Greetings Backers!

TL;DR: No action items for you. I have pictures of advance copies. Primary recording for audiobook is complete. Backers can get two free months of my Patreon Community. (Link is in Backer's Only section). Things will be slow until December when many things will happen at once. Your next update will be the week of November 10-14.

Pre-orders for Structuring Life to Support Creativity are still open!  CLICK HERE  If you know someone who missed the funding, they can still sign up and get a book in any of the available formats.

I got pictures of the advance copies!



It looks gorgeous and I can't wait to touch a copy. They're sending me five via express mail. The other 2000 copies will get on a container ship and travel by sea.  I'll get that shipment sometime in December. 

My narrator, Mary Robinette Kowal, has finished primary recording. She managed to get it all done before she rushed off on her book tour for Apprehension (a science fiction spy mystery featuring a protagonist in her 70s. You should grab yourself a copy.)  I now have audio files for review. Over the next several weeks I will listen and make notes. Then in December Mary Robinette will return to the studio to record any corrections that the audio engineer or I discover. I'm told that processing time after that is a couple of weeks (and may be impacted by the holidays) but I am hoping that I will be able to deliver the audiobook in late December.

Speaking of corrections: while recording Mary Robinette discovered an error in the chapter on Your Physical Space which will definitely be present in the printed book. (Part of a sentence is missing, the ideas are still there, but it does create a momentary confusion.) We corrected for the audiobook and I can easily issue an updated eBook, I'm still trying to decide on a method for addressing the issue in the printed books. I'll probably write a full post about the error and corrections in my next update. 

All of this work can proceed slowly and steadily across the remainder of October and all of November.

That's my update for now. I'll post the next one during the week of November 10-14.
Thank you so much for backing this project!
Sandra Tayler

Greetings Backers!

TL;DR: Narrator Announcement and reminder to collect your ebook.

I'm jumping in early with this update because I'm so excited.

 The Structuring Life to Support Creativity audiobook will be narrated by Mary Robinette Kowal!

Mary Robinette Kowal is the USA TODAY bestselling author of the Hugo, Nebula, and Locus award winning alternate history novel The Calculating Stars, the first book in the Lady Astronaut series. She is also the author of The Glamourist Histories series, Ghost Talkers, The Spare Man, Molly on the Moon, and has received the Astounding Award for Best New Writer, four Hugo awards, the Nebula and Locus awards. Her stories appear in Asimov’s, Uncanny, and several Year’s Best anthologies. Mary Robinette has also worked as a professional puppeteer, is a member of the award-winning podcast Writing Excuses, and performs as a voice actor (SAG/AFTRA), recording fiction for authors including Seanan McGuire, Cory Doctorow, and Neal Stephenson. She lives in Denver with her husband Robert, their dog Guppy, and their “talking” cat Elsie. Visit her online at maryrobinettekowal.com.

I'm so excited to get to have Mary Robinette on this project. She's going to do a brilliant job. She started recording today!

The principal recording will happen over the next several weeks. After that I'll get an update from the audio engineering team when I'll get details on when the files will be ready to deliver.

If you didn't get the audiobook as part of your reward, but would like to grab it now, You can create a separate pre-order here: PREORDER LINK

One of the things that I already love about working with this audiobook team is that they helped me make sure that this project is SAG-AFTRA approved.

For those of you who have an eBook as part of your order, you can download that book now! Check your inbox for a download link or go to this page and enter your email: SLSC Survey Link

I'm really looking forward to delivering this book to you an all the formats you've ordered. Your next update will be the week of October 13-17.

All the best,
Sandra

Greetings Backers!

ACTION ITEM: Please double check your order in Backerkit. I will be locking orders and charging cards this Friday.  You can access your order here: https://structuring-life-to-support-creativity.backerkit.com/  This is your last call to add items to your order, check your shipping cost, and make adjustments.
 

TL;DR: Ebook is almost done. I’ll deliver it to all of you as soon as I lock orders and charge cards. Locking and charging will happen on Friday. Ebook delivery will happen early next week. If you need different timing, please email or message me to let me know. (sandra @ sandratayler.com).  I’ve given you another chapter to read. The audiobook contracts are being set up and signed this week. Your next update will be the week of October 6-10. Details below. 
 

My copy editor did a beautiful job in formatting for ePub. I did not have to do very much work to finish off the file. This means that the ePub is basically ready for you. I will be using the Backerkit system to deliver the file. You’ll get an email with a link to download. In order for this system to work I need to lock orders and charge your cards for shipping and for any add on items that you selected in Backerkit.  I will be charging cards on Friday September 19, 2025. If you need me to delay or charge on a different schedule, please email sandra @ Sandratayler.com and I’ll be happy to accommodate you. You can double check your order and make sure that everything looks the way you want by going here and logging in using the email you used for Backerkit. https://structuring-life-to-support-creativity.backerkit.com/

 

I’m hoping to get this recorded this week. I already have the presentation finished and recorded, but it is a far-away recording taken in an open classroom. I want to deliver a focused lecture with slides similar to the other lectures in the bundle. I just need to transfer my notes into slides and then record it. My plan is to get this done before Friday. Then those of you who have signed up for the Lecture Bundle will get an email with a link to download it. (If you want to add the Lecture Bundle, you can do that any time between now and Friday when I lock orders.)

 

I’ve got my narrator, we’ve reserved studio time in October, and contracts are in process. By the next time I update I’ll be able to give you names and details for when I’ll deliver the Audiobook. I’m hoping that I can deliver this in November, but it might be December depending on the editing schedule of the audio engineer.  

This is the last big piece. I’m going to get rolling on it once I’ve gotten the lecture recorded, the audiobook contracts signed, and the ePub delivered to all of you. Once I get started I’ll have a better feel for how long it is going to take me to do all of the detailed layout and design necessary to do this right. 
 

In September I’m tackling the topic of Creative Interference. I’ve written a post on the topic, created a mini-lecture, and on September 24 I’m hosting a live Q&A + Co-working session. (5-7pm MDT). This session is open to all members of my Patreon even at the free level. I’d love to have some of you there.  Join Sandra's Patreon here. 

 

That’s my update for now! I’ll have another one for you during the week of October 6-10.

Thank you so much for backing this project,

Sandra Tayler

 

Greetings Backers!

Wonderful news: I submitted files to my printer yesterday SLSC is off to print!

TL;DR: The book is off to print. I hope to have the ebook ready to deliver to you before the end of September. The Activities Notebook is going to take another month or more before it is ready for print. I am building up my Patreon so that I can continue to community build and offer information even when this crowdfunding is completed. I’ve given you another chapter to read. Your next update will be the week of September 15-19. Details below. 

I have spent the last week in a highly-focused haze of approving copy edits, creating layout, and drafting back cover copy.  All of it was very fiddly involving close attention to specific words, sentences, punctuation, spacing etc. To give you an idea of how fiddly it gets, Here is a gif of the many iterations of the back cover copy:

According to the timeline provided by my printer I will get books delivered sometime between December 8-22. Obviously I hope for the early end of those dates. The printer is going to do everything they can to accommodate me.  Over the next month there will be several check points where I get to see proofs both physical and digital. Then there is a long latent time where the books are taking a ride on a boat.  I’m so happy to have this piece done. It lets me turn my attention to the next pieces.

The next portion of this project is formatting an eBook for everyone who has that as part of your order. I’m going to take a break from book focus for the rest of this week, but I’ll launch into this early next week. This formatting is largely done because my copy editor paid close attention and delivered files that are essentially ready. I just need to compile separate chapters into a single file and process it into an eBook. I suspect the actual work will only take a couple of days.  Then I can turn my attention to the mechanics of delivering the book to you. I’ll talk more about that in my next update.

There are about 200 of you who selected the Activities Notebook as part of your order. I started work on that during my layout frenzy. Before I sent the book off to print I needed a clear idea of how each activity would work in notebook format. This also gave me a chance to review the wording of each activity to make sure it was clear. So I did a preliminary layout for the Activities Notebook.

You can see it here next to the book layout binder, the book test print cropped to size, and the pre-press edition.  I’ve written notes for each activity. They’re all going to need some graphic design. Some of them need diagrams, others need lined pages, some need charts. Creating all of these things is going to take time and I don’t want to rush it. So the Activities Notebooks will be another month or two behind the physical books on being delivered. I’ll keep you posted about the logistics of all of that.

One of the things I realized as I attended in person events in August and as I’m looking toward completing this crowdfunding: I want ways to keep in touch and to build community for people who need it. I’m going to try using Patreon as one of my tools for that.  Starting in September I will be picking a topic from this book as the discussion topic for the month. Then I’ll host a mini-lecture and a Q&A for various pledge levels. The full details of the plan are posted here on my Patreon. As backers for this project, you’re also welcome to join my Discord community. There is an invite link in the backers only section of this post that is good for 7 days. 

I’m sure I’ll talk more about community building via Patreon in future updates. 

 

That’s my update for now! I’ll have another one for you in two weeks.

Thank you so much for backing this project,

Sandra Tayler

Greetings Backers!

Thank you so much for your patience while I was traveling and slow to update.

TL;DR: No action items for you. Copy edits are almost complete. After that it is layout for print and formatting for eBook. I hope to have eBooks in your hands by mid-September and physical copies in time for Christmas. I'm in negotiations with an audiobook narrator. I have plans for creating ongoing community spaces that I'll explain in the next update. Your next update will be the week of September 1-5.

In August I attended two large events: Gen Con and Worldcon. These events are different in size, location, and focus. They were both exhausting and both wonderful. The most important thing I gained from each of them was reconnection to community. I was able to help and be helped. I laughed in the joy of others, I cried in communal moments of grief. Mixed into the small talk conversations were the gems where I got to discuss topics dear to my heart. I'm still sorting through thoughts I collected. One of the things I've realized is that I'm coming up on the end of this project. Once I deliver everything into your hands there is no need for me to continue sending Backerkit updates. But the need for conversation around the topics in this book will not stop. I want to build community spaces where I get to connect with readers and watch readers connect with each other. I have a partially formed plan for this. I'll be ready to announce it and invite you all in when I post the next update in about two weeks.

Prior to running off to Gen Con, I did a big edit push and handed all of the book files off to my copy editor. She was hard at work while I was traveling and reports that she'll have the edits complete and ready to hand back to me this Friday. As soon as I have those files, I will get to work approving her edits and formatting changes. Then I will put all of the book into layout. That needs to happen as soon as possible because there is a three month turn around from me delivering my files to my printer and having books in hand. If I deliver files on September 1, I probably get books December 1, which is cutting things close for the December holidays. Right after submitting for print, I will do formatting for eBook which doesn't have such a long delay. I hope to have eBooks in your hands by Mid-September. 

Gen Con was wonderful. We created a corner space in our booth that was specifically for SLSC.

In that corner I had 40 copies of the book. I figured that many would last me through both Gen Con and Worldcon. We sold out of copies by mid-day on Saturday. There is a magical moment when a reader spots a book and has an instant "I need this" reaction. I feel so happy that this book got to connect with its audience. I'm really looking forward to having the final edition so that I won't have to explain that the book has bonus typos. I made a thing that people want and that feels like magic. A gift. I need to hold onto the memory of that experience for when things get difficult again.

I spent lots of time away from the booth as well as being at the booth. I met with friends long-time and new.

And I finished out the event by spending time with my Gen Con family:

These are the people who still like me when I'm dripping sweat and irritable. We've been coming back together for over a decade and it is amazing. 

When I considered attending Worldcon only a week after Gen Con, I decided that the thing I did not want to do was exhaust both Howard and myself with running a booth or table. Instead we exhausted ourselves with being on programming and socializing. That was absolutely the right call. Several of our events were related to the Writing Excuses podcast. There was a meet up:

And the podcast team hosted an evening suite party:

Because I didn't have a sales table, I equipped a small rolling bag with books and promo tools in case they were useful.

It amuses me to realize that the chapter I'm giving you all today is about Cultivating Confidence, and this bag really is a demonstration of the work I've put in to believe that I have useful things to offer. It is also a source of tools to bolster confidence at the low moments. Even in an event that is overwhelmingly full of wonderful connections, there are always low moments when I doubt the value of everything I've ever done. 

I am back home now and glad to be settling back into my routines. Events are wonderful for generating stories and photographs, but it is at home that I need to build my steady happiness. Home is where the work gets done and where the foundation is built to support the shiny temporary structures of conventions or retreats. This is part of what I'm thinking about as I consider how to build community that folds into and is part of the home schedule. 

Thank you so much for being part of this project. I'll be back the week of September 1-5 to give you another update.
All the best,
Sandra