Hello Backers!!

It’s been a shitty few months around here lately—and I don’t just mean pandemic news. I’ve been deep in researching medieval cesspits and latrines for the chapter on the death of John Funke! He’s the guy who wandered out of his sickbed and drowned to death in a cesspit. And for a while it was a weird, puzzling sort of death (you’ll hear exactly why once you can read the chapter) that demanded a lot of research I couldn’t really find.

Until this article came out. If you’ve ever wanted to explore a 3D model of a 14th century cesspit, NOW is your chance!

(And don't you just love that sub header? I can't imagine anything more fashionable for your wine cellar than the fact that it once held just a TON of human waste.)

With John Funke’s death wrapping up, I’m getting so, so close to the end of this book. I think I’ve got two chapters left and a nice, beefy introduction full of nerdy nitty-gritty to write still. And so I’ve been sending it out to some friends to beta read for me, and the feedback so far has been fantastic. One person said it was “exceedingly well written” and “while mostly humorous, it is also a very kind look at normal folk in the middle ages.” And someone else described it as “Just a great little book full of fun, weird, wacky, and entertainingly morbid medieval facts!” So far everyone's been entertained and educated and, honestly, very thankful that I took the time to explain just how in the world medieval dating worked. Not the romantic kind--the time reckoning kind. I couldn't explain how modern dating works let alone any kind 600+ years ago...

Thank you all so, so much for being patient with me as I write this book. I’ll admit I bit off a bit more than I could chew, at least… with thinking I could get it written in just a year or so. Turns out each chapter requires its own little mountain of research, and I want to be as thorough and accurate as I can, so it’s not the quickest work in the world. But the end is in sight! 

I’m looking forward to sharing this all with you very much, and thank you again to everyone who’s backed it and been so patient for its release!!