For those seeking to achieve their dreams, they simply have to go out and grab them.
That’s the mantra of Diane Morrison, a local author who has launched a Kickstarter campaign to support the release of her first full-length fiction work Once Upon a Time in the Wyrd West.
“(It’s a) science-fantasy weird western post-apocalyptic cattlepunk serial, like Tolkien meets Tombstone,” Morrison smiled.
Morrison is a hybrid author, meaning she has been both traditionally and independently published. Since her first book release under her pen name Sable Aradia (The Witch’s Eight Paths of Power, Red Wheel/Weiser 2014) she has appeared in a variety of venues: large press, small press, professional blogs and independent. Recently she received an honourable mention in the prestigious Writers of the Future competition. She is also managing the official YouTube channel for Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA).
“I decided to publish the Wyrd West Chronicles stories to an ebook,” said the born-and-raised Vernonite. “Because they were serialized stories, and they were an odd length. That makes them a hard sell for publishers.”
But she was not deterred and has published six stories in the series so far.
“The publishing industry is changing,” she said. “In my work with SFWA, I’ve learned that about half of the current market share in science fiction and fantasy is from independent authors. And I’ve learned that even the small presses and the big magazines are all crowdfunding now.”
Bringing the stories to print as a collection was always part of the plan. She decided to crowdfund it, “because an indie author still has all the requirements and expenses of a big publishing company, at least if they’re going to produce quality work.”
Once Upon a Time in the Wyrd West is a complete story arc of about 70,000 words (novel-length). The book releases Sept. 1.
Morrison is no stranger to adversity. Her husband’s near-fatal car accident transformed her life and necessitated some hard changes.
“But in many ways, it was a catalyst,” Morrison said. “I learned that life was too short to delay your dreams. So, I started writing again, which I hadn’t done since high school. And the rest is history.”
Morrison’s Kickstarter runs until Aug. 14 with a goal of raising $1,250. Rewards offered in return for support include ebooks, livestreamed readings, trade paperback and hardcover copies of the books and even signed books and original proofs.
“Assuming all goes well,” she laughed, “I’ll be holding a local release party in September.”
She is also booking venues for an Okanagan and Interior BC book tour.
For more information, contact Morrison through her website, www.dianemorrisonfiction.com, her Twitter @SableAradia, or her Facebook page Sable Aradia.