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July 2022

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Newsletter 2022-07-15: upcoming give-away, two free book tips and a music tip
by Koen Martens 15 Jul '22

15 Jul '22

Title 'Koen's Bi-montly Mailing' against backdrop of white binary digits on blue background Office towers reaching up to a starry sky Changes to book pricing In August, the price of the Isolated Futures Omnibus will go up from US$4.26 to US$12,95 (or thereabouts). But, you heard it here first, before that happens there will be a Goodreads give-away. This give-away will kick-off on August 5th, the date of the next newsletter. A few days later, I will announce the give-away on social media. That means you, as a subscriber to my newsletter, will get a head-start to sign up for a chance to win one of those 100 free copies. Of course, if you can't wait, you can already get the Omnibus at the current low price on Amazon. <https://www.amazon.com/Isolated-Futures-Omnibus-Koen-Martens-ebook/dp/B09VY…> Screenshot of new newsletter design New newsletter design (cont'd) I'm still tweaking the new newsletter design. It looks great in my testing on thunderbird, gmail and K9 mail, but of course Outlook messes up the layout entirely. Leave it to Microsoft to break things and frustrate people, ey? I'll probably have to move back to table-based layout. Ugh. At least the text should be coming across just fine. Orange tinted cityscape suggesting destruction <https://storyoriginapp.com/swaps/e6672c70-f9eb-11ec-84cd-67f9b9cde81b> Amy's Story Mark Hood /A 'War of the Worlds' Adventure/ Amy’s comfortable life is shattered when the Martians attack. Forced to flee the burning town of Woking, she can’t prevent her husband George from vanishing into the night on a foolish errand. With no idea if he will ever return, and fearing for her unborn child, she sets out to try and find him among the tidal wave of terrified people. When Ella, an orphaned refugee, begs her for help, Amy promises to find her grandparents. Unable to reach them, she ends up working in a field hospital tending to the injured and dying victims of the Martian assault. Supplies are running dry, the army wants to commandeer the place for their own wounded, and more desperate souls arrive every hour. Meanwhile the Martian destruction draws ever closer. Get it for free! <https://storyoriginapp.com/swaps/e6672c70-f9eb-11ec-84cd-67f9b9cde81b> Space-suited figure standing at lip of ravine <https://storyoriginapp.com/swaps/5478593a-01e6-11ed-92ba-3b4601c99982> Rox Mark Bilsborough /Lost Colony Magazine, vol. 1, issue 1/ Forced into a risky mission to the outer reaches of the solar system, Roxanne “Rox” Weaver is about to confront a horror from her past, and a threat to humanity’s future. Lost Colony is a quarterly magazine of mid-length (10,000 to 25,000 words) science fiction and fantasy in all of their varieties. This ebook edition also includes an Editor’s Note in which the editor explains why this story was chosen for publication. Get it for free! <https://storyoriginapp.com/swaps/5478593a-01e6-11ed-92ba-3b4601c99982> People rollerskating against red background <https://open.spotify.com/album/5kHDX3xgkFyexSI8IEwfPB> Organ Skating Classics This newsletter's music tip may be considered cheesy by some, or, as my nephew once dubbed it, 'elevator music on steroids'. Mind you, organ rinks weren't a part of life where I grew up (nor where I live now), so I can't vouch for the validity of the title. I can however confirm that there's organs in there, and for sure there are some classic covers as well. The music is primarily from the 40's to the 60's and features a mix of artists. It put a smile on my face, hopefully it does the same for you! Check it out on Spotify. <https://open.spotify.com/album/5kHDX3xgkFyexSI8IEwfPB> Find my book, the Isolated Futures Omnibus, on: Amazon <https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09VYFJK15/>Kobo <https://www.kobo.com/ebook/isolated-futures>Barnes & Noble <https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w?ean=2940160945323>Google <https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=-yBlEAAAQBAJ>Apple <http://books.apple.com/us/book/id1615269317> Instagram icon <https://www.instagram.com/koenmartens_author/>Twitter icon <https://twitter.com/koenswriting>Linkedin icon <https://www.linkedin.com/in/komartens/>Facebook icon <https://www.facebook.com/Koen-Martens-104281962311958>Email icon <mailto:in+newsletter@metro.cx>Link icon <https://www.koenmartens.nl/?mtm_campaign=nl_main&mtm_kwd=220715>RSS icon <https://koenmartens.nl/feeds/all.atom.xml>

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Newsletter 2022-07-01: Midsommar, new design, books and music tips
by Koen Martens 01 Jul '22

01 Jul '22

Title 'Koen's Bi-montly Mailing' against backdrop of white binary digits on blue background Smooth rock shore with islands and red houses across the waterGlad midsommar! I've had my family over for a visit and we celebrated the Swedish mid-summer holiday midsommarafton at our neighbours'. We also spent some time in Stockholm and the archipelago. I just love the vibe of taking a boat through the thousands of islands. If you're ever in Stockholm, make sure to hop on a ferry out to Möja for example, and take a leisurely stroll. I did plan to continue work on my novel during the visit, but there was just too much to process and my mind wasn't in the right frame to get out the words. I'm now woefully behind, but I'll catch up somehow (despite having a whole new home to renovate too). Ruler and other design tools New newsletter design Now that the second half of 2022 has officially started, I thought I'd shake things up a bit and change the newsletter formatting. I'll probably be tweaking it a bit more, but so far I'm relatively happy. What do you think? Let me know on gmc(a)metro.cx <mailto:gmc@metro.cx>! Grim armoured and armed figure against backdrop of destroyed cityscape holding a teddy bear <https://storyoriginapp.com/swaps/eefea9fa-f26e-11ec-a533-171057a37234> Two from the Ashes Earl T. Roske Pfc Bernie Lebna has been through hell. It's left a mark. Now, a random rescue has put a baby in his arms. He's the only one that seems able to keep her happy and quiet. The Shepherd recruits Bernie for the extraction. No one wants a crying baby. What should be a simple side mission goes sideways. Now Bernie must not only struggle with his own fears, but with the safety of a trusting baby girl. Can he save the baby? Can he save himself? Get it for free! <https://storyoriginapp.com/swaps/eefea9fa-f26e-11ec-a533-171057a37234> Silhouettes of fighting persons against backdrop of eastern tower <https://storyoriginapp.com/swaps/1b48fa46-e5aa-11ec-8e7d-ff554192c0df> Cyber Fighter William Joseph Hill In this graphic novel — based on the screenplay for the author's short film project which itself is based on the full length novel CYBER FIGHTER — clumsy temp Brian Baldwin gets an assignment where he volunteers for an immersive Artificial Intelligence Virtual Reality experiment to be programmed with Black Belt fighting skills from 47 different martial arts. He goes from a total klutz to a real-life action hero! Get it for free! <https://storyoriginapp.com/swaps/1b48fa46-e5aa-11ec-8e7d-ff554192c0df> Black and white negative image of woman wearing dress, hat and purse mirrored along vertical axis <https://open.spotify.com/album/3DJEH628HjhqPgyO6N2gYJ?si=2gN_tztETIC68gmjyI…> Mary Beats Jane Don't you just love life's little coincidences? We recently bought a house and as we chatted with the previous owners it turned out one of them played in Swedish hardcore / trash metal band Mary Beats Jane. They even played at Dynamo Open Air, a Dutch metal festival I visited a few times. Who knows, I might have seen them live. Anyway, I decided to check out their music, and it's actually pretty awesome. Their title album got a Grammy, so that tells you something. Check it out on Spotify (not for the weak of heart). <https://open.spotify.com/album/3DJEH628HjhqPgyO6N2gYJ?si=2gN_tztETIC68gmjyI…> Find my book, the Isolated Futures Omnibus, on: Amazon <https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09VYFJK15/>Kobo <https://www.kobo.com/ebook/isolated-futures>Barnes & Noble <https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w?ean=2940160945323>Google <https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=-yBlEAAAQBAJ>Apple <http://books.apple.com/us/book/id1615269317> Instagram icon <https://www.instagram.com/koenmartens_author/>Twitter icon <https://twitter.com/koenswriting>Linkedin icon <https://www.linkedin.com/in/komartens/>Facebook icon <https://www.facebook.com/Koen-Martens-104281962311958>Email icon <mailto:in+newsletter@metro.cx>Link icon <https://www.koenmartens.nl/>RSS icon <https://koenmartens.nl/feeds/all.atom.xml>

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