Break out the Ewok celebratory song – our Kickstarter has officially been funded and then some.

There’s still more than a week left to go but we wanted to take a moment to express our gratitude for helping us raise the cash to publish and promote two books we are uncontrollably excited about: Eirik Gumeny’s Exponential Apocalypse: Dead Presidents and Ryan Werner’s short story collection, Shake Away These Constant Days. Seriously, thanks to everyone who backed this – especially, you know, if you’re someone one of us doesn’t call, “Mom.”

Of course, you can always give us more money if you’re so inclined over the next ten days, but we won’t push it. We’ll just gently remind you that there are a few options that function as pre-orders for Ryan and Eirik’s books, so there’s still a chance to do that and get some extra swag on top. Also, if we raise a lot of extra cash we might be able to publish a third book this winter. (Just sayin’.)

And that’s that.

Let’s talk about free stuff. No, not our monthly magazine (though you should really read that too), but the short stories Eirik Gumeny is posting over at his blog that bridge the gap between his first novel, Exponential Apocalypse, and the forthcoming sequel. He’ll be posting one a week until EA: Dead Presidents is released on July 31st. It’s like his version of those webisodes the SyFy Channel posted during the ridiculously long breaks in-between Battlestar Galactica seasons. Only cooler.

Next, move on to Ryan Werner’s new blog, unironically titled Ryan Werner Writes Stuff. It’s a very cool site where you can catch up on all the latest information on Shake Away These Constant Days, read Ryan’s thoughts on the writing process, see unnerving photos of him in a dress, and possibly be directed to soft-core porn links for ginger fetishists. And at least some of that is really worthwhile.

We’re hoping to have a preview of the cover art for Ryan’s book soon, but in the meantime, feast your eyes on the dinoriffic cover to Exponential Apocalypse: Dead Presidents. We guarantee it has 100% more velociraptor than any other indie press book on the market.

Speaking of covers (because we love segues) our Production Editor, Sam Snoek-Brown recently posted a call for artists who want to make the cover of JDP look extra special. If you’re an illustrator, check it out and see if you’ve got what it takes to front one of our monthly issues. And if you’re not an artist, read it anyway for Sam’s excellent attempt to summarize JDP’s influences in a single paragraph. In general, his Beginner’s Mind Blog is a solid read about writing, life, the universe, and everything.

So, thanks again to everyone who backed the Kickstarter, you’ve briefly restored our tenuous faith in humanity. And, if you weren’t able to help us out with cash, we always appreciate moral support too. Follow us on Twitter. It’s free and new followers make us inordinately happy.