It’s not often write-in votes amount to anything when it comes to awards and elections. The most popular victor of such an outcome is Boaty McBoatface, but maybe it doesn’t have to be that way. I was going to send a follow-on email thanking you all for your write-in efforts, except YOU TOTALLY DID IT! The Punch Escrow is now a semifinalist for the best science fiction book of the year in the Goodreads Choice awards. Thanks to each of you for donating 4.8 seconds of your time and writing in the name of my book. As you can see, we made it into the semi-finals. That means The Punch Escrow is already recognized as one of the 20 top sci-fi books of the year! 
Now, I have but one last favor to ask of you. As you can see, we’re in the semifinals, which means I need your vote again. BUT—I only need 1 second this time. You see that vote button under The Punch Escrow? Just click it, and you’ve done your part. It’s so easy to make such a big difference!
Thank you so much—this whole journey has surpassed my wildest dreams. I have no idea what happens next!
Hello horror fans!
I come to you with a humble request. A God in the Shed has the honour of being a semi-finalist for the Goodreads Choice Awards 2017. This is a big deal. What would make it an even bigger deal is making it to the next round as a finalist. A huge deal. Gargantuan really.
All I ask of you, is a few clicks.
First, click here to get to the voting page. Then, while logged into Goodreads, click on the red VOTE button under A God in the Shed.
There you go. With that simple gesture, you participate in what can be a huge step in my writing career and that makes you awesome. Hurry! You only have up to November 12, 2017 to vote!
Thanks for the support! You’re the best.
JF
Good morning everyone!
I know it hasn’t been long since my last supporter email, but this one is a special announcement. You all know my novel by its name Human Resources. What I haven’t told you previously is that the title is changing. There are various reasons for needing to change the title. Human Resources was a great title in some respects: it was understated and linked back to the corporate dystopia, as well as the way humans are treated in the novel. However, despite that, there were signs it would make the book harder to sell. Some of the issues were:
So, without further ado, the new title is Blood Capital. This title isn’t as subtle, but ties it firmly in the genre. It also links back to the corporate dystopia, the treatment of humans in the world, and (bonus) the city the novel is set in. Work is underway on the final cover image, and I can’t wait to share the outcome of that. In the meantime, Inkshares have posted a (short) video of Matt Harry (Head of Story Development at Inkshares) talking about Blood Capital.
Robert Batten.
Good morning everyone!
I know it hasn’t been long since my last supporter email, but this one is a special announcement. You all know my novel by its name Human Resources. What I haven’t told you previously is that the title is changing. There are various reasons for needing to change the title. Human Resources was a great title in some respects: it was understated and linked back to the corporate dystopia, as well as the way humans are treated in the novel. However, despite that, there were signs it would make the book harder to sell. Some of the issues were:
So, without further ado, the new title is Blood Capital. This title isn’t as subtle, but ties it firmly in the genre. It also links back to the corporate dystopia, the treatment of humans in the world, and (bonus) the city the novel is set in. Work is underway on the final cover image, and I can’t wait to share the outcome of that. In the meantime, Inkshares have posted a (short) video of Matt Harry (Head of Story Development at Inkshares) talking about Blood Capital.
Robert Batten.
All things literary have been a whirlwind. I’ve recently gotten notified that The Punch Escrow has been selected as one of Kirkus Reviews’ 100 Best Books of the 2017. That is great news! But on the same day I learned that Goodreads didn’t see The Punch Escrow fit to be listed among their selections for the Goodreads Choice Science Fiction awards. What adds insult to a bit of injury is that some of the books that they did nominate aren’t even published yet!
However, there is still some hope. YOU can alter reality! If you read and liked my book and have a Goodreads account, it takes about 4.8 seconds (I timed it) to write-in The Punch Escrow in the Best Science Fiction category. It would mean the world to me. The write-in field is at the bottom of the link above. It looks like this:
All you need to do is type in The Punch Escrow (it will auto-fill) and that’s it—you’ve altered reality!
Thank you for everything you’ve done for me and this book. I’ll be writing a more comprehensive update on what’s going on with the film adaptation next year, there’s just a lot going on and I’m legally not allowed to discuss any of it. But it’s all *good* stuff!
-Tal
It almost snuck past me entirely, but today marks the one year anniversary of hitting my full funding goal for Tantalus Depths! Things have moved a lot more slowly since then than I’d thought they would, but this remains one of the proudest achievements in my life, and I am still so far beyond grateful for the huge outpouring of help from all my friends and family that made this thing possible.
No particular news on the editing process to speak of at the moment; I am continuing to work on integrating the feedback from my editor into the development draft and hope to have a new and improved draft for the next step of the process in the next week or two. I just wanted to take a moment and reflect on this landmark that got us to where we are today. I can’t wait until this editing stage is complete and you all have physical copies of the book in your hands. It’s been such a privilege being given this rare opportunity to share the passion of my heart with so many supportive people. Here’s to Tantalus Depths, Proteus, and many more such successes in the future!
