There are some niggling plot holes in almost any story. Even if it’s just a coincidence that defies our suspension of disbelief. Then there’s the plot holes that seem to negate an entire book, film, or maybe even a franchise.

I like plot holes. I enjoy looking for them, I like finding them, I get a kick out of debating them with others. Here’s a look back at some of the great science fiction/fantasy plot holes of yore in honor of my completely plot-hole-less Molly Fyde series:

Star Wars

Can’t remember where I saw this one, but it was a hilarious online comic strip of some sort. Dude tells his friend if he was a Jedi, he would totally destroy all the other Jedis. Not because he’d be faster, or have extraordinary skills — he’d just use the force to switch off their light sabers.

And that’s the problem with the force. Too powerful. You have to pretend it’s not there 99% of the time to generate any sort of tension. I mean, if you can toss around huge chunks of metal machinery (or lift a sogging wet X-Wing), you should have no problem plucking out eyeballs, collapsing tracheas, bursting hearts, snapping bones, holding eyelids shut, turning people’s guns and sabers on themselves, etc…

Lord of the Rings (Mature Language)

‘Nuff said.

Star Trek (The new one)

This applies to most time travel films wherein the future is actually able to be modified. Why go back in time to punish people for some heinous deed? Why not go back and stop it (and THEN punish them for having committed the offense in some alternate reality)? As much as I loved Star Trek (and LOTR & Star Wars), Parsona could fly through this hole sideways. It also seemed weird that the Klingons couldn’t shoot up the drilling rig when it seemed pretty vulnerable to attack.

More as I think of ‘em…

Yay! Despite being nominated a full TEN DAYS after voting began, MOLLY FYDE AND THE PARSONA RESCUE came in first place behind the winner. I think they call that second place, but whatever.

It was a meteoric rise, and I owe it to all of you, my loyal fans and voters. We started off in 80-something-th place and kept climbing, climbing, climbing, all the way to first place behind the winner.

Unreal.

Oh, and here’s my little badge for placing in the top 10:

Click here for the final results.

Well, the Great Giveaway has officially ended, a massive thanks goes out to all the participants. Every entry had all five questions correct, which makes me suspect the quiz may have been a tad too easy. Next time it won’t be open book, or the questions will be in Latin, or something.

So now, I’d like to congratulate the winners. The first winner appears to be a team (just going by the names in the email). Amy & Jerry, you will soon have a signed copy of MOLLY FYDE AND THE PARSONA RESCUE heading your way. Our second winner is Christopher. Congrats!

I hope you all enjoy the rest of the book as much as the part you sampled, and I trust everyone else had fun participating and received their consolation prizes.

The Molly series is chock-full of hidden themes, repeated messages, homages to genre classics, and much more. Even with repeated readings, there’s no way fans could possibly tease it all out. That’s what I’m here for. To let you know it’s there.

A few things to look out for as you read these books:

How are the endings of each novel similar to the beginnings? How are they different?

What’s with the use of the Cyrillic round omega symbol? How would this relate to the structure of each book? What about Drenard?

How do the characters match up with those from The Wizard of Oz? Would a heart really fix what’s wrong with the tin man? Were Edison’s actions cowardly, or a different sort of heroic? What does my scarecrow say about conspiracy theorists?

Why do the epilogues share the same name as the overall book? Do other sections better qualify for the title? How many “Parsona Rescue’s” are there in book one? How many “Lands of Light” in book two?

What themes are covered in each book? Is there a pattern?

Why is one of the roman numeral page numbers in Land of Light a different size?

What in the world is bothering me in my author photographs?

That’s right, free copies of Molly Fyde and the Parsona Rescue! Two of them. Signed. And winning them couldn’t be more fun.

Here’s what you do to start your literary adventure: head over to the ResAliens blog. There, you’ll collect your first of three portions of The Parsona Rescue. Follow the trail and it’ll lead you to the other two portions and some questions about what happens in the story. Answer those questions and turn them in as your entry into the contest.

Every participant wins something: a bonus portion of the book to download and enjoy, PLUS a coupon for half off the digital version of the awesome sequel, Molly Fyde and the Land of Light. How cool, eh? Well, enough teasing … go to ResAliens and get started!

And tell your friends!