28
Aug
You hate them with a passion. They ruin your oh so wonderful fan experience at your favorite sporting event. And sometimes, those dreaded delays threaten all that is good and entertaining in your listening experience of a podcast. You want episodes out on time, (or at least in a timely manner), but it happens all the same. Astral Audio Productions is having to halt production of the current episode of Astral Audio Experience with what-will-be Hurricane Gustov knocking at the door. As a precaution, I am possibly relocating to Mississippi to wait until the storm moves a safe distance from my current home base. But if you want to hear me blabber away and get grilled, check out the Shameless Plugcast this sunday. I had fun being interviewed by Zack Daggy, and you might learn something new about the Astral Audio Experience that you didn’t know beforehand. Auditions are still being taken until September 5th. With luck, I should be back on track and get to working on the episode which should be released the weekend of September 14th. Thanks for your patience and tell others about the Astral Audio Experience. And for those of you who might be in this storm’s path, be prepared and stay safe.
17
Aug
This is the first of many updates you will recieve in our effort to keep you up to date with the latest goings on in Astral Audio Productions. We are shooting for 3-5 a week, and Astral Audio Extra episodes will be released on weekends as a sort of round up. Then once or twice a month (depending on how fast they can be produced), Astral Audio Experience episodes will be submitted for your listening pleasure. Read more
Sleep takes no prisoners; this fan and fellow writer ended up asaulted by the sandman. No Singapore canes were involved I promise. (Kudos to those who get that reference.) The Case of the Pitcher’s Pendant: A Billibub Baddings Mystery is ranked number 66 overall. Number 2 in Science Fiction and Fantasy> Fantasy. Digital magic is ranked at number 76 overall. #1 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy >
Fantasy > Magic & Wizards and #1 in
Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Fantasy > Contemporary. Awesome work people. Keep it up; the day is far from over!
August 9th update. They peaked at 48 and 58 respectively and are now still in the good standing as far as the genre rankings go. We are definitely calling yesterday’s run a success; we want people to keep buying books. The longer they get exposure; the better things will look in the publisher’s eyes. Great work so far Pip and Tee; you have done it!
YouTube – WitWi Carmen Sandiego: The Costume Caper Part One. What does this have to do with today? Well, “Double Trouble” of course. Astral Audio Productions will give you hourly updates on the Amazon run of podcasting’s Dynamic Duo in audio format. At 8:00 AM Pacific Time, we will begin the day with the launch and give you the links to purchase the books. (The post might show up early so you can buy on the dot.) This is so we can push them up the charts and help them get noticed. So let’s help Double Trouble! (Maybe we should give them the theme like on the tv show eh?)
A little over two weeks ago, a 47-year-old man died of pancreatic cancer. No doubt, he wouldn’t want to be remembered for being another statistic. The fame that enveloped him for months before his death seemed to invigorate him, but who was this man who inspired millions? Randy Pausch was a geek, a family man, a motivated son, and former professor of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University. He gave a now infamous lecture on how to achieve your childhood dreams. It was this lecture that I showed to the cast of Astral Audio Productions, and it is fitting that we start our motivational series with a man who made his dreams come true. Carnegie Mellon University has a nice press release that is a fitting tribute to Randy; it can be found here. Below is the full 76 minute lecture he gave to a packed audience last September. It is a must watch. Take notes; I sure did when I first experienced it. His story can be our story. His legacy can be taken up by those who are impacted by the principles he presents. If you want to donate for cancer research, there are two ways you can do so. (This is also mentioned in the press release, but I feel it is worth repeating here.) The family requests that donations on his behalf be directed to the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, 2141 Rosecrans Ave., Suite 7000, El Segundo, CA 90245, or to Carnegie Mellon’s Randy Pausch Memorial Fund ( www.cmu.edu/giving/pausch ), which primarily supports the university’s continued work on the Alice project.
What are your dreams from childhood that you remember fondly? Have you achieved any of them? Has this lecture inspired you to do so? What lessons have you learned from Randy’s story? Are you going to tell others about the infamous “Last Lecture”? Speak up in the comments! And share this with anyone you think might enjoy watching and learning about Randy Pausch.
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This episode, we feature four tracks by G Tom Mac from his most recent album. He is the guy who wrote and performed “Cry Little Sister” from the 1987 vampire flick, Lost Boys. He has given Astral Audio Productions permission to use the lyrics of that song as a plot device in Astral Audio Experience. What do we have planned? I won’t say. He might even help with the writing process so we do his song justice. You’ll just have to stay tuned to find out what we have in store eh? Click the cover to visit his official website, and send him a note telling him that you came after hearing about him through us.
- Album Cover
Script 6 of Astral Audio Experience: Episode 6 has been given to the cast. And as of this writing, we have several lines submitted. Auditions for several roles are up for grabs; most of them are recurring. You have three weeks to get them in. Send them to auditions(at)astralaudio.net. Here are the roles.
Assassin: (male; adult.)
Lines
(stammering)
I-I know.
(hurriedly)
Oh, it’s good. It’s good. I neutralized the target.
I’m exhausted. The show lasted longer than I thought it would. He kept talking and thanking people and ..
(voice fading in)… a perfect shot; he went down, and I left through the studio window. That’s all she wrote.
Yes. The man who calls himself the “Astral Guardian” is dead.
The body? I didn’t retrieve it. I’m an assassin; not a morgue-dwelling coroner.
(nervously)Well, I was given the location and layout of the radio station, plus Magnus Porter’s work schedule. Hitting him at his home would have been easier and safer, but your people didn’t have anything on that, or any routes he took to work. So the only place to take him was at the radio station–and not just at the station, mind you, but in the studio itself.
Oh yeah. Getting in there was tricky, but I managed it. Found a hiding place in the studio where no one could see me, not even the guy behind the mike. Waited for the early afternoon show, when the target would be there, he calls himself the “Astral Guardian”–
(snickers)The best time to strike was at the end of the show. You know, all went well, now everyone can rest easy while they switch to the network news. So he finishes–finally–and just when he’s about to sign off–boom! One shot takes him in the back; one shot takes out the window behind me, and I’m out on a zip-line and away.
Of course. That’s why you hired me. Besides, when doing this kind of work, you have to get to your target unseen, strike, then get out fast.
What is–
(in agony)My arm!! You’ve–
The assassin screams, and we hear a savage tearing sound.(struggling through the pain)What is this?
(terrified)I shot him! I saw him hit the floor! Don’t … don’t kill–
(drawn out in pain)But Maaaster! Oh God! Oh God! God, please, no!
Servant 1: (male.)
Lines
You…are late.
The Master doesn’t like to be kept waiting. –And you should know better than to bring weapons in past that door. Hand them over.
(clears throat)
(sarcastic)
Thank you. Come.
I presume you have a good report.
(thinking)
The expression on your face tells me otherwise. You are frightened; frightened of what the Master will do if you have failed.
(incredulous)
Oh really. Well, if you succeeded, then why the pale look on your face?
(sighs)
If you say so. Still, the master will not take your story at face value; I can guarantee that. He’s hell-bent on this Astral Guardian business.
(pauses)
But if you have done your job, then you have no worries.
He has arrived, Master.
But Master…
(cackles)
Yes, yes.
Master?
Servant 2: (male or female.)
Lines
Master?
soldier 1: (male or female.)
Lines
(some distance away)
Launcher ready!
Target hit confirmed!
Aye, sir.
Soldier 2: (male or female.)
Lines
(even further away)
Roger! Launcher ready!
Target hit!
Looks like it was dead center as we drew it up, Sir!
Aye, sir.
With the major stuff out of the way, there is more news. This Friday, August 8, 2008, marks the release of two books. Tee Morris, and Philippa Ballantine want you to buy them starting at 8:00 AM Pacific time on Amazon. As a bonus, you can download the free pdf versions in this post.
http://www.chasingthebard.com/dm/digital_magic_freepdf.pdf
http://teemorris.com/BB-PitchersPendant.pdf
Further details will be announced on Friday; including links to the Amazon.com links for each book.
Music in this podcast was provided by Ariel Publicity. Leave feedback at 206-338-2138.