And with this, anachronauts is (basically) over.
Well.
There IS the small matter of the bonus chapter coming up in the retail version of Stars Fall. And to whet your appetite… it takes place exactly 20 minutes after this chapter ends. It’s still optional, since it’s following a tangential storyline, but you may wanna hang around the blog and wait for the big announcement of its availability in early 2012. Just sayin’.
I started anachronauts back in 2009, when the project was just codenamed “witch jetpack grenade.” I had very little nailed down at the start; from my first-pitch notes the original version of Emily was much more of a librarian / packrat hoarding magic spells, Una’s Arcology was actually parked in Westusa, and Scout was actually a half-vampire without realizing it. Oiii. Thankfully the story figured itself out from there, solidifying into something not half terribad.
By the time I reached the end of what we now call the “First Age” I realized this should really be more of a saga than a one-and-done… an expanding scope of the world and scope of threats, from local (westusa / the mister) to global (england / angels and demons) to multiversal (the return of an orbital empire). What was initially going to be a series under 10 chapters went on to have four series and a bunch of side stories and YIKES did it get long… but it was as long as it had to be, and I’m proud of it.
This was also my first foray into quasi-professional writing, with the self publication route. The books never launched like a rocket, but they DID prove to be invaluable learning experiences, and I’ll absolutely be doing more books in the future alongside other projects. I’m glad the net’s evolved to the point where you can be independently creative AND more than just a hobbyist.
So… what’s next on the horizon? The Stars Fall retail book, then some revisions to the rest of the books to patch up typos. And after a good long rest, another writing project. I’ve had one bubbling away in the back of my mind for two months now… something involving ghosts and bureaucracy. But given anachronauts finished waaay different than its early preprod notes thought it’d be, who knows?
I want to thank each and every one of you for getting this far. If you’re reading this now, you stuck with the project through the years it took to complete, you followed the drafts, hopefully you left feedback as I went along. This would not have been possible without you. Seriously, it wouldn’t — the story would have been pretty weak if I’d just written the manuscript completely in secret. You deserve the champagne toast glass clinking more than I do.
Now, then… to business. Feedback on the last part of the story. Reactions to the series overall. Whatever you feel like posting. It’s up to you. Ahead of time, and again, thank you. Stay tuned. I’m not done yet.