We’re entering the home stretch for the Kickstarter to fund printing for Children of Gaia: War & Horses, the second full-length illustrated novel in the fantasy series. The campaign ends next Tuesday, September 10. And we’re nearly two-thirds of the way funded! I edited War & Horses, so it has a special place in my heart. And I hope it will earn a special place in yours, as well! So here’s some info you’ll want to know.
The Book
Along with my publishing company, Oneshi Press, I’m raising funds to print this gorgeous, fully illustrated novel. It’s the second book in the Children of Gaia series, following The Great Nations of Rendaraia. And it’s wildly different from that first high-fantasy book—it’s a weird western!
War & Horses is set in a sci-fi-fantasy universe where horses have horns, democracy is new, and there’s a power vacuum in the dustbowl of the new Republic of Draven. Although there’s no “frontier” here, and the folks of Draven aren’t colonizers themselves, they’re experiencing the effects of distant colonization, as well as the aftermath of a recent civil war. Drought is sweeping this rural area, and with it, crime has risen.
Into this tense situation rides a horse rustler of local renown, who turns out to be both exactly what he says he is…and nothing at all like the locals expected. The tension rises as the book moves toward its surprising climax… And I want you to be there for the end!
The Kickstarter
We’re raising funds to print and distribute this unique story…and then some! Since Children of Gaia is an immersive fantasy universe meant to be told via multiple media, we’re starting the “multi” part of the”media” now. At funding milestones along the way, we’re releasing never-before-heard tracks from Great Nations Soundtrack, the final album by composer Jack Schell, the Soundweaver… But only our Kickstarter backers can hear them!
Before he passed on, the Soundweaver created Soundtrack as a companion piece to the Children of Gaia universe. Now, we’re sharing these songs with our backers before the rest of the world hears them! We’re sending the tracks to our backers at funding milestones: 25%, 50%, 75%, and 100% funded!
So get in on this action before Tuesday if you want to hear these amazing, atmospheric, gorgeous tunes!
We’re also giving backers copies of other Children of Gaia and Oneshi Press books, comics, and more—for way less than retail price! Backers can get art, books, music, and more. Check out the Kickstarter to peruse our rewards.
About the Creators
As part of the hype around War & Horses, I wanted to exercise my interviewing prowess to introduce some of the book’s creators to the world. So I interviewed author Peter Lampasona and co-illustrator (and Children of Gaia co-creator) Chris Covelli over at the Oneshi Press blog! Honestly, these two are both brilliant. Their answers were fascinating, so I know you’ll love these interviews.
A snippet from Peter’s interview:
What I came up with was the personality for The Triggerman—a man who does a job of killing because it has to be done and he is just a natural at it. The people he kills are neither good nor bad, but they are in the way. Sprinkle in a little of the smarm and edge from the Timothy Dalton version of James Bond (the BEST Bond. Fucking fight me) and a penchant for soliloquizing, and here we are.
And one from Chris’s:
I’m honestly amazed at how easily Pete was able to take my few initial thoughts about Draven culture and turn it into a fully realized setting, one that his Triggerman character fit into, and one that took on a style that Pete could truly call his own. Every bit of the larger themes I wanted to portray within this short story, Pete was able to include almost effortlessly. There’s a certain joy when everyone can add their best to a creative project, and the result is vastly better than any one vision dominating the process.
Read the rest of the interviews—and lots more—at the Oneshi Press blog!
When you’re done with that, don’t forget to visit the Kickstarter! Every pledge, share, and mention helps us reach our goal!
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