Earworm Interruptus

While 2014 will go down in history for what all transpired, it brought out probably some of the most annoying, earworm songs ever. To me, four pop songs stand out more than others. So, the following is my list of the four most annoying songs of 2014 and perhaps among the top ten of all times. Of course, I have no young daughters, so perhaps my list would be slightly different if that was the case. These songs were fun the first few times I heard them, but now they refuse to leave my head due to the overplaying of such tunes. Sorry, I wasn't a hater at first, but now I am. And a hater's gonna...well, you know.

1. Happy -- Pharrell Williams
2. All about That Bass -- Meghan Trainor
3. Shake It Off -- Taylor Swift
4. Let It Go --  You know, the one from "Frozen"

I had to get that off my chest. Now, if I could only get them out of my head.

New Cover for Book 1

I'm looking to update the cover for book 1. The front may look something like this:

More on Giveaway

Okay, I have no way of setting up an ebook file for downloading, since I'm inept at doing so. However, between now and the end of the year, if you email a request for a free Crazy Adventures ebook, I will send you either a mobi (mainly Kindle) file version or epub (Nook/iPad). Just email me at battlecreekdavid@gmail.com and I will respond to the first hundred replies. I will not spam you, so don't spam me. If you get spam from me, then someone has hacked my account, so Kim Jong Un be nice!

Have a great holiday!

Free ebook of Crazy Adventures

I'm looking at do a Crazy Adventures ebook giveaway through the end of December. Stay tuned for further details.

Full Cover Sample

Remember, this is a prototype. The final cover will most likely be based on this image.

The spine here is an exaggerated width. The book won't be that thick.

Minecraft story, the Final Edition

And now the conclusion to Lost in Minecraft, written by my son, Brayden.

Chapter 7: Boat Ride

“I think we need to get back in real life.” I suggested.

“How? I mean, we’re in a video game. It doesn’t sound bad, but it is,” Jaden said.

“I think we should make a boat to sail back to real life,” I suggested. So, we crafted a boat and let loose out to sea.

We were sailing so long until, “Land Ho!?!?” We screamed in questioning voices. We got on the island, but right then the boat started to float away. Wyatt tried to grip it, but he couldn’t and the boat continued to float along.

“Well, we’re stranded,” said Jaden.

“Of course, of course!” Wyatt said in frustration.

“Guys this isn’t over yet, so let’s get back on the water. Now, who’s with me!?” I said in encouragement. I heard crickets chirp. I decided to make a boat by myself, lug them on it, and float away on the water.

“We’re moving again!” Jaden yelled happily.

“We…we…we are here!” Wyatt stuttered.

“Yup, thanks to me,” I said. We kept on moving and, suddenly, crash-landed and I yelled, “A city!” We got off the boat and ran inside.

Chapter 8: Obsidian City

We saw a girl in the front line that talked to someone and said, “We have some more customers.”

“Wait a sec,” I said. “Where’s Isaac?”

“Well, he’s gone and we’re not gonna get him back,” Jaden said.

“Follow me to the king, please,” this girl told us. We followed her to the “king.” We asked the king for many things like, “Can we wash up?” “Can we get new clothes?” “Can we get food?”

He replied, “The water doesn’t work, and we don’t provide clothing, but you can have plenty of food.”

We went to this all you can eat buffet and we chowed down on everything, even if we didn’t like it. When we were all full, we asked the king one more question. “How can we get out of Minecraft?”

“You could get out of it from the mountain of Dome-Do,” he said as he showed it to us out of the window. We walked down to get out of the building and went on our mission for the iron key.

Chapter 9: The Iron Key

We were coming to find the key when we saw… “Isaac!” We all screamed.

“Hey guys!” Isaac told us. We all explained to him what was going on. Then, we all walked off to the mountain. We asked for some explosives and mining tools at a store, and they gave us some—for free! We got some TNT set up and Isaac was mining, too, but we couldn’t find anything. I set off a TNT block at the top and there I found the key, but the explosion was so powerful it fell in a hole of lava.

“It fell in lava!” I yelled.

“Noooo!” they screamed back. We all hopped in that hole, avoiding the lava. We ran after the key and Isaac jumped over the lava and grabbed the key.

“Woo-hoo!” Jaden said, “Way to go, Isaac!”

We built a ladder to climb out of the mountain. We also ran extremely fast back to the king, opened the door, and went up the steps to see the king standing right there. Then, I told him, “We go the key! We got the key!”

“Where is the chest?” Wyatt asked.

“Right there,” the king said as he pointed to the corner. We got up to the chest, put the iron key in, and grabbed the teleportation balls. We said bye to the king, and…

Chapter 10: Home

POOF!

“Mom, Dad!!” I yelled. We all reunited with our families and lived happily ever after. Then, I saw same blocky stuff outside.

You think it’s the end…or is it?

Dhun-Dhun-Dhun!!!

Fan Fiction, Part 2

And now, a few more chapters from Lost in Minecraft by my son.

Chapter 2: Diamond Mine

“Let’s go mining!” I suggested.

“No way! This place is too awesome to leave,” said Jaden.

“I’ll go by myself, then!” I said.

“Okay, you do that.” Jaden responded.

I growled at him. As I entered the mine it was very dark without an ore in sight, but when I turned the corner, I saw something magnificent. “A diamond mine!” I yelled to myself. Earlier they came down to see what was going on. “I found diamonds!” I told them.

“Yes!!!!” Jaden replied.

We got our iron picks out and started mining the diamonds. “Ugh, I can’t get this one out,” Wyatt said.

“Le’ me see,” I said. “This is obsidian, that’s why.”

“Oh,” Wyatt said, feeling ashamed.

We got enough diamonds so everybody could have a diamond sword and diamond armor. Really soon, we saw a portal. So, we went in it. When we entered, we almost fell in lava.

“What are you doing here in the Nether!?” screeched a zombie pig-man.

Chapter 3: In the Nether

The zombie pig-man grabbed us and brought us to a weird place. “Where am I !?” I asked.

“This is the human cage!” answered a girl. “My name’s Jenna.”

“How are we going to get out of here!?” I asked.

“We won’t,” Jenna said, pessimistically.

Then, a guy in full diamond armor with a diamond sword said, “I am Easton, and I will get you out.” He cut through the zombie pig-man and cut the gate to let us free.

“Thank you!” We all told him.

“Now, because I saved you, I should get all of your armor,” Easton said.

“No way!” I refuted, as we pushed through to get to the portal. When we got back, we hurried back into the mansion.

Chapter 4: Lovely-ish Homes

When we got to the mansion…it was all burnt up. “What happened here!” Jaden asked.

“Abraham!” Wyatt yelled.

We all sighed. “I think I see someone!” I said.

“Hi, I’m Isaac.”

A strange man said, “Can I join you?”

“Why not?” I said. We all went on to make a house. We used the ruins of the mansion to make our house.

When we finished, Isaac said, “It’s not the best house ever, but it’ll do.”

Chapter 5: Preparation for Night

We all loaded up to fight the mobs at night. We wanted to see if we could stay alive because we would have to do this a lot. When it got night, we were slaying mobs like crazy. We killed zombies, skellies, spiders, creepers, and endermen. It was a slaughter!

Chapter 6: Getting Used to the House

We ran around the house and looked in all our chests to get used to the house. We stayed in our house for almost a week to remember to kill and to survive.

Back Cover Possibility

I'll have an eventual full cover prototype.

Updated Back Draft

I will have more of my son's Minecraft story soon. Here's a newer, more condensed version of back cover information. 

Only two weeks have passed since Jimmy and Annie, still only nine-years-old each, had thwarted Etyouth’s takeover of Washington D.C. Now, two mysterious boys with unique powers confront Jimmy and Annie. After leaving a trail of destruction, the two boys vanish into a green triangular spacecraft. Meanwhile, Jimmy seeks out his parents, who are unable to recognize him. Distraught, Jimmy yearns for a family of his own. 

Stricken with a lethal, incurable illness, Jimmy is taken to an island by a band of children with super powers. Treated for the disease, he meets Mama who declares Jimmy as the leader of the Evolved Children, dubbing him their “Wohali.” Jimmy’s identity splits into two. His newer, more sinister side takes control over him and he becomes a willing participant in Mama’s plans to exterminate all people on Earth—including his best friend, Annie Marshall. Can Jimmy overcome the evil spirit inside him and spare his friend and the Earth from a disastrous fate?