extras
A who, what, when, where, and why:
An Author’s Passion. Robert P. Francis tells about writing Eclipsia (2008 LuLu.Com).
I have to be honest and tell you Eclipsia, which I originally called The Awakening of Eclipsia, was born of a mixture of anger, frustration, and pent up creativity needing expression. In January of 2007, I was working at a miserable dead end job that was robbing me of my mind, body and spirit. My friend and co-author Joleen was experiencing that as well only coupled with severe Epileptic seizures. I wondered what good were all those years of formal education, what good were all the sacrifices I made and those that others made on my behalf, what good had I done with my life? I decided to turn it all around. The world was saying to me you are going to be this and do this and I was fed up. I wanted better for my friend, others, and myself. I wanted to be an author.
One stressful evening I thought to myself, “This is a turned inside out world. A world in eclipse of what it is meant to be.” From that premise, I began writing and then the ideas started piling up. My co-author Joleen and I starting meeting at my home to brainstorm. For two solid years, we were caught up in the tears, joys, humor, and importance of it all.
There were many modern “evils” we wanted to confront and challenge readers to think about, like environmental destruction, unfair labor practices, and corporate greed. We wanted to express concern for what we see as a growing problem: people’s disconnection with each other and inability to relate directly to one another and the environment. What better way to bring our messages home than a fun-filled fantasy sci-fi fairytale.
We fell in love with our characters: Axreal whose own “seizures” take her somewhere fantastic and into the unknown, Jerish whose boyish ability to jump right in without hesitation saves the day, Marshall who overcomes great adversity leaves a mark even after death, and Lorese who gets her revenge! We sincerely hope readers will benefit and enjoy our novel of rebirth, transformation, and hope.
-Author Robert P Francis
ECLIPSIA AND RODDENBERRY PRODUCTIONS:
Review of "Eclipsia" written by Robert Francis and Joleen Bartles
By: Dr. Ruby Moon-Houldson
12/12/2009
Eclipsia
Robert Francis and Joleen Bartles
2008 by LuLu
ISBN 9780615255132
This book was sent to Roddenberry's people who then forwarded the book to me to read and review (I agreed to do so). So, if you have a book you feel is great enough to warrant receiving a review, please do contact the people here at Roddenberry.com and they will see that I get the message---or the book. 
Book Summary:
Axreal and Jerish make a fantastic escape to all that remains of their environmentally devastated world. They set out hoping to survive and along their journey they discover themselves, what it is to have a heart, and they learn that it is not enough to want better just for yourself: Dignity must be returned for all. Good and evil clash, powers shift, and the universal economy hangs in the balance!
Review of the Book:
This book seemed like a cross between “The Dark Crystal” and “Mission to Mars”. The main characters are Axreal and Jerish (alien beings called Setiacotions), CreXan (a Lam Warron), and Torbot (a gel-like creature with several arms).
Axreal and Jerish are enslaved by the Lam Warrons and work in an assembly line type processing plant. The Setiacotions and other races born on Eclipsia are kept enslaved by being kept in tubulars where they were given small rations of food. Their minds were controlled with gases so they would be kept weak and docile. The “System” controlled all aspects of the process. Whenever a slave became a liability and lived past their usefulness, they were killed.
CreXan is the overlord of the processing plan on Eclipsia. Axreal and Jerish discover they can escape from their tubulars where they are imprisoned when not working the processing line. They venture to the surface of Eclipsia and discover they can survive there. The planet had been ravaged by the Lam Warriors for hundreds upon hundreds of years until it was a wasteland. However, the land was healing itself and did indeed support life—which Axreal and Jerish came to find out. With the help of their new friend, Torbot, they pull together as a team to rally strength and courage in order to free their enslaved race. And unbeknownst to them, they receive a little help from inside the processing plant.
The story revolves around how Axreal and Jerish try to accomplish the seemingly impossible task.
I wasn’t overly enthralled by this book but did find it interesting. I read the book in about 3 ½ hours. If you do enjoy a story that takes you beyond our solar system, then this may be the book for you. (I do wish to share that the writers report that a sequel is in the works.)
Author: Dr. Ruby Moon-Houldson
Ruby loves to read medical thrillers, sci-fi, and paranormal books. She likes to write within those genres as well--with several of her books having received awards and earning exceptional reviews.
www.rubymoon.ning.com
