After the Cloudflare outage this morning took Kickstarter down for a few hours, our crowdfunding campaign for Monsterotica: Tales of Unusual Courtship and Coupling is back in business, less than $2,500 from our goal, and here with two more author spotlights!

Today, meet Jaye Anderson and Lyonel Loy, read their biographies, and check out excerpts from their stories!

Author: Jaye Anderson

About: Jaye Anderson, fandom name MsWhich, writes original works and fanfiction and has been posting them on the Internet since the olden days of mailing lists and Yahoo groups. She supports her writing habit by managing metadata at a day job where, she is fairly sure, her coworkers don’t realize she’s spending her spare time writing erotic tentacle fiction. She participates in a lot of different fandoms, although she tends to be a late arrival to most of them, as evidenced by the fact that she recently spent a year writing a novel-length story in the 2001: a Space Odyssey fandom. (She has a HAL 9000 enamel pin on her backpack. When asked about it, she just says that she thinks he’s really misunderstood.) She lives in the Midwestern US with her long-term partner, who really gets her and also beta reads most of her work.

Links: Archive of Our Own | Tumblr

Story Title: Compatible

I am learning you, Henry says. May I try something?

It’s nice that Henry is bothering to ask first, even though he must know that there’s no way Marcus is going to say no.

Sure, Marcus thinks. He waits expectantly, and then out of nowhere, a wave of pleasure sweeps through him, raising the hair on the backs of his arms, making him push his hips forward in the seat. He grabs the edge of the hard plastic subway chair, holding on for dear life. He’s grateful that Henry made them wait for an empty car, because there’s no way he could hide what’s happening to him right now. He’s whining like a dog.

You have many erogenous areas, Henry muses.  

Author: Lyonel Loy

About: Lifelong maladaptive daydreamer, finally working up the courage to write those daydreams down. Spends time cosplaying as a Responsible Adult With A Job.

Story Title: Lovespun

Excerpt:

“Gift-giving’s a part of courtship for most, I hear. Perhaps you could get your Jianlei something nice?”

Zakri fidgets. “Gifts are good, I think,” they say. “I asked Davin about it?”

“Ah,” Koiroi says.

“I don’t have,” Zakri stutters, worry-wiping at their eyes, “the parts—”

Did you know? So far this April, Duck Prints Press has put out 10, yes t.e.n., new short stories? Two to our website, and eight to our Patreon! Learn all about them now...

Website Releases

Title: Foundations Author: Johnathan Stern

F/F, Science Fiction, Meet Cute on Mars

Addison is browsing the stacks of the Valles Marineris Coprates Chasma University Memorial Library when she's shocked to find someone looking for the same obscure book about the history of space travel that is.

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Title: Worlds Apart (but Still Close) Author: Sanne Burg

F/M and M/M to F/M/M, Urban Paranormal, Confessions of Mutual Attraction, When in Doubt Fuck it Out

Flo is consistently frustrated with how her boyfriend Arthur's bodyguard Kacen is always watching her suspiciously. But when she discovers Arthur and Kacen in bed together, it casts a whole new light on the relationships between the three of them, and Flo finds herself considering possibilities that had never dawned on her before.

Patreon Releases

Title: Coffee For My Valentine? Author: Cedar McCafferty-Svec

F/F, Contemporary Romance with a Splash of Magic, Bookshop-slash-Coffee-Shop Meet-Cute, Heat Resistance for the Win

Valentine's day is invariably a disaster for Nissa. And when she starts this Valentine's work day by spilling coffee all over a new customer?

Maybe she should have just stayed in bed this morning.

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Title: Glass Slipper: A Dance Author: Cedar McCafferty-Svec

F/NB, Fantasy, Dating Royalty is Hard Even if Your Stepmother Isn't Evil, Attraction at First Sight, Getting to Know One Another

Going to the ball was Marienne's dream, but it still never occurred to her that she'd catch the eye of the Royal Heir Apparent. Their dance is a dream come true, and their walk around the gardens together helps demonstrate they could have a future together even putting perfect first-dances aside, but that doesn't mean things will be easy.

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Title: Into the Wyvern's Lair Author: Mikki Madison

F/F (Pre-Relationship), Fantasy, the Inherent Eroticism of Being Competing Mercenaries After the Same Mark (and the Same Pay Day)

Usually, Kella wouldn't take a job from a tiny podunk town in exchange for the risks of facing wyvern, but they're offering 25 gold pieces, and that's too much to resist. She doesn't expect the job to be that hard - it's not her first time facing a wyvern - but she also doesn't expect competition, in the form of a stubborn mage who has been hired by the same town at the same rate. But what she really doesn't expect is the wyvern...

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Title: Washer Wars: A Laundromat Feud Author: Samantha M. Piper

F/F, Contemporary Romance, Meet-Awkward, Sometimes the Only Difference Between Fighting and Flirting is Point of View

Every Saturday morning, before the crack of dawn, Dee goes to the laundromat to do her laundry alone and in the quiet, with her pick of the available machines.

Until the morning she's not alone anymore.

Truly, she doesn't know what's worse: the loss of her solitude, or that this intruder has taken the biggest washer.

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Title: Fool's Gold Author: Eliot Lovell

M/M (Pre-Relationship), Fantasy, Dragon Hordes and Lifelong Dreams, Hurt/Comfort

When Tomas sets off to defeat a dragon, he does so despite the aches and pains of growing older and a bum hip. Little does he expect that his attempt to be a valiant hero will be derailed prematurely when he's set upon by wolves. After they leave him unconscious in the woods, the last thing he expects is to be rescued and nursed to help. But he has one burning question: who found him, and why?

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Title: Escape Author: Sanne Burg

F/M + F/M Established Relationship with Partner Swapping, Contemporary Romance, Middle-Aged Characters, Friends with Benefits to Lovers

Anxiety means that it doesn't take much to push Liam into needing some quiet time to himself, and he's so appreciative of his wife Alice taking the initiative to get him that quiet time.

He's slightly less appreciative when their friends-with-benefits partner-swap married friends Dan and Lola show up, especially considering that it was finding RPF fanart of him and Dan having sex that triggered Liam's anxiety in the first place...

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Title: Old Kings and New Author: Lyonel Loy

M/M, Fantasy, Omega/Omega, Middle-Aged Characters, Bonding Over Shared Favorite (Rape Fantasy) Books

No one in their right mind would name Isemund king, but he's the only heir left, and so the council names him and then flees before the conqueror Caith can seize the castle.

Isemund is prepared to die at the hands of the invader.

Caith has other plans in mind.

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Title: Georgia Rain Author: R. L. Houck This is a sequel to the Patreon-exclusive story "Pretty 7 Days a Week"

F/NB, Contemporary Suspense, Reunion after a Long Separation, They Work Hard for the Money, You'll Never Guess How This Sex Romp Gets Interrupted...

Four years after the events of Pretty 7 Days a Week, Tomas, who has changed their name to Aster, has built themself a new, better life no longer working on the streets.

The last thing they expect is for Lydia to come sweeping back into their life. It's also the last thing they want...or so they keep trying to tell themself...

August has seen us releasing several new works – a short story on our webpage, four more short stories on our Patreon, and an original artwork on Patreon. Have you been considering backing our Patreon as part of the August Patreon drive but weren’t sure what you’d get? Read on for some examples of the awesomeness available to backers – or, if backing on Patreon isn’t your cup of tea, pop over to our website and buy a copy of our latest short story release!

New Patreon backers during the month of August may claim freebie Duck Prints Press merchandise worth up to $5! Read all about this promotion in this blog post: https://duckprintspress.com/2024/08/01/duck-prints-press-needs-you-become-a-patron-get-a-freebie-reblog-enter-a-giveaway/

(read more!)

The crowdfunding campaign for our first erotic anthology Many Hands: An Anthology of Polyamorous Erotica is almost through the first week, and we’re only $600 from our funding goal! We’re very excited about y’alls enthusiasm for this project, and we couldn’t be happier to be able to share it with ya.

With “sharing it with ya” in mind, we’ll be doing several posts with story teasers, and this is the first, featuring three teasers, one each from the authors Lyonel Loy, Eliot Lovell, and E. K. Victor! All teasers are non-explicit, for obvious reasons, and we’re not including tags on our teasers this time for the same reason, but in the book, all stories come with comprehensive tag lists to help readers navigate the collection.

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Author: Lyonel Loy Title: Love, With Bloodstained Jaws, or: Five Times Levente’s Omegas “Seduce” Him, And One Time He Seduces Them

Excerpt: “Any fool can stand by an altar and speak some pretty words,” [Raihan] says. “You bested me with your own hand, and so by our ways I am yours. But it was your troops who captured Melchor. Why should he call you his mate, and not them? If it took twenty strong warriors to best him, surely twenty also are needed to please him. Your Alphonse, who led them: he is such a sweet little thing. It would be lovely to see him under Melchor, spread wide and undone.”

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Author: Eliot Lovell Title: Double Take

Excerpt: 

“Here he is,” Mia sings. “Right on time.”

Nathan wipes his hands off on the apron he’s wearing, rounding the kitchen island to close the space between them in a few strides.

There’s a wedding ring on Nathan’s finger. George has got to pay better attention to what’s going on around him.

“You made it,” Nathan says, kind of breathless, relieved, as though George’s journey was farther than three floors.

Nathan wraps an arm around him for a brief hug, nosing into his hair in something like a kiss before pushing it behind George’s ear with a gentle hand. When Nathan pulls back, George blinks up at him. He wonders what his face is doing to make Nathan’s brows notch together like that.

“You’re married,” George blurts.

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Author: E. K. Victor Title: Soul Splinters

Excerpt:

I’ve had this dream more times than I can count.

The setting varies. Sometimes it’s an airport, other times a train station or a bridge I must cross alone. Often I remember nothing but the kiss. The kiss is always the same. We hold one another, chest to chest, hip to hip, and kiss slowly, deeply, every motion loaded with longing. My heart overflows. My eyes brim with tears. I’m aroused, but on waking I rarely find evidence of an erection and never anything more. I invariably awaken—not with a start, but with a whimper. The tears are mostly real.

Usually I dream about Warren. Sometimes, it’s Steve. After, I lie wide-eyed in the dark, listening to the thumping of my heart, and think of the only true friends I’ve ever had, whom I abandoned. I promise myself I’ll call them tomorrow, then remember: with an ocean between us, the time to call would be now—and turn over with a groan.

Time is ruthless. I used to think about them whenever I wasn’t busy. Then only occasionally. Almost never, nowadays. But the less they occupy my conscious mind, the more the dream visits, and the heavier it weighs with the love aging in me like wine in the cellars of a vacant house, never to be tasted.

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As we enter the last few days of the Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign for Aether Beyond the Binary, we’re introducing the last few of our authors. Today, meet Sebastian Marie, Lyonel Loy, and Elior Haley! We’re really excited to be featuring these three authors contributing to this fantastic collection of 17 stories set in modern aetherpunk settings where the technology runs on magic, all starring characters outside the gender binary.

Un Charco, Un Lago by Sebastian Marie

About Sebastian: Sebastian Marie (he/him) is an engineering student with a lot of opinions about dragons, pirates, and sword fighting. Track him down on Ao3 or Tumblr and he’ll share these opinions gladly, just be prepared for music and some excited shouting. His original works often combine fantasy and dystopia into what he calls “queer fantasy hopepunk,” something that will be explored in his future novels. He loves to write conflicting traditional and non-traditional family dynamics, especially where they intersect with queer relationships. And if he can throw werewolves and brujas into the mix? So much the better. When not writing, frantically studying, or reading, he can be found singing loudly, sewing impractical coats, and going on long rambling walks while plotting stories (and occasionally falling into rivers). 

Also, he’s also the guitarist and one of the lyricists of folk punk band Here Be Dragons, who hope to have their debut EP out near the end of Fall, 2023. 

This is his third time writing for Duck Prints Press, having previously contributed to Aim For the Heart and She Wears the Midnight Crown. This brings his grand total of published works up to three! He’s looking forward to more, as soon as he gets some sleep. 

Links: Archive of Our Own | Tumblr

This is Sebastian’s third contribution to a Duck Prints Press anthology. His first contribution was in the masquerade-themed anthology She Wears the Midnight Crown, and his second in Aim For The Heart: Queer Fanworks Inspired by Alexandre Dumas’s “The Three Musketeers” – which, mostly coincidentally, has been released on our website TODAY!

Title: Un Charco, Un Lago

Excerpt: 

The person who answers the door to the townhouse is short, brown, and incredibly tired looking. Victorie sees this look a lot in her line of work; plumbing disasters really take a lot out of people. He adjusts the strap of his work bag on his shoulder and begins his spiel. 

“Hello, Hola, English or Español?”

“Ingles,” the person responds before yawing. “but either is good.” They scratch at their shoulder, which is covered in paint-splattered overalls and a worn blue polo shirt. 

“All right. My name is Technician Victorie, public works wizard at your service.” Victorie points to her name tag that helpfully states “he/him” and “she/her” under his name. “And you must be Lago Cabrera? Elle/le or they/them?” Victorie reads off her paper.

“Yes.”

“Do I have your permission to inspect the problem, a…” Victorie consults the paper. 

“The sink is throwing up.” Lago says bluntly.

We Might Contain Multitudes by Lyonel Loy

About Lyonel: Lifelong maladaptive daydreamer, finally working up the courage to write those daydreams down. Spends time cosplaying as a Responsible Adult With A Job.

This is Lyonel’s first time writing with Duck Prints Press.

Title: We Might Contain Multitudes

Excerpt:

There are master crafters in the sleepy hills of New England, waiting amongst the silent ward stones.

The first has eyes like a spider’s, arrayed out neatly in rows, and the spider eyes sparkle in a riot of colors that Kwok’s human eyes should not have been able to see.

The next has no mouth yet whispers ceaseless, an uninterrupted flow of half recognizable words in a myriad of voices and a myriad of tongues like a mountain stream in heavy rain, swirling over and around itself like dancing water.

The last is Guo, whose name is not truly Guo. Guo, who could be any ordinary young man on the streets of Ipoh or Singapore or Seoul except for their eternal eyes, and yet it is they who scare Kwok most of all.

Epiphanies of Friendship, and Other White Whales by Elior Haley

About Elior: Elior has spent much of the past few years primarily writing for fanfic exchanges. Currently, he’s in the process of slowly working his way through university. When not writing or studying, he can be found binding books, drawing, ice skating, and—very occasionally—playing the violin. His story in Aether Beyond the Binary is his first published work.

This is Elior’s first time writing with Duck Prints Press.

Title: Epiphanies of Friendship, and Other White Whales

Excerpt:

There was no such thing as night and day, deep in aetherspace, but it was during Raisel’s resting time that the song woke her from sleep, deep and low and rolling in her bones.  She felt it more than she heard it, its vibrations layering on top of the omnipresent hum of the gravity generator and engines.  At once she sat up in her narrow bunk, heart beating jackrabbit-quick; she tried to calm her shaking limbs for a moment before realizing that the tremors were from the song.

It was like nothing she had heard before.  No words she knew felt adequate to describe it; it was both beautiful and eerie, and somewhere between her bones and her soul she felt something call to her.

Halfway down the corridor, still in her sleeping clothes, Charlie caught her elbow.

“Where are you going?” they asked.