If you’re a reader, you might or might not be familiar with Michael Anderle’s Kurtherian Gambit Universe. If you haven’t heard of it, you might want to check it out. Seriously. Just be prepared to spend hours, days, and months devouring books.
Back to being familiar with the Kurtherian Gambit Universe. One extra-special thing Michael created was an opportunity for fans to write stories within his universe and have them published under LMBPN’s banner. You read that right. Fanfic sanctioned and published by the universe’s creator.
Obviously, there are rules to follow and only select stories as voted in by readers make the cut. Still, it’s yet another thing that sets this universe apart. The best-selling first anthology, Tales from the Kurtherian Universe: Fans Write For The Fans: Book 1, was a hit with readers, fans, authors, and admins alike. They all asked if another anthology could happen.
Enter Book 2
The process of getting a new anthology into the works started back in February. Several people decided to try their hand at writing a short story (or three, or five) for consideration. Many had never written a story of any kind. Others had done some writing but were shy about sharing. A few were already pursuing a lifelong dream, but leaped at the chance to write stories inspired by the books they eagerly devoured.
A lot of magic happened during the weeks of writing, sharing, fixing canon issues, initial editing, and myriad other things. Many things happen when people exercise their creativity with the full support of their fellow fans and readers. Peer critiques given and received are among them.
When the formal submission link opened in April, twenty-six short stories and poems poured in for review before submissions closed. One of them, “Sendia’s Journey,” was mine.
Fast-forward through the reading period and vote tallying. Then the surprise announcement of TWO new anthologies because so many stories met the criteria for inclusion. After that was signing contracts, the formal editing and JIT processes, and publishing. (Book 3 is due to release later this year. September, I believe.)
Launch day
Yesterday was nerve-racking. LMBPN hit “Publish” for Tales from the Kurtherian Universe: Fans Write For The Fans: Book 2 early in the morning. Amazon was apparently backlogged, so the book didn’t release until early evening. Six other newly minted authors and I were all but coming out of our skin waiting for the book to launch. I can’t speak for the other two authors whose works are also in Book 2. One is an established author within the Kurtherian Gambit Universe and also has independent works. The other had a story published in Book 1.
Our fellow fans and readers were equally impatient for the launch. I truly don’t know who cheered loudest when the link was finally available. All I know is that it earned the coveted orange “Bestseller” tag less than twelve hours after launch.
These are the rankings for Book 2 at the time of this post:
Thank you
Thank you to all the fans and readers worldwide who encouraged my fellow authors and me to share our creations. You supported LMBPN Publishing and us in every way that matters. You all rock.