Rachel Rener's Blog, page 10

Newest omnibus illustration enclosed (my jaw is still on the floor)

(Don't worry, I will NOT be spamming you all with Kickstarter updates for the next few months, but this one is too incredible not to share!!!)

First of all, I want to thank you all once again for your incredible support, especially on the final day of the Kickstarter when you guys SHOWED UP and made that final stretch goal a reality, when I was certain we were going to fall short. I am humbled and blown away and grateful beyond words.

Seriously. Thank you.

If you missed the last day to pledge or simply need more time for funds, I've made a special late-pledge option directly on my website, where you can still preorder the omnibus. It won't have all of the special add-ons and goodies included with the Kickstarter, but I did manage to include the slip cover and custom engraved medallion options!

Okay, and now the moment you've been waiting for...Uwe Jarling's next omnibus illustration.

To say I am gobsmacked by the quality and beauty of this painting would be the understatement of the year.

Are you ready for this?

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

NGL. I am DYING of rapture right now. Isn't it incredible?!

I had HIGH hopes for this illustration and Uwe STILL managed to blow me away!!Last order of business: Of the two options below, which would you like to see for our next illustration? Let me know in the comments below! The option with the most votes will happen next!

Option 1: Talia and Zayn are kneeling with their arms around each other in tall, blue grass, with the sun setting in a turquoise sky. Glowing orbs of fireflies surrounding them. Background: fae realm, blue grass, green sunset sky, or.....

(ATTENTION, BOOK TWO SPOILER AHEAD)

Option 2: Biscuit is reborn from a black, sparkling egg as a baby. He has mostly gray feathers and looks like a baby chick. He's asking for almonds already. Background: a towel and glittering egg fragments.

Let me know your vote in the comments or shoot me an email at RRener13@gmail! Cheers!!!

HOLY FORKING SHIRT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

YOU GUYS. MY HEART IS POUNDING SO HARD.

I HAD NO IDEA THIS LAST DAY WOULD BE THIS MUCH OF A ROLLER COASTER. I mean, y'all kept me on my TOES ALL. FORKING. DAY.

JUST LOOK AT THIS:

And with LITERALLY 4 minutes left in the campaign, YOU GUYS SHOWED UP AND HIT THAT VERY LAST STRETCH GOAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you all so, so, SO MUCH!!!!

Before launching, I was so nervous we wouldn't hit our $15k funding goal. But thanks to you, we are well over 300% funded! Just look at all of the incredible things we accomplished together!

I could not be more excited!!!

BTW, if you missed your window to pledge or if funds are currently tight, Andrew and I will be adding a late pledge button to the page in two weeks, and we'll keep that button up until we start fulfilling orders.

I'll also keep everyone posted on illustrations as Uwe and I finish them. Up next: a school of vengeful mermaids rising up from an emerald green sea!‍♀️

That's all I've got for now, as it's time to roll up the sleeves and make this gorgeous book a reality! Never fear - I'll keep you all posted every step of the way! ❤️

XOXO, Rachel

(PS: I am still hyperventilating. Seriously. WHERE DID ALL THE AIR GO?)

✨ FINAL 24 HOURS!✨

We're in the final stretch, friends! After an amazing campaign, we are over 300% funded and have unlocked the following stretch goals:

- Custom tattoo runes for all tiers!

- 13 full-page, full-color illustrations!

- A built-in ribbon tattoo!

- A fully-colorized fold-out map!

- I ❤️ Biscuit tattoos for all tiers!

- Rainbow holographic foil (bonus add-on)!

- Custom engraved medallions (bonus add-on)!

[image error][image error][image error][image error][image error][image error][image error][image error][image error]

With a full day to go and last-minute pledges pouring in, I honestly think we'll be able to hit the final stretch goal: a Kickstarter-exclusive short story featuring none other than Dee Dee and Bisskiss!!! If you haven't pledged yet and you'd like to see that become a reality, now's your chance!

Thank you so much, everyone! ❤️

BTW, if you're still hungry for more Kickstarter yumminess, launching today is Katie Cherry's REBORN Crystal Dragon Saga: Book 2! Everyone who backs a physical tier in the first 24 hours gets a 3D printed Dragon phone holder!!

So, this just happened.

EDIT: We just hit our stretch goal!! Biscuit decals for all!!! ❤️

I just finished speaking with Geekify Inc, one of the coolest companies based right here in Colorado. Not only did they contribute to the Gilded Blood Kickstarter, which is insanely generous of them, but they are creating this custom engraved as an exclusive add-on for all project backers to nab in these last 5 days of the campaign. AND I COULD NOT BE MORE EXCITED.

BTW, we are SO CLOSE to nabbing the next stretch goal - custom "I ❤️ Biscuit" decals for all, designed by Liz Delton and fulfilled by Geekify themselves!

5 days left to pledge for the most stunning omnibus you have ever seen, with some of the COOLEST add-ons imaginable!!!

One Week to Go!

When the Gilded Blood Complete Series Omnibus Kickstarter Project went live two weeks ago, I wasn't sure we'd be able to hit our $15k funding goal within the three-week allotment. And then you wonderful people showed up in DROVES and funded that project within hours. (Thank you from the bottom of my swelling heart!!!)

Because we keep hitting our stretch goals, this omnibus just keeps getting better and better! In addition to faux magenta leather, gilded foil and sprayed edges, 10 brand-new full-page illustrations, 110 revamped colorized chapter headings, and a stunning protective slipcase, we've also added: 3 MORE full-page illustrations (for 13 total!), custom temporary rune tattoos for all tiers, a built-in ribbon bookmark, a full-color, fold out map, and an add-on option for holographic rainbow foil and sprayed edges!!!

PLUS, we're less than $2k away from I ❤️ Biscuit decals for every tier and WELL on our way to funding a patron-exclusive short story featuring DeeDee and Biss-kiss!!

If you haven't had a chance to order your copy, now's a great time to hop on the rainbow-colored bandwagon!!!

Who's got two thumbs and a literary agent?

I feel like this month (year?) has been such a whirlwind of announcements and big news and important developments, so much so that when I say I have *BIG NEWS* it might run the risk of falling flat, given the flurry of new books and special editions and all of the other wonderful things that have been in the making.

With that disclaimer, I have some *seriously* incredible news. I've just been picked up by Italia Gandolfo, CEO of Gandolfo Helin & Fountain Literary Management. Italia has over 25 years’ experience in media between a big 4 Hollywood Talent & Literary Agency, Publishing, PR/Advertising, and Film in Los Angeles and New York.

What this means is that my tiny little empire of books, which I have worked tirelessly to build over these past 5 years, now has the opportunity to explore different, bigger, more exciting avenues of distribution. I can't say for sure what that will look like without speculating or jinxing anything, but I can say that I am incredibly excited and hopeful about the future! It's been a long, arduous, and incredibly rewarding journey up until this point, and to those of you who have been here since the beginning, and those of you who are just now hopping aboard, thank you so, so much for your support!

Stick around, because something tells me this journey is just the beginning of the adventure! ❤️

❤️StretchGoal#3Unlocked! (With a beautiful fold-out map nigh in sight!)

Holy smokes, guys - we did it! Thanks to all of your support, we've now unlocked temporary rune tattoos for EVERYONE, 3 more full-page illustrations (for 13 total!!), AND a built-in ribbon bookmark! I never thought we would get this far!! As part of my heartfelt thanks, and to honor those followers who have expressed special interests in fantasy maps, I am decreasing the next stretch goal from $40k to $35k. I don't know about you all, but I have never seen such a stunning, colorful map in a fantasy book, and to be able to print it even larger, in vibrant HD color...well, let's just say, I *really* want to make this happen for us!

So there you have it! Three stretch goals unlocked, with a fourth nigh in sight! BTW, that "surprise" reward at $40k is shaping up to be something REALLY, REALLY, special. If you know anyone who would love portal fantasy with snark, steam, Yiddishisms, and heart, please consider sharing this gilded yumminess with them!

Lastly, I wanted to share this incredible project from my friend and urban fantasy idol, Annette Marie. While her Kickstarter certainly needs no help from me, it's one of the most beautiful and high-quality fantasy Kickstarters I've seen in a very long time. If stories like Mulan, Avatar: The Last Airbender, and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings are your jam, you've got to check out this incredible campaign, which funded within minutes of going live! I for one can't wait to get my copy!

The Brief but Explosive War of Gold and Rainbows✨

[Be sure to scroll to the bottom!]

WE DID IT!!! In just three days, we have funded, annihilated Stretch Goal #1 (temporary rune tattoos for all), and sailed right past Stretch Goal #2 (MORE full page illustrations)!!! That brings us to THIRTEEN full-color illustrations - 3 key scenes per book, plus a bonus illustration for book 4!! Any guesses as to what those scenes might be?

Up next, Stretch Goal #3: built-in ribbon bookmarks!!! We have metallic options, as well as two-toned options. I'd love to hear your thoughts on ribbon colors below!

PS, following The Brief but Explosive War of Gold and Rainbows that occurred earlier this week, I am incredibly excited to announce that protective slipcovers will now match the book you've selected. In other words, gold-foiled books get gold-foiled slipcovers, and rainbow-foiled books will get rainbow-foiled slipcovers!

HUZZAH for successful (and gorgeous) peace treaties!!!!

(In case you missed it, you can now select rainbow foil/edges as an add-on , meaning gold-lovers get gold and rainbow-lovers get rainbow!)

By the way, if you're looking for more epic Kickstarter fantasy goodness, check out these sweet campaigns!

Stretch goals (the FUN variety, not the exercise kind!)

EDIT: When I posted the Stretch Goal Rewards earlier today, it caused a little bit of a tizzy between my gold lovers and my rainbow lovers. So, my project manager and I put our heads together and came up with this stunning compromise! Which means our previous 50k stretch goal is now up for grabs! Once we get closer to that number, we'll take a vote to see what YOU would like to see unlocked!

Original post

Real talk, guys: I was NOT expecting this project to fund in twelve days, let alone in twelve hours! I've been secretly working on this omnibus behind the scenes for months, chewing my nails to the nubs at the thought of not being able to turn this dream into a reality. The fact that this is NOW ACTUALLY 100% OFFICIALLY HAPPENING is so surreal, and I could not be more excited or more grateful to everyone who helped make this possible!!! Together, we're going to make this omnibus THE MOST GORGEOUS BOOK EVER MADE!!!

With that, let's get right now to brass tacks: STRETCH GOALS!

Which of the above milestones are you most excited about? Me, I am DROOLING over the iridescent rainbow sprayed edges and foil!!!

(For those of you who are new to the Kickstarter realm, "stretch goals" are additional goals that a creator can set for their Kickstarter project to thank their current backers and incentivize new ones to join. Stretch goals are used to add additional features, content, or bonuses to the project if the campaign is able to raise more money than was originally expected. Oftentimes, they're the most exciting part of a Kickstarter campaign!To get in on this project's awesomeness, follow along here!)

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

By the way, if you're still itching for some MORE gorgeous books, get a load of these stunning Kickstarters coming this fall!

FULLY FUNDED IN UNDER 12 HOURS!!!!(?)

You guys, I have NO IDEA what to say, because I HAD NO IDEA that we would fund so quickly!!! THANK YOU, from the very bottom of my exploding heart, for making this stunning omnibus a reality!!!!!

NEXT STEP: STRETCH GOALS!!!!!!!!!!