Hi folks!

Our first week on Inkshares and we just wanted to take the time to say thank you for checking us out, in addition to your kind recommendations and reviews. We also had some good news to share in that Matt made this year’s Hit List (http://www.tracking-board.com/the-2015-hit-list/) for his script MOUNTAIN MAN – one of the ideas we had as many of you out there are also screenwriters, was to float the possibility of giving script notes for our community members, in addition to the normal reviews and recommendations. Not sure how we want to go about it yet, but we’ll keep mulling it over. Until then, much appreciation for all your support and keep writing (and reading)!

Cheers, Adam and Matt  

Hey Everybody, 

The beginning of the Sword & Laser: The Sequel contest has been amazing. I’m thrilled to be competing with so many excellent creative thinkers. To say I’ve been impressed by the community of authors on Inkshares is a mega understatement. Everyone has been so supportive of their fellow authors and competitors, with genuine desire that their neighbors achieve success with a rising tide lifts all boats sentiment. The beauty of the Inkshares model is that there is no reason that we can’t all win in the long run. With crowdfunding, the more traffic we bring to Inkshares, the more of us get published. Such a wonderful concept. So let’s get published! 

 OK, on to the fun… 

I’ve decided to start a raffle to promote The Last Machine in the Solar System. I am cracking open the vault of epic goodness in the spirit of the holiday season, and I hope you all enjoy the first two items that will be raffled as we reach upcoming milestones! 

First, when we reach 30 unique readers, I will raffle off a beautiful signed copy of Haunted Horror #12: The Chilling Archives of Horror Comics! There are a number of colorful stories from the early 1950s in this magazine published in August 2014. The magazine is signed by Jack Katz, the comic book artist and graphic novelist who created The First Kingdom. Jack drew “Bride of Death” (1952) in this Haunted Horror. Check out the images below. 

Then, when we reach 50 unique readers, I will raffle off my copy of Rudyard Kipling’s Mine Own People. Kipling published Mine Own People in 1891, three years before he wrote The Jungle Book. It is possible that the book is First Edition, though I’ve been unable to confirm one way or the other. I have read that books without a date on the title page are sometimes first edition and this book has no date inside (see below pics). But if you win and it turns out not to be first edition - well, all I’m saying is it’s super old and an early edition! I’d say it is in fair condition. After at least 111 years that’s not half bad. The light pencil writing by a former owner says 1904 - though it could be older than that. The book might be worth somewhere in the $25 - $50 range (that’s a rough guess). I hope that whoever wins will love this old book as a treasure and give it a prominent place on their bookshelf. 

Final details: Everybody who pre-orders The Last Machine up to the 30th reader will be entered into the raffle for Haunted Horror. If you order multiple books, you will receive one entry per ebook or paperback pre-ordered. When we get to the 50th unique reader for the Sword & Laser, I will raffle off Mine Own People - everyone who has pre-ordered back to the first person will once again be entered to win and receive one ticket per book ordered. 

Hope everyone has a great holiday season and keep on reading and writing! 

  Hey there peoples, 
Its been a busy couple of days but I finally got some time to work. A couple of days ago I posted 2 new chapters that hold an important plot arch. I'm very curious to see what everyone thinks. Give it a read and let me know what you think. You can post your feedback on Inkshares or the Beyond the Code facebook group. If you like it i would really appreciate a recommendation to your friends. Spread the word. If you REALLY like it you could place a pre-order and help me make this a reality. 
Thank you all for your continuing support.  

Fans of epic fantasy, I want to let you know about an exciting new developing on Inkshares!

Introducing: syndicates. What are they? Simply put, syndicates are groups of readers with a common interest. Members contribute $10 (ebook) or $20 (print book) per month toward supporting one book chosen by the syndicate. The syndicate places a pre-order on a book that its members decide on through a discussion and voting process. The larger the syndicate, the more weight the vote carries. For example, a syndicate with 100 members pre-ordering a book would equate to 100 pre-orders on that book.

It's such a cool idea and I decided right away to create a syndicate for my own love, epic fantasy -- John Robin's Epic Fantasy Syndicate.

Here is the link to the syndicate:

https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31387674-john-robin

I'm working hard now to get as many readers of epic fantasy as possible to join this syndicate. Each month, we will look through Inkshares titles and hunt for the next Game of Thrones or Lord of the Rings. We really would like to get as many epic fantasy lovers on board as possible so that our syndicate can support more epic fantasy books with promise.

If you like this idea but don't want to commit financially, you can still support us by becoming an affiliate. We have a Goodreads group you can join where we discuss books on Inkshares, as well as ways to get the word out about our syndicate. You can join the syndicate at any time, but there's numerous ways you can help us, and plus, it's just plain fun for epic fantasy enthusiasts to come together and chat about what we love!

Here's the link to the Goodreads group: 

https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/177754-john-robin-s-epic-fantasy-syndicate

Hope to see you there! If you have any questions just let me know by email, johnrobinrt@gmail.com

As promised, I've started posting up Book 2 as a draft.  Going slow with it though so as not to have too many spoilers, so for now its only Section 1 of Chapter 1(though I suppose it does have at least 1 or 2 major spoilers in and of itself).  Careful readers will notice the complete absence of at least 1 of Book 1's major characters, and hopefully will also be wondering what the reason for that absence is.  Anyway, check out Book 2, currently titled "Exile, Hunted" and feel free to give me your thoughts, or even editing notes.  I've not gone through it nearly as many times with my editing pen as I have Book 1, so I'm sure there's still far too many errors.