Greetings hexers and machina pilots,

I just closed the book on the revision of my second draft of Deus Hex Machina. The feedback from the beta readers was positive, so I felt pretty confident in pushing forward with a general language pass on the draft.

In the end, I have about 73,000 words, which comes out to just under 300 pages spread over sixteen chapters. I am very happy with the end result of my personal edits, so no matter what results come of The List contest, I will be submitting my draft to Inkshares on the 31st (that if I can keep my overexcited self from just sending the thing over today) From then the book heads into a production process that takes anywhere from 12 to 18 months. 

Thank you for supporting this book for the year it took to fund and then write it. Hopefully next year I’ll be talking to you about a book that’s already published. Wouldn’t that be a great way to end 2017? 

One last request: For anyone interested in preordering DHM, there are 10 more days in The List contest, so now’s the perfect time. While you get a copy of the book, you also will help give it a chance to get a full publication contract, which means a spiffy pro cover, even more delicious edits to hone the story, and distribution onto bookstores nationwide. 

Have a great Tuesday friends and as always

May the code replicate eternal.

Inkshares has had problems with refunds on other campaigns and I wanted to make sure everyone who bought Illegal has received their money back. The refund should have gone out on October 24th and reached your account a few days later. If you were not refunded please reach out to hello@inkshares.com and let them know. Also let me know and I’ll stay on their case.

On a related note, many of you have been asking if they should re-order. The answer is no. The team has done a very poor job handling their mass-refund mistake, and there are refund issues with at least one other campaign so I would not trust them with money at this point. I’ve lost a lot of trust in the platform and the team running it and at this point they would really have to go above and beyond for me to change my mind and still let them publish my book. That seems unlikely to happen at this point. Save your money.

I’m going to push them to give me a real answer next week about how they plan to resolve this. If they can’t tell me or it doesn’t include them going above and beyond, I’ll walk away and seek better options. 

HEY AGAIN, READERS!

Of course I hit SEND on my last update and immediately realized I forgot to mention something:

The illustrious Elena Stofle, Operations Manager at Inkshares, has posted an article on the official Inkshares blog featuring the top 10 contestants in  THE LIST 2016. There you’ll find a quick blurb from each of the authors chatting about their books, their writing inspirations, etc.

Take a look and get to know the contestants! You might find Dax isn’t the only new read to pique your interest...

Sitting Down with the Top 10 Authors in The List 2016 Contest (so far)

Cheers,
Tony V.

HEY THERE READERS!

As you know (or if you forgot), DAX HARRISON was nominated into a new Inkshares competition known as THE LIST 2016. From now until December 31st, the amount of new readers I acquire will determine if I land a FULL publishing ride (as opposed to the "Quill" light publishing deal I originally reached). That means additional perks like marketing support, physical bookstore distribution, cover design, etc.

Currently, Dax stands in 7th place according to the contest page. Though that number may be corrected in the near future (My actual total reader count stands at 274). Either way, I would looove to see this number go up.

I know it’s been a long ride for those of you who have been with me since this thing started last year. But if you get a chance to do me a tiny favor this holiday season and just take a minute to share this book with another silly sci-fi loving friend, I would really appreciate it. On Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, in a personal email, smoke signal, telegraph, messenger raven, whatever you like. Just tell them it’s a fun little story with laughs and spaceships and explosions, all for the price of 2 Grande Pumpkin Spice Lattes! (Actually cheaper if you include the tax!)*

*$10 for the ebook, $20 for paperback/ebook bundle

And for those of you who are following this book (there’s over 500 of you total!) but have NOT bought a copy yet, let’s chat a minute.

"What can I do to get you into your own personal copy of Dax Harrison today?" (Imagine that in a sleazy used car salesman voice)

Seriously though, I would love to hear from my mysterious followers. Feel free to direct message me on Inkshares and say hi. Who knows? Maybe I just might be able to convince you to give old Dax a chance. ;)

Happy Holidays everyone! (*slips on plaid blazer, combs hair, adjusts pinky ring*)
-Tony V.