Welcome to my worlds!

I'm James Maxey, author of fantasy and science fiction. My novels include the science fantasy Bitterwood Saga (4 books) the Dragon Apocalypse Saga (4 books), numerous superhero novels including Nobody Gets the Girl and the Lawless series, the steampunk Oz sequel Bad Wizard, and my short story collections, There is No Wheel and Jagged Gate. This website is focused exclusively on writing. At my second blog, Jawbone of an Ass, I ramble through any random topic that springs to mind, occasionally touching on religion and politics and other subjects polite people are sensible enough not to discuss in public. If you'd like to get monthly updates on new releases, as well as preview chapters and free short stories, join my newsletter!




Thursday, April 8, 2010

Blood and Devotion giveaway!


Blood and Devotion is the latest anthology from Fantasist Enterprises, edited by William Horner and Illustrated by Nicole Cardiff. The theme of the anthology is summed up on the FE website: "Brave warriors and devotees to the gods follow the paths their faiths have put before them, and when religious fervor meets skill of arms and magic, kings will fall, armies will collide, and men and women will perish for their beliefs."

The stories within are:
Foreword by David B. Coe
“The Daughters of Desire” by Jay Lake
“Hammer Song” by K. L. Van der Veer
“The Treachery of Stone” by William Jones
“In the Light of Dying Fires” by Gerard Houarner
“The Perils of Twilight” by Peter Andrew Smith
“The Gifts of Avalae” by Ian McHugh
“Eye of the Destroyer” by Aliette de Bodard
“Greatshadow” by James Maxey
“Magic’s Choice” by R. W. Day

The title "Greatshadow" may be familiar to readers of this blog as the name of my current novel project. The short story in this anthology is the inspiration for the novel, containing the same basic plot: The church has launched an expedition of its finest warriors to wipe out Greatshadow, the world's most feared dragon. A band of local mercenaries has been hired to help guide the heroes to the dragon's lair, but the mercenaries plot to kill the heroes once the dragon is slain and keep the treasure for themselves.

I recently acquired some extra copies of the anthology to reward wise-readers of the Greatshadow novel, and still have a couple left over. So, let there be a drawing! I've got two copies to give away. But, you've got to do a little work if you want a copy: I'd like to see jokes about dragons. How many dragons does it take to screw in a light bulb? Why did the dragon cross the road? A wizard, a knight and a dragon walk into a bar.... you get the idea. Either post your jokes in the comment thread or email them to me at nobodynovelwriter@yahoo.com. I'll draw two winners from the entries on April 16. Good luck!

9 comments:

Larry Hodges said...

A dragon hired a light bulb to light up his office. When the light bulb went out, the dragon tried to change it. "Why are people always trying to change me?" lamented the light bulb. "If you don't like me, just fire me!" "Okay," said the dragon, taking a deep breath. "No!" cried the light bulb, "I'll change!" With a terrible grimace, the light bulb lit up. The answer to the question "How many dragons does it take to change a light bulb?" is one.

James Maxey said...

Thanks, Larry!

Darkond said...

I'm Chandon Harris. I posted that funny Dragon thing on your facebook page. Just postin the fact here..

James Maxey said...

Thanks, Chandon. Do you mind if I post the joke here as well?

Darkond said...

go right on ahead!

James Maxey said...

The humorous poem by Drakonis:

Dragons, like wagons,
Have tongues.
Dragons, like flagons,... See More
Have necks.
But while two hold beer,
The other eats deer!

Larry Hodges said...

A dragon, a wizard, a knight,
Walked into a bar late one night,
They wanted a meal,
But found nothing to steal,
So the dragon ate both with one bite.

James Maxey said...

That's great! I was actually trying to think of a dragon lymerick when I announced the contest and was coming up blank. Well done!

Larry Hodges said...

Who settled the American west?
Some claim it was humans; they jest.
It was settled by dragons,
On Conestoga wagons,
With smoked humans in each wagon's food chest.

These are too much fun . . . even if the rhyme scheme isn't perfect.