witchery

"... he didn’t still think he looked stunning.

He thought he looked ridiculous. And sad."

IN THE HEARTS OF MEN by @nymeriaking​

Story Summary:

Ben, a young and passionate prodigy from the Core, is up for his Jedi Trials. Armitage, a cold and careful nobody from the Outer Rim, is up for anything. The New Republic and the fledgling First Order don’t care for their plans one bit.

More Info

This is a wonderful slow burn Kylux, melancholy and luxurious, set among interplanetary political tensions and intrigue. It’s also full of worldbuilding (mostly set on the watery planet of Arkanis, Hux’s native world), which Nymeria has imagined in great detail the culture of the native people, and even invented a language Marlanysil. I think this is a brilliant work.

You can read some behind the scenes Q&A about the planet and culture, and the author’s artworks for the story here

Binding

The paper on the case, of course, symbolizes the waters of Arkanis.

Typesetting

This was quite an undertaking. Each word in Marlanysil was defined using a footnote on first usage. I think there were 87 footnotes total. The text is set in Baskerville simply because the title page image used Baskerville.

In addition to the footnotes, Nymeria also wrote a complete appendix outlining the grammar of the language Marlanysil which she created especially for this story because she’s fucking brilliant. There is a complete glossary included in the appendix.

Process Photos

Nymeria asked for lots of process photos of this book being born, so here you go!

AND THEN THERE WERE TWO by @nymeriaking

Summary

A fill for the prompt: “And then there were two.”

I: After hours of weather delays, Hux’s flight gets pushed to the next morning. He gets a room for the night, and the stranger with the good hair is all too happy to join him.

II: Hux and Kylo come to an arrangement.

III: Hux is a robot; Kylo is anything but.

IV: As it turns out, Hux is not a robot.

V: Hux is a devil.

This story is an affecting mix of scorching hot humiliation and kinky sex, with issues of depression, isolation, alcoholism. 

Binding

I grabbed the paper that most reminded me of the aerial view of landscape from the window of an airplane.

The title page, left side I took from a 1948 American Airlines advertisement for flights to San Francisco, by Edward McKnight Kauffer. But the image had to be two pages wide - so I did my best to expand it across to the other page! 

Title typeface: Early Man

Inside: 

Early Man chapter headings. Garamond body text. A little airplane for a page divider to continue the flight theme.

Author created charming illustrations which are all included.

No romance, no action.

have you ever met an Italian man

woman: OOOOoOOH NoO!!!! It’s meelltIINNGG!!

*ring melts off woman’s hand*

woman: MY PRECIOUS POWERRrRR RING! GONE FOORRVVERrrr..

Shark skin feels exactly like sandpaper. It is made up of tiny teeth-like structures called placoid scales, also known as dermal denticles. These scales point towards the tail and help to reduce friction from surrounding water when the shark swims. … In the opposite direction, it feels very rough like sandpaper.