Well, the people have spoken and the first short story we will unlock when we hit $5,000 is The Crystalline Gate. The prequel to my Guardians of Camelot series, it is a century-spanning look at one pivotal character's life.

Right now, we are less than $600 away from adding this story to everyone's bag of goodies. Let's keep this backer train chugging along. Please share with any friends you know who might enjoy some fun fantasy reads! I think we can smash through this goal by Friday September 13th! Let's make that day extra lucky.

Today, I also wanted to share a couple of other Booktopia campaigns with you that I think you'll enjoy.

Fairy godmothers aren’t supposed to fall in love. This romantasy is perfect for fans of Holly Black and Sarah J. Maas. This gorgeous limited-edition hardback with beautiful edges and interior art is not to be missed.

Fifteen delicious cocktail recipes. Fifteen darkly humorous short stories. One beautifully illustrated collection. And they're less than $300 away from unlocking additional illustrations!

Because of all of you, we've crossed 50 backers AND $4,000! That means everyone is getting some bonus behind the scenes goodness from me when you get your books. And congrats to our 50th backer, Molly Sumridge, who gets a mystery bonus added to their pledge for getting us across that threshold.

So, what's next you ask?

Well, when we hit $5,000, we'll unlock one of my back catalog fantasy short stories. Which one is up to you! Be sure to vote in today's poll (it closes at midnight PST on September 10) to choose which one you want to unlock first!

The other day, I told you about my squirrelly beginnings as an author and that it eventually led me to my co-author, Molly. I promised that story for another day and so here it is.

Back in 2009, as I was just starting law school, I landed a literary agent for a young adult book. Said agent introduced me to one of his other clients, fellow author Molly Zenk. We struck up a fast friendship, emailing daily (like a LOT) as we went on this crazy publishing journey together. We made the decision back in 2010 to leave that agent as the relationship just wasn't working out. But we stayed in touch and we've maintained a long-distance friendship ever since. From marriages, to births of our kids, we've been through it all together and I can't imagine having gone through a lot of my publishing journey without her.

In 2018, I heard about a list-aiming multi-author collection being put together for fantasy books. It was paranormal romance focused and while I hadn't ever done something like that before, I thought that was something I wanted to try. Hitting the USA Today Bestseller list had been a dream of mine and so I gave it a go. But I didn't want to do it alone. So, I asked Molly if she'd be interested in writing a story with me.

And that story ended up being Captivity. It didn't quite go as planned (I'm looking at you Douglas and Xander) but we had such a blast crafting the world you're about to dive into and it also sparked a continued co-author journey across three different series. Each world we create is unique and offers up our flare for social justice and leaving the world better than when our characters first encounter it.

Molly has been a sounding board for me on so many things. She's pushed me to improve my craft and take risks I wasn't sure I was ready for. And because of that support, I'm sitting here writing this update as we celebrate the fifth anniversary of our first joint venture with 52 amazing backers.

But we know we're not done. This collective can still grow. So share it with your friends and family. Tell your co-workers. Let's bring this world to as many people as we possibly can.

Way, way back in the early 1990s, I penned my first story. It was about 100 squirrels and I even drew illustrations to go with it. MY dad bound it with one of those spiral binders (you know, the thick black chunky ones) and I was so proud of it. Granted, an artist I am not (kind of comes with the territory when you're only working with one good eye). But that little tale sparked something in me.

It wasn't until high school in my Freshman English class when that story bug would take another chomp out of me. Not all of the things I wrote in that class were very good but it was a foundation for what would develop as I grew older. At that point, though, I wasn't fully comfortable playing in my own worlds. So I dabbled in high school through college with fan fiction. Harry Potter, Power Rangers, Charmed and Star Trek Voyager were my main fandoms and each story helped me begin to hone my craft a little more. From the beginnings of crafting a natural flow of dialogue to planning out a story arc, the safety net of these worlds gave me the comfort to start inching closer to what would one day become the writer I am today.

I still remember the first novel I wrote; a time-hopping tale of a woman taken on a journey to see how her death would alter the course of the lives around her called Love, Rebecca Lynn. The next novel I penned, The House of Jacob, was a history-spanning vampire tale that could have done with a lot more location research. Both weren't great but they did serve as the building blocks for me to improve my storytelling ability. And importantly, they began to open me up to accepting criticism and feedback. For a long time, I hated editing my own work. It's still not my favorite part of the process, but I have now reached a point where I can accept the feedback and know that it will only make the story and characters stronger. Over the next few years, I genre hopped a lot. From young adult mythology, to adult women's fiction (and my first published book) to fantasy.

Along the way, I did what all good authors were supposed to do in the mid-2000s; I queried agents and publishers. And I even landed an agent and later a couple of small presses. And along the way I also learned what types of stories were in my soul waiting to get out: fantasy tales of good triumphing over evil, of finding those we call family, even if they aren't our blood and unlikely heroes stepping up to save the day.

But as I'd find out, the agent and small press route wasn't the path for me. In 2016, I made the jump to self-publishing and it is because of that step that we've gotten here, where we can celebrate the Captivity series. The only good thing to come from the query period of my writing life was I met my co-author, Molly Zenk. But that is a story for another day.

For now, I want to leave with you another fun question that opens up the Captivity world a little more. In this world, sirens are used to hunt down other shifters for the benefit of the human elite. They do this with their siren song and objects obtained from the shifter they're after. So, if you had a shiver of sirens hot on your tail, what would they use to find you? I'd love to say it was a favorite book, but realistically, I don't go anywhere without my phone so that would probably be how they'd catch me!

And we are SO close to smashing our currently goals and I have some exciting extras to unlock once we reach them! So please share the campaign and make this anniversary celebration as big as we can!

Hey shifter fam, we are cruising along nicely towards those next achievements!

I couldn't let us get too far into the campaign without showing you just how absolutely beautiful (and substantial) the hardcover is!



And I couldn't help but take a little video of the book itself! You can check it out on YouTube.

Once you’ve  had a gander at the video, come back and take the poll to tell me what you're most excited about for the campaign!

And let's see how fast we can crush the goal of 50 backers! I bet before Sunday we'll be there (and if you read that as a dare, then take it in the spirit it is issued and let's expand our network of freedom fighters).

I am seriously overwhelmed right now.

I know that Molly and I have been anticipating this campaign since we made the decision to join Booktopia and bring our rag-tag band of shifter misfits to special edition status, but we didn't anticipate the love that would come pouring out!

THANK YOU!

Because of your support, we're fully funded and well on our way to making this our best campaign to date!

We cannot wait to have more folks join this amazing campaign. Bring your friends, share the campaign with anyone you know who is a lover of pretty books and fun stories.

To that end, be sure to check out the achievements that will unlock new bonuses for all backers!

As a fun little getting-to-know-you game, check out the poll below and cast your vote for what kind of shifter you'd be. Personally, I'd like to be a doxy. With the ability to shrink down and have a venomous bite, I think that would be pretty wicked.

Don't see one that fits you? Comment on this post with your choice!