Artie Meets the Alchemist 1 — #GetCaughtReading 2018

Posted on by Teagan Riordain Geneviene

Saturday, May 5, 2018

Hello, everyone!  It’s Get Caught Reading Month.   Chris Graham – the Story Reading Ape and I are together again for a mini-series in honor of this event.  There’s also a free Kindle book to be had — read on to learn about that.

Artie Meets Alchemist promo 1

But first…

Escaping Psychiatry beginnings

Every week, you’ll catch me reading a different book.  You might catch Chris too, but you’ll have to ask him what he is reading.  Kicking off this series, you’ve caught me reading one of my favorites by Olga Núñez Miret from her Escaping Psychiatry series — Beginnings the prequel.

Read the reviews and buy the books Amazon (click here), and on Amazon UK (click here)

Now here is the premier of the 2018 Get Caught Reading mini-series…

Artie Meets the Alchemist

Part 1

Man Sun gears Steampunk Eugene_Ivanov_2442
Eugene Ivanov, Wiki Media Commons

“What is that infernal clanging?  Ugh… It’s unbearable!  Where are you, jackalope?”

“It’s the civilization alarm, Miss Copper.”

“Jack, thank goodness you’re here.  Could you please shut off that noise?  My hands are full with the omniscope.”

“Of course, Miss Copper.  There.  Is that an improvement?”  

“Thank you.  You are the world’s most wonderful jackalope.”

“You are welcome, Miss Copper.  The sensors detected a group of lifeforms.  Ah, Alchemist ― good, you are here.  We’ve found sentient life.  It appears to be an established community.  Shall we land your dirigible?”

“Jack, old thing, you are a marvel!  Let’s see what we can from up here first.  That looks like a highway over there.  Copper, do you see anything though the telescope?” Cornelis said.

“It’s an omniscope, and yes.  I see apes.  Or rather chimpanzees.  A bunch of them!  Jack, is that what you meant by an established community?” Copper wanted to know.

Chimps Nitpicking sketch
Image courtesy Chris Graham

“No, no, no… That’s altogether verneukt!  They aren’t purple apes by any chance?  We need to turn this ship around!” Corneils exclaimed.

“No, Cornelis.  Of course, the chimpanzees are not purple.  What an absurd thing to say.  Relax,” Copper assured him.

“I’m sorry, Copper.  It’s just that it wouldn’t be the first time.  I told you about the purple world where everyone had an ape doppelganger.  It was an interesting experience but not one I’d want to repeat.  Although I admit it was difficult enough, landing in a world where you were a young woman, rather than the little girl I knew.”

“Keep your hands to yourself, Cornelis Drebbel.  If you ruffle my hair like I was a small child one more time, then you’ll draw back a nub!”

“Miss Copper!”

Copper crop 1
Dreamstime

“Oh, calm down Jack.  You know I wouldn’t really do that.  Although there hasn’t been an un-interesting day since Cornelis Drebbel showed up, claiming that he knew me as a small child ― in a similar but different world.  He might get into only half as much trouble with one less hand.”

“I’m going to take my road locomotive down and investigate.  Copper and Jack, you two should stay up here for now.” 

“That’s fine by me, Cornelis.  Apes make me uncomfortable.  Jack and I have plenty of work to do.  But try to stay out of trouble.  Please!”

***

Artie Formal Dress
Image courtesy Chris Graham

 

Now over to Chris Graham

Since his adventures with Pip and Mona (see: Pip and Artie Meet Again Parts ONE, TWO & THREE), Artie had been busy refining his converted motorcycle / mobile time machine, and even incorporated an inter-dimensional shift facility (IDSF) so he could not only travel through time, but also visit alternative dimensions, or realities, as he preferred to call them.

All this had, of course, involved many periods of deep ponderating, to the extent that he would often jump up (waken himself and half the neighbourhood) with sudden loud exclamations of “Of course!” which sounded suspiciously like loud snoring snorts…

In any case, after each addition, or adjustment, Artie would go off on a test run, to make sure everything worked as he intended, relying on his trusty Emergency Visit Duration Countdown Alarm (EVDCA) to get him safely back home again if all else failed (he hoped)…

During one recent test run, Artie was testing how fast the machine could go down an alternative reality version of Route 66 after his latest adjustments (i.e., too fast) when, with a bright noisy flash, a steam tractor-like road locomotive suddenly appeared about a hundred yards in front of him!

 

***

End Part 1

(For related stories see: The Sign of the Ape series and Copper, the Alchemist, & the Woman in Trousers serial in the blog Categories on the right side of the screen.) 

Drawing for a book from Teagan!

May 9, 2018:  The time period for entering the contest is now over. I’ll announce the winner this Saturday.

I hope you’ve enjoyed the first part of our Get Caught Reading offering.  This month is all about encouraging people of all ages to read.  So I’ll do a random drawing to give away a Kindle copy of one of my books (winner’s choice). 

Here’s how you participate.  To enter, leave a comment telling me the title and author of the book we’ve caught you reading!  You must leave the comment by Tuesday to be included.  I’ll email the winner an Amazon Kindle copy of one of my books — you get to choose which one.

Tune in next weekend for more of Artie Meets the Alchemist.   Hugs!

***

Now, promoting my “partner in crime” Chris Graham.

My Vibrating Vertabrae cover
A lovely book of poetry by Chris Graham’s mom

Amazon

Amazon UK

***

And now my own shameless self-promotion…

Atonement Video Cover copy

Atonement, Tennessee

Amazon UK

Bijou front only 2

Murder at the Bijou — Three Ingredients I

Novel-book-The Three Things Serial Story-Teagan Riordain Geneviene-The Writer Next Door-Vashti Q-spotlight-author

The Three Things Serial Story: A Little 1920s Story Kindle 

 

This is a work of fiction.  Characters, names, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, locales, or events is entirely coincidental.

Copyright © 2018 by Teagan Ríordáin Geneviene and Christopher Graham

All rights reserved.

No part of this work may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission.  Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights.

All images are either the property of the author or provided by free sources, unless stated otherwise.

83 thoughts on “Artie Meets the Alchemist 1 — #GetCaughtReading 2018”

  1. Pingback: Hullaba Hodgepodge | Teagan's Books

  5. Hello Teagan, Thank you so much for introducing me to another of your worlds and its characters. I love the video and its music. I hope your mood is good and you’re being as productive as I always expect you to be.
    Best wishes, David

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply
  7. Pingback: Writing Links…5/7/18 – Where Genres Collide

  8. OMG so good, so good! Lovin’ the inventiveness of this all – and also just watched the trailer (you’re such a pro at those!). I got caught reading Search for the Golden Serpent by Luciana Cavallaro.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

    1. Hi Christy — so glad you liked it and the video. Thanks for sharing (it wouldn’t let me comment) — I really appreciate that. Thanks for letting me know what I caught you reading! Happy reading and huge hugs!

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

      1. I’m trying to restore some balance to my life, thought it’s been an uphill battle to say the least.
        Mom’s a fighter and she’s lasting longer than anyone expected her to.

        Liked by 1 person

        Reply
  13. Pingback: Artie Meets the Alchemist Video! — #GetCaughtReading 2018 | Teagan's Books

  15. How fun…Miss Copper…Cornelius…can’t wait to see where this goes…can’t wait to see what Artie does with a road locomotive suddenly appearing on route 66 in front of him…currently reading The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben….have a great weekend and great week….

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

    1. Hi Jacuie. I really want to finish the novel I started about the grown up Copper and Cornelis. So I’m happy you liked this snippet of her today. LOL, everybody has their hands full when Cornelis is around! Thanks for visiting. Hugs!

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

  17. Reblogged this on Smorgasbord – Variety is the spice of life and commented:
    The long awaited return of the co-conspirators Copper and Cornelis Drebbel and the inclusion of the delightful Artie the articulate and erudite ape… of course that is the nom de plume of Chris the Story Reading Ape.. who is joining the ever creative Teagan Geneviene for a new series. Artie Meets the Alchemist. If you are quick off the mark there may even be a FREE ebook for you too.. #recommended

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

  18. I can’t believe how prolific a writer you are, Teagan. A new series. Great start and this collaboration with Chris sounds like it’s going to be a wild one. I’m reading The Bone Curse by blogger and author Carrie Rubin – it’s flying by at a ripping pace! Happy Writing, my friend!

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

    1. You’re so kind, Diana. I don’t feel prolific at all. So many people write a thousand words a day and more. But I’m delighted you liked part 1 of this story. Chris will be too.
      Thanks for letting me know what I caught you reading. The bone Curse sounds great. Happy weekend hugs. 😀

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

    1. That’s wonderful, Robbie. Thanks for letting me know what you’re reading. If you’re doing both at the same time, I’m extra impressed. 😉
      I’m glad you enjoyed part 1. Happy weekend hugs, and again — congrats on your new position.

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

  21. I like the start of this. What we have here is a successful collaboration. “Of course=snoring snorts” LOL. Looks like Copper has grown up for sure. That nub comment surprised me as much as it did Jack. Well, done.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

    1. Thank you, John. Chris will be pleased too.
      Ha! I used the “nub” comment at work many years ago, and shortly found myself talking to my manager. “Seriously?” I asked him. “If that person tries to put their hands on me again, we can all go to HR.” The matter was dropped. (Funny how aggressors always tearfully run to the manager, trying to vilify the other person… A similar thing happened years before that when some foolish (and taller) woman thought it would be funny to walk up behind me and start choking [because she had learned that my psycho-ex used to choke me… she thought she was playing– I wasn’t playing when I told her what might happen if she did that again]… oh the water works!) Anyway that worked just as well for getting things dropped as offering to let Legal decide on matters brought up by glory seeking buttinskies today. 😉
      Aren’t people funny? I could write a book… oh wait… 😉
      Thanks for visiting. Happy weekend hugs!

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

    1. Hi there Joanne. I’m so glad you could visit. You know, I didn’t think of Dr Who until Chris mentioned it. I haven’t seen the new ones in years (since I gave up cable), but I adored the old Tom Baker ones… and I can see it now. We’ll see what kind of trouble this bunch gets into. Happy weekend hugs!

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

  24. Love this post, Teagan!
    I’m reading “Dead on Arrival” (Laura and Gerrie Series, Book 1) by Karen Vaughan. I love her murder/mystery/humor books and highly recommend them.
    Have a wonderful weekend, Teagan! Hugz on owl wings! @v@ ❤

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

  27. Oh my, you can’t imagine my delight to see Copper return! I knew Cornelius was coming but if you mentioned that he was bringing Copper, I missed it. I love her grown-up snark with the alchemist. I don’t know where this is going but I’m all in, Teagan. You’ve set the stage for great adventure.

    I was caught reading “Mazy was Crazy” by Brad Lewis.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

    1. Hey Dan — it’s good to see you. I gave myself this little exercise in untagged dialogue, but it’s just not me.
      No, you didn’t miss anything. I didn’t know Copper would be here until the last minute. I started thinking I needed a third character to bind the 2-author/2-character story together. I thought about who to use (even someone new). Even though the novel is not finished, I chose Copper and Jack from The Skull of the Alchemist.
      Love the title of the book you’re reading.
      Thanks so much for being on this crazy ride! Happy weekend hugs.

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

  28. Thanks for featuring my book, Teagan, and it’s FREE! And is an honor to be featured with such great story and love all the references to other stories I remember. And the images are gorgeous! I’m reading a couple of books, both set in the far-East. One is an ARC copy of a book by Hans Hirschi called ‘Returning the Land of the Morning Calm’ and the other ‘Return to HIroshima’ by Bob Van Laerhoven (I guess coming back to Spain everything is about returning…). Enjoy your weekend and I look forward to more adventures! And thanks to Chris!

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

  29. This is awesome! Wandered over to all the other links and came back here to share and enjoy!
    You’ve caught me reading a book by a name familiar to many bloggers and readers, an ARC of John Howell and Gwen Plano’s collaborative effort, “The Contract”.
    Thanks for making my Saturday, my whole weekend yet again, dear Teagan.
    Mega jackalope (no monkeying around) hugs xoxoxox

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply

    1. Oh wow, I’m envious, Donna! I’m eagerly awaiting the release of the new book from John and Gwen. (Maybe I can get you an arc copy of Bloom — I don’t know how, but I’ll look into it.)
      Thank you so much for taking time to visit here today. Mega hugs right back, my friend. 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

        1. Thank you kindly, Chris. I will. I have the other part of your original for next week. I don’t know yet what I’m going to add. But if I see it going more than two parts, I will let you know. Happy weekend hugs!

          Liked by 1 person

          Reply
  33. Pingback: Artie Meets the Alchemist 1 — #GetCaughtReading 2018 – The Militant Negro™

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