Smoke Test Successful! Surveys going out...
about 4 years ago – Thu, Sep 15, 2022 at 06:36:25 PM

Hey folks -- 

As I write this, Chris and I are about to officially launch the surveys. We ran the Smoke Test last night, so a few of you have received the surveys already.  If you did receive and reply to the survey: thank you so much for your prompt response! This helps us move things along!

Important! 

As the surveys go out, the most important question we need ASAP is the answer to "how you want your name displayed" in the Contributors/Thanks section of the book. We need this in order to get them into the files we're sending to the printer. We're hoping everyone will answer within a week so we can get the final files locked. 

So, if you have questions about shipping or add-ons or anything else that's causing you to hesitate on completing the survey, please message us privately with the name you want in the book, so that we can lock the book down. 

Pre-order Store

We now have a Pre-Order Store open and there's a link to it from the Kickstarter campaign page. You don't need to worry about the pre-orders because you've already pledged, but if you know anyone who missed out on the Spectral campaign, they can still order a copy of the book. So spread the word! 

Add-ons

When you answer your survey, you'll be asked if you wish to add on any additional items. You can add everything from a signature (in your copy) to an enamel pin to a fully commissioned art piece from Chris. Feel free to add whatever you like -- if it's a physical item, the shipping fees will be added based on the weight of the item(s). 

Moving right along...

Dave (and Chris)

Surveys, Shipping, and a little bit of Fantasy...
about 4 years ago – Fri, Sep 09, 2022 at 03:07:57 PM

Hey folks! 

In our ongoing effort to stay transparent and keep you all abreast of our status, I just wanted to offer a quick update. 

Surveys

Chris and I have been heads down, prepping the surveys through BackerKit. We locked everything down, and we've submitted it for review, and then we'll run what's called a "smoke test," which sends the surveys to 5% of backers to test it for errors. 

Once we've cleared that smoke, we'll send out the surveys en masse. This should all happen next week, but we're quickly learning not to get ahead of ourselves too much, so I need to add in that "should." 

Shipping

Part of what's taken so long with the surveys actually has to do with setting up shipping via BackerKit. In order to get as ACCURATE shipping costs as possible, Chris and I have been spending our nights poring over shipping rates, plugging in numbers, and calling all of our Kickstarter-running friends for help.  We feel confident that we've done the work and that the shipping is accurate for both US and International orders. 

Back this: The Jumpstart Duchy

Now for the fun part -- my friend and regular RPG-playing colleague, Stefon Mears, has launched a Kickstarter for a full series of Fantasy novels called The Jumpstart Duchy. Stefon is a good friend, but he's also a very talented author, having written over 30 books. AND he's an amazing GM and Player in one of my regular gaming groups. In fact, role-playing games are a part of the pitch:

"The Jumpstart Duchy series follows the adventures of a man whose life gets changed by a crowdfunding campaign. Born on Earth, he grew up in Oregon, under the name of Keifer McShane. Devotee of pickup basketball and roleplaying games. Especially high fantasy games set in The Torn Kingdoms."

Fantasy fans, I suspect you can see where this is heading...

If that appeals to you, Stefon has already written ALL FOUR VOLUMES of this series, so you should have all your Fantasy cravings satiated from now until 2025 or so. ;)  Only 4 days left to get on board! 

Click here to check out Stefon's Kickstarter for more info and to back this project!

More soon!

Dave (and Chris)

Almost There!!!
about 4 years ago – Sat, Sep 03, 2022 at 04:33:44 PM

Howdy!

David and I just wanted to drop a line and tell you where we are at. The book is 99.9% ready to be sent off to the printer. All we need is for you to tell us how you would like your name to be credited in the CONTRIBUTORS page. That will be a question on our survey which will be sent out in the next few days. Once we lock that in, we just have to wait for the books to arrive so we can send them out. They will be printed over seas and the boat trip is what will take the longest. Luckily they will be delivered to a warehouse near my place so I can go and grab them and skip the final shipping stage. 

We had space for pin-ups, so we got some of our favorite artists to contribute a few. You already saw the one by Craig CK, but we also got ones from the incredible Jake Smith (Blood Force Trauma, Into the Radness), 24x4 (An amazing up-and-coming American mangaka), John Coats (Dino Beasts) and John Bivens (Spread, Dark Engines). Here is a taste.

The intro by John D. LeMay, star of Friday the 13th the Series and Jason Goes to Hell has been written and it's pretty, pretty, pretty...pretty great. You'll just have to take my word for it and read it when you get the book.

The bonus story is wrapped up as well. It came together spotlessly. I'm so happy that you all got us to the stretch goal for the expansion. Here's a sneakity peek at art from that disturbing tale.

That's about all the news that's fit for print. Keep your eyeballs peeled for the surveys in your inbox. They will be super important for getting us past the final hurdles. 

Best,

Chris (and David)

Before you go, please consider backing these two other campaigns that are on fire right now.

The first is "Tales to Enlighten: The New Testament" by mastermind, Matt King. I was asked to do a 19 page story in this phone book sized sequel to the first TtoE. It's bonkers. Here's one image I did for the story. Click to back.

Also running right now is the latest installment of G.H.O.S.T. Agents: Man of Action, by Rocko Jerome and our own Pin-Up artist, Craig CK. I have been a part of all of the G.H.O.S.T Agents installments up to this point. This is the prequel story that started it all. Get it while it's hot. click the image to back this baby.

Work in Progress
about 4 years ago – Tue, Aug 02, 2022 at 08:51:43 PM

Hey folks! 

Chris and I just wanted to give you all a quick update on progress. Kickstarter has collected the pledges, and aside from a few that didn't go through, we are now officially funded and ready for next steps. 

We're now working with Backerkit to prepare surveys, which we should be able to send out in the next few weeks. 

If you're unfamiliar, these surveys will calculate shipping and allow you to add-on some additional items if you wish, as well as providing you space to answer questions about the specifics of your particular pledge (e.g.,  which glove puppet you want, what you want drawn for your art commission, etc.). 

At the same time, we're working away on the final pages of the book. As I write this, Chris has maybe 5-6 pages left to draw, as well as some additional illustrations due to our expanded page count. 

These pages all come from the "PuppetShow" sequence that sits between the stories, so we thought we'd share a couple of images below to tantalize you with what's coming. As the writer, I just want to say that Chris' designs and character acting for our eerie puppeteer, Professor Spectral, are just NEXT LEVEL. So good! 

Check out these two pages...  

Pretty amazing, right? I cannot WAIT to get this book in your hands! 

More soon!

Dave (and Chris)

Kickstarter complete! Next steps....
over 4 years ago – Thu, Jul 07, 2022 at 05:06:56 PM

From the tips of our DevilSkins to the bottoms of our WitchHearts...

 We did it!

And by we, I mean ALL of us. Chris and I wanted to get this book made on our own terms, and with the support of all of our amazing backers, we’re now able to make it happen!

We also wanted to take a moment to give a very special shout-out to Andrew Jenson of Son of Jen Puppets, who is a crucial part of this team. The Kickstarter simply would not be same without Andy's puppets.  And, really, the book wouldn't be the same! Our framing sequence is completely inspired by Andy's designs. 

There's also another member of our team that really helped us in this endeavor, and that's Melissa Meszaros of Don't Hide PR! Melissa has been working behind the scenes throughout this campaign to help us raise awareness and promote the book and the campaign. 

So... what happens next?

First, the dust needs to settle a bit as Kickstarter collects and processes all of the pledges.

Meanwhile,  Chris and I (and editor Marissa Valentini) will be working on several fronts:

• Prepping Backerkit surveys that will allow you to finalize your rewards, select add-ons and also calculate shipping.
• Finishing the final book art, layout, and edits. Now with our expanded content, we've got some artwork to finish, some text to edit, some layout and design work to finalize. We’ll be working on this through the month, making sure everything is perfect and ready to go out the door. 

And then our next stage involves sending the files to the printer. This is where it leaves our hands and goes into the printing process. We’ll be as transparent as possible as to how long this takes, but there are a lot of variables that are well out of our control.

That said, once we deliver final, proofed files to the printer, we will also be delivering you the DIGITAL rewards! This means PDF copies of SPECTRAL and whatever additional books you’ve backed or added via Backerkit.

A LOT of work ahead of us, but we’ll be sure to keep you all informed as to our progress along the way.

Thank you all so much, and we'll keep updating you as we make new progress!

Dave (& Chris)