Anthologies of the Damned brings together thirteen masterful storytellers per book, each weaving a unique and terrifying tale that will leave you looking over your shoulder and questioning your sanity... and this year, we're theming it for the big holiday (the birthday of the OG undead guy--and we don't mean the WWE Undertaker!) Twisted Yuletide plays on the Christmas theme across many classic tropes as well as some lesser known ones from other traditions.

From the twisted corridors of haunted mansions to the eerie silence of abandoned towns, each story in this collection delves into the unknown, exploring the depths of human fear and the supernatural. Whether it's a ghostly apparition seeking vengeance, a sinister force lurking in the shadows, or an ancient curse that refuses to be forgotten, these shadowy short stories will make you wonder what goes bump in the night.

This set of spooky tales is a perfect read while clutching your shotgun in defense of ole' St. Nick, drinking spiked nog beneath the poisonous mistletoe, or tucked inside a hymnal at your church's candle-light Christmas service. Our stories will haunt your dreams, make you quirk a smile, and linger long after the last page is turned.

Pledge to get your copy now… if you dare.

What's more Christmasey than Holiday Cards? If you noticed the art theme as headers for each section, we've used that art to create some perfectly macabre Christmas cards for you to horrify your friends and family! Each backer will get these as we unlock them as Stretch Goal bonuses! These will be included in all physical rewards sent and will be sized 4 x 6 so that they will fit inside an appropriate envelope (no need to horrify your mail carrier... they deal with enough already!)

Track our funding progress with us as we unlock extra rewards!
Final stretch goals are set! Can we get to 100x backers?

With most stretch goals met, a new card will be added! What will they look like? Terrifying... it's one of the many terrible surprises inside your fulfillment :) This art will be different than the pre-chapter page art within the books and the set is commissioned and will be produced domestically to ensure that all timelines are met. Art is forthcoming!

We also have several digital and physical items to add as stretch goals which we will announce once our initial funding has been met. We have a bunch of stretch goals, both physical and digital! Scroll to the bottom of the campaign story to see what has been unlocked already!!!  

We've also made an order of these super boney ornaments which will be an achievement goal as well (when we hit 100 backers!)

Here are the Holiday Cards early artwork which we will be using... this is just an early preview... the full cards will be completed by the end of the month. Read all the updates to peek into all the drama that surrounded them!

The Book Details
Available in either paperback or hardcover, Twisted Yuletide, much like the rest of the Anthologies of the Damned, reads a lot like Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark but written for grownups.

Many people are unaware, but telling ghost stories at Christmas is a tradition reaching great popularity during the Victorian period. It's even mentioned in a line of the Christmas song, "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year." In that time period, Halloween (as we think of it, now,) was not celebrated and Christmastide was the primary holiday for creepy tales until it rose to prominence as the more ghoulish holiday in the USA. Of course, Ebeneezer Scrooge's ghostly visitation is the most famous example, but there are many others.

Twisted Yuletide features over 300+ pages with 13 stories by your favorite authors, plus 2 bonus stories by Victorian era authors writing to that holiday theme (15 total). Three of our tales come from NYT Bestsellers including Kevin J Anderson (Star Wars, Dune), John Helfers (Battletech, Shadowrun),  Joshua Pruett (Predator, Avatar: The Last Airbender), plus Christopher D. Schmitz (Shadowrun, Gudnak), Jeri “Red” Shepherd (Gudnak, Legends of Avantris), and many more! Anthology of the Damned: Twisted Yuletide slithers your way this winter.
 

Earlier editions of the anthology series are available as well, just select them in your tier, or pick them up as add-on items.

The only way to purchase hardcover copies of this series are through our crowdfunders and directly from a contributing author. They are not available in any store (they don't even have barcodes--so get them while you can and consider an upgrade to hardcover from paperback.) If you have previous editions in hardcover, be aware that the original edition of Anthology of the Damned is now available in hardcover for the first time ever!

Why This Strange Collection?
Anthology of the Damned began as a horror collection put together through TreeShaker Books s a way to cross-pollinate audiences among a group of Indie authors who fiercely championed their own individual works. The resulting volume sold out at most live shows and quickly became one of the best-selling products on many of those contributors' tables at conventions, fairs, etc.

Fast-forward a couple years and we had so many submissions for a new installment that TreeShaker Books ran a crowdfunding campaign to release three new volumes, instead of one. Things went well, and all volumes continue to sell well with interest staying high in our brand of creepy.

Until now, we hadn't run a themed volume, but I (Chris, lead editor on the series) have always loved horror holiday tales. I was 7 years old and in elementary school in the 1980s and recall staying home sick from school and watching some horror-retelling of the Grinch. It was the Seasons of Belief holiday episode of Tales of the Darkside. Incidentally, it came out the day after my 7th birthday... the monster was called the Grither. This story has stuck with me all my life--and now you can watch it, too, or at least, the important parts:
https://youtu.be/kCaoN2Bt1YU?si=G6rJATewzjL8Bgl2

Printopia is a unique program. Not only does it operate just like your normal crowdfunder (like Kickstarter, Gamefound, etc.) but there is an added incentive: back multiple campaigns and get extra, amazing swag! For instance, if you back Twisted Yuletide and The special edition Gudnak book you'll get an exclusive item from both campaigns!

Sidenote: the editor for Gudnak is also the editor for Twisted Yuletide--and both books feature top-notch talent that literally helped shape and define the Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Horror genres (SFFH).

Here is our amazing our Collab Bonus:
Back us at any level and Gudnak and get a free, exclusive short story from Christopher D. Schmitz (the lead editor and a fiction contributor to Gudnak Means War) and also get a promotional item from Chaotic Great, publishers of the Gudnak board game! Currently, this is the only way to get the short story Fruit of the Victarch!

Good News! The book is already produced, and the previous editions are an item which I keep in stock for sales as I travel to conventions, which means that fulfillment is ready almost immediately (we need to wait a certain amount of days before we fulfill in accordance with BackerKit policies, etc. and then we can begin sending these out!)

Do we ship everywhere? Yes! We will ship worldwide, but understand that shipping is charged post campaign in BackerKit Pledge Manager and is not included in the pledged price during the campaign.

Shipping rates are determined by their delivery systems and subject to weights and delivery methods. We will provide a shipping estimate based on weight on the following chart--remember that these are estimates and actual shipping rates and are not perfect, they are intended to be a rough guide and are subject to the actual rates from service providers. (Please don't pledge with a fake addresses as it will likely end in mutual heartbreak with faulty information provided--we cannot remedy shipping scenarios where shipping data was not correct as we have no control over delivery outcomes!)

FYI on shipping: my last campaign had a backer receive a box that had seen some things (I suspect it was hit by a forklift). If you get a box and your rewards are damaged, take many, many photos. The only way to get reimbursement from shipping companies is with images of the damaged box, plus the damaged contents as they were received to you (plus, if in a box, the circular crush info on the box's bottom.) Whenever you receive any package it is a good idea to take photos/video as you open the contents if you suspect there may be damage! You can always delete them later, plus if the contents are amazing you can share those pics on your social media!
...damage is generally a rarity, but please use your camera if you suspect anything.