Apr 6, 2019

Howdy, folks. I’ve got a new contest for you – a 72-hour challenge. The prize will be a personal memento that has graced my office wall and served as my writing inspiration for two decades.

It’s a map.

Not just any map. It’s the laminated and dry-mounted wall hanger version of the map of Islaria that adorns the Story Page for Bane of All Things on Inkshares. The prize winner will get this unique item, signed by me.

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But I am not going to just give this baby away.

Here are the contest rules:

1.     To qualify for the draw, you must order one or more additional copies of BoAT, and/or bring on board a new supporter, between now and Tuesday at 5 pm EST. Do both, and your name is entered twice.

(If you are currently following BoAT but haven’t yet pre-ordered any copies, you must pre-order at least two to qualify, or, pre-order one copy and get a friend to do so, too.)

2.     We must achieve two milestones for the draw to proceed:

i)     First, there must be new pre-orders placed by at least 15 people (both existing and new supporters) within this 72-hour period. (Last weekend, we had 14 people rise to the challenge and pre-order a total of 30 copies within 52 hours).

ii)    Second, BoAT must be chosen for publication by Inkshares. If it isn’t, you all know how this works – everyone gets a full and unconditional refund.

For my 5+ pre-orders crowd

I also hinted yesterday about an additional thank you, should BoAT be chosen for publication, for everyone who has pre-ordered five or more copies.

In addition to the signed 12x18 poster of The Sword & The Skull artwork for anyone who has pre-ordered two or more copies, five+ supporters will also receive a signed poster version of the map. So, if you are sitting at four pre-orders right now, all it takes is one more ebook.

What is the story with this map?

I’ve always thought a great fantasy tale must have a map. In my youth, the first thing I would do when I picked up a new book was flip to the map –  Feist’s Midkemia, Tolkien’s Middle Earth, Brook’s Four Lands, McKiernan’s Mithgar, Donaldson’s The Land, even Varley’s living space station, Gaea (OK, that’s science fiction).

Inspired by these mythic places and the characters who inhabited them, any story I set out to write of course had to begin with a map of its own. This once involved sheets of poster board and a fresh stock of markers and art pencils. Then I went digital.

Way back in 1999, I was working at the Kingston Whig-Standard (the daily newspaper in Kingston, Ontario, for those of you who haven’t heard of it) doing photo and graphics work. In my spare time, I employed my skills in Photoshop to create the map of Islaria. 

Yep – this story has been gestating for that long. The current version is in fact the second reboot of the original. 

The story may have substantially changed, by the world in which it takes place has not. Sure, I’ve made some tweaks. The world of BoAT was originally comparable to 14th century Europe in terms of its socio-political structure and technology. Now it’s more like the 17th century, with muskets and cannon and the first hints of a steam-driven industrial revolution to come. It’s a world where Dumas’s musketeers might fit, though it is better suited to Howard’s moody and grim Solomon Kane.

It’s a world I hope to share with you, but first, we have to give Inkshares every reason to publish BoAT. Help me make this happen by nudging up that pre-order total just a little more. 

Cheers

Leo