Hello, once again!

Just had a few things to share this week, in terms of news and the next Discarded tidbit. First, the good (or at least decent) news: After a brief Outside World-required hiatus, the Facebook promo event for this project is once again live, open to anybody interested in a new sci-fi work. I'll be spreading the link to this as far and wide as possible on FB and Twitter; if you haven't already joined or contributed, please pass it on!

Next, the (slightly) bad news: For some strange reason, Amazon doesn't allow more than one promotion campaign, free or otherwise, in the same "enrolling cycle" on its Kindle Publishing arm; therefore, I won't be able to start the FREE giveaway of my three ebook works (Dillinger in Charleston, For State and Country, and Obsidian & Steel) until after August 11th. As before, each of these is still available here at various pledge levels, so if you know of anyone who needs a new fiction fix, consider contributing for them if nothing else, or sharing the project link!

Here's the latest tidbit as well: a little more background on the Seattle Bomb of July 2046. I may or may not have another bit next week; the well of non-spoiler material is beginning to look a little dry, and the Outside World is encroaching again in the form of work and early prep for my second PhD year. I'll dig deep as I can nonetheless, and if the well is in fact dried up, I'll find something else to fill the void. For now, enjoy, analyze and share, like always!

The Seattle Bomb: Nuclear explosion which took place in the Puget Sound region, on July 29th, 2046. Precise yield still unknown five years later, but easily far more powerful than Hiroshima, Nagasaki, or the 2033 Quetta suitcase nuke, and far more radioactive than the 2035 Hong Kong dirty bomb. Origins likewise unknown; theories range from Islamic militants to a rogue Chinese or Russian military unit to homegrown separatist or extremist groups of varying stripes. Delivery method also still unclear, yet suspected to be a surface detonation, somewhere in the harbor areas or perhaps even offshore; no missile was detected, and satellite examination of the region and radioactivity levels supports this. Downtown Seattle and other coastal communities severely to moderately damaged by both initial blast effects and subsequent waterborne shockwave; precise casualties from these and the extensive radioactive contamination that followed are still undetermined, but estimated to be above 2 million in the Puget Sound region alone. All entry to and travel through this region suspended in the immediate wake of the detonation, and martial law declared; the "Seattle Contaminated Zone" was established shortly after, with all communities in the path of the blast or fallout drift encouraged or forced to leave. By 2051, the SCZ has come to encompass virtually all of WA State west of the Cascade Mts.; a strong military presence is maintained along this range and in Portland and other Columbia River sites to monitor radioactivity, prevent smuggling and looting, and assist in sporadic, piecemeal attempts at resettlement in the cleaner fringe areas. Puget Sound region in general and Seattle in particular are not heavily monitored, given (presumably) lethal persistent radiation; satellite coverage and infrequent drone or jet flyovers have noted no signs of extended human presence in these areas in the five years post-nuke.