Congrats on reaching this milestone!  Well done.  Keep us posted on your writing.

Dear friends and followers,

One week ago, we were at 246 orders. Within 2 hours of my last update, we hit 250, and we closed the day at 251. Today, we are at 274. This means two things:

First, that this is definitely happening. When I say "this will be published", it will no longer be with the unspoken disclaimer "if I get the pre-orders". This will be published. You will get your books. And you will have my thanks: I couldn’t have done this without you, and I still can’t do this without you. The question now is whether I win the coveted Fully Funded publishing deal, or whether I settle for the light Quill publishing deal. That, too, will depend on you and others like you--whether or not I hit that shining goal of 750 pre-orders.

And second, it means that Chez Doris will be getting their cheque at the end of the month. Right now, the donation amount stands at $23. Can we make it exceed $50? I certainly hope so!

So, let’s move on now to the other books on the Inkshares funding shelf....

1) "And The Wolf Shall Dwell", by Joni Dee: a modern spy thriller set in London, in which an ordinary everyman and a retired agent find themselves drawn together in ... well, that would be the mystery. Dee’s strength is in setting and plotting: he knows where he is, and he knows where he’s going. He certainly gives an impression of knowing what he’s talking about as he paints the lives of his protagonists and the world they move in. If ever there was a book that could benefit from hitting the Full Funding goal, it would be this one.

2) "Scribbles", by Tabi Card: an eclectic collection of short stories. I’ve spoken about this book in an update before, but I believe it bears repeating: this is a good book, and it contains well-written stories. I’ve been impressed by the excerpts I’ve read, and I believe this to be true. Ms Card has had an extension to her funding period since last I spoke of her book, to this coming Thursday. She still needs 62 orders.

Folks, normally I just present books here to draw your attention to them: no pressure! This time, I’m actually going to ask you all to check your accounts for any spare credits you can throw in the direction of one or the other (or both!) of them. They need all the help they can get.

We’re all counting on you.

Aside from that ... have fun, and keep reading.

Complete with esoteric symbol? I dunno....

Dear friends and followers,

As of this writing, we are at 246 pre-orders. That means we are just 4 orders away from Quill! 4 orders from certainty! And 4 orders away from the beginning of the Chez Doris donation drive....

Getting to Quill means certainty of publication (unless I throw a hissy fit and decline the Quill package) so let’s have a look at some of the characters you’ll be meeting within these pages, starting with the club president, Oscar Mainwaring:

In other news, it turns out that there actually did exist a Veterans’ Club in London back in 1924, though it changed its name in 1936 to the Victory Services Club. Well, that’s lovely. I certainly don’t want anyone mistaking the club in this book for that real-life one, so it looks as though I might have to change its name ... which means I might also have to change the title of the book. Anyone have any ideas?

All right. Let’s get on to what’s what on the bookshelves this week.

1) "Seven Days Dead", by Christopher Johnson. Apparently, the focus will be on the interaction of different faiths and cultures in this particular zombie apocalypse, which I’m not sure I’ve seen done before. Also, the action takes place in the Middle East, and Johnson seems to be putting a bit of effort into verisimilitude with place names and geography.

2) "The Battle Within", by Alastair Luft. This one is an exploration of PTSD and its effects on one veteran soldier’s personal life, and if it’s filed as "thriller and suspense", it’s because dealing with life when you’re in that headspace is bound to be a rollercoaster ride of questionable reality. Also, it’s Canadian.

3) "Mission 51", by Ferd Crotte. The captain of a spacefaring craft crashlands on his destination planet ... from the excerpts I’ve seen, it looks like our hero is one of the Roswell aliens, and the destination planet is Earth. It’s an interesting setup, and I wonder where Crotte is going with it.

And that’s it for now. See you next week, folks, when we shall hopefully be discussing the joys of being on the qualified side of Quill.

Dear friends and followers,

We are at 6 weeks in, with 223 orders. We’re very close to the 250 mark now; I have every confidence that we will cross it this month. Which means that at the end of the month, I will be writing my first cheque for a donation to Chez Doris! These people do good work, and of course if any of you wants to make a donation, you should feel free to do so.

The sooner we cross that line, and the further we go beyond, the better. And that’s going to take a bit of help from all of you. If each person could get a friend interested in picking up an order, we’d overshoot that 250 line by a mile and I’ll have a pretty sum to put on that cheque. I’ll also have to scramble to identify that second charity I want to add on at the 450 mark....

Anyway! Let’s see what’s-what on the bookshelves this week.

1) "Scribbles", by Tabi Card. This was among the first books I decided I wanted, once I began taking an active part on Inkshares. Short stories are really handy things, bite-sized pieces of fiction that you can consume on the go or when you otherwise don’t have a lot of time to commit; and I promise you, Ms Card knows how to turn a phrase. She doesn’t have a lot of time, though: 13 days to get 119 orders. It seems terribly daunting. Still, it’s happened before, at least twice in the past month, and it could happen again.

2) "Wings of the Pirate", by Eric H. Heisner. Pulp adventure! I admit I was on a bit of a pulp adventure kick once, and the attraction of the genre still lingers a bit. The story involves treasure-hunting in the south pacific while being chased by pirates. The opening paragraph implies a 1920s/1930s setting.  Also, the book has the word "pirate" in its title. Arr.

3) Have I never mentioned "Cape’s Side Bay", by James Rasile, before? Well, I’m mentioning it now. Like Mike Donald, Rasile hails from a film making background; and like JF Dubeau, he’s telling a story of something unearthly in an idyllic rural setting. It’s billed as science-fiction, because of the nature of that something unearthly, but I think it could fit just as comfortably into the horror niche. In any case, expect cinematic suspense.

Until next week, friends and followers: have fun, and keep reading.

Dear friends and faithful followers,

Yesterday, I received an order from someone who told me he thought he’d placed an order ages ago, and only just realised that he had in fact forgotten to do so. As such, I should like to ask you, all those of you who think you’ve placed an order, to please check to be sure you have in fact done so. The easiest way is to simply go to the project page to see if the buttons say "pre-order" (you haven’t, so do it now or you’ll forget again) or "pre-order again" (you have, but why not a second time?)

That said, we seem to be doing well. We’re at 186 orders, and 99 readers. So the question is: who will be reader 100? And will I be able to work this person’s name into the fabric of the story somehow?

Now, on to the weekly what’s-what around the bookshelves.

1) "Louisiana Blood", by Mike Donald. It’s a fresh take on the Jack the Ripper mystery: what happens when vital evidence surfaces a century after the fact in, of all places, the sweltering bayous of Louisiana? Donald comes from a film-making background, and it shows in the attention to visual detail. Expect to be properly immersed in the action. This book is just 10 pre-orders short of its Quill goal right now, and the clock is ticking. Go get it.

2) "Goodbye, Angel", by Ryan Smith. This one just started its campaign, and I swear it went from "draft" to "funding" at the same instant I clicked to follow it. It’s a hardboiled noir set against a backdrop of sunny beaches and rolling surf. Smith used to work as a crime reporter in Florida, so he knows what he’s writing about.

3) "Pixilated Obsidian Roses", by RF Martin. If you liked JF Dubeau’s "A God in the Shed", you’ll love this one. It’s a dark fantasy, several shades darker; or maybe it’s horror. It’s about unearthly supernatural beings meddling in the lives of two men separated by history, manipulating their fates into a sort of twisted concordance. It’s ... well, it’s definitely worth a look.

Until next week, friends and faithful followers. Have fun, and keep reading.

Oh, and don’t forget to pre-order.

@Joni Dee -- I’d love to! As soon as I’ve got some spare scratch, you can count on my membership!

Dear friends,

First of all, let me point you to this article on examiner.com, in which Ms Alicia Smock discusses the Inkshares podcast, "WriteBrain", and some of what constitutes life within the growing Inkshares community. "WriteBrain" had some very good things to say about "Murder at the Veterans’ Club" on their last episode, by the way, and I do encourage people to give it a listen.

As some of you may have figured out by now, I normally send these bulletins out on Sundays. I thought I’d make an exception this week. You see, we’re in a bit of a time crunch. No no, not "Murder at the Veterans’ Club" ... I’m talking about JF Dubeau’s "A God in the Shed". Here’s the press release:

A God in the Shed by J-F Dubeau is a Fantasy/Horror story set in the forgettably small village of St-Ferdinand, in the Eastern Townships of Quebec. The villagers have been hiding terrible secret for generations, but when their mysterious captive escapes but gets inadvertently trapped in the McKenzy’s backyard shed, it’s up to the Venus and her friends to figure out how to dispose of this terrible and malevolent burden; an Old God of hate and death.

You can find out more about this dark and beautiful, read sample chapters, reviews and pre-order you copy of A God in the Shed by visiting: www.inkshares.com/books/a-god-in-the-shed

You can listen to the prologue as read by Ageless author Paul Inman here.

Need more incentive?

• Each pre-order enters you into the "I want to kill a reader" raffle. The winner will have his name and likeness used in the book as a minor character that gets killed off. The author will work with the winner to find the appropriate means of demise to satisfy both the winner and the story.

• Each physical copy of A God in the Shed will be signed and numbered as an exclusive first edition item.

• Free, exclusive A God in the Shed bookmarks will be included with the physical copies and mailed to eBook supporters.

• Orders of three or more copies guarantees your name to appear in the Patrons list printed at the end of the book.

• You get to enjoy the satisfaction and pride at having supported both art and literature.

A God in the Shed is the first part of a trilogy that pushes the line between beauty and horror by telling a story that changes how we look at magic and the world around us. You have a chance of being part of making this book a reality and supporting a new author on his journey.

However, time is running out! The campaign ends April 22nd. Don’t miss out and order today!

-----

(Dear friends, it might be worth noting that each physical copy of "Murder at the Veterans’ Club" obtained via pre-order is also an exclusive, signed first edition item. Just in case that makes a difference ... but first, let’s get Mr. Dubeau across that finish line.)

@Ryan Smith it’s a well known secret that Chris’ novel is meticulously fantastic (as well as fantastically meticulous). Why don’t u join us at the "Thriller Night" Syndicate Ryan, looks right up your alley !