Big love and thanks to all new backers of THE END OF MAGIC this week. We’re up to 68% and it would be great to make 70% by the end of the week.
It was great to see some of the 5-pack bundles get pledges… I bought a 5-pack myself last week to get copies of the book for a few friends who aren’t fans of the internet (and after the news these past few weeks you can hardly blame them!).
If you know someone who loves a bit of fantasy but doesn’t relish the idea of shopping online then do please ask them to drop me a line here and I’ll do everything I can to help. Until next week, here are some choice words from the book…
I’m still hitting my 1% per day target, which is great, and as a treat (punishment?) here’s another clip of me reading from the book with another terrible accent…
Enjoy and if you haven’t pledged yet, you can do so here, and if you have pledged then please keep spreading the word!
The End of Magic now has over 100 backers, which is amazing and I would hug you all but I suspect there are laws against that sort of thing and my arms aren’t nearly big enough. Didn’t quite make my aspirational 50% target this week, but I’m really happy at 46%. Still, almost, just, maybe making my 1% per day target…
But next week, folks, next week it’s 50% or bust! I’ve been told that getting to 50% means I’ll get on the Unbound newsletter, which reaches 60k people, which might help a tad.
So do please continue to spread the word. Send your fantasy fiction fans this link… https://unbound.com/books/end-of-magic/
Or this RT this tweet if you haven’t already… https://twitter.com/markstay/status/963766850155933699
42, of course, is the answer to the question of Life, the Universe and Everything as featured in the Hitchhikers’ Guide to the Galaxy (definitely my Desert Island Discs book), and so I’m doubly happy. I’m still hitting my 1% per day target, and it would be great to hit 50% this time next week.
I’m still finding that personalised emails and messages are the best way to get responses and pledges, but my address book will inevitable run out at some point, so I’ve started experimenting with some social media ideas to get the word out there…
Yes, that’s the BBC microphone muffler I found in the gutter in Oxford Circus last week…
I mention this as it’s one of the many highlights from last week’s Bestseller experiment live show that are now available to plug directly into your earholes via the medium of podcast. Click here for audio fun time.
Thanks to snowmaggeddon I had to record this one at home, but the usually flaky BT broadband actually held up and a splendid time was had by all. We discussed…
The dark secrets of metadata and how you can make it work for your books
How you can make a blog work harder
Tips for when you’re stuck on your outline
Why you should celebrate weaknesses
The pros and cons of present tense versus past tense
We discover what “brain tabs” are, and we discuss top tips for avoiding distractions while writing
The question from Edward Kane on tenses was a fun one to answer, though I’ve since realised that my erudite rambling could be cut down to two simple principles:
The present tense works better for unreliable narrators
The past tense works better for reliable narrators
And the less we will say about the future tense the better*
Mark
*I made a bad grammar joke! Am I not funny?
PS. That novel I wrote with Mark Desvaux is still getting lovely reviews. Grab your copy here and tell us what you think.
PS. Oh, and if you want to support our work on the podcast, we now have a Patreon. Do please support us and we can keep this crazy train rolling.
Another week passes and I’m currently at 35% funded with 73 wonderful backers. A big welcome to everyone who’s joined the adventure in the last week. Your pledges mean the world to me.
I’m also amazed to see that the ‘Be in the book’ pledges have sold out! Thank you Craig, Phill and Andy… I look forward to giving you all glorious deaths on paper very soon.
I’m currently hitting my target of 1% per day, and if we keep this up then we should be fully funded on 4th May, so if you’ve already pledged please continue to spread the word and let any fantasy fiction fans you know that the book is coming. Word of mouth is the best way to help make this happen. Here’s the link: https://unbound.com/books/end-of-magic/
We discuss The End of Magic and how Unbound work in this week’s episode of The Bestseller Experiment podcast. Have a listen here… http://bestsellerexperiment.com/unbound-and-the-end-of-magic/
My new book The End of Magic is coming soon from Unbound! It’s a fantasy adventure mash-up of the kind of high fantasy I read in my youth, with a bloody dash of the grimdark I enjoy now. Yes, I’ve invented a new genre called GrimFun* – you’re welcome!
Here’s a short video of me looking all windswept and David Starkey…
Why Unbound? One big reason was the opportunity to work with Simon Spanton. Simon is an editor of excellent taste who has worked with the likes of Richard Morgan (Altered Carbon), Joe Abercrombie (The Blade Itself) and Scott Lynch (The Lies of Locke Lamora). I couldn’t pass this up!
And Unbound use a crowdfunding model, which means I have to raise about four grand in 90 days! It also means that every book they publish is profitable, and there are few publishers that can boast that these days. And after the Bestseller Experiment it seemed apt that I should jump feet first into a new way of publishing.
To entice you good people to pledge for a copy of the book, there are all sorts of rewards on offer. You could get your name in the back of the book (or the front, for a few quid more!), you could even have a character named after you (but be quick – two of those have gone already!). If you’re a writer, I could give you constructive feedback on your novel or screenplay, or I could give a talk on the Hero’s Journey to your writers’ group or school, and there’s a completely mental option where we go for a pub lunch in Herne Bay. Only two available. One has gone already…
I know that times are hard and money is tight, so if this is a little rich for your pocket then all I ask is a little signal boost: please tell all your fantasy fiction fans that this book is coming, because I think they’ll love it. Please send them here: https://unbound.com/books/end-of-magic/
After a week of fundraising, I’m just over a quarter of the way there, which is great, but other Unbounders tell me that this is the easy bit. Once your friends and family have all chipped in the real work begins… Wish me luck and come and join me on this adventure!
PS. If you like the music in the video, it was composed and performed by my friend Dominic Currie. Check out his Soundcloud page here. He’s something of a genius.
Hello – I’m very excited to announce that my new book, a fantasy novel called The End of Magic will be coming soon from Unbound Publishing!
Watch this clip of me being all windswept and David Starkey to discover more…
Unbound are amazing. It’s essentially a Kickstarter model, and YOU – yes YOU! – can be a part of the book’s publication. Simply pledge and get your name in the book as a patron, or go really crazy and make yourself a character in the book (you could die a glorious death!), or get feedback from me on your novel or screenplay, or even take a trip to the coast and talk toot the whole day!
This book is a big passion project for me. It’s a combination of the kind of fantasy I loved when growing up, combined with the sort of grimdark I enjoy today. I’m calling it GrimFun (you’re welcome) and I really hope you can join me on the adventure.
And here’s the cool bit –
You can get a 10% discount on your pledge using the discount code bestsellerxp
Do please SHARE with anyone you know who loves a great read, in the meantime enjoy the book’s awesome theme tune composed by Dominic Currie…
Mark Stay Writes 