Greetings, Faoii!

I cannot even begin to describe what today has been like, my warriors. To know that The Last Faoii is finally a real book available to everyone. After so many years of hard work and uncertainty... it’s indescribable. 

People are already answering the call to fight the next wave. We currently have two reviews on Amazon and seven ratings on Goodreads. In addition to that, the amazingly-talented and incredibly supportive Evan Graham (Author of Tantalus Depths) wrote this wonderful and humbling update to honor our success. 

I’ve been posting reviews in an album on my Faoii Facebook Page (Like us if you haven’t already) but the newest one is a bit long for that. However, it’s too good not to share. So I’ll leave you with another Faoii’s battlecry and once again thank you for all of your continual and greatly appreciated support. This could not have happened without your help and will not go any further without you, either. 

Thank you, my warriors. Keep those shields up.

Review via Goodreads: 

 "An amazing first novel from a young voice. It’s apparent that Ms Nelson comes from a world that I have only glimpsed. Her characters are strong with personality; you will care about them and remember them. Her world is unique and it’s apparent that we’ve glimpsed only a bit of the whole. 

Initially, one might assume this to be a period in the world we know. It’s not. There are so many small signs, indicators, beliefs that simply aren’t part of what we see every day. This is a well conceived world of it’s own.

I enjoy varied books and movies. I read SF heavily and Fantasy occasionally. I have no direct comparison for this; it’s unique and fulfilling. In some instances, it reminded me of Asimov’s Foundation series, but mostly as you learn more of the running of the world.

Marketed as a YA book, I (a mid-50s male,) thoroughly enjoyed it. The characters are vivid, the world interesting, the story fast and engrossing. As the main character is a woman of color, this is a bit unusual in today’s books and is inclusive, though natural within the world of the Faoii. 

Nothing here is quite what one expects; everything here is quite what it should be."

My friends, today is a very special day for a very special book.
But not one of mine this time.

Today is the official publication day for The Last Faoii. Some of you may recall I’ve been championing this book from the very beginning, and today, at long last, it is out and available for purchase.

I’d like to ask you all to consider supporting this new book, for a couple of reasons. For one, I helped design that kick-butt cover, so I have to brag about that at least a little. It’s also a really fine fantasy novel, so it deserves to be read for its own merits.

But beyond any of that, I’d like you to support the author. Tahani Nelson has been as big of a supporter for both Tantalus Depths and Proteus as I’ve been for her book, also from the very beginning. She’s been through some of the worst struggles imaginable during the process of campaigning her book and getting it through the production process, and the absolute tenacity with which she has tackled those obstacles deserves every reward. She’s inspired me tremendously on a personal level and has helped keep my spirits up during the various obstacles I’ve faced during my own campaigns and production processes. Heck, she inspired me enough to name a planet after her, so that should tell you all you need to know about how much I respect her.

It’d also just be nice for me to plug a book you can actually hold in your hands shortly after buying it, for a change. Tantalus Depths is coming, but still not any time especially soon. The Last Faoii is out right now (I have a copy on the desk in front of me). So yay for semi-instant gratification!

Anyway, I’d just like to make this the best Publication Day possible for The Last Faoii. The book is great, the author is even better, and they both deserve as much support as we can send their way.

Updates, Faoii! Listen up! You’re going to like these!

The Last Faoii becomes an officially launched book in just a few hours. In that moment, it will be widely available to anyone who wants to hear our tale, and you will have the opportunity to rate/review it on Amazon. Take the opportunity. We’ve already fought tooth and nail to take this hill, and I promised you a year ago that the world will know us. This is how that happens. We’ve fought too hard and come too far for The Last Faoii to be completely lost in the sea of novels already out there. Hitting those little stars is the only way to build our island in that sea. And we won’t just build an island. We will raise a mountain, Faoii, and our banner will stand at its peak. We have conquered every obstacle that’s come before. We will not stop now.

Other things are happening as well, of course. In an attempt to spread the word, I did an interview with Jessie’s Coffee Shop this evening. I will admit, my warriors, that I was nervous at first, and it shows at the very beginning of the set. Get through those first four minutes, however, and things go smoother. There’s a lot of interesting information packed away in there and I hope you find it of at least some interest.

Faoii-Kaiya, too, has been busy. She did her own interview for The Protagonist Speaks earlier tonight. Look through that as well and see what our young leader has to say about her world, her journey, and our army. Get to know the woman that started all of this.

It’s all finally happening, Faoii. I could not have done this without you. And I still can’t. More is coming. Be ready.

Shields Up.

Faoii-Tahani

10/2/17

We’re heading into the home stretch – as of tomorrow there will only be ONE WEEK left in the Launchpad Competition on Inkshares.

What’s going on with “Devil You Don’t”?

“Devil” has been sticking to fifth place for the moment, but a run into the top three isn’t out of the question, and I need you to make that happen! If you haven’t ordered yet, this would be an awesome time to change that!

 I know from last year that crazy things can happen at the end of the competition – let’s make crazy things happen for Devil!  

Special thank you to Michael Welch for his recommendation: The promise of this book is what Chuck Palahniuk’s Damned could’ve been if he hadn’t crawled so far up his own ***. Remarkably poised writing, well-imagined characters, and biting humor drove me to buy this book today. Go and do likewise, as Blake says.

Possible order hiccups?

Just a quick detour – if you HAVE ordered a copy of “The Devil You Don’t” and you HAVE NOT received a note from me thanking you profusely, please contact Elena at hello@inkshares.com as soon as possible. 

I’ve had two instances in the last week where some wonderful people have ordered, and have gotten a confirmation, but Internet gremlins have hijacked their orders. Elena will be able to get that sorted out for you!

Don’t forget the raffle at 50!

I’ll be raffling off prizes to two lucky readers once we hit the 50 milestone, and we’re almost there.  One reader will get a signed copy of my first novel, "Darkstar Rising." The other will win a $25 Amazon gift card!

THANK YOU!!!!

I would be remiss if I didn’t thank all of the great people who are supporting me this year. I know for many of you this is round two as you wait for last year’s book to work its way through production. I wouldn’t be here if not for you—thankyouthankyouthankyou!

Best,
Susan

Dear followers,

This is just to update you on the progress of "Everything is Normal." Last 2 months saw heavy developmental editing: the editor and I advanced the main themes and trough-lines of the book. That also included lots and lots of restructuring and writing 3 entirely new chapters.

But the most painful thing was cutting. We ended up decreasing the original manuscript by 25% or by 34,000 words. (This is more than the entire "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory".) Ouch!

Now that this stage is over, copy editing will start. Also, designers have finalized the cover for the book (below). A lot of clever marketing has gone into it. Inkshares has set the official release date for the book for March 6.

I will keep you posted. And thank you all very much again for your support.

 Regards,

 Sergey

It’s been far too long since I’ve been able to deliver news of any significant amount of progress with Tantalus Depths. I’ve had quite a few people approach me asking when the book is coming out, and I’ve regrettably had nothing to offer in the way of a satisfactory answer. I’m not sure I made it clear enough during my campaign last year just how long it takes to get a book through this kind of production process, but it can take a very long time.

Fortunately, today I finally have some good news. Progress has at last been made! Last night I finally received my development letter from Matt Harry, my development editor. Matt is the Head of Story Development at Inkshares, and his work has helped books like the amazing Punch Escrow succeed brilliantly during their production processes.

For those unfamiliar with how the publishing process works, all Inkshares books receiving the full editing treatment (such as Tantalus Depths) go through several waves of editing, each one focusing on improving a separate aspect of the manuscript. The development edit is the first, and it focuses on big picture stuff, such as focusing the story’s overall tone, message, and style. Basically figuring out exactly what kind of story Tantalus Depths is and how to make it the best example of that kind of story it can be.

Tantalus Depths has been read by quite a few beta readers and has gone through at least four rounds of edits, but this is the first time it’s been seen by a professional editor. Matt sent me eleven pages of advice on what sort of things I should consider changing to improve the book, on top of dozens of margin notes in my original manuscript for specific lines and sections I should change.

There’s a lot to work on here. The overall story isn’t going to change from the one I set out to tell; in fact, Matt was very clear that they want to make sure I get to tell the story the way I want it. The primary point of these notes is to focus the story properly, to trim out anything that doesn’t work so I can make the stuff that does work even better. Most of the notes he gave me deal with things such as keeping a consistent tone, improving character development, and getting more into the worldbuilding. I was actually surprised by that last one, since I’ve done a tremendous amount of worldbuilding but was intentionally holding back on including a lot of it, lest I get too carried away. Now that I’ve been given a green light to add more, I’m going to be having a lot of fun with these edits.

So, long update short, the wheels are rolling on Tantalus Depths once more! There is still no release date nailed down (I’m afraid there’s still going to be a decent wait ahead), but finally we’re fully into production mode now. I have a lot of writing and re-writing to be doing in the next couple weeks, but I am looking forward to it. We’ve finally gotten to the point where Tantalus Depths is making the transition from a simple manuscript to a proper Novel.

Stay tuned for more in the coming weeks!

Oh, by the way, my campaign for Proteus is still running, and I’m going to go back into campaigning mode as well within the next month or so. Stay tuned for that as well, and if you haven’t ordered a copy yet (or would like to help the campaign out even more by ordering a second one), please do so!

Friends, Readers, and Sorcerers All,

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

9/27/17

Good morning.

There are now officially less than two weeks remaining in the Inkshares piece of the 2017 Launchpad Competition. “The Devil You Don’t” is hanging out in 5th place right now with just under 40 readers, so getting into the Top 3 is a reachable goal, but I definitely need to start seeing those pre-orders ramp up.

To my official readers, I can’t say this enough but: THANK YOU for supporting Devil on this little adventure. Please keep sharing your enthusiasm for The Devil You Don’t with your friends, relatives, dog sitters, and UPS dudes (pretty much anyone you know who likes to read). Every pre-order counts, and personal recommendations really carry a lot of weight with potential readers.

All of you awesome folks who are following my progress in Launchpad, thanks to you as well. Please consider pre-ordering a copy before the 10/10 deadline. (https://www.inkshares.com/books/the-devil-you-don-t)

Don’t forget: when we reach 50 readers, that will trigger my first raffle. Two prizes will be raffled off: a signed copy of Darkstar Rising (my first novel) and an Amazon gift card.

And here’s a little tidbit you might not know about my main character, Mara Dullahan. I created her name from two different Irish legends. The Mara (or Mare) is a demon that causes bad dreams, and a Dullahan is Ireland’s version of the Headless Horseman. This headless rider (usually on a black horse) carries his or her own head under an arm. While typically male there are some female versions of the Dullahan, and the mouth on the head is typically a gruesome grin that touches both sides of the head.

Personally, I think my Mara is much more attractive than that, but it was important to me that there be some darker meaning behind her name given that she is a devil.

With the clock starting to count down, I’ll update again soon. In the meantime...

Best,

Susan

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