Previously backed this creator's crowdfunding project
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That said: outside of all of the other cleverness of the show, I spent a lot of time thinking about the music cues, which trend very contemporary (which, to me, adds to the goofy charm, but I can easily see someone without a sterner stomach struggling with it) and usually these music cues trend specifically to "cover of a modern pop song by a girl-pop band" type choices. It feels unconventional, but to me says something about the audience they want to capture and entertain, and I think it works.
This, of course, led me to a question that might be really polarizing:
What sort of music would you put to a fight scene--or a love scene!--in a romantic fantasy, especially in sword & sorcery, where atmosphere is a huge part of the appeal?
--scenes you might want to write?
--scenes you have already read?
--scenes you might be hoping for in our fair tome?
There are no wrong answers, but I'm dying to know what you might pick!
Nota bene:
Please don't slag anyone else's choices--it takes all kinds, and sometimes something really unexpected works well to highlight a scene that might be very understated with the "expected" choices!
Project Update: Progress Update, Art Preview, and More.
IN SHORT
- Multiple individuals involved with the project have suffered long-term, serious issues involving either their health or the health of loved ones, causing significant delays as well as great difficulty in predicting when the delays would end.
This in turn made it very difficult to know when or how exactly to update you about the book as anything we said one week could become incorrect by the next.
We are now comfortable aiming for a release date of "Some time in May, June if we absolutely have to", while planning to provide updates with greater frequency, and a more exact release date as that time approaches.
We are grateful for your patience, and would like to assure you that we finish our projects - our past two years of magazine crowdfunds have both been fulfilled (2023, 2024), and our other book we crowdfunded in 2024 is on track for release in late April. - Scroll down to see a preview of one of the six original illustrations inside the book.
- The crowdfund exclusive bookmarks have come in! Scroll down for pictures.
- Below you can read some words by Jay Wolf about the process of editing this anthology.
IN DETAIL
We wouldn't blame anybody for asking "What's happening with Beating Hearts & Battle-Axes?". We've asked that a few times ourselves.
It's not my place to violate the privacy of our editor or contributors by giving details of the serious medical issues I alluded to above, so I'll just to have to ask you to have faith I'm not kidding when I say I read specific words in the emails making me aware of these issues which you would never want to hear a doctor say to you.
As publisher I had to decide whether or not to replace contributors, perhaps even take over as editor, and in the end I decided to stick with our team. They are the people whose names were on the tin when you chose to back this project, and they're people I strongly believe in, who I want to stand by in their trying time.
I invoked our other projects above because I do understand that some of you have perhaps backed crowdfunding projects in the past which may have vanished for long periods or failed entirely to materialize, and want to reassure you this is not that. However this last stretch goes precisely, it will result in you getting your book.
Thankfully there are some fun items I can share with you now! First up, the bookmarks are in:
Secondly, we'd like to share with you one of the six original illustrations Trevor Ngwenya is creating for the anthology:
Sometimes when fleeing angry people, you lose your pants! It happens to the best of us.
And now some behind-the-scenes insights as written by our editor:
ON EDITING THE ANTHOLOGY, by JAY WOLF
This summer/autumn/early winter has been a busy one fraught with peril—some real, some hypothetical, some yet lingering over our collective heads. Editing the stories for this anthology has been one of the things keeping me going through it all, and I am glad to say we are onto revisions.
FINALLY
So yes, in short we are aiming for May with the possibility of June as the release month.
We'll update more frequently and narrow that down to a more specific date as the release grows closer.
We are grateful for your patience, and look forward to bringing you sunnier news in our next update!
Sincerely,
I understand that delays happen sometimes but it feels kind of obnoxious to me that several other projects have been launched, and they are constantly getting updates, but there is total silence with this. Why should I give my money to you guys for any new projects when this one is being totally ignored?
Previously backed this creator's crowdfunding project
It's been seven months since the last update. Despite being unable to find the time to keep backers informed, you somehow manage to send me plenty of notifications for new opportunities to send you money. What was going to be a Christmas present turned into a Valentine's Day present and has now slipped into the category of "failed projects that I have backed." At least have the decency to tell us that you're not going to ship this book, so we don't plan around it.
Project Update: Progress Report and...a New Book with TWO Covers???
IN SHORT
- Editing our six manuscripts for the book is currently on schedule for our goal of shipping in the Winter of 2024.
- We've just launched a crowdfund for a new book, binding two novellas in a single edition: Double-Edge Sword & Sorcery! Click to learn more.
IN DETAIL
There isn't much to show, visually, that wouldn't just be extremely spoiler-heavy screenshots of Microsoft Word files, but as it has been a while since the crowdfund ended we felt it was time for an update.
Our editor is working hard in tandem with our authors to polish their manuscripts until they shine brighter than Valyrian steel, and so far things are looking good for us shipping to backers before the Winter of 2024 is over.
Huzzah!
Meanwhile...
Two novellas, bound in one book.
Mongol-inspired Sword & Sorcery.
A caravan striking out under an open desert sky...
...and a claustrophobic, pressure-cooker siege.
We feel strongly that novellas are a fantastic length for Sword & Sorcery, giving authors room to further develop character & setting, while still short enough to be in sync with the genre's thirst for quick-paced adventure!
So why not give you two, each written by one of the most talented S&S authors working today?
Our crowdfund launches at 8am EST tomorrow (Thurs, Sept 19th). You can learn more, and sign up to be alerted the moment things kick off, by clicking these schmancy Internet words.