Number 1 in US Kindle genre!

Passage to Redemption is the most downloaded High Tech Science Fiction book in the USA - It's official!

Ranking = 343 overall and 1st for it's genre.

Kindle downloads have gone through the roof as hundreds accessed the free promotion in just the first few hours and it's still going on. The Kindle promotion for Prime Members runs for 5 days, so it will be fascinating to see where the ranking ends up.

To check out the story, or get your free download, visit the website at www.passagetoredemption.com

Passage to Redemption in Top 10 for its Category on Kindle!

Link to Passage to Redemption on Amazon

Despite the UK version of the paperback not yet being released, sales of the Kindle version rocketed the novel into the number 9 spot for the Metaphysical category on Kindle tonight.

Following a recent announcement by The Crew that all 2011 royalties are to be donated to an environmental cause, this will be good news for the organisations currently being considered for the donation.

If you haven't yet purchased your copy, it can be downloaded for less than £1 at the above link and you don't even need a Kindle device to read it. Free software can also be found that will allow you to read this, and other books, on the PC, MAC, or a range of other devices.

There's no time like the present to help save the future!

Pete

The Mexico Climate Change Summit Approaches and Passage to Redemption is Ready!

The Worldwide Collaborative Book Project has reached a highly satisfying conclusion with the release this week of Passage to Redemption on Kindle.




This means that for a few dollars or pounds, you can obtain a copy of our ground breaking environmental novel. The story combines a thriller spanning not just centuries, but thousands of years, with a powerful environmental message.

"What would we do if everyone on the planet knew without any doubt that they had to act now to avoid the demise of the human race within a few short years?"

Imagine if those who, for whatever reason, doubt the scientific consensus, also became convinced that a catastrophe was imminent. If everyone truly believed there was just five years, surely that would focus their minds. Our political leaders and systems have failed us and there is widespread distrust between nations, so who could possibly take the helm in such a disaster? Whose authority would everyone accept? You may find the conclusion surprising.

Most importantly, what could actually be done in a few short years to reverse the CO2 saturation of our atmosphere?

The key message of this story is that redemption is, just about, possible. Mankind has the inventiveness to bring about such a change. But it will be down to individuals as much as governments to make this happen. Passage to Redemption postulates a myriad of devices and initiatives that a desperate society might use if faced with a total ban on fossil fuels. It postulates the result of a massive change in the world's investment in so-called 'alternative' energy; except it's no longer an alternative, it's all there is.

It is fitting that this book was written collaboratively, as collaboration would be the unavoidable order of the day. It is also fitting that the collaboration was between complete strangers across the entire planet because, like the authors, Christians, Muslims, Jews, non-believers and every creed of religion would have to find a way to work together. Perhaps the central creed of their philosophies would finally manifest itself in a more tolerant society that, like the book, proves mankind can work together for the common good.

For those who prefer to hold the traditional book in their hands, they can buy it now on Amazon.com and soon on Amazon.co.uk.

Out now in the USA!

Passage to Redemption

The first release of Passage to Redemption is now available from Amazon for worldwide distribution.

It's been a massive effort by all those involved in the project and the result is a first class story which is already flying off Amazon's shelves!

You can get your copy here www.amazon.com/Passage-Redemption . Soon we will follow up with a Kindle version and other eBook formats, as well as Amazon.co.uk and other on-line stores around the world. With a project team from all over the world, we are already getting some great feedback internationally.

Thank you for your interest and we will keep you informed about the latest progress.

On behalf of all 'The Crew'

Pete

Available soon!

After many months of writing and even more of waiting, Passage to Redemption is at the printers!

The special, first edition will be a short run for the benefit of the authors and those around the world who participated in the project as well as everyone who has followed our progress.

It will be available exclusively on Amazon.com for Worldwide distribution during September and I'll announce the date here first. Shortly after, a Kindle version will be launched.

The main release will follow a few months later on Amazon.co.uk as well as Amazon.com and general availability through book shops, to order.

It was always our desire to be available in time for the Mexico Climate Change Conference later this year, so we're especially pleased to have achieved this goal.

The special edition will be something of a collectors item but your postman will need strong arms as it weighs in at over 750 pages!

Just what you will need for those long Winter nights!

Pete 

A June Deadline!

Things have been going on behind the scenes on the project and a few months ago we set ourselves a June deadline to make some important decisions. The good news is that June is here and we are now preparing for the next and final push!

Passage to Redemption remains on track to be released before the Climate Conference in Mexico this year. Watch this space for details!

The Crew

So What's Going On Now?

With the writing phase completed, we now enter an equally challenging period!

The Climate Change Conference in Mexico takes place during 2010 and we would dearly like to be in print when that concludes. It's the most significant event since Kyoto.

But before anyone can buy our book, we need an Agent or Publisher, so the search is on. Our various writers around the World are sending 'Query' letters and emails seeking representation.

Typically this process takes as long as writing a book so we aren't anticipating a quick response and if successful, we will have to join the queue of waiting publications. It's tough, but we just have to be patient.

In the meantime, there is polishing to be done and the inevitable revisiting of what we've already written as well as discussions commencing about the next big project.

More about that soon!

The other work is to create our website and you can watch this come together at http://www.passagetoredemption.com/ , but please be patient it is still under construction.

Pete

Success !!

The Book project achieved it's target this week, just a few days before the deadline !

More than 11 man (and woman) years in the making this novel has proved that a group of complete strangers from all over the world can labour together for a common cause creatively and produce a first class work of literature.

As the Copenhagen climate conference draws to a close and focus begins to turn to Mexico in 2010, the timing could not be more appropriate for our novel. As we reveal more about the story you will appreciate why!

Over the next few weeks we will create a website with information about our story and the search which now commences for a publisher. So please bookmark this Blog to keep up to date with the news.

Pete
(On behalf a tired, but very satisfied Crew!)

Reduce Greenhouse Gases to Pre-Biblical times, or else ...

What would the world leaders meeting in Copenhagen do if they had a stark ultimatum;


'Get atmospheric CO2 down to pre-biblical levels within 3 years or face the destruction of the human race'

What if the evidence of this impending disaster in 3 short years was beyond doubt?

Would they be up to it? Could anyone pull it off? What could individuals and governments do NOW to ensure survival?

Time will run out, there will be no second chance, delay is not an option.

Passage to Redemption is now days away from completion and promises to be a block buster of a novel.

The Crew have been working non-stop around the world for almost a year and the deadline of 31st December, 2009 is rapidly approaching.

When the pen leaves the final page, a publisher or agent will be needed to get this important eco-thriller out to the public. They will need to be good, time is running out !

Pete
The Crew

www.amazonclicks.com/portal

Just 24 Days to go!

The team have been working for almost a year now and it's just 24 days to the deadline for The Book!

Will we do it?

My guess is we will just about make it although it will be very close. The first draft of the final chapter has been completed and the first 16 chapters have been veneered and edited.

It has been a huge challenge and everyone is keen to meet the objective of completing a manuscript worthy to send to potential publishers or agents by December 31st 2009.

The story itself has exceeded our most optimistic expectations and will not only make a great read but, given the world meeting about to start in Copenhagen this week and the likely activities resulting over the next few months, it is also extremely timely.

Pete

The 'Veneer' Writer

Today we hold a vote to choose one writer from our team who will 'tweak' what has been written to their own style of expression. We call this role a 'veneer' writer as they will not change the substance or structure of the story but will give it a single voice.

Whilst we are celebrating the diversity of a collaborative work, we do want the story to read as if a single writer was responsible.

In most parts, the veneer may be very thin or non-existent but in others a little deeper. The objective is to have a consistent voice through each thread of the story but we also have a deadline to meet!

Whilst the veneer writer is at work, with one or more helpers, the remaining team will focus upon the few structural questions raised in our read-through and then final chapter.

I'm guessing the next few weeks will fly past as we work to get everything completed by December 31st!

Pete

Latest News!

The collaborative novel remains ahead of schedule and we have now completed a complete 'read through' of all the chapters written to date. We did pick up quite a number of 'typos' as you would expect from the editing process and there are some tweaks to be made but nothing major.

This leaves only the final chapter and our creative team is now working on the conclusion to our story.

We were relieved to hear from our writer in Manila after the severe storms in that part of the world. When this is all over, we should draw up a list of the catastrophes that have affected our writing team through the course of one year on this great planet.

Pete

Passage to Redemption - Chapter 20 Beckons!

Today we are reviewing chapter 20 which means there are only a few more chapters left to edit.

We have unearthed a number of typos and some inconsistencies that will now need to be ironed out. In addition, the final chapter will be drafted when the reviews are complete.

This week has seen more catastrophic conditions around the world and we are waiting to hear from our writer in Manila following the floods there and storms across South East Asia. It was only a few weeks Istanbul was similarly devastated by floods and we were concerned about our writer there - until she popped up on Facebook that is!

The project continues to devour a considerable chunk of our lives around the world but also continues to inspire us.

Chapter 15 Already!

The read through is going well.

Already we have 14 chapters under our belts and tomorrow we focus upon number 15. So far, I have been mainly interested in how the story as a whole hangs together, how readable it is and how I would feel about it if I had purchased The Book.

I'm delighted with the result, which you only really appreciate when you do stand back from the keyboard and read it through afresh.

Others in the team have been very focussed upon the editing tasks - thank goodness ! So they have been spotting any errors or typos, as well as looking for continuity.

This exercise has proved extremely worth while and I feel when we reach our penultimate chapter, we will have achieved a more useful perspective on the best way to deal with the final chapter. That's the plan anyway!

Pete

Good news, bad news

Illness has blighted a few of our writers and our first case of Swine Flu has appeared on the scene in the USA.

The recent floods in Istanbul must also be making it very hard for our writer there and the economic situation around the world has brought it's own pressures for our team.

However, we expect to be fighting fit again very soon and have now embarked on another initiative!

With 23 out of 24 chapters completed, you can imagine we are all very focused upon our finale. But we have taken this opportunity to stop for a few weeks whilst we re-read everything we done so far. Starting yesterday, we embarked upon a 'one chapter per day' initiative and we will read and comment as we go so that our final chapter flows seamlessly from the story so far. Of course, we all know pretty much how it will end but there are a number of options on the best way to incorporate this.

Chapter 1 is already done and we are pretty pleased with ourselves - it's a great opening!

Pete

September and the climax!

With 23 chapters under our belt, the final '24' is now under way and it promises to be a real cliff hanger!

One or two of the team are waning - it's been a long hall - but the others are picking up the workload and driving on to the end. It's been a fantastic effort and when I read the manuscript I can't believe it's been created by so many hands.

Over the coming weeks our entire focus will be on finishing and then going over our work to ensure we haven't missed anything.

Then the next stage begins and we will start to look earnestly for a publisher!

Webinar Date Changes !

Due to University holiday periods, we have moved the Webinars to October this year.

The exact dates will be confirmed here soon.

Meanwhile, The Book powers on and we are about to tackle the final chapter!

All our threads come together into a dramatic close and every writer in the team is very keen to see our finale. To discover more about how the project has worked, our highs and our lows, as well as the story itself, be sure to book your place on the Webinar.

Back soon ....

Pete

"49 Writers" interview with Glenda Smith

A very interesting group in Alaska is "49 Writers." This refers to Alaska being the 49th state admitted to the union rather than the number of writers in the group.

I recently had the opportunity to discuss our collaborative writing "Book Project" in an interview for their blog site. I believe I stated so in the article but would definitely state it again -- the views expressed are mine alone and not endorsed by the other authors in the "Book Project." There may even be some of the group whose thoughts totally contradict mine.

If you would like to visit, this is a link to my interview. There are many other interesting items on the site including "Ode to a Dead Salmon" contest -- uniquely Alaskan.

http://49writers.blogspot.com/2009/07/49-writers-interview-glenda-smith.html

It is still hard to believe we are into the 8th month of our project -- it has indeed been an exciting trip so far.

Glenda Smith

Secrets Revealed & Your Chance to Meet the Authors!

As The Book moves into it's final phase, our team is planning a 'Webinar' for all those who are interested in this collaborative project.

Over the months, several Universities and academic institutions around the world have contacted our team to ask about the project and some have even launched their own internal collaborative works within their English literature faculties.

A wide range of literary professionals have also been in touch for information, in addition to past project members, writer's groups and forums and the many people who are close to the authors themselves.

There are many questions about how we have managed this ambitious project as well as why we did it. When you talk about collaborative writing, most people think that one person writes something, then someone else and so on. This is what I refer to as 'serial collaboration' and there are a number of examples of this on the web.

The Book is not a serial project and I will explain our approach in more detail during the Webinar.

We have also, as you will imagine, been asked lots of times for information about the story (so far a tightly guarded secret!). What kind of story will be worthy of such an effort? How do we maintain a consistent style?

All this, and much more will be answered during the Webinar.

So what is a 'Webinar'?

It's a meeting - but a meeting on the Internet with people from all around the world. Our Webinar will include audio so you will hear us talking and you will be able to submit questions via your computer keyboard into a dialogue box.

We will start with a brief presentation about the project - how it came about and who is in it.

Then we reveal our big secret ...... what the story is about and what we plan to call it! (if the publishers agree!)

From the beginning you will be able to ask questions and these will be logged throughout and answered in turn after the presentation.

So when is this going to happen?

This September!

We will deliver the webinar in each of three major time zones within hours or days of each other. The Western zone will accommodate our audience predominantly in the USA and Canada. Central will cover Western Europe including Great Britain and Ireland, Spain, Holland, France, Germany and those countries in the region. The Eastern zone will address our audience from Eastern Europe through to Australasia including Turkey, India, Malaysia, The Philippines, Australia and New Zealand. You can attend any or all of the sessions if you wish, although the presentation will be the same each time.

What do you need to do to attend?

All you need is access to a computer and the Internet, whether that is a PC or a Mac. You don't need any special software but you will need sound or earphones.

To register and receive an invitation with confirmation of exact times and dates, please send an email to webinar@amazonclicks.com .

We'll look forward to welcoming you in September!

Pete

Almost Half Way !

The end of June marks the official half way point for our novel and the progress has been exceptional.

Well over half the writing has now been completed and initially edited. We are all very proud of the story so far!

It has always been our intention to keep the details of our story under wraps but as we move into the final months a few hints will be given and the first is to announce that although we are writing fiction (and cracking fiction at that!) there will be an environmental theme to our story. That's all I can divulge right now but one or two more 'teasers' may be released in the months ahead.

Here in the British Channel Island of Guernsey the sun is out and my own writing time is having to compete with a strong desire to be out sailing! But the beat goes on and there will be no let up from our team as we plough forward with this unique project. Around the world the writing continues 24 hours a day in different time zones and the interaction between writers in our online forum is as busy as ever. An average of 370 page views every day between the dozen writers!

June will see our Reader's Circle casting off their identities and becoming strangers to the writing team as they imagine they have just purchased 'The Book' and must now review it!

Later in the month, I will post a message that I think you will all find very interesting ........! :)

Pete