You’ll notice I put “bad” in quotes. In fact, the urologist was surprised when I smiled as he was giving me the news. He might have thought me demented, but I had only recently learned of several small studies showing that people with persistent prostate inflammation were entirely cured when their prostates were removed. Could I be? My doctors definitely didn’t think so, and would never have authorized the expensive operation on the chance it might help me. Now that I had cancer, they would authorize the surgery, and my insurance would help pay for its removal.

I won’t bore you with all the details, but the result was a post-surgery surge in energy, and nearly immediate disappearance of all my previous symptoms. One day after surgery, I had so much energy, I was ready to go home and get back to work. The constant and irritating sickly feeling I’ve been putting up with for years was completely gone. I knew from the first day I’d never again have to wonder when my energy would simply vanish, leaving me struggling to gracefully find a place to sit before I collapsed onto the floor. During the nearly three weeks since, that belief has proven true. Yes, there have been ups and downs, as anyone would experience after a major operation, but nothing as immediate as what I had been experiencing.

This isn’t the end of this story. Though the surgeon was very confident he got all the cancer, the final word doesn’t come for two more months when they do another PSA test. PSA is only produced by prostate cells, or their cancer cells that might have escaped before the prostate was removed. We’re all hoping that number is zero, which means none remain in my body.

I’ll keep you posted.

Clifford M. Scovell
Prison Earth – the series

The second book in my Prison Earth series has finally arrived in both print and digital formats for Kindle and all other formats.

This new book picks up where my first book, Prison Earth – Not Guilty as Charged, left off.

For more details, check out my newly updated web site, at www.prisonearth.com.

Clifford M. Scovell
Prison Earth – the series
www.prisonearth.com

Check it out now by clicking this link.

Clifford M. Scovell
Prison Earth Series
www.prisonearth.com

This book is the second in a trilogy that follows both humans and aliens in their pursuit of peace in a decidedly un-peaceful galaxy. It gives you insight into the trials and tribulations of:

Mobia: an Antrakan soldier who is kidnapped while on leave and forced to face a two-headed giant in a fight-to-the-death battle.

Bouche Perpatton: though human, she came from another planet to help free Earth from alien domination, only to find herself titled the Madonna Returned from Heaven. She is forced to go along with the ruse to help unite Earth’s people in their fight against the aliens controlling our planet.

Pana Khephra: desperately searching for a way to help the Antrakan people win their war against Maatiirani pirates, he is trapped inside a sentient planet and must help it and its siblings stop their mother from enslaving everyone Pana loves.

Due to some technical issues, the printed version of this book is not yet available, but I hope to have it in stores soon.

Clifford M. Scovell
Prison Earth
www.prisonearth.com

Some readers complained about this complexity in my first book, Prison Earth – Not Guilty as Charged. Most loved the fast-paced adventure. Those who didn’t like my first book, probably won’t care for the next one, Prison Earth – A Loss of Face, due to be released very soon. (The proof is “in the mail.”) Those who did enjoy my first offering will be very happy with the complex, interwoven story that throws humans into the convoluted and dramatic world of alien cultures. All sides will be dealing with an intra-galactic war, and that is never pretty.

Humans are part of this story, and yes, for those who absolutely must know, they do some serious alien butt kicking. Of course, the aliens get their own licks in, so it’s not all one-sided. Check out my web site for an updated status on releases. In this complex world of publishing, things are going to be a bit staggered. Electronic releases will be coming out at different times, due to the way the process works.

Happy reading!

Clifford M. Scovell
Prison Earth – The Series
www.prisonearth.com

What is excommunication but an expression of power. In times past, it was the church’s way to control a person through his/her friends, relatives and even children. Religions can’t stop us from thinking, so they take the easy alternative of depriving us of those we love. The loss of connection and the fear of dying alone are strong motivations for giving into those in power. Not surprising, it is even more effective than the threat of death. Why do convicts have such a fear of solitary? Better to be locked in a room with murders and thieves than to be alone with yourself.

There are worse things than dying.

We are a gregarious species. As much as some people complain about their families, they stay with them. Why? Probably because having a family, even a dysfunctional or abusive one, is better than not having one. The fear of growing old alone drives us to put up with abusive parents, demanding siblings, and disrespectful children.

There are worse things than dying.

I’m not suggesting that we all gather together and commit mass suicide. Even if I were, 99.9999% of the population would reject the suggestion. In addition to being gregarious, we humans are distinctly pro life. We want to live. Despite the many plagues haunting our lives, we will more often than not remember the pleasures. A dozen negatives are immediately forgotten when one good positive brightens our day.

It’s kind of like playing golf. Most times I’m a duffer, simply churning up the sod, sending helpless worms on an unintended vacation to a distant part of the fairway while my ball dribbles to a stop a few yards away. Then I happen to luck out and slug one a country mile, and it feels like I really can play this darned game. It doesn’t matter how many strokes over par it took to get me through nine holes. When I get back to the club house, it’s that one hit my friends hear about.

Yes. There are worse things than dying, but dying means an end to all the possibilities of good times, loving people, roaring successes, and hole-in-ones. And even failures are often simply successes in drab clothing. It’s all in how you see it.

Death is inevitable, but life is only what you make it.

I’m still investigating the possibilities.

Clifford M. Scovell
Prison Earth – the series

Not so many years ago, I read an article from a source I no longer remember, presenting the premise that we shouldn’t reserve our typical Christmas cheer and goodwill towards all for just one day of the year. That article struck so true I decided to do my best to live up to its premise. I can’t say I’ve been perfect, but imperfection is no reason for abandoning the effort. In fact, each year I get better and better at it.

I live a busy life, with many demands on my time, so spending hours tending to the needy isn’t always possible for me. However, who says you have to only be generous with the needy? We’ve all learned, or should have, while growing up, that generosity isn’t just about money. I try to give an extra effort for everyone I meet, giving them what I can in time, knowledge, or gifts, as the need presents itself.

Another key thing I’ve learned is that everyone sees things from a different perspective. Thinking in this way makes me stop before criticizing someone for what I think is the “wrong way” of doing or thinking about something. More often than not, I find myself learning a new way to see my world.

One example is that I am not religious. Despite my dear mother’s best efforts, the “rational” of religious thinking never took hold of me. During my college years, I rebelled against my mother’s constant pressure to join her church and became quite anti-religious. If someone mentioned God or Jesus in a sentence, my mind immediately shut off. Using my new way of thinking, I eventually realized that not everything religious is wrong. I no longer feel the urge to criticize or belittle those who find solace in their religious beliefs. I’m still not religious, but I now look for the good in those who are. It’s not hard, once you open your eyes.

I think “give peace a chance” is the real theme of Christmas, and I do it best by opening my mind to other’s ideas, and trying to give as generously as I can to everyone I meet. My life is better for it.

Merry Christmas,

Clifford M. Scovell
Prison Earth – the series.
www.prisonearth.com

I saw this headline, and realized it kind of applied to me…in reverse. Years ago, I discovered a non-sleep aid: writing a book. Once I start, my mind rushes along at its own pace, sleeping or not. I suffer from middle-of-the-night bursts of creativity. My beloved life-mate has stopped worrying when she awakes at 2:00 AM to find a light on in the other room

“If one alien ate another, would it be cannibalistic?” “Wouldn’t it depend on whether they were the same kind of alien?”

“Why would a nine-foot-tall alien be interested in someone 3-1/2-feet-tall? (Besides as a night-time snack?)”

It isn’t just while I sleep. Some people put on eye makeup, or read the newspaper while they drive to work. I wrestle with my characters. We’re all a danger on the open road.

“I gotta get down on dat planet,” character, Thatchaya declares. “Dose Humans be ear-flapping crazy.”

“Yeah. Ain’t dat a hoot?”

I’ve pretty much stopped having lunch with friends when I’m writing…for their sake. All too often, we’re right in the middle of a conversation when my mind takes off on a tangent only Freud could follow.

“How’s your salad?” one friend asked.

My friend just sighs. “Yeah, and I could be a tree stump.”

I do like real people. Really! I’m just possessed by the virtual people rattling around in my head.

There are those who live for their great adventure: sail the vast, untamable ocean; climb the highest peak; or jump from a plane thousands of feet in the air. I take another route: the deepest fringes of my psyche. It gets pretty wild in there sometimes. Life on the virtual edge can be just as thrilling as the real thing. You just have to let yourself go, believe the impossible is possible, and try not to scream out loud while you’re in a crowded elevator.

Clifford M. Scovell
Prison Earth – the series
www.prison-earth.com

When that is done, I will start working on a new book about overlapping dimensions. Like the Prison Earth series, it will be fast-paced and full of twists and turns. I’m about 100 pages into it, and had to force myself to stop writing to get my current Prison Earth book ready.

So many stories, so little time!

Stay tuned.

Clifford M. Scovell
Prison Earth – The Series
www.prison-earth.com

I think we can all relate to time distortion, as opposed to time travel. Time travel is the intentional passage through time, while time distortion is a shift in time beyond our control. You wake up Thursday morning thinking it is Tuesday. Or even worse, the news does a follow up on an event that happened two years ago, but in your mind it was last month.

Yes, we all know it is just a trick of the mind, but is it really? What if Quantum Theory is correct and there are an infinite number of universes? How does time travel across those different universes? If a person were able to cross the barrier between them, would time be linear, or would you travel backward and forward in time?

The current working title for my new book is Three for Two. I’ve no idea how it will go, or what the ending might be. That is typical with my writing. The stories come to me like a fond memory, and before I know it, they’re typed out and ready for editing.

Or maybe it’s a life I’ve already experienced…in a parallel universe.

Stay tuned.

Clifford M. Scovell
www.prison-earth.com

Butterfly Nebula - in another universe, could we live here?