Howdy! I just got off the phone an hour ago with Adam Gomolin, CEO of Inkshares. 

He didn’t call to talk about the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Inkshares will publish Bane of All Things.

I can’t say when yet. There is still much work to do. The Inkshares team and I are in wholehearted agreement that BoAT be the best version of itself that it can be before hitting bookstores. Debut novels face a tough battle to get noticed these days, what with Netflix, HBO and everything else on a 55-inch flat screen competing for people’s attention.

We don’t want to just publish a novel, but a novel with the best chance of success.

So, it will be back to school for me and BoAT for the next several months. I will get the paperwork tomorrow that will begin my “enrolment” in Inkshares’ Incubator Program. Consider it the literary version of the incubator that a tech startup would go into, with the nose-to-the-grindstone revising and editing that I expected would follow a successful campaign. 

I will keep you up to date as this moves along. Hopefully before too long, I can give you news about an actual publication date and when you can expect the copies you have pre-ordered.

For now, let me say once again, “Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!”

It is not an exaggeration to say that this could not and would not have happened without the patience and support of each and everyone one of you. My deepest and sincerest thanks. I will be reaching out to everyone who ordered two or more copies individually for your mailing addresses to send those signed souvenir posters.

The reality of this might finally be starting to sink in :).

Cheers 

Leo

Greetings, Faoii! I know it’s been a long time. I just wanted to let those of you who aren’t already following my Facebook Page what’s going on in the Faoii universe.

First off-- If you live in or near Montana, I will be selling/signing copies of The Last Faoii and "The Faoii of Ashwood" at the Montana Renaissance Festival at ZooMontana on June 1 and 2. I’m sorry I ran out of books so quickly last year (in, like, less than an hour). I’m more prepared this time, I promise! Come and say hi!

Second-- The Last Faoii has been nominated for the Independent Audiobook Awards (Part of the HEAR Now Festival) 2019!! 

This is such an honor. I almost didn’t believe it when I was first told, and my heart is filled with pride and gratitude. I looked over all of the books that were nominated along with Faoii for the Fantasy category, and they are all amazing. They each have hundreds of reviews on Amazon and an established following. Things that, a year ago, I wasn’t sure Faoii would ever have. But I have an amazing army behind me, and because of all of your support, I not only have a seriously kick-ass audiobook (voiced by the astonishingly-talented Sara Morsey) but I also get to fly to the HEAR Now Festival and stand alongside some truly talented people, knowing that our army earned our place there. Thank you. Thank you so so much.

If you’re not already following me on Facebook, please consider it. I’m moving afraid from the Inkshares platform for a lot of different reason (all of which I will be discussing in an upcoming interview. More on that soon), but I still want you to know about updates with The Last Faoii and Faoii Betrayer as they happen. We’ve gotten this far because of you. I want to finish this war with you still by my side.

Shields up

Faoii-Tahani

Good morning, dear supporters.

Well, we have been in this spot before – only a handful of days before the campaign for Bane of All Things expires, waiting for word on whether or not it’s made the grade.

Have you ever been in that situation where you’re waiting to find out if you’ve gotten that dream job, desperate to know but afraid to ask? 

Trust me, this is that times 10.

Who knows where this might go if Inkshares decides to publish BoAT? Take Tal M. Klein’s sci-fi novel, The Punch Escrow. To date, this novel has sold almost 22,000 copies through Inkshares. But that isn’t even the big news – before The Punch Escrow even hit bookstores, Inkshares had secured a 7-figure movie deal for the book with Hollywood studio Lionsgate.

I can only hope. It’s your support that will help make something like that happen.

As you know, when we crossed the 400 pre-order mark back on April 1, Inkshares editors committed to review the manuscript. I expected to have their decision by now, but these are busy folks with a lot on their plates. They may even be waiting to see how much higher that pre-order total can climb by Tuesday’s deadline before responding to me. 

What makes Inkshares so great is that it will support authors who are still diamonds in the rough. The editors will invest considerable time to help authors up their game and produce a strong novel that’s ready for the big time. 

But their willingness to commit to BoAT and to me, and invest that time and effort, very much depends on how much community support I have been able to muster. It’s your support that tells Inkshares my work, beyond its own merits, is worth their time.

After working on my own dime with a great developmental editor up here in Canada before ever launching BoAT’s campaign on Inkshares, I can only hope that this diamond shows some polish. But still, it is you who ultimately holds the power to swing that vote in my favour.

On Monday morning I will reach out to see if the editors have arrived at a decision. If I can beg your patience one more time, let me again ask that you pre-order another copy this weekend, if not for yourself than for someone else. If you have already done that, fantastic, and thank you very much.

Let’s get that pre-order total a little higher before I bite the bullet and send that email on Monday.

Cheers

Leo

Good evening. Well, this coming week may be the one we have been waiting for -- I might hear from Inkshares with their assessment of Bane of All Things and whether it has made the grade for publication. Stay tuned with fingers crossed!

Whatever the outcome, know that each and every one of you have my deepest thanks and appreciation for all that you have done and the patience and support you have so graciously provided.

Bane of All Things is of course not the only title in funding on Inkshares. Another is Steve Hermanos’s baseball/time travel mash up Going, Going Gone!, in which a trio of over-pampered, modern-day baseball players are thrust back in time to the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.

Today, Steve hit the 750 pre-order funding goal, which immediately put GGG! into the production pipeline for publication! It’s a huge accomplishment and a testament to his hard work. Steve is a baseball guy and well tapped into that community. He’s done an excellent job of mustering support from baseball fans and the results speak for themselves.

As I have said before, many titles are selected for publication by Inkshares without hitting that 750 pre-order target and I am hoping BoAT will be the next one.

Until the very last minute before I get that fateful email from an Inkshares editor, every additional pre-order does count to help swing the vote in my favour. So, if you have any inclination at all to order another copy (or your first copy) of BoAT, now is the time! Right now, before you go to sleep tonight!

Happy reading.

Cheers

Leo

Happy Friday, everyone. As promised, today I announce the winners of our various draws.

But first, allow me to re-emphasize that this campaign is not yet over. We do need to keep driving that pre-order total up! It’s been quiet since Monday ... too quiet.

Inkshares editors want to see that pre-order total continue to rise as they review the manuscript. Should Bane of All Things be chosen for publication, that pre-order revenue is used to offset the production/marketing/distribution costs, which allows Inkshares to pay me, the author, higher royalties than the industry norm once the book is out there. 

This campaign could not be where it is without each and every one of you. Many of you have exceeded my expectations by ordering five, six even 10 copies of BoAT. That might leave the rest of you wondering what on earth can one person do with more than copy of a book. The answer is easy – gift them.

Books make excellent gifts, especially signed by the author. Inkshares e-books make convenient gifts, too. When a title on Inkshares publishes, anyone whose pre-order includes ebooks will receive an email giving them the option to download the digital file in whatever format they prefer. This makes it easy to pass ebook copies on to friends and family.

Remember, if BoAT is chosen for publication, everyone who ordered two or more copies will get a signed souvenir poster. And I am thinking there will be something extra for everyone who has ordered five or more copies, too.

Now for the prize draws

DRAW #1 – $50 gift card: On Feb. 18, we were still looking to cross the 300 pre-order mark. I announced at the time that anyone who referred a new supporter between then and when we hit 301 (which happened on March 4) would be entered in the draw. And the winner is … Iris Cox!

Draw #2 – $50 gift card: I then announced another draw for existing supporters who pre-ordered additional copies between March 4 and March 17. And the winner is … Yves Beauchamp!   

Draw #3 – $50 gift card: Then came last weekend, with the clock ticking on what I expected to have been the final deadline for this campaign. I called on you all to help me drive past 400. Anyone who brought in a new supporter or ordered additional copies on or between May 30 and April 1 qualified for this draw. The response blew my expectations. And the winner is … Megan Alink!   

Draw #4 – Crossing 300 Pre-Orders: Back in February, I promised a draw for The Sword & The Skull artwork on canvas, signed by me and the artist, Dominic Bercier, should we cross 300 pre-orders. Anyone who had pre-ordered as of March 4 was entered into this draw. And the winner is … Sandra Markus!   

Draw #5 – Crossing 400 Pre-Orders: And I promised another draw should we pass 400, though I didn’t specify what the prize would be. Let’s go for another piece of artwork because you can’t keep a dead demigod or a sentient sword down. And the winner is … Debra Ford!   

Congratulations, all! I will be reaching out to our five winners to sort the details. 

Onward and upward! 

Cheers

Leo