Age of Empyre Cover Reveal

It's so satisfying when you finish up a series, especially one like Legends of the First Empire, which has taken years to write and release.  Today we debuted the cover of the last book in the series over at Fantasy-Faction. Want to see what Marc put together for the final book in the series? Well, come over and take a gander. I think it's pretty epic!

Not to late to join the Kickstarter

I've received a number of emails from people who are bummed that they missed the Age of Death Kickstarter. Well, the good news is there is still time to join the fun. Thanks to BackerKit (a service we are using to help fulfill the Kickstarter, you can still join in on the fun. But time is limited, once the book is printed and orders start to ship, that window will be closed.

How do you do it?  It's pretty easy.

1. Go to the Kickstarter and determine which reward level you are interested in
2. Send an email to michael.sullivan.dc@gmail.com with the subject of ADD ME TO THE KICKSTARTER. And include in it the following pieces of information: (a) pledge level,  (b) your first and last name, and (c) if you will be receiving physical item (like a book, tote bag, or booksmarks), let me know what country I'll be shipping to.
3. We'll take that information and add you to the Kickstarter. We'll send you an invite where you can answer important questions (such as what name you want included in the acknowledgments and shipping address if you are getting physical rewards).

And that's it! You'll be able to join in the fun and get all the bonus materials that people who buy from the retail chain won't be receiving. What kind of bonus perks?

• Signed books
• Set of 5 custom bookmarks (one will be signed)
• Name included in the acknowledgments 
• Receive the ebook 3 months before the official retail release
• Screensavers of Marc Simonetti artwork
• Behind the scenes video
• Q & A video
• 10 musical compositions by Will Musser depicting scenes from the books
• 5 bonus short stories (Pile of Bones, The Game, Autumn Mists, Litttle Wren and the Big Forest, Burning Alexandria)

A heartfelt thanks for the amazing support

Another Kickstarter is in the history books. Robin and I want to thank all the people who helped make the Age of Death project such a huge success. With that out of the way, the final production begins. The manuscript has gone to the copyeditors and we expect to have their changes back in early October. For those that backed the Kickstarter, that means you'll get your ebooks next month. Robin has started doing the layout for the book so we can get cost estimates and schedule the print runs. Once all that is done, we'll know better about the shipping date for physical copies, but you'll certainly get them before the Feb 4, 2020 release date.

So, how did the Kickstarter go? Really well!

• Our most successful Kickstarter to date.
• 3,120 backers  - 567 more than Age of Legend.
• $119,337 raised - $8,471 more than Age of Legend.
• 2nd most-backed and 4th most-funded fiction Kickstarters of all time.

Here's some data about the past Kickstarters.

People are already asking when the Age of Empyre Kickstarter will launch, and normally I would have said 3 months. But that would land it right in the middle of the holiday season, and I'm not sure that would be a good time. So, Robin's current thought is early in January. We'll keep you posted.

Lately, Robin has been talking to a number of authors who are considering Kickstarters. We think this is great as the one-on-one interaction and special perks that Kickstarters provide make it a great experience for readers and writers. Hopefully, we'll see some other authors bumping us out of the top ranks.

Oh, and if you missed the Kickstarter, no worries. You can still participate via the BackerKit pre-order store. Robin is still setting it up, but it should be ready soon. We'll keep you posted.

Montemorcey Tote Bag added to Kickstarter

Well, it's been a fun ride, but we are getting near the end. There are 55 hours and change left for The Age of Death Kickstarter.

We've had a good run, and if we raise another $2,667, we'll surpass the Age of Legend project and become the 5th most-funded fiction Kickstarter of all time! (We've already surpassed Legend in terms of number of people supporting it, and it's currently the 2nd most-backed). Even if we don't reach that last stretch goal, we can be proud of having 2 of the 6 projects that exceeded $100,000 in funding. Thanks, so much for all the continued support of my work.

Oh, and I should mention that one of the things we added to the Kickstarter, is a Montemorcey tote bag.

This was a popular item from a Riyria Kickstarter, and we are happy to bring it back. If you are already a current Age of Death backer, just add $25 to your pledge (includes US shipping). When the Kickstarter is over, you'll be able to attribute that "excess money" to purchase the bag.

If you aren't a backer and want the tote, you can pledge $25 without a reward, and you'll be able to attribute that amount to the bag from BackerKit after the campaign is over. Or, if you'd rather, you can pledge $30, and select the SOUND ADVICE level, which will make you an official backer. Doing so will grant you other rewards like screensavers, having your name included in the acknowledgments, and free short stories.

One last thing. If we do meet that final stretch goal, Robin and I will be making a 30 - 60 minute video where we discuss the making of Age of Legend. It'll be a little behind the scenes peek at the creative process, and it'll be available to all backers. If you have any questions, please be sure to let me know.