Hello! It has been a while since I did a blog, but it’s for a good reason — I was finishing my draft of Blades Reforged! I’m excited to say that I’ll be able to bring the conclusion of the Blades of the Goddess series to you in September, but in the meantime…

…Let’s talk about Colors of Magic!

A paperback copy of *Colors of Magic* lying on a wooden table.

What is Colors of Magic, if it’s not in the series?

Colors of Magic is not one of the core books of Blades of the Goddess, but it is related! Each of the nine short stories is a prequel looking at the life of a different character anywhere from 6,000 years to one year before Lost Blades. Colors can be read independently of the series, and you do not need to read Colors to enjoy Blades of the Goddess, but they share a symbiotic relationship and you will get more out of both by reading both. I recommend reading it between Broken Blades and Blades Reforged, but you can really read it whenever! As it is shorter than the Blades novels (about half the length), it can function as a more bite-sized chunk if you want to try out the world and characters of Blades of the Goddess.

An example of one of the illustrations included in *Colors*, though in the book they will be in black and white. This is the illustration for “Green”

Why did you write Colors of Magic?

One of my goals as an author is to build a world that readers want to get lost in and learn more about — and Colors is one of the ways I want to deliver more of that information! Each of the story ideas was selected carefully to do two things: 1. Tell you more about a character, and 2. Tell you more about the world. So I really wanted these to be about character-building and worldbuilding. And if you’ve read Lost and Broken, then, well… some of my beta readers were subtitling it: “Colors of Magic: Not what you expected.”

Additionally, some of the stories in Colors (such as “Violet” and “Green”) were actually some of the earliest story concepts I came up with all the way back in 2012! And some of the stories (such as “Black” and “Scarlet”) have individual scenes that I thought of really early, too. Overall, I LOVE how these stories turned out - some of them are some of my favorite things I’ve written yet! I can’t wait for everyone to be able to read them!

If you preordered Lost Blades through me or purchased the extras package for it on Campfire, you would have received my glyph font, which includes the 52 glyphs used in magic in Gaia. There’s also a glyph associated with each story. The hardcopies of Colors will include an illustration centering the glyph on the page facing the beginning of the short story, and the ebook will have each glyph as part of the chapter heading! I am greatly enjoying making these art deco inspired illustrations, and I hope you all enjoy them too!

Can you tell me about any of the stories?

Sure! I love talking about these stories.

Violet: The only story that follows a new character named Alexia, it’s the earliest story in the collection, taking place about 6,800 years before Lost Blades, in a time when Abomination came very, very close to succeeding. The associated glyph is “sever.”

Black: Follows Jak, and takes place shortly after Violet. What would you do after the end of the world? The associated glyph is “transform.”

Scarlet: Jumping ahead to about a thousand years before Lost Blades, “Scarlet” follows Sukra, the Aradian who traveled with Ebryn Stormlight on his demon-slaying adventures. I wanted to shine a spotlight on Aradian culture with this story! The associated glyph is “fire.”

Yellow: Did you ever wonder how Jeri became a Vampire? You will learn quite a bit about Vampires and Jeri in this story. The associated glyph is “blood.”

Green: A look at Ander’s early life in Elbe about 300 years before Lost Blades, up until he fled with the Crystal Light Blade. This is the longest story, really more of a novelette, and it was the second one I wrote. The associated glyph is “protect.”

Blue: Mara is the point of view character in “Blue,” and I wanted to take a look at Veren culture in this short story! They’ve been mentioned quite a few times in the main series, but we haven’t seen any yet — until now. The associated glyph is “life.”

Lavender: Takeshi finds out he’s been engaged to Hotaru. I hope you wanted to see more of Rikona. The associated glyph is “balance.”

Silver: Two years before Lost Blades, Jamirh was just another street thief in Lyndiniam. The associated glyph is “inward.”

White: In order to help mortals fight against Abomination, Hades inhabited a construct made for her by Ander. Also featuring some wargs, Vlad, and a surprise divine guest. The associated glyph is “motion.”

So I hope that’s a good teaser for the collection!

Preorder Info

Colors has been on preorder since Broken came out in January, but I have yet to spotlight the fun bonuses you get for preordering through my direct storefront! As usual, they are divided into digital bonuses and physical bonuses.

Preorder Digital Bonuses

Anyone who preorders (or has preordered) Colors of Magic can get the free, digital preorder bonuses by filling out this form (if you preordered through my website, the link is in your confirmation email)! These include:

Digital themed backgrounds for desktop and phones, with the desktop coming in a plain and a productivity style.
Hi-res, full-color maps
Hi-res, full-color versions of the timelines in the book
A digital Glossary

Physical Preorder Bonuses

If you preorder a hardcopy — either paperback or hard cover — from my direct storefront, you get the following physical gifts in your book box:

A Colors of Magic bookmark
A whopping NINE 2.5” vinyl stickers — that’s one for each of the stories!
A signed bookplate

Here are some of the chibis:

I hope all that as piqued your interest is this short story collection! Colors of Magic will release on May 12, 2024, and is available at all retailers and through my direct storefront.

Cheers!

Let’s Talk About Colors of Magic