More exciting BLACK FOREST news! I’m a "syndicate pick" ... here’s what a syndicate is ... "A syndicate is a group of people who pool their money together to support a different Inkshares book each month. The advantage of a syndicate is that it allows readers to more passively support Inkshares writers. Syndicate leads do most of the work." This syndicate is run by an Inkshares staff-member named Avalon Marissa Radys: "I’m part of the Inkshares team. This syndicate supports the underdogs that catch my eye." That’s me!!
:)
According to Inkshares: "Here’s why the syndicate lead chose your book:
Inspiring new horror a la Shirley Jackson! Best of luck, Laramie.
Additionally, we’ve annotated your Inkshares book page with a syndicate selection badge. Congrats! "
SO COOL!!!!!!! 15 pre-orders at a shot! BOOM!!!!!
Hi everyone! Tonight we hit 300 pre-orders -- thank you SO MUCH for your support! Please consider recommending BLACK FOREST on Inkshares (click on "Reviews")!
Aloha All,
Just a quick update here on Lost in the Fog’s official publication date as well as a sneak peek at the front and back of the cover!
While we all wanted August, the good folks at Inkshares are still not yet back in the office due to the pandemic. Avalon, the extremely hardworking and amazing Director of Marketing & Publishing Operations, selected a new date to ensure there is enough time to properly handle everything on their end.
Lost in the Fog will be released September 21, 2020!
It’s been a long journey, and I thank you all once again for your tremendous support. I’ll be back in touch as the date gets closer, but in the meantime here’s an exclusive, first look at the cover. I am so happy with the work from the talented artists Xavier and Rafael from CoverKitchen! I hope you enjoy it too. Mahalo!
-Michael


Howdy! And my sincerest best wishes for you and yours through whatever hand this mad time may have dealt you.
Just a quick update. Earlier this week, I received my third editorial letter for Bane of All Things from my awesome editor, Sarah Nivala. Sarah is quite happy with where we are with the current draft and so am I.
Through two rounds of developmental editing that enriched description, provided more context for readers to be better be able to get a handle on the complexity of this story, and to make my characters and their interactions with each other more engaging, BoAT has gotten a little thicker -- from 129,000 words as first submitted to Inkshares, to 158,000.
Formatted as a trade paperback, this equates to about 500 pages. That’s still relatively lean compared to many of the epic fantasy titles out there these days that are bending bookshelves, but Sarah has offered some great ideas on how to tighten up the story. (Hint: Chapter Four may be the new Chapter One).
Over the next month, I will be working on those revisions, and then BoAT will be handed off to Inkshares CEO Adam Gomolin for his thoughts.
At present, we still don’t have a publication date. Due to the impact of pandemic lockdown measures on bookstores and the kind of public gathering launch events that are key to a successful kick-off for a new book, Inkshares is not releasing any new titles until 2021.
As soon as I have insight on when BoAT may finally be in your hands, you will, too.
On the cancer front, I have continued to be in good health since my last update. Today marks five weeks into my one year of gene therapy medication that promises to beat this thing forever. I am glad to say that the side effects of the meds have so far been less severe than I had feared they might be.
Stay tuned, stay safe, and thank you again for your continued faith and patience.
Cheers
Leo
Hey everyone, I’m In the funding stage of my book. I have until Sept 7 to get 750 pre-orders. So please share If you are so inclined. There aren’t a lot of novels about the golden age of Hollywood, and mine follows two characters you won’t be able to get enough of: Writer Anita Loos (Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, San Francisco, The Women) and director Victor Fleming (Wizard of Oz, Gone With the Wind, Joan of Arc). Also don’t forget you can read a portion of part one on the book’s page here on Inkshares. The formatting gets a little funky on the website so I apologize for that. Thanks everyone. More soon.