Kickstarter fantasy anthology!

[fireun]

Guys, we are seriously, seriously close to getting funded. If you have not, stop by the project page and take a look around. Spread the link for me. I have some fantastic authors involved here and I want this to not only fund, but really really fund, leaving no question as to the viability not only of the process but of the authors themselves.

$15 gets you the anthology. That's 20 stories worth of kick-ass fantasy in non-DRM eBook format. Organized, produced, and distributed by authors.

Comments

[water-soter.livejournal.com]

I've been constantly refreshing the page to check it out. 21 days to go and only about $300 to go. WOW. It really goes to show that people want well-written, well-characterized women in fiction. Especially women protagonists. In my original fiction, I had a lot of male protagonist, but you have inspired me to change them to women. Women should be writing women and writing them well. I'm so excited for all you guys!!!

[fireun.livejournal.com]

It has definitely made me notice I tend to write almost exclusively males *sheepish*

the fantasy genre gets overrun with male protagonists, and while urban fantasy gets a good dose of female leads, they tend to be oversexed. It is a fascinating trend to watch.

It has been magnificent to watch this project move. We never expected to make our goal that fast :D

[water-soter.livejournal.com]

It is kind of funny. I'm mostly a fantasy/sci-fi writer and when I visualize my ideas, it's usually with a male protagonist and I add a girl/woman to the story more of an afterthought than a forethought.

And yeah, I'm so sick of women dressing in very slutty clothes, like that gives them some kind of special power. Women's greatest power is their minds not the size of their bust.

I once read an article where Halle Berry stated that women's power is in their sexuality. I was deeply offended. That's why this project is so special. And I'm so happy to see such a warm reception for it. We need more women protagonists that are not just sex symbols and pin-up girls. :-)

[fireun.livejournal.com]

I grew up reading fantasy, and all of the heroes (apart from a very rare few) were males. And I think that made an impression and stuck in there, so when I sit down to write it is hard for me to have my first concept involve a female lead. It is a problem with the genre. Urban fantasy tries to fix it, having kick ass heroines, but they go about it the wrong way- revolving around the sex appeal and relationships and all the covers have under-dressed women on them- because that is what sells, sadly. That comment by Halle Berry makes me sad. Yes, sexuality is a tool, but it is not THE tool that women possess.

The Deed of Paksenarrion, by Elizabeth Moon, was one of the first fantasy series I ever read with a magnificently strong female protagonist. I loved it.

[water-soter.livejournal.com]

Ah, I'm going to check it out. And yes, you're right, it's like we are taught from early on that males are leads in sci-fi and fantasy. So when we create those worlds, it's usually with a male lead.

The same, sadly, with the way women are viewed in the world of fiction. In order to be kick-ass, they have to be sexual creatures and only sexual creatures.

To be fair to Halle Berry, she did later apologize for the comment, but still it really shows how we (women) view ourselves. We are "empowered" if we use our sexuality to get what we want. My favorite character, female characters, are smart, and use their brains to be heroes.

[pbray.livejournal.com]

Congratulations! Checked the page and you've made it!

[fireun.livejournal.com]

We are full of excitement!

[vuli.livejournal.com]

I've got a n00b question for you - will the ebook be available in the UK? If so, I'll be contributing as soon as I get paid this week! :D

[fireun.livejournal.com]

The wonderful part about producing it ourselves is that it will be available everywhere at the same time in as many formats as I can technically sort out ;D

So definitely will be available for everyone in the UK!