam âliminden icazet almakla da şereflendi. Hiçbir zaman kendi görüşünü, kendi fikrini yazmayıp, daima Ehl-i sünnet âlimlerinin, anlayabilenleri hayran eden kıymetli yazılarını Arapça ve Farsça’dan tercüme ederek kitaplarında yayınlamıştır. Seyyid Ahmet Mekki Efendi, Tam İlmihal Seadet-i Ebediyye kitabına yazdığı takrizde buyuruyor ki: (Asrımızın fadıllarından, zamanımızın bir tanesinin yazmış olduğu Seadet-i Ebediyye kitabına göz gezdirdim. Bu kitapta, kelâm, fıkıh ve tasavvuf bilgilerini buldum. Bunların hepsinin, bilgilerini nübüvvet kaynağından almış olanların kitaplarından toplanmış olduğunu gördüm. Bu kitapta, Ehl-i sünnet itikadına uygun olmayan hiçbir bilgi, hiçbir söz yoktur. Ey Temiz gençler, dini ve milli bilgilerinizi, bu latif, benzeri bulunmayan, belki de, ileride bir benzeri yazılamayacak olan, bu kitaptan alın!) Hüseyin Hilmi Işık Efendi, Ehl-i sünnet âlimlerinin kitaplarını okuyup anlayabilecek salih kimselerin azaldığını ve cahil kimselerin din adamları arasına karışarak, bozuk kitaplar yazıldığını görerek üzülmüş, (Fitne yayıldığı zaman, hakikati bilen, başkalarına bildirsin! Bildirmezse, Allah’ın ve bütün insanların laneti ona olsun) hadis-i şerifinde bildirilen tehditten dehşet duymuştur. İnsanlara olan şefkat ve merhameti de, O’nu hizmete zorlayarak, Ehl-i sünnet âlimlerinin kitaplarından seçtiği yazıları tercüme etmiş ve herkesin anlayabileceği şekilde açıklamaya çalışmıştır. Aldığı sayısız tebrik ve takdir yazılarının yanı sıra, tek tük cahilin serzeniş ve iftiralarına da hedef olmuştur. Rabbine ve vicdanına karşı ihlâsında ve sadakatinde bir şüphesi olmadığı için, Allahü teâlâya tevekkül ve Resulünün ve salih kullarının mübarek ruhlarına tevessül ederek, hizmete devam etmiştir. Bütün bu hizmetlerin, İslâm âlimlerine olan aşırı sevgi ve saygısının bereketi ile olduğunu söylerdi. Her sohbetinde İslâm âlimlerinin kitaplarından okur, İmam-ı Rabbani ve Abdülhakim Arvasi hazretlerinin sözlerini aktarırken gözleri yaşarır ve (Kelâm-ı kibâr, kibâr-ı kelâmest), yani büyüklerin sözü, sözlerin büyüğüdür buyururdu. Hüseyin Hilmi Efendi, maddî ve manevî, dünyevî, uhrevî ve bilhassa fen, tıp ve eczacılık ilimlerinde zamanın ileri gelenlerinden idi. Her sözü ilme, fenne ve tecrübeye dayanan ve bu bilgilerini, tecrübelerini dinin temel miyarlarıyla karşılaştırıp tartarak söylediğinden, hikmet konuşan yani her sözünde dünyevi veya uhrevî faydalar bulunan, belki eşi bir daha zor bulunabilecek, âlim bir zat idi. En kıymetli kitaplardan tercüme ve derlemelerle, telif eserler vücuda getirdi. Akaid hususunda, bilhassa Ehl-i sünnet vel-cemaat inancını sade bir dille açıklayıp, bu inancın yayılmasında, öncülük etti. Hanefi, Maliki, Şafii ve Hanbeli mezheplerinden birinde bulunmanın Ehl-i sünnetin alameti olduğunu, herkesin kendi mezhebine göre amel etmesinin şart olduğunu, zaruret ve ihtiyaç halindeyse, hak olan dört mezhepten birinin taklit edilebileceğini, Ehl-i sünnet kitaplarından alarak açıkladı. Seadet-i Ebediyye ve diğer kitaplarında, binlerce mesele yazdı. Unutulmuş ilimleri ihya etti. (Ümmetim bozulduğu zaman bir sünnetimi ihya edene yüz şehid sevâbı verilir) hadis-i şerifini hep göz önünde tutarak, farzları, vacibleri, sünnetleri, hatta müstehabları uzun uzun yazdı. Dünyanın her tarafındaki insanlara İslamiyet’i doğru olarak tanıttı. Ehl-i sünnet âlimlerince tasvip edilen ve övülen, yüzlerce Arabî ve Fârisî eseri, Hakîkat Kitabevi vasıtasıyla yedi iklim, dört bucağa yaydı. Vehhabi, Hurufi, Kadiyani gibi bozuk fırkaların doğru yoldan ayrıldıkları noktaları, bütün dünyaya vesikalarla tanıttı. Ehl-i sünnet itikadı canlanmaya, kıpırdamaya ve yeşermeye başladı. Bu bakımdan yaptıkları işi, dini tecdid ile isimlendiren zatlar oldu. Tecdid, dini yenileyip kuvvetlendirmek demektir. Başarılarının sebeplerini soranlara, "(Helekel müsevvifun) yani (Sonra yaparım diyenler helak oldu), hadis-i şerifine uyarak bugünün işini yarına bırakmadım ve kendi işimi kendim gördüm, yapamadığım işi bir başkasına havale ettiğim zaman neticesini takip ettim" cevabını verirdi. (Bu zamanda İslamiyet'e hizmeti başarıyla yapabilmek için muhatabın anlayacağı gibi konuşmalı ve herkese tatlı dilli güler yüzlü olmalıdır) buyururdu. Gerçek bir tevazuya sahipti. Kendisini asla başkalarından üstün görmezdi. Kendisinden büyüklerin yanında konuşmaz, kimseyle münakaşa etmez, edebi gözetir, ekseriya iki dizi üzerine otururdu. Bursa’da, eski müderrislerden Ali Haydar Efendiyi ziyaretinde, saatlerce iki dizi üzerinde oturunca, Ali Haydar Efendi talebelerine, (Hilmi Beyden edeb öğrenin, edeb!) demişti. Hüseyin Hilmi Işık Efendi, ailesinden Osmanlı terbiyesi, Abdülhakim Arvasi hazretlerinden de tasavvuf edebi almıştı... "En büyük keramet istikamet üzere olmaktır" buyururdu. Namazı ve diğer ibadetleri birinci vazife olarak görür, altını çize çize "Namaza mani olan işte hayır yoktur", derdi. Hüseyin Hilmi Işık "rahmetullahi aleyh" dine zararı olmayan şeylere üzülmezdi. Çocukların yaramazlıklarını tabii görürdü. Ama onlara dinlerini öğretmekte gevşek davranılmasını hoş görmezdi. Şahsî malı, serveti yoktu. Çok çalışkandı. Nesi varsa, kitaplara ve kitapların dünyaya yayılmasına harcadı. Hakikî bir tevazuya sahip idi. Kendisini asla başkalarından üstün görmez, sevenlerine "Benim günahım hepinizden çoktur, çünkü ben hepinizden daha yaşlıyım" derdi. Evine gelen misafirlere lâyıkıyla hizmet ederdi. Evinin alış verişini bizzat yapar, odununu ve kömürünü kendi alır, fatura ve vergilerini kendisi yatırırdı. Hüseyin Hilmi Işık, çok nazik ve kibardı. Mamak Maske fabrikasında vazife yaparken, orada Cemal adında bir genç çalışıyordu. Babası Diyanette heyet-i müşavere azası Konyalı Eyüb Necati Perhiz idi. Genç evde de efendimli konuşmaya ve ibadetlerini yapmaya başlayınca babası bu değişikliğin sebebini sordu. Bizim bir kumandanımız var, çok kibar birisidir. Efendimsiz konuşmaya alışırım da onun yanında da öyle konuşurum diye korkuyorum dedi. Babası şaşırdı. Oğlu ile, Hüseyin Hilmi Efendiye, kendisini ziyaret edip teşekkür etmek üzere haber gönderdi. Hilmi Efendi "babanız yaşlıdır. Buraya gelmesi de uygun olmaz, biz ona gidelim" dedi; ve ziyaret etti. Seâdet-i Ebediyye kitabını ilk çıkardığı sıralar, subaylara, senede bir kaç defa çift maaş verirlerdi. Çift maaşın tekini biriktirip, bu kitabı çıkarmak için harcardı. Hüseyin Hilmi Işık'ın "rahmetullahi aleyh", sabır ve tahammülleri çok idi. İnsanlardan, bir eziyet, sıkıntı gelse katlanır, mukabele etmezdi. Yerine göre pamuktan yumuşak, ama küfre, bid'atlere ve günâha karşı da çelik gibi sert idi. Dinimizin öngördüğü derecede cesûr idi. Kitaplarında doğruyu yazmaktan kaçınmaz, "Korkulacak yalnız Allahü teâlâdır" der, ama fitne çıkmamasına da çok dikkat ederdi. Devletin kanunlarına uymada çok titiz davranırdı. Müslüman dine uyar, günah işlemez; kanunlara uyar, suç işlemez derdi. Sık sık "Vatan sevgisi imandandır" hadis-i şerîfini okurdu. Hüseyin Hilmi Işık "rahmetullahi aleyh", maddî ve mânevî, dünyevî ve uhrevî ve bilhassa fen, tıb ve eczacılık ilimlerinde zamanın ileri gelenlerinden olduğu için, gerçek bir âlim idi. Her sözü ilme, fenne ve tecrübeye dayanan ve bu bilgilerini ve tecrübelerini dinin temel ve asıl miyarları ile karşılaştırıp, tartarak, söylediğinden, hikmet konuşan, yâni her sözünde dünyevi veya uhrevî faydalar bulunan, belki eşi bir daha çok zor bulunabilecek olan bir zât idi. IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE Hüseyn Hilmi Işık, 'Rahmat-allahi alaih’, publisher of the Waqf Ikhlas Publications, was born in Eyyub Sultan, Istanbul in 1329 (A.D. 1911). Of the one hundred and forty-four books he published, sixty are Arabic, twenty-five Persian, fourteen Turkish, and the remaining translated books consist of French, German, English, Russian and other languages. Hüseyn Hilmi Işık, 'Rahmat-allahi alaih' (guided by Sayyid Abdulhakim Arvasi, ‘Rahmat-allahi alaih’, a profound scholar of the religion and was perfect in virtues of tasawwuf and capable to direct disciples in a fully mature manner; possessor of glories and wisdom), was a competent, great Islamic scholar able to pave the way for attaining happiness, passed away during the night between October 25, 2001 (8 Shaban 1422) and October 26, 2001 (9 Shaban 1422). He was buried at Eyyub Sultan, where he was born.
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C. K. Mullinax is an accomplished creative writer and published author.  She has entertained a wide audience with her writing talents that include novels, theatrical productions, poetry and articles. She lives with her husband of ten years in the mountains of Western North Carolina.  After graduating with honors from college, she spent a summer writing the first Ember book in the thrilling epic fantasy fiction adventure series. “Thank you for bravely venturing with me...” -C.K. Mullinax
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