Digital formats will also go out today, later in the evening.
Due to bizarre printer issues, the bonus novelette 'zine will only be sent out in digital formats but backers will have the opportunity to get the physical format later. Further details below.
Hurray, it's Merry Shipmas! Books begin going out to backers today.
Please make sure you've filled out your Backer Survey. If you haven't then we can't ship you your books.
And when you get them, we'd love to see your pics of the books out in the world! Feel free to tag us on Facebook, Instagram, and/or Bluesky so we can know they're out there.
DARK SEA SILVER We've very proud to have funded Audrey Stolling's novelette featuring the mysterious, suspiciously long-lived giantess Lathra as a free extra to go with the novellas from this crowdfund. Later today the ePub & PDF will go out to all backers along with the digital formats of the four main books.
But something else mysterious means that we will not be shipping out a physical edition, not yet anyway. The printer we got our quote from....seems to have vanished from this Earth?! Meanwhile nobody else can match their price or the speed with which they offered to print the 'zine, not even close on either front. While we do plan to scrape up the difference and print it, to do so now would delay fulfillment of the four novellas by several weeks...
...and we're not doing that. We're shipping those novellas now, damn it!
So the plan is: everybody gets the digital edition today, and when we are able to print the physical edition anybody who backed this crowdfund will be able to get a copy from us through our store - we'll do an update here to let you know it's out, of course - and only have to pay for shipping, which will be minimal as the 'zine will be able to fit in a modest envelope, and weigh very little.
We're truly sorry about this, and have been scrambling for weeks to either find the original printer (???) or someone who could do what they did. Having run out of time, we think this is the best solution we can offer for now.
BLUE FIRE is the first ever Jirel of Joiry novella, written by Molly Tanzer, with interior art by Saprophial, Clade Mirya, and fantasy cartography by Caster Jones. Currently crowdfunding, this book has unlocked every stretch goal so far - double art, international shipping discount, spray edges (backers vote on the color), and a one page comic by Clade Mirya - and it still has over two weeks to go! Join us for the ride and don't miss those crowdfund exclusives: https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/brackenbooks/blue-fire-a-jirel-of-joiry-novella
ALRIGHT
Thank you so much helping us here at Brackenbury Books enter a bold new era. We think the new novellas are wonderful contributions to The Sacred Genre of Sword & Sorcery, and we can't wait to bring you more exciting books in the future/
Almost all the Volume 8 rewards are out in the world by now.
For a few of you, I had follow-up questions!
Since BackerKit doesn't have an internal messaging system, I sent emails. Still waiting on two replies:
Backer F: After locking all the backer addresses, you're the only one who's been un-locked again. There was an error when I tried to print postage for it, and I'm hoping it was something simple like a typo that would be easy to fix.
Backer J: You're the only backer who hasn't been sent a finished art commission. I offered to do something specific for it, and I still don't know if you're into the idea or not.
If you never saw the email, double-check your spam filter.
If it's not there, whitelist my address (sailorptah at yahoo), and let me know (either with an email, or with a comment here) to try again.
We got the books!! Which means now YOU get the books!
If you backed for the main book but not the bonus chapter, then keep an eye out for your tracking email. We’re still wrapping up work on the bonus chapter, but once that one is done we’ll ship out the rest of the orders shortly.
Thank you for all your patience and support, and we hope you like the book!
Hope you're having a happy Pride! if you want to get some queer books and support indie creators during pride month, our Year 5 campaign for 8 new Space Wizard books is running now. This is also the 5th anniversary of Space Wizard, and my 10 year anniversary of publishing. Lots going on this month!
Space Wizard Year 5 is already funded, and we're working hard toward our first stretch goal, which is to get a cover for the upcoming Quirk & Moth omnibus, which will collect the first three books and two short stories, one of which has not yet been published!
We've also recently introduced our Tea With Books, matching unique tea flavors with a Space Wizard book. Our first one is a Lesbians in Space tea!
Lesbians in Space tea pairing: This is a 1/2 oz canister of looseleaf, caffeinated, flavored black tea. Good for 4-5 servings or one full teapot. Comes with a custom recipe using standard kitchen ingredients to brew a complex, themed tea evoking the orange, white, and pink of the lesbian flag!
Foggy Iramont tea pairing: This is a 1/2 oz canister of looseleaf, caffeinated, flavored Earl Grey black tea. Good for 4-5 servings or one full teapot. Comes with a custom recipe using some easy-to-find ingredients and frothed milk. Goes with the newly released Tea Tale by Kristina W. Kelly. It's a recipe in the book!
Snowshroom Spice tea pairing: This is a 1/2 oz canister of looseleaf, caffeinated, Pu'erh tea. Good for 4-5 servings or one full teapot. Comes with a custom recipe using some extra spice and goodies to create a tasty, nutty pairing for an afternoon of reading! Goes with the newly released Tea Tale by Kristina W. Kelly. It's a recipe in the book!
Fruits of the Gods tea pairing: This is a 1/2 oz canister of looseleaf, decaf, Rooibos tea. Good for 4-5 servings or one full teapot. The tin comes with all four godfruit (dried) to create a fruity, complex pairing for an afternoon of reading! Goes with the novel Fruits of the Gods by William C. Tracy!
Kuhifadi Magic tea pairing: This is a 1/2 oz canister of looseleaf herbal tea. Good for 4-5 servings or one full teapot. The tin comes with an amazing herbal kawakawa tea from New Zealand with a mix of extra spices to make this one really magical! Goes with the anthology The World of Juno, produced by Daniel Eavenson!
Fire tea pairing: This is a 1/2 oz canister of looseleaf, decaf, cinnamon-flavored Rooibos tea. Good for 4-5 servings or one full teapot. The tin comes with instructions on how to prepare both hot and iced versions! Goes with the novel Mothball Magic by Rena Rocford!
Ice tea pairing: This is a 1/2 oz canister of looseleaf, caffeinated, apple-flavored green tea. Good for 4-5 servings or one full teapot. The tin comes with instructions on how to prepare both hot and iced versions! Goes with the novel Mothball Magic by Rena Rocford!
Here's a list of all the books in the campaign:
Lucianus, by C.J. Beshara- An ancient wizard, reincarnated into a new body, learns how the world has changed since his catastrophic death, and why his new traveling companion is interested in him!
Aliens in New Florida, by Carmen Loup, author of the Audacity Omnibus (and in the same universe) - A road trip across post-apocalyptic Florida with prophesy, an attractive reptilian alien, psychedelics, omniscient aliens (and humans), and a quest for the fabled Kingdom!
Gunmaker, by Chris Gerrib, in the same universe as his previous Space Wizard book One of Our Spaceships is Missing - A murder by gunshot on the indentured mining colony of Eros, a place where guns are not allowed, sparks an investigation into the corruption of the colony owners!
Romance and the Gentle Art of Rocket Racing, by Rena Rocford, author of the recently released Mothball Magic - A rocket-racing rogue must help her secret half-brother, the king of his colony, to woo the woman of his dreams, through silk, intrigue, and fast ships!
Pressure Magic - book 3 of William C. Tracy's Shifting Lands fantasy series. Silluka has survived the invasion of Chimor, but she, her brother Ichu, her girlfriend Cosquella, and Lugopo, the eldritch octopus, find themselves stuck on a strange island with a master craftsman!
Promise of Manifest, by Alex Kingsley - Find out what happens in the conclusion of The Bastion Cycle, in a world of post apocalyptic giant crabs and human scavengers! This is the third book, following Empress of Dust (the 2025 Small Spec Book award winner for Science Fiction)and Relic of Haven!
Queen and Obsidian, by J.S. Fields, a duology of science fiction space opera stories. It begins with Queen, where an intersex woman is trapped on a barely hospitable planet of women, only to learn their meager living area is further threatened. This is followed up by Obsidian, which follows the events of the first book!
To top it off, this campaign is running in The Book Bazaar Summer Bonanza, with 11 new projects, brought to you by indie creators. If you back 5 of the campaigns or more, you get a sticker sheet with all the covers!
Fulfillment will still begin on June 15th - have you filled out your backer survey? - but we can now show you the novellas in all their glory!
As a glamorous, charismatic crowdfund backer you shall have all four of these books made available for download or shipped to you on June 15th or very soon after.
But maybe you didn't back us, or know someone else who missed the crowdfund and would like to get these books!
Well, June 15th will also double as the official release date of WHAT ROUGH BEAST? by Bryn Hammond.
Each book will become available for pre-order directly through our website about a month in advance. Thank you so much for helping make these books possible! It really feels like Brackenbury Books is ascending to a whole new level with these.
Alright, our next update will be to confirm that fulfillment has begun. See you on the 15th!
