Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls of all ages...
...it’s crunch time.
In little less than two weeks we will be seeing the end of the ’A God in the Shed’ campaign. It’s great news as this sort of self-promotional effort does no good for my anxiety and self-worth but not as good when one notices we are still a little over 200 pre-orders away from our goal.
I’ve already gotten in touch with those of you who follow the book but haven’t ordered. Thanks for indulging me and double-thanks to those who have decided to pre-order as a result. If everyone who’s still on the fence like this pre-orders we’ll be funded in no time as there are over 300 of you.
For those of you who’ve already ordered, don’t think you’re off the hook. I know it’s asking a lot from someone who’s already benefiting from your support and generosity but I need your help just as much. Here’s what I want you to do:
Thank you everyone for paying attention to this project and for the support you’ve shown. I have other treats planned over the next few days that I hope I have time to put together. I feel very strongly about showing my gratitude.
Regards,
JF
It’s time to answer the great question I’ve been asked several times: "When will the damned book come out?"
Here’s your unequivocal answer: "I’m not sure yet."
Perhaps I was being a little lax about my use of the word "unequivocal."
Here’s the deal: Inkshares is awesome. They want me to get my best work out to you. They are not rushing me. As of right now, I tentatively sent them a submission date for my manuscript for "sometime in May." (There I go, failing to be unequivocal again.) Once I submit my manuscript and submission packet (don’t worry about that, that’s for me to figure out), then the process begins. If you fish around on other books’ pages that are in the status of "in production," you will see a progress bar with an anticipated release date. I will only obtain such things after I submit my manuscript. So, it’s all up to me.
And when will I be submitting my manuscript? I’m not sure yet. Hopefully by May. And then hopefully the book will be out in autumn...maybe by Christmas. I’m not sure yet.
Sorry for the unequivocal level of ambiguity in this update...
The reasons for any delay are as follows, and I believe they are good reasons:
1) I want to submit the BEST book, not the fastest. I am a fast storyteller, I have written an entire novel in a month, but that does not mean that I want that version of the novel to be released upon the general public. You all are my backers, my loved ones, my friends...if there is a little longer wait, then it is out of respect for your investment. I believe Mr. Butler is an amazing story (it’s kind of grown a lot larger than I thought! It might even become a series...?), and I want it to be the best it can be. On the flip side of that coin, I promise not to be a perfectionist and keep polishing this thing into the ground up until the point of being released in 2019. I do know when to stop.
2) My son is due to be born in May. Could be any day now. Not sure. But he will require focus, and that might delay things, perhaps. Got a problem with that?
In the meantime, I’m also enjoying my time as a staff writer for Renderosity Magazine. So far, I have four articles involving me:
1) An interview with me as a novelist and my approach to writing
2) An interview with me as a new staff writer, and what I plan on bringing to the magazine
3) Four reasons why you should write every day
4) How writing improves all art
I plan on writing articles about Inkshares for the magazine, and I plan on featuring author interviews in the near future. I’m also going to be doing reviews of writing software. (I’m currently enjoying "Ulysses" for Mac and iPhone...amazing.)
I want to motivate all others to write, so please don’t hesitate to contact me at madmrbutler@gmail.com. Inkshares is an incredible opportunity if used wisely. So let’s all get wise. Also, don’t be offended if I don’t get back to you right away. I have filled my plate at present.
Good luck to all who are involved in the new Geek & Sundry contest. Those contests are beasts, so let me know if you need any advice, and don’t be afraid to connect.
Thank you all for your support and your patience.
Have a wonderful day.
-Michael.
LAUNCH PARTY PICTURESSSS!!!!
I haven’t forgotten about my writing updates, four more to go! Also we’ve finalized a cover design for the book, one that I am VERY fond of. Excited to show you all down the line. Here’s my favorite writing tip to celebrate, hopefully the tough love will inspire you to go start a project yourself.
SCREENWRITING TIP #4: WRITING HABITS
A note about writing habits – don’t have any. Well, one – write every day. Now writing can be research, outlining, thinking about what you have to write, re-writing, but immersing yourself in the process is what really counts. Still, I try to crank out at least a page a day.
Now I’ve heard it a few thousand times – “I don’t have the time to write.” Bull. There were times I was working 50, 60 hours a day. But I still wrote. Every damn day. Too tired at the end of the day? I can empathize. I was beat. So, I wrote on my lunch hour. Or, at one company, lunch half-hour.
A page a day. If I was able to put down one page each day I was working toward my ultimate goal – to be a full time writer. If you write a page a day at the end of three months you have a feature script. If you re-write it at the same pace at the end of six months you have a better script.
If you can’t write a page a day then you just don’t want it bad enough. I used to pick the worst restaurant near my work place, where e-coli and hepatitis were selections on the menu. I picked it because I knew nobody from work would show up and lure me into a conversation. Don’t bother me, was my motto, I’m trying to work my way out of this soul sucking job.
I wrote every day at lunch, occasional evenings, weekends and holidays. For six years. Then one year I made more money writing than as an accountant and I quit.
Here is a little trick I used to make that lunch hour as fruitful as possible – I would check my outline every morning before going to work. Then I thought about the scene I was going to write all morning. On the drive to work, during boring meetings, adding columns on a calculator, paging through computer print outs. By lunch I had written and re-written the scene a half dozen times. After lunch I would study the next section and let my brain work in preparation for the evening pages - if I had the energy.
I still do this. Every night, right after turning off the lights, as I lay in bed before I go to sleep I run through what I intend to write the next day, concentrating on any particular problem I anticipate. And surprisingly upon awakening the problem is often solved. It may be my subconscious helping me out. Or I’m delusional. I don’t care.
As for habits. Besides writing every day, I repeat – have none. I know some writers make a ritual of their work. “ I must have quiet.” “A window facing the rising sun (or a wall).” “A cup of Honduran coffee, Mozart on the stereo, twelve sharpened number two Ticonderoga pencils and a thin lined tablet (white with green lines) and the smell of rotting apples.”
These are all just setting up excuses for you not to write. It is hard enough to do this, you don’t need any more reasons not to do it. I write anywhere, anytime. I have produced pages in a hurry, under duress from directors, executives, actors, in a tent, in the rain, in the cold, at four in the morning with a full crew standing by. You don’t here a cobbler saying he’s not in the mood to heel your shoes. A car mechanic never stops because it is too noisy. Teachers don’t take a day off because they are not inspired.
No excuses. You write. Say the writing isn’t going very well and all you can think of is crap. Write a bad scene. You can’t re-write a blank page. But a bad scene often can tell you what’s wrong with it and where you’ve gone awry.
Write.