The Orbital Review
The Orbital Review is a literary journal under Orbital Press that delves into a wide range of topics. Featuring insightful book reviews by D.J. Hoskins, the journal also includes chess analyses, personal essays, reflective pieces, and poems, offering readers a thoughtful blend of literary critique and creative exploration.
Essays
Book Reviews
Poetry
Chess
Short Stories
Book Samples
Photography
Videos
Music
A Co-Author of 30 Books at Princeton
What is it like being a 30-book author at Princeton?
Quite strange. Perhaps historic. I came to Princeton for a couple of reasons: a) safety, b) academics.
What do I mean by safety? Princeton, both the university and the town, are very safe. While I was considering applying to transfer to Ivy League schools, making sure I was in a safe area was a high priority. What was the point of undergoing a rigorous and prestigious education if I ended up dead?
Einstein: His Life and Universe Book Review
I ended up reading this book shortly after watching the movie Oppenheimer. Since I was curious as to what Einsteins involvement with the atomic bomb was.
My Life As Death: Sample Chapter
"Maria Castus, Age 22, Car Accident."
Closing the notebook, the man slips it into his long black cloak.
"I always find those who die tragically, the most amusing." Death mutters, standing on the side of the road.
A dim light flickers in the middle of the highway as the firemen go about their work. Emergency vehicles litter the area, while traffic is escorted around the accident.
War Mice: Sample Chapter
"In war...death is what always happens." Private Eaton's words echo in his own haunted mind. Plagued by the memories of previous tours and dead friends, he strides, eyes closed and unwilling, back onto the battlefield — this time, on a rescue mission. Assault rifle in paw, he is pressured to hold the line for himself and fellow comrades.
Persecution (Dark Light Series, Book 4): Sample Chapter
Persecution: The 4th installment of the Dark Light Series.
Panic (Dark Light Series, Book 3): Sample Chapter
“Chaos to chaos, and peace to peace. To think this is the end, you must first remember your beginning.”
Alex thinks he’s made it. Melissa hopes she’s safe. They will not find rest. Watch closely. The end has yet to come. On a jet, Alex has passed his trial. What awaits is Corpus, an academy that will guide him on the road to self-discovery. The only Oddity to appear in decades, his merit is expected, but an attack is not.
Paralysis (Dark Light Series, Book 2): Sample Chapter
Having great power makes any mage a prime target."
Alex is beaten. Melissa is ambushed. Where do they go from here? Don’t let go. They aren’t ready. Alex is a coward and ignorance is all he knows. On him, Kaiga does not hold back. Information floods him and his mind is pressed for answers, does he have the one they seek? Or will he be deemed worthless?
Paragon (Dark Light Series, Book 1): Sample Chapter
Before there can be peace, there must first be war."
In a parallel world, war is brimming on the horizon, and in a generational conflict between two superpowers, only one can win.
Alex is an outsider, an ordinary teenager from Earth who travels by violent means into a parallel universe where nothing is the same, and everything is created by magic. His gift lies in his trauma, and unlocking it presents the key to unimaginable power he was never ready for. Pulled into the center of a vengeful struggle of hatred and despair, he is forced to grow up from a boy to a man when exposed to the cost of war. To him, what side he is on does not matter so long as the suffering ends.
An Expanding Universe
If the above is true, do I live in infinity?
I have always wondered this. Is the night sky beyond... farther than what man can comprehend?
Understanding Kafka's Pain
Kafka's only problem far as I can tell, was his reluctance to resign.
With every writer, there is the fact that they're inherently doomed to obscurity. Whether it be today, or tomorrow. This moment, or next century. They will rise, and they will fall. For the world is destined to forget us all.
Why I Go To The Chess Club
After writing 30 books, l've become completely unrelatable.
When I was young, I used to believe that intelligence was everything. That anything could be overcome with enough thinking, enough effort, and enough hard work.
To Go Still, Forever
The grass bends,
It leans,
It breaks.
The Dangers Of Hyper-intellectualism
Too much, or too little always proves destructive to an organism overtime.
My intellect has become obese. Too large, too copious to handle. Crushing from the outside in, it's suffocating. For its gravity is too strong, a powerful implosion of force increasingly compressing inward.
How To Prevent School From Destroying Your Creativity
All you need is 5 minutes a day. If you can find a way to write for just 5 minutes every single day, you’ll begin forming a bubble of thought.
What school does to crush a persons creativity is called, “flooding.”
Why Is The Pen Mightier Than The Sword?
Because the pen, commands.
Within every organization, policies are written, doctrines are crafted, mandates are created, and orders are executed. Without the written word, the sword is useless. For its power is deemed null and void without clear direction.
Why I Workout To Write - Training And Resilience
When it comes to writing, working out is heavily integrated into the process. At the minimum, I'll cut out time to go at least twice a week. Why?
Well, because health is wealth. Meaning that if I fall ill, my writing productivity will take a substantial hit. Something of which is an absolute no, no, if I want to continue pushing my ideas out into the world.
My Life As Time
I got the idea about a week ago to write a book called, “My Life as Time,” wherein Space, Time, Mass, Light alongside several other abstractions talk to one another and discuss/demonstrate how time dilation works. So far, I’ve managed to complete chapter one. Which basically personifies time and mass within the singularity of a blackhole.
The Charade Of Formal Education
its strange those moments
when I take a break
where homework creeps
and time goes out of window
I sit here stolid, so sad and frail
We Cannot Be Decent
We are trembling under the burden of success. The desire for success, the beg for want of resources, for status, and perhaps most of all: respect. I remember looking at a co-worker once, who was quite the insidious individual when he could get away with it.
Humble And Humbled
Reality is far darker than I once imagined.
When you are a child, you believe you can have the world
that you can have anything
Can do anything
Be anyone and perhaps too, run the world