diasporatales

 

Newspaper article about the second Diaspora novel. Dated – Tues 6 March 2018

Mparntwe, the new book from Healesville Author Peter Wood.

Story of sci-fi adventures

By Derek Schlennstedt

Healesville resident and freelance Author Peter Wood has followed up his book Attunga with a prequel called Mparntwe.

The book predates Attunga by 100 years and Peter said that while there are small references to his previous book anyone is able to read and understand it.

The aptly called Mparntwe, aboriginal for Alice Springs is set in Central Australia and follows two protagonists, Jarra and Mirrigan, both who have disabilities that complement one another.

“It’s a mainstream sci-fi adventure story … The basic story behind it is how the very first independent AI comes into being,” said Peter.

“There is a disability theme which is very different to the first book. It’s very positive and gentle, because Jarra has a brilliant mind but his body is very limited, but Mirrigan is exactly the opposite to him.”

Mparntwe describes how these two young friends change the world for the better with their involvement in the development of the first benevolent Artificial Intelligence.

In the book there is a gentle treatment of disability involving both the characters, Jarra and Mirrigan, and as per his last book Peter draws on his vast experience of travelling Australia.

Many of the boys adventures are based in distinctly Australian settings – the outback near Alice Springs, and the Grampians range in Western Victoria.

The heart-warming tale follows the two boy’s adventures as they face hostile forces of power and greed who want to control the first artificial intelligence, who both of the boys befriend.

Together said Peter they will influence events which will ‘change the world’. To find out more about the book visit https://diasporatales.net/

Check it out.

http://www.nickijmarkus.com/2017/11/author-interview3-peter-wood.html

Nikki, my proofer for Mparntwe, kindly offered to post an Author Interview on her website and if you’re interested, a click on the link above will take you there.

Along with her professional work as as editor and proofer, Nikki is also an author so she has a double edged understanding of the writing world and her site:

http://www.nickijmarkus.com

is full of all sorts of advice, interviews, reviews and vlogs and generally interesting information.

A lovely little bookshop has opened in the town of Healesville, east of Melbourne, and I’m delighted to inform the world that both Attunga and Mparntwe are available there – along with an eclectic range of other books.

 

The glitch with the digital edition of Mparntwe has finally been resolved and the story is now available worldwide for Kindle readers.

More details on the purchase page.

Yes, MPARNTWE has arrived.

The Australian paperback version is now in print and the process of finding an outlet can begin.

The International paperback version is available worldwide through Amazon.

More details on the purchase page.

There is a slight glitch with the Kindle edition which I hope will be overcome by tomorrow.

This morning I had that special moment of holding the first physical  copy of MPARNTWE in my hands. 🙂

BUT! HOW’S THIS FOR SPECIAL TREATMENT!  – There was a hiccup in production and completion took longer than expected so the partners of TENDERPRINT took it on themselves to hand deliver the proof. This involved an early start and a drive of over an hour and a half from Geelong and right across Melbourne and then the same to return.

I call that ‘going the extra mile’. – thank you TENDERPRINT.

And, the book looks GREAT! – thank you again TENDERPRINT.

Ahead of me is the last check through of the proof copy and then printing will be able to go ahead for the Australian version.

YAY!

 

P.S. For any Australian authors who might be looking for a Printer with great service, price and quality, I suggest checking out TENDERPRINT at:

http://tenderprint.com.au

 

 

The graphics for the front and back cover of Mparntwe have been finalised and you can see them by clicking on the MPARNTWE menu.

The front cover appears before the excerpt from the story. Scroll to the end of the excerpt to see the back cover and the kind comments I mentioned a couple of posts ago.

My thanks go to Luke of Working Type Studio for all his work and making all the finicky changes I kept asking for. Here’s a link to his website:

www.workingtype.com.au

 

Yes, I’m saying big a thank you to the five kind readers who have allowed me to use their comments on the back cover of Mparntwe.

Look what they said.

‘Just amazing! You’ve brought my thirsty soul a draught of refreshment.’  – Marlin Schorr

‘The adventure of Mirrigan and Jarra is both heartwarming and exciting.’  – Dathi Youngman

‘This is such a fantastic and moving story. Thank you for this treasure.’  – Wolflady

‘I particularly like your gently humane characters and your wonderful finale brought me to happy tears.’  – Brian M

‘You have touched my soul. Emotions I haven’t felt in such a long time overwhelmed me.’ – Jim Gaff

Thank you Marlin, Dathi, Wolflady, Brian and Jim.

I hope to be able to post an image of the cover in a matter of days.

This is a public thank you to Nicki for putting the final polish on the manuscript with her proofreading. And, wow, so prompt.

Nicki is an author in her own right and you can find out more about her at her website:

http://www.nickijmarkus.com