It’s the weekend - a long weekend for US readers - and I’m happy to share that Witherfist now has 45 preorders! Thanks also to the authors of Sparked for becoming the 45th reader.

The figure puts us within sight of our first major milestone: 50 preorders. As I mentioned in a previous update, I’ll be having an art-related giveaway once we reach that magical five-oh. 

Please continue to share Witherfist with people you know. Your support has been fantastic so far, and I know that I can count on you all to continue spreading the word. 

~ Jenny

Witherfist has a website. It may be small, but it’s there: http://www.witherfist.co.uk/

Check it out. Add it to your bookmarks. Make it your home page, if you like. I’ll be working to add content to the site over the weekend, so expect to see artwork, lore and more available on the site. Of course, I’ll be sharing all of that same content here on Inkshares with readers, but the website will be a handy place  to aggregate content and also make it easier to point potential readers offline towards this little corner of the internet.

Speaking of readers, there are 43 of you now. 43 readers! 

Break out the party poppers, readers: Witherfist has just hit 40 preorders! 

Thank you!

For context, the #10 spot in the top 10 is held by a book with 65 readers. We’re so close to getting up onto that ladder now. Though I’d love to already be up there, I’m chuffed to be finishing the first month of the contest in such a strong position. Please continue to share the book with friends and fantasy fans in your local area, and we can only get stronger.

As a (dubious?) thank you, I’ve recorded the first chapter of Witherfist for you to listen to. Yes, now you can listen to me reading the book’s introductory chapter and almost hear me wondering to myself why I chose to use the word ’caravanserai’ multiple times.

https://youtu.be/SX5C6YEILHo

I’m hoping that I can pass off any stumbles as quirks of my accent ;) Bonus points go to anyone who is not from my home city and can pinpoint where I’m from based on the accent alone.

Enjoy!

~ Jenny

It’s a beautiful Monday morning and I’m happy to report that Witherfist now has 97 followers on Inkshares and over 100 likes on the Witherfist Facebook page! Thanks to everyone who has been helping to share the book and it’s story with fantasy fans around the world. 

While we’re sharing, here’s something exciting that the postman delivered to me this weekend: a box of postcards featuring the cover of Witherfist. It’s almost like holding the front cover of the real, fully published book - a book that 34 readers have pledged to make a reality.

Thank you all for your continued support. We’re going to fight our way up into the top 10 of this contest, I know it!

Good morning, readers! Just a quick reminder that another chapter and story excerpt are available to read on the Witherfist project page. Have a read and let me know what you think.

While I’ve got your eye, why not have a read of the author interview that I recently completed with blogger Natacha Guyot? It’s the first part of a two part interview.

Natacha’s blog is a great resource of inspiration for writers and her discussions with science fiction and fantasy authors are always interesting reads. Her #SciFi Women Interviews are especially great.

Hello, readers! I hope you’ve having a great weekend.

I’ve added two more pieces of content to the Witherfist project page: a new chapter, introducing the Imperial scribe Sunderei, and a small excerpt of world-building lore, called ’An Oral History of the World’. Have a read! I think you’ll enjoy them.

Hello, readers! Exciting news: Witherfist has just reached 30 preorders.

To celebrate, I have something cool to share with you. Below are some concept sketches of the creature known as the pack-dragon. One of these scaly beasts of burden featured in the first chapter of Witherfist, as part of an Isherbani caravan. Pack-dragons are the most common beast of burden in the world of Witherfist and are often used by merchants to transport goods.

The sketches below show various takes on the beast and were drawn by my ridiculously talented friend, Christin Gattuso. You can find a writing project that she’s working on, right here on Inkshares: The Decemvirs.

Christin has graciously allowed me to offer up a print of one of her sketches as a prize. When Witherfist reaches 50 preorders, I will select a reader at random to win this prize. As an added bonus, if you refer someone to purchase Witherfist, this will double your chances of winning. (You can use the ’Recommend’ buttons on the Witherfist project page to refer the book to someone else.) 

Without further ado, the pack-dragon!

~ Jenny

Hello, readers. 

One of the things that I find myself doing when I’m writing is not only imagining how my characters look, but also who they could be played by, if they made the jump from page to screen (dream big, eh?) This has been no different for Witherfist, so tonight I thought I’d give you a peek into my brain and share my ’cast’ with you, via the time-honoured medium of GIFs:

Ming-Na Wen as Witherfist herself, Irusai 

Jamie Chung as Arren, the princess in exile

and introducing:

Godfrey Gao as Sunderei, journeyman scribe of the Last Empire - our eyes into the Imperial court a character you’ll be meeting for the first time in an upcoming chapter.

So, there we go. Do you ’cast’ actors for characters in books as you’re reading them? Do any of my cast choices match what you may have thought the characters in Witherfist looked like?

Thanks again for reading along.

~ Jenny