Adventure Beyond the Stars – Written for Readers Who Want More

Category: Artemis Rising

  • Video Ad 1

    Video Ad 1

    First video created, Spooky Spectacle, Austin 1894, Gov Hogg & Ima, Visita de San Miguel Arcangel, Sekmet Valkyrie, the Impossible House revealed, Eleanor’s pistols, Chekov’s Exits, Visual reference cards, Artemis’ cockpit, Steam Traction Engine, First Hangar, Tesla bench test, Selenite Tunnel, Zafir, Freeze Cannon, Moonblossom arch, Selenite Vacuum Suit, Selenite Utility Carrier, Tunnel 16 Entrance, Transit Tube System, Hardcovers. All this week’s and last week’s Secret Knowledge is below…

    You can get autographed copies of all four books in Selene Reborn Series (Artemis Rising, Celestial Accord, Forging the Chain Breakers, Selene Unchained), Antarctic Honeymoon, and Mirim’s First Christmas at Downtown Arlington Farmer’s Market on Saturday. https://malcolmupton.com/events/

    Spooky Spectacle is coming soon – come visit me in Granbury for this event.
    Saturday: https://www.facebook.com/events/2451040095383878 and Sunday: https://www.facebook.com/events/1061766609963267

    Walter, Eleanor, and Sekmet flew to Austin to consult with the Texas State Geologist. Landing Endeavor in the middle of Austin would be a bad idea, so Walter contacted Gen. Mabry of the Texas Guard to use the parade field at the brand new Camp Mabry northwest of Austin. It was only 18 months old at the time, but was already raising money for expansion by staging mock battles for people in the summer – hence the grandstands. When they took the carriage into town, the passed the main building for the fairly new University of Texas on its 40 acre campus. They ended up at the new Capitol building, completed only 6 years previously.

    While I was researching the Texas Geologic Survey and Texas State Geologist Edwin Dumble, I discovered that the Texas Geologic Survey had been partially defunded in 1893 and completely defunded in 1894. That led to trying to find out why. It appears that when Texas Governor Jim Hogg was trying to deal with reduced revenues due to the Panic of 1893, he was convinced by some of his advisors to stop wasting money on unnecessary luxuries like scientific inquiry – including the Texas Geologic Survey. Governor Hogg later told geologists that cutting spending for the Survey was one of his most regretted decisions. And yes, his only daughter was named ‘Ima’. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ima_Hogg She would have been 8 going on 9 when the Selenites visited Galveston. I wonder what a meeting between the child Ima Hogg and the adult Ima Wenizasdautr would be like…

    I needed a location and some background for the scene that convinced Walter & Co to enter the Impossible House. Before everything was said and done, I had a little information for the chapter, more information for the rest of the book, and a lot more information that may never come out. Note: There are definitely spoilers in the link, and they might not all be spoilers for Palestine’s Ghosts, but if you want to know: https://greshamverse.fandom.com/wiki/Visita_de_San_Miguel_Arc%C3%A1ngel

    I may be writing myself into something of a corner. I really need to be careful, because I do want to write the story where Walter and Eleanor are Vikings and Sekmet is a Valkyrie…

    The time has come for Walter, Eleanor, and Sekmet to enter the Impossible House. Of course it isn’t as easy to describe their entry into the Impossible House if I don’t have a clear idea of what the place looks like. So I got ChatGPT to find me some period-appropriate floor plans and picked this one. Got a colorized version for Saturday morning when they arrive, and three versions of how it might look on a spooky night.

    Whovians will recognize that there is a difference between something being bigger on the inside and something being smaller on the outside. The Impossible house is that way. Maybe…

    By the time of Palestine’s Ghosts, Eleanor has been in too many situations and seen too much… stuff to go around unarmed. She is still a lady, however, and doesn’t do the whole Annie Oakley thing. Instead, she carries a .32 caliber Smith & Wesson Safety Hammerless Revolver (developed early) for everyday carry. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smith_%26_Wesson_Safety_Hammerless It fits in a pocket Argos specifically makes in her dresses to hold it. For expeditions where she might need a firearm, she carries a Colt Model M. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colt_Model_1903_Pocket_Hammerless It is also a .32 caliber, but has a 8-round detachable box magazine. She normally carries it in a shoulder holster under her coat with three loaded magazines in holsters on the other side. Of course Argos ensures that both the holster and the coat are designed so that her firearms don’t detract from her lady-like appearance.

    Some of you may be familiar with the idea of “Chekov’s gun” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chekhov%27s_gun In Weird the Third, we actually have two instances of Chekov’s exit. And… I don’t think I’ll explain any more – Spoilers…

    I’m working on a video ad for Artemis Rising. Part of the reason is that I’m competing in an AI video ad competition. Part of it is that I have access to an AI marketplace that gives me access to a bunch of stuff. I might even end up redoing the narration on my books and using AI voices since I’m not confident in my ability to do them myself. As part of the work on the ad, I needed high quality reference cards on Walter, Eleanor, and Nikola.

    I also needed a reference image for Artemis.

    And these went into the reference image of Artemis’ cockpit.

    So in the 1890’s Case Manufacturing made a lot of steam-powered traction engines. But Lee Ironworks in Galveston made boilers, steam machinery, and such. There is no reason they couldn’t have made a steam traction engine for Gresham Steamship Co.

    I needed an image of First Hangar in Texas City on the morning of Artemis’ launch on her first trip to the Moon. It is surprising how much work went into this set of images, and they likely will only be used for about 5 seconds or so.

    Tesla testing his drive pod will also show up in the ad.

    I’ll also need the Selenite Tunnel where Artemis was repaired.

    It wouldn’t be a good ad for Artemis Rising without Zafir. I must admit, he came out more creepy than I expected.

    And I will probably even get to put the Freeze Cannon into the ad.

    These are a couple of images from the agricultural cavern of Tunnel 16 Entrance Community.

    Another element I needed for the ad was the vacuum suits the Selenites use. I even considered how to make them “off the rack” and able to fit women’s anatomy into the chest area.

    I also made a set of references for the utility vehicle that Eli had. I finally have a reference image of the lunar all-metal wheels. If I use it consistently, that should help the AI keep from getting confused.

    Tunnel 16 Entrance. The first significant location on the Moon. I had to create the crater wall, scale it, get an entrance and then spent hours getting the Artificial Idiot to put the entrance in correctly. But it is there now.

    I needed the cars, station, and tunnels of the Transit Tube system. These are basically what I was thinking of, although they came out a bit brighter and lighter. Which isn’t a bad thing.

    I finally got the video ad finished Tuesday night. I had 2 hours to spare and just shy of 17% of my AI credits left. Not quite the last minute and last credit, but pretty close. I haven’t had to learn so much so fast in a long time. Now we’ll just have to see how well people like it. https://malcolmupton.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Artemis-Ad-1-v9.mov It will be on the Artemis Rising page on Amazon by the end of the week. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0F3K149ZQ

    I did get the updated covers and hardback versions of some of the books done. Probably by the end of the week hardback versions of all these will be available on Amazon.

    Artemis Rising: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0HJ7H71FQ
    Celestial Accord: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0HJ7H18MS
    Forging the Chain Breakers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0HJ7CPHPY
    Selene Unchained: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0HJ7PKN6J

    Some progress last week on Palestine’s Ghosts before I dived into Video creation and editing:
    3: Capital Answers – finished
    Weird The Third I: The House of Doors – started

    Word Count is 63,367 in 14+ chapters of an estimated 70,000-130,000 in 32 chapters.

    High Adventure is available as a stand-alone novelette. It is #1,236 on Steampunk Science Fiction (Kindle Store), #1,421 in Steampunk Fiction, #2,259 in Action & Adventure Short Stories (Kindle Store). It is ebook only available here. No reviews yet. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Goth Galore is available as a stand-alone novella. It is #1,962 in Gaslamp Fantasy (Kindle Store), #2,904 in Gaslamp Fantasy (Books), and #8,120 in Historical Fantasy (Kindle Store). It is ebook only available here. No reviews yet. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Antarctic Honeymoon is #2,373 in Steampunk Fiction, #8,454 in Alternate History Science Fiction (Books), and #13,178 in Exploration Science Fiction. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here, or the kindle version here. The audiobook is available here. No reviews yet. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Artemis Rising is #543 in Steampunk Science Fiction (Kindle Store), #606 in Steampunk Fiction, and #1,799 in Alternative History. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. There is also an audiobook version here. Seven reviews for Artemis Rising. More will help others find the series as well – if you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Celestial Accord is in #632 Steampunk Fiction, #1,110 in Steampunk Science Fiction (Kindle Store), #2,601 in Alternate History. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here, the kindle version here, or the audiobook version here. One review but two ratings so far. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Forging the Chain Breakers is #631 in Steampunk Fiction, #1,204 in Steampunk Science Fiction (Kindle Store), #2,600 in Alternative History. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here, the kindle version here, or the audiobook here. No reviews yet. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Selene Unchained is #639 in Steampunk Fiction, #1,241 in Steampunk Science Fiction (Kindle Store), #2,625 in Alternate History Science Fiction (Books). If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here, the kindle version here, or the audiobook here. No reviews yet. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here

    Mirim’s First Christmas is #6,862 in 90-Minute Science Fiction & Fantasy Short Reads,  #12,118 in Colonization Science Fiction, and #12,495 in Alternate History Science Fiction (Books). You can find the paper version here or the kindle version here. One review so far. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

  • Raptors, Editing, and the Enclosure

    Raptors, Editing, and the Enclosure

    You can get autographed copies of all three released books in Selene Reborn (Artemis Rising, Celestial Accord, Forging the Chain Breakers) or Mirim’s First Christmas at the Dogwood Festival in Palestine, TX Saturday only.

    By Fred Wierum - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=63257507

    Needed another opponent for Antarctic Honeymoon. This is it: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deinonychus Thing is, none of the dromasaurid dinosaurs were known in 1891 – and everyone thought dinosaurs were lizards, not closely related enough to birds to have feathers…

    Manuscript and Dramatis Personae for the final book in Selene Reborn, Selene Unchained, was sent to the editor Monday. That is a little early, but maybe it will get back a little early as well.

    Needed a new location bible entry. There are details—way more than will ever fit in a book—about the Aetherwood Research Station on Caproni Island. https://greshamverse.fandom.com/wiki/Aetherwood_Research_Station if you are interested—warning, there are likely spoilers…

    Advertising: 5 sales in the past 14 days. Artemis Rising just isn’t selling at full price yet. When I get five reviews for Celestial Accord, I’ll add that.

    Antarctic Honeymoon is progressing. Chapters this week:
    Clash of Titans – finished
    Pack in the Mist
    In the Waning Light
    The Enclosure
    Reserve for the Future – started

    Word count is 67,048. Aim is 71,000-78,000. Last chapter and Epilogue are all that’s left

    Artemis Rising is #251 in Steampunk Science Fiction (Kindle Store), #897 in Alternate History, and #1,430 in Alternate History Science Fiction (Books). If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. There is also an audiobook version here. Six reviews for Artemis Rising. More will help others find the series as well – if you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Celestial Accord is ranked now. #609 in Steampunk Science Fiction (Kindle Store), #691 in Steampunk Fiction, #1,892 in Alternate History. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here, the kindle version here, or the audiobook version here. One review so far. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Forging the Chain Breakers is #598 in Steampunk Science Fiction (Kindle Store), #684 in Steampunk Fiction, #1,852 in Alternate History. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. The audiobook will be delayed while I finish Antarctic Honeymoon. No reviews yet. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Mirim’s First Christmas is #6,545 in Colonization Science Fiction, #9,826 in Alternate History Science Fiction (Books), and #12,272 in Science Fiction Short Stories. You can find the paper version here or the kindle version here. No reviews yet. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here. I’m still working on getting free versions to be available on my website.

    If you want to get early access to chapters in the current book, write a nice review for one of the current novels on Amazon or Goodreads, and email me that you’ve done it.

  • Forging, Alligatormen, and Advertising

    Forging, Alligatormen, and Advertising

    As announced yesterday, Forging the Chain Breakers will publish Friday. Get yours at the Granbury Founder’s Day Jubilee Friday, Saturday, or Sunday.

    Somehow I messed up the paleo botany and paleo zoology of the central basin. Had to do some rework of that.

    I have another race – this one definitely not human.

    Alligatormen are an intelligent, semi-aquatic crocodilian humanoid species adapted to life in warm swamps, rivers, and coastal wetlands. Standing taller and broader than most humans, they possess powerful tails, thick armored scales, and long, tooth-filled jaws capable of crushing bone. Their society is primitive but organized: they build crude huts, maintain fires, and craft weapons from materials taken from the creatures they hunt. Their primary armament is a heavy macuahuitl-like club edged with shark teeth, used for brutal close combat, along with javelins tipped with dimetrodon teeth. Patient ambush predators both in water and on land, alligatormen rely on stealth, sudden violence, and their formidable physical strength, making them one of the most dangerous indigenous threats encountered by explorers in the swamps they inhabit.

    I also have a minor character that is going to be fun. “Am I A Mouse?” marks the third chapter the Black Ocelot has appeared in.

    I have a new poster and table sign for this weekend.

    I heard about another location that I might use at some point. Ubar—Atlantis of the Sands. This is what we know in real life: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantis_of_the_Sands so if I use it, it will need some… poetic license applied.

    Advertising: 9 sales in the past 14 days. $120.02 in spend, $24.91 in revenue. Still upside down there, but that may change if I can start getting sales at full price instead of just $0.99. When I get five reviews for Celestial Accord, I’ll add that.

    Antarctic Honeymoon is progressing. Chapters this week:
    Alligatormen – Finished
    Am I A Mouse?
    Clash of Titans – Started

    Word count is 54,381. Aim is 71,000-78,000.

    Artemis Rising is #147 in Steampunk Science Fiction (Kindle Store), #446 in Alternate History, and #814 in Alternate History Science Fiction (Books). If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. There is also an audiobook version here. Six reviews for Artemis Rising—thank you Diane. More will help others find the series as well – if you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Celestial Accord isn’t ranked yet. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here, the kindle version here, or the audiobook version here. One review so far. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Mirim’s First Christmas is live. You can find the paper version here or the kindle version here. I’m still working on getting free versions to be available on my website.

  • Pictures, Aetherwood, and Ginkgos

    Pictures, Aetherwood, and Ginkgos

    You can get autographed copies of Artemis Rising, Celestial Accord, or Mirim’s First Christmas at the Walnut Springs Rattlesnake Roundup Friday, Saturday, or Sunday.

    I spent more time than I probably should have getting better pictures of Eleanor, Walter & Eleanor, Walter and Eleanor for their wedding, and the Antarctic Honeymoon cover mockup.

    I also took time to nail down liftwood/aetherwood details. If you’re interested, you can learn more here: https://greshamverse.fandom.com/wiki/Aetherwood

    One of the distinctive types of trees on Caproni Island are Ginkgo trees. Today, we know that one species of ginkgo – ginkgo biloba – is still extent. In 1891 – the entire family was thought to be extinct, only being rediscovered as a ‘living fossil’ in 1896. I also looked for fossil animals that were known in 1891. Unfortunately, the giant crocodiles, Titanoboa, and even giant turtles are all 21st century discoveries. I do have terrorbird fossils from the 1870’s…

    The advertising is beginning to work. Sold 5 Artemis Rising Books in the last week. That’s 10 since the ads started. It is costing me more than I’m making, so I put the e-book price back to $4.99. We’ll see what impact that has. I’ll probably do a sale in conjunction to the release of Forging the Chain Breakers.

    Antarctic Honeymoon is progressing. Chapters this week:
    The Silver Spire – completed
    Alligatormen – Started

    Word count is 47,414. Aim is 71,000-78,000.

    Artemis Rising is #450 in Alternate History Science Fiction (books), #580 in Space Exploration Science Fiction eBooks, and #699 in First Contact Science Fiction eBooks. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. There is also an audiobook version here. Five customer reviews. More will help others find the series as well – if you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Celestial Accord isn’t ranked yet. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here, the kindle version here, or the audiobook version here. One review so far. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Mirim’s First Christmas is live. You can find the paper version here or the kindle version here. I’m still working on getting free versions to be available on my website.

    Celestial Accord copy-edit is available now. The Audible AI audiobook is also available.

    If you want to get early access to Book 3 chapters, write a nice review for Artemis Rising or Celestial Accord on Amazon or Goodreads, and email me that you’ve done it.

  • Selene Reborn and Honeymoon Progress

    Selene Reborn and Honeymoon Progress

    Blog Post

    The box set images for Selene Reborn are done – what do you think?

    You can get autographed copies of Artemis Rising, Celestial Accord, or Mirim’s First Christmas at Canton First Monday Trade Days Thursday, Friday, Saturday, or Sunday.

    Forging the Chain Breakers is finished! I reset release for March 13. Hopefully I’ll have copies for Granbury Founder’s Day.

    Editing Forging the Chain Breakers meant there were some additional threads to resolve, or at least address, in Selene Unchained. I think I have those done and it will be headed to Sandra for editing this time next month. Maybe the series will be complete by the time we go to the Galveston Steampunk Festival.

    The advertising is beginning to work. Sold one ebook of Artemis Rising in February. That was only 3% of the royalties I earned, however. The other 97% were from Kindle Unlimited readers. That also doesn’t count books sold at markets.

    Antarctic Honeymoon is progressing. Chapters this week:
    Lost Island – completed
    The Silver Spire – started

    Word count is 43,171. Aim is 71,000-78,000.

    Artemis Rising is #259 in Steampunk Fiction, #621 in Alternate History, and #189 in Steampunk Science Fiction. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. There is also an audiobook version here. Five customer reviews. More will help others find the series as well – if you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Celestial Accord isn’t ranked yet. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here, the kindle version here, or the audiobook version here. One review so far. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Mirim’s First Christmas is live. You can find the paper version here or the kindle version here. I’m still working on getting free versions to be available on my website.

    Celestial Accord copy-edit is available now. The Audible AI audiobook is also available.

    If you want to get early access to Book 3 chapters, write a nice review for Artemis Rising or Celestial Accord on Amazon or Goodreads, and email me that you’ve done it.

  • Forging to Editor!

    Forging to Editor!

    Artemis Rising is #3,826 in Space Exploration Science Fiction ebooks, #3,785 in Alternate History Science Fiction, and #5,797 in First Contact Science Fiction. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. There is also an audiobook version here. Five customer reviews now (thanks Rick). I still need a more so other readers can find it, but I may start promoting with these five – if you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Celestial Accord isn’t ranked yet. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. One review so far. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Mirim’s First Christmas is live. You can find the paper version here or the kindle version here. I’m still working on getting free versions to be available on my website.

    Sandra (my editor) had a slot open up early so Forging the Chain Breakers is now in her hands. Whoo Hoo!

    I used Audible AI to do a complete audio read of Artemis Rising. A number of minor fixes resulted and now I’m going through again. Hopefully after these minor fixes, I’ll be able to get a clean audio recording I’m happy enough with to publish as an audiobook. Went through another time, and got a new cover – Updated Artemis Rising with AI Audiobook is now live. If you listen to it, please leave me a review here.

    I’ve heard some complaints about how small the print in the current books are, so I increased the size of the print significantly. Artemis Rising will be the first book to be released with the new, larger print.

    Started the same process using AI to do a line-edit of Celestial Accord.

    I also got title pages for Forging the Chain Breakers and Selene Unchained.

    Antarctic Honeymoon is started. It is a stand-alone Walter & Eleanor story taking place the same time as the first chapters of Selene Unchained. Chapters this week:
    Preface
    Uncertainty and Change

  • Artemis, Forging, Selene, Reform War

    Artemis, Forging, Selene, Reform War

    Still can’t upload pictures – I’m going to see about changing web hosting companies because this is ridiculous.

    Artemis Rising is #2,103 in Space Exploration Science Fiction ebooks, #2,130 in Alternate History Science Fiction, and #3,283 in First Contact Science Fiction. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. Four customer reviews now, but I need a few more to get Audible to take notice – if you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Celestial Accord isn’t ranked yet. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. One review so far. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    I’m recovering from surgery so no book signing this weekend

    Mirim’s First Christmas is live. You can find the paper version here or the kindle version here. I’m still working on getting free versions to be available on my website.

    Worked some more on alternate history. The Mexican Reform war sure turns out differently. I’m still not sure what to do about King Kamehameha III’s request to become a US state…

    Selene Unchained has a cover, and I really like it. What do you think?

    I did an AI supported editing pass of Forging the Chain Breakers. We’ll see how that works.

    Did an AI Copyedit of Artemis Rising. I think ChatGPT has a tendency to go well beyond Copyedits and into Line Editing – and when it does, the line editing tends to drift into ChatGPTs voice instead of maintaining mine. I kept a tight rein on it, so drift wasn’t too bad. If you want to get early access to Book 3 chapters, write a nice review for Artemis Rising or Celestial Accord on Amazon or Goodreads, and email me that you’ve done it.

  • Progress – Multiple titles

    Progress – Multiple titles

    Still problems uploading graphics. Maybe next week.

    Artemis Rising is #4,674 in Space Exploration Science Fiction ebooks, #4,763 in Alternate History Science Fiction, and #6,863 in First Contact Science Fiction. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. Four customer reviews now, but I need a few more to get Audible to take notice – if you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Celestial Accord isn’t ranked yet. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. One review so far. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    You can get autographed copies of both books at the Richardson Farmer’s Market Saturday.

    Mirim’s First Christmas is live. You can find the paper version here or the kindle version here. I’m still working on getting free versions to be available on my website.

    I was able to get ChatGPT to come up with pictures for Limees and Argos. They are too cartoonish, but at least they are centauroids instead of bipedal robots.

    Selene Unchained is written. Isaac is still going through making polish suggestions, but it is essentially ready for Sandra.

    Selene Unchained chapters this week:
    The Beginning of the End
    The Breathless Pause
    Assault on Manufactory Station
    Fire and Fog
    The Palace
    The Last Accounting
    A Council Without Thrones
    Epilogue: Galveston Aeroport

    Selene Unchained final word count is 83,237, not counting Dramatis Personae (1,343 words).

    I also have the cover for Selene Unchained almost finished – It took a while to get the right model for Selene, but I think we nailed it.

    I’ve started trying to get ChatGPT to do a line edit of Artemis Rising. It’s possible, but takes a lot of preparation, otherwise ChatGPT gets lost in the size of the manuscript.

    Since I have time, I decided to do a line edit of Forging the Chain Breakers. I think it will be easier for Sandra to edit a cleaner manuscript and it may do some of the developmental editing ahead of time.

    If you want to get early access to Book 3 chapters, write a nice review for Artemis Rising or Celestial Accord on Amazon or Goodreads, and email me that you’ve done it.

  • AI, War College, and Artemis

    AI, War College, and Artemis

    Something is broken this week and I can’t post pictures. If I can get it fixed quickly, I’ll edit this.

    Artemis Rising is #4,155 in Space Exploration Science Fiction ebooks, #4,205 in Alternate History Science Fiction, and #7,536 in Exploration Science Fiction. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. Four customer reviews now, but I need a few more to get Audible to take notice – if you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Celestial Accord isn’t ranked yet. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. One review so far! If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    You can get autographed copies of both books at the Richardson Farmer’s Market Saturday.

    Mirim’s First Christmas is live. You can find the paper version here or the kindle version here. I’m still working on getting free versions to be available on my website.

    I did make some edits on Mirim’s First Christmas, so it is better now.

    I spent a significant amount of time with ChatGPT fleshing out the alternate history of my setting. I have everything lined out from the deviation point of Sam Houston only receiving a minor wound at Horseshoe Bend, to the 1891 inauguration of Benjamin Harrison. As a bonus, I have a history book chapter and War College case study on the Euro-American War and a War College comparison of the Euro-American and Franco-Prussian Wars, both of which are pretty cool. They also very neatly set up the importance of decisive action and naval strength in US military thinking. That will be important by 1900…

    I’ve learned a lot more about AI, mostly how to use it to make really cool video. I also got AI to help me with outlining the rest of Selene Unchained. It did an OK job, but mostly I took only about half what ChatGPT put in the outline, did some rearranging, and a lot of editing to keep the book on track instead of going off in some sort of weird direction. I also asked ChatGPT to actually write a chapter. What it wrote fit the book about like a marine diesel engine would fit in a sports car – but it had a few neat ideas. I suspect it might not have saved me much time, but the additional ideas may have made the chapter better.

    ChatGPT does seem to do a good job of writing marketing copy. I’m much better at recognizing good copy than I am at writing it myself. With ChatGPT doing most of the heavy lifting and me doing the final edit and clean-up, I think I have really good blurbs for all four books and the series in Selene Reborn. I’m not sure changing the blurbs helped. My rankings are worse. But all four books show up as suggestions now. Check them out:
    Mirim’s First Christmas: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GC9XCR2Z
    Artemis Rising: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0F3K149ZQ
    Celestial Accord: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FP72PX1G
    Forging the Chain Breakers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FXTFL9K8
    Selene Unchained: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FXTJ933V
    Selene Reborn: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0F3NGXHYH

    The cover for Selene Unchained was started this week. That is the last cover required for the Selene Reborn Series. Once I have it, I’ll get the art for the boxed set.

    I also started a Fiverr project to get an actual illustration of Artemis. Isaac has done a great job of putting together a concept art level version, but I need something closer to photo-realistic for some of the other projects I have planned, including the boxed set graphics. That is proving to be a major headache.

    A new character added to the Dramatis Personae. Sgt Selkoryos – the second in command of the Troll troopers. He appeared first in Artemis Rising but has a little bigger part in Selene Unchained.

    Another productive week for Selene Unchained. At least some of the progress was made in chapters not listed since I put together a more detailed outline for the rest of the book.

    Selene Unchained chapters this week:
    Eldritch Summit
    A Dream of Import
    Manufactory Defense
    Bally Cluster
    Bloody Endymion
    Smelter Six

    Selene Unchained word count is 69,649, not counting Dramatis Personae (1,315 words).

    If you want to get early access to Book 3 chapters, write a nice review for Artemis Rising or Celestial Accord on Amazon or Goodreads, and email me that you’ve done it.

  • Ads, Hala, and Charlie

    Ads, Hala, and Charlie

    Artemis Rising is #1,987 in Steampunk Fiction, #2,130 in Steampunk Fiction (Kindle Store), and #5,325 in Alternative History. Still at 3 customer reviews. I need a few more to get Audible to take notice – if you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    I finished the chapter that introduces Hala. I must admit, I’m really disliking Zafir – in the words of the old Texas salt, he needs a good killin’. I really like Hala – if you’ve been reading these you know her name means moon, but has the additional connotation of ‘ethereal beauty’. I thought that was perfect for the character and the role she would play in Book 4.

    I spent some money on ads on Facebook and Instagram. We’ll see if they are worth it. Even if they only make 50% of the investment back, there is enough information about the efficiency of the ads that I may be able to get to break-even on the next round. If I can do that, with some tweaking, I should be able to get beyond break-even. Even if it is only break-even, if I’m selling ten or fifteen books a week, that will help me get some momentum.

    Honestly, I found it really hard to concentrate this week. I was really bummed over Charlie Kirk’s assassination. I know he is with the Lord. I know we will see him again. I know that, like many Christian martayrs, he is likely to have more impact in death than he did in life – and he had a huge, history-changing impact in life. I’m still bummed that one of the biggest advocates for dialoge and free speech, the peaceful exchange of idea, was taken from us. Over and over I thought about Obi-Wan’s words to Vader, “If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine”

    Selene Unchained chapters this week:
    1: An Air Car Ride
    2: Plotting Freedom
    5: Hala – finished
    6: A Sorceress, A Marine, and A Spy – started

    Selene Unchained word count is 9,248, not counting Dramatis Personae (775 words).

    If you want to be a beta reader and comment on Book 2 chapters, write a nice review for Artemis Rising on Amazon or Goodreads, and email me that you’ve done it.