Hi, readers! Just letting you know that we’re at 101 copies - 40% of the goal, which is 250 copies by Jan. 15 - and I’m so thrilled to think we might actually get this published, with your help! I’ll try to have chapter three up for you next week, after I finish grading all these final exams and term papers - for which a magical fairy-companion/grading assistant would be so very helpful, wouldn’t he...? :-)
Thank you to everyone who has followed The Walls are Closing In.
The book just hit 50 followers, and has been on the site for less than one week!
As a thank you, I will be providing a randomly-selected follower with a $50 Etsy Gift Card once The Walls are Closing In reaches 100 followers!
My hope is to launch my Pre-Order campaign in January, and the manuscript is complete and ready to go.
Don’t worry first 50 followers, you will automatically be entered into the drawing. Recipient will be chosen using a random generator. If you have someone who you think would be interested in The Walls are Closing In, please encourage them to follow!
Though I know winning fifty dollars to spend on unique hand-made holiday gifts is tempting, please only follow if you are actually interested in the book ;)
Thank you again for your overwhelming support.
It’s been 9 days since I sent my last update, and a lot has happened since then. Remember Nico Rosberg, the F1 driver who trounced Lewis Hamilton in the final race of the season?
HE RETIRED!
TOTAL PLOT TWIST! (I called it, by the way.) (Just ask Michael, my husband. He knows that I predict the future.) A new world champion was crowned, he got his cake, and then ate it for all the world to see. Cheers to you, Nico Rosberg. Because I’m eating cake this December, too.
Allow me to explain.
For those of you that don’t already know: I’m sentimental. With pretty much everything. Case in point, I carry a personal museum of baubles and trinkets with me everywhere I go. Peeking out from my closet is a vast collection of drawings and scraps of paper that people gave me in preschool. Preschool. Which makes be a bona fide sentimental hoarder because I’ve moved a gagillion times since preschool. So it shouldn’t come as a shock that my favourite stories are the ones that have some special, hidden meaning.
Where the Sun Sets is one such special story. And a special story needs a special cover. So I decided to launch a contest to find one. I put the book cover contest to my network (not many artists, few professional designers, lots of family that can’t de-friend me) and told myself to be patient. "Draw up a plan, pull the trigger, and trust in the process." Right?
Sort of.
For the past few weeks I’ve been biting my nails, wondering if what I did was the right thing. I am trying to create a product that needs to sell, after all. Worries haunted. What if no one submits a thing? What if I detest them all? (I was more concerned with the first looming question because I’m generally easy to please, and I love a funny story.)
The submission period closed on Sunday, December 4. I got 19 submissions, and I love them all! (In fact, I love some them so much that I suspect I’ll soon have dreams of eating cake off of them.) More importantly, knowing that the cover of Where the Sun Sets has been crafted by someone special to me is a huge relief. It’s an incredible feeling. And the reasons each of the entrants shared about why they entered are equally touching.
So now it’s Show Time. Literally. I’m showing them to you, and asking that you help me select the one that best fits Where the Sun Sets. Because, frankly speaking, if it were left up to me, I’d choose them all. Which just isn’t practical.
You can view the entries and pick one here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/3LXR6CC I believe you’ll find them all to be unique and delightful in their own way.
See what I mean?
Absolutely delightful!
The voting period ends this Sunday, and I can’t wait to reveal the final cover. That said, the cover will only make it onto a book if I hit my pre-order target.
I’m at 180 as I type this, which means I’m 70 pre-orders short!
You’re receiving this update because you’ve already put yourself out there for me, and I thank you for it. But I’m not quite there yet. So I ask that you please continue to send me well wishes, and consider recommending or sharing my story with those people you think would find it meaningful. I know it’s a lot to ask (and to keep asking) but every little bit helps and I won’t get there without you.
Thank you for your consideration. Thank you for your time. And thank you for your continued support.
Donna
(I want to use #ALLTHEBOOKCOVERS!!!)
Dear Friends and Readers,
Thank you all for being a part of the journey to get The Loving Wrath of Eldon Quint published. Here’s an update on where we stand today.
The novel made it all the way to the Top Ten, from a selection of thousands, in the Launch Pad Manuscript competition. Unfortunately, we weren’t selected as an overall winner. But that doesn’t mean we can’t win (and get published!).
The top 3 books with the most unique preorders by noon PST on Friday, December 16th, will be published by Inkshares.
Currently, we stand at #5 on the leader board. We’re only about 50 orders shy of the coveted 3rd place spot.
We have 10 days left. I’m confident we can do it. Most of you have ordered the book already, but if you haven’t, now is the time.
And finally, I am awed and incredibly thankful to everyone for their support and $$. I’m working hard to deliver a great read.
Much Love,
Chase
Preorder here: https://www.inkshares.com/books/the-loving-wrath-of-eldon-quint
Watch a short book trailer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OsFdES7MlpI
Unbound requires you to submit your manuscript, after which they review it and put it up for a campaign if it passes their initial assessment. If you are successful Unbound publishes you.
Inkshares lets you start immediately and do your thing, even if you don’t have a finished manuscript. If you are successful in your campaign, Inkshares publishes you.
Publishizer lets you start with a proposal and crowdfund, but they don’t acutally publish you. They connect you with other publishers (who will want to talk to you — hopefully — if your campaign is successful).
Pros and cons of each. I don’t know as much about publishzer, but at first glance it isn’t as appealing to me. Unbound is a good option, if you have a completed manuscript read to go.
For all of them, you need to get organised before starting a campaign and you need to attack it methodically. Any campaign, on any platform, is going to be hard work.