Samuel Z Jones

Biography

If you like my work, please come back to leave a review. Also do track me down on Facebook with feedback; themes you'd like to see more of, what you thought was especially good and what might have been handled better. I like reviews, and I like feedback.

Smashwords Interview

Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?
I grew up in London, which at the very least fostered a life-long dislike of cities. This definitely comes through in my writing.
When did you first start writing?
As a little kid; my grandfather used to direct me to write something, and then he'd enter it in a competition or sub it to a newspaper. I think I was ten or eleven when my first piece got into a local paper, and about the same age when I was shortlisted in an adult writing competition.

I took up writing professionally when I was about twenty-four, although I'd started work on the setting that eventually became Akurite Empire and the rest a few years previously.
Read more of this interview.

Books

AERP: Akurite Empire Roleplaying Game
Price: $3.99 USD. Words: 63,600. Language: English. Published: November 24, 2016 by Wight Orchid. Categories: Fiction » Fantasy » Epic
Enter the world of Akurite Empire, a detailed and unique Fantasy setting. Containing extensive background material, new rules, playable races, character classes and adventures seeds for the nations of Kellia, Daricia and Silveneir. Compatible with D20 3.5 and 5e, under open game licence.

Samuel Z Jones' tag cloud

akurite    fantasy    games    roleplaying   

Smashwords book reviews by Samuel Z Jones

  • Intrigued By First Sight on July 16, 2012

    I think the worst review I ever had began “I don't like Fantasy...” and got worse from there. Conversely, some of the best reviews I've had began “I don't usually like Fantasy, but...” So: I don't usually read lesbian romance but... The story begins by neatly setting up a love triangle between Honey, Jean and Jackie. That this is a lesbian love story is smoothly established without any overt statement; there's no signpost declaring “Lesbians Ahead”, it's so foundational to the story that even a reader completely unforewarned should pick it up within the first paragraph. This is a good thing, as is the immediate establishment of this love triangle as a conceptual world of its own within the external setting of a US college: the colour and detail belongs to the lead actors, through their attention to one another, leaving the wider world a pastel haze of movement and distractions that only lightly intrude on the main story. This is excellently appropriate, expressing through the story's structure how new couples relate to the world. I do like humour in any story; it adds realism. My first chuckle was that Honey naturally has leather jeans ready for a motorbike ride. Of course; all lesbians have leather jeans in case they need to ride motorbikes! I don't know if this is just my very off-beat sense of humour, or if it's a deliberate and subtle poke on Erin Miller's part. The characters are well realised, with a psychological depth that knits well into the overall structure of the novel. The story also covers a range of socio-political topics in the conversations of the characters. This could very easily become preachy, but it's remarkably well-framed within the dialogue and effectively adds another level to the story. Doubtless people who disagree with the perspectives voiced might find it less palatable, but I'm inclined to think that people holding vehemently contrary views are unlikely to be reading this book anyway. The core strength of this novel is the emotional reality of the characters, which comes through particularly in the dialogue. The major achievement is that this is not a novel about lesbian politics: it's a story about engaging characters filled with romance, sex, action, emotion and even violence.
  • I Wore Heels To The Apocalypse on May 26, 2016

    Sublime satire, comedic beats and contemporary themes. A lively cast of characters blunder through the apocalypse, fighting off morons and possibly zombies.