Happy Tuesday, Space Crew!

My spirits are high because you all are amazing. We’re holding steady in 7th place, and the orders keep trickling in. So let me remind you of what that means in regard to the whole Nerdist/Inkshares thing. 

This book won’t be published unless we kick it up to third. And for that, only pre-orders count. If you’re still on the fence about ordering, let me know what would change your mind. If you have ordered a copy, think about who else you could share this with. Maybe you have a geeky uncle or you hang around a hobby shop. I need help getting the word out. You guys are my space crew. 

This publishing deal makes me a pro author. Inkshares has a team of very capable people like any traditional publisher. If I hit my funding goal they’re going to make sure The Traveller’s Cup is a well-vetted piece of fiction. I’m doing my part now to make sure it gets into their hands, with support from all of you. 

And in other exciting news!

Another Nerdist article coming soon. If you liked the last piece on space opera inspirations, you’ll be glad to know I’ve been asked to participate in a new article. Stay tuned for details and links. 

New sample chapter coming this week. You guys have asked for more, so I think it’s only fair to give you another glimpse at what’s happening with Damaus. You can let me know if you’re enjoying getting the beginning of the story or if you’d rather see something from later on too. 

Thanks again for all of your support. 

Your affectionately indebted cap’n,
-AC

Elan Samuel, a fellow inksharer with a couple of wonderful-sounding drafts, was kind enough to feature me on his awesome literary blog, The Warbler! You can read the interview/feature by clicking here. What a fantastic opportunity! Thank you again, Elan! 

Find Elan Samuel on inkshares and follow his work by clicking here.

I’ll keep it short this morning. I just wanted to share the good news, thank everyone, and remind everyone that you can always email me at madmrbutler@gmail.com if you want to talk about my book/your book/someone else’s book/puppies/kittens/sandwiches/whatever and if you are interested in a pre-order swap, please let me know! 

Anyway, gotta go! My car decided to have a failure in all four brakes and the ER I work in caught fire the other night, so gotta go deal with a couple of plot twists that were out of my control...ah, author humor...ok I’ll shut up now.

Thank you for all of the support, everyone! I’m off the next three days, so I will be posting new diary entries, new chapters, and new annoying updates.

Love to all, and may your brakes stay functional and may your emergency rooms stay fire-free!

-Michael

(Special shout out to my friend Matthew...if any of you are looking to email someone any positive messages, just send your email to me at madmrbutler@gmail.com, and I will promptly forward it to him. Let’s fill this guy’s inbox with positive vibes!) 

CONTINUING COVERAGE OF EVENTS

Hey folks,

So, it happened. I received the final e-mail from Girl Friday, the production company that has been handling all things editorial and the final version has been sent to the printers! It’s done! We did it! (Well not quite yet. I’ll get to that.) Thank you to everyone at Girl Friday for being great and pushing me to make my book the best it could possibly be. 

So from here on out, it’s all about pushing the book for me! To that end, there are some pretty big deal happenings that you should be aware of starting with...

A LAUNCH PARTY! Yep. It’s been confirmed. An Unattractive Vampire will be coming out in style here in Chicago with an official launch party at Bucket O’ Blood Books and Records. So in the midst of your St. Patty’s Day stupor come out (please come out) and buy a book or get your book signed and say hi and then go back to green beer and vomiting on sidewalks, a Chicago tradition. For more information about Bucket O’ Blood you can visit their website or Facebook page.

Also...THE SWORD AND LASER! In very much another "crossing off a life goal" moment, I will be appearing on The Sword and Laser podcast on March 15 (PUBLISHING DAY). So you’ll be able to listen to me stumble through a haze of glee and make a fool of myself very soon. Also, if you have any questions for me (looking at you other authors) head over here and ask them. I have wisdom dammit! Let me share it!

Finally, the Nerdist space opera contest is still going strong with a just under a month to go. If you happen to like starships battles and alien wars, you might want to head over there and check it out. Here are a few suggestions:

The Madness of Mr. Butler by Michael Haase: The tale of an eccentric old man on a far away planet desperately trying to prove that his world is a sphere circling a star. Also, God talks to him through an astronauts helmet.

Aurora by Taylor Hopkins: A bounty hunter faces off against a criminal mastermind in a planet-hopping adventure. The sample chapter reads like a combination of Alien and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.

Lucky by RH Webster about a woman hitching a ride back to earth from the dusty end of space. I’ll be honest, there aren’t a lot of details about the plot for this one, but the writing is REALLY good.

Anyway, until next time everyone.

This contest thing is hard. I must say that. Much respect to everyone involved, because I have been in contact with several people who have been involved with previous contests, and they all agree that pushing your book through a contest is extremely stressful.

And it’s true. I have had to transform myself from a guy who writes stories into a guy who also sells his stories. It’s waaay outside of my comfort zone, and I find myself apologizing every time I ask someone to buy a copy of my book. 

Typical conversation:

Me: "I’m sorry to bother you, (friend). Would you mind maybe, possibly buying my book? I’m sorry for asking."

Friend: "Oh sure! When can I have it?" 

Me: "Umm...I don’t know, really. The only way I can find out is if enough people buy it. Then I win a contest, and then I’ll get the book published, and then I might know when you get a copy...I’m sorry." 

Friend: "So...you want me to buy something that I may or may not get?"

Me: "I’m sorry. Yes, you may get a copy, or you may get your money refunded. It depends. I’m sorry." 

Friend: "Okay...is your book any good?" 

Me: "I think so...but I’m sorry for asking you to buy it before it’s ready." 

Friend: "I’ll think about it, okay?"

Me: "Okay...but I’ll have to keep bugging you about it every day because it’s in a contest...I’m sorry."

Friend: "Stop saying ’I’m sorry!’"

Me: "Okay...sorry about that." 

I hope I still have friends when this whole thing is over, no matter how it turns out.

Just my feelings for today as we’ve hit the halfway point in this thing. Good luck to everyone involved! 

And thank you to everyone for your support! As always, please feel free to contact me if you want to network, want to do a pre-order exchange, want to pitch your novel, or just want to vent about this contest. I’m here: madmrbutler@gmail.com

Have a great day, everybody! I’m off to the ER on a Monday, so wish me luck!

Love, love, love,

-Michael.