Hello Rebels!

 Just got notification of 20 readers, Wooh! Have I told you today how awesome you are? Well you are. So it is update time!

Editing - Finn and I are moving forward with the editing process. We're currently discussing things in relation to chapters eight, nine and ten. We think we need an extra chapter in there to really hit the readers in the feels. We're also trying to learn about social media as neither of us utilize social media in any great capacity. 

Prizes - Finn's brother has agreed to do arty things for us!!! (Can you tell I'm excited?) I'm hoping that very shortly we will be able to show you some initial concept art and sketches for the novel. And don't forget, a major prize will be drawn for an original piece of art by a professional artist when we reach follower and pre-order milestones.

Milestones and general rambling- ... we are at 20 preorders, enough to keep us in the top ten, but a lot of work needs to be done...and frankly we need your help. I'm from the bah humbig school of social media, shaking my cane and telling the kids to get off my virtual grass. I'm not a twitterer, just a twit when it comes to all forms of social media. Finn seems similarly inclined despite his leprechaun charm. BUT there are just over ninety people following Finn and myself, and some fifty-odd following the project. So what have we got that we can leverage? We both think we have a cracking story, something that has elements that will appeal to a wide audience (if only they could hear about it)...but we ask ourselves...is that enough, especially when you can only see a tiny bit of it and I know from what the Alpha readers are telling me that by the fifth chapter they are hooked and by the tenth chapter if they don't get the rest of the manuscript they will hurt me to obtain it. Hmm.

So without further ado, as a reward for reaching 20 backers, I'm adding a couple more chapters. Please tell people, tag them on Facebook, twit them on twitter, blast them on goodreads, pintrest and instagram photo's and whatever else I am missing. 

Note that whilst these chapters have had a quick fly-buy and shotgun edit, Finn and I were mainly concentrating on the big picture stuff. When we wrote this the end of the book was still a bit hazy in the crystal ball, so we've mainly been fixing up and foreshadowing things. I haven't received all my alpha readers comments back and we are still in the process of finding a selection of beta readers.  If you see a typo or awkwardly phrased segment of text, please let us know via the comment section, or via email  - suffrageworldkey@gmail.com 

Stay Free Rebels - New chapters are incoming just as soon as I upload them.

Julian

P.S. Thought I'd add another Anime styled image from awesome daughter of one of the Rebel team. Say hello to Mack (short for Mackenzie). .

Dear readers,

I've made the difficult decision of placing The Children of the Forest into the sequel contest to the Sword & Laser contest. While I've been blown away by the support and success of the story, I ultimately decided that this offers the best chance for the book to receive maximum exposure. I really believe in my story, the universe, and the cast of wonderful characters. I believe it's a relevant tale of ecological-unrest, and I know that it has the potential to win. 

Recently I put the final touches on the first draft of my novel, and I've been working diligently to complete the second version of the manuscript. I've removed the previous chapters and added the novel's new forward, along with the edited copy of Chapter One. Chapter Two will be forthcoming by the end of the night. 

Now comes the part where I need to ask a huge favor of the community. You've all been instrumental int this entire process, and you've made my story a thousand times greater than it could have ever been without you. The feedback, criticism, and more have helped shape my writing, and the story into something truly wonderful and unique. Now I need to ask that everyone go and pre-order a copy to help me get ahead in the contest. If even just half of the original supporters come and purchase only a single copy, it should shoot me right up to first place! 

I'm banking on the support of everyone who has followed me and my work, and again, I'm eternally grateful for you all.

~ Until next time folks.

 I'm just gonna put this here and get back to writing.

I got you a Christmas present. 

Well, I’m kind of ’re-gifting’ it. Every year, me and my co-conspirator Jonathan Sparks get a bunch of friends together and make a Christmas album. This is our sixth one from last year, and I just uploaded it all on Soundcloud and made a fancy playlist for you all to enjoy.

As should come as no surprise: it is weird. But some nice songs! Your heart will be warmed even as you are confused.

AMOD Update: Turned in copy edits this week, so we are full speed ahead into proofing, production, and staying on schedule for release in April. It was odd/nice to do my final ’creative’ work on the book - there’s always a tiny ache along with the relief as my brain gets to free up resources for other projects. I am beyond proud of this book - and very eager for you all to get to read it.

Reviews and blurbs. Over the next few weeks you’re going to start seeing me actively address and educate you about the massive importance of reviews to the success of AMOD. All of the backers should be receiving copies of the book before the official release - those early reviews are crucial to the long-term survival of the book. I’m also on the hunt for extremely influential and famous people who want to tarnish their reputation by reading the book and giving us a blurb for the cover - which is daunting!

Thanks as always for your support and attention! Enjoy the Shadeaux Bros!

Greetings wonderful people, 

For any of you who saw my earlier concept art I got some more for you. I posted a battle ready Aurora and a casual Ethan. Take a look and let me know what you think. 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/138300049868157/

I can't saw this enough but thank you all for your continuing support. And if you like what you've seen so far please remember to pre-order to help this crazy dream come true. If we make it to 35 copies ordered I'll post 2 more chapters. You be able to see the fallout of the last chapters dramatic conclusion and you will also become one of my favourite people in the whole of the verse.  

For those of you who already have pre-ordered, each and every one of you is a gentleman or woman and a scholar. Thank you so much. 

Greetings all,

The eBook version of Journey has been released and everyone should have received a link to download it onto whatever device you use. I know how busy everyone gets this time of year, but I hope you are able to somehow squeeze in some time to read the book and possibly post a star rating or a review online.

This afternoon I had my first media interview. I was on WRJN in Milwaukee, Wisconsin for 20 minutes of live air without a commercial. I have been apprehensive about how I would perform in these situations. The host was smooth and professional - I was not.

I was a stammering idiot who talked too fast. I also got a little tongue tied when he asked a couple questions that I hadn't anticipated. But I got through it and realized that I can do this. I know that I will improve over time and will eventually become adequate, which is my goal.

My publicist is pitching the book's connection to Donald Trump, which makes the story both interesting and topical. If I am able to become articulate enough doing these interviews, I should be able to book more of them.

I was surprised at how they handle these things. I had imagined that the show host or a staff member would interview me first off air and we'd discuss what we would talk about. I don't expect most of these radio hosts to read the whole book before the interview but I thought there would be some pre-show prep.

Basically what happened is that they recieve a one page pitch with a little background on the book and a few proposed questions. The station booked me with just two days notice.  The host (Glen Klein) glances at the pitch sheet and calls me a minute before we go on air; we chat for 30 seconds while a song is playing on his station and then we go live and the host just wings it. It was kind of impressive how smooth he was with near zero preparation.

As this process unfolds, it becomes more important that I have star ratings and reviews on Amazon and Goodreads. If people hear about the book in the media and go on Amazon to check it out - 99.9% of them will click away from it if they see that it doesn't have many ratings or reviews.

That is why it so important that my supporters here on Inkshares become the first group to post knowledgeable reviews. One of the keys to the book's success is for the reviewers to know or believe that the Donald Trump, Dan Brown, Governor Weld, Columbine Memorial etc. stories really are true stories that I fictionalized. That is what will make this book stand out and so far the people reviewing it on Goodreads don't really know about this aspect. It just went live on Amazon so almost no one has reviewed it there yet. 

You are the people who got this book published and I hope that you also become the ambassadors who will write the early reviews that give the backstory some credibility. I don't expect any strangers to take my word for anything, but they will give credence to your thoughts. And I can't claim to be  a so-called "Great Impostor" and then expect anyone to believe any claims to truth that I talk about. 

I would like to see ten Amazon reviews by the end of the weekend - who's up for that?

Here's the link to the PR material that relates the fiction to the real-life episodes.  

And once again, here are the links to the book's page on Amazon and Goodreads where reviews can be placed. A few kind words or a couple of sentences are fine. If anyone wishes to do a longer review that's great, but that's above and beyond what I'm asking for.


I still can't thank you good people enough for making this Journey possible for me! I will keep updating you on any developments so that you can continue to experience it with me.

Kindest regards,

Rich Saunders

Hi guys,

Okay, I'm about to head back into the world of DHM, but I wanted to share some inspiration images that I've found that describe the feel of the book. Now, these aren't mine, they are from artists on Deviantart, but they give you a better idea of what DHM is about.  First up is a hacker:

As promised, new blog post is up here.  This one is a long poem telling of the downfall of the sister world to Pentaz' own world.  Enjoy!