Goodbye 2024!

Hard to believe it’s a new year already. Although 2024 flew by quickly for us, it was rife with immense growth, discovery, and accomplishment. We are in awe of everything that transpired last year, and we owe it all to you out there who believed enough in our dream and helped Fragments come to fruition. Here’s a few exciting final notes about how the year wrapped up for us.

The Big Push

Since we released Fragments in August of 2024, we’ve been to over 30 events across 4 states—a combined 4,000 miles in driving, which is almost back and forth across the entire United States. We’ve had events in the rain, in the freezing cold, at night and in the early morning. Did we mention we both have day jobs, too?

All of our efforts validated how passionate we are about getting our work out into the world, and 2025 will be no different. … except maybe for participating in any freezing cold outdoor events again.

Last year was all about trying out as many new events and venues as we could manage, and we’ve met some incredible folks along the way. Now is the time for reflection, and understanding how to maximize our efforts by attending the “right kind” of events for us. You know, ‘cause we have a certain vibe.

  

  

Reflections

And speaking of reflections, some of you may already know that is the title of book 2! During January, while it’s cold and the markets are quiet, we’ll be hunkered down working hard to dial in the manuscript. It’s shaping up to truly be something else, so prepare yourself.

Book 2 Beta Reader Interest Form

The Beta Reading Interest form for Book 2 is officially open! If you are interested in participating, the form and all additional information can be found here.

Beta Readers receive the first press hardcover edition of the book, a mention in the book credits, and the accompanying swag planned for the release. Pretty exciting, right?

Literary Global Book Awards Finalists

We’re happy to announce that The Chimera Snare: Fragments was chosen as a finalist in the 2024 Literary Global Book Awards for the categories of Fiction: Debut & Fiction: Fantasy/Sci-fi.

A big thank you to the Literary Global Book Awards for their consideration and recognition. We’re truly honored to be among such an amazing company. Congratulations to all of this year’s winners and finalists!

  

New RAFB Stickers

The most common feedback we’ve received from patrons at the non-book-centric events we’ve attended is that they do not read. Boo to that, right?!

To celebrate and encourage literacy, we created these fun RAFB (Read a F*cking Book) stickers. You can snag them on our web store. What variations would you like to see in the future?

  

Onward into 2025!

As we blow the candle out on 2024, we move on to lighting a fervent torch for 2025. We have a ton of great events booked already, and many more plans in the works we can’t wait to share with you very soon.

May this coming year be full of success, growth, and prosperity for all of you!

-S&E Black

November went by in the blink of an eye. We went to Texas to visit Fam, and while we were out there, we made a couple of book-related stops in between our break. Take a look: 

Pioneer Memorial Library

This gorgeous building was built in 1882 in Fredericksburg, Gillespie County, TX, and was originally a courthouse. We gave a presentation about The Chimera Snare as a project and had some meaningful chats, specifically about the use of AI in creative media nowadays. If you haven’t guessed it, we’re very much opposed to AI in the world of arts and literature.

There was also talk about hosting an evening book-reading event at the old prison just down the street for Halloween, which we are very much interested in doing. We might be coming back next year for spooky season!

  

Another major highlight at Pioneer Memorial Library: we met Debbie Sultemeier of Fredericksburg Essentials in person! Debbie (right) handmade our Triad’s Crown soap for our book launch. She’s a very sweet person, and it was a joy to chat with her. Also pictured (left) is the wonderful Erika Caputo, Pioneer Memorial Library’s Director, who was kind enough to have us over for the event.

The Twig Book Shop

Even though this event turned out to be a little quiet—we inadvertently booked it on election day (oops), we had a blast chatting with the staff and getting some out-loud reading practice in. We also got to eat some yummy food and enjoy the evening lights at the Pearl.

The Twig Book Shop began its evolution in San Antonio, TX in 1972. Their name was inspired by Alexander Pope's quote, "'Tis education forms the common mind; just as the twig is bent, the tree's inclined."

  

We Are Shelved At About Time Bookstore

We’re thrilled to announce that we are officially shelved at About Time Bookstore! About Time Bookstore is a cozy woman-owned bookstore in the heart of Libertyville, IL. They’re dedicated to connecting people through books, from the latest releases and timeless classics to enchanting children’s stories. If you’re in the area, stop by and check out their shelves. They’ve got some great releases from other local authors as well!

 

Review Us!

Have you finished The Chimera Snare: Fragments? We would love to hear what you thought of it! Be sure to head on over to Good Reads and Bookbub to drop a review. Reviews are incredibly valuable for all authors and we appreciate your time leaving honest feedback.

Limited Edition Krampus Bookmarks

We still have a small bundle of our limited-edition foiled Krampus holiday bookmarks left! We'll continue giving these out at our upcoming markets through the remainder of the year. Online orders placed during that time will also receive one. Available while supplies last!

Giving Back Program

Don’t forget, our art prints can be purchased on Clay Urn Publishing’s webstore. All art print sales, including online, support the charity of the month. For more info, check out our Giving Back page.

Giveaway Announcement

Last, but certainly not least, we’ve launched a brand new art print giveaway on Sweepwidget! We personally purchased both of these art prints to sponsor the charity of the month. Check it out here and be sure to enter while you can. We will be drawing two winners when this giveaway wraps up on 1/10/25.

Have a great December, everyone! It’s shaping up to be the busiest month for us yet—and we’ll have more exciting updates for you next month, so stay tuned!

From officially being shelved to vending in the rain, we’ve had quite the full month!

And speaking of the beauty within darkness, check out this awesome shot from one of our besties. She gravitated to a declaration made by one of the main characters that rings true to us on a personal level.

Now, let’s check out some more fun highlights from September.

Shows, Shows, Shows!

We really hit the ground running. In September, we had six events: DuPage MightyCon, Milwaukee MightyCon, Author Spotlight at Zion Benton Public Library, Chapter 6 of Studio MoonFall’s Kenosha Book Fest, Meet The Authors at Studio MoonFall, and our first event with Streetz Artz Alliance for Oak-tober Fest at Imperial Oak Brewing.

We got to play around with different booth sizing and had an absolute blast. Oddly enough, our rainy day Chapter 6 Kenosha Book Festival was the best day! we know books and rain go together well, but usually, that’s with a hot bev and some cozy blankets indoors. We’re so thankful for everyone who came and showed their support!

  

  

  

We Are Officially Shelved!

We couldn’t be happier to be shelved at Studio Moonfall and This Old Book. Both venues show incredible support to local authors and have been a trove of kindness as we’ve navigated our release- not to mention some of the most fun to chat with. Check out some shots of TCS sitting pretty on their shelves! And if you’re in the area, do say hi and show them some love.

 

 

Giving Back Program

We had a blast chatting with folks about our Giving Back program.

In September, we sponsored Kindred Kitties, Kenosha's all-volunteer, non-profit, no-kill rescue organization aimed at proactively addressing the plight of homeless cats. Most of the folks we chatted with were familiar with the organization and expressed their kind words, which was amazing to be a part of. We sold a total of 7 art prints and are working to get the donation over to Kindred Kitties this week.

In October, we are sponsoring Gatos de la Noche. Their mission is to actively facilitate and support the humane treatment of feral cat colonies. This includes participating in Trap Neuter and Return (TNR) of feral cats, seeking medical attention for cats that are ill or hurt, setting up feeding stations for anyone willing to feed a colony on a daily basis, trapping kittens, and finding foster homes to socialize them and training others to do the same. Gatos de la Noche believes education and support are the keys to ending the cycle of unwanted kittens and cats.

Can’t make it to the events, but still want to support?

Our art prints can be purchased on Clay Urn Publishing’s webstore. All art print sales, including online, support the charity of the month. For more info, check out our Giving Back page.

Have an amazing October, everyone! We know we will. Check out the following events we'll be attending this month:

 

 

 

 

 

It's The Chimera Snare: Fragments release day! To mark the occasion, we wanted to share the history of how The Chimera Snare came to be and the journey made to get to where were are today.

The earliest fundamental development of what The Chimera Snare has become today started when Shannon was around 11. She had always loved writing short stories and was particularly fascinated with dreams: how vivid and cinematic hers were, and the interesting parallels that sometimes occurred between her and her friends.

The base of the TCS universe was something that Shannon toyed with during her senior year in high school, but it was left behind during all the chaos of graduation and work until a dream reignited it a couple of years later. During an early morning, sleep-deprived trip into San Francisco on CalTrain for work, Shannon was listening to Agalloch's The Mantle and had an epic, vivid dream to the first 2 tracks, "A Celebration For the Death of Man" and "In the Shadow of Our Pale Companion." The experience created the first-ever depth for the two characters, Von and Navaryn, portraying their love for one another and the lengths they went through in order to be together despite their forbidden relationship.

The daydream left a permanent imprint. Intent on creating an animation based on what she experienced, Shannon storyboarded the length of both songs. However, the more she reflected on the characters Von and Navaryn, the more she felt like there was a deeper story to tell. Therefore, she decided to bring them to life through a full-fledged novel. Fragments incorporates that very plight among other elements of the main plotline.

The first iteration of Fragments was self-published by Shannon in 2015. Shortly after, her husband, Edward, joined in on the writing adventure, and together as a team, they created book two, titled Reflections. Reflections was set to release in the summer of 2020, yet the pandemic forced the author duo to reschedule their plans. The extra time was a blessing as they assessed Fragments would need a complete overhaul to match the universe expansion they created in Reflections. Not only that, but they wanted to connect with a professional artist who matched their overall vibe and would elevate the presentation of their series.

They connected with Adrian Baxter, a talented artist in the UK known for his intricate line art and deliciously dark, macabre designs. He also crafts album artwork for notable musicians- some of which the author duo pays their respects to in their book credits. Adrian created the book's visual identity and incorporated important meanings to the artistic elements which will be later explained in an upcoming blog post.

Now, after four years of work and nearly 10 years since the original version of Fragments released, the remastered version, penned together by both Shannon and Edward, is officially ready for the world.

 

Fun Facts:

• The release date of August 17th is the couple's Wedding Anniversary.
• There are still plans to one day create the animation to the two tracks from Agalloch with an updated storyboard that matches the expanded universe the couple has created together.