Hey everybody,

Wanted to give you one more update: today KILL CREEK was named as a Top 10 Finalist in the Launch Pad Manuscript Competition!  It’s a huge honor, especially considering it started this journey in the Top 75.  KILL CREEK is a passion project of mine, one that I’ve always hoped would be read by more than just family members, so it’s incredibly exciting to know that others are enjoying my wicked little ghost story.

Thank you to everyone who has supported KILL CREEK by pre-ordering it and/or sharing it with friends.  And if you haven’t pre-ordered a copy yet, there’s still time!

Best,

Scott

To my readers: I am both humbled and thrilled to share the exciting news that King’s Daughter just made the Top 10 finalists in the Launch Pad Manuscript Competition. Dreams do not happen without the investment of friends and dedicated supporters, and each of you has brought me one step closer to achieving mine. Though this is a long-held goal pursued with a singular focus, it is not ultimately about me. It is about you--the people I hope to impact, entertain, and inspire with storytelling. There’s nothing I’d rather do with my life than this--take the seed of an idea and develop it into a full-blown offering to the world.

Earlier this year, despite some solid success, I let the Inkshares funding campaign for Mission 51 end without asking for an extension for two reasons: I wanted to focus on the writing and not on the campaigning, and I wanted to submit Mission 51 to Hollywood’s Launch Pad Competition 2016. I have to admit I was a bit disappointed it didn’t make it to the finalist group, but today I received some very strong encouragement!

I received the formal Feedback Notes from Launch Pad, essentially an opinion about my submitted sample from an industry judge. Let me give you a few excerpts from the report:

"This is a knockout premise, and those are very rare."

"The fact that Mat’s story... is an immigrant story, takes this premise from being a great high concept to being a great high concept with real emotional subtext, and one that has resonance with our modern world today."

"The pages here consistently communicate the story clearly, with great momentum, and a very palpable sense of empathy for ALL the characters... This is a great read, and a very capable execution of a highly evocative premise. This project has tremendous potential."

"The quality of the writing here, not just on the conceptual level, but also in terms of the story in these pages and the writing of that story, is uniformly strong. The dialogue’s good too, voice specific and smart in its use of subtext."

"This project feels like it has strong potential for either a TV or feature adaptation, and stands on its own as a great read as a manuscript."

Well isn’t that just awesome!!! I am greatly encouraged that I am on the right track!

Looking forward to the next suitable Inkshares contest so I can jump in and try again. I really want you to read the story!

Peace, and Happy Thanksgiving!

👽

Readers, Friends, and Sorcerers All,

A couple of updates before my favorite holiday of the year. First, the Leaderboard for The List was posted on Sunday, and SORCERY FOR BEGINNERS is currently at #4! This is great news, but only the top three are guaranteed full marketing and distribution by Inkshares. So we need to sell some more copies. 30 more unique readers (that means new people buying books) would get us there. 

If you haven’t purchased a pre-order, now is the time. Or if you have, beg someone you know to pick up a copy. In the spirit of the holiday, I would be very thankful. 

We also have a NEW INCENTIVE! After weeks of design and discussion, we’re ready to unveil a very cool prize for everyone who picks up a pre-order at the Mage level or above. It’s a BOOKMARK!

But not just any bookmark. This actually plays a key role in the novel itself. As you may know, Codex Arcanum is the bookstore where Owen first finds Sorcery for Beginners.  He is given this exact bookmark with his purchase, but pretty much forgets about it until much later, when the bookmark plays a key role in the final act of the story.

If you look closely, there’s also an Easter Egg that hints at future books in the Codex Arcanum series. Let’s just say Sorcery is only one of many Arcane Fields of Study, which include Cryptozoology, Cryptocartography, Time Manipulation, and Multiverse Exploration, to name a few.

But to get to those topics, we first need to publish this book and get it out to as wide an audience as possible. And YOU can help us do that. Please think about purchasing a pre-order if you haven’t already, and think about sharing this with your friends on Facebook and Twitter. It helps us out a ton.

May you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving if you celebrate, and if you don’t, an excellent week. Again, I really appreciate the support! 

mh

P.S. Special thanks to Juliane, who designed the bookmark!

The Tuatha Dé, House of Starlight

The Tuatha Dé, House of Starlight, are the preeminent race in the dominions of the antediluvian world. Commonly the Tuath Dé are referred to as the Fair Folk, Fairies, or Wingers. They hail from the Fomorian Valley of the realm of Tir na nÓg. The seat of their power resides in the capital city of Formene, otherwise known as the Eternal City. They are ruled by the High King Dagda Starlight, the first druid, who sits upon the Starlit Throne of the Summer Court, to which all races in the realm of Tír na nÓg pay tribute.

The Fair Folk are ageless, immune to most disease, and adept in the arcane arts. Though ageless the Tuatha Dé can be killed and it is said that only weapons that have been twisted by the dark fire can lay a mortal blow against them. They are a prideful, high-born race of people who see themselves as transcendent when compared to the other folk throughout the dominions, especially when it comes to the banal folk/exiled tribes of mankind. 

The Fair Folk were born of pure starlight to illuminate the darkness of the First Age. The Sigil of the House of Starlight is a three-pointed star, known to some as the triskele or triquetra which symbolizes the three aspects of the Great Goddess. 

As always if you have questions, please reach out. I adore engaging with my readers!

Cheers!

Christopher Lee

(Long update ahead, bear with me)
A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO PUBLISHING...