Ask the Author: D.J. Butler
“I'm not super active on this site, but I'm thrilled to answer questions if you have them. You can also reach me by my website, davidjohnbutler.com.”
D.J. Butler
Answered Questions (5)
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D.J. Butler
Aw... thank YOU, very much.
Yes, we will! There are several Hiram Woolley short stories in print now (in the anthologies PARALLEL WORLDS: THE HEROES WITHIN, and STRAIGHT OUTTA DEADWOOD and THE CHRONICLES OF DAVIDS).
You can also HEAR me read the Hiram Woolley short story "The Seven Nipples of Molly Kitchen" on this episode of Baen's podcast:
https://www.baen.com/podcastfiles/mp3...
And the sequel, THE JUPITER KNIFE, is already turned in to the editors. My guess is that it will come out in the first half of 2020.
Yes, we will! There are several Hiram Woolley short stories in print now (in the anthologies PARALLEL WORLDS: THE HEROES WITHIN, and STRAIGHT OUTTA DEADWOOD and THE CHRONICLES OF DAVIDS).
You can also HEAR me read the Hiram Woolley short story "The Seven Nipples of Molly Kitchen" on this episode of Baen's podcast:
https://www.baen.com/podcastfiles/mp3...
And the sequel, THE JUPITER KNIFE, is already turned in to the editors. My guess is that it will come out in the first half of 2020.
D.J. Butler
You're talking about Rock Band Fights Evil, right? There is a collection of #4-6, called The Road to Hell.
D.J. Butler
Yes! And it has a release date, which is next fall, and Dan Dos Santos has been contracted (I understand) to do the cover again. The working title is SERPENT DAUGHTER, and it's the thing I currently need to finish writing.
(I got a bit sidetracked by other Baen projects; this weekend, I turned in THE JUPITER KNIFE, which is the sequel to THE CUNNING MAN, by me and Aaron Michael Ritchey. And I need a couple of weeks to revise IN THE PALACE OF SHADOW AND JOY, which should come out next summer.)
(I got a bit sidetracked by other Baen projects; this weekend, I turned in THE JUPITER KNIFE, which is the sequel to THE CUNNING MAN, by me and Aaron Michael Ritchey. And I need a couple of weeks to revise IN THE PALACE OF SHADOW AND JOY, which should come out next summer.)
D.J. Butler
Hey, wow, sorry this is so late. I haven't been active in Goodreads for some time, I see.
Yep, all the Witchy War books come out in ebook format at the same time. Audiobooks... well, there's a deal in place, so there's an audiobook company that's supposed to be producing them imminently, but since they haven't reached out to me to ask about, for instance, pronunciation... I ain't holding my breath.
Yep, all the Witchy War books come out in ebook format at the same time. Audiobooks... well, there's a deal in place, so there's an audiobook company that's supposed to be producing them imminently, but since they haven't reached out to me to ask about, for instance, pronunciation... I ain't holding my breath.
D.J. Butler
Ooh, busted on the science! I'm not sure I have a good answer. How about this:
The beetles use an acid that reduces matter to a liquid. The characters who witness the beetles in action are distracted by other factors or fail to notice the puddles left behind because of the settings (restroom, deck of the Liahona, etc.)
I'll admit, I'm making that answer up right now. If you have another suggestion, I'd love to hear it. A vapor? a fine dust, that is packed into the canister, and emptied eventually (only we never see it in the book because the canister doesn't get used enough?).
Thanks very much for the compliment, and also for the question!
The beetles use an acid that reduces matter to a liquid. The characters who witness the beetles in action are distracted by other factors or fail to notice the puddles left behind because of the settings (restroom, deck of the Liahona, etc.)
I'll admit, I'm making that answer up right now. If you have another suggestion, I'd love to hear it. A vapor? a fine dust, that is packed into the canister, and emptied eventually (only we never see it in the book because the canister doesn't get used enough?).
Thanks very much for the compliment, and also for the question!
Charl
Unfortunately, I'm stumped, too. Usually I try to offer a suggestion when I ask an author about a science bit that's bothering me, but this one stumpe
Unfortunately, I'm stumped, too. Usually I try to offer a suggestion when I ask an author about a science bit that's bothering me, but this one stumped me. A human is typically over 100 pounds of flesh -- where would it go? In the Brandon Fraser mummy movies, the beetles are in such massive numbers, each one could consume a small amount, and they'd still be able to pick the bones clean (ala piranha). I don't think the acid idea would work; where would they carry that much acid, and how does it get refilled.
If they completely desiccated the flesh, turning it into the powder suggestion, well, then you'd have a huge cloud of steam, no?
You gave no indication of a magical or otherworldly content, so I assume you're trying to keep the steampunk within the constraints of real world physics as much as you can. Otherwise we could just say they somehow move the consumed flesh out of this world.
I'm sorry, I just don't have a good suggestion. But you should take it as a compliment, because if I hadn't otherwise enjoyed the book so much, I wouldn't care.
Maybe -- and as a wannabe writer myself I understand this may not be desireable -- they need to be changed to where they don't consume the body, instead leaving a heavily chewed up corpse. Or you may just have to say you don't know, the builder didn't explain it to you?
Regardless, it was still a fun read! ...more
May 21, 2017 05:51AM · flag
If they completely desiccated the flesh, turning it into the powder suggestion, well, then you'd have a huge cloud of steam, no?
You gave no indication of a magical or otherworldly content, so I assume you're trying to keep the steampunk within the constraints of real world physics as much as you can. Otherwise we could just say they somehow move the consumed flesh out of this world.
I'm sorry, I just don't have a good suggestion. But you should take it as a compliment, because if I hadn't otherwise enjoyed the book so much, I wouldn't care.
Maybe -- and as a wannabe writer myself I understand this may not be desireable -- they need to be changed to where they don't consume the body, instead leaving a heavily chewed up corpse. Or you may just have to say you don't know, the builder didn't explain it to you?
Regardless, it was still a fun read! ...more
May 21, 2017 05:51AM · flag
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