A postman knocks at your door. He asks too many personal questions, then hands you a package you didn’t order. Obviously, you shouldn’t open it.

After you open it, you find a yellowed letter inside, handwritten on paper that looks at least 100 years old. As you read it silently to yourself, a faint whispering voice reads it along with you. It seems to be intentionally mispronouncing some words.

"Dear Everyone:

I have a favor to ask that costs zero dollars, and you don’t even have to talk to anyone or put on a tie.

My follower count and my number-of-copies-sold count are pretty close, so most of the people reading this have already ordered The Wolf in the Woods. That’s great! But, right now I only have ONE review on the book’s page, and that’s hurting my ability to engage with other readers and writers.

If you’ve read at least one of the free stories from The Wolf in the Woods, please leave your honest opinion on the book’s Inkshares page, which should be linked below (it might be a pre-order button, go ahead and click that). I’m not even asking for people to necessarily recommend the book, or write good reviews. Any review will do. As a matter of fact, if they’re nothing but glowing, people might see that as disingenuous and untrustworthy.

Thank you for your time!

--Ben"

The letter crumbles to dust in your hands. This is very annoying to you, as it has made quite a mess.

follow this link to not get any writing done

http://horrorfreaknews.com/101-best-horror-movie-quotes

and so worth it. double down tomorrow night!

Hello, Mission 51 family!

It has been three quick months since you pushed Mission 51 into the top three of the Nerdist Sci-Fi Contest on Inkshares, guaranteeing its publication. I have taken this time to continue polishing the story before turning in the manuscript to the Inkshares editing gods. I have now come to realize that I might never be satisfied. I might always want to change this, delete that, embellish and refine, cut and paste, drag and drop, etc., etc., etc.

I had given myself this three-month limit for final polishing, and my time is up. Overall, I am happy with the story, so I am going to hand it in by the end of the week and get in line for the real editorial work. I fully anticipate making further changes as I work with Inkshares’ developmental editing team. I can’t tell you how exciting it is to be starting the process.

Along with the manuscript, I am to hand in my responses to an extensive questionnaire that will direct the Inkshares team on how to best approach my story, create a stunning book cover, and develop a successful marketing plan. It will be a long process, and I look forward to the hard work of putting it all together. I will keep you updated with progress reports from time to time.

Again, I want to thank you very much for this tremendous opportunity. It is only through your kind and generous support that Mission 51 will come into existence. I will never forget what you all have done for me!

Before I go, let me recommend four books that are currently in Inkshares contests, written by authors I greatly admire. They would certainly love your crowdfunding support. Please check them out!

In the prestigious Launch Pad Contest:

Susan K. Hamilton’s The Devil You Don’t https://www.inkshares.com/books/the-devil-you-don-t

TCC Edwards’ Far Flung.     https://www.inkshares.com/books/far-flung

In the Inkshares 2017 Horror Contest:

André Brun’s Arcadia.     https://www.inkshares.com/books/arcadia

M. Robert Randolph’s The Dark Mountain https://www.inkshares.com/books/wings-of-the-crallow

Thanks again! Peace and love to all!

~Ferd

Autumn is here, and the cogs are steadily turning...

.

In my last update, I explained that the developmental editor and I were working on the rewrite 100 pages at a time. He edits one section while I rewrite the next... Well, I am pleased to report that I am roughly half-way through with the third and final segment. I hope to have that turned over in about two weeks. I’ve combed through and rewritten all of the existing text, and am now drafting a brand spanking new ending that will get the blood pumping a bit more than the original.

There will be at least one more round of developmental edits as I address the notes that Matt makes on the new draft. Each run-through should be swifter than the previous. After that, we move on to copy editing, then proofreading, then ARC printing and marketing. Cover design will take place alongside the final steps.

I am crossing my fingers that an estimated release date will be assigned once we have an idea of how long the rest of the developmental edit will take. My best guess is Summer ’18 (based on the trajectory of other books further along in the production process). If the last two months are any indication, I will be hard at work until the last minute (and after). As always, thank you for your support.

Until next time,

-Jacqui