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the dragon of ynys

Reading in Ferndale Library

Minerva Cerridwen

Hi!

Back in March, when I talked about donating the proceeds for The Dragon of Ynys to Ferndale Pride, I mentioned that there would be an author reading in May, co-hosted by Ferndale Library. That event is happening next Thursday, May 20!

It will, of course, be an online event – I’m still waiting impatiently for that teleportation technology for quick hops from Belgium to Ferndale, Michigan. Fortunately, we can have just as much fun online. I’ll be reading from The Dragon of Ynys, and then I’ll be answering questions from readers. You can find all the info about the event on the Facebook page: click here. The Zoom link will be found there on the day before the reading, and the event itself starts at noon Ferndale time (18:00 Belgian time – in other words, 12 EDT/18 CEST).

See you there!

Minerva

the dragon of ynys

Rainbow Space Recording

Minerva Cerridwen

Hi!

A quick note to say that you can find the Rainbow Space Magic reading with Elle E. Ire, Ava Kelly and me on YouTube! You can also watch the rest of the panels and readings here.

If this gets you in the mood to attend a virtual con live, you can now sign up for IQARUS, which takes place on May 8-9! This book con is named “International Queer Authors and Readers Uniting Stories” and you can see the guests listed here. (I won’t be speaking at the con myself, but I’ll definitely be there to listen!)

Also, the Ferndale Pride Promo for The Dragon of Ynys was prolonged all through March. If you buy a copy of my novella through the publisher’s website, all proceeds will be donated to Ferndale Pride. So you’ll get a queer story in paperback AND ebook format, AND support charity at the same time. Awesome, right? This will also earn you an invitation for my author event on May 20. Come celebrate with us!

Love,

Minerva

the dragon of ynys

Rainbow Space Magic virtual con

Minerva Cerridwen

Hi!

Next weekend, March 12-14, 2021, the second edition of Rainbow Space Magic Virtual Con is taking place!

The con is starting with a series of free workshops on Friday, March 12, and will then continue with different interesting panels and exciting readings by LGBTQIA+ authors. You can see the full schedule here!

Everything is free to attend; you just need to register as a participant on this page.

This is the very first con I’m attending as an author! I’ll be doing a reading on Saturday, March 13, at 11 AM ET. (For my local friends: that’s 17:00 in my time zone in Belgium!)

Ava Kelly and I are sharing a reading slot to read a short fragment from each other’s dragon books: Havesskadi and The Dragon of Ynys. You may have read more about these two stories, which were written at the same time, in my blog post about our recent short story Lost in Ynys.

We look forward to having fun with each other’s texts and hope to see you there! You’ll have the possibility to send us questions after the reading.

Rainbow Space Magic also supports a number of charities, which are listed here.

And speaking of charity, the Ferndale Pride Promo for The Dragon of Ynys has been extended all through March! So if you buy my novella directly from Atthis Arts this month, you know that all proceeds are going to a good cause. Please spread the word!

Thank you and lots of love,

Minerva

the dragon of ynys

Ferndale Pride Promo

Minerva Cerridwen

Hello!

From March 1 (today!) until March 14, all proceeds for The Dragon of Ynys are going to Ferndale Pride when you buy the paperback (and included ebook) via the Atthis Arts website.

Atthis Arts is located in Ferndale, close to Detroit, Michigan. As a local publisher, they are proud to celebrate the LGBTQIA+ community and to promote the charities this Pride organisation supports in turn. I’m honoured and happy to let The Dragon of Ynys, with its queer cast of characters and message of acceptance, help out!

Grab your copy of the book here or get one as a gift for a friend!

If you already have your copies, you can also donate directly to Ferndale Pride via this link. Please spread the word if you can!

Ferndale Pride is set to take place on Saturday, October 2, 2021. You can find all information about the event on this website.

As part of the promotion, everyone who orders The Dragon of Ynys via Atthis Arts during these two weeks will be invited to an author reading, where you can hear me stumble over my words do my best dragon voice, and you’ll have the opportunity to ask questions. It’ll be fun! We’re still deciding on a date for this event, so more information will follow later, but it’ll probably be sometime in May. The event is co-hosted by the Ferndale Library.

Mind that only the proceeds from book sales directly via the Atthis Arts website will be donated; sales via other book shops or retail sites like Amazon are not part of this promotion.

More information on The Dragon of Ynys, as always, can be found here.

Happy Pride!

P.S. More awesome news: the ebook of The Dragon of Ynys is going to be part of the Rainbow Crate Book Box this month! AND they’re going to have a fandom item in their April book box… Exciting times!!!

P.P.S. If you want to hear me read earlier than May, you can join my reading on the Rainbow Space Magic virtual con on Saturday, March 13. Ava Kelly and I are sharing a reading slot to read from each other’s dragon book at 10:00 AM CT/17:00 CET. Register here to participate! We hope to see you there.

the dragon of ynys

Lost in Ynys: a crossover story with characters from Ava Kelly’s Havesskadi

Minerva Cerridwen

Once upon a time in 2017, two befriended authors were writing a story for the same call for submissions. One of the stories was The Dragon of Ynys, which you probably know something about if you’re on this website. The other was Havesskadi, an epic fantasy with a magic castle, an asexual character and of course (since that was in the submission call)… dragons!

Havesskadi got published a few months before my Dragon, in February 2018. When the original publisher closed, it was also re-published. It came out with NineStar Press on February 24, 2020. That’s exactly one year ago!

To celebrate its anniversary, Ava and I have written a short story together. Lost in Ynys finds the two main characters of Havesskadi accidentally ending up in the world of Ynys and calling in Sir Violet’s help. Read it here!

Askanath the Ancient with a copy of "The Dragon of Ynys" and "Havesskadi"
Photo by Ava Kelly

Paranatellonta

Paranatellonta 300

Minerva Cerridwen

by Fie
by Minerva

Today, Fie and I have posted the 300th edition of Paranatellonta! A real milestone for our photography-and-storytelling project, which has been going since August 2013.

To celebrate, we have both created a painting for the other to write a ten-sentence story about. You can see the paintings accompanied by their stories by following the links below:

Painting by Fie – story by Minerva: click!

Painting by Minerva – story by Fie: click!

We hope you enjoy this edition and perhaps check out some older Paranatellonta posts!

Have a great week!

the dragon of ynys

New review!

Minerva Cerridwen

Hi!

The Dragon of Ynys got a new review, of which I was alerted in an email, and then I realised I hadn’t blogged since the start of the year and therefore hadn’t linked to the previous review yet either!

So here’s the new review on The Queer Bookish: click!

And here’s the review on Ancillary Review of Books: click!

It is such an honour to know that people are not only reading the book but also enjoying it. And that those readers even agree that it’s important for queer youth to have a fairy tale like this! I could only speak for myself when I said this was something we needed, of course, but to see my feelings on the matter reflected gives me hope. And of course I like being right. 😉

In other news, I signed a contract to have another short story co-written with L.S. Reinholt published sometime this year, but I can’t say much more about that yet.

Until the next time I remember to blog! 😛

Minerva

Geen categorie

Happy 2021!

Minerva Cerridwen

Happy New Year!!!

I hope you’ll all have a magical, comfortable and healthy 2021.

This turns out to be my 50th post on this blog, which feels quite fitting to celebrate its third birthday.

In spite of all the 2020 weirdness, the year brought me five new publications: the re-publication of my novella The Dragon of Ynys with Atthis Arts, and short stories in anthologies Space Opera Libretti, Community of Magic Pens, Neon Horror, and Innovation.

Publications of 2020

I’ve also managed to draw and bake (of which you can see more on my Instagram), and I feel grateful for every moment I’ve been able to fill with creativity.

Of course, the first of the month also means that Fie and I have posted a new photo and story on Paranatellonta: you can read it here.

I have many plans and projects for 2021, but after the unpredictability of the past year, I’d rather not say too much about them too soon. It’s probably a good idea to keep checking this blog regularly or subscribe to new posts if you haven’t already. 🙂

For now, please enjoy these first days of a new year of possibility!

Thank you for being here!

Lots of love,

Minerva

 

Community of Magic Pens, Innovation anthology, Neon Horror Zine, Paranatellonta, Space Opera Libretti, the dragon of ynys

Minerva Cerridwen’s Awards Eligibility Post 2020

Minerva Cerridwen

’tis the season…

I haven’t made an awards eligibility post before, but as I see them going around on social media, I thought it couldn’t harm to list my publications of 2020.

Novella (fantasy)

The Dragon of Ynys

My novella The Dragon of Ynys came out in September 2020 with Atthis Arts. Mind that it is a re-publication after revising the story I published in May 2018 with Less Than Three Press, so it may not be eligible for some awards, as it’s not a first edition. (Both editions were published in the US.) However, aside from many smaller revisions, the 2020 edition has a brand new epilogue and afterword, and the 2018 edition had only appeared as an ebook, not in print. The new edition is available both as ebook and in print, and the new cover was designed by Ulla Thynell.

The Dragon of Ynys (24,000 words) is a fairy tale with an aromantic asexual main character, trans and lesbian supporting characters—and, of course, a dragon. The genre is fantasy, and it is suitable for all ages. You can read all about it here.

Also, if you’re looking for an editor to nominate: E.D.E. Bell is the amazing editor of The Dragon of Ynys as well as the anthology Community of Magic Pens (see below).

Short stories (science fiction)

I had 4 short stories published in 2020. There are no reprints among these.

1: Stars from the Stars in the anthology Space Opera Libretti, edited by Jennifer Lee Rossman and Brian McNett. (Published in the US, 4600 words.)

Simon is a siren who lives alone on a rock in space, until he’s picked up by the Stars from the Stars ship to compete in the universally beloved talent show. Even though he’s completely confident in his abilities, he might learn a thing or two on the way…

This story is inspired by shows like America’s Got Talent… in space!

2: Memory Malfunction in the anthology Community of Magic Pens, published by Atthis Arts and edited by E.D.E. Bell. (Published in the US, 2100 words.)

“Memory Malfuction” is about an android applying for a job as an intergalactic antiques salesman. The company bosses, however, have their doubts…

3: The Lost, co-written with L.S. Reinholt, in the anthology Neon Horror, published by The Haunted Bouncy Castle. (Published in the UK, 3000 words.)

The Lost is a science fiction horror story about two travellers in space whose logs and maps have been erased. When they encounter another ship, they hope they’ve found a solution, but instead lose even more.

4: The Emperor’s New Helmet, in the anthology Innovation, published by Other Worlds Ink. This flash piece of 300 words received an honourable mention in the 2020 Queer Sci Fi Contest. (Published in the US.)

Paranatellonta

Ever since August 2013, I write ten-sentence stories based on photos made by my friend Fie. This project is called Paranatellonta. Every edition (294 at the moment of writing this post!) is published online on Tumblr and available for free, so even though I’m not sure this would fit into any awards, feel free to take a look at the newest stories or find yourself a random story from sometime in the past 7+ years. The stories from 2020 are editions 273 to 296.

Paranatellonta updates on the 1st and 15th of every month. Fie and I celebrate every tenth edition by switching roles: in those editions I take a picture and Fie writes a story.

We first discovered this concept when we enjoyed Erin Morgenstern and Carey Farrell’s Flax-golden Tales and became inspired.

Edit 20/11/20: Atthis Arts also has an awards eligibility post up now, which you can find here.

The Dragon of Ynys
the dragon of ynys

Interviewed by Jennifer Lee Rossman!

Minerva Cerridwen

Hello!

I hope you’re all well. The world is once again looking a little scarier, but at least stories are always there to give us a relaxing means of escape.

It’s been a month and a week since my story The Dragon of Ynys came out, so of course I’ll be talking a little more about it in this blog post. I was interviewed about it by the one and only Jennifer Lee Rossman, who’s an awesome author herself and the co-editor of anthologies Love & Bubbles and Space Opera Libretti. You can read the interview here (and see a cute photo of The Dragon of Ynys with some dragon friends!).

I also saw a wonderful review accompanied by a beautiful photo on theboyandhisbookshelf’s Instagram yesterday, which I’d love to share: you can see it here. And while you’re wandering around on Instagram, you can also check out some of my baking, inspired by Ynys’ baker Juniper: for example the cinnamon rolls Sir Violet is so fond of. (They make a great breakfast indeed!)

If that made you hungry for more but you’re not able to buy the book right now, I’d like to inform you that I’m currently doing a giveaway, to celebrate one month since the release as well as the upcoming Ace Week.

Ace Week, formerly Asexual Awareness Week, is an event that will take place from October 25 until October 31, all over the world. It celebrates the asexual community and the progress we see in the awareness that asexuality exists, both in society and in media representation. You can read more about it on the Ace Week website and the organisation is also present on social media.

Sir Violet, like myself, is asexual as well as aromantic, so I felt that starting giveaways on three platforms and announcing the winners on the last day of Ace Week (October 31) would be a good way of participating in the celebrations. If you’d like to enter the contest, these are the links: Twitter – Tumblr – Pillowfort.

You simply retweet or reblog the post until October 30, 2020 at 23:59 EST. The winner will be chosen randomly on October 31; one winner per platform. That means you have one chance per platform; 3 chances if you reblog all three! (On every platform, only your first reblog will count as an entry, so while you are most welcome to keep spreading the word afterwards, this will not increase your chances.) You can also share the posts without entering the competition; simply leave a line like “not entering the giveaway but signal boosting”.

If you’re interested in the book but would rather bypass the competition altogether, these are the buy links:

Publisher’s website – Smashwords – Amazon.com – Amazon.de – iBooks – Barnes & Noble – Kobo – Bookshop – Vrolijk.nu (NL)

Add the book to your shelves: Goodreads – The StoryGraph

And one more thing I’d like to call attention to: my publisher, Atthis Arts, is currently doing a Kickstarter for a project called In This Moment. I am not directly involved with this, but they have put together a mindblowing team of people who’ll be working on this collection of short works, both fiction and non-fiction, documenting this moment that will be described in history books as the time of the Black Lives Matter movement and the global pandemic. As they focus on important marginalised voices, I think it’s incredibly important that this book can be made – but the Kickstarter still has quite a way to go before the funding will be complete. Take a look at it here if you can find the time, and please consider contributing.

That’s all for now!

I hope you’ll have a great Ace Week, and please stay safe!

Love,

Minerva