The fan art page is now live! Since Flam Singer was the last person to share fan art, I thought I’d start with all of Flam’s works and go from there. My plan is that when I need a break from writing, I’ll pick an artist and get all of their pieces added. I’ve had a lot of fans ask where the best place to see all of the fan art is, and hopefully, by the end of the year, the answer will be here.
I’ve shared this before, but because I started out in mystery, horror, and literary fiction, I never expected anything I write to inspire fan art. My love of gryphons appears to be infectious, however, and there are well over 100 pieces of fan art and a dozen fanfics. I’ve had the most touching fan letters, and I’ve signed hundreds of books at this point. (Not too shabby for an immunocompromised author who doesn’t get out much!)
I’ve seen artists use GryphIns characters as examples for animation commissions, I’ve seen fan art end up on tie dyed t-shirts, I’ve seen dozens of original characters created set in the world of Belamuria, and I’ve even had artists reach out to say that I was wrong in my author’s note for Crestfall to exclude vampire finch gryphons, and here was art to prove that point.
It’s been a delightful journey, and it’s still going. While all of Flam Singer’s pieces are on the fan art page, linked above, here’s just a few of my favorites from over the years. And if you enjoy them, feel free to stop in and tell him so on Blue Sky or Patreon =]
Flam Singer once asked the important question: What if feathermanes had pony manes instead of lion manes?Flam had the very first fan art of Ninox.
The cave gryphons warn that when you travel deep beneath Belamuria, you should move in groups of no fewer than twenty, and you should never listen to the whispers that tell you to stray from the path…
If you’re a patron at the audiobook tier, you have access to the audiobook today! Go check the post to get your copy =]
The audiobook is currently going through the individual stores’ Quality Assurance departments, so they’ll be up soon. Kobo is up for preorder, Audible and everywhere else it might be a few days.
Amazon’s paperback will be approved soon. For other stores, there was an issue to fix, and the new proofs are in the mail. As soon as they arrive, if they’re good, the paperback will show up in other stores and the hardcovers and large print editions will show up everywhere (even Amazon).
Pridelord releases on Thursday! Of course, I wouldn’t want to show off the interior art early, but… maybe it’s time for a little game of Who’s That Gryphon?
The first interior art piece showcases one of the more unusual denizens of the Emerald Jungle. Known for their sharp beak and swooshy tail, they first appeared in The Crackling Sea, where they dampened the threshold to Nighteyes’ home. Go on, take your best guess. Who’s that gryphon?
I get a lot of emails asking about when Pridelord will be ready, and while the answer is still “soon,” for patrons, the answer is… well, right now =] Patrons at the $3 and up level can grab the ebook edition as of yesterday.
The retail version will go live after the audiobook and print editions are ready. James Scott Spaid is recording the audiobook as we speak, and I just got the final back cover copy and spine dimensions over to Jeff Brown. Soon as Jeff finalizes the cover print files, proofs will be on their way.
Because this book is so long and our printer’s max length is ~930 pages, Glenn and I have been polling fans at conventions who buy the large print editions, and you were all pretty clear: you did not want the font size reduced for any reason on the small print. In fact, for many of you, you’d given up on large print because it wasn’t large enough, and getting to see the GryphIns large print editions is what made you buy them. So we had to make the tough decision to divide the large print edition into parts one and two, around 550 pages each. It was a tough call as we definitely didn’t want people who need (or just enjoy) large print to have to pay more, but I appreciate all the input. And, for what it’s worth, that means that both parts are larger than Crestfall or Eyrie. Pridelord is a bigger than both combined!
I usually devote my time to working on the next book, but in this case, I’m listening to Pridelord’s audiobook as it gets recorded to help cut down on the production time. At the latest, when the audiobook gets finalized, there’ll be a two week preorder window. If things are going smoothly, it might be sooner. As promised, though, the audiobook, print editions, and ebook will release at around the same time. (Audible’s their own beast, so sometimes they release it early and sometimes their strict quality control standards take longer to approve a book.) Patrons in the audiobook tier will get the audiobook as it goes into final proof-listening, then the final version will be available after if you want the retail version.
All-in-all, it’s good to have this book ready to go. 2023 was a wild year without any GryphIns releases, and I’m glad it’s through. Things are still a little rough here (my husband is coming out of all his Long Covid complications, but he’s not at 100% yet). I’m at a point where my entire life isn’t just Covid stuff, though. Not that I ever stopped writing (Saberbeak is almost 40k written), just that I write much faster when my stress level is lower.
And with a book as long as Pridelord, it could have been four romance or cozy mystery novels, which would’ve filled up that 2023 roster nicely =] But I write epic fantasy, and those run long.
That said, while Pridelord needed to be long, the themes and stories that come next lend themselves more into normal length books. I’d considered trying to finish the series with just two more books, both extra long, and it feels forced. So the series may run a little longer, but instead of these 4x-normal-sized novels, they’ll be more like normal Starling-sized novels. It just may take a few more to finish up than expected.
Now, it’s time for me to curl up on the couch and watch the Lou Diamond Phillips episodes of Psych with Glenn, then get some sleep. When I’m not listening through Pridelord’s audiobook, though, I’ll be working hard on Saberbeak. Life’s not quite normal enough that I’d risk putting up a preorder page, but I have dreams of it releasing in December. Who doesn’t want to curl up with a nice warm Hatzel and read gryphon books over the winter? (Sorry, Australians, I know that’s your summer!)
For a limited time only, all GryphIns audiobook boxed sets are just $9.99. That’s three full audiobooks per boxed set, or $3.33/book. (Apple Books discounted them even further to $7.99, wow!)
Gryphon Insurrection Boxed Set Two: Reevesbane, The Ruins of Crestfall, The Crackling Sea ($39.99$9.99) On sale at: Apple, Barnes & Noble, Chirp, Google Play, and Spotify!
But wait, that’s not all! An ebook boxed set of Eyrie, Ashen Weald, Starling, and Blue Eyes & Other Tales is available in a bundle to help the Furry Writer’s Guild. (There’s a lot of gryphons & dragons in anthropomorphic literature, and it’s a great chance to help them out! The proceeds go to the Furry Writer’s Guild plus the authors involved.) It also includes Tales of Feathers & Flames, stories set in the world of Dire. That set has a full scary gryphon novel by me, Coldbright, about a snarky small opinicus and his dire ex-boyfriend gryphon trying to solve a mystery in a misty valley buried under a snowstorm. Saylor Ferguson’s Dragons of Time is also in the bundle, and Tales of Feathers & Flames includes her beak-cute lesbian love story. There’s a lot to love in the bundle.
Guard Captain Henders and ex-Clover Ranch Employee Foultner
Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, and it’s been a few years since we’ve had a new card. Not only have people been requesting a Foultner+Henders card, they’ve also wondered why those two never got chibi heart stickers. Oops! Well, thanks to Kittrel, we’ve remedied both of those problems this year.
You can download high definition versions of this card and the seven from past years over on the goodies page. And yes, there’s even a Tresh and Rorin card for you fanfiction writers! If there’s a GryphIns couple you’d like to see show up on the 2024 card, use the contact form or social media and let me know.
On the writing front, the Opinicus (#7) audiobook is in its final checks (patrons got their copy already) before going out to stores. Pridelord is still going through edits. I’ve been moving a little slow because we’re going to need to change health insurance, and navigating that with the current treatments is a little tricky. (January was light on edits, but I had my co-pay reduced by $12,500 a month, so I feel pretty productive.)
On the up side, every time I read Pridelord, I love it. On the down side, I just started going through edits again two days ago. Hopefully, it’ll reach you all soon. I’ll keep everyone posted.
Oh! I had a few requests for a convention appearance page. I need to sit down and work with Glenn (my husband, dragon author) on that. Generally, with treatments taking up every Saturday and Sunday this year, it’s tough for me to do conventions unless they’re local. He usually goes and attends them for me, selling copies of GryphIns I sign before he leaves, his own dragon books, Dire/Tales of Feathers and Flames by John Bailey, shirts/stickers/maps/art prints, fountain pens, and ink. If you’re going to attend a convention he’ll be at, I can sign and personalize a book for you ahead of time and send it with him. And hopefully, by 2024, I’ll be feeling well enough to travel again.
If you’re coming to Tails and Tornadoes this weekend, here’s how to find the STET Publishing booth! Glenn will be there again and has his dragon books, my gryphon books, and John Bailey’s Dire… plus some early copies of Tales of Feathers & Flames, a gryphon and wyvern anthology! (I’ll talk a little more about it when it releases later this month. But it has a lot of your favorite gryphon authors: Alexander Bizzell, JFR Coates, Glenn Birmingham, myself, Saylor Ferguson, and M. H. Wolfe. Also includes a Dire Rada interior art piece by Maria Puenchir and a brand new wyvern cover by Fleeks.)
We’re booth 29 on the right. If you stop by, be sure to let Glenn know if you think gryphons or dragons are cooler.
If you’re at DenFur this weekend, come say hello! Glenn Birmingham and Jean Kidd are handling the STET Publishing table, and they’re selling my gryphon books, Glenn’s dragon books, John Bailey’s Dire, t-shirts, stickers, bookmarks, and more!
They’ll even have the very popular flash drives in the shape of wooden books with a gryphon logo on them that contain: -Audiobook editions of Eyrie, Ashen Weald, Starling, Blue Eyes & Other Tales, Reevesbane, The Ruins of Crestfall (great for listening to on your way home from the convention, Reevesbane and Crestfall aren’t available in stores yet on audio) -Ebook editions of GryphIns 1-7 (+Blue Eyes), Dragon Source, Dragon Bound, Dire, and Tales of Feathers & Flames (not yet available in stores) -The map of Belamuria for anyone who wanted to take a close look at it
There’s also smaller clip flash drives that have just the ebooks.
I’m not quite well enough to attend the local cons yet, but hopefully next year. I spent this month doing health things so I can get a higher level of treatment as we narrow in on the right dose. In the mean time, I appreciate Glenn and Jean selling my books alongside their own =] Tell them hello if you’re at the convention.
If you’re at AWU this weekend in Utah, feel free to swing by the STET Publishing booth and say hello to my spouse, Glenn! He has copies of my gryphon books, his dragon books, John Bailey’s Dire, Fleeks’ gryphon pride t-shirts with Cielle on the front, bookmarks, and more!
At past conventions, a few people asked for the ability to buy the audiobooks and ebooks on a flash drive or with a code, and we have both. (If you get the audiobooks, they even come in a wooden USB drive in the shape of a book with a gryphon on the front.)
I’m looking forward to attending some local conventions as it gets safer, hopefully later in the year. Being immunocompromised makes it tough for me to attend conventions, but Glenn has been nice enough to handle both of our books when he attends them. And here’s where you can find him:
