Posted on December 22, 2018
Life Bytes: Growing Up Geek, Part One – The New Frontier
Hey there, internet! I’m very happy to announce that the first book in my new, three-part series detailing a personal history of (mostly PC) gaming from the mid-’70s to the present will be available to purchase via Amazon on January 15, 2019 is available right now, with very special thanks to Richard “Lord British” Garriott, founder of Origin Systems and creator of the Ultima series for providing the Foreword.
The series will comprise three oversized, coffee table type books with full-color images throughout. At this point, no eBook versions are planned, but that could change over time if there’s sufficient interest. I think it works best as a physical book you can hold in your hand and leave out for guests to thumb through, but if you’d rather have an eBook, let me know. I’m not here to tell you how to live your life.*
*Okay, you win. A DRM-free eBook version was released with the physical book. YOU ARE WELCOME. (Of course, if you buy the print copy, you get the eBook for free…)
This first book starts shortly after I came into the world and picked up the controller of a Fairchild Channel F while I was still potty-training in the 1970s, and covers my own, personal history of gaming through the year I graduated high school in 1993. It deals a bit with early consoles like the Channel F and moves into computer gaming pretty quickly, beginning with the Apple ][ (or, in my case, one of its many clones) before moving on to IBM-compatible PCs.
The biggest names in PC gaming at the time are all represented, from Origin Systems and Lucasfilm Games, to Sierra On-Line and some other, smaller studios. Also included are several interludes for specific remembrances including a hilarious, narrated play-through of a beloved classic game I never could quite get the hang of, along with a comprehensive bonus feature covering my personal list of the 70 best PC games from 1982-1993.
Whether you’re longing for a nostalgic trip down memory lane or just missed out on the early days of gaming and are wondering what all the fuss was about, the Life Bytes: Growing Up Geek series will give you plenty of warm fuzzies along with an occasional laugh or two because I never could take anything too seriously.
The other two books in the series are coming soon, with a staggered release throughout the year.
Follow my Amazon author page for updates and to pick up some of my other books while you’re there. You know, if you feel like it or whatever.
Want some books? 'Course ya do!
NOTE: I know times are hard and yeah, I need to make a living too, but if you want to read any of my books but can't afford to buy them right now, hit me up.
I'll take care of it.
Humor | Nonfiction
Available now from the following retailers
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Have you ever lived through an experience that was so humiliating that you wanted to die, but when you tell it to all your friends, they can't stop laughing?
Have you ever made a decision that seemed like a good idea at the time, but you're still living with the hilarious consequences years later?
If so, then grab a snack, get comfortable, and prepare to have all of your own poor life choices seem just a little bit more bearable.
You're welcome.
Short Stories
Available now from the following retailers
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The nine stories of rage and sadness collected here range from the most intimate of human experiences to the wildest realms of magic and fantasy. The first story is a violent gut-punch to the soul, and the rest of them just hit harder from there.
Those who tough it out will find a book filled with as much hope as despair, a constant contradiction pulling you from one extreme to another.
Life might knock us down, over and over, and will the beat the ever-loving snot out of us from the time we're old enough to give it attitude until the day we finally let it win and stop getting up.
Always get back up.
Gaming | Nonfiction
Available now from the following retailers
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This isn't just a book. It's a portal to other worlds where there be magic and dragons and hilarious pirates. Okay, not really. But this book is about those portals, except they're called video games.
The Life Bytes series of books take a deep dive into one man's personal journey through childhood into kinda/sorta being a responsible, competent adult as told through the magical lens of whatever video games he was playing at the time.
Part One starts way back in 1975 and meanders down various digital pathways until, oh, around about 1993 or so.
If you're feeling nostalgic for the early days of gaming or if you just want to understand why the gamer in your life loves this hobby so much, take a seat in your favorite comfy chair and crack this bad boy open.
I'll try to not be boring.
Horror
Available now from the following retailers
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What you are about to read is not a story. There is no beginning, middle, or end.
What follows is nothing more than a series of journal entries involving shadow people, sleep paralysis, and crippling fear. It’s not pretty, it doesn’t follow story logic, and nothing works out well in the end.
You've been warned.
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