We're LIVE on Amazon!
8 months ago – Thu, Nov 16, 2023 at 10:14:31 AM

Greetings generous supporters,

This Lobo project has been seven years in the making for me. It's been a long haul, with many challenges along the way. But, now that the book is finally finished (thanks to your generous support!), it has been well worth the effort. With the foundation of a compelling story, Daniel's amazing artwork brings it all to life. This is my 28th book, and I couldn't be more pleased.

I hope that you have enjoyed reading our book and, if so, you will share the Amazon link (https://www.amazon.com/dp/0645088811/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3FRI30Q1TS92O&keywords=Lobo+the+hunted+and+the+hunter&qid=1700149581&sprefix=lobo+the+hunted+and+the+hunter%2Caps%2C139&sr=8-1) with anyone you know who is interested in wolves, conservation, history, or even graphic novels. This is a book for all ages (except the very young) and a testament to the power of redemption that is possible in each of us.

We are a small operation, without a marketing department like big publishers, and so we're unable to get our book reviewed by the major agencies. The best we can do, and I believe the most authentic thing, is ask our readers to share their experiences with the book. It doesn't have to be a long, formal review. A few words or a sentence would suffice.  There is a spot on the Amazon listing, if you scroll down, to add your thoughts. You can even just rate the book. Anything will help.

The book is also listed on my Goodreads account (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/202178457-lobo ), and you can review it there as well.

I appreciate your amazing support, and thanks for your consideration in helping us get the word out to the world about our book.

Robert

At long last...The FINISH LINE!
10 months ago – Fri, Sep 22, 2023 at 11:42:08 PM

And that's a wrap!

Finally.  

Well, considering that Robert and I first met in 2021, started plotting how to effectively fund the creation of this graphic novel later that year, prepared for and launched a Kickstarter campaign in mid-2022, then only in October of 2022 did I really start to lay out the pages, illustrate the line art, letter, colour, edit, reedit, approve, format for print, collect and finalize backer data, organize postage, print, package, and send nearly 200 graphic novels in little over 1-YEAR... I dare say we actually accomplished a LOT in a very short amount of time.  

Nonetheless...it feels like a lifetime. But enough about that, what matters is that ALL the orders have been fulfilled and sent to you awesome backers!  Robert and I have been greatly enjoying the enormously positive feedback and  praise that we've been getting from our readers so far.  It really means a lot to see all this hard work be appreciated by so many great people.  So... one more time... 

THANK YOU!!!!!

Unfortunately, some books were maimed by the US Postal Service in route to their destination.  For the most part, though, we anticipate a success rate of about 97% for delivery of books to backers.  Believe it or not, that's OUTSTANDING for fulfillment.  Anyone who's ever run a Kickstarter knows that no matter how well you package your items, once in the hands of the Posties, it's simply out of your control if the package arrives in good condition or not.  

For those that did get their books in less than ideal condition, we truly apologise.  As mentioned, we do the best we can to make our packages 'bomb proof', but there's just somethings out of our control.  Please reach out to us if your book has arrived beyond acceptable and we'll do our best to send you a new one.  

IF YOU HAVEN'T RECIEVED YOUR ORDER YET, please let us know and we'll look into it to the best of our abilities.  It simply may be delayed, especially for international orders.  Or, there may have been an issue with your purchasing card used for your order.  Please reach out to us and we'll try to resolve it.  

WHERE TO FROM HERE?

Despite pitching this story to a LONG list of publishers, both in traditional books and comics, (sadly) we were largely met with indifference.  We had a few interested parties, but upon reviewing the offers they made us, Robert and I decided that this book was worth far more than what they were willing to appraise it at.  

So, till international acclaim and notoriety finds us, we'll be self-publishing Lobo for PRINT ON DEMAND through Ingram Sparks and Amazon.  Many readers have been asking where they can get another copy as a gift, and to that I say "SOOOOON!"  Soon we'll have the book uploaded and ready to go, once we've organized the Second Edition of the book.   When that's ready, I'll be posting a link to it in another update.  

Lastly,  I thought I'd share some of the A5 water color sketches some of the backers paid top-dollar for.  It was such a treat to do art outside of digital means once again, and for the most part, I'm very happy with how the artwork came out. 

If you'd like to see more and the time-lapse videos of me water coloring these, follow my Instagram account @invisible.ink.studio .  This will be the best way to stay in touch with my other artistic adventures, and if you're keen on grabbing a water color for yourself, I'll be opening up a commissions list soon.

Thanks again to all you wonderful backers.  This is, for the most part, the end of the line.  Its been a long, wild ride, and still a long way to go with self publishing.  One last thing we'd like to beg of you is to SPREAD THE WORD far and wide about this fantastic book.  If you've enjoyed this book, we'd love to hear from you, but also, we'd love for you to tell your friends, even total strangers, about it.  It'll do a world of good for us, as we really believe this book is special and that many people will enjoy it.

Thanks again everyone!!!

~Daniel A. Becker~

The Books have LANDED
11 months ago – Tue, Aug 22, 2023 at 04:41:42 PM

The long road is nearly run…

Hello everyone.  At long last, after two years of preparation, planning, hard work, setting up the Kickstarter…hold on, lets do this in person:

So yeah, THANK YOU.  

QUIKLY, I want to give a big shout out to MIXAM printing for the fantastic work and help they did for us.  The quality of the printing is really the FINAL touch that must be done just right for allllll of our hard work to look good.  They did a fantastic job, their website and page set up system is very easy to use, and their customer services was almost annoyingly responsive and helpful.  Best of all, they have production sites in both North American AND Australia, so they really helped us save a LOT of money and effort for shipping, AND helped reduce carbon emmissions.  10/10.

So, here’s how this is going to work:  Robert is the NORTH AMERICA/ EUROPE arm of fulfillment for the orders.  He will be fulfilling the bulk of the Kickstarter orders, so please be patient and understanding that he’s got a lot to handle.  Most of you could start to see your books arrive in the next couple of weeks depending on where you’re located.  For the larger orders including prints and the A5 water color sketches (more of those soon), please allow for more time, I’m nearly finished with them and will have to post them to Robert first before he can process them.

I will be fulfilling the AUSTRALIA/NEW ZEALAND orders on this side of the globe, and for most of you, your books should be able to be sent out by Monday, 28/08.  I’m still waiting for the wooden bookmarks to be finished up and complete a couple more of the A5 sketches before all the orders can be complete.

Once again, I really, REALLY want to impress upon all of you how grateful we both are for your support and patience with this project.  To say its been a long journey is an understatment.  There’s been good times and low moments, and considering how little interest we’ve had from pretty much ALL the publishers we pitched this too, its the money and support from you all upfront that have made this possible.  There’s still a loooooong way to go before Robert and I feel that our work is truly done, that this book gets the recognition it deserves, but for now, this milestone is a huge moment for us.  THANK YOU ALL FOR MAKING THIS HAPPEN!!

Cheers!

~Daniel A. Becker~

DONE...And time to start distributing the DIGITAL CONTENT.
12 months ago – Mon, Jul 31, 2023 at 07:28:04 PM

This post is for backers only. Please visit Kickstarter.com and log in to read.

Ready for print, but first…
about 1 year ago – Tue, Jul 11, 2023 at 12:51:26 PM

Hello everyone,

As seems to be the case with life, sometimes fate goes for a twist.

The graphic novel is entirely complete.  Entirely.  It’s formatted and ready for print, the printer has been picked out, and we are on the verge of printing the book both in Australia and the US.  So very soon, you wonderfully patient backers could be getting your books.

Could.  However…

There has been some recent developements with my personal family life that I, and Robert, both feel are more important than rushing along with printing.  I’m currently traveling back to the US to see my family at a time that is quite precarious, and needs my full mental and emotional presence.  With that in mind, we’ve decided to put the project on hold for at least the next 2-weeks.  This will allow me some personal time to be where I need to be.

I don’t particularly like to make excuse, especially for delays.  But “It is what it is”.  This has become a phrase, as an adult, that has helped me accept the reality of many difficult situations.  Right now, it is what it is.  Soon enough you’ll all be able to read and experience the work we’ve been labouring on for nearly 2-years.  A couple more weeks will just have to do.

For now, please be sure that you have your SHIPPING ADDRESSES all sorted with backerkit, and that you have filled out that survey (something we sent out a looooooong time ago).  If anyone needs a new survey sent to them to update their shipping information, please message us and we can sort it out.  Since we’re near ready to print, we’ll be locking in orders soon.

I thank you for your understanding and continued patience, and hope that you and yours are well, happy, and that you’re not taking your job too seriously to put it before your friends and family.

Daniel Becker~