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Hi All
Thy Fiefdom Comes is now an e-book on Kindle (and related Kindle apps on ipad etc).
The link is below.
I would sincerely appreciate your ‘customer review’ on the Amazon website if you read the book.
First 2 chapters are in the ‘click to look inside’ link on the website
I hope to finish book 2 by end of this year
Hi folks. Unfortunately, due to a medical condition, I am unable to work on my second novel. However, I hope I will be able to continue writing from the second half of 2011.
Week 11. 11 January 2010
- I have discovered new foods!
- A change to the update schedule
- New updates to the Extras section
Item 1: I have discovered new foods!
Well, not me per se, but I have done a little research into the worlds weirdest foods for inspiration for some big feast in the sequel to ‘Thy Fiefdom Comes’. So then, are you tired of your freeze-dried instant coffee? Have no fear; try some of the Kopi Luwak, or Civet Coffee! This delightful brew is made from beans found in the faeces of the civet cat. Or if that doesn’t tickle your tastebuds, try a grasshopper martini. Or maggot-infested cheese. Or even the larvae of a silkworm. I wonder if it tastes smooth…
http://baheyeldin.com/writings/culture/exotic-yet-disgusting-foods-from-around-the-world.html
Item 2: A change to the update schedule
I am currently working on the next book in the series, so, until the next book is published, these riveting weekly updates must now, most unfortunately, have to become monthly updates. I do apologize for any inconveniences or disappointments.
Item 3: New updates to the Extras section
I’ve added in a bit more to the Extras section, including Raf’s Vows and Gomer’s Guide to Pronunciation.
Week 8. 9 December 2009
Hi everyone. Apologies for the missed blog; I have been in Singapore for a conference where I was chairing a panel discussion (alas it wasn’t on writing, but on hedge funds and financial markets). There was no time, unfortunately, to do any research on the tropical environment of Singapore for my next book (Except, I had the opportunity to look at giant shopping malls and imagine them as ruins 2400 years later).
Another far-future movie will be released on December 17: Avatar, the most expensive movie ever made. It is estimated to have cost A$440 million. The premier was released in London this week. It is set 145 years into the future and is a cross between sci-fi and fantasy.
In this week’s blog. Week 6. 25 November 2009
I will be speaking at Freecon in Sydney this weekend. Freecon is a free sci-fi/fantasy convention for authors and readers.
14 authors will be presenting over three sessions, November 27, 28 and 29, 2009. Friday Night session, 6 to 8 pm, the Saturday Session, 8.30 am to 4pm and the Sunday session 1 to 4 pm. (I will be at the Saturday pm and Sunday pm sessions)
This Year’s Freecon will take place in Bankstown City Library, Bankstown Mall. For more information, email me at contact@davidkochin.com
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In this week’s blog. Week 5. 19 November 2009
- Another great review
- Four post-apocalypse movies now in production
- Music to do battle with
- Exotic foods of Thy Fiefdom Comes
Another great review
“David KoChin has created a post-apocalyptical vision of the future in which T-rexes prowl, genetically engineered slaves, suicide soldiers and humanoid
giants all have competing agendas, and one human rickshaw puller has a
chance to change the fortunes of the human fiefdoms and bring peace. KoChin
creates a frightening real world of challenges and possibilities. This is
story-telling at its best. A real action packed page-turner that leaves you
wanting more and more…This is bestseller material!”
Mark Wightman, Singapore.
More post-apocalypse movies
There are now four post-apocalypse movies in production: Mad Max 4, the Talisman Prophecy, The Road (a novel by Cormac McCarthy) and The Book of Eli. (Yes, but none are as funny and uplifting as Thy Fiefdom Comes!)
Music to do battle with
Readers will realise that music is an integral part of Thy Fiefdom Comes. The warlord uses hard rock music to pump up his warriors. (ever wonder why teenagers are so ‘aggro’ after attending a rock concert –it’s something to do with the fast, deep, bass beat in sync with thudding hearts).
On the flip side, one local council has resorted to playing Barry Manilow songs in deserted carparks at night to deter hooligans from congregating there!
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/5047610.stm
Exotic foods of Thy Fiefdom Comes
Some fantastical foods from within and outside Thy Fiefdom Comes (expect to see more of these in the sequel!)
Boiled fertilised duck egg…with embryo inside (called Balut, a Philippine delicacy. Imagine a full flavoured hard-boiled double yolk with crunchy bits of bone and fluffy feathers)
Broiled horse liver with wild tomato and leek sauce (Horses are very valuable animals to both humans and stynes: they provided transportation while alive and proteins when dead!)
Steamed catfish w/ ginger and shallots. (Ginger and shallots are common herbs to enhance the delicate flavour of white-fleshed fish)
Roasted goose w/ honey and kumquat glaze. (Kumquat –a type of lime)
Capybara steaks (a capybara can be described as a cross between a huge mouse and a rabbit. It is actually a relative of the guinea pig!)
Casseroled buffalo tongue w/ sweet potatoes (bovine tongue, after stripping out the rough ‘skin’ is tasty and tender when casseroled)
Alligator curry. (Tastes like chicken!)
Buffalo kebabs marinated in ginger, onions, garlic and chilli
Water chestnuts steamed in lotus leaves (for vegetarians)
Squid in a squid-ink gravy (common to various cuisines, inc. The Philippines)
Chicken feet in garlic and black bean marinade (Served in Chinese ‘Yum-Cha’ restaurants — check out this blog for more details:
http://go-yumcha.blogspot.com/2009/03/chicken-feet-aka-phoenix-claws-matter.html)
In this week’s blog. Week 4. 10 November 2009
- Uploaded pictures from recent inspirational trip to Philippines
click here to view the landscape photos of Thy Fiefdom Comes
In this week’s blog. Week 3. 3 November 2009
- Book Launch at a local school spring fair in Dural
- More reader’s reviews
- BREAKING NEWS: sequel planned for Thy Fiefdom Comes
- Post apocalypse movies being filmed in Australia.
A family-orientated book launch took place at a spring fair in Dural on the 1st November. More than a thousand kids, mums, dads and grandparents attended [the fair, not the book launch!]. Six books were donated to the fair’s chocolate wheel.
!!
my dad got me this book on the day of the launch and once i got into the book it is hard to stop reading. my favourite part of the book is how u used interactions between the characters the brotherly relationship between raf and gelo, how valador was like a father figure to raf and how raf always seemed to save miriam when she got herself into trouble.
the book would make a very good movie and would love to see it. now the hard part waiting the 2 years or so until the next one 
Marcus Whitley – NSW
!!
The question on everyone’s lips is when the sequel for ‘Thy Fiefdom Comes’ is due to come out. Good news! I am going to launch the next book in the series by September 2010.
!!
Post apocalypse movies: Mad Max 4 and the Talisman Prophecy [based on the successful cult-novel ‘the Amtrak Wars’] are or will soon be filmed in Australia. Hopefully, Thy Fiefdom Comes will be the third! These movies will follow on from the end-of-the-world movie ‘2012’ to be released Nov 12, 2009.
Weekly Blog by David KoChin
In this week’s blog. Week 2. 25 October 2009
1. Praying Mantis KungFu Academy is promoting Thy Fiefdom Comes
2. Infinitas Bookshop in Parramatta is now stocking Thy Fiefdom Comes
3. Seven sound-tracks for the Thy Fiefdom Comes movie!
4. More readers comments
5. Subscribe to the monthly newsletter
KungFu Academy promoting Thy Fiefdom Comes
The Praying Mantis Kung Fu Academy, (where David KoChin researched the close-quarter fight scenes) is promoting Thy Fiefdom Comes, with books available its main Stanmore school. http://www.prayingmantis.com.au
The academy’s master is is Shifu (or Master) Wang, a descendant of the famous Wang family of Shandong province (which runs a 700 member kungfu school) in China.
Shifu Wang began learning kungfu at the age of 6 years and has spent most of his life studying and teaching martial arts. He was a Senior Instructor for the Chinese Army for 10 years and specialised in training bodyguards for the Chinese Army. Shifu Wang is also a qualified Doctor of Chinese medicine.
Infinitas Bookshop stocking Thy Fiefdom Comes
Infinitas Bookshop in Parramatta, (a popular bookshop specialising in science fiction, fantasy & horror novels) is now stocking Thy Fiefdom Comes. http://www.infinitas.com.au
Shop 22 Civic Arcade, 48 – 50 George Street, Parramatta NSW 2150 bookshop@infinitas.com.au
Phone 9633 5682
Sound-tracks suggested for the Thy Fiefdom Comes movie!
Seven sound-tracks are suggested for the movie, Thy Fiefdom Comes. (if/when it is made…film rights have been optioned to Unison Pictures LLC, Hollywood, California.) The sound-tracks include:
1. In the Air Tonight – Phil Collins;
2. I’m Still Here – John Rzenik;
3. Time to Say Goodbye – Andrea Bocelli & Sarah Brightman;
4. Someday Soon – Natalie Bassingthwaighte;
5. Iris – The Goo-Goo Dolls;
6. Last Day on Earth - Kate Miller Heidke;
7. Halo – Beyonce.
Click here for more information and the youtube links
Latest Reader’s Comment
This book is absolutely riveting. A nice cocktail of Action, Adventure, and a drizzle of Romance that will leave you thirsting for more. Hope to see more books in the near future.
Liam Staples (16) Cherrybrook NSW
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In this week’s blog: Week 1, 18 October 2009
- 1. Photos from the first launch party for Thy Fiefdom Comes
- 2. The second and final launch party — set for 1 November
- 3. More readers’ comments
- 4. TFC book cover on artist website
1, TFC Launch Party
Check out the photos from the first Thy Fiefdom Comes book launch party at Portico on 14 October.
Guests were mostly from the hedge funds and financial markets industry, (reflecting the author’s career background). As can be expected (from the doyens of high finance), discussion centred on how much their autographed copy of TFC could be worth in 10 years time. (A first edition autographed Harry Potter book sold in March 2009 at auction for US$19,120, according to a Dallas USA Auction House).
Other topics of conversation included…how to price an option for movie rights; product placement opportunities in the second book (since it’s set in the far future, a character in the book could find a BMW car as an artefact. How much will BMW {or some other prestige car company} pay for this product placement…hmm?)
2, Second TFC Launch Party, 1 November, Dural
The first party was so much fun that another is now organised for Sunday 1st November in Dural, as part of a school fair.
Details: contact@ Xdavidkochin.com (copy and paste, delete the X and close the gap)
3, More Readers’ Comments
To be very honest, I was never much of a ‘fantasy fan’. Nevertheless, I read Thy Fiefdom Comes filled with nothing but curiosity and growing excitement, and now, I find myself converted.
Unlike other fantasies, it’s not clothed in magic and wizardry but is down-to-earth and unpredictable. It is an engaging book, the sort that you can’t bear to put down. It is set in the future, around 4063. The Earth is enveloped in chaos and destruction, with demons, ghosts and Wingless Mad Dragons.
Humanoids rage against human fiefdoms and abused Erfs are rising up against their masters. The world where Raf Kenne and his best buddy Gelo live makes our world seem tame and blissful.
What interests me in a book first and foremost are the characters, and in Thy Fiefdom Comes the characters are all so unique and developed that they seem alive and real. In this way, you find yourself glued to the pages of the book, wanting to see what will become of them.
Raf is a principled seventeen-year-old conscript, driven by the desire to raise enough money to pay his father’s ransom. Gelo is also interested in money, but for more superficial reasons. Miriam is a loyal and ‘aristocratic’ young lady, and Leon is a determined and intelligent warlord.
The fascinating potpourri of characters goes on and should be enough to make you want to read the book. You could almost say it is as much a war book as it is fantasy. It consists of an even balance between action and rest, description and dialogue and this equality ensures there is never a boring moment and you can stay hooked until the very end.
The language is easy to understand, but at the same time, rich in a way that is rare in teenage books today. This would appeal to all teenagers and even adults. Since this is only the beginning of a series I wait eagerly for the next.
Nikki F. (14) Cherrybrook, NSW
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“Thy Fiefdom Comes is a post-apocalyptic fantasy story about a young man named Raf, and his endeavours in trying to raise enough ransom to free his father. It also explores Raf’s determination to strengthen his willpower through use of his personal quote, ‘mortify to fortify’. Raf’s willpower is put to the test when he meets Miriam, a rich girl, whom at first Raf despises, but soon is smitten by her.
David KoChin has written this book splendidly. Through the use of vivid descriptive language, as well as a range of other writing techniques, KoChin is able to formulate images in the readers mind and allows them to engross themselves in the story.
I found this book to be a captivating and intriguing read. KoChin is a ray of light in a genre full of clichéd and stagnant storylines. If you’re a fan of the fantasy genre then this will make a great addition to your collection.”
James Evans, (16) Frenchs Forest, NSW
4, Cover Art Work on Artist Website
The TFC Cover Art, created by Elden Ardiente, was submitted to deviantART, a popular global website for artists. It was received great feedback (of course!)
Check it out at http://ldn-rdnt.deviantart.com/art/Thy-Fiefdom-Comes-Cover-Art-139479693
