For my loyal readers: A sample from the SEQUEL.Until then... I've also been working on the sequel, and for those of you who enjoy Derek, Isaac, and their way of interacting... here's a snippet of a conversation from them. I think I'm going to go back and edit 70x7 soon to splice in more humor, because my 2nd books in series always seem to have a little more of it, but at least from first person it's more understandable, because Derek is slowly loosening up in his job, more prone to humor as he does so.
Anyhow, from Derek's POV. Also included is Dylan, brother of Jordan (who is "gifted" like Sam is, much to Derek's chagrin) and new reaper that Derek himself had to reap-- complications from Sam meant Dylan is one to know his past... Enjoy!
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“What the hell happened?” Isaac asked, surveying us both, his gaze falling on Dylan as he was the only one of us visibly injured.
“Got in a fight,” Dylan answered shortly, flinching at trying to shift his weight even a little.
Isaac sighed, moving to support Dylan from the other side, laying Dylan’s broken arm gently over his shoulders. “You know, Derek, just because you hate Jordan doesn’t give you the right to take it out on Dylan,” Isaac said, his tone giving a slight hint of sarcasm that I didn’t really detect due to… well, the fact he was Isaac.
“I’ll have you know I never intended to follow through on that threat,” I muttered, almost instantly feeling Isaac and Dylan’s eyes fixing on me. “And… you two didn’t know I said anything like that to Jordan… I have got to remember these things.”
“You threatened to harm a fellow reaper?” Isaac asked coldly.
I rolled my eyes. “Jordan was being a stubborn ass, and since I can’t hurt him, I may have insinuated something about hurting his brother… it worked well enough I haven’t needed to actually follow through with it.”
“That’s not the point, Derek,” Isaac said shortly.
“Not the point?” Dylan questioned, looking at Isaac in confusion. “Call me biased, but I’m thinking a coworker threatening to beat me up for no real reason is kind of a problem… especially if he gets around to carrying it out.”
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I enjoy Dylan. I'm considering expanding the series plans to 8 books because I want to write from Dylan's POV... he goes from having a brother who he must blindly trust can see the dead to... well, being dead and confirming it for sure. His story is about as interesting as Derek's.
-ALMerz.
Promiscuous
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don't click this link, it's a trick--->[link]
member of =Apophysis
If by religious, you mean I got to a place of worship and have a clear set-in-stone belief structure, then no.
If by religious, you mean that I believe there's more in existence besides us, then yes-- I think its a little arrogant to assume that humans are the height of it all. Also, strangely, the more I study science, the more I believe there has to be some sort of planning force behind everything because nature tends towards chaos and disorder-- just the general pattern of energy flow makes it so energy goes from usable sunlight to pretty much useless heat energy. Furthermore, anyone who studies human genetics and function can tell you that there is sooo much that can go wrong- one switched base pair or missing protein, and the person ceases to function... I believe there has to be some planning behind it. Such coordination and complexity, even if product of evolution, doesn't just happen spontaneously. That's my opinion.
However, as far as what I believe in... that's quite another story.
For background, I was raised a devout Catholic. I was even so up on my Catholic studies that I was picked to serve a mass when our Archbishop-who is now a Cardinal- came to visit my parish. I know the faith as much as a layperson can. I went to Catholic school for 13 years... however, I'm no longer a practicing Catholic, and don't consider myself one anymore. I mostly left the faith because I feel like it focuses more on business and doctrine than faith and the spiritual well-being of its members. I am also not a fan of its heirarchy and the fact that, as a female, I'm a second-class member of it. I believe devoutness in faith is irregardless of gender.
Currently, I label myself as an "Everythingist". I believe that every religion has its credibility, and its not what you believe, just that you believe in something-- without faith, the world is rather grim. I personally pick and choose aspects from religions I like. I appreciate the freedom yet essential clearness of the Wiccan Rede-- "And it harm none, do what you will"-- Basically, you aren't condemned for drinking, smoking, or what not, so long as it doesn't harm anyone or anything in the process. I also think Jesus, as he comes across in the Bible is a cool guy, but I don't believe he'd want us wasting our time worshiping him and fighting over him, but following his example. I like some other religions that have multiple deities, and I'm really fascinating by the ancients' deities who were essentially relatable as humans. As Seventy Times Seven exhibits... I believe in a sort of afterlife, but what that afterlife holds I don't think I can ever know, but the book is my hypothesis on one option.
Overall, I have faith, but I wouldn't consider myself religious, as religious implies adherence to one specific religion. I just believe if you live a good life, you've got good things in store for you. I try to live by that.
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Don't fear the reaper... he's actually a pretty cool guy.
I am faithfully adhered to the pillar of scientific knowledge as well, and I do think there is another force out there somewhere. Perhaps it is not a sentient force or it is an unbiased force that creates just as much as it destroys, but I too cannot see a way for creatures in our world, including humans, to just pop up. The only difference between us on this point, I think, is that I would reply directly that I am an atheist, lending no credibility to other religions, but still holding a strong faith in a power beyond our current knowledge. The thing is, I believe the power can eventually be analyzed.
PS, "irregardless" is not a proper word. [link]
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don't click this link, it's a trick--->[link]
member of =Apophysis
See, even from the scientific perspective, even if you think that the big bang created everything in the universe... That bang needed some sort of ignition, or there had to be something preexisting for the theory of the big bang to work-- If that's your deity, then so be it.
I did manage to get a few grains of valuable insight from my religious education. A viewpoint from St.Thomas's Proofs for the existence of god (which, though written by a Catholic, might interest you since they were written to have a scientific slant insofar as their structure), one of his "Proofs" argued that even if you believed in evolution or that everything came from something else, every effect has to have a cause, and eventually you would reach the end of the cause-and-effect chain... and that's where Thomas argues God exists... Giving the god of that proof the nickname "The Original Cause", which I think is about as close to my argument for the existence of a supernatural deity as anything I'll come across.
I think you sound more to me like an agnostic (which I get classified as sometimes as well). Most Atheists, at least that I know of, don't give any thought to anything beyond what is known, don't have any faith in any sort of power, whereas agnostics believe there is a power, but that we either can never truly know what it is, or we simply don't know what it currently is, but they won't rule out the concept of a higher power. However, both do share the bit that their members don't agree with any current religion, so I suppose I could fit in as an Agnostic.
But yes, I think we do share a good deal of viewpoints. Seventy Times Seven resulted, honestly, from one of my trains of thought about the "What comes next" question, and the story evolved from one of my notions. Even if it is completely wrong, it will hopefully make for a compelling enough story that it could seem like a legitimate possibility. However, in that book, outside of Angels, the title coming from a bible verse, and mentions of the varied religions of the soon-to-be-deceased (which I do more for a show of the fact that death is universal and comes for everyone than to connect religion into the story) there is no explicit religious references. You never meet a specific god, you don't see the afterlife, you never get to find out what the precise end is (is it the heaven-hell-purgatory sort of notion that many have? Or something else?) and the only afterlife place you see is the place that the main character(s) work at, the sort of temporary afterlife where they do a term of service as needed Reapers. I'm striving to make the story not religiously biased at all, which is turning out to be easier than I'd expected since, in spite of being raised strictly Catholic, I am not connected to any one religion so it would make sense something I write wouldn't have any strong affiliation to a specific religion.
And thank you... I know I use words that aren't proper on a regular basis... Its a flaw that I think may not be corrected anytime soon as I almost always write in first person, so the characters think in non-proper wording just as much as I do. Its a product of reading and editing so many friends' works that I'm not really sure what is proper and what isn't anymore.
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Don't fear the reaper... he's actually a pretty cool guy.
I would still call myself an atheist because it's not necessarily faith. Scientists believe there are aliens out there, and I believe there are conquerable forces out there. I don't think of it as a god, but as something we don't quite understand yet, but will eventually overcome and control. Mankind is good at things like that. God is an unachievable symbol of perfection, but what I believe is a force that can provide many powers akin to that of a god's. Maybe my thinking is too convoluted to explain properly.
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don't click this link, it's a trick--->[link]
member of =Apophysis
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I'm a Deathly Hallow in the Caribbean Fire Nation of Ouran's Soul Society.
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Don't fear the reaper... he's actually a pretty cool guy.
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