My new book The End of Magic is coming soon from Unbound! It’s a fantasy adventure mash-up of the kind of high fantasy I read in my youth, with a bloody dash of the grimdark I enjoy now. Yes, I’ve invented a new genre called GrimFun* – you’re welcome!
Here’s a short video of me looking all windswept and David Starkey…
Why Unbound? One big reason was the opportunity to work with Simon Spanton. Simon is an editor of excellent taste who has worked with the likes of Richard Morgan (Altered Carbon), Joe Abercrombie (The Blade Itself) and Scott Lynch (The Lies of Locke Lamora). I couldn’t pass this up!
And Unbound use a crowdfunding model, which means I have to raise about four grand in 90 days! It also means that every book they publish is profitable, and there are few publishers that can boast that these days. And after the Bestseller Experiment it seemed apt that I should jump feet first into a new way of publishing.
To entice you good people to pledge for a copy of the book, there are all sorts of rewards on offer. You could get your name in the back of the book (or the front, for a few quid more!), you could even have a character named after you (but be quick – two of those have gone already!). If you’re a writer, I could give you constructive feedback on your novel or screenplay, or I could give a talk on the Hero’s Journey to your writers’ group or school, and there’s a completely mental option where we go for a pub lunch in Herne Bay. Only two available. One has gone already…
I know that times are hard and money is tight, so if this is a little rich for your pocket then all I ask is a little signal boost: please tell all your fantasy fiction fans that this book is coming, because I think they’ll love it. Please send them here: https://unbound.com/books/end-of-magic/
After a week of fundraising, I’m just over a quarter of the way there, which is great, but other Unbounders tell me that this is the easy bit. Once your friends and family have all chipped in the real work begins… Wish me luck and come and join me on this adventure!
PS. If you like the music in the video, it was composed and performed by my friend Dominic Currie. Check out his Soundcloud page here. He’s something of a genius.
*I actually think Jen Williams got there before me, but she prefers the term GleeDark, which is just as cool.
Mark Stay Writes 