Tantalus Depths has just received one of the biggest conceivable honors it could have been given on Inkshares.
I am indescribably honored to announce that Tantalus Depths has been selected as the July pick by the Break the Bechdel with Strong Female Characters Syndicate.
 
I’ve mentioned this before, but it bears mentioning again now: one of the primary reasons why Tantalus Depths was written in the first place was to create a story with a strong female lead. I wanted to do my part to break the gender imbalance in sci-fi media. I wanted to write a female lead that could inspire and impress male and female readers alike. I took great pains throughout the entire writing process to make Mary Ketch feel like a real person, her experiences relatable and accessible.
To be honored by the Bechdel Syndicate is to be assured that I have, at least in part, realized my goal. Truthfully, this moment is almost as important to me as earning my full publication goal. If Tantalus Depths hadn’t been worthy of an honor like this, in my own eyes it wouldn’t be worthy of publication either.
With the support of the Bechdel Syndicate, Tantalus Depths is now ahead of schedule. We’re only 214 pre-orders away from our full publishing goal, and we will not settle for anything less than 100% success.
To the Depths!

We’ve reached another landmark, at last. Late last night, Tantalus Depths finally reached and passed 500 pre-orders. That’s right: we are now three fourths of the way to the full-publishing goal.
 

We are now entering the final month of the campaign. As of right now, we have to bring in 247 more pre-orders within the next 29 days. It won’t be easy. We’re right about where we should be, but there’s still a whole lot more work to be done. If you’ve been holding out so far, now is the time to throw in your pre-order, or to bring your friends and families into the picture for their support. 
Also, even though the 500th order technically came after midnight, I’m still going to go ahead and put up chapter one and the video of my reading it, like I promised we’d do if Tantalus Depths hit 500 on the 16th. Expect those sometime tomorrow, along with our usual character update. :)
Keep pushing everyone! We’re almost home.

Lore update: 

The moral implications of a completely customizeable human genome have not been resolved by the time of Tantalus Depths. Most parents only want to use this technology to ensure the lifelong health of their children, but some may make alterations that are morally ambiguous. Where would you stand on this issue? And how does this technology play into the lives of the Diamelen’s crew?

This week I’d like to use my author spotlight to bring your attention to one of the top-level entrants in the Nerdist competition: Destiny Imperfect.
 

This book promises to be an absolute mindscrew. The idea of a world where virtual reality and actual reality are so closely intertwined that it’s a challenge just to differentiate between the two is so full of potential. The places this story can explore from a psychological standpoint are endless, and based only on what I’ve seen so far, it looks like Destiny Imperfect is going to throw me into a full-on existential crisis. But in a good way.

Seriously check out this book. I want it on my shelf right now.

Character Update:
This week we meet the second mining specialist on the team: Rook’s partner in crime, Yancy Gage

 Yancy may be in this for the paycheck, but will he rise to the challenge when the mission doesn’t go as planned? Can he keep Rook’s prankster nature in check, or will Rook be the one to influence Yancy? Will his mining expertise be enough to keep him alive when disaster strikes?
Find out when you pre-order Tantalus Depths!

Just a reminder:

As of now, we’re just shy of 50 pre-orders to get to this goal. 50 pre-orders in 6 days is hard, but it can be done.
I really want the opportunity to share this with you. If you haven’t placed your pre-order yet, now is a great time. If you already have, talk to a close friend or relative and ask if they’d like to pre-order a copy. Remember, this entire campaign depends on your support: I can’t do this without your help.

 A bit late with this week’s vlog, but here it is at last!
This time I discuss the idea of the rogue AI in science fiction and try to dig a bit deeper into what it is that makes an evil artificial intelligence so unsettling.  
 

If you like stories featuring deranged artificial intelligences pursuing goals and agendas well outside their prescribed boundaries, you’re sure to enjoy Tantalus Depths. On this impossible world at the edge of explored space, a murderous all-seeing AI may actually be the least of our worries...

  Tantalus Depths has been given the honor of another guest interview on another book blog. A special thanks to Christopher Irvin for taking the time to showcase us this week!
Check out the blog post here:

Lore Update:

If you’re as big a sci-fi fan as I am, there’s one question I know you’ve asked many times: "Are we alone in the universe?"

Well, if you lived in the world of Tantalus Depths, you’d have an answer to that question, albeit not a very satisfactory one. Also a potentially troubling one...

The mission to Tantalus 13 is about to completely shatter humanity’s understanding of its place in the universe, but for better or worse? Why is life so rare in our galaxy? And for that matter...are we safe?

Pre-order Tantalus Depths to find out!

edit: that’s super hard to read. To see the image better, go here:
https://inkshares-production.s3.amazonaws.com/images/1467942539/Fermi%20Paradox.jpg

Time for some more incentivization.
Tantalus Depths is doing quite well right now, thanks to a continuous stream of support from some of the most incredible people in the world. We’re still nowhere near the end of our journey, though, and another big push of support would serve to bring that goal just a little bit closer to our grasp. So I’m incentivizing you guys again.
 
If Tantalus Depths reaches 500 pre-orders by July 16th, I will upload Chapter 1 in its entirety to Inkshares. Additionally, I will dedicate that week’s vlog to a special author’s reading of said chapter.
Want more Tantalus Depths? Refer some friends, fuel the hype machine, help us reach that target number, and you’ll get just that. Want less Tantalus Depths? Well...I’m not going to shut up about it until I’m funded, so you have even more incentive to help out.
Come, friends. The Depths await.