Well - shit.

We're in 5th place with just over 36 hours to go. A month and  a half of promotion, begging, pestering, wheedling, and putting every best scrap of the book forward have all come down to this. We have the second highest reader total of any campaign in the top ten.  But we don't have the deep pockets of our competitors.

Brass tacks: It is okay if we lose. This was never about whether or not Asteroid Made of Dragons would be completed. It was never about whether or not you all would get a copy. I self-published my first two novels, and I can do the same with this one -- if we lose, I'm making a spreadsheet of every backer, and I will get a free ebook of AMOD into your hands when it is completed. 

Ultimately, winning only benefits me. It's a big step forward for my career, I really want a shot at being the Sword & Laser Grand Prize - it would mean getting my writing in front of a larger audience than I've ever been able to before. It's an amazing opportunity - I completely understand why everyone in this campaign is so determined to win, so invested in succeeding by any means necessary.

So - DO NOT run out and pre-order 20 copies. If you have 20 friends you can convince in the next day, that's great. But you have all done more than you should have. The number of my friends that are sitting on 3, or 5, or 10 copies of this book staggers me. The number of my friends that have shared the campaign around humbles me - a ceaseless wave of support. And all of you backers are my friends now, by the way - I'm not just counting the personal ones. If you plunked down your money on a book as silly as Asteroid Made of Dragons - well, then you are my boon companion.

I seriously considered not saying anything at this point. The die is cast - just let the last day roll by and wait for the inevitable. But you paid yer money, as they say - it's your campaign too. We stand, Wild Mages and Squires, on the bow of a ship - and we are taking on water. If the wind is with us, we may still make port. If not, then let us dine with the sea-elves. I hope you brought your finest garments, as their dress code is severe. No cummerbunds! Sea-elves don't truck that tacky High School Chorus bullshit.

Noblesse oblige - but lightning works on anything.

G. Derek Adams

Less than two days left! I know I've asked a lot of you guys, but as we near the end, I have one more request to help with the last push. Log on, see if you have Inkshares credit (you should have received at least $5 for signing up and ordering your first copy), and if so, buy another copy. Some of you may have enough credit to completely cover another pre-order, some may have to pay $3 or $4 on top of it, but that's a great deal. Give the extra copy to a friend or a niece or nephew. Every oder counts in this game, and so far, we are going great. Thanks for all the love and support you guys have been pouring out. You've put a big grin on this goon's mug.

Good morning everybody,

It's the final day of the Sword and Laser contest. At midnight PST, all of this comes to an end and whether or not this book is published will finally be decided. I expect a bumpy ride to the finish line; a day full of jumps from all the books as we make last minute pleas and pushes.

Again, if you have not preordered yet. Do it now! Seriously, right now. I'll wait...

If you have bought a book, you are a wonderful person. Also, tell a friend to buy a book. Or recommend it, using the recommend button. Or like a passage. Did I mention how cool and attractive you are?

In case you need some incentive, here are some things that await you  if this novel of mine (which, just to be clear, is long since finished) is published: more fun with the Puritans, the perils of modern New Amsterdam (or whatever they’re calling it these days), a vampire club, a werewolf bar, an Irish trickster shade, redundant terms like Irish trickster, a resurrected coma patient, corrections on what to call soda (pop), Proper Vampirism™ Revised Edition 7, the lost city of Akkad, a Chinese hopping vampire, a West African plague vampire, a Spanish Inquisitor, the Aztec god of night and magic, and much, much more...

So if you want to learn what any of that means, you know what to do: Preorder! Recommend! Like!

And as always...thank you all.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to obsessively update the Top Ten page every 30 seconds until 2 AM CST.

It's the last week of the Sword & Laser Collection contest. I'm both nervous and exhilarated. What a ride so far.

Unfortunately, I'm not one to stay idle, hence on this day I bring to you two things:

1. You can now read the prologue to The Life Engineered and get a small idea as to the back story of why Capeks inherit the galaxy. 

2. I've started work on a model or prop of Koalemos, a fan favourite character in The Life Engineered. I do three things well; write, draw and model. If this model turns out well, I'll be raffling it off to supporters. What does Koalemos look like? Like that drawing below. I also tossed in two shots of the model being worked on.

As always; thank you for your support.

JF

Koalemos