THE BIG ONE
I received the final, completed, manuscript (digital) earlier today. The cover was finalized earlier this week. The last bit of info was just sent in by myself. And that. Is. It.
The book is now ready to go into production!
If you have moved (it’s been 7 years most of you have!). Don’t forget to change your shipping address by logging into Inkshares. I believe they email you a reminder, but just in case, please make sure you change your address.
I guess my next announcement will be something like "They’ve shipped"
Thanks for Noah Broyles at Inkshares who has been a big help over the last little while, and thank you to all of you for sticking around for 7 years!
James
Hi all you fantastic supporters!
Wait, you’re probably like, new number, who this?
Well, it’s me, dear friends, Erin S. Evan. That book writer you pre-ordered from all those years ago. Let me refresh your memory....
The Spring of 2016. My son Jack wasn’t even a year old, the sky was blue, the earth was filled with fossils, and you preordered a book called The Pirates of Montana.
So much has happened then, amirite? Moving (for me, a total of three times), new babies (my daughter Sara says hi), new jobs, a global pandemic. I’m sure you all have new updates and stories to tell. I hope they are all wonderful and bring you joy! Except for that pandemic. That can go to hell.
But the most important part of this update- THE BOOK COMES OUT ON APRIL 11!
A HUGE thank you for your patience all these years. For those that preordered a copy years ago, you’ll get it sent to you around April 11. For those that didn’t, check out Amazon or, better yet, ask your local bookstore to order a copy.
In fact, for those that preordered, you should have gotten an email from Inkshares asking for your updated address, if needed. Definitely fill that out! I wouldn’t want the book going to an old address you haven’t lived in for years (I’ve updated mine)
Now, the hard question- why did it take so long? Because Inkshares is a small publishing house, I had to wait in line. Plus I needed to become a better writer. I went into this never writing fiction before. I’ve always made up stories, often spinning my yarns to my kiddos during their bedtimes, but I’d never put anything on paper.
Now I kinda claim I’m not too bad at it. What is that saying? You need 10,000 to master a skill? Well, I’m probably about a third of that way along. Not kidding- I’ve got lots of drafts of this book on my hard drive, plus tons of notes, treatments, summaries, etc. Over the years, Inkshares set me up with several amazing editors who challenged me to become a better writer. For that, I’ll forever be thankful.
When you read the book, check out the acknowledgements- there are many individuals that have impacted this book and your name might be in there.
And, just when we finally were about to publish, Covid hit. The closures of bookstores was brutal for the industry, to say the least. E-books did okay, but Inkshares, like many indie publishing houses, makes money through the sale of physical books. So we decided to wait till people could go back into stores.
So we waited.
And waited...
And waited….
Until now!
Now the fun stuff.
I’ve changed the title, as you probably noticed. It’s now called The Bone Wars. This is a nod to the greatest paleontological race in American history, the rivalry of O.C. Marsh and E.D. Cope. You’ll learn more about it when you read the book (along with a ton of other cool paleontologists). However, the book is now apart of a series called The Pirates of Montana. So keep your eyes peeled for more info in the future on that.
While the book is now defined as a Young Adult book, I’ve written it so that adults will enjoy it too (think Hunger Games).
Booklist, one of the literary trade publications, has reviewed the book and given it a fantastic review. To quote: it "is a remarkable combination of incredible scientific detail and convincing fabrication." What does that mean? Well, you’ll have to read the book to find out (muahhahaha).
Professor Charles Marshall, Director of the University of California Museum of Paleontology, wrote a really awesome blurb for the book. It’s on the back cover. I’m really proud of his review. I haven’t been in "the game" for a while now, and to have a professional paleontologist read my book and not find any glaring errors was a fantastic feeling. His email was so nice, just a suggestion or two (which I incorporated). Additionally, he really enjoyed it!
Another science fiction author, Tal Klein, also wrote a nice blurb for the book. For those that have been on Inkshares for a while, you’ll definitely remember his book, The Punch Escrow. If you haven’t read that one, stop reading this update and go order it. It’s fantastic.
The Bone Wars will be on Audible! I met with the voice actors last year, and they are amazing. More on that to come!
Finally, the book was also selected by the Junior Library Guild as one of their Gold Standard Books, which is also very cool. The Guild helps Libraries choose books for their students. Fun fact: First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt was on its editorial board for decades! I’m incredibly honored to have been selected.
We’re at the finish line. Thank you all for the support and encouragement over the years. It took longer than I would have liked, but thankfully it meant a stronger, more fun book with an awesome cover (by the fantastic M.S. Corley! Check out his work at www.corleyms.com!)
Best,
Erin S. Evan
Hello everyone!
I have not reached out through this platform in a long time, but the publication of Mission 51 is imminent, and I wanted to mention a few things.
First of all, my heartfelt gratitude goes to everyone who purchased a pre-order, especially those who did so during the Inkshares/Nerdist Sci-Fi Contest of 2017. Those pre-orders kept Mission 51 in the top 3 of all contestants and garnered a full publishing contract. Since that time, Mission 51 has been in production, progressively improving the story. It is now fully polished and ready for publication.
The publication date is February 15, 2022.
I am signing the pre-ordered books as we speak.
IMPORTANT:
For those who pre-ordered here on Inkshares, like everyone did during the contest, it’s time to update your address. If you moved since that contest in the summer of 2017, you need to update your address with Inkshares so the book will find its way to you.
If you have not yet placed an order but wish to do so now, it remains available for purchase here on Inkshaers, and is also available on Amazon, B&N, Target…
Thanks again, everyone, for your support and your patience, and I do so hope you enjoy Mission 51!
Ferd Crôtte
Good day! Here we are—less than three weeks from Bane of All Things’ release on Dec. 7.
It’s been a heck of a ride to get here. The pandemic delayed BoAT’s publication date by about eight months, while my ongoing contest with cancer has added fresh twists since August.
Despite all these speed bumps, it’s onward and upward!
None of it would have been possible without your patience and support. Thank you again for going on this adventure with me.
Unboxing pending
Before Dec. 7, I will receive a box of books from my publisher, Inkshares. It will be my first time seeing the final product in its physical form. My wife, Natalie, is intent on filming this “unboxing” so that I can share it on social media. So, stay tuned for that.
Save the date! Virtual launch event on Dec. 7
I had hoped to have a live launch event at a local bookstore or a pub. But given the continued concerns with the pandemic (and my own health), I will be foregoing that. Instead, I will host an hour-long virtual event on YouTube, at 7 p.m. EST on Dec. 7.
This event will feature me reading from BoAT, drawing for some prizes, and taking comments and questions from attendees. Details will soon follow.
Book giveaways
If you are reading this, odds are you already pre-ordered BoAT many moons ago and will have a copy or copies soon coming your way. But just so you know, my publisher is currently running a Book Giveaway on Goodreads.com with AmazonKindle.
This Giveaway runs until Nov. 29 and is open only to U.S. residents. I will, however, be doing other giveaways for my Canadian (and overseas) supporters (also as part of the Virtual Launch Event on Dec. 7). Please stand by for more details.
Making sure you receive your print copies
Again, if you did pre-order print copies of BoAT, it was many moons ago. If you have had any change of address in the past couple of years, please log into your Inkshares account to verify the mailing address you provided with your original pre-order is still current. This may require a password reset.
If you have any issues with account access or a password reset, please contact hello@inkshares.com. And if you aren’t sure what email address you have associated with your Inkshares account, let me know and I can quickly look it up for you.
My health
Just yesterday, I had the first of my tri-weekly immunotherapy treatments, which are intended to bolster my body’s ability to target and destroy cancer cells on its own. This comes after my radiation therapy three weeks ago and follows the surgery for tumor removal that took place at the beginning of October.
Other than experiencing the same kind of fever response you may get following a flu or COVID shot, I am so far handling the immunotherapy meds well. My recovery overall continues to move along.
That’s all for now. Stay safe and keep reading!
Cheers
Leo
Greetings friends and supporters. We’re certainly due for an update on the state of Tantalus Depths, and I am thrilled to say this update is a really good one.
About a week ago, I received my first round of copyedit notes for Tantalus Depths. They were wonderfully thorough and picked up a ton of minor punctuation and grammar errors that managed to elude my notice through more than a dozen full readthroughs. They were easily fixed, and the book feels much cleaner for it.
You’ll remember that the development editing process took almost two years to complete, due to extensive rewrites and passing through multiple draft stages. Copyedits, I am happy to say, are much simpler and more straightforward, and mostly just involve clicking "accept" on every grammar change my copyeditor suggested. I made sure to read each sentence in context to ensure that none of the suggestions accidentally changed the meaning of the sentence, and I caught a couple that would have done so, but even with that close attention to detail, I am proud to say that it still only took me a few hours to make every single change expected of me for this stage of the process. While it took me months to get through a round of development edits, I was able to finish all my copyedit notes and send them back to my publisher in less than a week.
This very well may be the first time in our five-year development process where we’ve actually been ahead of schedule, and we are rapidly nearing the end. My copyeditor will go over the changes I’ve made, and barring one or two more potential correspondences to correct a few outstanding issues, we will soon be done with the copyediting process and be ready to move on to the proofreader. After that, Tantalus Depths will at long last be completely finalized and ready for its release.
It’s been a long road to get here, friends, but we are rapidly gaining momentum in the last stretch before the finish line. Expect some very exciting announcements in the next few months, including a cover reveal and our long-awaited official release date.
I never thought it would take this long to get this book into your hands, and I do hope future projects will move more smoothly now that I know what to expect. But I can definitely say with confidence that the book is ten times better now than it was before this process began, and I could not be more excited to see what happens when my world finally enters yours.
Stay tuned, my friends, and watch the skies.
The Void is calling...
1976... The maple tree where we boys processed things.
It’s rewarding and humbling to see reviews trickling in.
One of the things I constantly asked myself while writing this story was, "Why do this?" I still can’t answer that question for myself. I do hold to the idea that maybe it’s for Mom and Pop, Garnna, Shelam, Carrie, Danny, Joe, and Lamech? Maybe it’s for the Cooper’s and the other characters in my life? I’m not sure. Those of you that have read it know that it’s not a happy story or one of any sort of groundbreaking knowledge. It’s not a self help book, and it doesn’t answer any questions.
As they say, "I can’t call it - I’m too close to the forest to see the trees."
I feel I’ve reached some finish line but I am unable to say I’m happy about it. I am relieved that the heavy lifting is done; I can say, "I’ve finished this work." But, there’s this little torment within me that keeps pushing, "Get it out there - keep casting the line - throw it as far away from you as you can - ship it - leave it in a crack - give it away - drop it by air - squirrel it where someone will find it!"
I’ve been told to, "Share the burden." So, If you are able, if you care to, if you found something in my story that I can’t see, please go to the following links and share your thoughts.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/55376195-the-bird-s-road
https://www.inkshares.com/books/the-birds-road
https://www.amazon.com/Birds-Road.../dp/1950301354
Thanks for your interest and support.
Sharek
Hey Everyone!
It’s been a while since I’ve updated on Inkshares! BUT... I have news!
For all of you who supported me during this first Nerdist Contest, I’ve had a busy writing run! I did a massive 5E Campaign called The Red Opera: Last Days of the Warlock, tons of Geek & Sundry and Nerdist articles, and working on the next books...
BUT...
Today I bring different news:
My Sequel to THIS book: The Seventh Age: Dystopia is officially live and published!
For those who loved the first book, you can grab a copy RIGHT HERE!
And... if you would be so kind as to leave a review when you are done!
Don’t forget you can find me on the interwebs @crankybolt on Twitter and everywhere else.
THE END IS NIGH!!
Hello All,
Well, we’ve got an ISBN and a Library of Congress Control Number.
Here is the cover. It needs a bit of important copy to plug into that white void on the back, a final page count to adjust the spine, and it’ll be done.
I struggled with the cover art. I initially thought I wanted something pretty, and harassed good friends with my bad ideas. As any sensible person would expect, the results of that direction didn’t translate the content. Also, my ideas of fanciful colors and dynamic fonts didn’t elicit any questions or emotional responses from the people surveyed. Another discovery showed those ideas were lost in the field of contemporary covers.
In a flock of swans, it’s the mangled farm goose that captures your attention.
Out of frustration, I smashed the front of this in a few seconds and it stuck. It’s the frustration that speaks. The emotion. Those of you that don’t know my story probably understand what’s depicted here on a visceral level. Way down under the level of consciousness - where letters have no meaning and language is unrecognizable - pictures speak.
All over the world, primitive cultures without a written language scratched and pecked momentous events into stone. Many of those friezes depict times of loss and death; these scrawls often have a horizontal line separating stick figures above and below while some exhibit rows of humanoid figures - both upright upright and inverted. That’s how we described burial or the debarkation of the living to the world of the dead. That’s how we recorded our pain.
Also, I think this cover works for reasons you’ll understand when reading my story.
Anyway, there’s your dose of nerd for the day.
The proof read will be completed and sent to Inkshares on Wednesday the 26th of May. From there, they will merge any repairs into the final pour. After that, it’ll be a few more weeks until the E-Readers are sent to you. Paperbacks follow shortly after that.
Thanks for your support,
Sharek
Dear friends,
Wow. It’s been a long journey, and I’m happy to say, it was just the beginning. Even though I’m not going to be continuing with Inkshares, I have found an editor who is working with me to get my book published very very soon...
Stay tuned on my instagram @themidnightwarriors for more special updates, and I will honored to tell you soon when you can order the book directly from me.
Cheers,
Nirmani