Dear Readers,

It. Is. DONE! The Phantom Forest has reached its Quill publishing goal, which means the book will have a limited release in both print and digital! I’ve talked to a number of authors who have gone through this process before me, and the timeline is pretty similar to a traditional publishing calendar: there’s going to be an editing phase, beta-readers, design, and marketing planning, so the actual release date might not be for another 7-12 months, even though the manuscript itself is complete. But rest assured, as soon as I have an official release date, I’ll update everyone! You will have those signed copies in your hands and I will have callouses after signing all of them for you and I will love every minute of it.

Okay, so here is the part where I rattle off about a hundred thank yous... so sit tight!

I was fortunate to get an enormous boost this week from not one, not two, but THREE Inkshares syndicates! You’ll see little "medals" for each on the book’s main page - there’s the Staff Syndicate, which is run by members of the Inkshares team, then there’s the Fantasy syndicate, which backs that specific genre, and the Break the Bechdel Syndicate, which specializes in books with strong female leads. A huge, heartfelt thank you goes out to all the syndicate members who nominated the book and pushed it into the spotlight. You made a huge difference this week and helped it reach the tipping point!

Another thanks to the awesome folks who put together the book trailer for me, which made a major impact: there’s director David Diperstein, whose work you can check out here, and our lovely actress Jess Nurse.  I’m still so flattered that they made this beautiful trailer for me and I think it really helped to give everyone an idea of all the cinematic potential in this story. 

And then of course, there’s all of you, the readers! You thought you were just going online and buying some book you’d never heard of, but you also helped me accomplish a huge goal 5+ years in the making, you helped support an awesome new publishing startup, you graciously helped me raise money for the ACLU when I started feeling conflicted about the ethics of crowdfunding for a time, and you gave emerging filmmakers and artists exposure by watching and sharing our trailer and giving our cover artist the green light! 

Thank you, whether you’re an old, dear friend or a new supporter on the internet I’ve yet to meet in person. I can’t wait to start the next phase of this adventure! 

Love,

Liz

We are now approaching THE FINAL WEEK for The Phantom Forest to hit its publishing goal! It is, as they say, the final countdown. We’ve had an awesome week with tons of orders coming in (THANK YOU to everyone who jumped on the wagon!), but we still need 59 more for Inkshares to pull the trigger! 

So please do continue to tell your friends, your book clubs, your Twitter followers, etc! If you’re already a follower of the book here on Inkshares but haven’t yet pre-ordered, I’d love your support this week. And of course, MAJOR THANKS to everyone who has nominated the book for syndicate picks thus far! That is huge, and I’ve got my fingers and toes crossed for good news on that front next week. 

This will be my final transmission until we hit the goal. So... GO TEAM! You know what to do!

Liz



As of today, we have just 14 DAYS REMAINING in the funding campaign for Phantom Forest! 87 orders still need to be fulfilled to reach the Quill publishing goal, which SOUNDS like a big number but I’ve done crazier things in far less time! Keep those recommendations rolling in. Every little bit goes a long way!

I’d probably be getting in right under the wire for this, but I’m once again asking anyone who’s a member of a syndicate here on Inkshares to nominate the book! We got a couple nods last month, so this time around it would be AMAZING to be the January pick (especially because there are oh-so-few days left and we’re oh-so-close!).

Hope everyone had a fantastic New Years and is ready to show 2017 who’s the big bad boss. I KNOW I AM.

Liz

Happy Holidays, readers! Before everyone jets away and shuts down for the next couple days, I’d love to share the beautiful book trailer we’ve just completed for The Phantom Forest. Here’s the link! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxpOzZEoi7U 

It’s also available to view on the book’s Inkshares homepage. It’s so exciting to get a cinematic glimpse into the potential of this book for the first time. 

I hope you all enjoy and have a wonderful, relaxing holiday! The campaign has just 25 days left to go, so please do continue to spread the word. :) 

Have a Happy Merry!

Liz

Hi Readers!

A few exciting updates for everyone. First of all, Phantom Forest has only **2 MORE DAYS** to qualify for the Launchpad Competition! Would love to get as many pre-orders as possible between now and the 16th, so tell your friends! Your book clubs! Your blogs! Whoever you think might enjoy the read! If I do not win the competition, we only have 30 days left to hit the minimum 250 orders for the Quill publishing deal. In a nutshell, we need another signal boost! The final 100 orders must be filled!

We also now have a cover artist and shot a book trailer over the weekend, which is very exciting! I’m really grateful to have such wonderful creatives in my midst who are loaning their time and energy to this project. The trailer and some art samples are coming ASAP, so be on the lookout!

Enjoy your holiday cookies, cocoa, tree decorating, and vacation planning this week!

Love,

Liz

Greetings, Readers! Today’s note is specifically for InkShares members, especially those who belong to a syndicate.  Having Phantom Forest be a syndicate pick for the month of December would be an AMAZINGLY helpful way to put us over the top for the Quill publishing goal. I’m afraid that a January nomination might not help me, as my funding ends on January 16th - so I’m making a pre-holiday push!

So if you’re enjoying what you see so far, head on over to your syndicate’s page and post a nomination for Phantom Forest! And if you’re not a syndicate member yet, it’s a really wonderful way to passively support books once a month and also meet fabulous new authors. 

Thanks again everyone! 

Liz

Hello Readers!

Today’s December 1st, which means we have only 15 DAYS UNTIL THE LAUNCHPAD CONTEST ENDS, and one month until funding ends. This means that it’s crunch time, and while I’m so thankful to have so very many of you supporting and reading, I definitely need a signal boost over the next week!

If every person who has pre-ordered can recommend the book to one other person (friend, mom, dad, significant other, roommate, any human anywhere!), we will be WELL within our goal! If you refer someone and they end up buying the book, shoot me a message or an email and you’ll be added to a list to receive PERSONALIZED ARTWORK from the book once it’s released, signed by our (TBA!) cover artist and I.

So let’s get those recommendations rolling in! I’d be so appreciative--we’ve come such a long way already! 

Lots of Love,

Liz


Happy Thanksgiving, readers! For those of you spending the day stuck on trains, planes, and automobiles, I’ve uploaded Chapter Five for your enjoyment. We’re now at 120 pre-orders which is really fantastic, just about halfway to the Quill publishing goal! If you are a follower who hasn’t yet ordered your copy, I’d be so excited to have your support this week. The Launchpad competition ends in about three weeks, and I’m back in 4th place as of this morning. This is clearly a marathon, not a sprint, but I’m still really psyched about the next two months! Thanks again for all. Wishing you and yours a wonderful, restful holiday! :)


Dear Readers,

As some of you might have noticed, I’ve recently gotten a little quieter on the crowdfunding front when I was previously very active. A lot of people have been riding a mental and emotional rollercoaster this week, and many in my creative community want to offer their time, money, and energy to a whole host of very worthy causes. I want to respect that sentiment. I want to show my solidarity. But I also don’t want to pull the brakes on this (so far) very successful crowdfunding effort and let the opportunity pass me by.  So after much deliberation, here is what we’re going to do:

The book will stay on the site and in the competition - but if the publishing goal is reached, I WILL DONATE 50% (OR MORE) OF ANY ADVANCE I RECEIVE FROM PRE-SALES TO THE ACLU. I think this is a solution that helps to settle my moral quandary about promoting and crowdfunding but still allows the book to be released to the world. I feel strongly that this is an important story with resonant themes that also provides the kind of escapism a lot of people are looking for at the moment.

So we’re back, with renewed purpose. Let’s do this. Thanks again for all your encouragement, understanding, and support. It’s meant so very much to me.

Liz

Hi everyone,

Just a quick note with some news: we just found out that InkShares is extending the Launchpad Competition deadline to December 16th. This is somewhat disappointing as the finish line looked so close as of this morning, and I know everyone has really put forth a lot of effort! But now at least there’s a little bit of breathing room. Thank you again for your continued support - let’s keep the flame burning! We’re still in the Top 3 and doing great! 

Thanks again for all!

Liz

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