Hello, friends!

The last month has been wonderful. From moderating a panel at TBRCon (link), to sitting down with Kayla from Kay's Hidden Shelf (link), I've had a blast talking books. And I know this is the "Zack Argyle" newsletter, but my wife (Bookborn) had a crazy experience two weeks ago when she was flown out to Brandon Sanderson's home in Utah to start his new secret project book club with three other creators. So surreal! You can see her waving at the start of Merphy's video here. She doesn't read my newsletter, so she won't know I'm embarrassing her (I'm her biggest cheerleader).

Oh, and it was my birthday...I'm an old man now (35).

Really looking forward to everything coming up this year. The Kickstarter is going to be a blast. I'll be on two panels at Barnes & Noble here in the Seattle area with Travis Baldree, MJ Kuhn, Clay Harmon, Scott Drakeford, and more. I'm having so much fun that I keep forgetting I have to write! But we'll talk about that later...

https://www.zackargyle.com/article/2022-year-in-review

Kickstarter Tease #1

For those who missed the announcement last month, we'll be running a Kickstarter soon for a collector's edition of the whole Threadlight trilogy in a single leatherbound book. It will have a special, two-toned foil cover, new internal illustrations, and more depending on how many backers we get. Get ready, you won't want to miss the early bird pricing!

I'm excited to share the first sneak peak of the back cover, done by Madlen Oelschner!

*** this is a 3d rendering, not indicative of the actual book ***

Indie Fantasy Fund

A full year has passed since my wife and I first created the Indie Fantasy Fund, a way for us to give back to the community that has accepted us so wholeheartedly. Last year, we gave six no-strings-attached grants of $1,000 to six different indie authors to help them achieve their goals. I know from experience that self-publishing has huge up-front costs—I spend over $10,000 to have Adam Gold narrate the Threadlight trilogy. Fortunately, I had the funds up front to hire good people and have since recouped those costs. Many others are not so fortunate.

Starting March 1st, we will open up the submission form on the website for all indie fantasy authors. Last year, we had 144 submissions, and we expect more this year. Luckily, some others have already started to pitch in to add more money into the fund. We are hoping to have the non-profit status finalized soon so we can receive further donations for those interested in contributing.

Keep an eye out for updates on My Twitter or Bookborn's Instagram.

Fall of Cloud Seven Update

Up to 15,000 words in the first book of the new series, Symphony in the Skies, with most of the initial kinks finally worked out, including the prologue that has been plaguing me. I have SO MUCH planned for this series, not just in the words and story itself, but also in the presentation. Whether I self-publish or traditionally publish, this series is going to be something truly unique...

I'm finally getting back into the swing of consistent writing now that my day job is cooling off, so I expect to make a lot more progress in the next few months. Honestly, it feels good to make progress again.

TONS OF FREE BOOKS!

A huge selection of 63 free-to-download books and short stories, including my own Five Silver Rings! Say goodbye to your TBR 😆

Check it out!

With 2400 ratings on Amazon and a 4.3 average, Darkblade Assassin kicks off a TRULY epic series. Hold onto your butts though, it's dark. You can download the first five books for free starting today until the release of book 6 on the 28th!

Check it out!