I forgot one thing the other day. My other project, Motor City Chronicles - Book One: Transgressions has recently gotten a GREAT book trailer. Check it out by CLICKING HERE!
Paul
Well, hello there...
I see we have some new faces that have followed and some new purchasers as well. Thanks for that! Time for some updates (fair warning: it’s been a while so there will be a lot).
First, Motor City Chronicles - Book One: Transgressions has recently gotten a GREAT book trailer. Check it out by CLICKING HERE!
It is with mixed emotions that I tell you the final draft of Ageless has my approval and it is with the production team and will be moving to the printing phase very soon. The people at Inkshares and Gril Friday have worked tirelessly to make sure that Ageless is the best book that it can be.
That’s it. The words are locked in.
Forever.
AND EVER...
It’s frightening, terrifying, in fact...only because it makes this whole thing that much closer to a reality. Yet, I am still full of excitement and drive to make Ageless into the best experience for both you, the reader, and me. The final thing left to approve is the ebook version of the book.
Which means we have also finalized the complete cover for the book and it is gorgeous. Check it out.
Wait...what are those words in the corner?
Yes, what you see is really there. It isn’t a figment of your imagination. We have a cover blurb! For those of you that can’t quite see it, here it is in its full glory:
"An elaborate story that challenges our inner detective. The intricate plot is a fascinating puzzle to navigate and enjoy." - J-F Dubeau, author of The Life Engineered and winner of the Sword & Laser Collection Contest
How cool is that? Awesome right!?!? (Click here for my review of his book, The Life Engineered.)
We are gearing up for the promotional/marketing push for the book as well. Hopefully we will be soon locating a great local venue to have an awesome launch party/signing, if you’re into that sort of thing.
For those of you that don’t remember the books publication date is slated for May 3, 2016. But the good news is that the backers will be getting it a bit before that (barring some unfortunate catastrophe). Why is that important, you may be asking yourself... Well, it’s important because that gives us plenty of time to jump start the reviews! In this crowded world of publishing reviews can make or break your book. I will be at your mercy one last time, in desperate need your help. In order for this book to dig its roots in and take hold we must a have a lot of great reviews. What’s a lot? Let’s shoot for a 3 digit number like 100 positive reviews. So that means, about 10% of the people who will be getting a copy. That seems totally doable.
Please, please, please don’t feel obligated to review (especially if you end up less than loving it; email me and tell me how to do better if you feel so inclined). I cannot thank you enough for all you have done to make this a reality.
I’ll leave you with the following (slightly edited) infograph about the importance of reviews borrowed from my fellow Inkshares author, G. Derek Adams, author of Asteroid Made of Dragons.
Well, hello there...
Wait...what are those words in the corner?
Yes, what you see is really there. It isn’t a figment of your imagination. We have a cover blurb! For those of you that can’t quite see it, here it is in its full glory:
We are gearing up for the promotional/marketing push for the book as well. Hopefully we will be soon locating a great local venue to have an awesome launch party/signing, if you’re into that sort of thing.
For those of you that don’t remember the books publication date is slated for May 3, 2016. But the good news is that the backers will be getting it a bit before that (barring some unfortunate catastrophe). Why is that important, you may be asking yourself... Well, it’s important because that gives us plenty of time to jump start the reviews! In this crowded world of publishing reviews can make or break your book. I will be at your mercy one last time, in desperate need your help. In order for this book to dig its roots in and take hold we must a have a lot of great reviews. What’s a lot? Let’s shoot for a 3 digit number like 100 positive reviews. So that means, about 10% of the people who will be getting a copy. That seems totally doable.
Please, please, please don’t feel obligated to review (especially if you end up less than loving it; email me and tell me how to do better if you feel so inclined). I cannot thank you enough for all you have done to make this a reality.
I’ll leave you with the following (slightly edited) infograph about the importance of reviews borrowed from my fellow Inkshares author, G. Derek Adams, author of Asteroid Made of Dragons.
I want to announce the winner of choose the vilan name. Etienne Morency, you bought a conspirator pack congratulation you can now choose the vilain name in Lies and Deception.
Guys we are standing at a nice 229 copies pre ordered. This is amazing !!!! 8 days left at this roller coaster campaign.
If you haven’t heard what Paul Inman author of Ageless and JF Dubeau author of The life Engineered have to say about Lies and Deception you can listen to it right there on Write Brain podcast. Episode 15 .
Next update will be at 250 copies pre ordered, I hope we can get them before Wednesday.
thank you once more fellow follower backers
Andre !
JF Dubeau doesn’t want to be a writer - the man wants to WRITE. He wants to create worlds, or in this case galaxies, for his imagination to explore unimpeded. He has an overwhelming need to create something worthy of his science fiction heroes while still being entertaining.
With The Life Engineered, he does that and he does it well. Dare I say amazingly? I dare.
The Life Engineered, at its core, is a story about love. Don’t confuse what I mean; there’s no making out and holding hands here. It could be akin to what the ancient Greeks called Agápe or Storge. It’s the deeper love given to other living things. The love of how precious a life truly is. The love of family, the desire to remain true to ones beliefs; all courageously explored within these pages. Dubeau deftly navigates not only through the stars but also through the human condition in the guise of sentient robots called Capeks.
The Capeks have existed for millennia with one goal; usher in the return of mankind. Dubeau creates a rich, believable reality in which the Capeks have thrived in the absence of their human creators. The world building in the story is fascinating and multilayered, so much in fact, that in the confines of the story, the surface is barely scratched. A plethora of Capek designs and personalities exists from the mundane (think laborer) to the incredible (we’re talking about literal world building here) with each character touched upon at least long enough to pique your curiosity. Hopefully the planned sequel, Arch-Android, which we are teased with at the end of the book, will shed some more light upon the history of this amazing race of AI.
I won’t go into the plot much because a synopsis can be found here, as well as other places online, but I will say that the story keeps moving forward to its satisfying, if slightly hurried, conclusion.
This brings me to the critical part of this review (I will be grasping at straws here to find a few things). I feel that the first person POV is limiting to this type of story where there are so many new things to be explored, however, I will be the first to admit this is a personal preference and Dubeau handled the POV beautifully by letting the reader experience the galaxy for the first time through the “eyes” of a newborn Capek. Also, I found myself so immersed in the culture of the Capek society that I longed for more input, more information about the how’s and why’s of what these AI’s are capable of becoming. Some expansion surely must show up in Arch-Android in order to complete the minimal dangling threads that Dubeau has skillfully weaved into his yarn. With that said, I believe everything is here to make this story complete, worthwhile, and satisfying.
Finally, and this was the biggest issue for me, I feel that the scope of a story like this needs more time to simmer. There are a handful of times throughout the novel where I want to sit with the feelings presented and let them tear me down for a while before the next onslaught. The book moved along at a brisk pace, which is great, but it could have used a few more of those reflective moments. For instance, I will try to stay spoiler free here, there is a scene where we see the sacrificial death of a character and then we are rushed away to another part of the galaxy where we don’t get a chance to deal with the feelings sufficiently. In a society where death is almost unheard of, I would think it would take more time to processes, but then again…robots. During times of conflict there may not be the reflective time I am suggesting, but traveling interstellar distances takes time; time which could be used to further dive into the Capek condition. These are all small grips that I had to put serious consideration into. Truly, this is a great tale with minuscule flaws that most won’t notice.
The Life Engineered is a fantastic novel and a terrific debut for author JF Dubeau that is sure to open many doors for this up and coming talent. I know that I will be supporting his next effort, A God in the Shed, on Inkshares.com. You should too.