Hello all!

I'm pleased to announce that I am uploading the Academy: Book 3 for release on Amazon right now! It will be available in 12ish hours.

Thank you!
Chad Leito

Hello All

I just wanted to inform you that I have submitted book 2 of The New Rome Series (formerly "The Baggers Trilogy") to Amazon, so it should be available for purchase in 12 hours or so on Amazon.com

Chad

Hello all,

I have a few items to share with you.

First, here is LauraTrev1's youtube review of my novel,
 Outlive:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNXC_qkEUz8

Secondly, I'm pleased to announce that The Baggers Trilogy will now consist of 4 books rather than 3. The new series will be called "The New Rome Series." I expect the second book to be released later this month.


Take care,
Chad

New Book

Hello All,

I wanted to post an update. I just released a new book on Tuesday called Outlive (The Baggers Trilogy, #1)!

Also, The Academy Book 1 will be available for $0.99 for a short period of time as soon as the kindle countdown deal goes through.

Chad Leito

Final Donation

Here is the final $3,000 that I owed to MSF! I want to, again, thank everyone for all the support!

Chad Leito

Charity and Writing Update (Baggers Trilogy and The Academy)

Hello All,

I will attach two photos of donations to this post. After this, I will still owe Doctor's Without Borders $3,000 and will pay this as soon as I can get the funds transferred to the appropriate account.

I have been asked for an update on Book 3 of the Academy, both on my blog and via email. I want to start off by saying that it is extremely flattering to hear that readers are anxious for the next book in my series. I don't have a set date for when book 3 will be released, and I truly don't feel comfortable giving an estimate. At this time, I am taking a semi-break from the Academy books. What this means is that I am still gathering ideas and brainstorming, but I am working on a side project at this time and have put actively writing book 3 on hold.

This 'side project' is called "The Baggers Trilogy." As the word 'trilogy' suggests, :), this series will consist of three books. I would estimate that book one will be released on Amazon at some point in July of 2014 and that books two and three will both be released before the end of 2014. I want to stress that these are estimates :). I also estimate that I will recommence actively writing book 3 of the Academy as soon as I am finished writing the Baggers Trilogy (near the end of 2014). I'm still in the outlining phase of book 3, and as those who have read the Academy books know, the plots are intricate and I cannot be sure how much time book 3 will take to complete.

I'm very sorry to all of you who hoped for a quick turn-around between the Academy books, but I hope that you will hear me out when I say that I honestly believe that this short break from The Academy Series will result in higher quality for book 3 and 4 (at this time, I believe that the Academy will be four books long). I spent from April 2012 to February of 2014 working solely on The Academy, as far as writing. Though I love Charlotte, Asa, Robert King, the Davids, the Five Mountains, the Town, Conway, and Francine Black, I felt that I needed to work on a separate project for a few months so that I could become reenergized about the Academy and attack book 3 with a lot of excitement. I believe that writing The Baggers Trilogy will give me a healthy separation from the Academy so that when I begin writing the series again in late 2014 to early 2015, the plotlines, the setting, and the characters will be fresh and invigorating for me. 

I will leave you with the beautiful cover that Chelsey and Caitlin Bateson made for me for The Baggers Trilogy: Book 1.

Enjoy!

Chad Leito

Donation update

Hello all,

The time has come to catch up on my charity donations. After this, I will have completed all of my promised donations, unless my actual tax rate differs from my projected tax rate of 35%.

I think that a good place to start for these donations will be correcting for the projected taz rate of last year. Last year, I projected that I would pay 35% in taxes, when I actually paid 15%.

I’ve only paid through June of 2013, so my 2013 tax rate will only need to be adjusted for those amounts. Between January and June of 2013, my net profit was $3,910.32. In order to adjust the tax rate from 35% to 15%, I need to pay out 20% of $3,910.32, which comes out to $782.06.

Now, I need to pay from July 2013 to March of 2014. For 2013, I will withhold the actual 15% tax rate, but for donations in 2014, I will withhold 35% so that I don’t get into trouble if the amount I owe in taxes increases this year.

I will post the excel photos that go with these payments. Amazon has a new feature in which they list out the payments that you have received, however, being a new feature, these reports can only go back to November 2013. So for November 2013 on, I will use this new feature. This adds a quirk to the calculations, because of the fact that Amazon pays authors ninety days after a month in which they’ve accumulated $100 in sales. Because I did not meet this criteria in any currencies other than GBP or USD until November, I will leave the calculations of the royalties accumulated in those months in other currencies out of the equation to avoid double counting them.

July:

In the US, the books made $1,552.85.

In the UK, the books made 17.68 GBP, which converts to $29.70 USD

August:

US: $972.49

UK: 140.05 GBP which converts to $235.38

September:

US: $1058.47

UK: 312.62 GBP, which converts to $525.20

October:

US: $1831.11

UK: 380.57 GBP, which converts to $639.35

DE: 115.62 EUR, which converts to $156.09

November:

US: $2,675.64

UK: 266.94 GBP, which converts to $448.46

DE: 109.31 EUR, which converts to $147.56

December:

US: $3,338.72

UK: 198.75 GBP, which converts to $333.9

DE: 175.98 EUR, which converts to $237.57

January:

US: $4,040.38

UK: 152.05 GBP, which converts to $255.44

February:

US: $1,963.62

UK: 115.04 GBP, which converts to $193.26

DE:  100.74 EUR, which converts to $135.99

March 2014:

US: $1,779.33

UK: 1,072.99 GBP, which converts to $1,802.62

So, from July to March, the total adds up to be $21,014.41 USD

In my last post I donated $4,000, which brings this number to $17,014.41

Since I’m taking 35% off of that number for taxes, the profit is: $11,059.36.

Out of that number, then, I paid for the cover for Mungus Book 1 and the cover for The Academy Book 2, both of which cost $650. I also paid $500 total in that time for editing.

So, after subtracting 650 x 2 + 500, the number becomes: $9,259.37

But then I must add back the correction for last year’s taxes, which was $782.06, which makes the total that is currently owed to MSF: $10,048.43!

WOW! That’s incredible! Over $10,000 more dollars!

Due to different limits of different payment cards of mine, I will be paying this in increments of $1,500. Below I have posted the first of these installments and am moving money around so that I can post the next payment receipt in a few days.

Thanks to everyone who supported the charity,

Chad

Hello all,

I apologize for not updating the blog in a while. I've been very busy writing book 2 of the Academy (which I'm proud to say is complete! Now, I'm working on obtaining a cover and  editing). At this time, I owe a few months worth of donations to MSF. My PC's internet is not working right now, which makes it difficult to generate a detailed report as I have before. As the charity goes on, more factors need to be taken into account, such as foreign currency exchange, taxes, and I've purchased more book covers and paid for more book editing services. Nonetheless, I will be posting a detailed report, as before, when my PC can again connect to internet.  Today, I have made a  $4,000 donation to MSF and will be posting my internet receipt (I am writing this and made my donation via smartphone). $4,000 is approximately what is owed, currently. Though the charity ends at the end of March, I will not receive payment from amazon 60 days after that time (around June 1, 2014). At that time, I will make an itemized post in which all prior months' earnings are accounted for.


I'm very excited to see the final results of the charity,
Chad Leito


PS: I am hoping that book 2 will be ready for publication in early April!

Cover

Just an update on how the new cover effected my sales:

In the first twenty days of this month the Ebook, the Academy, made $400. This adds up to $20 per day. Since adding the new cover, the Academy has generated $190, meaning that the book is averaging $63 a day in profits, which are going to the support of Doctor's Without Boarders.

I'm very excited to see that the cover appears to have been a good investment.

Chelsey Bateson did a fantastic job, and I am very pleased.

Chad Leito

chadleito@yahoo.com

http://www.amazon.com/The-Academy-Book-1-ebook/dp/B00BT29504

May and June donations

Hello,

As you guys are aware, Amazon authors get paid 60 days after the last month of a month that they earn royalties. So, I have two months of donations to make today, May and June! These two months resulted in $2,922.21. As I've stated before, I'm going to withhold 35% of the earnings initially, to see what I have to pay for taxes. Whatever I don't have to pay the government for book royalties, I'm going to donate after the taxes are paid. So, 35% of $2,922.21 is $1,022.77, which leaves $1,899.44 that's going to the support of Doctor's without boarders!

Now, in August (which I haven't recieved a royalty check for), my books made a little shy of $1,000 in the US, which means that sales have dropped significantly. So, I've been thinking a lot about how I can combat this, in order to make more money for the charity. I've noticed that accross the board, books do better when they have a professional cover. I'm worried that my cover is limiting the amount of money this charity will be able to make. So, as part of this month's donation, I decided to invest some of the money back into the charity by paying for a new cover for the Academy, which cost $700, and was made by Chelsey Bateson, who made the incredible covers for Will Wight's books! So, in addition to posting a donation reciept below, and the sales reports for May and June, I'm posting the new cover!

I truly think that this cover will help the charity greater than its cost! This cover will help to bring a lot of support to Doctors Without Borders, by helping to gain more money for this charity!

Thank you all for your support!


I hope that everyone has a great day!
Chad Leito
wleito@yahoo.com

April Donation

Hello all!

As I shared in my last post, my April sales generated $1,635.46. I have just recieved the check for this amount from Amazon, and am going to make the donation today! However, I have been warned by a friend of mine that donating the entire amount could lead to me owing money in taxes in the future, because Amazon does not automatically withhold funds for tax purposes. This being said, my plan is to withhold 35% of the ebook money, and then wait until I have to pay taxes. At that time, I will post documentation proving how much I had to pay to the government, and, if I have there is extra money, I will then donate it. I want to assure everyone, that I will not be keeping any money, but am holding onto some of this check so that I can pay the government the legal amount it requires by law.

This means that today, with the help of all supporters, I will be making a donation to Doctors Without Borders for $1,063.05!

It's really amazing how this is all turning out! I'm very pleased with this amount and feel as though this will make a very real, very significant impact for some who really could use some help!

Thank you all for your support,

Chad Leito

A Very Good Problem to Have

Hello Readers!

I wanted to give an update on how the charity is going. For the month of April, my books have generated (as will be shown in the excel picture from Amazon, posted below) over $1,630.00 that is going to doctor's without borders. For all of those who have either read or supported the books in any ways, you should feel fantastic! The money will make a true difference. Unfortunately, I will not be donating the money yet, because it is not in my possession. I'll explain.

It is Amazon's policy that they do not pay authors until 60 days after a month in which they make more than $100. So, I will not recieve a check for this money until the end of June. Previously, I paid before I actually recieved the check, out of my own money. But, because this amount is so large (which is great), I will not be able to make the donation until I actually recieve the check.

This is a very good problem to have! The charity has made too much money!

Rest assured, the moment that I recieve the check, I will make a donation and post proof of that online.

If anyone knows of a way that I can recieve the funds more quickly so that I can turn around and donate them, please let me know and I will impliment.

In other news, I am steadily clunking along in outlining book 2 of the Academy. I am very excited about how this series is turning out so far.

Also, I now have hired a friend of mine who has a journalism degree to edit the first volume of the Academy. This has been one of my complaints in the past. I'm sure that she will do a great job and make the first novel read more smoothly.

Regarding the book cover: Another friend of mine is designing a really great cover for book 1 that I will share as soon as it is finished.

Hope everyone is having a great month, and I will post the May report when it is ready.

Chad Leito

chadleito@yahoo.com

Dear Readers,

I am pleased to report that an additional $105.65 has been donated due to the contributions and efforts from readers and supporters. This is great.

I'm also pleased to report that I anticipate April sales to produce much more money for MSF than March. So far, the Academy alone has made (drum role, please)--$312! It's only the fifteenth, and the store has already brought in more money than any other month.

Way to go! Keep up the good work!

Chad Leito

End of March Update

March earned quite a bit of money that will go to medical attention for the sick!

         Posted up above is the last screenshot that I took of my sales in March. The photo was taken at 12:03 AM, central time, April 1. The report was available until 1 AM that morning. 

        I don't yet know how much money the ebooks brought in this month, mostly because I tinkered with the pricing several times, and that is not reflected in this reports. Amazon will post an excel of my sales on the 15th of this month. At that time, I will make the donation, and post the reciept and a picture of the excel document onto this blog.

        Again, I want to stress that I will do everything in my power to make this operation as transparent as possible. Transparency promotes the success of a charity, and I want nothing more than to give a substantial donation to Doctors Without Borders every month.

        Overall, I'm very pleased with this past month's turnout. I'm surprised, in fact. I didn't expect to sell this many copies of my new novel. There were a few things that I think contributed:

        Number 1: Being a new novel, the Academy, Book 1, was placed on Amazon lists that tagged it as "new." This gave my novel more traffic than it would normally have gotten.

        Number 2: I believe that the fact that all the money goes to charity contributed to this month's success. I gave away a few hundred free copies of my novel, via Amazon, and wrote a note in the back of each novel that talked about the project. Maybe some people thought that it was a good cause and wanted to tell their friends.

       Number 3: I've built a small fan base. I keep in touch with fans through email, and had people that were excited to read my new book.

       Number 4: The quality. I spent a lot of time on this new novel, and I think that people can tell. I'm a long time writer, and I think that this new novel is at a quality level that people will want to tell others about it. I'm trying hard to entertain, and based on the increased sales, and reviews I've gotten so far, I'd say that I hit my mark.

        Number 5: I distributed approximately 300 flyers in neighborhoods around Lewisville Texas. I took my dog, and we spent about 4 hours walking around neighborhoods putting flyers that explained my project onto people's doorknobs.

       I don't know which of these five contributions had the biggest impact, but I would guess that they worked together. You can look back and see, based on the last excel spreadsheet that I posted that I sold many more books in March than I did in February. This is an exciting start. I hope that it only grows from here!

If you are not yet familiar with my work, you can check it out here:

http://www.amazon.com/Chad-Leito/e/B00BZDKDU8/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1364848843&sr=8-1

I will donate 2 consecutive years of ebook sales to supporting Doctors Without Borders

In this post, I give an overview of the charity that my readers and I will be supporting, and I will give details on how I will use this money transparently.

            Doctors Without Borders (AKA Medecins Sans Frontiers, or MSF):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=73zMcdGfXGE

            Doctors Without Borders is a non-profit organization that sends medical teams into the regions of the world that have the greatest medical needs (such as war zones, or impoverished nations). A large majority of all the money they receive goes directly to helping those in need of medical care.

   MSF does not have any political affiliation, and their mission is to help those in need, regardless of their beliefs, political views, or religion. The physicians and nurses who work for this organization bravely go into harms way. If you do a quick google search, you can read about MSF workers who were shot, kidnapped, and killed during service to this cause. MSF received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1999, and has received four out of four stars from Charity Navigator.

How I will use all of the profits I receive effectively and transparently:

            After each month, I will make a blog post that discloses how much money my amazon account has generated. As proof of the earnings, I will also post, in addition to that amount, a photograph of the excel spreadsheet that amazon provides and the most up-to-date amazon report of my earnings that is possible. The excel spreadsheets are available 12 months after the time of the transaction. Amazon generates a running report of the current months sales, which is only available in the current month. I will post both moving forward. If anyone has a more transparent way that I could prove I am being honest with the earnings, please let me know and I will incorporate it.

            As the title says, I will donate 2 years (or 24 months) of amazon earnings to MSF (Doctors Without Borders). The first 11 months of income that I will give comes from the first day of April, 2012 through the last day of February 2013. In this time, I made $297.78 in ebook sales. I will post a picture of the excel spreadsheet that amazon has provided for each of those months (I would post the month-to-date page, but it is no longer available to me), and a picture of the receipt that Doctors Without Borders sent to me after the donations was made.

            The next 13 months of this pledge is in front of us. Every cent that I receive from reader support will go directly to forwarding the cause of Doctors Without Borders. I see this as a great opportunity for readers to support a great cause, and be exposed to new novel.

The photos for the first 11 months are posted below: