These days, I still have two of the original seven dogs living with me, Louis and Lola, while the rest are happily at home with my mom. Louis is a Brussels Griffon and Lola is a round, fluffy mutt with Pug and some other breeds mixed in—I don't know for sure, but I do know both of them are cute as hell. I also have three cats, but they, like cats often do, mostly keep to themselves—Kevin, Claire, and Melinda.
As always, I'd like to thank a few people who were instrumental in helping me put this book together. Martha Carr and Michael Anderle for recruiting me into this wild world full of magic, Jen McDonell for editing, Andrew Dobell for putting together the cover, the rest of the Oriceran Universe authors for being so encouraging and helpful doing the process of creating, and most importantly, as I've stated earlier, the wonderful people who read the book when it's released. Thank you.
Flint Maxwell
Author Notes - Martha Carr October 29, 2017
Cold weather moving in… Texas style. That means a jacket has now become necessary. Can’t help thinking of Flint Maxwell in Ohio where this would be considered spring and plenty of people would be in short sleeves and flip flops. They’d call this brisk! I grew up in Philadelphia when I was young and I still remember a blizzard that came up to my waist. My parents still let us go out into it. Different times.
We had the elaborate snowsuit and you went outside and stayed out till you couldn’t stand it any longer. Hours. My feet and hands would be numb and it was hard to pronounce any consonants. Once we got warmed up by the fire it was hard to talk ourselves into going back out again – at least for a few hours. That’s where Flint is busy creating stories about witches and wizards and the world in between… It’s all about the layers Flint! Wrap up and stay warm… we have so many more books to go on this Oriceran adventure!
Publisher Notes - Michael Anderle October 30, 2017
First, thank you for reading our stories, even about dogs with iron stomachs. That you read this book all of the way through and now are reading my little publisher notes is both special, and confusing.
Why it is special is obvious I would think, who wants to read anything by the publisher? Confusing…well, uh, the same reason!
Who wants to read anything by the publisher?
As the publisher of the Oriceran Universe, I get the opportunity to see authors (hopefully) changed by their involvement in this effort and the feedback from amazing fans. I get to see them come out of their shell as we all work together in a supportive environment.
Writing can be damned lonely. I remember writing my first books in a vacuum. The first few fans were amazing, giving me back much-needed feedback and suggestions as I moved forward.
I know that a lot of fans spoke to me (as an author) and mentioned how they missed getting a chance to talk with their favorite authors. Certainly, some of that is due to how much of a pain it was to send letters so many years ago.
You know, the time before email? (Dark Ages for Sure!)
As a very new publisher, I’m encouraging those authors involved with LMBPN to go out there and communicate with fans. If they do, they may find the Fountain of Wisdom. Or at least the (water) Fountain of Wisdom.
So many times, as an author, when I have a question I just go to fans and ask.
Now, as a publisher, I think I need to figure out how to make this happen. I’ve no idea how to make this stuff work for LMBPN Publishing… But I will.
I hope.
I have a lot of ignorance, and I think it stems from not knowing the desires of readers. Please reach out to me on Facebook on the KurtherianBooks Facebook page if you have ideas related to how a book publisher could do something cool for you, the readers and fans. I’m interested to hear and see if maybe, just maybe…
We can change the face of publishing together.
Ad Aeternitatem,
Michael Anderle
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheKurtherianGambitBooks
The Midwest Whisperer
Chapter One
The gates to the town of Ashbourne stood tall and foreboding. Maria ran her fingers over the shape of the music box in her satchel, and then turned toward the rest of the group, beckoning them forward.
They used a nearby hill outside of the town as cover while they scouted the town. The mountains were now behind them and they could all but smell the water of the lake drifting along the night breeze.
Can’t I have another breather? Sherlock asked.
“You just had one. You were snoring up on the mountain,” Maria replied.
Yeah, but we’ve come a long way since then. I’m hungry.
“We’ve gone down the mountain, which is much easier than going up the mountain. And you’re always hungry. What’s new?”
Maria glanced at Frieda, who was helping Gramps down the hill. He looked weak and frail after what happened when they arrived on Oriceran via his portal, but Maria kept telling herself that he was strong.
She had learned Gramps’s nickname while they walked and urged him to tell stories of old to distract him. That nickname was ‘Ferod,’ given to him in Dominion and used among the others that guarded the king.
‘Ferod,’ Maria; remember what it means. Your grandpa is a stubborn ‘Old Bull’—a little kooky, sure, but never one to give up. Especially with so many lives hanging in the balance.
She was hoping to get him to talk about the past, the glory days; it
