Story Update:
Any fan or creator of good science fiction will tell you a ship is as much a character as a location. The same rings true for Tantalus Depths. It is with great pleasure that I present you with the vessel responsible for bringing our crew to Tantalus 13...and their only hope of escaping it...
 

It’s been their home for half a year. It’s been a reliable ship, and Mary’s piloted it skillfully. But when things become disastrous on Tantalus 13, she and the crew be able to escape in time? Can there be any escape at all from the terrors within Tantalus 13?
Find out, when you order Tantalus Depths...

Tantalus Depths has stumbled upon one of the best support bases I could have hoped for. Thanks to you all, we’ve passed the 600 pre-order mark and are soaring on our way to that final goal. As thanks to you for getting us this far, the first three chapters of Tantalus Depths are now uploaded on Inkshares. If you’d like to read them, here’s a quick link to each:
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
If you missed my video of me reading chapter one, check that out here if it interests you. I’ve just uploaded a reading of chapter 2 as well, chapter 3 to be forthcoming in the near future.

Keep bringing in the support! We’re only a little over two weeks away from the end of the campaign, and have a fair amount of ground left to cover. But we can, and will, get there.

Wednesday updates are becoming my favorite updates. I really enjoy taking a day off my campaigning to throw recommendations at other people’s books that I think really deserve at least as much of your attention as my own.

This week, I want to spotlight M. Robert Randolph’s book, Wings of the Crallow.

In the first paragraph alone, Wings of the Crallow snatches up your attention, then immediately subverts your expectations. This is the kind of experience you can expect to have throughout all of the story currently available to read. The highly symbolic prose of the story’s content lies somewhere between Stephen King’s Dark Tower and ancient epic poetry.  Modern writing terminology doesn’t even properly convey what this story is. It’s not merely a story, it’s a journey. Wings of the Crallow is a timeless, utterly phenomenal story I cannot recommend higher. Pre-order it immediately.

And on a separate note, Tantalus Depths has just passed 600 pre-orders!
 

I’m completely over the moon about this. Tantalus Depths is so close to that finish line...
We still have a lot left to do, but we’ve made it so much farther than most books manage here. I feel destined to reach that sweet, sweet 750. We only have 19 days to get there, though, so everyone get ready for the final push!
Also, as promised, I’ll be releasing chapter 2 as a reward for getting us to 600. Expect me to upload that and my video reading of it some time tomorrow!
You are all such incredible people for getting Tantalus Depths this far. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Character Update:

Ladies and gentlemen, I present you with our final character update for Tantalus Depths. You’ve met the crew of The Diamelen: Mary, Rook, Yancy, Hertz, Becky, Ramanathan and Gorrister.  Now meet the non-human member of this cast of characters: the first to arrive on Tantalus 13, the trailblazer for the entire mission, the supposedly flawlessly loyal AI, SCARAB:

It’s one of the most advanced artificial intelligences ever programmed, specifically designed to meet every human need imaginable. Yet...something is wrong with this one...
What did SCARAB find on Tantalus 13 in those long years before The Diamelen’s arrival? How did its discoveries change it? What secrets is SCARAB keeping from its human masters, and how far will it go to keep them?

Find out when you order Tantalus Depths.

So commences the last leg of our journey to Tantalus 13...
 

That’s right. We’re about to go into our last three weeks of the pre-order campaign, and Tantalus Depths is currently standing at an extremely respectable 595 pre-orders. That full publishing deal is so close, I can smell it in the water.
We also hit a personal goal of mine this weekend. As some of you know, Tantalus Depths started its pre-order campaign on Inkshares as an entrant to the Geek and Sundry Hard Sci-Fi competition, wherein we came in 5th place. Well, this weekend Tantalus Depths officially passed Tal Klein’s The Punch Escrow in current pre-orders.

That’s right. Tantalus Depths now has more pre-orders than the book that won the contest Tantalus Depths lost.

Big thanks to Tal for setting that bar so high and giving me an extra lofty goal to aspire to.
If you haven’t already purchased a copy of his book, please do so. I’d be more than happy to have that bar raised above me again.

Unless I’m mistaken, Tantalus Depths is also the #1 most pre-ordered hard sci-fi book on all of Inkshares now. Another huge honor I barely feel I deserve.

There’s no time to gloat now, though. We still need those 155 pre-orders to hit that final goal (which is, officially, the last goal I have left for this campaign). Remember: when we hit 600 pre-orders, I’m releasing chapter 2 on Inkshares with another video of me reading it. That’s only five orders away right now. Let’s get there today!

Another huge thanks to all the readers, writers, and syndicates who’ve helped get Tantalus Depths where it is right now. We’re going all the way, guys. Don’t lose sight of that prize!

Lore Update:
AIs like SCARAB are a tremendous benefit to modern society, but there was once a time when civilization completely depended on them. Then things went wrong....
 

The dangers posed by a rogue artificial intelligence are too numerous to comprehend. What will Mary Ketch and the crew of The Diamelen do when they find themselves completely at the mercy of one?

Find out when you pre-order Tantalus Depths!  

Time for this week’s spotlight update!
This week I’d like to direct your attention to Proxy, by Rebekka S. Leber:
 

Proxy serves up a complex, thoroughly fleshed-out urban fantasy world with a tone that manages to be both whimsically magical and irreverently sardonic. We’re given a deliciously flawed protagonist, whose superhuman destiny is offset by her extremely human weaknesses. Max Lucas promises to be a new icon in the tradition of hard-bitten reluctant heroines.

If you liked Jessica Jones (and if you didn’t, you must not have seen it yet), Proxy is right down your alley. I can’t wait to see how this train wreck of an antihero chooses to use her powers when she becomes the last hope of a world that’s done nothing for her.

Character update:
Finally, we meet the last member of The Diamelen’s crew. I give you the skilled, yet troubled pilot: our protagonist, Mary Ketch.
 

Mary’s come a long way from home in an attempt to distance herself from the pains of her recent past. She’s lost much, and on the distant frontier world of Tantalus 13...she will find much. Is she ready for what awaits her there? Will she find the assurances she seeks? Can she overcome the dangers, not only those offered by SCARAB and Tantalus 13, but those that come from within?
Find out when you pre-order Tantalus Depths today!

I promised if Tantalus Depths reached 500 pre-orders by July 16, I would upload the first chapter for all to read. Well, as promised, here it is.

I also promised I would upload a special video of me reading it to you. Also as promised, here it is.
 

I hope you all enjoy. It is a shorter chapter, and mainly consists of setting the stage and making introductions to our cast (which is why I chose to use chapter 3 as my main sample chapter instead of chapter 1, since I felt it gave a better impression of the book’s overall tone).
When Tantalus Depths reaches 600 pre-orders, I’ll release chapter 2 and another video reading. I might even throw in a video of me reading chapter 3, if it’s something people want.

Keep up the good work everyone! This insurmountable task is starting to feel really doable. Thanks to all your help, we’ve made it this far. We can make it the rest of the way too.