Just a few hours left to snap up Crown of Horns on sale!

The ebook/audiobook combo is on itch.io and just waiting for you to pick it up. (It’s also elsewhere, but not nearly as much on sale.)

Check it out here: https://empyclaw.itch.io/crown-of-horns

Crown of Horns is a political fantasy where art and compassion triumph over tyranny.

#CrownOfHorns #books #writingcommunity #bookstodon #scribesandmakers #writerscoffeeclub #wordweavers #fantasy #reading #ebook #audiobooks

Crown of Horns - eBook & Audiobook combo by F. David Schultz

There are no benevolent dictators.

itch.io

#ScribesAndMakers 13 Share a photo (with alt text) or snippet of something you've been working on this week

Wiry demons with ragged teeth and branching horns clawed and clattered across the ground. With cloying fingers they gathered scattered stones and lifted them up high until they sparked and burned with black fire in their hands.

#CrownOfHorns

#WritingPride June 4: Does queerphobia or repression of non-cis, non-hetero people exist in your setting?

Kostyk faces rejection of their gender identity within their community, but queerphobia is not really present in the world at large. It’s fringe at most.

While I wanted prejudice to be a key component to the political tensions in Vsevora, I did not want them to be based on sexuality.

A lot of my readers have expressed they really appreciate that aspect of the work 💜
#CrownOfHorns

#PennedPossibilities 1033. Writing a main character with a mental illness…

Yes, Siranna is constantly challenged by her anxiety.

My partner shared a lot about her experience with anxiety to help me shape it in the book.

When asked, Siranna is often the least favourite of the three narrators. I guess watching someone spiral while barely scraping ahead is a bit of a bummer… but I wouldn’t do anything different.

Those that like her really connect.
#anxiety #writing #mentalhealth #CrownOfHorns

Tune in for something different!

Tuesday June 9th after 5 pm MDT, catch a reading of Crown of Horns on Twitch in a lovely British dialect.

This streamer got challenged to read a book live on stream and through a wild twist of events, they chose mine! Should be fun 😄

https://m.twitch.tv/pinkxemochildx/home

#twitch #twitchstream #books #bookstodon #CrownOfHorns #writing

#WritingPride How do you portray your characters' queerness?

Velodik wears it on his sleeve with his promiscuity.

Oskar and Emil with their quiet, steadfast bond.

Kostyk through processing past trauma and growing in their identity.

Others… just between the lines.

#writingcommunity #CrownOfHorns #pride #lgbtq #books #QueerAuthors

#WordWeavers 7. Who is your most visually stunning character? How do others react to them?

Ishkara for certain. She is always in a new vibrant dress with furs and gems. She wears beads of fine glass in her horns.

She sees herself as the modern Vekara, a queen known for never wearing the same gown twice, and each one a hand-made masterpiece.

#CrownOfHorns

Last night, someone told me that they picked up my book a few days ago but he’s probably not going to read it for a year.

Opened it up to read a couple lines at a random spot in the middle and… huge spoiler. Now he needs to wait to forget it.

He told me he’s done this with every book he’s gotten for years and it’s the first time it’s burned him.

Oops! Looking forward to his review next year I suppose!

#writingcommunity #authorlife #books #CrownOfHorns

#WordWeavers May 30: Is it possible for someone in your world to make a living as a writer or artist?

Yes! One of the main characters is an artist. It’s not easy, especially as industrialization moves in. But, there are some very lucrative opportunities. Especially if you turn a blind eye to the propaganda you’ll be asked to create.

Oh… oh wait…

@AudraBalionArt art credit

#amWriting #art #CrownOfHorns #writingcommunity #illustration

#WordWeavers May 25: What one event defines your MC?

There are a few, but I will focus on Siranna today…

Her mother’s rejection, telling Siranna that she will never make it in the world.

From that moment onward, everything she does is in defiance of that… or a painful reminder with every failure.

#CrownOfHorns