Greg Chen's latest update for The Cora Chronicles: Genesis

Oct 26, 2015

Howdy,

There have been a few significant changes to the inkshares funding structure. But how does this affect The Cora Chronicles: Genesis? 

Well, 1 of 2 things may happen... I can choose to stay with the current funding structure and keep the pricing to a ridiculously low $10 (but needing 1,000 sales) or move to the new structure which will see the price DOUBLE to $20 (but only needing 750). I'm still mulling on the options, but one thing's for sure... between now and the 30th October, the book is a guaranteed bargain at $10 + FREE shipping

So, for those of you who were wanting get your hands on a copy of the book, NOW is the time to take advantage of the heavily discounted price of $10!! 

To further persuade you to order TCCG at this discounted price, let me give you a snippet of what you can expect from Cora, the book's AWESOME main character and female protagonist: 

 ***

Cora dropped to the ground and rolled laterally. Within her mind, she had built a virtual environment of her surroundings, and within it, both enemy soldiers. In this environment, she had access to every available detail of every object in range, from the two aggressors and down to the concrete debris on the ground.  She knew exactly where everything was and more importantly, she knew exactly what the two soldiers were going to do.  Somehow, her mind had split into multiple instances, and within each instance, a distinct scenario played out.  From this information, she could predict with precision, how the most likely events will unfold. What was even more astounding was that her mind had done all this in its own accord even before the two soldiers had registered her presence.

The first one reached for his hip to pull out a blade, thinking it would be an easy task given most jins were non-combatants. Cora instantly recognized the metallic signature of the hand-held weapon. It had a very distinct lattice structure, and she could actually feel its presence! It was quite an unusual sensation. The young jin shortened the distance between herself and the first soldier, moving with deft speed. The enemy soldier unsheathed his blade and slashed upwards in anticipation. But where he was expecting to make contact, his weapon only sliced through the air. Cora had predicted his action and tilted her head just enough to avoid the slicing sharp edge. She came to within centimeters of the first soldier before she stopped (by locking her heels), reversed her momentum, back flipped and connected the ball of her foot with the soldier's jaw. It was all the time she could spare to keep the first soldier off-balance.

The second soldier realized what had transpired and arrived at the same conclusion as anyone would in his position - she was a lethal weapon. He started spraying his weapon in Cora's general direction, thinking that one of his shots would eventually cut her down but Cora was already in the air executing an aerial cartwheel. She had predicted the pattern of the enemy fire, and had vaulted at exactly the right moment to avoid every single projectile flying towards her. She felt her leading leg connect with the soldier's face, sending him tilting backwards but with just enough force so that he did not fall backwards. Her intention was to keep him within striking range when she landed. 

The soldier stumbled a few step backwards but quickly regained his attention, but all he could see was the back of the jin's head. Cora had twisted her torso mid-air and landed such that they were both facing in the same direction. Additionally, one of her legs had extended rearwards, penetrating the space between the soldier's thighs (the other was bent at the knee). His first reaction was to wrap his arm around her neck, given that she had presented the opportunity so readily. His position was tactically more advantageous, but he had not counted on Cora's speed and agility. She was fast. Very fast. She covered her left fist with her right hand and accelerated her elbow powerfully into the soldier's abdomen in one fluid motion, causing him to arch forward involuntarily with the sudden impact. Then, in one swift movement, she jerked her left elbow violently upwards into the bottom of his jaw. Crack! 

Cora reached behind her and felt for the hilt of the soldier's blade before his motionless corpse could even collapse. She flicked the weapon outwardly with her fist, letting her hand extend in full as she released her grip at the right moment. Behind her, the first soldier clutched at the blade, which was cleanly stuck into his carotid. He made a futile attempt to dislodge it but was near useless as his life force began ebbing away as he fell. 

The young jin stared at the ground intently, coming to terms with what she had just done. She had dispatched two trained soldiers in under 30 seconds. 

*** 

So there it is, Cora in action. It still needs polishing, and a fresh set of eyes to look over but my book is filled with similarly detailed and visual fight scenes. If this hasn't drawn you in further into the story, there's more... 

What? There's more?

Yes! If you pre-order 3 copies or more and become a SENTINEL backer, I will immortalize your name in the book! Have I gotten your attention now? Well, just know that the sooner you jump off the fence and pre-order 3 copies, the sooner you'll find out how I plan to do this. (I will send a personalized email after the 30th to reveal this detail to the SENTINEL backers only) Now, for those of you who have already ordered 1 or 2 copies, all you need to do is top up your order to 3 to enjoy the above privilege. Easy peasy!

(And for those who are just going for the 1 copy... well, you're just missing out)

 Ok, finally, here are some important updates worth mentioning: 

  • I have recently commissioned a graphics designer Ezra Nathaniel to design a NEW cover art for the book. How awesome will that be? I've been told that I will be able to showcase some preliminary work in 2-3 days time, so stay tuned. 
  • I am also in the process of getting the first couple of chapters looked over by the good folks at apotheosisstudios.com (run by my mate Jamison Stone, author of Rune of the Apprentice) and plan to release these chapters soonish. 

So, while you're sitting down at home contemplating on the various shaped lemons you got from life and what to do with them... why don't you head over to TCCG's page and pledge your support for this awesome sci-fi adventure?