When challenged for his use of questionable racing tactics, three times world F1 champion Lewis Hamilton said, “I had to help myself, because no one else was going to help me.” A gritty sentiment from a gritty competitor. 

Photocred: Sky Sports (Lewis, on the right, reminds me of how grateful I am that us writers aren’t forced to shout slam poetry to the death in order to get published.)

The extreme self-motivation and tenacity demonstrated by these athletes is undeniably tremendous, whether you’re a racing fan or not. They’re inspirational. To other drivers, athletes, and yes, even fiction writers. 

It’s difficult to stay motivated. It’s hard to keep going. Each of us who are in this together, know exactly what I mean. But when I see champions like Nico Rosberg —the man on the right who trounced Hamilton in spite of his questionable tactics— single-mindedly chase down his dream over decades, I’m reminded that only by overcoming adversity, over and over, can I make it to the other side. The world needs people to persevere, and champions like Nico provide motivation so that we may. 

I will never claim to be in the same league as a world champion like Nico Rosberg, Lewis Hamilton, or Jensen Button —to name but a few contemporary F1 bigwigs— but each and every morning that I wake, still in it to win it, I know I get a little closer to the other side.

I’m proud to be at 60% of my Quill goal —I still need just over 100 pre-orders to meet it— and I’m unspeakably grateful for the amazing show of support I’ve received from the people in my life thus far. Most of all, I’m overwhelmingly daunted to know that there are hundreds more people I need to touch with my story, to achieve my publishing goal.   

But if this journey were an easy one, I wouldn’t be given the opportunity to know what it’s like to persevere (said every masochist, ever).

All that said, I’d be lying through my teeth if I didn’t say that every little bit counts. 

If you’ve been thinking about reading my first chapter (https://www.inkshares.com/books/where-the-sun-sets/book_segments/the-last-welcome), sharing an awesome and heartfelt story by a debut author with a friend, or even thinking of placing a pre-order and just haven’t gotten to it yet, now’s a great time revisit the notion!

I have just over a month left to reach my pre-order goal. When I hit it, it will be because of you.

PS - I have a new video! Check it out here: https://youtu.be/ozTWldcFDNE I’d love to hear what you think!

Have a great evening & thank you for reading.

Donna

This is an email I’ve dreamed of sending, but was fearful would never happen. Thanks to the amazing support you have provided, Human Resources is going to be published by Inkshares! 

The competition is not over yet, and the campaign rolls on, but in the last week HR reached a critical milestone — we passed 250 pre-orders. This means the novel has qualified for "Quill" publishing by Inkshares, regardless of the competition outcome. 

I am thrilled, and can’t thank you all enough. I can’t stop and relax yet though, as I need to continue campaigning until the end of the competition — 16 December (PST). 

Why keep pushing when you are going to get published?

Quill is a "light" publishing model — it is print on demand (not mass-production), doesn’t include marketing to bookstores, and misses out on some of the more valuable editing. If the book is published under Quill, I’ll hire an editor to make sure you get a quality finished product, but if we win the competition that is included — and obviously the marketing and mass-production would be amazing. 

But wait, there’s more! Human Resources has also been selected by two Syndicates; the "Quill Brotherhood" syndicate and the "Great sci-fi for the 21st Century" syndicate. For those not familiar with Inkshares syndicates, they operate as a block. Readers can sign up to a syndicate (most have a clear theme) and agree to purchase the syndicate pick each month. I’m honoured to receive the support of both these groups.

And now for some bad news... 

The judges’ of the Launch Pad Manuscript Competition announced their Top 10 finalists this morning, and Human Resources did not make the list. This is disappointing, but I have much to celebrate: 

• Human Resources is getting published. 
• Out of more than 3,000 entries from 24 countries, the novel was judged by Hollywood insiders as being one of the 25 best. 
• We are currently leading the crowdfunding competition. 
• I’m still in the running for three major prizes: 
• Human Resources could still be optioned by Scott Free. 
• I could still be signed by Energy Entertainment. 
• I could still win a mentorship. 
• The novel and I will be featured in The Tracking Board’s Top Manuscripts of 2016 and The 2016 Hit List. 

Over the course of the competition so far I have interacted with a number of the authors I have been competing against. Not only do they have some great books, but they have all been friendly and supportive. My sincere congratulations to the Top 10. 

Where’s my "special" update? 

Last week I promised something special this update. I was full of enthusiasm at the time, expecting to get everything done in time. However, I’m still refining the content of my second bonus feature. Rather than send it out bursting with typos, I’ll hold onto it and share it over the next week. 

As always, if you haven’t ordered yet — there’s still time! 

Robert