Happy November!
I just thought of taking this opportunity to tell you a bit about The Battle For Oz and how it actually came about. It's not the typical 'I was inspired' tale, but it can be quite a long read. Proceed at your own risk?
It first started last year, when I was approached by an artist who suggested a collaboration. He had this idea of marrying two classics and he pitched the basic concept to me.
As someone who has been writing books for almost 4 years, I have never once been approached by an artist. Most of the time, I'm the one asking my friends for help. So feeling extremely flattered, I thought, 'why not?'.
Writing a spin-off was something I had never done before, especially a spin-off of famous literary works. And to be honest, I have never read The Wonderful Wizard of Oz or the other literature in the book (not mentioning because SPOILER). So, I had to do a lot of research, having Google on standby constantly. I studied these two worlds as best as I could, until I was able to capture the essence of them. It was not easy, but I managed to do it and I could not be happier with the end result.
Initially, The Battle For Oz was supposed to be a novelette trilogy; three short books with illustrations done by the collaborating artist. All three books were already completed last year, and this year in May, I released the first one. The reception I got for the first book was great, comparing with the books I released before.
However, my partner in crime told me that it was no longer a project he wanted to take on. We talked about it and I decided that if it was really what he wanted to do, I'll just accept his decision and move on. So with two novelettes left, I knew I had to change my game plan; it was time to combine the novelettes and turn them into a novel.
At first I thought of just releasing an e-book novel of The Battle For Oz, but then I stumbled upon Inkshares. Suddenly, I knew I could take The Battle For Oz to a whole new level! Hence, you are receiving this backer update today.
The whole process of getting this book done was a new experience for me. I have never written a spin-off of books I have never read, and I did not have a clear timeline on how the story would flow. But when I was writing, everything fell into place! Honestly, I cannot wait for you to read it.
If you have made it this far, I hope my 'behind-the-scenes' has not been boring you. I wish it was a simple story, but I'm kinda glad it was a more complicated journey than that. To end, I just want to say another big thank you for your support. It means a lot to me that you found me worth investing in.
There are 60 days left to the end of the project, but I have faith it would be fully funded :) Dreams can come true, am I right?
Commonly Asked Questions Answered:
#1 The book is completed.
#2 That picture on the project page will not be the final cover.
#3 There won't be any in-book illustrations.
