Sci-fi Spotlight on… Extraterrestrial Encounters By Kelli A. Wilkins

Welcome to Mary's Garden. Before we have our guest, here is a fall garden tip for you, from Gardening Know How.

Clean Up Old and Unwanted Growth 
The end of the season is the time to remove your spent vegetable plants, clean up plant debris and

weeds, and winterize your lawn furniture and water features. Some easy autumn garden ideas include raking leaves onto the lawn and mowing them with a grass catcher. The resulting mix of nitrogen and carbon makes an excellent cover for the vegetable garden, which will enhance the fertility in spring and help prevent weeds. You can also use this time to get rid of nuisance plants. Since many of your plants will lose leaves or die back, it is a good time to use a foliar, systemic herbicide on those problem plants like morning glory.

Welcome Kelli A. Wilkins
Sci-fi Spotlight on… Extraterrestrial Encounters

Hi everyone!

Today I’m sharing a look at my newest release, Extraterrestrial Encounters: A Collection of Sci-Fi Stories. Right now you might be asking yourself, “Wait… What? Sci-fi? Don’t you write romances and horror stories?”

Well, yes. I’m mainly known for writing sensual romances and spooky horror fiction, but every so often I like to surprise myself – and readers.

I’ve always been attracted to the unusual, peculiar, and “weird” that exists in the sci-fi and horror genres. I grew up watching Tales from the Dark Side, Amazing Stories, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, The Outer Limits, and of course, The Twilight Zone.

I read every sci-fi and horror short story I could find, and I believed in the Ancient Astronaut Theory long before Ancient Aliens ever aired. So I guess it’s no surprise that when I started writing, I wrote what I loved reading: sci-fi and horror. 

For me, science fiction is imaginative fiction, and it’s fun to make up all sorts of strange things. Sci-fi stories explore anything possible (or that may be possible one day), such as time travel, parallel universes, aliens, lost civilizations, artificial intelligence, robots, cloning, repressed societies, UFOs, mind control, futuristic societies, and more.

Sci-fi authors are free to dream up anything and use it in a story without having to do too much explaining about how or why these unusual or fantastic things are possible. In general, readers of sci-fi/fantasy are more open-minded about different plotlines, characters, and settings than readers of a romance novel, for example. Readers know the story isn’t “real” and most likely couldn’t happen, but they’re fine with that. They enjoy escaping into the world of the fantastic.

I like writing in multiple genres because I get to explore different plots, characters, and styles of writing in a horror or a sci-fi story that I couldn’t do in a romance – and vice versa. After writing a few romances I like to switch up and focus on horror or sci-fi for a while. My horror stories tend to be more psychological and creepy than bloody, and my sci-fi stories are about strange things that happen to ordinary people.

Authors are always asked, “Where do you get your ideas?” so when I wrote Extraterrestrial Encounters, I decided to share a peek at my writing process. I’ve included a brief note at the end of each story in the collection, explaining what inspired me to write it, where I got the idea, or general comments about the plot or characters.

I hope you enjoy these stories. Some are humorous, some will make you think, and others might scare you a bit, but they will all take you on a journey into the realm of the unknown for a little while.

Here is the book summary and buy links.

Extraterrestrial Encounters: A Collection of Sci-Fi Stories

Are you ready to step into the unknown?

In these 18 sci-fi stories, you’ll encounter aliens of all shapes and sizes, curious (and sometimes unlucky) space explorers, and ordinary Earthlings having otherworldly experiences.

Some of the out-of-this-world tales in this short fiction anthology include:

“The Hoax” - A reporter learns that a creature from another planet is a dangerous thing to fool with

“It Grows on You” - A strange kind of mold has invaded an office, and it’s the perfect tool for revenge

 “What Lurks Below” - Everyone knows there’s no life on Mars, but nobody thought about what might be lurking under the surface…

“The Con” - An alien becomes an unlikely ally to a down-on-his-luck petty crook

“Space Cowboy” - When a second-rate rodeo star is abducted by aliens, he makes the most of the situation

 “They Just Keep Eating” - A Nebraska farmer encounters a menace from space… and it’s hungry

This collection of speculative fiction will stimulate your imagination, unnerve you just a little, and make you wonder… “What if we’re not alone?”

Order it here:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07W5JG1DC

All other platforms: https://books2read.com/u/3JVJ9e

I welcome questions and comments from readers. Let me know which story you loved best, which one made you laugh, or why you love reading sci-fi.

You can learn more about all of my current titles on my site, sign up for my newsletter, or follow my blog and social media posts for updates on new releases.

Keep watching the stars!

Kelli A. Wilkins

Author Bio:

Kelli A. Wilkins is an award-winning author who has published more than 100 short stories, 19 romance novels, 5 non-fiction books, and 2 online writing courses. Her romances span many genres and heat levels, and she’s also been known to scare readers with her horror stories.

Kelli released Extraterrestrial Encounters, a collection of 18 sci-fi stories, in August 2019. If you like horror fiction, don’t miss her disturbing novella, Nightmare in the North.

Her latest historical romance, The Viking’s Witch, was released in June 2019. This full-length novel takes place in Celtic Scotland and blends a sensual romance with paranormal elements. 

In March 2019, Kelli published Dangerous Indenture, a historical mystery romance set in Colonial Pennsylvania. She released the second half of her flash fiction series, Cupid’s Schemes, in early 2019. These two volumes of lighthearted mini-romances are perfect reads for a quick lunchtime escape or an after-work indulgence.

Kelli released her latest Teachable mini-course, Fiction Basics: Finding Ideas in February 2019. She authored Fiction Writing for Beginners through Teachable in 2018. These courses are perfect for anyone who wants to learn how to write. Visit: https://kelliwilkins.teachable.com/ for more details.

Kelli posts on her Facebook author page: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorKelliWilkins and Twitter: www.Twitter.com/KWilkinsauthor.

Visit her website www.KelliWilkins.com or blog http://kelliwilkinsauthor.blogspot.com/ to learn more about all of her writings.

Thank you for joining us this week, Kelli! Always fund to have you visit.