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Latest from the Creator
James D. Mills
27 days ago
Sincere Thanks and an Invite to our Community
Howdy folks! 

I am beyond proud of what we have achieved this last month. Because of the support of 234 backers, we raised $15,515 (a very nice, very round number) to bring our 2026 Fantasy Magazines to life. 

Join our community!

If you've been following our journey or helped us along the way, please accept my humble invitation to join our community. 
  • We have a Discord with over 260 members. You can join here!
  • We have a weekly email letter that delivers free Fantasy short fiction every Friday! Sign up here.

Production Timeline


eBooks for The Literary Fantasy Magazine Spring 2026 and Summer 2026 are available via instant access, as is the eBook for every one of our novels. Further ebooks for Mordschlag, TLFM Autumn and Winter, and The March by M. Frost will be made available as they're finalized in the coming weeks. Battleborn eBooks should be made available soon. 

I am aiming to place an order with our printers for Paperbacks in the next month. I will be working over the next month with the goal of getting physical rewards out before the holidays. Keep an eye out for the survey and shipping fee, which should be sent out a few weeks before fulfillment.

I will send out regular updates as developments occur and as books become available. 

Special Thanks

First and foremost, thank you to the backers who supported us. The results of this campaign have blown me away and unlocked previously undreamed of opportunities. 

There were several folks who were exceptionally supportive during this time and I want to take some time to shout them out. 
  • Thank you to Jonathan Olfert and Graham Wilcox of Old Moon Publishing for collaborating with us on their on-going BackerKit campaign. We worked together to combine our crowds and provide those who backed with an excellent bonus.  
    • Seers in a Broken Season is in its final days of BackerKit: https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/old-moon-publishing/seers-in-a-broken-season-a-stone-and-sorcery-novella?ref=bk-discover-partner-project-12169
  • Thank you to Sean C.W. Korsgaard for generously providing eBooks of Battleborn Magazine #1 to all of our backers, for loudly shouting support for Mordschlag, and for taking the time to show me around GenCon. 
    • Keep an eye out for Battleborn Year Two on Kickstarter!
  • Thank you to Oliver Brackenbury of Brackenbury Books for the encouragement, advice, and for sharing the project with the New Edge Sword and Sorcery audience. 
    • Follow BB's next campiagn for their second round of S&S novellas: https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/brackenbooks/new-edge-sword-sorcery-novellas-2026/pre-launch?ref=bk-discover-user-profile
  • Thank you to Paul Wolfe for publicly supporting Mordschlag and printing a Mordschlag ad in issue 1 of Swords Against! 
  • Thank you to Cozzy of the Gung-ho Geeks for conducting an excellent interview and boosting the heck out of Mordschlag. 
  • Thank you to E Rathke for featuring me on the Wolf Podcast and rushing out the episode to help promote the final 48 hours of the campaign.
  • Thank you to Erik Goodwyn for mentioning us in several videos, converting to the dark side of Howardian Fantasy, and for his support and friendship in our joint authorial efforts.
  • Thank you to S.E. Lindberg for running our press release on Black Gate and for the consistent enthusiasm, support, and friendship. 
  • Thank you to Jacob Gillam for his friendship, distributing our fliers and promotional copies, and for contributing a heck of a fun essay to Mordschlag #1. 
  • Thank you to Erik Waag for mentioning our campaign on his newsletter and for boosting our signal.
  • Thank you to Matthew John for inviting me to co-host the Rogues in the House Podcast and coming up with the unofficial power metal theme song for Mordschlag.
  • Thank you to Bryn Hammond for contributing an excellent tale of Goatskin to Mordschlag #1 and for boosting our signal. 
  • Thank you to Cairn X. Petrick for enthusiasm and boosting our signal.
  • Thank you to M. Stern for contributing a last minute novelette to Issue #0 of Morschlag and boosting our signal. 
  • Thank you to Jason M. Waltz for the kind reviews, advice, and boosting our signal. 
  • Thank you to our staff, particularly Liam Pisano, Menke HB, and C.R. Aramais for supporting the project and their hard work in our largest submission period to date. 
  • Thank you to my wife, Eden, for working hard on the marketing for this project and for supporting me during the second-most pressing period of this year. 
  • Thank to Lee Patton for keeping our operations running while I've been occupied with crowdfunding. 
  • Thank you to our contributors who invited their friends and family to purchase the magazines. 

Okay... I think that's everyone. This all goes to show, it takes a village to get a publishing venture off the ground and we couldn't have done it without the support of the S&S community and our fellow publishers who have been so gracious and companionable since my arrival to the space. 

Sincerely,
James D. Mills, EiC of The Arcanist


5
0
0
Eden Louisa
28 days ago
Our BackerKit campaign is now wrapping up in just FIVE HOURS!~

TODAY: Friday, August 21st at 3pm EDT is your last chance to pledge.

More good news for our backers: We reached our stretch goal of $15,000 and partnered with Battleborn Magazine to bring backers a FREE copy of their eBook issue #1 for every backer!
If you missed it, we've also enabled the pay over time feature, meaning backers who pledge over $150 automatically qualify for four monthly auto-payments instead of being charged in full up front.

What's Coming Next?

Our next stretch goal of $17,500 will enable us to supply a new short story to issue #0 of Mordschlag. Even more excellent, action-packed S&S for our readers. Can we count on you to help us hit this stretch goal?
3
0
3
Eden Louisa
about 1 month ago
NEW ROGUES IN THE HOUSE EPISODE: Talking Seers in a Broken Season with Jon Olfert and Old Moon Publishing!
Matt and James D. sat down to discuss the upcoming novella, Seers in a Broken Season with author Jonathan Olfert and Old Moon Editor Graham Wilcox. We talked neolithic settings, what its like to tell stories from the eyes of a mammoth, and why these things are metal AF.

Arcanist backers who support Seers in a Broken Season will get a free flipzine featuring stories by Jonathan Olfert and James D. Mills! 


Be sure to check it out on YouTube!

4
0
1
Eden Louisa
about 1 month ago
Pay Over Time Enabled, Finals Days Imminent!

The Final Countdown!

We are in the final week of our campaign! It's wrapping up this Friday, August 21st at 3pm EDT. Good news for our backers: We've enabled the pay over time feature, meaning backers who pledge over $150 automatically qualify for four monthly auto-payments instead of being charged in full up front.

What's Coming Next?

Our next stretch goal at $15,000 will unlock an eBook copy of our friends' Battleborn Magazine #1 for every backer! We're so close at 91% to this goal. Can we count on you to help us achieve it?

2
0
0
James D. Mills
about 1 month ago
Lord Mord's Face Revealed! Backers Restored His Lost Memories.
Howdy folks!

Our diabolical mascot has been restored at last! Backers decided that Lord Mord rules Kaer Mordhau and that his natural life was ended by the historical lord of Castle Murau, Ulrich von Lichtenstein.

But Lord Mord has risen, raised by a soon-to-be-detemined sorcerous means! A favored limner of Kaer Mordhau by the name of Sabretooth has rendered his likeness, which shall appear in all issues of Mordschlag Sword and Sorcery Magazine!

We are charging away towards our next stretch goal at $15,000, which will unlock an eBook copy of our friends' Battleborn Magazine #1 for every backer.

We're coming up on the end of the campaign. Can we count on your help in the final days?

Sincerely,
James, EiC of The Arcanist

Illustrated by Sabretooth
6
0
1
James D. Mills
about 1 month ago
M. Stern Joins Mordschlag! Onward to the next goal!
Howdy folks!

Last night we hit our $12,500 stretch goal! This means that "Gnawed Bones" a new novelette by M. Stern has been added to Mordschlag Issue #0. This is an amazing story, and I'm so stoked to share it with you all. 

What's next? 

We're now charging headlong towards our next stretch goal at $15,000! When we make it, the kind folks at IronAge Media will provide every Arcanist backer a free digital issue of Battleborn Magazine #1. 

I'm a big fan of Battleborn and this opening issue is no joke. You can read my full review here.

Lord Mord's Lost Memories.

Who felled Lord Mord in combat? I took to the Discord community and got some eyewitness accounts. The next poll determines who delivered the fatal mordschlag to Lord Mord while he was defending Kaer Mordhau!

3
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0
 

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PROJECT UPDATE
James D. Mills
CREATOR
27 days ago

Project Update: Sincere Thanks and an Invite to our Community

Howdy folks! 

I am beyond proud of what we have achieved this last month. Because of the support of 234 backers, we raised $15,515 (a very nice, very round number) to bring our 2026 Fantasy Magazines to life. 

Join our community!

If you've been following our journey or helped us along the way, please accept my humble invitation to join our community. 
  • We have a Discord with over 260 members. You can join here!
  • We have a weekly email letter that delivers free Fantasy short fiction every Friday! Sign up here.

Production Timeline


eBooks for The Literary Fantasy Magazine Spring 2026 and Summer 2026 are available via instant access, as is the eBook for every one of our novels. Further ebooks for Mordschlag, TLFM Autumn and Winter, and The March by M. Frost will be made available as they're finalized in the coming weeks. Battleborn eBooks should be made available soon. 

I am aiming to place an order with our printers for Paperbacks in the next month. I will be working over the next month with the goal of getting physical rewards out before the holidays. Keep an eye out for the survey and shipping fee, which should be sent out a few weeks before fulfillment.

I will send out regular updates as developments occur and as books become available. 

Special Thanks

First and foremost, thank you to the backers who supported us. The results of this campaign have blown me away and unlocked previously undreamed of opportunities. 

There were several folks who were exceptionally supportive during this time and I want to take some time to shout them out. 
  • Thank you to Jonathan Olfert and Graham Wilcox of Old Moon Publishing for collaborating with us on their on-going BackerKit campaign. We worked together to combine our crowds and provide those who backed with an excellent bonus.  
    • Seers in a Broken Season is in its final days of BackerKit: https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/old-moon-publishing/seers-in-a-broken-season-a-stone-and-sorcery-novella?ref=bk-discover-partner-project-12169
  • Thank you to Sean C.W. Korsgaard for generously providing eBooks of Battleborn Magazine #1 to all of our backers, for loudly shouting support for Mordschlag, and for taking the time to show me around GenCon. 
    • Keep an eye out for Battleborn Year Two on Kickstarter!
  • Thank you to Oliver Brackenbury of Brackenbury Books for the encouragement, advice, and for sharing the project with the New Edge Sword and Sorcery audience. 
    • Follow BB's next campiagn for their second round of S&S novellas: https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/brackenbooks/new-edge-sword-sorcery-novellas-2026/pre-launch?ref=bk-discover-user-profile
  • Thank you to Paul Wolfe for publicly supporting Mordschlag and printing a Mordschlag ad in issue 1 of Swords Against! 
  • Thank you to Cozzy of the Gung-ho Geeks for conducting an excellent interview and boosting the heck out of Mordschlag. 
  • Thank you to E Rathke for featuring me on the Wolf Podcast and rushing out the episode to help promote the final 48 hours of the campaign.
  • Thank you to Erik Goodwyn for mentioning us in several videos, converting to the dark side of Howardian Fantasy, and for his support and friendship in our joint authorial efforts.
  • Thank you to S.E. Lindberg for running our press release on Black Gate and for the consistent enthusiasm, support, and friendship. 
  • Thank you to Jacob Gillam for his friendship, distributing our fliers and promotional copies, and for contributing a heck of a fun essay to Mordschlag #1. 
  • Thank you to Erik Waag for mentioning our campaign on his newsletter and for boosting our signal.
  • Thank you to Matthew John for inviting me to co-host the Rogues in the House Podcast and coming up with the unofficial power metal theme song for Mordschlag.
  • Thank you to Bryn Hammond for contributing an excellent tale of Goatskin to Mordschlag #1 and for boosting our signal. 
  • Thank you to Cairn X. Petrick for enthusiasm and boosting our signal.
  • Thank you to M. Stern for contributing a last minute novelette to Issue #0 of Morschlag and boosting our signal. 
  • Thank you to Jason M. Waltz for the kind reviews, advice, and boosting our signal. 
  • Thank you to our staff, particularly Liam Pisano, Menke HB, and C.R. Aramais for supporting the project and their hard work in our largest submission period to date. 
  • Thank you to my wife, Eden, for working hard on the marketing for this project and for supporting me during the second-most pressing period of this year. 
  • Thank to Lee Patton for keeping our operations running while I've been occupied with crowdfunding. 
  • Thank you to our contributors who invited their friends and family to purchase the magazines. 

Okay... I think that's everyone. This all goes to show, it takes a village to get a publishing venture off the ground and we couldn't have done it without the support of the S&S community and our fellow publishers who have been so gracious and companionable since my arrival to the space. 

Sincerely,
James D. Mills, EiC of The Arcanist


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PROJECT UPDATE
Eden Louisa
CREATOR
28 days ago

Project Update: Our BackerKit campaign is now wrapping up in just FIVE HOURS!~

TODAY: Friday, August 21st at 3pm EDT is your last chance to pledge.

More good news for our backers: We reached our stretch goal of $15,000 and partnered with Battleborn Magazine to bring backers a FREE copy of their eBook issue #1 for every backer!
If you missed it, we've also enabled the pay over time feature, meaning backers who pledge over $150 automatically qualify for four monthly auto-payments instead of being charged in full up front.

What's Coming Next?

Our next stretch goal of $17,500 will enable us to supply a new short story to issue #0 of Mordschlag. Even more excellent, action-packed S&S for our readers. Can we count on you to help us hit this stretch goal?
3
Share

Share

Twitter

Bluesky

Facebook

Copy Link

Edit
PROJECT UPDATE
Eden Louisa
CREATOR
about 1 month ago

Project Update: NEW ROGUES IN THE HOUSE EPISODE: Talking Seers in a Broken Season with Jon Olfert and Old Moon Publishing!

Matt and James D. sat down to discuss the upcoming novella, Seers in a Broken Season with author Jonathan Olfert and Old Moon Editor Graham Wilcox. We talked neolithic settings, what its like to tell stories from the eyes of a mammoth, and why these things are metal AF.

Arcanist backers who support Seers in a Broken Season will get a free flipzine featuring stories by Jonathan Olfert and James D. Mills! 


Be sure to check it out on YouTube!

1
Share

Share

Twitter

Bluesky

Facebook

Copy Link

Edit
PROJECT UPDATE
Eden Louisa
CREATOR
about 1 month ago

Project Update: Pay Over Time Enabled, Finals Days Imminent!

The Final Countdown!

We are in the final week of our campaign! It's wrapping up this Friday, August 21st at 3pm EDT. Good news for our backers: We've enabled the pay over time feature, meaning backers who pledge over $150 automatically qualify for four monthly auto-payments instead of being charged in full up front.

What's Coming Next?

Our next stretch goal at $15,000 will unlock an eBook copy of our friends' Battleborn Magazine #1 for every backer! We're so close at 91% to this goal. Can we count on you to help us achieve it?

0
Share

Share

Twitter

Bluesky

Facebook

Copy Link

Edit
PROJECT UPDATE
James D. Mills
CREATOR
about 1 month ago

Project Update: Lord Mord's Face Revealed! Backers Restored His Lost Memories.

Howdy folks!

Our diabolical mascot has been restored at last! Backers decided that Lord Mord rules Kaer Mordhau and that his natural life was ended by the historical lord of Castle Murau, Ulrich von Lichtenstein.

But Lord Mord has risen, raised by a soon-to-be-detemined sorcerous means! A favored limner of Kaer Mordhau by the name of Sabretooth has rendered his likeness, which shall appear in all issues of Mordschlag Sword and Sorcery Magazine!

We are charging away towards our next stretch goal at $15,000, which will unlock an eBook copy of our friends' Battleborn Magazine #1 for every backer.

We're coming up on the end of the campaign. Can we count on your help in the final days?

Sincerely,
James, EiC of The Arcanist

Illustrated by Sabretooth
1
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Twitter

Bluesky

Facebook

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