Las Vegas Area Book Signing – Barnes & Noble #ASMSG #SciFi #PKD

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Maer’s Book Signing – Barnes & Noble

Live in the Las Vegas, Nevada area? Love SciFi?

Philip K. Dick wrote numerous science fiction books and stories which ended up on Hollywood screens. Blade Runner, Total Recall, Minority Report, and the Amazon series The Man in the High Castle are just a few of those hits. My new memoir, The Other Side of Philip K. Dick, covers my friendship with Phil the last ten years of his life. I’ll be chatting about the book at the Henderson Barnes & Noble from 1 PM to 3 PM on Saturday, August 27, 2016.

Please join us for the discussion and book signing. In addition to the memoir, I’ll have copies of all of my books for purchase and signing.

If you’re able to make it, please let me know you found out via my website.

Hope to see you there!

Where: Barnes & Noble

When: Saturday, August 27,2016

Time: 1 PM – 3 PM

Address: 567 North Stephanie, Henderson, Nevada

Map & Directions

 

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Philip K. Dick – Not a Crazy Guru After All #ASMSG #PKD #Memoir

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The Other Side of Philip K. Dick

Blade Runner, Total Recall, The Man in the High Castle

What these projects have in common is that they are based on the books or stories of Philip K. Dick. And those are just the tip of the iceberg of PKD Hollywood hits.

But what about Phil the man?

For years I’d heard hints of Phil Dick as someone unrecognizable to one who knew him well. And I knew him well the last ten years of his life. However, it wasn’t until I started doing research for my own memoir that I realized just how off the charts some of the theories about Phil had grown. Instead of dissuading me, those accounts made me more determined than ever to bring to light the man I knew. Of course, I spoke to some of Phil’s other close friends – Tim Powers, James P Blaylock, Merry Lou Staylor. They agreed that the myths in no way resembled the man we knew. So I settled in to set the record straight.

All these stories were brought home  to me when I did a panel at the Philip K. Dick conference at California State University, Fullerton in April, 2016. Merry Lou, her husband, Pete, and I wandered around at the beginning of the conference for a bit, listening in to various presentations. We slipped into the back of one presentation being given by a PhD. I was almost immediately put off, as the researcher seemed to connect all of Phil’s writing to drugs.

Let me explain why this was off-putting. Phil was known for doing drugs up into the 1960s. He even wrote about it. However, once he moved to Southern California in 1972, he had undergone a complete change in attitude about drugs. The man I knew did not pop pills, or indeed take anything other than snuff and his prescribed medications. In fact he became a staunch anti-drug supporter.

But since Phil himself wrote about taking drugs, it’s understandable why someone might think what Phil wrote was true. Unfortunately that is not necessarily the case. Phil love stories. He loved writing them, he adored telling them and he especially enjoyed recounting his latest theories to his friends. The thing is – the theories were not always true, and Phil would later tell friends he was just pulling their legs or whatever. He did this a lot. He also did it in his writing. He might propose a theory and in the same session contradict that theory and move on to another.

He especially did this in his Exegesis – a daunting two-million-word work that is part journal, part story templates, part whatever he needed it to be at that moment. The one thing it is not is completely accurate. To point at anything in it and say “Oh, this defines Phil as a person” will send you in a direction so far removed from the real man that it becomes nonsense. And that is exactly what has happened.

There are theories out there about who Phil really was and why he did whatever. Phil himself contributed so many different things that trying to get a sense of who Phil really was is close to impossible. Because Phil the man was nothing like those theories. He is not the myth that has sprung up about him. In fact, Phil himself would probably be appalled at the legends about him. But maybe – just maybe – he might think they were hilarious. And maybe even have a good laugh that his ultimate joke had been played as all these folks try to (incorrectly) dissect his personality. I can hear him saying, “I really had you going.”

So in the end, maybe Phil would enjoy all these silly theories and the nonsense that has been assigned to him by people who never met him. Folks who don’t have the advantage of knowing that Phil loved a good joke. But I do think part of him would regret that the real Phil was left out of the mix.

But no worries. Phil’s friends took care of that part. Tim and Jim have been telling the truth for ages. And I wrote a book that will give new insight as to just who Phil Dick was. It wasn’t an easy task. I did a lot of fact checking, research and talking to friends. But I did manage to capture the Phil that his friends knew. I hope you enjoy the real man as much as we did.

At the end of the day there is this truth: Philip K. Dick does not need to be sensationalized to be interesting.

 

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The Other Side of Philip K. Dick

Now available in all formats!

Get your copy today from your favorite online retailer:

Amazon Kindle – https://goo.gl/nQ12tW
Amazon Paperback – https://goo.gl/Nvx1H0
Barnes & Noble Paperback – http://goo.gl/GzEVxz
Barnes & Noble Nook – http://goo.gl/o92tkr
iTunes – https://goo.gl/LDArxc
Kobo – https://goo.gl/uax6Fm
Smashwords – https://goo.gl/zbBGE9

 

 

 

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Interview about Philip K. Dick #PKD #ASMSG # Memoir

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Recently I had the pleasure to speak with Nick Buchanan for an interview in PKD Otaku. For Philip K. Dick fans this ezine has some awesome features and keeps PKD fans up to date on happenings with conferences, movies and books related to Phil’s work. Michael Fisher and Patrick Clark are to be commended on the great job they do!

My extensive interview discusses the real Philip K. Dick and what it was like writing the memoir of our ten-year friendship.

 

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The Other Side of Philip K. Dick

Now available in all formats!

Get your copy today from your favorite online retailer:

Amazon Kindle – https://goo.gl/nQ12tW
Amazon Paperback – https://goo.gl/Nvx1H0
Barnes & Noble Paperback – http://goo.gl/GzEVxz
Barnes & Noble Nook – http://goo.gl/o92tkr
iTunes – https://goo.gl/LDArxc
Kobo – https://goo.gl/uax6Fm
Smashwords – https://goo.gl/zbBGE9

Official Release – The Other Side of Philip K. Dick

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Now available in all formats!

Get your copy today from your favorite online retailer:

Amazon Kindle – https://goo.gl/nQ12tW
Amazon Paperback – https://goo.gl/Nvx1H0
Barnes & Noble Paperback – http://goo.gl/GzEVxz
Barnes & Noble Nook – http://goo.gl/o92tkr
iTunes – https://goo.gl/LDArxc
Kobo – https://goo.gl/uax6Fm
Smashwords – https://goo.gl/zbBGE9

 

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What is the truth behind the legend of Science Fiction great, Philip K. Dick?

In spring, 1972, Phil Dick moved to Fullerton, CA, where he met Theatre student Mary (Maer) Wilson. Amid marriage proposals, marathon talk-fests and a love for music and films, they forged a strong friendship that would last the rest of his life.

Wilson’s quirky, yet unflinchingly honest, memoir reveals a funny, compassionate and generous man. She captures an inside view of one of our literary greats – a brilliant writer who gave the world some of its most revered Science Fiction.

 

Excerpt

But first let’s set the scene.

It’s April, 1972 in Fullerton, California around 7:00 PM. The sun has set and the night is cool, balanced between full spring and hints of summer. Can you feel the slight breeze?

The street is Quartz Lane. Some of the many apartment buildings in the area line the short road. We’re going to go to the first complex on the right, just past the church. There’s a small courtyard and the residents all have their curtains drawn. Most are translucent and clearly show the light from the apartments. But there. That first apartment on our right? The one upstairs. Yes, that one with the light shining through a gap in the curtains.

And the one across from it. The light isn’t as bright, but we need to note that one, too.

We can almost hear the giggles of two girls as we make our way up the stairs and fade through their door. Shhh… We’ll be as quiet as the ghosts from the future that we are.

The scene is set. The actors and orchestra are in their places as the curtain rises.

The stage lights come up.

The conductor taps his baton on the music stand.

The music begins.

Chapter 1 – At First

“It happened back when I was still immortal.”

Early Reviews

“I found this book engrossing and authentic – a truthful and serious account of the last part of Phil Dick’s life by someone who was a fundamental part of it and who has the skill to write about it. There is evident love and friendship in this book, but also honesty. This was the Phil Dick I knew.” James P. Blaylock, World Fantasy Award-winning Author

“As a literary figure, Philip K. Dick is popularly perceived as a crazed, drug-addled mystic with a sinister Third Eye. Nothing could be further from the truth – the Phil I knew was a warm, humane, very funny man. Maer Wilson understands these truths far better than I, and The Other Side of Philip K. Dick casts a welcome shaft of daylight upon the real PKD, as opposed to the dark, distorted caricature Dick has become.” Paul M. Sammon, Author of Future Noir: The Making of Blade Runner

“The strongest piece of writing I’ve read in years. Wilson’s pacing is perfection. The Other Side of Philip K. Dick is filled with laughter and the kind of love only true friends can share. Even if, for some reason, you’ve never heard of Philip K. Dick, you will fall in love with him and Wilson. The ending had me crying, like “end of the Notebook” crying. Utter perfection.” M. Joseph Murphy, Author of the Activation series

“There are many tales of epic friendships, but there is one huge difference here: The Other Side of Philip K. Dick is real. Wilson’s prose gives us an inside view into two minds, a genius and a young girl. Through her eyes I am left with one thought — this is a man I wish I had known.” –Danielle DeVor, author of the Marker Chronicles.

“Frank and revealing. One part faithful memoir, one part a wonderful evocation of Phil’s final 10 years. Writing with crisp clarity, Maer’s humorous anecdotes wonderfully evoke both the times and the man. Her conversational prose sparkles with truth and winning story-telling. Best of all, this warm tribute replaces the oft-told myths about Phil with unique insights into his caring, compassionate and generous nature.” Daniel Gilbertson, Friend of PKD

“As a fan of Dick’s fiction, I was engrossed by these amusing, insightful, and poignant reminiscences of the last ten years of his life. Wilson evokes a human portrait of a warm, funny, unassuming man who was a good friend to a young student. This memoir is well-written and heart-felt. It illustrates not only the private world of a great writer but what it was like to be young in the seventies in California.” Carol Holland March, Author of The Dreamwalkers of Larreta

 

The Other Side of Philip K. Dick – Paperback is Here! #ASMSG #SciFi

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The paperback version has released a day early!

Order your copy today at:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

 

“As a literary figure, Philip K. Dick is popularly perceived as a crazed, drug-addled mystic with a sinister Third Eye. Nothing could be further from the truth – the Phil I knew was a warm, humane, very funny man. Maer Wilson understands these truths far better than I, and The Other Side of Philip K. Dick casts a welcome shaft of daylight upon the real PKD, as opposed to the dark, distorted caricature Dick has become.” Paul M. Sammon, Author of Future Noir: The Making of Blade Runner

What is the truth behind the legend of Science Fiction great, Philip K. Dick?

In spring, 1972, Phil Dick moved to Fullerton, CA, where he met Theatre student Mary (Maer) Wilson. Amid marriage proposals, marathon talk-fests and a love for music and films, they forged a strong friendship that would last the rest of his life.

Wilson’s quirky, yet unflinchingly honest, memoir reveals a funny, compassionate and generous man. She captures an inside view of one of our literary greats – a brilliant writer who gave the world some of its most revered Science Fiction.

“I found this book engrossing and authentic – a truthful and serious account of the last part of Phil Dick’s life by someone who was a fundamental part of it and who has the skill to write about it. There is evident love and friendship in this book, but also honesty. This was the Phil Dick I knew.” James P. Blaylock, World Fantasy Award-Winning Author

You can pre-order ebook versions for the 8/9/16 release:

Amazon Kindle – https://goo.gl/nQ12tW
Barnes & Noble Nook – http://goo.gl/o92tkr
iTunes – https://goo.gl/LDArxc
Kobo – https://goo.gl/uax6Fm
Smashwords – https://goo.gl/zbBGE9

 

Trailer – The Other Side of Philip K. Dick

[embedyt] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TychZjU0YN0[/embedyt]

 

Thanks to M Joseph Murphy for his brilliant work on putting this together. I was on a panel at the CSU Fullerton Philip K. Dick Conference on April 30, 2016. Joe took some of the best moments from that event and has created wonderful companion to my book, The Other Side of Philip K. Dick.

Enjoy!

 

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“As a literary figure, Philip K. Dick is popularly perceived as a crazed, drug-addled mystic with a sinister Third Eye. Nothing could be further from the truth – the Phil I knew was a warm, humane, very funny man. Maer Wilson understands these truths far better than I, and The Other Side of Philip K. Dick casts a welcome shaft of daylight upon the real PKD, as opposed to the dark, distorted caricature Dick has become.” Paul M. Sammon, Author of Future Noir: The Making of Blade Runner

What is the truth behind the legend of Science Fiction great, Philip K. Dick?

In spring, 1972, Phil Dick moved to Fullerton, CA, where he met Theatre student Mary (Maer) Wilson. Amid marriage proposals, marathon talk-fests and a love for music and films, they forged a strong friendship that would last the rest of his life.

Wilson’s quirky, yet unflinchingly honest, memoir reveals a funny, compassionate and generous man. She captures an inside view of one of our literary greats – a brilliant writer who gave the world some of its most revered Science Fiction.

“I found this book engrossing and authentic – a truthful and serious account of the last part of Phil Dick’s life by someone who was a fundamental part of it and who has the skill to write about it. There is evident love and friendship in this book, but also honesty. This was the Phil Dick I knew.” James P. Blaylock, World Fantasy Award-Winning Author

The book releases in all formats including paperback on 8/9/16.

You can pre-order your copy of

 The Other Side of Philip K. Dick

today at these retailers:

Universal Amazon Link

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Nook buy

Itunes logo

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Cover Reveal – Mind: The Reckoning by @jennnixon

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Mind: The Recknoning

Baldwin Bates has only wanted one thing since joining MIND, to take care of his friends and keep them all safe. While the MIND team is busy dealing with an emergence of psychic and alien activity, Bates takes his first solo assignment searching for a woman who claims to see the future, only to botch it up and let her get away.

After helping to destroy an alien device called the Transcender, Lexa Quinn wakes from a two week coma a very different person than she was before. While her abilities grow stronger, her feelings for Bates begin to interfere with the MIND team’s mission putting everyone at risk. Secrets from her past threaten the present and future, forcing Lexa to decide who she is and where she belongs.

When a powerful, ancient enemy lays claim to the Earth and brings his judgment upon the population, Bates, Lexa, and the entire MIND team must do whatever it takes to save the human race before the reckoning is complete.

#SciFi #Romance #Series

Release Date: October, 2016

Need to catch up? Books 1 & 2 are only $2.99!

MIND: The Beginning (Bk1) amzn.com/B017M3IJM8

MIND: The Emergence (Bk2) amzn.com/B01E056ANQ

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Jenn often adds a thriller and suspense element to anything she writes be it Romance, Science Fiction, or Fantasy. When not writing, she spends her time reading, observing pop culture, playing with her two dogs, and working on various charitable projects in her home state of New Jersey.

 You can follow Jenn at these links:

facebook.com/JennNixonAuthor

twitter.com/JennNixon

jennnixon.com