Wow, guys! Wow, wow, wow. 

Would you believe we went up 10 pre-orders in a day? I knew you could make it happen. So as promised, by tomorrow you’ll have a brand new sample chapter! 

The level of encouragement I’m seeing from you all is astounding. It reminds me why I started this book in the first place: to reach people like you with a wacky idea for a space opera. 

Now for the important news...

This is officially the last week of the Nerdist Space Opera Contest! Next Tuesday the contest will close, and that means that whichever authors have books in the top three will be set up with a publication deal. 

If we aren’t there it means we’ll have to work a lot harder in the future to make sure this book sees the light of day. I don’t know about you guys, but I’d rather finish this now so I can make sure the book goes to market in this collection.

Again, this is referral week! I’ll reiterate what that means for the newcomers and folks who don’t read the bottoms of every email:

If you refer three people to pre-order this week you’ll get: 

•  A signed first-edition draft version of the book complete with random scribbles of frustration
  
  
• A collection of sketches of characters and setting, 10 in total, as a bound art-book
  
  
• A pack of 10 Traveller’s Cup bookmarks

• A custom Traveller’s Cup mug so you can enjoy your hot caffeinated beverage of choice with your new book

All of these items will be delivered physically to you after the release date, complete with a spacey thank you note. If you refer by word of mouth, that counts too. Just send me an email or message telling me how you know the person. 

So with that out of the way, I again want to say a space-sized thank you to you. You belong in this crew because of your dedication to our mission: to make more space books and send them to the worlds beyond. 

Your Overworked But Determined Space Captain Whose Blood is Now Caffeine,
-AC

Two quick notes.

1. We have officially moved to the Draft Stage and need to start building a community of Readers and potential Backers! (previously, this group has been almost exclusively made up of Inkshares authors interested in submitting an entry for possible inclusion in the anthology)

2. We have a temporary cover! (check it out)

Chris and I are proud supporters of International Women’s Day! #LithiaLives
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Hey everyone. Yesterday’s section Chapter 35: Extenuating Circumstances was one of the chapters we originally showcased back when we started this campaign. We got a lot of great feedback and have added to this chapter. If you guys loved it before you should check it out now.
Today’s section, Chapter 36: A Rude Awakening has Aurelius and Jerula meeting Cade and Lithia for the very first time. This is a major milestone in the story and an experience non of them are likely to forget... Check it out now. :)

 

Hey everyone!

There is now one week left of the Nerdist contest and things are heating up. I want to just say a few words about that and then look to the road ahead on getting this book published and into your hands. 

I’ve been overwhelmed with the amount of support I’ve received for the book, but we have not been able to break the top ten, let alone the top three in the contest. The book has lingered around twentieth place for most of the duration of the contest and you know what? Out of ninety-something submissions, that’s pretty good. Heck, it’s damn good. In fact, I’m very happy for those currently occupying the top spots and glad that those books will be published without question. The Nerdist contest is what drew me here, but I’m here for the long haul, I had always prepared myself for that. There is enough room for us ALL to be winners and to see ALL of our stories become reality. Where there is a good story, there will be an audience.

Your support of my kitschy little retro superspy science fiction serial is just the first step in something I want to make into a career. You get to be a part of that and get my undying love and appreciation in the process. The experience here at Inkshares has opened my mind to all sorts of possibilities. It has allowed me to meet some wonderful writers, amazing people and be exposed to their varied storytelling styles and promotional genius. The contest may be coming to a close, but for those of us who won’t finish in the top three, the journey is far from over. Like I said, I’m here for the long haul, I’ve got tons of stories to tell and it starts right here with Penny and her adventures in Avalon. Regardless of how the campaign ends up in sixty days from now, I can say that I will never give up on being a full time writer. I have gained so much from this experience, not the least of which is the will to carry on and write and write and write and write...and share that with the world, instead of keeping it all to myself. 

I have some big things in store very soon, including the posting of at least two more chapters, a BIG surprise that I’m going to turn into a contest to get those pre-orders rolling in and those cover art magnets I promised everyone should be ready to go out this week! Keep an eye on your email! 

As always, feel free to reach out to me directly. THANK YOU and I LOVE YOU ALL! (no seriously, I totally do)

Jason

split0@gmail.com

@AtomicBoyWonder

facebook/AtomicBoyWonder

Hahaha.

  

  

  

Well we are about a month in, and support continues to be great for The Girl Who Blinked. With only a week or so left in the Nerdist contest we are sitting about 15 or so readers outside of the top ten. Let’s keep spreading the word and see how far we can go.

 Today I’m going to share with you guys the first of a series of "Meet the crew" updates, where you guys will become a little more acquainted with the denizens of the galaxy. It seems only appropriate that we start with the girl herself. Art is provided courtesy of my excellent older sister Alexis Braud.

When most people from Equinox think of Adora, the first thing they dwell on is that she is an orphan. They look at the young, almost impish girl with eyes full of pity. Most orphans end up as corporate wards confined to company-provided dorms. They go to school until they are old enough to work off the cost of raising them in some corporate sponsored trade. This is not Adora’s lot.

Although she goes to the corporate school, Adora spends most of her time on the farm she shares with Clementine, her legal guardian. "Clem" , as Adora calls her, isn’t shy about putting the young girl to work while loudly claiming the physical labor will help her grow. It hasn’t. It has only encouraged Adora’s independent streak, which put the girl at odds with her fellow students and the faculty. 

When she’s not hiding the latest issue of "Ronald Raygun, Action President" from her teachers or helping Clem with the orchards, Adora can be found reading up as much as she can on space. Both of her parents may have been lost to the stars, but that won’t quell her wanderlust. She knows in her bones that one day she is going to be a spacer just like her parents, even if the only thing she can remember of them is her father’s laugh.

Physical copies have begun to ship! You’ll get a notification in your email - so check it obsessively. 

  "An unlikely band of heroes—some of whom are trying to kill one another—must gather together in order to save their world from the return of an ancient menace in an excellent, irreverent mix of sword-and-sorcery fantasy and SF. Adams’s flippant tone recalls Terry Pratchett, taking the skewering of tropes down a very dark path as he establishes a fantasy world built from the ashes of a technological one." -- Publisher’s Weekly  

Dear Readers,