Quick, happy, notes.
about 3 years ago – Sat, Jan 29, 2022 at 09:00:10 PM

Hello! Thanks for your pre-orders, your love, your notes of support. You are all the best and I'm so grateful. So where are we at?

Foil Stamping: We've run the numbers and we can do this if we can get past $4K. Totally doable in the remaining hours. Things that help (if you'd like to) -

• Sharing this link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/atthisarts/night-ivy 
• Letting other people know it helps to share that link
• Direct messages to people you really think would enjoy it, or would appreciate the pay-what-you-can price ($1 for the whole book) while it's available (not talking spam, just people who might be interested, especially if they are not on social media too much)
• Telling people that all backers, all levels help. $1 is amazing - they get to try the story, and it adds backers and momentum that is (add echoey voice:) seen by the algorithms
• If you get any concerns about using Kickstarter right now, please send them to the FAQ. I addressed it.

Mental Disorders: In case you read the campaign earlier, I realized there was more I should really say here. And so I added a section on the main page about Xelle and her mental disorders, and a tiny peek at why your support to this book means so much to me.

Short Stories: I've talked to the wonderful people who have purchased custom stories for all of us to enjoy and both would like to read the book first. So I promise - these will happen and they will be thoughtfully selected and heartfelt - a little treat for spring or summer. : ) (And if anyone happens to have $500 and would like to see me write more, I will write and write for your dollars. Hehe. And you can choose whether to remain anonymous or have your name on the story, or a dedication/memorium from you, etc..)

The Next Book: I have to thank you for something. I was so excited to finish this book. So excited to see people are interested in my story, and got the hardcover funded so quickly - I started plotting the next book. It went really fast. Like, I couldn't stop excitedly sketching it out. In fact, I even wrote the opening scene and I love it. This is going to be so much fun to write. : ) (Hard work, but delightfully satisfying when complete.)

Angel's Robot Friend with Minimal Shades of Gender: If you are not familiar with Just Bart, it's an add-on to this campaign (you can modify your pledge any time in January AoE). I've struggled at events how to explain this book, because it's not a western, Bart isn't a cow-anything, anything-girl, or anything-boy... I gave up and just starting saying it's ridiculous, it makes me laugh anyway, and it got me through 2020. So in case that sounds fun. And, it is now going to be a duology (not more, just 2) with its partner, Just Chad, the story of Angel, Bart's Ex-Folk, and her robot with minimal shades of gender friend Chad, who is interested in fitting in with humans while not performing any rude actions. You can read the books in either order (I'd be curious how that changes the experience) and if you'd like to preview Just Chad and not wait until it's 2024 release, you can do so for $1/month on my Patreon. Two episodes are available now, and they will be arriving in the best place Chad could think of to port to on the 1st of February.

Charity Fun: If the timing works out for you and you're looking for something happy, the wonderful poet and storyteller Brandon O'Brien will be GMing a game for the charity Bag of Giving tonight (Saturday) at 8 EST (1 PM Saturday for the boobies and 3 PM Sunday on Caroline Island) on the Arvan Eleron Twitch channel. (I'll be there as @GarlicTofu, you can say hi!) You can watch for free (viewers help exposure even if your funds are tight), and win amazing prizes with optional donations to charity.

Thank you, again, for being here! It means so much right now. Someday I'll be better able to properly express that, but for now, maybe the love you'll see in this story will.

Sending love and warmth - ♥ Emily.

I love you! Here's a surprise!
about 3 years ago – Fri, Jan 28, 2022 at 09:15:36 PM

Yes, the campaign is going to be like this. Everything is weird, why not celebrate each other.

But, really, I do have a surprise, and I hope you like it.

First! I want to say thank you. That I see and appreciate you all. Every backer is seen by me (and I go "yay!"), and I'm watching all the social media for shares and things I can report. The Eye of Emily. The press really needs this right now, and...yes, I want that hardcover! (I do.)

Now, for the surprise. For my 45th birthday (in December), I received a really lovely gift from awesome writer and friend Minerva Cerridwen. She read a story she enjoyed from Awkward Tomatoes, "Szlnaya", about a dragon, her egg, and a cry for help from her human friend, Tyk. (Some of you might recognize the Mad Scientist Journal format, yes, this was a submission for Battling in All Her Finery - I am not usually a first-person writer but I had fun getting into this and trying new things, and this one did make their short list! Minerva's captivating recording (Really! Xe makes me sound cool!) is just under 15 minutes long, and I hope that it warms your day: "Szlnaya" by E.D.E. Bell, read by Minerva Cerridwen.

If you have issues hearing or processing audio and would like to read the story (or need a break from work and can't do speakers; I get it), we've provided a PDF for download.

If you'd like a copy of this eclectic fantasy collection sprinkled with wistfulness and humor, signed paperbacks are available as add-ons through this campaign (add Awkward Tomatoes or 2020 Bundle after selecting a print pledge level), or you can find retail links for e-books on the website.

Thank you again!

♥ ♥ ♥ - Emily.

P.S. If you notice the "Emily About Town" videos on my You Tube, so, yeah, it's the worst show on You Tube. (With 10 bass-ass subscribers, hey!) Maybe you'll get into it. Hoping to do one from ConFusion this weekend!

I can't even. Except...I can.
about 3 years ago – Fri, Jan 28, 2022 at 08:40:19 PM

Funded in under 12 hours. Amazing. And -on- our 20th wedding anniversary. I'm floored. Thrilled. Grateful. My heart is beating. I mean, you know, more. How about this graphic which I am totally allowed to use now:

I know, you're supposed to put it on another image, but look, it's so cute there. So. I did not...have a plan for this. (Um, yeah, for funding in 12 hours.) But I'm sure as hell gonna make one!

Ok, first, first - I want foil stamping. It looks so good. It's fancy. It's classic. It's secret gorge for people who don't like touching dust jackets as well as people who like to know their book hides gleaming treasures. Your books are dragons.

So here are a couple of things that will happen tomorrow:

• I'll work with Chris to figure out what goal we need to set to be able to add foil stamping.
• I'll (this was requested today) post a sample of the book here - really leaning toward the intro.

Thank you so much for your support. And if you love this project (or us!), please do let people know! A lot of this total is shipping (our world, right) plus fees - and we really need support right now. Truly, I won't get into it, but right now is truly a critical juncture for our press. (The main reason why is we are at our all-time most dramatic juxtaposition of cascading bills plus big opportunities in progress. The concept of "all in" has never felt so real. We are rolling in on fumes and knowing there is gas in that station. If we can get there.)

And I am just vibing off this hope right now, because of course knowing means knowing it should, not knowing it will. What is all this stuff you are talking about, Emily? Ok, I'll go through it for the curious. In addition to this book, here's some other stuff going on. We just have to get there (I know I say on fumes but more accurately negative fumes. Detroit people making and then stretching car analogies, I know. Anyway.).

•  Alia Terra: Stories from the Dragon Realm by Ava Kelly, illustrated by Matthew Spencer is a fully-illustrated, all-ages fairy tale releasing on Mărțișor - March 1st (and to backers soon!).
• An audiobook of The Dragon of Ynys by Minerva Cerridwen is in the last stages of narration by Ryan H. Reid and will be available soon (thanks to many of you!).
• Gigi Ganguly's One Arm Shorter Than The Other is a multi-genre speculative novella set in Delhi, India, telling the tale of a mysterious repair shop and releasing on 05 April. (I love this book so much.)
• Twitch streamer, esteemed professor, and Icarus author, Gregory A. Wilson has written the first volume in a rich tale of assassins and loyalty, Grayshade, releasing on 31 May.
• Ottawa author Brandon Crilly is entrusting us with his debut novel, Catalyst, a lovingly-crafted tapestry of action, tension, and wonder with a stunning cover and map in work. Out 11 October.
• Plus this book, Night Ivy, sent to you once it's ready but releasing 04 July (yes, I am).
• Plus award-finalist Lord's Dome (available as an add-on through this campaign) will be part of [redacted] this spring.
• Plus I am posting preview episodes of Just Chad, the other half of the duology starting with Just Bart (available as an add-on to this campaign) on my Patreon for $1/month.
• Plus I have co-written a quiet laborpunk (candlepunk?) novel with the lovely Stewart C Baker, that we are going to try and sell externally. We are finishing the last round of edits on this soon.
• Plus I continue to write and then collect (when passed back...except "one a these days") short stories for my next collection. (My first, Awkward Tomatoes, is available as an add-on through this campaign.)

Chris and I are not going out tonight in ::all this:: but we are about to have dinner for our 20th anniversary date and then we'll be hanging out, during which I'll say "Under 12 hours!" many times. We've even discussed going live on FB together. What could go wrong?

There's probably something I'm forgetting to say, but dinner awaits! It'll be fine! (*Waggles arms around.*)

I am so grateful. So excited to see where this goes for the rest of the month. Thank you! I mean really - thank you! ♥ ♥ ♥ - Emily.

Stretch Goal and a Sample
about 3 years ago – Fri, Jan 28, 2022 at 08:35:55 PM

Hello, and good morning from Detroit! I'm still a little stunned about yesterday, but not so stunned that how to get that foil stamping is not on my mind. So Chris is going back to the printer and binder to get estimates on cover material options, printed endpapers, and even ... dust jacket embossing. (mmm. touch that book.)

We do have a good idea what foil stamping would cost, and so, running the numbers, we feel pretty confident we can do full stamping at $4000. (Remember this includes fees, international shipping, etc. The amount we get is much lower.)

So the main three notes I have for you this morning, as I still process what happened yesterday (!) are:

• I am so grateful for your support here. It feels weird saying this, but if I'm going to promote kindness to ourselves also, I need to do so also. Break that damn stigma. So. You caring about this book and about our press is not only financially critical (I'm really not exaggerating that) but it's like a jolt of morale juice to me. A huge group hug that is filling me with light. I've had a hard couple mental health years, personally pulling myself up from the very bottom (if you've done this, you know help is nice, but in the end for those of us without a lot of resources, it's you that has to do it) and even recently, designing the programming on short notice for ConFusion was full of unnecessary stress and triggers I can't really get into here. With my cptsd, I never sleep well. But last night was about the closest I've come to just - resting in a long time. I really, truly thank you for that.
• Back to business! I have updated the Stretch Goals section of the campaign and will continue to if things keep going well. Maybe no big updates, maybe we can... Time will tell and I'm just thrilled. This campaign runs through January (AoE - more on that soon) and so we'll see whether it can continue to keep momentum. What an adventure.
• What was the third? My brain! [sits staring at screen. goes to get coffee.] Well, who knows, So I'll go with this: If you do talk about the campaign on social media (very appreciated) I'd ask that instead of sounding like it's over, phrase it more like this is now definitely happening, and there's still over a week to see what support we can show. Support an indie author. Support a small press. Make the books even better. (Hey, we're fantasy people. Physical books are important to us. I see you out there.) Oh, and reach out to me any time! If I can answer questions, say hello, whatever.

Yesterday, I received a request to see a sample of the story. My writing tends to wander over the long-form and not be as sample-friendly as others, so I decided to go with the intro. I hope that you enjoy it! (Please note, this is the actual start of the book, so don't read now if you'd like to read it all at once.) Cheers for now! - Emily.

Night Ivy 01 - Petition

Xeleanor Du’Tam. You petition before us?

It was always like this. She’d collect her mind to address someone (in this case a room of Spire Mages), and then right as she was ready to speak, some casually tossed item would trip her. Like this inherently obvious question. Which she never knew how to answer without being seen as sarcastic.

Was she supposed to answer no? They were all watching her.

“I do,” Xelle said as solemnly as she could. Like a flame-tossed wedding, which was the exact opposite direction she was trying to go.

Yet. Why hadn’t they addressed her by title? Study Xeleanor Du’Tam. When they must know what she was here to ask? Her heart was thumping now; she knew her voice would shake when she spoke, as though she were a nervous initiate, not a senior Study with solid experience.

“I’m here to ask the Arc Spire for my certification as Mage.”

In any normal circumstance, she would offer them standard reasoning. Her unusually extended training, her accolades from the Tower Watchers. They knew all that; she could see the file she’d put together sitting on the table, disheveled as if someone had read it, assuming it’d not just been tickled for fun.

Truly, pulling herself back in, she was surprised they’d agreed to hear her petition at all. They’d rejected even hearing her before, so what had changed? She’d hoped it was a positive sign, but now she was worried she was missing something. She was definitely missing something.

The seven Spire Mages sat around the wooden table with varying expressions of discomfort, an odd juxtaposition to their velvet and metallic-threaded finery. Some leaned back nearly to the vine-carved pillars behind them. Others pressed fingers upon lips. It was as though they already had something to say but wanted to be polite and let her finish. Or, start.

Fira, it was always too much. She didn’t need this. She didn’t need status and title. Except, apparently she did. She was trying to create new and better uses of magic, and being a Mage, even a base, non-ranking Mage, would grant her access to libraries and artifacts that were not trusted to Studies. She knew this group was heavy on symbolism, so that was the angle she’d planned to take today. They were watching her. Pretending she could see through the growing fog of her uncertainties, she jumped in.

“In the spirit of cooperation embodied by Helina, my lab work has been noted by visiting Mages, highlighted in ranking exchanges, and employed in major projects affecting the populace. With the base rank of Mage, I would better be able to build those relationships, bring the respect that I can to To’Arc, and better serve the populace. I would—”

“Xeleanor, you know how this works.” Nainol leaned forward, pushing forward a cup of tea that was comically small next to his bulky figure. “If you’ll pledge to To’Arc, then we can consider you. You have strong qualifications, and we encourage it.”

That frustrated her in about as many ways as Nainol’s vest had gold buttons. Nothing against his buttons; they were stylish, and nothing lavish for a Spire Mage. But the point was she was frustrated. They’d gone right to a binary before she’d made the case they’d waited so patiently for her to begin. Which meant, she supposed, they’d been hopeful she’d agree this time to pledge? That she was bluffing? Throwing a last long shot? Sure, she rather was. But not like that.

She’d made her position clear before. She wasn’t ready to pledge. Studying at To’Arc was an absolute honor; she’d made the best friends of her life, and Arc Magic intrigued her deeply, in a way that her brief studies at To’Ever and To’Frond had not. But one shouldn’t be pushed into a lifetime commitment to use the good library, or to make others feel proud of one. On top of that, they’d complimented her—practically offered her the position. That was not normal. Some Studies never earned that type of acceptance, ash, some Mages didn’t.

So what was going on?

The Mages had all shifted as she’d talked. Or tried to. The Crown Mage, Jehanne, sat in place at the center of the arced table, her wrinkled face set without reaction. Pelir was writing something down. Kern stared distractedly at the side wall, through the circling columns. We’le, by contrast, smiled directly at Xelle, one of those dignitary smiles that holds pleasantry but nothing like happiness. Awayna sat against one side of her chair, her eyes wandering the chamber but completely avoiding Xelle’s, and Gloria leaned against eir broad, curved hand as if deep in thought.

What a mess. She had no idea how to read the room; Mages were always strange, but they were acting entirely so. If this had been her lab, she would have called a meeting and said, ‘Alright! What is going on?’ But it was not her lab, it was one of the Seven Spires of Halina, Crown of Alyssia, and there were still risks Xelle wasn’t willing to take.

Meaning, there were some risks that weren’t wise to take.

“I am not yet ready to pledge, Arc Spire. I love Arc Magic and plan to make it a permanent study, but I feel that my growth is best served, as well as my ability to innovate, by—”

She did not owe them this. One of the last pieces of advice her parents had given her before she set out for To’Ever was to never let a Mage convince you that you owe them. She’d kept that in her pocket. She let out the rest of her sentence as shaky air, sounding loud in her ears. “If there is no space for my certification, then I thank you for your time.”

Awayna lifted a short arm, reminding Xelle of a Grand Mage aiming a wand. “Actually, we have a mission for you,” she said, her voice taking a professorial tone. “You’ll be less suspicious unpledged, so what if we leave it at this for now and avoid any other consequences.”

Consequences. Xelle resented that deeply. With all her dedication to the craft and mentoring of the new Studies, they would imply, what? That she’d be punished for her request? Or maybe already was, by being sent on some errand? Something they’d been trying to sluff onto someone and then Xelle showed up? She wanted to flash them the flame. She kept that to herself.

...