The time has finally come -- the domestic/North American fulfillment warehouse is sending out Address Verification email notices this weekend! If you need to change your delivery address, this is your last chance! Shipping will begin next week!
If you aren't sure what they have on record and don't get that email soon, a) check your spam or quarantine folder settings, or b) log into the Pledge Manager at https://the-monkey-king-omnibus.backerkit.com/. If you're still not sure and need to update or confirm things, email [email protected] in the next 4-5 days!
We had to make a handful of (complimentary) upgrades to some of you who pledged for or added a copy of the Softcover Trade Paperback edition... We're not sure if you've heard about last year's bankruptcy of our distributor, Diamond Books, but in a baffling and lengthy bit of ongoing litigation, they are refusing to return our inventory, which they have no legal claim to. Yet somehow, the hostage situation continues.
What this means is that, while we expected to have sufficient copies of the softcover edition of the Omnibus, we find ourselves about 90 copies short. Rather than delay fulfillment any further in hopes of getting our inventory back from Diamond (something that has already taken over a year and is looking less and less likely), we're upgrading those shorted softcover editions to the new hardcover edition. Not every softcover copy ordered -- we had about 250 copies left on hand -- but about 90 copies that ended up shorted. I'm not sure how the warehouse determined which orders would get that free upgrade, but you're welcome. ☺️
Here's where shipping stands:
- Domestic/North America: shipping next week! - Asia: Inventory is heading to VFI in Shanghai for final regional distribution. This may take a few more weeks to get there and out to backers, but we'll keep you posted on that status. - Australia/New Zealand: Inventory is heading to Aetherworks in Sydney for final regional distribution. This may take a few more weeks to get there and out to backers, but we'll keep you posted on that status. - UK/EU: Due to some relatively recent changes in customs regulations, we have to make a last-minute change in our UK/European fulfillment partner. Inventory will now be heading to GamesQuest in the Netherlands as of next week. Like the above international hub shipments, it will probably take a few weeks to reach their warehouse, but once it has been received there, they will turn orders around as quickly as possible. We'll keep you updated.
I think that's all the news as of this weekend. If you have any questions or concerns, please email [email protected].
A couple of you have reached out asking what's up, and you are totally justified to wonder... we humbly apologize for the prolonged lack of any updates here! 😯
Things are nearly at the shipping stage, which we were hoping to be at by now. But one item is still inbound from the manufacturer: the resin statue. It was expected to arrive last week, and it hasn't yet. We're chasing it down now, and hopefully will have those secured very quickly. Once those are accounted for, domestic shipping will begin almost immediately! International order inventory will leave almost as immediately for their respective hub warehouses, and things should be in your hands in no time after that!
Now that we're in the final stages, we'll be sure to keep you updated more regularly as we have specific details or estimates to announce. We're gathering some images of the other stretch goal items that have already arrived and will share those shortly!
Now that we have locked down the orders, we have distributed the digital rewards!
You may have already received an email notification from Backerkit, but if not, check your inboxes (or spam folders) this weekend. You can also check your Backerkit page directly by logging into https://the-monkey-king-omnibus.backerkit.com/
Once logged in, you should see a big blue button in the middle of the page that says "Get Your Digital Downloads" -- click on that to see your personal links for each item ordered. Granted, you will only see that button if you have finished your Backerkit survey, but if you haven't, that link will also walk you through the process.
The books are hosted by Gumroad -- you will have to follow the (simple) instructions to use your unique codes to download your files from Gumroad for free. 😊
If you have any trouble or questions about the process, feel free to email us at [email protected] -- we're happy to help!
The physical books are still on their way, and the exclusive bonus items are still being produced, but everything is expected to reach our warehouse in June. We should be able to start shipping in late-July, assuming no surprises catch us off guard...
Thanks, everyone! We hope you fall in love with Chaiko's works as much as we have!
Just a quick update to let everyone know that, as mentioned in the last update, we have initiated the "Lock Orders" phase of the Pledge Manager. That means that your order selections will be locked so that we can finalize the item count in preparation for fulfillment. Backerkit will send you an email today explaining that you have 48 hours to make any final adjustments to your order before they are locked from further modification (on Sunday). We will then process charges for any outstanding balance on Tuesday.
If you haven't filled out your survey, please do so before Sunday! If you're not sure, you can log into https://the-monkey-king-omnibus.backerkit.com/ to get to your Pledge Manager page. If you have any questions or problems, please message us here directly, or email us at [email protected].
Don't worry if you aren't sure about the final shipping address just yet. You will have at least two more opportunities to update your shipping address before we start fulfillment. 😎
Just a quick update to let everyone know that we will be locking orders here in Backerkit this Friday! If you haven't completed your Pledge Manager survey or would like to make changes to your order, please do so before Friday so that we can start preparing data for fulfillment. We hope to have everything in hand by the end of May so we can start shipping in June. 🤞 That's our goal, at least! (Don't worry if you need to update your address before then -- you'll have a few opportunities to make address changes before shipping begins. We just need to lock order quantities now so we can be sure we have sufficient inventory for everyone.)
With the orders locking over the weekend, we will process any balance charges to your payment method on file on Monday. If Backerkit has trouble processing the charges at that time, they will notify you of the error so you can address the issue.
We got an advance copy of the completed hardcover (in slipcase), and it looks great!
A couple notes: Excuse my clumsy handling -- it's hard to film an unboxing solo... Also: the bookplate included in this copy is unnumbered and says "of 500". The Final bookplates are numbered "of 750".
Thanks, everyone! We'll post an update on Friday after we trigger the order lock! 🙂
