It’s hard for me to believe it’s been two years since Book 2: Among the Missing hit shelves and that it’s been over a year since I released a new Little Fears Nightmare Edition product. I’d very much like to correct that but, to do so, I’ll need your help.
I’ve always worked on LF products from an investment point of view. I do the work and release it with no forward payment. I’m fine with that but that’s not something I can ask the illustrators I work with to do. And new products, especially a full 128pp book, needs a lot of art. So I’m turning to you to help fund the art for LFNE Book 3: Blessed are the Children.
Blessed are the Children is about the human spirit—literally. It talks about kids whose souls are gone or replaced with the spirit of a monster or who have two souls or whose souls are bolstered by the power of faith. It is about special children with special abilities—abilities that come with a severe cost. They are different than other kids but they are still very much children fighting a war against the overpowering monsters of Closetland.
I’m taking a couple routes in getting this project off the ground.
Kickstarter
I’ll be running a Kickstarter for Blessed are the Children for thirty days starting next Wednesday, August 7th. The goal will be $1500 which will cover all art and production costs for the book. The target is low and whether we hit it or not will be very telling as to whether it’s worth putting Book 3 together. (I sincerely hope it is.)
Normally, I would run a pre-order but I only do that when the art and production costs are covered anyway—that way no one who pre-orders runs the risk of not getting a book. Lacking the art budget, I can’t risk a pre-order that doesn’t cover the cost. The Kickstarter will have multiple tiers for those who wish to support it, including bundles for Books 2 and 3 and Books 1, 2, and 3 and the complete set of LFNE books and all seven Campfire Tales. For those of you who have been asking about dice, some of the tiers will include an opportunity to grab sets as well.
Throughout the Kickstarter, I’ll post excerpts and previews to help build interest. Your support, both monetarily and in spreading the word, will be crucial to the campaign’s success. But Kickstarter isn’t the only way to help support Little Fears!
New Product Line: Goodie Bags
Starting August 5th*, I’m putting out a new line of support products for Little Fears Nightmare Edition. Called Goodie Bags, these are 6-10pp one-off products that focus on new areas and groups that exist in the Little Fears universe. The first two products are about two groups, one existing and one brand-new.
The Butterfly Knights
Introduced in Book 1, the Butterfly Knights are kids in Closetland who help those who get lost within the nightmare realm. In addition to their backstory and plot lines that involve the Knights, their Goodie Bag includes stats to use them as generic or expanded GMCs as well as fully-fleshed Player Characters.
Baba Yaga’s Children
A new group, these monsters are kids twisted by the Crone to become vile, feral creatures who hunt the animals of Closetland—as well as those human children who dare to venture within. Their Goodie Bag includes their backstory, their full Monster stats, and numerous ways to incorporate them into your LFNE game.
Depending on the success of these two, I have other Goodie Bags planned that feature new areas of Closetland, more information on the In-Between World (as introduced in Book 2), and others. They’ll retail in PDF for $5.
New Campfire Tale: The House That Wasn’t There
Coming in September, this standalone episode features a house that only appears in the real world once every seven years. And when it does, it brings some very nasty guests with it.
So, in sum, after a long period of quiet (due to moving, launching Streets of Bedlam, starting a new job, etc), I’m looking to bring some new stuff to the world of Little Fears Nightmare Edition. I hope I can count on your support.
*I’ve had my days screwed up lately. I had written August 3rd originally but it’s next Monday, August 5th.
