"Oh I do believe in you, yes I do...Live without your heartbeat. Love without your sunlight. I, I can't live within you."

Grieving for the man who stole my world. Much love to all readers who are feeling the same! Here's a pic of my fiance and I from this past Halloween, as Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars (as close as we could make it as we were traveling abroad...so we stole some influences from Halloween Jack). An update on Talkers will follow soon. R.I.P Starman. 

"The stars look very different today." R.I.P. Starman

Hello again, dear readers. 

In the spirit of camaraderie, I had a call tonight with author Matthew Isaac Sobin, whose book "The Last Machine in the Solar System" is currently in the #2 spot of the Sword and Laser contest. I've been a fan of Matt's book ever since it entered the race, gladly putting down my money for a copy (now three copies, actually) on the second day of the contest. Although he is my competitor, I wish his book all the best. It's worth your attention as well, so help him get it funded!  I'm glad we got together on the phone line. Mostly, we just talked shop about writing, and blew off some steam about the tireless campaign to earn your support. We commiserated about my failed attempts at plastering the city with my AiM posters, and I heard about the fun he had delivering Last Machine holiday cards - both of which netted us about 0-1 readers, maybe... We had a really good time. I can see this as an ongoing thing...

...Ongoing straight to tomorrow (and beyond!) when Matt and I and fellow S&L leader Craig Munro (author of "Bones of the Past") are guests on the Sword and Laser podcast! That's right! My crazy voice will be broadcast for all to hear, so tune in when the episode airs. I'll be sure to post another reader update when it's live.

Look, as far as I see it, there are so many amazing authors and amazing stories here on Inkshares - and especially so for the books gathered in this S&L contest. I mean I even told Matt just before we hung up that I'm a huge fan of Amanda Orneck's "Deus Hex Machina." I think that book is so unique... Ah, I could talk your ear off all evening about my admiration for that work and for so many others, but I'd rather inform you that I... 

...just posted three more chapters of "The Animal in Man". Chapter Two. Chapter Three. And Chapter Six. ....hold on... Six? Yeah. That's right. Chapters 4 and 5 are done, but being the perfectionist I am, they don't make me so happy in their current state. I was picking at them with a fine tooth comb, and I saw just way too many spots that needed changing to be consistent with the world as it's evolved throughout this project. I believe you will enjoy 2, 3, and 6 since you'll see meet some new friends, discover the fate of everyone's favorite hyena (sorry, Rick), and perhaps even catch a glimpsssse of the villain's agent (or the villain himself, or both?).

I'd like to leave you with a disclaimer as this update draws to a close: Please please please excuse any inconsistencies or bad grammatical errors you find. "The Animal in Man" is a work in progress. The scale of this project is massive, perhaps you might say Aigaion-sized. It's a lot of work, but I am excited to see it through - to get the first draft finished and then leap back in with the bloody red pen (my students know what I'm talking about!). So please, don't be so critical of the small things that don't add up. Just enjoy. 

Hey there wonderful people, 

I thought I would take the time to share some very kind and encouraging words from Joseph Asphahani the author of The Animal in Man. In his last update he spoke of three projects on Inkshares that he thought were worth your patronage. The projects were Exile, Magus by Thomas J.Arnold, Transilience by Kevin Bragg, and (to my utmost excitement) Beyond the Code by yours truly. Here's what he wrote. 

"Yesterday morning I was late to work because I literally could not stop reading Kelsey Rae Barthel’s “Beyond the Code”. Hot damn this story is full of action! At least the first chapter is, and I trust there's more. The whole thing is just one continuous fight between two badasses. I’ve told Ms. Barthel that the setting, the setup, the sword-swings all remind me of some of the darkest, most sinister places I’ve visited in my long career as a video gamer. The pace is just as riveting and intense as what I'd gladly call a GOTY (uh, that's Game of the Year). I know you’ll enjoy it. CLICK HERE to see for yourself how right I am about that."

Woot woot!! Thank you so much Joseph. Those words mean a great deal in keeping me going through this campaign. 

It's been a good campaign so far but we need to step it up. If your impressed by this glowing review or you've caught the BTC fever please pre-order so we can hit Quill and make this a reality. Whether you got some extra credits or you just love this book so far please pre-order while the campaign is still going. I'm even willing to do pre-order swaps with the other authors on Inkshares.

For those of you who have already supported my dream thank you soo much and I am working tirelessly to give you a fantastic read.

Thanks for your time 

Kelsey Rae Barthel 

Greetings Readers, Followers, Human Beings, and Advertising Algorithms,

I promised you this day would come. You didn't believe me. I didn't believe me. But it's here at last...

That's right! I finally figured out how to work the internet. No more free AOL homepages and half-hearted Tumblrs for me. www.jimmcdoniel.com is a thing. A thing that both exists and works. Go there now and behold the wonder and glory of me copy and pasting pictures onto Squarespace. Marvel at my ability to link you back here to Inkshares. Thrill as you view my Twitter account while not on Twitter. Ooooo. Aaaaah.

In other news, the Sword and Laser contest two is wrapping up this week. On Friday at noon (West Coast time, two o'clock here) three more authors will receive the full publishing treatment and one will join G. Derek Adams, J.F. Dubeau, and myself in the Sword and Laser collection. There are plenty of good books in the mix with plenty of time to make the jump so please, consider visiting the contest page and checking a few out like:

For dystopic cyberpunk, click Deus Hex Machina.
For epic demonic fantasy, click Bones of the Past.
For sci-fi action/adventure, click The Amaranth Chronicles: Deviant Rising.

  Is our universe real?
 
"This the classic Cartesian question. It essentially asks, how do we know that what we see around us is the real deal, and not some grand illusion perpetuated by an unseen force (who René Descartes referred to as the hypothesized ‘evil demon')? More recently, the question has been reframed as the "brain in a vat" problem, or the Simulation Argument. And it could very well be that we're the products of an elaborate simulation. A deeper question to ask, therefore, is whether the civilization running the simulation is also in a simulation — a kind of supercomputer regression (or simulationception). Moreover, we may not be who we think we are. Assuming that the people running the simulation are also taking part in it, our true identities may be temporarily suppressed, to heighten the realness of the experience. This philosophical conundrum also forces us to re-evaluate what we mean by "real." Modal realists argue that if the universe around us seems rational (as opposed to it being dreamy, incoherent, or lawless), then we have no choice but to declare it as being real and genuine. Or maybe, as Cipher said after eating a piece of "simulated" steak in The Matrix, "Ignorance is bliss."
-http://io9.gizmodo.com/

50 readers means another raffle!

Come see me ramble through another raffle drawing with a slight case of bed head. I recorded this late last night (I'm a bit of a night owl -- pun slightly intended), but am posting this now since not many people would see an update e-mail late on a Sunday night.

Are you a winner? Well, anyone who pre-orders my book is technically a winner to me, but if you want to know the raffle results, you'll just have to watch:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VV2qhv81A8Y

I will contact the winner later with the details. Thanks, happy dreams, good night, good luck, etc.

 99 copies of DHM on the wall, 99 copies of DHM! Share the book, pass it around, 100 copies of DHM on the wall!

Sorry, I'm a little loopy right now having only gotten an hour of sleep last night (Yay insomnia).  

Despite my best efforts, I am starting to see the end of the contest and really understanding the likelihood of me ending up not anywhere near the top three. I was hoping for 2nd, eager for 4th, but at this point even the numbers between 7th and 5th are pretty insurmountable.  And I think I am coming to peace with that. 

I am going to make a few more pleas with friends for orders, and this one is to those who are following DHM but haven't backed it yet.  There are 125 followers for DHM but 86 backers.  If each of you 39 people backed the book today, we would be back in the race, at least the race for 4th place. My son is sitting at my shoulder reading this, saying "I want to be in the race." Yeah, me too, kid. Me too.

So if you have been waiting to order DHM, now is the time. Please preorder the book today!

Incentive wise, we are four people away from our next raffle, 1 order away from 100 books ordered today, and six orders away from sixth place. 

Psst. Isn't that pic of Cri-Lux awesome? I bet you'd love to know who she is! How about another incentive. If we get to 125 backers, then I'll release chapter 2, and you'll meet not only Cri-Lux but also Daxas Piers, our street wise mech racer. Now I have to go race with my toddler. He says "we have to get all the way to the finish line." Wise words.

I'm sitting here writing this update whilst listening to Yoko Kanno's Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex OST and reminded of two things. One, just how talented a composer she is. And two, how amazing of a series GITS is. I hope the big budget production isn't a let down.

Onward....

What a weekend Transilience has had! Ten preorders in the span of about 48 hours. I have a few people to thank and what a wonderful burden it is! So a hearty THANK YOU to Tim Merchant, Gareth Fernie, Joseph Asphahani, Mr R W H Bray, Amanda Orneck, Billy O'Keefe, Steven Davies and Tony Valdez.

Transilience has also received some fantastic reviews. That complete strangers would write such kind things about something I have created is humbling. So please allow me to use this polite expression to the compliment received. Mr. Ryan, Mr. Cargnan, Mr. Sobin and Mr. Asphahani, Thank You!

A quick aside: Mr. R W H Bray has written a book, himself, which is currently in the midst of a funding campaign of its own on a UK site called Unbound. Rich is a friend of mine and he really knows how to spin a yarn. His novel, In Cathedral's Shadow, is about love and loss and murder and the dark places of the mind and heart. All set in a small university town on the east coast of Scotland. You can check it out here.

Back to my stuff. Check this space tomorrow where I offer an insight as to why I set Transilience on Mars.

Until that moment, during that moment and after, if you haven't already, please consider supporting Transilience. And tell your friends about it! Your parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, coworkers, acquaintances, people whose lives you think will be enriched by good literature! 

Publication date is listed as December 2016. What better way to get some early Christmas shopping done than to order Transilience? Wait! So we are clear, that's a rhetorical question unless you happen to agree with it. Then I say, "I know! Pure genius, right?!?"

Let's keep the momentum going as the Sword and Laser contest deadline fast approaches. You know what they say about a rolling stone. It's probably set off by a tiny golden statue that looks like my grandpa, and will either crush under its enormous weight or seal you into a spider infested temple forever. So GO GO GO!!!

Cheers!

Kev

I'll be the first to admit that I haven't worked hard enough to build interest and pre-orders in this book. 

I get easily distracted and demoralised. Nobody is a more damning critic of me than I am myself. I've concentrated more on promoting my other books already published on Amazon Kindle, and I'm going to take a moment to mention them.

Time Tunnel to Londinium, Londinium Revisited, and Time Tunnel at the Seaside, are all on Amazon now for 99c/99p each and this month I am giving half my profit to my local RNLI 
OK, that's likely to be a few quid but it's a gesture. If I ever become a best selling author I will give them a lot more. 

Now, back to this project the book is now called "Children of the Wise Oak" because the other title was rubbish and already in use by at least one published novel. 

I'd really appreciate anyone who can give the project a boost. Share it on social media, recommend it, review it 23 of 25 chapters are already on here in full.

I notice at least one author has offered all her profits from publication to charity. To be honest, I would consider doing that if I thought it would get me published, this is the first of a series of nine books that I have planned out with a timeline spanning over a century.

Win or lose, I believe in this book more than I have believed in anything I've done, and will keep banging away until I get it right. 

All the best to y'all for 2016