A good fun time.
There's still a lot going on and I did notice the trips to the apartment this time. Although Nick has a lot of balls in the air and things are happening, his character arc is fairly flat here.
Still reading though, it is thoroughly enjoyable.

(posted from Chapter 4)

After reading Chapter 24 (and enjoying the story thus far) then reviewing the cast list - surely Robert Shilling should have abusive emotional and physically under his traits and background like Martin Burke.

(posted from Cast List)

humdogma wrote:

After reading Chapter 24 (and enjoying the story thus far) then reviewing the cast list - surely Robert Shilling should have abusive emotional and physically under his traits and background like Martin Burke.

Perhaps, but by the time that became relevant for Robert Shilling, he was already a well-established character, and didn't really need further description.

I'll consider adding those traits in during the next cast list update... but do keep in mind that the cast list is really just there to remind you who is who, it's not designed to tell you all about the characters.

Eric Storm

I love the way you write and really love this story. I hope to see more soon.

(posted from Chapter 30)

Once again a killer story from Eric Storm.   Really captivated so far with the world and the adventures of Nick.

Quick NOTE:
no real change needs to be made here as it can be chalked up to Teenagers not really understanding the world..

but
Atheism is NOT a religion. It is a world view, based on skepticism and humanism. But it's more of a philosophy. Atheists do not believe without sufficient empirical evidence.
Furthermore Atheists in general do not believe god does not exist.. They believe that there is insufficient evidence to warrant the belief in a god, or any supernatural claim.

In general the difference between an Atheist and and Agnostic

Atheists have not been presented with sufficient empirical, testable and repeatable evidence to warrant the belief in any supernatural force. A-Theasist. e.g. one without a theology.

Agnostics on the other hand go to knowledge..  They believe that there is something supernatural out there but do not know what that is. e.g. some kind of god exists, but not the ones put forth by most religions.

I myself am an Atheist, and have strong feelings on the matter.  I feel that a great deal of the most awful things in humanity come from Religion.  As an Atheist I believe that it is extremally unlikely that any supernatural thinking entity exists. And I have seen no credible evidence to the contrary.  I do not opine than "God does not exist," because there is no way for me to prove it.  But the time to believe something exists in when sufficient evidence has been presented. and the theory in question has been subjected to adequate testing.

(posted from Chapter 4)

Actually, it seems like you have your definitions somewhat backwards.

Via Merriam Webster:

Agnostic: a person who holds the view that any ultimate reality (such as God) is unknown and probably unknowable

Atheism: a lack of belief or a strong disbelief in the existence of a god or any gods

These are the accepted long-term definitions of these words, which is why I chose to use them in the fashion I did in the book.  I happen to be an Agnostic (by this definition).

As to Atheism being a religion, again I turn to Merriam Webster:
Religion: 3: a cause, principle, or system of beliefs held to with ardor and faith

Faith: 2b: firm belief in something for which there is no proof

Every Atheist I've met holds to their beliefs with a great deal of ardor... and as "There is no God" is also a concept for which there is no proof, that is a matter of faith.  Thus, it meets the definition of a religion.

I realize that many Atheists, such as yourself, would find this offensive, due to their hatred of religion.  That doesn't change my view on the subject.  (Or Nick's.)

I'm glad you've enjoyed the book so far, and I hope you'll continue to enjoy it, especially since Teresa's Atheism plays a very tiny role.

Eric Storm

Webster aside.

All the atheists I know  ( And I know a lot and am myself one )

We all say there is simply no credible evidence to support any supernatural god claim.  Most of us say and mean it, if sufficient credible evidence was made, we would change our positions.. But we have no serious expectation that could or would ever happen.

to...
Religion: 3: a cause, principle, or system of beliefs held to with ardor and faith

Faith: 2b: firm belief in something for which there is no proof

There is ZERO faith involved in being an atheist.. That is the whole point.  Nothing should ever be taken of faith ever.  Some level of proof is needed, and the greater the claim the grater the proof required.

Atheism is the absence of Religion.

Do we have strong feelings..  YES.. but not with regards to being right or wrong specifically, more to the extreme harm that religion has done and continues to do in the world


Thinking on those Entries.

While I agree with

Atheism: a lack of belief or a strong disbelief in the existence of a god or any gods

I strongly disagree with Atheism being described as a Religion ... it's simply no.



None the less, your story, man you do you.

You are fully entitled to your opinion.

But don't expect me to be changing mine, either.  I will always prefer the well-established to the "fashionable", and the words Atheist and Agnostic have had particular meanings for hundreds of years.  That's what I'll stick by.

Eric Storm

I do tend to agree with Eric on this point, at least to a certain point.  Sure there are some that believe they don't follow a  religion as atheists and even the agnostic.  The basic premise and definitions Eric provided for those seem accurate, though I get AP's point of lack of evidence rather than "a lack of belief" though again the definition is open...

AP you put it as "no credible evidence to support any supernatural god claim" which in itself is a "strong disbelief" based on evidence.

As for religion:  Well... lots of things here.  AP, you said: "great deal of the most awful things in humanity come from Religion."  You certainly aren't wrong.  But is that religion or something done based on a set of beliefs?  And yeah, most of those beliefs come from organized religion...  with strong strictures and set belief systems.  Which is often what Religion is seen as... a group with commonly held set of beliefs, strictures and virtues.

Is atheism a religion?  In some ways it can be argued as it is, because it has a common belief: There is no god.  Just not with any other strictures, rules or specific Virtues beyond that one Defining belief.

Religion itself isn't "evil" or one of the bad things, but people that take to the beliefs held by a religion to extremes.

I think this kind of got off the rails, but my point is, does it matter?  Religion, Belief, Virtues. Morals...  these are ALL very personalized concepts.

Hi Eric, It's been five months since the last post in the AoC story line. Is this just a case of writer's block or of life getting in the way of the creative process? (Please tell me you don't live in California.)  Any chance we're close to a new chapter or do we have a while more to wait. (I feel like a kid who just finished Thanksgiving Day dinner and realizes that, from a kid's perspective, Christmas is still a very long way to go.)

Stop exaggerating.  It won't be five months until Saturday.  :-P

I didn't even realize it had been that long since a release.  My life has been a lot of chaos and upheaval since then.  Two hurricanes, health issues, depression... just a lot on my plate at the moment.

I have been writing on AC, and Chapter 31 is well on its way to being finished... but no real indicator of when it will reach that mark.

Eric Storm

PS:  You could not pay me enough money to live in California.

You ask to much and Eric will be tempted to finish it next week but won't release it for another month just to annoy us loyal readers.

Personally, I've stopped checking. I think I last checked last week maybe, but I used to check 2-3 times a day even knowing he would give us a notice it went to the proof readers which notoriously take forever to get it back to him.

Stretchlace wrote:

Hi Eric, It's been five months since the last post in the AoC story line. Is this just a case of writer's block or of life getting in the way of the creative process? (Please tell me you don't live in California.)  Any chance we're close to a new chapter or do we have a while more to wait. (I feel like a kid who just finished Thanksgiving Day dinner and realizes that, from a kid's perspective, Christmas is still a very long way to go.)

You know Eric does his best to gives us readers something new to read at least once a month. It may not be the story that some of the readers want to see more of(WBR for me personally is number 1) but the other stories are a good read also. Like currently we are getting chapters in the Misfits story which has become quite intriguing to me.

Jesus..... THAT was intense :-)

(posted from Chapter 31)

Yay!  A new chapter!  It is a great one too!  Nick can be a vindictive little bastard to people to deserve it and I love it

Thank you for a wonderful read.   Gonna be hard to wait for the next one..

(posted from Chapter 31)

Just finished Chapt 30. Love a good series story. I am looking forward to Valerie's involvement with Nick. If he's doing her Mom, then why not. I also look foward to how the developement of the inventions progresses. So many directions, hard to keep my head on a swivel.

Hi Eric, it's been almost 6 weeks since the last chapter of AoC dropped. I know you have Misfits on a 4-5 week schedule. Am wondering if AoC is running at that frequency or should we expect a longer interval between chapters? Just wondering so I know when to look for new reading material. I am really enjoying both story lines. Thank you for your creative efforts. Also, I apologize for my anticipatory impatience.

(posted from the Item Information Page)

You've been here over four years, and you still think I'm releasing Agent of Change on a schedule?  You'll get chapters when I manage to finish writing them.  The only reason that Misfits is on a schedule is because I had written a large portion of it before starting to release it.  When those pre-written chapters run out, that story's schedule will end, too.

Writing Status Thread
That is the forum thread where I discuss how my writing is going.

Eric Storm

ok, not expecting a schedule, just hoping to see more...Love ya Eric

(posted from the Item Information Page)

please post regular updates or post a schedule on when when we can expect a new chapter.

(posted from Cast List - PRM Chapters)

reaper1963 wrote:

please post regular updates or post a schedule on when when we can expect a new chapter.

We will get new chapters for Agent of Change when he has them ready.
We are at the mercy of his muse and trying to hurry him along does not help his muse inspire him.

reaper1963 wrote:

please post regular updates or post a schedule on when when we can expect a new chapter.

(posted from Cast List - PRM Chapters)

You know, it always amazes me.  Readers seem to think there's some conspiracy among us authors to keep them in the dark about when stories will be available.

Do you really think, if I knew when I was going to release the next chapter, I wouldn't tell you?  I have an entire forum thread devoted to my writing status.

Agent of Change is not on a schedule.  It gets released as it gets finished.  There hasn't been anything released because there hasn't been anything finished.  You are no more impatient for more of the story than I am.  The only difference is, I get to feel the frustration and guilt at not getting it done.  So... maybe have a little patience?

Eric Storm

I can wait for the next chapter(s).  I really hope it's taking so long because you're going to release multiple chapters at once.  I like this even more than "CAMP: Ron's Journey," which I've loved for years.

BoboK wrote:

I really hope it's taking so long because you're going to release multiple chapters at once.

Well, let me burst that bubble right now.

I haven't released multiple chapters of anything all at once since I stopped posting to Usenet, which was a very long time ago.  It's taking so long because I haven't been able to write anything significant in months.

Eric Storm