Interviewed on the Trans Resister Radio podcast

A few days ago, I was the guest on episode 227 of the Trans Resister Radio podcast. The host, Aaron Franz, and I chatted for a hour on all kinds of esoteric topics: religion, death, non-duality, the meaning of life, paranormal phenomena, and more. You can access the show at the link below (available as an MP3 download or through services like iTunes, Spotify, and others). Enjoy!

http://www.theageoftransitions.com/podcast/183-darryl-sloan-interview-i-universe-trr-227

As always, I ,Universe is available from online bookstores everywhere, including…

Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1910098043
Amazon USA: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1910098043

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Interviewed on the Occulture podcast

I was quizzed on the content of my new book I, Universe as a guest on the Occulture podcast. Here’s a segment from the interview, where I discuss parapsychology and magic with the host. The full talk is over an hour long, available to patrons of the podcast: https://www.patreon.com/occulture

I, Universe is OUT NOW!

It gives me great pleasure to announce the release of my long awaited book, I, Universe. Available to purchase in paperback all over the world:

Skylight Press (UK & USA) | Amazon (UK) | Amazon (USA) | Barnes & Noble (USA) | Waterstones (UK) | Book Depository (UK) | Amazon (Canada) | Amazon (Australia) | Amazon (France) | Amazon (Spain) | Amazon (Germany) | Amazon (Italy) | Amazon (Japan) | Amazon (Brazil) | Amazon (Mexico) | bol.com (Netherlands) | Krisostomus (Estonia)

ISBN: 978-1-910098-04-2

I, Universe cover completed

Skylight Press has completed the cover art for I, Universe. Editing and page layout are done. Won’t be long now. I’m excited!

I, Universe at the proofing stage

My goodness, it’s been almost three years since I posted here. I have, however, been a busy bee in the intervening years over at YouTube, as most of you probably know. Anyway, this is just a quick note to let everyone know that the long-awaited book, I, Universe, is almost here. You’re looking at the final proof, sent to me by the publisher for error checking. I’m excited!

“Black Lotus” – new original music

A couple of weeks ago, I decided to sit down and compose some original music for the first time in ten years (since scoring Don’t Look in the Attic). I tinkered away at this track most evenings, and it was difficult to get it to come together. Sometimes inspiration just hits you, and an entire song will flow from your fingers almost effortlessly. Other times (like this time) it’s a real struggle to construct interesting melodies. Despite putting in a lot of work on this, I couldn’t stretch it beyond about two minutes without feeling like I was padding it out, so I left it short. The end result sounds like the theme tune for an imaginary 1980s television series. If you like the style of music that John Carpenter writes for his own movies, then you might like my little effort. He’s a huge influence on me, along with Tangerine Dream, Depeche Mode, and Gary Numan.

Celebrating one year of biking

One year ago, I purchased a Honda Varadero 125cc. It served me well while I learned to ride, but there came a point where I knew I needed something more – like when I was attempting to ride up a steep mountain road and had to revert to first gear just to make it to the crest! So, I’ve decided to splash out on a brand new Suzuki DL650 V-Strom. The difference in power is amazing. And it’s not that I’m a speed fiend. Cruising is just so much more enjoyable, as the bike is not struggling to maintain speed.

The only downside is that I wanted the bike in a nice satanic black colour, in keeping with my personality, but had to settle for a good Christian white. 😉 Still, it’s beautiful …

One of my favourite authors dies: John Christopher

One of my favourite authors, John Christopher (real name Samuel Youd), died on 3 February, aged 89. I discovered him in the late 1980s, when I happened to borrow The White Mountains from my high school library. To my surprise and delight, I soon realised that I was reading the novel which had been adapted as the television series The Tripods a few years earlier – a series that had such an impact on me that I used to have dreams about it. Christopher’s Tripods saga is comprised of four short novels, which became lifelong favourites of mine, and are given pride of place on my bookshelf as the most read novels.

Christopher is also the author of a fabulous post-apocalyptic disaster novel, The Death of Grass, as well as many other science fiction books for teens and adults. Whichever age group a particular novel was intended for, he always injected his stories with an unapologetic sense of realism about life. A recurring theme in his work was the fight for individualism against mind control. And this perhaps explains my unending fascination with his work. He told an interviewer in 1984:

The apple which tempts my characters is the one that will remove the knowledge of good and evil. I suppose it’s something of a reversal of the conventional Eden story: Freedom of thought is perhaps the greatest good, and needs to be fought for and sacrificed for.

It was my pleasure to correspond briefly with John Christopher a few years ago via email. I had developed an idea for a Tripods spin-off entitled The Freedom Triangle, and was curious about the legal issues involved in publishing it. To my delight, he told me that my idea was highly original. Sadly, though, Disney owned the rights to The Tripods, as a movie adaptation was being planned.

I hope John Christopher’s work will live on, for future generations to enjoy. Check out my reviews of his books.

My new wheels

Is this what a mid-life crisis looks like?

Nahhhh. Truth is I’ve been saving my pennies for the past four years, attempting to pay off my mortgage early, but frankly I’m just in the mood to live a little this summer. Summers are a bit tough on me generally, because I live alone, and due to the nature of my job I work largely alone during July and August. So it’s time to create some change in my life.

For the past four years, I’ve lived life without a car, successfully, and I fully intend to continue doing all my local business by bicycle. But there are just those occasions when I need to travel further afield, and I hate having to leech off friends for this. In particular, I really miss visiting Ballymartin beach, a place that has been a part of my life since I was about twelve.

So, I decided it was time to invest in another mode of transport, one that was more economical than a car. The bike is a Honda Varadero 125cc, which is about as big as you can go on a learner’s licence. I have never ridden a motorcycle before. Wish me luck.

(Long-time readers may remember the mouldy monstrosity that was my old Nissan Terrano 4×4. It’s been sleeping in my driveway for the past four years, and I’m finally sending it to the knackers yard. I even got £200 for it.)

Reality Check reviewed at Self-Publishing Review

Reality Check has just received its first proper review, at Self-Publishing Review, and it’s a great one. Here’s a snippet:

If you find yourself recoiling at the mention of any of these issues – telekinesis, unified consciousness, “disproving” Christianity – then you are the perfect candidate to read this book. You may be equally convinced of your worldview after reading this book, but extraordinary beliefs require an extraordinary investigation, and that concept permeates this book. Sloan does not enter into these ideas lightly. What is so effective is that he’s never overly credulous about far-out claims, nor overly dismissive of mainstream dogma, which is why the book is so useful as a primer on esoteric spirituality … This book is an important one – because even if you don’t believe a word he says, he conveys these ideas with such sincerity and clarity that it has still served a good purpose. If you’re looking for other answers, Reality Check has the potential to be transformative.

[ Read Full Review ]