Guys and gals, fairy monsters and princess pigs, it’s finally here. The project I’ve been working on, and I am so excited to share it’s progress with you.
The cover. Oh my shit. I am IN LOVE with this thing. Do you see it? No..maybe not yet. Let me put it here.
Right? (Major props to Dean Samed, our cover artist). And you should see the full wrap…which you can, but you have to wait until publication.
Or you can donate to the Kickstarter and get the background version in our first update. We have so many cool things to offer as rewards (like limited-edition hard-back copies and special stories from authors…and a special ARC copy of Blood Phoenix: Imprinted.
Our main goal is to raise funds to pay our authors more money for their hard work.
All right. Well, there’s more to tell or show or…I’ve got more.
Here’s the official blurb:
The happily ever after is never the end. The curtain doesn’t fall once love is recognized or evil is vanquished. Credits don’t roll once the giant is slain or the big bad wolf is boiled alive. Wicked stepsisters, malevolent rulers, and hideous creatures still have lives after their sinister roles play out; heroes, lovers, and dreamers often find their victories lead to more troubles.
Within these pages are more than seventy continuations, retellings, and eldritch stories that explore the dark forests, magical castles, and hideous creatures After the Happily Ever After.
And they’re awesome. I love the collection we have, which is why we have so many. They’re all so different.
And here’s my sneaky peeky excerpt:
“Are you ready?” My mentor adorned her reaper’s hood, disguised as a craggily, old woman.
“Yes, Madame.”
She produced the poisoned apple, laced with a drug that would make me sleep like the dead; only my brain would record everything. One bite, and I will fall to the whim of whoever finds me.
Cupping the gleaming red fruit in both hands, I took a breath to soften my nerves, and Madame Grimm pinned a charm to the bodice of my dress. It was a forget-me-not serum. If they discovered me, I’d inject myself to erase all knowledge of my mission and my agency. It was a fail safe, and I hoped I wouldn’t need it.
I bit the apple, the sweet juices mixing with the bitter taste of the sleeping drug.
My body grew heavy.
I slipped the antidote behind my lower lip so that when Prince Charming kissed me, it would break open and revive me.
Madame Grimm caught me, laying me half on the grass and half on the path to my secret lair, where the D.W.A.R.V.E.S. will find me and contact the kingdom.
I have a lot of ideas mixing in this story, Snow White, Cinderella, 007, Monsanto, conspiracy theories, and my favorite, the Dangerous Wee Assassins of the Royal Villains Eradication Society.
Here’s another few teasers, who we will feature again as we draw closer to publication:
“The Dragon” by R. Judas Brown
Lavender knew no one would come for her. Bad things happened to the daughters of poor, dairy farmers every day. The best she hoped for in life was a good marriage arrangement to a solid provider. Her dad only just found that arrangement with the town miller, a man her dad’s age. His apprentice looked like more fun, but the miller was well off.
Then she had been taken.
Fire from the sky.
A slam from behind, knocking her flat before the ground fell away impossibly fast.
Trees and rivers rushed by as she hung from yellow, bony talons until the darkness crept mercifully into her vision to steal her terror away.
She awoke on a bed of sharp sticks in a cave reeking of sulfur. Confused, she stood slowly, trying to find some semblance of sanity in the dark. A glowing sliver of daylight burned around the covered mouth of the cave.
Her feet froze before she had taken a full step as what she thought was a boulder in the dark shifted.
A long tail whipped as a pointed snout swung to regard her. It filled the cave entrance, a giant, scaly mass—a creature renowned for merciless violence and calculated malevolence. Lavender jerked back, tripping on the hem of her skirt in panic. Hands and arms scraped along jagged edges as she fell into the pile of sticks. When she came face to face with a skull, the truth shuddered through her.
“The Secret Life of Blanca Snowe” by Saryn Chorney:
The tragic events of Blanca’s childhood were at least partially to blame for her present condition. Blanca’s mother died in childbirth, and her wealthy father, the lord of Fairest Landing, raised his beloved only-daughter by himself. Although he lavished Blanca with love and affection, he missed having a wife. When Blanca turned thirteen, he remarried. Unfortunately, his new wife, Hilde, was a manipulative and vain woman with a suspicious agenda. Mostly, she busied herself spending her new husband’s fortune on beauty products. Hilde ignored Blanca; she passed the majority of her time in the toilette, mixing ointments and talking to herself in the mirror. Perhaps that wasn’t so odd, though, as Blanca spent the majority of her day talking to the birds, bunnies, squirrels, and stray cats in the courtyard of their estate.
Although the Fairest Landing police officially declared it an accident, Lord Snowe died suddenly from an allergic reaction to one of his wife’s homemade tonics, which he mistook for mouthwash. Hilde made a big show of appearing devastated, but after a month of official mourning, she debuted a new youthful look and entertained suitors. To her disdain, most of them took a shine to Blanca, who was sixteen by then. In juxtaposition to her innocent beauty, the girl also had an alluring countenance that intrigued men. This infuriated Hilde, who gave a handsome sum to a handsome hitman named Hunter to make Blanca disappear. Mid-kidnap-and-chop-up plan, Hunter found himself pitying his pretty prey. Instead of offing her, he dropped her off at a so-called safe house where seven merry men lived.
“Beauty and the Beast: The Beast Within” by Lorraine Nelson:
“And that’s what you miss?” he snapped. “That childish, immature, ranting, raving, beast-like creature?”
Belle bit back a smile. “You need to let me finish. All will be explained.” She hoped. Adam grunted, the sound so much like what her beloved Beast made whenever he was displeased that her heart twisted. For one brief second, he was back with her. Then he glanced at her, questions evident in his beautiful, human eyes. And the moment was gone.
Check out more excerpts at our campaign page, with out authors, and coming up for blitz next week!
And join us for our giveaway for a $10 Amazon gift card.
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