Official website of writer James J. Caterino, the author of "Fantastic Stories: Season 2", "The Girl from the Stars", the "Caitlin Star" series, and much more.
Monday, December 30, 2019
Year in Review: My published works of 2019
It was a year of short stories, novelettes, and novellas, highlighted by a short story collection, a new published sketchbook, and a new novel, "The Girl from the Stars". Thank you to everyone who purchased and read. Hope you enjoyed my work and looking forward to another creative and prolific year in 2020.
Monday, December 16, 2019
Sketchbook 5
I have a new art book out, "Sketchbook 5: The Art of James J. Caterino". Available in a glossy and glorious 8.5x11 paperback and on Amazon Kindle. The beautifully packaged paperback is a wonderful Christmas gift for lovers of cool artwork and illustration.
From the back cover:
James J. Caterino, the author of over thirty published works, including "The Girl from the Stars", "Fireflies", and "Fantastic Stories", has opened up his sketchbook in this colorful art book of cover illustrations, pop culture drawings and femme fatale sketches.
Tuesday, December 3, 2019
The Girl from the Stars
"The Girl from the Stars" now available in paperback and on Kindle.
Back cover summary:
Anna Payton is a career woman, a mother, and a wife, living an ordinary existence in suburban South Florida. Then one night, during a wave of UFO sightings, she has a close encounter with something from beyond this world. Everything changes.
She experiences missing time. She begins to have haunting visions of her twin sister April, a sister who tragically died in a boating accident twenty-seven years earlier at the age of thirteen.What happened to Anna during her close encounter and what does it have to do with her long dead twin sister? Anna needs to find out, no matter what the cost. As she digs deeper into the mystery of what it all means, she experiences something more wondrous, and more dangerous, than anything she could have ever imagined.
Filled with wonderful characters and unforgettable moments, “The Girl from the Stars” is an addictive, page-turning, suspenseful, epic UFO thriller from the imagination of James J. Caterino, the author of “Watch the Skies”, “Fireflies”, and “Fantastic Stories”.
Wednesday, November 6, 2019
The marketing of James J. Caterino
Check out my new Redbubble shop featuring some of my artwork and book covers available in a wide variety of eye-catching formats and super cool products, including t-shirts, prints, posters, phone and tablet cases, dresses, mini-skirts, and even a shower curtain for God's sake. Just about everything you can imagine. Great gift ideas!
Also, don't forget about by Etsy store, featuring gorgeous,metallic, signed prints, and exclusive copies of personally autographed books.
Also, don't forget about by Etsy store, featuring gorgeous,metallic, signed prints, and exclusive copies of personally autographed books.
Tuesday, August 27, 2019
Friday, August 23, 2019
Action, imagination, and heart: The best of James J. Caterino
I'm all about lists. I haven't done one on myself in a while, and have had a lot of new stuff come out since then. So, it's time for an update.
If someone asks me which one of my books or stories I would recommend, of course, I would strongly insist they read all thirty-three published works. But if I had to pick just five, like if my life depended on it or something, then these would be my top five.
Watch the Skies
Both epic and inmate, this sprawling story spans several decades and tells the UFO story through the lives of three female characters, and the dramatic consequences of their close encounters, as their lives become changed forever.
Bottom line: If you have any interest in the UFO phenomenon, enjoy multi-generational stories, or are a fan of "Close Encounters of the Third Kind", "E.T.", or "The X-Files", then you will absolutely love "Watch the Skies".
Fireflies
The year is 1983 and something strange is going on in Cross Creek, Pennsylvania.After a devastating family tragedy, Emma moves across the country at the start of her freshman year of high school. Grief-stricken, isolated, and harassed by local bullies, she is feeling lost and lonely. One day, she takes a shortcut home from school through the woods and encounters a group of strange, otherworldly, flying orbs of light that she dubs “the fireflies”.
She feels a deep connection to them as her interaction with the fireflies continues, bringing her new hope, wonder, startling insights, and horrific dangers beyond anything she could have imagined.
Bottom Line: If "Watch the Skies" is my "Close Encounters of the third Kind", then "Fireflies is my E.T.".
Starfighter
Everyone has a favorite TV show. For Lieutenant Alex Bell that show was a short-lived action adventure space opera called “Among the Stars”. It was much more than just a television series to Alex. It offered her escape during her adolescence. It even inspired her to become a Navy fighter pilot. Then one day, the show became her real life.
Bottom line: Although this is a short story (technically a novelette at just under 20,000 words), it is available in a 55 page paperback, as well as on Kindle. If you like space opera TV shows such "Star Trek", "The Orville", "Battlestar Galactica", "Buck Rogers", etc, then you will love "Starfighter".
Caitlin Star: The Trilogy
Part animal. Part legend. All woman.
Caitlin Star: The Trilogy, is a collection of the first three action-packed books in the controversial Caitlin Star series, collected in one volume for the first time ever. All three books are newly edited and contain brand new, never before read scenes. Also included is a ten page sketchbook of illustrations by the author, all exclusive to this special-edition collection.
Bottom line: Extending my Spielberg film analogy from above, this would be my "Indiana Jones" series. But a more accurate film franchise comparison might be "Planet of the Apes" (the 2011-2017 reboot). Or perhaps, this would be my "Game of Thrones."
Fantastic Stories
A girl from the year 2080 travels back in time to the present to save us from ourselves in the mind-blowing epic “Super 8 Images: A Time Travel Story”.
An illustrator at an ad agency creates a drawing of a woman taking a selfie for a smart phone ad campaign. Then he comes across a real-life, living version of the exact same woman in “The Selfie”, a romantic science fiction thriller.
Sixteen year-old babysitter Gina Zeneski takes the kids for a day at the amusement park and gets more than she bargained for in “Rollercoaster”, a pulse-pounding story of harrowing action.
A weekend road trip turns into a chamber of horrors for four college students in “The Rally”, a relentless tale of terror and suspense.
Carlos is the film critic for the Miami Herald. His life is all about the movies. But now, he is about to experience a cinematic plot twist that will change everything.
Read these page-turning tales of imagination and more in “Fantastic Stories”, a collection of science fiction, action-adventure, and suspense stories, in the tradition of anthology shows such as “The Twilight Zone”, “The Outer Limits”, “Amazing Stories”, and “Black Mirror”.
Bottom Line: Okay, I am kind of cheating here, because this is really eight picks in one. But that is exactly what makes this book so awesome. You get eight exciting, wildly entertaining stories in one slick, beautifully designed package.
If someone asks me which one of my books or stories I would recommend, of course, I would strongly insist they read all thirty-three published works. But if I had to pick just five, like if my life depended on it or something, then these would be my top five.
Watch the Skies
Both epic and inmate, this sprawling story spans several decades and tells the UFO story through the lives of three female characters, and the dramatic consequences of their close encounters, as their lives become changed forever.
Bottom line: If you have any interest in the UFO phenomenon, enjoy multi-generational stories, or are a fan of "Close Encounters of the Third Kind", "E.T.", or "The X-Files", then you will absolutely love "Watch the Skies".
Fireflies
The year is 1983 and something strange is going on in Cross Creek, Pennsylvania.After a devastating family tragedy, Emma moves across the country at the start of her freshman year of high school. Grief-stricken, isolated, and harassed by local bullies, she is feeling lost and lonely. One day, she takes a shortcut home from school through the woods and encounters a group of strange, otherworldly, flying orbs of light that she dubs “the fireflies”.
She feels a deep connection to them as her interaction with the fireflies continues, bringing her new hope, wonder, startling insights, and horrific dangers beyond anything she could have imagined.
Bottom Line: If "Watch the Skies" is my "Close Encounters of the third Kind", then "Fireflies is my E.T.".
Starfighter
Everyone has a favorite TV show. For Lieutenant Alex Bell that show was a short-lived action adventure space opera called “Among the Stars”. It was much more than just a television series to Alex. It offered her escape during her adolescence. It even inspired her to become a Navy fighter pilot. Then one day, the show became her real life.
Bottom line: Although this is a short story (technically a novelette at just under 20,000 words), it is available in a 55 page paperback, as well as on Kindle. If you like space opera TV shows such "Star Trek", "The Orville", "Battlestar Galactica", "Buck Rogers", etc, then you will love "Starfighter".
Caitlin Star: The Trilogy
Part animal. Part legend. All woman.
Caitlin Star: The Trilogy, is a collection of the first three action-packed books in the controversial Caitlin Star series, collected in one volume for the first time ever. All three books are newly edited and contain brand new, never before read scenes. Also included is a ten page sketchbook of illustrations by the author, all exclusive to this special-edition collection.
Bottom line: Extending my Spielberg film analogy from above, this would be my "Indiana Jones" series. But a more accurate film franchise comparison might be "Planet of the Apes" (the 2011-2017 reboot). Or perhaps, this would be my "Game of Thrones."
Fantastic Stories
A girl from the year 2080 travels back in time to the present to save us from ourselves in the mind-blowing epic “Super 8 Images: A Time Travel Story”.
An illustrator at an ad agency creates a drawing of a woman taking a selfie for a smart phone ad campaign. Then he comes across a real-life, living version of the exact same woman in “The Selfie”, a romantic science fiction thriller.
Sixteen year-old babysitter Gina Zeneski takes the kids for a day at the amusement park and gets more than she bargained for in “Rollercoaster”, a pulse-pounding story of harrowing action.
A weekend road trip turns into a chamber of horrors for four college students in “The Rally”, a relentless tale of terror and suspense.
Carlos is the film critic for the Miami Herald. His life is all about the movies. But now, he is about to experience a cinematic plot twist that will change everything.
Read these page-turning tales of imagination and more in “Fantastic Stories”, a collection of science fiction, action-adventure, and suspense stories, in the tradition of anthology shows such as “The Twilight Zone”, “The Outer Limits”, “Amazing Stories”, and “Black Mirror”.
Bottom Line: Okay, I am kind of cheating here, because this is really eight picks in one. But that is exactly what makes this book so awesome. You get eight exciting, wildly entertaining stories in one slick, beautifully designed package.
Monday, August 19, 2019
Epic action of 'The Eco-Warrior' now available as part of 'Fantastic Stories'
The wickedly intense short story "The Eco-Warrior" is now available as part of the anthology "Fantastic Stories", and as a stand-alone story on Amazon Kindle.
Alycia is on the trip of a lifetime. She is deep in the rain forest of the Congo Basin, conducting field research for her doctoral thesis in Anthropology. She leads a team of fellow students and a professor. All is going well until they come across a murderous group of poachers who hold them at gunpoint, determined to torment the group of academics before leaving them for dead. Things get ugly and all appears lost, until, a mysterious bare-chested man appears, giving the poachers more than they bargained for.
They say he lost someone in one of the countless American mass shootings. They say he snapped, hoisted a NRA stooge Senator over his head, tossed him like a rag doll, and was sent to jail. They say he came to the Congo to escape humanity, and protect the last patch of paradise on Earth. They call him the Eco-Warrior.
John Kregar is, the Eco-Warrior.
Alycia is on the trip of a lifetime. She is deep in the rain forest of the Congo Basin, conducting field research for her doctoral thesis in Anthropology. She leads a team of fellow students and a professor. All is going well until they come across a murderous group of poachers who hold them at gunpoint, determined to torment the group of academics before leaving them for dead. Things get ugly and all appears lost, until, a mysterious bare-chested man appears, giving the poachers more than they bargained for.
They say he lost someone in one of the countless American mass shootings. They say he snapped, hoisted a NRA stooge Senator over his head, tossed him like a rag doll, and was sent to jail. They say he came to the Congo to escape humanity, and protect the last patch of paradise on Earth. They call him the Eco-Warrior.
John Kregar is, the Eco-Warrior.
A girl from the year 2080 travels back in time to the present to save us from ourselves in the mind-blowing epic “Super 8 Images: A Time Travel Story”.
An illustrator at an ad agency creates a drawing of a woman taking a selfie for a smart phone ad campaign. Then he comes across a real-life, living version of the exact same woman in “The Selfie”, a romantic science fiction thriller.
Sixteen year-old babysitter Gina Zeneski takes the kids for a day at the amusement park and gets more than she bargained for in “Rollercoaster”, a pulse-pounding story of harrowing action.
A weekend road trip turns into a chamber of horrors for four college students in “The Rally”, a relentless tale of terror and suspense.
Carlos is the film critic for the Miami Herald. His life is all about the movies. But now, he is about to experience a cinematic plot twist that will change everything.
Read these page-turning tales of imagination and more in “Fantastic Stories”, a collection of science fiction, action-adventure, and suspense stories, in the tradition of anthology shows such as “The Twilight Zone”, “The Outer Limits”, “Amazing Stories”, and “Black Mirror”.
An illustrator at an ad agency creates a drawing of a woman taking a selfie for a smart phone ad campaign. Then he comes across a real-life, living version of the exact same woman in “The Selfie”, a romantic science fiction thriller.
Sixteen year-old babysitter Gina Zeneski takes the kids for a day at the amusement park and gets more than she bargained for in “Rollercoaster”, a pulse-pounding story of harrowing action.
A weekend road trip turns into a chamber of horrors for four college students in “The Rally”, a relentless tale of terror and suspense.
Carlos is the film critic for the Miami Herald. His life is all about the movies. But now, he is about to experience a cinematic plot twist that will change everything.
Read these page-turning tales of imagination and more in “Fantastic Stories”, a collection of science fiction, action-adventure, and suspense stories, in the tradition of anthology shows such as “The Twilight Zone”, “The Outer Limits”, “Amazing Stories”, and “Black Mirror”.
Friday, August 16, 2019
'The Pledge' is a relentless action noir
Fueled by the ugly rhetoric of a new leader, the cold civil war in America escalates until it splits the nation into two separate countries. Champion sprinter and Olympic hopeful Jasmine Pulp is trapped on the wrong side of the dividing line. She must now utilize all of her physical skills and mental toughness to survive behind enemy lines, in hope of escaping this dystopian fascist nightmare, and reuniting with her family on the other side.
“The Pledge” is a harrowing piece of relentless action noir by James J. Caterino, the author of “Starfighter”, “Fireflies”, and “Fantastic Stories”.
Friday, July 19, 2019
'Starfighter: Through the Looking Glass', rousing space opera fun
I have a new story out, “Starfighter: Through the Looking Glass”, now available on Amazon Kindle and in paperback.
“Starfighter" is a rousing, meta space opera adventure. If you are a fan of “The
Orville”, “Star Trek”, “Battlestar Galactica”, “Buck Rogers”, “Lost in Space”, etc.,
then you will love “Starfighter”.
From the back cover:
Everyone has a favorite TV show. For
Lieutenant Alex Bell that show was a short-lived action adventure space opera
called “Among the Stars”. It was much more than just a television series to
Alex. It offered her escape during her adolescence. It even inspired her to
become a Navy fighter pilot. Then one day, the show became her real life.
“Starfighter” is an exhilarating joyride
of bold, imaginative fiction from James J. Caterino, the author of “Fantastic
Stories”, “Fireflies”, and “Watch the Skies”.
Sunday, July 7, 2019
'Fireflies', a moving, suspenseful story of the fantastic
The year is 1983 and something strange is going on in Cross Creek, Pennsylvania.After a devastating family tragedy, Emma moves across the country at the start of her freshman year of high school. Grief-stricken, isolated, and harassed by local bullies, she is feeling lost and lonely. One day, she takes a shortcut home from school through the woods and encounters a group of strange, otherworldly, flying orbs of light that she dubs “the fireflies”. She feels a deep connection to them as her interaction with the fireflies continues, bringing her new hope, wonder, startling insights, and horrific dangers beyond anything she could have imagined.
In the tradition of the films of Amblin Entertainment, “Fireflies” is a moving, suspenseful story of the fantastic from James J. Caterino, author of the acclaimed UFO epic “Watch the Skies”, “The Last Neanderthal”, and the “Caitlin Star” series.
Sunday, May 26, 2019
Caterino Books and Art
Check out my new Esty shop, Caterino Books and Art.
Available right now: A personalized, signed copy of "Fantastic Stories" for $10, and a wide variety of pristine, 11x14 inch metallic prints of original artwork for only $15. All domestic orders (within the U.S.) ship for free!
Available right now: A personalized, signed copy of "Fantastic Stories" for $10, and a wide variety of pristine, 11x14 inch metallic prints of original artwork for only $15. All domestic orders (within the U.S.) ship for free!
Sunday, May 19, 2019
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