OBSIDIAN Episode 15

This week's must-listen OBSIDIAN short-short is by Dan Klass. This is a masterpiece of audio fiction, and J.C. considers it one of the crown jewels in the OBSIDIAN anthology.

Dan Klass is the host and creator of "The Bitterest Pill," an award-winning podcast in which he talks about his life on the outskirts of the entertainment industry while raising his kids under the flight path at LAX.  The show has been described by The New York Times as "intelligent," "endearing," and "sublime," and has been featured on NPR, NBC 4, Fox News and in USAToday.com and The Christian Science Monitor.  He is also the co-author of Podcast Solutions: The Complete Guide to Audio and Video Podcasting.

Please subscribe to The Bitterest Pill -- and send Dan Klass a well-deserved appreciative email -- by visiting TheBitterestPill.com.

J.C. also unleashes gobs of timely news in his "talky-talk" intro and outro, including:

• Parts One and Two of J.C.'s fun interview with Joe on the OnThePodcast podcast, featuring some delicious tidbits about J.C.'s next book, Personal Effects: Dark Art
• An opportunity to lend a helping hand to 7th Son superfan Gemini and her family by making a donation at the Time Well Wasted blog
• A mini-geekout update about Personal Effects: Dark Art, and its state of production
• The 7th Son T-shirt store at Geeklabel.com is closing on Aug. 15. If you want to snag a shirt or two (at less than $15 a pop), get crackin'
• The world premiere of a brand-new Celldweller song -- this one is the ultra-intense, incredible "Birthright (Birthwrong Remix by Blue Stahli)". The full song is available here in this episode; download the song for free at FixtOnline.com/FreeDownloads.html

Coming up next on 7th Son: OBSIDIAN: A very special "Voices From the Darkness" episode!

OBSIDIAN: Episode 3

The third episode of J.C. Hutchins' 7th Son: OBSIDIAN features a universe-blurring tale of violence and hope by Imperial stormtrooper TD-0013, from the "A Different Point of View" podcast. How can a Star Wars stormtrooper appear in the 7th Son saga? Listen to find out...

TD-0013's "A Different Point of View" is a must-listen collection of essays told from a loyal stormtrooper's perspective. Learn more about TD's work -- and send him an appreciative email -- at www.ADPOV.net. This November, TD is participating in a walk across the Arizona desert to raise money for Multiple Sclerosis research. Click the banner below to learn more!

Coming up next on 7th Son: OBSIDIAN: The debut of "Voices from the Darkness," collections of fan-created audio content that chronicle the OBSIDIAN blackout as seen by its victims!

PROMOS:

• The Time Well Wasted blog
• Steampod steampunk fiction podcast magazine

Feedback about OBSIDIAN is welcome and appreciated! Send J.C. an email, leave a comment below, or call the Clone Line at 206-984-2566 (CLONE).

7th Son fans "give back" with amazing reviews, art, audio

While the 7th Son podcast novel trilogy has concluded -- and if you haven't listened to the audiobooks, you should; subscribe for free and join nearly 40,000 worldwide listeners by visiting my Podcasting Primer page -- the story and experience still resonates with me. More important, it's made an impact on 7th Son listeners, and recently, several have been moved to "give something back" to me, and the 7S community.

Listener Gemini recently reviewed all three audionovels on her blog, Time Well Wasted. I was thrilled to learn that she enjoyed 7th Son from beginning to end: "J.C. Hutchins has created a story so amazing, and so full of conspiracy, that you have to stop yourself from wondering if he’s really got more information that he’s letting on," she wrote in her review of Book One: Descent. "His grasp of technology during the weaving of this book almost puts Michael Crichton to shame."

Mentioning me in the same paragraph as Crichton is humbling beyond measure. But then Gemini followed up with this comment in her review of Book Two: Deceit: "Last week, I said the man was as good as Michael Crichton. This week, I’m saying he’s better." I'm stunned and thrilled to know that 7S made such a positive impact on Gemini.

Find her reviews here:

• Review of Book One: Descent
• Review of Book Two: Deceit
• Review of Book Three: Destruction

These accolades alone made my month, but then woodcarving maestro Keith Burtis blew me right out of my Asics (and my socks) this week when he emailed me this remarkable blog post. Keith was so inspired by 7th Son that he hand-crafted an unbelievably cool, stylized rendition of "The Womb" cloning chamber, described in the novels.

His art -- made from Osage orange, Australian Burl and blood-red Paddauk woods -- is nothing short of miraculous. I nearly wept when I saw his photos of the project ... and I know I will weep when I receive it from Keith in the mail very soon.

Keith, thank you for this priceless piece. I'll do more than cherish it -- I'll be displaying it proudly in my living room for years to come.

Finally, 7S fan "Dan the Demented" recently interviewed me on his podcast, the Polyschizmatic Reprobates Hour. It was a treat chatting with him, and the episode -- which also features podnovelist Seth Harwood -- is a hoot-and-a-half. Find the interview here.

I am deeply touched to know that the 7th Son trilogy continues to move and inspire people ... and I'm doubly thrilled to know that fans can enjoy its forthcoming supplemental short story anthology 7th Son: OBSIDIAN in May, and the release of 7th Son: Descent in print in 2009.

Have you created artwork or a blog post inspired by 7th Son? I'd love to know about it. Please give a shout-out in the comments!

--J.C.