Hard Sci-Fi Space Opera- HEGEMONY, by Mark Kalina

markkalina · 04-23-2012, 02:39 PM

I've self-published a novel on Amazon. Hegemony is a space opera with a hard-sci-fi edge and some transhumanist themes.

My readers to date seem to have liked it. It's available for 99 cents on Amazon.

If you're interested in a hard sci-fi story with intrigue and space battles, you might want to check it out.

It's available at
http://www.amazon.com/Hegemony-ebook...5206194&sr=8-1

ApK · 04-23-2012, 03:09 PM

Sounds interesting. Taking a look.

Two quick questions for you:

What does 'transhuminist' mean, and how do you pronounce 'Hegemony.'

markkalina · 04-23-2012, 07:03 PM

Transhumanist means relating to Transhumanism, which in turn is a philosophy of using technology to fundamentally change the human condition.

There are a couple of common ways of pronouncing "hegemony." In English, people tend to say "hedge-e-mony." The original Greek would sound more like "Heg-e-mony."

sabredog · 04-23-2012, 07:59 PM

Sounds a good read.

Just purchased it

ApK · 04-23-2012, 08:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by markkalina

Transhumanist means relating to Transhumanism, which in turn is a philosophy of using technology to fundamentally change the human condition.

Thanks.

Quote:

There are a couple of common ways of pronouncing "hegemony." In English, people tend to say "hedge-e-mony." The original Greek would sound more like "Heg-e-mony."

Sorry, I didn't make my emphasis clear. How do YOU pronounce it? I personally say "heh JEM in ee" But I like to know how the author meant it to sound. It's a word that often irks me.

xg4bx · 04-24-2012, 07:25 AM

just bought it. it sounds like a cool story and from a quick scan of the sample i really like your writing style.

markkalina · 04-24-2012, 04:13 PM

In my mind, I pronounce it like "hedge-e-mony."

ApK · 04-24-2012, 04:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by markkalina

In my mind, I pronounce it like "hedge-e-mony."

Then for the length of your book, so will I. Alimony, ceremony, hegemony, got it!

xg4bx · 04-25-2012, 05:48 AM

i'm about 20% in and enjoying it quite a bit. to be honest the first 10% was a tad slow due to trying to process all the concepts put out there but since then its definitely picked up.

its very david weber-ish and i think fans of his books, especially honor harrington, would enjoy it quite a bit. its a steal at a mere 99 cents.

jgaiser · 04-25-2012, 12:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by xg4bx

its very david weber-ish and i think fans of his books, especially honor harrington, would enjoy it quite a bit. its a steal at a mere 99 cents.

Ok.. That sold me

Picked it up and I'll try to dig into it this weekend.

Demosthenex · 04-26-2012, 07:37 AM

Not to be rude, but chalk up one more e-book I won't buy. Sounds good, I'm always into a good space opera. I'd even pay more than the $0.99, I always felt $5+ was a decent minimum for a 350 page e-book.

It appears to be only available in the Kindle format, and I won't purchase anything with DRM or in a locked format like that. I only post here to provide feedback, you just missed a sale from a customer willing to spend more than the asking price due to DRM.

Let us know if a dead tree version becomes available and I'll grab a copy then.

Thanks.

artifact · 04-27-2012, 02:15 AM

Ditto to Demosthenex -- I would have been willing to give it a try for 99cents and potentinally paid more (I pay $3 for the Liaden chapbooks which are usually only 50 pages), but I won't buy due to DRM and would prefer not to buy from Amazon due to format locking.

markkalina · 04-27-2012, 03:31 AM

I doubt a dead tree version will be available, short of Print on Demand. However, I might try to e-publish via another format, in addition to Amazon; the advantage of Amazon, to me, is that it makes e-publishing easy. I'm not, personally, a fan of the locked format, but I find it to be a small annoyance, rather than a major issue.

ApK · 04-27-2012, 08:15 AM

Mark, did you have the option to publish on Amazon without DRM? That way format shifting becomes trivial. (I bought it anyway, because, in reality, DRM is trivial, too....)

markkalina · 04-27-2012, 12:47 PM

There is an option to publish without DRM, but the consensus of advice I got was that Amazon DRM was not intrusive and was worth it for the author.

I generally dislike DRM, but it can be done without being a pain, and Amazon seems to come close to that.

The format lock-down is the biggest issue that I can see, though with the ease of use and free availability of kindle software, it is, as I said, a minor issue to me.

As for Amazon's DRM, I doubt Amazon is going to start removing books that people have bought; they tried that once (with books by Orwell, of all things) and it hurt their repuation enough that I don't see a repeat being likely.

Of course if Amazon goes out of buisness, I could be eating my words with salt and cursing their DRM.

Meanwhile, to those who refuse to by a format-locked book with DRM, I understand your point of view, but, obviously, I'd be glad of your making an exception for my book...

04-23-2012, 02:39 PM	#1
markkalina Member Posts: 21 Karma: 45888 Join Date: Apr 2012 Device: kindle	Hard Sci-Fi Space Opera- HEGEMONY, by Mark Kalina I've self-published a novel on Amazon. Hegemony is a space opera with a hard-sci-fi edge and some transhumanist themes. My readers to date seem to have liked it. It's available for 99 cents on Amazon. If you're interested in a hard sci-fi story with intrigue and space battles, you might want to check it out. It's available at http://www.amazon.com/Hegemony-ebook...5206194&sr=8-1

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04-23-2012, 03:09 PM	#2
ApK Award-Winning Participant Posts: 7,402 Karma: 69116640 Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: NJ, USA Device: Kindle	Sounds interesting. Taking a look. Two quick questions for you: What does 'transhuminist' mean, and how do you pronounce 'Hegemony.'

04-23-2012, 07:03 PM	#3
markkalina Member Posts: 21 Karma: 45888 Join Date: Apr 2012 Device: kindle	Transhumanist means relating to Transhumanism, which in turn is a philosophy of using technology to fundamentally change the human condition. There are a couple of common ways of pronouncing "hegemony." In English, people tend to say "hedge-e-mony." The original Greek would sound more like "Heg-e-mony."

04-23-2012, 07:59 PM	#4
sabredog Geographically Restricted Posts: 2,630 Karma: 14933353 Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Perth, Australia Device: Sony PRS-T3, Kindle Voyage, iPad Air2, Nexus7v2	Sounds a good read. Just purchased it

04-24-2012, 07:25 AM	#6
xg4bx Are you gonna eat that? Posts: 1,633 Karma: 23215128 Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Phillipsburg, NJ Device: Kindle 3, Nook STG	just bought it. it sounds like a cool story and from a quick scan of the sample i really like your writing style.

04-24-2012, 04:13 PM	#7
markkalina Member Posts: 21 Karma: 45888 Join Date: Apr 2012 Device: kindle	In my mind, I pronounce it like "hedge-e-mony."

04-25-2012, 05:48 AM	#9
xg4bx Are you gonna eat that? Posts: 1,633 Karma: 23215128 Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Phillipsburg, NJ Device: Kindle 3, Nook STG	i'm about 20% in and enjoying it quite a bit. to be honest the first 10% was a tad slow due to trying to process all the concepts put out there but since then its definitely picked up. its very david weber-ish and i think fans of his books, especially honor harrington, would enjoy it quite a bit. its a steal at a mere 99 cents.

04-26-2012, 07:37 AM	#11
Demosthenex Member Posts: 13 Karma: 10 Join Date: Dec 2011 Device: Pocketbook 702	Not to be rude, but chalk up one more e-book I won't buy. Sounds good, I'm always into a good space opera. I'd even pay more than the $0.99, I always felt $5+ was a decent minimum for a 350 page e-book. It appears to be only available in the Kindle format, and I won't purchase anything with DRM or in a locked format like that. I only post here to provide feedback, you just missed a sale from a customer willing to spend more than the asking price due to DRM. Let us know if a dead tree version becomes available and I'll grab a copy then. Thanks.

04-27-2012, 02:15 AM	#12
artifact Addict Posts: 276 Karma: 3569616 Join Date: Feb 2009 Device: jetBook (RIP), Kobo Touch	Ditto to Demosthenex -- I would have been willing to give it a try for 99cents and potentinally paid more (I pay $3 for the Liaden chapbooks which are usually only 50 pages), but I won't buy due to DRM and would prefer not to buy from Amazon due to format locking.

04-27-2012, 03:31 AM	#13
markkalina Member Posts: 21 Karma: 45888 Join Date: Apr 2012 Device: kindle	I doubt a dead tree version will be available, short of Print on Demand. However, I might try to e-publish via another format, in addition to Amazon; the advantage of Amazon, to me, is that it makes e-publishing easy. I'm not, personally, a fan of the locked format, but I find it to be a small annoyance, rather than a major issue.

04-27-2012, 08:15 AM	#14
ApK Award-Winning Participant Posts: 7,402 Karma: 69116640 Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: NJ, USA Device: Kindle	Mark, did you have the option to publish on Amazon without DRM? That way format shifting becomes trivial. (I bought it anyway, because, in reality, DRM is trivial, too....)

04-27-2012, 12:47 PM	#15
markkalina Member Posts: 21 Karma: 45888 Join Date: Apr 2012 Device: kindle	There is an option to publish without DRM, but the consensus of advice I got was that Amazon DRM was not intrusive and was worth it for the author. I generally dislike DRM, but it can be done without being a pain, and Amazon seems to come close to that. The format lock-down is the biggest issue that I can see, though with the ease of use and free availability of kindle software, it is, as I said, a minor issue to me. As for Amazon's DRM, I doubt Amazon is going to start removing books that people have bought; they tried that once (with books by Orwell, of all things) and it hurt their repuation enough that I don't see a repeat being likely. Of course if Amazon goes out of buisness, I could be eating my words with salt and cursing their DRM. Meanwhile, to those who refuse to by a format-locked book with DRM, I understand your point of view, but, obviously, I'd be glad of your making an exception for my book...