"What is this madness? An update on a Tuesday?"

Yes, yes, I know. But it's the final update in regards of the contest! So, here is the deal. After this contest, my work is not done. I still have to polish everything up, work with Inkshares, and do copy editing. Also: I have to do other things... like... get a website.... annnnd a blog... but the best part: Hitting conventions along with an avid amount of gaming and storytelling. The Seventh Age is mere hours away from actually living. 

Don't worry. I'll keep everyone posted. For everyone who is still following. Last chance to have your vote matter for the contest!

Speaking of having your vote matter. There is a book from a new awesome friend of mine that I've plugged before, both on facebook, and in an update. I'm sure if you read this and log into inkshares.. your time could very well be spent picking up this book. 

Runes of the Apprentice. Which can be ordered: Here

I mean. LOOK AT THIS TOTAL GEEK!!!! (He's totally gonna break me for this...)

He's got a katana, make up, and glowy lighty things. With maps! If you remember last update I did featuring Runes. I highlighted fantasy maps. I have a thing for them. This is some geek pride.

So here is the story, Runes is near the top 10 and trying to crack into that before the contest ends. If you really enjoy some epic fantasy, or want to help out this fine gentleman who spent all weekend at a convention.... go check out his work.  For those of you who don't want to scroll up. Here is the link again: Right Here

Particularly Bella Kraft. Who has been flooding my facebook feed with other authors she's been backing. Jason Peercy, you need to convince him to come play in your game. Ellen, his style should fit you well. I've noticed more than a few of my friends getting addicted to checking out new authors. So, go his way and read a chapter.

As for me, it's the final day of the contest. I really just want to say thank you for everyone's support so far. I will do you proud and deliver unto you one hell of a urban fantasy book. 

Let's cross our fingers and hope our hardwork and luck holds! Thank you everyone so much! I'm going to go out and see if I can't knock on a few more doors myself!

This is the look of EXHAUSTION as the awesome Baltimore Comic Con came to a close!

I'm currently feeling the same with the Nerdist Inkshares contest ending tomorrow at 12 noon! I want to offer a HUGE congratulations to the top 5 winners. I can only image your exhaustion and am truly impressed with the high numbers many of you have gotten.

While I have already pre ordered nearly everyone's books on the top 20+ and am VERY excited to read all the top books, I want to give a special shout out to my convention loving friend Richard Heinz and his AWESOME book The Seventh Age: Dawn. It is his book I am most excited about reading and I highly suggest that all of my new Comic Con friends to check it out! He is a HUGE con goer, so if you have extra credits, spend it on his book!

NOW, for those of you who have not yet Pre-Ordered RUNE OF THE APPRENTICE... 

Holy love of the Arkai! GO PRE-ORDER RUNE RIGHT NOW! Jeez!

The Inkshares contest ends at twelve noon tomorrow and I know RUNE can get in the top ten! Regardless, much like Aleksi (the hero of RUNE) I will fulfill my Runic destiny and not just surpass 1000 pre-orders, but well into the tens of thousands! To do so, however, I need your support NOW! 

Please show it now by suggesting RUNE OF THE APPRENTICE to your friends and family to get the word out! Your support means the world to me. Thank you!

Really. THANK YOU!

Click this link below to Pre-order RUNE OF THE APPRENTICE 

Then, click below to check out and order Richard Heinz and his AWESOME book The Seventh Age: Dawn - New Comic Con Friends, this is really worth your time to check out!

Thank you to all my backers and CONGRATULATIONS to the WINNERS! See you soon!

The Nerdist Collection Contest is almost at an end. I am not in it, but I've made friends with many of the authors in the contest and have loved showing support for their work along the way. Even after the Nerdist competition, there will still be several great projects funding and I look forward to our continued work together.

I thought instead of giving you a long list, I'd share with you my number one favorite project that's not in the top 5.

Now, this has been hard for me to do. But I confess, one has stood out for me above all others (keeping in mind I am an epic fantasy reader and love sprawling epics with maps and immersive worlds).

So here it is, my number one top pick:

Rune of the Apprentice, by Jamison Stone.

I've shared Jamison's book with you before, and his guest post over on my blog (haven't seen it yet? Read it here.)

Rune of the Apprentice felt to me like a novel after my own heart. I was blown away by Jamison's maps, his diligent world building, and his passionate tale about a young orphan's quest to stop his special gift from killing him.  Reading Jamison's work, I'm at once transported to something out of a Brandon Sanderson book -- yes, his writing is that good.

Jamison also draws his own maps. They're spectacular! I want to share one with you here:

Isn't that amazing? If you love immersive epic fantasy, you should definitely go to his page for Rune of the Apprentice and read more, and consider backing his project:

https://www.inkshares.com/projects/rune-of-the-apprentice

Jamison is also giving all his profit raised from pre-orders to charities that support military families. Inspired to write Rune of the Apprentice during long periods where he would be away from his wife during her service in the military, Jamison is doing something very generous by giving back to those who struggle with similar issues of separation. This is a great cause, all around, and I'd love to see you support this book to help it come to life.

Well, folks, today was a banner day in the annals of Disintegration.

We started in 17th. Then, throughout the day, 30 of you ordered my book, bringing it to 296 copies sold. Can we sell four more before the day ends? Hitting 300 would be nice. All "This. Is. Sparta!" Which is even more appropriate because I am a Michigan State Spartan!

I'm so incredibly grateful that you all saw fit to swoop in and buffet me into 14th place, which lasted all of, like, a minute before the angry hornets nest that is Janna Grace proceeded to smoke me to the tune of 20 new orders and counting (yes, she's still going. No mercy rule, here. I think she's from Long Island, as well, which is giving me yet another reason to feel bad about where I grew up).

But, in the interest of sportsmanship: good for her. I don't know how she did it. I've had to beg and plead and wring my hands and give copies away. I'd probably kill (though, probably not; that's illegal) for an army of folks who wait in the wings to pour a beatdown on anyone who'd dare to usurp my position.

Even still. Hell of day. Hell of a job by all of you who chipped in.

And, for the love of all that is holy, and -- if it's more your thing -- unholy, order my book, please! The contest ends tomorrow at 12 p.m. Pacific, 3 p.m. Eastern. We can catch Janna if everyone who is following but hasn't ordered ... orders. She can't be the only one with a rocket ship, can she? You don't like seeing anyone just run away with the boobie prize, do you?

Me neither! Harrumph!

Only a little bit of time left in the Nerdist Collection Contest and I can't believe I hit 600 readers! At each milestone I hit I'm continuously shocked by the outpour of support from everyone, and even saying 'thank you' 600+ times doesn't seem like enough to convey what you've all done for me. There is still some time to go though, and hopefully we'll be bringing Welcome To Deadland to even more hands.

As per tradition, I'm including another photo to celebrate, this time I wanted to show my writing space where Welcome To Deadland came alive. I've spent countless hours in this chair and at this desk planning, writing, editing, and rewriting to make Welcome To Deadland what it is, and I know I still have countless more until it's exactly what it needs to be for all of you.(Rick, I see your photoshopped mustache from 400, your abundance of dinosaurs at 500, and raise you a writing space and an abundance of mustaches.)

Shout out to my homegirl, JK Rowling, for giving me the courage to write and the inspiration for my creative space. Without the impact of Harry Potter in my life, Welcome To Deadland might not have ever come to be what it is. 

As we gear up for the final few moments of the contest, I say thank you once more. We're nearly there, but for now, we press on. 

-Zac

So it comes to a close.

It's been a crazy month and a half. I want to thank everyone of you for paying attention to this project so far. I especially want to thank those who have pre-ordered. You guys are amazing.

The day isn't over yet though and, purely as an exercise for my ego, I'd love it if we could finish this in the top ten still, maybe even climb to 9th place. There's a few of you who receive this that haven't pre-ordered yet but would have my eternal gratitude if you did (it's free if you follow these instructions). If you've pre-ordered already, then ask you spouse or a friend to toss in a pre-order.

Why push so close to the end? Because this isn't over. While the Nerdist Collection contest nears the end we still have work to get this book funded and every little bit helps. So let's finish this in style and with dignity.

Look, I even sketched out little Audrey from 'A God in the Shed' for you. How could you say 'no' to a dead child?

Morbid humour aside, thank you again you continuous help. The Inkshares platform is part of the democratization of art and literature on the internet and you're now part of it. You're helping culture flourish in new ways that favour the artists. That is no little feat.

Pat yourself on the back. You earned it.

JF

Oh, dear – I didn’t post an update yesterday. Sorry, but I was busy writing.

I contributed 3,300 words to a short story (I polished it today and sent it out). That is by no means a record for me, but it’s more words than I have written in a single day in the recent past, so it felt good. Really good.

I had been struggling with this story. The setting and characters were great, but the story I had originally come up with was way too involved; some day, it may make a great long novella or even short novel, but that wasn’t going to help me write something that had a reasonable chance of getting into the anthology I was considering submitting to. Yesterday, having realized that I had to put that story aside, I came up with a story that used the same setting and characters, but had a much smaller scope. Coming up with the idea took a week and a half; writing the story took about 12 hours, on and off. It goes that way sometimes.

Tomorrow, I start finishing my latest novel!

The final sections of Chapter 2 are now up.

I'm unfortunately going to have to keep this update short, since today is looking to be the busiest day of a busy week for me.

Thanks to everyone for reading, following, and most of all ordering.  Enjoy the last of the introduction to Buscidia.

Nearing 400 readers this morning, which feels pretty incredible. Thank you, everyone, for supporting me and SINGLE VERSION. 

This is a friendly reminder that the Nerdist Collection Contest ends tomorrow, 9/30, just over 36 hours from now. I'm sitting in 7th place, and to be successful I need to jump into the top 5. As of this writing I am 80 readers out of 5th place. A lot. But not at all impossible.

If you have any siblings, co-workers, roommates, castmates, spouses, best friends, close friends, or frenemies you want to share the information with, now is the time to do it! Facebook is great at driving people to the page, but emails and personal recommendation go even further.

https://www.inkshares.com/projects/single-version

It takes a few minutes and costs five bucks. Every order counts, every order helps. I couldn't have made it to this point without your help, and no matter what happens I'm extremely thankful for that. I'm thankful for you.

This is the final push. We're in striking distance.

scott