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Capricorn
Capricorn by Jerry Veit is a pulpy thrill ride. Set in a dystopian world where a city has fallen to criminals and other underworld scum, we follow the hero, Montague, who deals out his own brand of justice. A man who clearly has a dark past of his own struggles with his unrelenting anger until he meets Capricorn, a beautiful young woman. They instantly have a connection but their meeting is cut all too short when a group of thugs kidnap her. Montague is driven by his pledge to Capricorn and undergoes seven trials in order to enter Mammon’s domain wherein his love is imprisoned.
The story is given in play format. The format does not detract from the story itself, although it would do well in audio format. The world of Capricorn is an interesting mix of fantasy, dystopian, and urban fantasy. There are even some themes and symbolism of classical mythology and the Judeo-Christian mythos thrown in for good measure. The world building itself walks a fine line of being just complex enough to make the world feel alive.
Typical of Veit, Capricorn is a story driven by fast actions and passionate motivations. Montague is a not quite anti-hero, but embodies similar traits of the archetype, especially by how he deals out justice. He seems to sway back and forth over the line of being good or bad, although he bears everything that is thrown at him. The trails follow a somewhat formulaic method, but still give the reader certain checkpoints.
This brings up the antagonist, who in some stories helps define the protagonist. Named the Demon, but later Mammon, Veit does some interesting things when the Demon clashes with Montague and it was these moments that will make the reader keep reading until the end. A traditional quest story set in a world that is so strange but familiar to us. Montague does seem to exist in a vacuum and does come across as too singularly minded, which tends to alienate the reader somewhat. This is circumvented by the pure romance and chemistry that Capricorn and Montague have for one another. The adventure, danger, and risk also keep this story lean and fast-paced.
Overall, Capricorn is a fun read for more mature fans of pulp fantasy, urban fantasy and dystopian fiction.
Pages: 136 | ASIN: B00IPSZQCQ
Telling Him to Return Home
Jerry J.C. Veit Author Interview
Days Gone By follows Caleb as he struggles with agoraphobia and the loss of his nephew in a car accident. What made you want to write a story about this topic? Anything pulled from your life experiences?
There are a few things that are taken from my past. At the time of my writing Days Gone By my nephew was five years old. He is now seven and a joy to be around. No tragic car accident; however, I wanted to write a heartfelt, emotional, character-driven story and if I had to go through what Caleb did, I don’t know how I would deal with it, but hiding seemed like a safe choice; and that’s exactly what Caleb is doing.
Many of Caleb’s visitors are based on real people in my life. His grandfather, for one, is based on my Mother’s father who did live in The Azores, Portugal. His story he shared about a possible angel telling him to return home due to a dangerous road ahead was true. Since he also lived so far away I did not see him that much and do wish I had more memories with him.
Caleb’s Irish great, great, great grandmother is also mine from my father’s side who also emigrated to the U.S. from Cork, Ireland. Miss. Di Coco was my second grade teacher and Jessica was my real life childhood friend.
The writing in your story is very artful and creative. Was it a conscious effort to create a story in this fashion or is this style of writing reflective of your writing style in general?
To date all my books are adaptations from my screenplays. So they all share this style of writing. I also marketed it to a local theater to be a play, but my character list ended up being too long. The stories I’ve written before my scripts and now after will follow more traditional book layouts.
Caleb’s has physical and psychological difficulties, but the spiritual burden of guilt for being the cause of his nephew’s death is overwhelming. What were the driving ideals behind the characters development throughout the story?
I knew Caleb’s journey was going to be a hard one. Feeling sadness because of a tragic event is one thing, but Caleb is terrified of it. He’s afraid to feel that deep sorrow and face that reality. This fear became an illness that spread to all aspects of his life. He put up a wall to protect himself and now everything outside of his home and daily routine is scary.
What is the next book that you are working on and when will it be available?
My next book will be written as a regular novel and takes place in 1885, but further advanced than in our own history. I think I’m on page five. 🙂
Author Links: GoodReads | Twitter | Facebook | Website
Three days after Christmas an auto accident left Caleb partially disabled and took the life of his five year old nephew. Now on the anniversary, four years later, Caleb is afraid to leave his house; even to attend his brother’s upcoming wedding.
Soon past friends and deceased relatives mysteriously begin showing up in his home to deliver their messages and help him through his phobia by showing him glimpses of his past, present and possible future.
Keep My Mind Active
Jerry J.C. Veit Author Interview
Apocalypsia details a post-apocalyptic Earth. Demons comb the land and what is left of humanity struggles to survive and trust one another. What was the inspiration that made you want to write such an immersive story?
I had a lot of time on my hands (haha). I was in my early twenties, worked two days a week, living in my parents’ basement, and was addicted to video games. Writing was my way to keep my mind active and a way to escape my uneventful reality. It started out as some dark and depressing poetry (some of which appears in the book). I felt like the only way I could find meaning in this world is if it ended. That was the idea that sparked Apocalypsia. I wanted to go on an adventure, and if I couldn’t live it, I could at least create it. I also drew inspiration from authors like Edgar Allen Poe, and Charles Dickens, and stories like Beowulf and Lord of the Rings.
This story is a fun blend of science fiction, fantasy and post-apocalyptic. Did you plan the novel before you wrote or did this happen organically?
I was told to always know the ending of your story before you begin. Apocalypsia was the exception. I had no idea where this story was going to go. At times I felt the story was telling itself and I was just the messenger. I never thought about what will come next only what was happening now.
In its infancy I wanted to make Apocalypsia a graphic novel. I wrote it into twenty-five separate books in a little over a year and a half. Since I cannot draw or know an artist that could take on this huge project I rewrote it to read more like a manga, but without the art; since I was into Japanese anime at that time. About a year later I developed a love of screenplays and the desire to write them. Apocalypsia was rewritten again into three different scripts due to its length and the 80-120 page constraint of a normal screenplay. When I discovered self-publishing the book that exists today got another overhaul. The book gained new content and became a little darker too. I was older so everyone in the story had to grow up also. Overall it took seven years and several rewrites before Apocalypsia appeared in our hands.
What is your writing experience and how has that helped you write Apocalypsia?
I actually wrote all of my books as screenplays first until I learned about self-publishing. I reformatted my screenplays into novelized script versions by taking away all the screenplay lingo, headers and directions, but kept the name of the speaker before my dialogue to cut down on “he said” “she said” throughout the entire story. Screenplays taught me about plot points and showing not telling. I learned to write a good ending and a good beginning and then finding out how to link the two. I learned how to write books by thinking about them as movies. Usually screenplays are the product of books. My books are products of screenplays.
What is the next book that you are working on and when will it be available?
I have started writing a steampunk story. I think that will be a cool genre to explore. I have the beginning written and several notes about the world, technology and devices that exist, and character backgrounds and personalities, but I’m still working on the plot so no release date in sight yet.
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Much of civilization lies in ruins after the mysterious happenings of a demonic uprising. In this post-apocalyptic world survivors must scavenge for supplies while taking up arms against demons, goblins, and even each other.
When an ally’s fort is attacked; a small group of survivors take it upon themselves to unite and stand against the further spread of demons. Along the way new allies agree to stand with them. Encountering stronger demonic threats and the discovery of an ancient artifact, which could destroy the boundaries between Hell and Earth, causes a collision of the human resistance into an epic final battle with the demonic forces.
Days Gone By
Days Gone By is a heartfelt tale of loss, memory, and acceptance. Jerry Veit writes a heartwarming and wholesome tale that is startlingly intimate.
We follow the main character, Caleb, four years after a car accident that occurred three days after Christmas and left him partially handicapped and terrified of leaving his house. The accident also took the life of his five-year-old nephew. The fallout of the event is not only Caleb’s physical and psychological difficulties, but the spiritual burden of guilt for being the cause of his nephew’s death. We find him now, four years later, unwilling to leave his house, even for his brother’s wedding. It is only after the mysterious arrival of past friends and deceased relatives, who give him messages that help him out of this fog of phobia and grief.
At first glance, Days Gone By may seem to echo some of the beats of A Christmas Carol, but in some ways, it brings us back to the classic fable in a nostalgic glance. Veit chose to write this story in play format, but considering the story and themes it allows the reader to enjoy the dialogue and characters even further. The reader can feel a part of the action this way and considering that the story bespeaks more fabel qualities, than a usual novel, Veit gets away with it.
The story has an almost Lifetime channel or Hallmark qualities, considering the history and cause of Caleb’s problems. What should not be left out is how Veit chooses to tackle these issues and instead seeks to bring his hero through these tribulations. It calls on the long tradition of other Christmas story classics such as It’s a Wonderful Life.
Once the reader gets used to the format of the story, it reads quite easily and fairly quickly. It is perfect for the short winter days and may be a perfect thing to pick up around the holidays. As Caleb struggles with agoraphobia readers will find it easy to connect with the sense of loss and how memory often haunts us. We all long to speak with loved ones who have since passed and Caleb is lucky enough to experience this for a short time. Hopefully, we can cherish that gift and not take our time for granted.
Pages: 106 | ASIN: B0175A7258
Apocalypsia
Apocalypsia by Jerry Veit is a saga in the best sense of the word. I was able to read the complete edition of this work, which consists of three books and three parts per book. They detail a post-apocalyptic Earth after what appears to be, for all intents and purposes, the end. Demons comb the land, freed from Hell and what is left of humanity struggles to survive and trust one another. It is left to small bands of warriors to come together and unite the warring factions, otherwise they will all perish with the rising of a new demon army.
The vision that Veit has for this world is expansive. It is also a fun blend of science fiction, fantasy and post-apocalyptic. These elements may seem to much for the casual reader but for Veit they are all ingredients that lend themselves to the epic that this work is. The edition I have, has a couple, very thick appendices, which was helpful for the wide cast of characters Viet details in all of these stories. Some of the terms, locations and overall history of this Earth is also given. All in all the world building that Veit skillfully brings to life is very present and rich for the reader to sink into and lose themselves.
I found Veit’s prose to be stilted in places and I wonder if his work would hold up better in an audio book or audio drama form. He did not shy away from any action and made sure the story kept moving through these pages, especially as the conflict became more and more intense until the dramatic conclusion. He does follow the time tested formula of having a band of hero’s and a singular villain, bent on destruction. The setting he built around this formula is what refreshing for this type of tale and the considerable scale he chose to write it in. The story itself could have been confined to two books but with drawing it out into a third he was able to deepen the plot just enough to please the reader. I won’t say anything else in that regard, lest I spoil the story.
What was difficult was the way that Viet chose to tell his tale. He took some grammatical liberties that a seasoned reader may have trouble reading at first. The most notable one is that Veit does not use traditional dialogue tags or quotation marks but instead uses names labeling who speaks (i.e. ADRIAN: Welcome to Apocalypsia). This is similar to how one labels dialogue in screenplays, which I am aware is in Veit’s background.
All in all Apocalypsia is an epic tale of loss, bravery and learning what it is to be human. Lovers of quests and end of the world tales will find something to enjoy here.
Pages: 387 | ASIN: B0726374N1
LITERARY TITAN 