4th stretch goal unlocked! One day left!
9 months ago
– Wed, Nov 19, 2025 at 10:32:19 AM
Hi everyone,
Hard to believe that the campaign is ending tomorrow! We've unlocked the fourth stretch goal, meaning the book will now feature two interior illustrations from Fran Delgado, woo!
And we're under $500 away from hitting the fifth stretch goal, the third set of Guild flash stories!
Help us spread the word by sharing these Twitter and Instagram posts!
If you'd like a peek behind the scenes in how I came to write The Gauntlet, I wrote about creating a fictional shared universe over on my Substack.
Second round voting
Voting for the second round of Guild stories is still open, and it's currently a three-way tie! Cast your vote by leaving a comment on the main campaign page with your selection. Here are your choices again:
- The New Amsterdam Table: home of the Guild chair and the vacant Seat that the Gauntlet contestants are competing for
- The Orange Table: home of an ancient scribe, a mischievous schemer, and a friend to animals - UNLOCKED
- The Breuckelen Table: home of a playboy with a really nice (and magical watch), a bad girl with a heart of gold (kind of), and a woman who is more than she seems, in more ways than one
- The Pavonia Table: home of a crafter, a scientist, and the main character from Guild of Tokens and Guild of Magic
Campaigns worth your tokens
Sparks & Recreation: a new series about magic, community, and doing your best. Back the campaign here.
A cozy, bloody Australian urban fantasy with chronic pain rep & slow-burn romance, set in a magic tea house in the City Between world! Back the campaign here.
Thanks again for all your support!
Third Stretch Goal unlocked! Cover process! More campaign recommendations!
9 months ago
– Fri, Nov 14, 2025 at 02:34:33 PM
Hi everyone,
I'm happy to report that with a little under than a week to go, we've unlocked the next stretch goal! All backers will now get six flash stories starring members of the Guild (that's half the membership!).
Voting results and second round voting
Since we've hit the third stretch goal, it's time to vote again on which Table this set of stories will feature. Last round's winner was the Orange Table! To vote in the second round, simply leave a comment on the main campaign page with your vote. Votes from the last round will carry over, meaning the Pavonia Table is currently in the lead.
- The New Amsterdam Table: home of the Guild chair and the vacant Seat that the Gauntlet contestants are competing for
- The Orange Table: home of an ancient scribe, a mischievous schemer, and a friend to animals - UNLOCKED
- The Breuckelen Table: home of a playboy with a really nice (and magical watch), a bad girl with a heart of gold (kind of), and a woman who is more than she seems, in more ways than one
- The Pavonia Table: home of a crafter, a scientist, and the main character from Guild of Tokens and Guild of Magic
Another campaign to check out
A short and sweet Frog Prince retelling, this fairytale is packed with banter, baking, and a swoony romance. Illustrated by the author!
Back the campaign here.
Cover Process
I wanted to give you a peek behind the curtain on the making of our fabulous cover! I first came across Ruben Rojas's work on his comic series The O.Z. with writer David Pepose, and was thrilled when he agreed to do the cover for The Gauntlet.
Here is my initial design brief:
"The vibe I am going for in the illustration is a mixture of the modern and the fantastical (which you can see in the covers of the 3 existing books in the series).
The New York City skyline at night, with the Empire State Building visible, will be in the background.
Then we have the 3 main characters for this new story in the foreground of the illustration, with 3 characters from the prior books in the background.
Foregrounds characters: the grad student, the barista, the playboy
Background characters: Jen, Dalia, Beatrice"
Ruben then came back with his initial sketch:
As you can see, he really nailed it right out of the gate! Next, he moved to inks:
My one note here was to change Jen's appearance (the character in the background on the left, to make her more consistent with her other illustrations). With that change, Ruben moved to colors:
My final minor note was to add some more "magic," to add some more fantasy flavor. Here is the final cover illustration:
Have a great weekend and keep spreading the word!
Project We Love, 100 backers, and a new campaign recommendation!
9 months ago
– Tue, Nov 11, 2025 at 10:39:03 AM
Hi everyone,
We recently crossed the 100-backer marker, and yesterday Kickstarter also named the campaign a Project We Love! That doesn't happen without your support, so thank you! Keep sharing the campaign, so we can hit our next two stretch goals, and add more stories and art!
Reminder to vote on the Table for the first wave of stories!
The vote for which Table of the Guild will be featured in the first wave of stories is ongoing. Cast your vote by leaving a comment on the main campaign page. I'll tally up the votes once we unlock the next stretch goal. Check out the previous update for more info about each Table, and here are the options again: New Amsterdam, Pavonia, Orange, and Breuckelen.
A campaign worth your tokens
My friend Megan Haskell has a campaign for her new fantasy book Quenched in Secrets! Check out those sprayed edges and go grab your copy now, because the campaign ends on Thursday!
Vengeance burns hot, but secrets cut deeper…
If you crave epic fantasy packed with hidden betrayals, resilient heroes, and worlds teetering on the brink of war, you'll love the first two books in The War of the Nine Faerie Realms trilogy. Back the campaign here.
First 2 stretch goals unlocked! Campaign recommendation!
9 months ago
– Fri, Nov 07, 2025 at 03:02:01 PM
Hi everyone,
We are heading into the first weekend of the campaign in great shape. We're currently 6 backers away from 100 and we've already unlocked 2 stretch goals:
Stretch Goal 1 - UNLOCKED: Guild flash stories part 1
See below.
Stretch Goal 2 - UNLOCKED: Interior artwork part 1
We unlocked the second stretch goal! The book will now feature at least one interior illustration my comic collaborator and friend Francine Deglado! Fran is the artist of our comic series Blood of Atlantis (which takes place in the same world as The Gauntlet).
Check out some of Fran's art here (give us a heart while you do) and spread the word, so we can add more art!
Vote for the first Table to be featured
There are 12 members of the Guild, each with their own interests and histories. 4 Tables, 3 Seats per Table. Get to know the Guild members through 12 flash fiction stories. The first 3 stories are now unlocked, but which Table should be chronicled first? It's your decision!
- The New Amsterdam Table: home of the Guild chair and the vacant Seat that the Gauntlet contestants are competing for
- The Orange Table: home of an ancient scribe, a mischievous schemer, and a friend to animals
- The Breuckelen Table: home of a playboy with a really nice (and magical watch), a bad girl with a heart of gold (kind of), and a woman who is more than she seems, in more ways than one
- The Pavonia Table: home of a crafter, a scientist, and the main character from Guild of Tokens and Guild of Magic
You can vote your Table of choice by leaving a comment on the main campaign page. I'll keep the voting open through the weekend. May the best Table win!
A campaign worth your tokens
Fake engagement, high-conflict, slower burn romance, modern magical world with political intrigue. Crescent City meets Jade City.
Great first day! First stretch goal revealed!
10 months ago
– Wed, Nov 05, 2025 at 08:10:47 AM
Hi everyone,
Thank you for an awesome first day of the campaign! We funded and are already closing in on the first stretch goal!
For this campaign, we will be doing alternating pairs of stretch goals. The first stretch goal will be for 3 flash fiction stories and the second stretch goal will be for interior artwork. See more info below. As our funding increases, we can unlock additional stories and additional interior artwork!
I'll reveal the artist for the interior artwork once we hit $3000!
Stretch Goal 1 - LOCKED ($3000): Guild flash stories part 1
There are 12 members of the Guild, each with their own interests and histories. 4 Tables, 3 Seats per Table. Get to know the Guild members through 12 flash fiction stories. The first 3 stories will be unlocked when we hit this stretch goal!
Stretch Goal 2 - LOCKED ($4000): Interior artwork part 1
More to be revealed once we hit the first stretch goal!
Thanks for your continued support!
- Jon
