The Out Campaign: Scarlet Letter of Atheism

ASSAULT ON THE GODS

I originally conceived this book as a way of convincing my then-publisher, Laser Books, to relax their formula slightly. They wanted action/adventure stories with male protagonists, and I was convinced it was possible to write a good action/adventure story with a female protagonist. By the time I had the proposal ready to show, however, Laser Books had decided to shut down their line, so I had to sell this elsewhere.

There is a quote from Philip K. Dick at the beginning of the book. Dick fans may drive themselves crazy trying to track down the source; that's because he said it at a party we were both attending, and I thought it was particularly apropos for this book. As far as I know, the quote has never appeared anywhere else.

I received a letter from one reader who said that the religion I espouse in this book (actually, it's more a system for living than a religion) was the first one he'd ever seen that made any sense, and he wished I'd write more religious works. I told him I was flattered, but that anyone with ethics can probably make more money writing science fiction than writing religion.

One good thing about being a writer is that you get to invent your own Wise Sayings and pass them off as gospel. I started that in this book, and have been adding to the collection over the years. See my Goldin Rules for some examples.

Read a sample of Assault on the Gods.

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