# How to Mint "Into the Gorge"

By [MS Bourland](https://paragraph.com/@msbourland) · 2022-07-26

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The “Into the Gorge” mint includes **an all-new short story + a 60-min audio episode + original artwork, all for free**: no hurdles & no BS. **Read on for how & where to mint!**

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"Into the Gorge" is the 1st piece of my limited-edition NFT series "Shadows of the Gods." This standalone short story + original art free mint is the proof-of-concept for my full book launch this fall, so you're doing me a huge favor by taking part!

Minting will take place on my shiny new project site: **shadowsbook.xyz.**

[https://www.shadowsbook.xyz/](https://www.shadowsbook.xyz/)

The Shadows Book site is a fully custom build by @AriaWorkshop: a custom token-gated dApp platform on Ethereum, powered by my own gas-optimized smart contract.

**Minting goes live on Wednesday, July 27 at 12pm UTC / 14.00h CET / 8:00am EST.**

We've set a limit of 2 tokens per wallet & there is a max supply set, so be sure to mint early so you don't miss out! As a bonus: **everyone who mints will automatically be included on the allowlist for the drop of Book One: The Death Bringer** this fall (wallet snapshot TBA).

Here's how it will work:

*   Connect your Ethereum wallet to my project site
    
*   Mint up to 2 tokens for 0 ETH + gas fees
    
*   Upon minting, your NFT unlocks the site’s token-gated Library
    
*   The Library includes eBook AND audio downloads in Kindle/Apple Books/Spotify-friendly formats
    
*   And of course you’ll be able to view the NFT in your wallet on OpenSea!
    

![The token-gated Library page on shadowsbook.xyz ](https://storage.googleapis.com/papyrus_images/a1ffa313f94ee1f0564fee8a9f3b743db9377791a3fab349c5e90a2df7bb98b9.jpg)

The token-gated Library page on shadowsbook.xyz

My goal here is to deliver a simple, functional, no BS launch. The art + story are the utility. There’s no DAO, no token, no investors. It’s just me, a solo creator & the artists, developer & designers who decided to collaborate with me to make all this happen.

No one ever accomplishes anything worthwhile alone, & there's an amazing team behind this project. Each one is an incredible creator in their own right & I can't believe how lucky I am to work with these people!

*   The original art for “Into the Gorge” was created by the amazingly talented & unbelievably kind **@CR24TI7E**.
    
*   **@AriaWorkshop** is our developer extraordinaire & none of this would exist without his dedication & hard work!
    
*   The “Into the Gorge” audio episode features the professional voice-acting talents of my college roommate/best friend **@OccupyClaire**!
    
*   Of course, it's not really an audio-book without music! **@JETS0N** aka Mr. Bourland is creating the music that will bring Shadows of the Gods to life.
    
*   You probably know **@NFTerryBain** as an artist; he's also a professional book designer & publishing industry veteran who's designing the physical books available to collect this fall.
    
*   Last but not least, **@LINK\_artwork** is the incredible web designer helping make sure our mint site shines!
    

If you like what we're building & want to see NFT books/publishing succeed, it would be really cool if you'd share the mint details with your friends here. I've also created a Twitter group for friends of the project where I share news/reveals/insider updates - send me a DM if you want in!

\-- M.S. Bourland / @msbourland

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*Originally published on [MS Bourland](https://paragraph.com/@msbourland/how-to-mint-into-the-gorge)*