Jun 10, 2015

CONTEST UPDATE

Many of you have been asking me about how the contest concluded, and I've remained silent on the matter, not because I didn't want to tell you all about it, rather out of pure mental exhaustion more than anything. It is not in my nature to ask people to give their hard-earned money to a personal cause, let alone repeatedly. That is not to say that I didn't/don't believe the cause worthy, because IT IS—it's my dream to be a working writer. But I would rather people love my work and support me without my asking for it. So in the end, I am thankful for this contest for providing me the opportunity to A) Write for a specific purpose with deadlines. B) Foster a spirit of camaraderie and honesty in competition. C) Inform numerous people of my desire to write. Many of my closest friends and family have known for a long time of my affinity for word-smithing and telling stories, but not all of them knew that I was serious about it. I hope they do now.

In the end, I came in 9th place. Remaining in the Top Ten was all I hoped for, and because of you guys, I did that. This helped garner attention to my name among all people following and participating in the contest. I received an honorable mention in the contest results post by Sword & Laser and Inkshares, as well. It should also be noted that I came in 7th place for unique readership (e.g. If Grandma bought 50 copies, she was only counted once); I'm pretty proud of that.

Technically, my book is still a viable publishing option through Inshares' regular publication guidelines, as I am more than 25% funded. However, I would need to rake in another 500 pre-orders in 42 days—yikes! That does not sound like fun, and quite honestly, I have books to write. I'd rather spend my time working on actually writing than marketing.  

Some lingering questions you may have:

What happens to my copy of the book?
You don't get it. Inkshares is only publishing the people who were in the Top 5.

Will my card be charged?
No. You were only obligated to pay if I won.

Will they still publish the 215 copies you sold?
No, but wouldn't that be nice.

Will I still be able to read the book?
Yes. I am currently working on a website where I'll publish These Old Bones, and other short stories, FOR FREE. I will send out an email to everyone when it's live. You can continue to support me by reading along and encouraging others you know who enjoy fantasy and science fiction to follow as well.

Thanks for all your love and support and for being my marketing minions during the months of the contest. See you on the other side.