Robert Batten liked an update for The Burned
Currently trapped in a building, weather is keeping me in, but there’s free Wi-Fi so I’m going to get some work done on The Burned. I will be very active until the storm stops so feel free to ask about my books and message me while I’m here!
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    Robert Batten liked an update for A God in the Shed

    Hello everyone,

    I guess I should talk about this shouldn’t I?

     

    There’s a minuscule little article on The Tracking Board that talks about me and my upcoming book; A God in the Shed. Go read it. It’s fun. I’ll wait.

    You’re back? Awesome. So what do you think? Yeah, I was a bit overwhelmed. Still sort of am. I’m not exactly wired to take compliments or bask in the glory of good news on that scale. I’d love to pretend that it’s because I’m humble and level-headed but in truth I’m just terrified of disappointment and incapable of processing success. My own issues aside, I think it’s important to know a few things about this announcement.

    What this isn’t:

    • The rights to A God in the Shed haven’t been sold.
    • You’re not going to see A God in the Shed on TV any time soon.
    • I’m not rich and famous.

    What this is:

    • An important step in the right direction.
    • A sign that the rights might one day sell, which still wouldn’t mean a series would get produced, let alone distributed, but again; step in the right direction.
    • Nic Pizzolatto is now my new best friend and can come to all my birthday parties.

    The great Mike Mongo (Astronaut Instruction Manual) once told me; "However long you think this process is going to take, double that." and the awesome Adam Gomolin also shared this nugget of wisdom; "It’s a no until it’s a yes."

    So I’m going to try and take it easy. Keep the day job and continue chipping away at my other projects (check out Arch-Android, the sequel to The Life Engineered, along with Too Many Controllers).

    Thanks again for the support everyone. Go read that article again and while you do that, keep telling yourself; ’I’m part of this.’

    Because you are.

    JF



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      Robert Batten liked the forum thread, Critiquing Tools
      @Robert Batten The google docs approach is my favorite way to do things. Especially if, as a writer, you use the suggest tool. You can make changes to your document before finalizing them and people can give feedback on whether it’s a good idea or not. So if there is an issue someone commented on you suggest a change and see what the beta reader/peer-editor thinks.

      To facilitate things we could create a private Goodreads group where everyone could post their document links. I used to do this with a writing group I was a part of. It worked really well for 6 months or so, and then it died down a bit. We just email each other now, but we only had 4 people, so that’s a little different.

      The other option we have is to create a spreadsheet where people could each update info and remove/add links to their work. People would need to be invited to either one to make use of them.  I don’t think it would be selective, but it would ensure that there was a level secrecy to the work we are doing.

      I do think this is important to discuss, with so many people asking for criticism and help. There would need to be a stipulation that by joining the group you agree not to infringe on the ideas of other people there. Something to that extent. Rather than just having people send out links one by one this might be a little easier. 
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        Robert Batten liked the forum thread, Can we code in a "Preview" option for updates?
        I’ve noticed that sometimes formatting can get tossed out of sync between what’s on the screen and what gets sent out in reader updates. My most recent update is an example of this. 

        Is there a way we can get a "preview update" so we can see what stuff will look like before it’s shipped off to all the backers? 
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        People who have liked this comment in the forum thread, Can we code in a "Preview" option for updates?

          Robert Batten created a forum thread: Critiquing Tools
          I’ve been involved in a bit of critiquing lately both on Inkshares and other sites. Being a publishing and platform first and foremost, Inkshares understandably doesn’t have robust critiquing tools (yet). If you want to do anything more robust than highlighting sections on excerpts and adding comments you need to either pack it all into a DM or reach for other tools. 

          I’ve been experimenting a bit, and thought I would throw out my thoughts and start a discussion on what people find the most convenient. I’ve taken two approaches so far: I’ve put all of my feedback into a DM to the author (usually compiling feedback in evernote and then copy/paste into DM, which retains a lot of the formatting); and I’ve (just recently) used Google Docs.

          The Google Docs approach is my favourite so far, so I thought I would drill into that a little, and try to also drive some discussion about that in particular. I did this with the latest critique I provided:
          1. Copied the text of the excerpt into a new Google Doc.
          2. Used track changes and comments to markup the doc with inline feedback.
          3. Provided summary feedback in a DM, with then a share link to the google doc for inline feedback.

          I feel this worked really well, and it was much easier to pull together as a critiquer. However, working through the process I also believe there are some key rules to apply when taking this approach:
          1. Always get permission from the author before posting their content into a google doc.
          2. Commit to taking the document down once the author lets you know they are done with it.
          3. Make sure the author understands the above.

          Another approach to the above would be to get the author to share the google doc with you, in which case they have complete control over it.

          What do people think of the above? Does anyone have other approaches they believe may work better (or just provide an alternative)?
          Join the discussion
          Robert Batten liked an update for The Madness of Mr. Butler

          Just a quick update to let you all know that I am still working quite hard on Mr. Butler. I enrolled in Camp NaNoWriMo for July and set a goal of writing 70,000 words for the book in 31 days...and I did it in 30:

          All 70,024 (and counting!) words were written for Butler. Every day I’m working to make this the best damn book I can make it. 

          Just thought you, my wonderful investors, my support system, and most importantly, my friends, should know that I am giving this project every single spare moment I have. I’m still aiming for a September manuscript submission. I will keep you updated!

          Thanks for hanging in there!

          Love to all.

          -Michael.

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            Robert Batten liked an update for Squids In

            Hendrix is still doing his bit to raise awareness for SQUIDS IN. Not only did he hang out in Times Square at stupid o’clock in the morning the other day, he managed to get a few of his minions a free ride on some Porsche Carrera Cup racing cars.


            It’s becoming very apparent that Hendrix and I will not manage our target of 250 pre-orders alone. If you know anyone who has a rude sense of humor, please point them to the sample SQUIDS IN chapters. Thanks!

            Matthew 

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              Robert Batten liked an update for The Seventh Age: Dawn

                                      I’m just going to open with the final cover for The Seventh Age:


              I want to thank all of you, the people who have supported me, in helping pick directions, refine options and taking the time to vote. 

              Ashley Marie Witter, the Illustrator, who crammed me into her intensely busy schedule of Squarriors. You can check out more of her artwork and rabid apocalyptic rodents by clicking HERE.

              Scott over at Cyantype Covers. They did a fantastic job making different options and helping pull everything together for the final version you see today. My finest metal (\m/ >;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;. salute goes to the work that they have done. 

              Lastly, to Emily, Avalon, and everyone at the joint Girl Friday / Inkshares production team for helping take the very nebulous concept of a cover into something this badass. 

              My sincerest thank you to everyone involved,


              ~Rick Heinz. 

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                Robert Batten liked an update for The Adventures of MONOMAN

                I’ve determined that the date I will start funding is August 10. I hope everyone is excited as I am to finally have it available.

                Have a fantastic day!
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                  Robert Batten liked the forum thread, Strategy Guide
                  I made this so other authors can comment patterns they notice with inkshares preorders so people can choose the best time and ways to put their works up for pre-order and to advertise for their book.
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