We’re launching a new Kickstarter (in preparation for dropping a new anthology!)
Find it here:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/e6universe/energematrice6-from-the-void
Why an anthology?
Three reasons.
First, I feel like there’s a mismatch between the speed at which the publishing world operates and the rate at which my audience is ready for new stories. Traditional publishing is glacial, especially for a new author with a small audience. Though some of you have known about Brightstar for almost a year (and have been able to buy copies for five months) it still won’t hit bookstore shelves until April 16th (roughly a week after this article goes live).
My publisher isn’t even ready to consider a sequel yet. In the mean time, my audience wants more. That means it’s time for me to self-publish something to keep my audience’s attention.
Second, I need something to pair with Brightstar to increase my traction in certain marketing spheres, and an anthology is the perfect midpoint between Brightstar and my next novel (which is in my own personal final editing stage).
Finally, I can’t self-publish The Vale of Mysteries (Working title for the Epimyth book 2) if I want to make a decent splash with it when it gets traditionally released, so I have to wait for that.
Why a Kickstarter?
A Kickstarter is an opportunity to grow my audience, while (hopefully) giving me the boost I need to get over the initial production costs (which should be fairly minor for a self-published work that’s already mostly finished).
I’d love to be able to afford a professional edit for it as well, but that seems out of reach for me right now.
OK, OK, So what’s in it?
From the Void will have, at minimum, 3-4 stories dealing with the origins of several characters in the Energematrice6 universe.
The Keeper of the Mysteries
The Keeper of the Mysteries is set in the days (and moments) before Brightstar comes on the scene in the Aurora Galaxy. The story follows Teron Galton, the Keeper of the Mysteries as he works to thwart the machinations of the Telestry and in particular Telestic Drake Loriden.
This story is written as a prologue to Brightstar, specifically to give prospective readers a window into the Energematrice6 universe.
The Boy From the Darkness
Tom Nelion isn’t exactly human, but he’s still just a boy, at least by The Peoples’ standards, and he’s on a mission to find this “Brightstar” everybody’s been talking about. The problem is, the most powerful enemy his people have ever known are hiding him. The only place Tom knows to look is directly in the center of their most powerful citadel, the Telestry itself!
This story set significantly after Brightstar (roughly during the time of the Epimyth, book 5). (Join our email list to read it for free!)
The Boy From the Megalith
Tom Nelion’s origin was inglorious by any standard, an unholy melding of human genetics with the pure blood of the People. His family—his clan—is dead at the hands of the People’s own leader. Tom should have died as well, and by the same hand. Now his fate will be decided by those who despise him.
This story is set concurrently with Brightstar, giving readers a window into the galaxy where humanity originated and one of its more unusual peoples.
Mystery Story
??? This story will take you through the origin of one (or more) of the major characters in Brightstar. Which one? You’ll just have wait and find out!
Stretch Goals
I’ve added a few stretch goals on the Kickstarter to include other stories–I would love to do so, but realistically, I need to be able to pay for the time I’ll spend to do it!
In Conclusion
I hope this project interests you. I’m excited to get it going. If you do like it, please consider pledging for the anthology. (If you don’t have a copy of Brightstar yet, you can pick one up there as well!)
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/e6universe/energematrice6-from-the-void
