Once Upon Another Time

Dewi Hargreaves is a featured author in the upcoming anthology Once Upon Another Time: Fresh Tales from the Far Side of Fantasy , an international publication available for free from Amazon on May 23, 2022. Story in the Anthology: Redcap A Few Questions What are some authors/books/events that have been influential to your work? So. Many. I read a lot of Bernard Cornwell growing up, though I don’t read his stuff now. Doing creative writing at university was pretty much fundamental to establishing who I am today. And Neil Gaiman’s short story Troll Bridge . It floored me the first time I read it, and from then on, I’ve been hooked on short fiction. How do you see writing fitting in (or not) within the current world of books? My first book was a fantasy short story collection, around 40,000 words long, in which all the stories took place in the same world and in chronological order. Too cohesive to be a real short story collection, but not quite a novel or a novella, either. I knew no tra...

James David is a featured author in the upcoming anthology Once Upon Another Time: Fresh Tales from the Far Side of Fantasy , an international publication available for free from Amazon on May 23, 2022. Story in the Anthology: A Paladin’s Oath A Few Questions What are some authors/books/events that have been influential to your work? I would say that some of my most obvious influences will be J.R.R. Tolkien and George R.R. Martin. A book which is influenced me more recently and which I  have taken close to my heart  would have to be Little Women (Louisa May Alcott).  How do you see writing fitting in (or not) within the current world of books? I suppose I would like to see my work fit into the common world as a source of both inspiration and excitement for those who read it. What are you currently working on? Currently I am on my ongoing comic book series called Tales of Stattendor . I am also working a series of novellas and novels for future projects. What has/have bee...

Trixie Pereira is a featured author in the upcoming anthology Once Upon Another Time: Fresh Tales from the Far Side of Fantasy , an international publication available for free from Amazon on May 23, 2022. Story in the Anthology: Kasie's Magical Night A Few Questions What are some authors/books/events that have been influential to your work? Event: Getting into roleplay. About 10 years ago, I happened to stumble upon a Naruto-themed roleplay group on Deviantart where we all created characters and role-played with each other. I credit a lot of my character work to this group and everyone in it. It helped me practice character development and taught me that sometimes, it’s okay to let the characters decide their story and fate. I still cherish the characters I created and interacted with for this group.  How do you see writing fitting in (or not) within the current world of books? I know that no matter where I set my story, I always try to create relatable characters. And I can ...

Eric Mosher is a featured author in the upcoming anthology Once Upon Another Time: Fresh Tales from the Far Side of Fantasy , an international publication available for free from Amazon on May 23, 2022. Story in the Anthology: The Shortcut A Few Questions What are some authors/books/events that have been influential to your work? Richard Matheson’s books, particularly I Am Legend and Donald Westlake’s Parker novels really influence my style. I love how straightforward they are. There is a certain economy to their writing, and they can evoke so much without getting overly flowery. How do you see your writing fitting in (or not) within the current world of books? I’d say most of my novels fit fairly well in the mainstream. The Friday Night Frights series does do its own thing at times but nothing necessarily out there that would turn off those looking for YA or adult horror. The Astrogirl novels are pretty standard superhero sci-fi that wouldn’t be out of place on the big screen, e...

Melissa Rose Rogers is a featured author in the upcoming anthology Once Upon Another Time: Fresh Tales from the Far Side of Fantasy , an international publication available for free from Amazon on May 23, 2022. Story in the Anthology: Veiled Reflections: A Retelling of Eros and Psyche A Few Questions What are some authors/books/events that have been influential to your work? The books that have been most influential to my work are Robin McKinley's The Hero and the Crown (due to sheer number of times that I've read this piece) and N.K. Jemisin's The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms . I think my voice in writing is most similar to Patricia C. Wrede and Robin Hobb, but that's just my opinion. I have a passion for myths, folklore, and wonder tales and that is reflected in my work. Another big influence in my work is my heritage and my hometown. I grew up in Tampa, FL, and couldn't help but love the ocean. My grandmother was from the Bay Islands of Honduras, and seeing her be...

C. J. R. Isely is a featured author in the upcoming anthology Once Upon Another Time: Fresh Tales from the Far Side of Fantasy , an international publication available for free from Amazon on May 23, 2022. Story in the Anthology: Curse of the Beast A Few Questions What are some authors/books/events that have been influential to your work? My work has largely been inspired by JK Rowling, KM Grant, and my own family. Rowling's character-based writing has always been some of my favorite and has a way of bringing you into the world of wizardry. KM Grant is a historical fiction author. History has been huge in my life - my dad has a degree in medieval history - and Grant's book Blood Red Horse was a true love of mine growing. I love the way Grant uses her knowledge of medieval history and her ability to make it engaging and informational all at once. And my family: my family writes. It's simple as that. My dad wrote his first book well before I was born (and published it the s...

Cix & Vic Zander are featured authors in the upcoming anthology Once Upon Another Time: Fresh Tales from the Far Side of Fantasy , an international publication available for free from Amazon on May 23, 2022.    Story in the Anthology: Fulcra: Siren's ReMix A Few Questions What are some authors/books/events that have been influential to your work?   Our work is primarily influenced by our dreams and meditation. We had ten+ years of a medical condition that altered our perceptions of reality and erased random memories on a daily basis. Dreams and reality overlapped and we often lost track of which was which. To survive that, we had to come up with many different ways of coping with re-discovering our world from scratch each morning while trying to stay consistent. This is likely what led to many of our personal philosophies being based on absolutes and infinite or eternal scales, having no context with which to process new information as the days went on. Coming out of ...

Adam Knight is a featured author in the upcoming anthology Once Upon Another Time: Fresh Tales from the Far Side of Fantasy , a free and international publication available from Amazon on May 23, 2022.  Stories in the Anthology: International Incident, Part 1 International Incident, Part 2 A Few Questions What are some authors/books/events that have been influential to your work?   I grew up reading all of the SciFi/Fantasy goodness one might expect, though I have a real love and affinity for The Chronicles of Prydain by Lloyd Alexander.  I've read those books more times than I can count. These days my tastes have grown up in search of more gritty fare, so a lot of Don Woodrow, Jim Butcher, Lee Child, Tad Williams and more are on my shelves.   Do you see your writing fitting in (or not) within the current world of books?   That's the great thing about art of any kind - there's always room for yours and always an audience for it. So long as you're passionate ...

Jack Holder is a featured author in the upcoming anthology Once Upon Another Time: Fresh Tales from the Far Side of Fantasy , an international publication available for free from Amazon on May 23, 2022. Story in the Anthology: The Calming of Luttrell A Few Questions What are some authors/books/events that have been influential to your work? Eragon by Christopher Paolini, which gave me permission to write at such a young age. How do you see your writing fitting in (or not) within the current world of books? My publishing imprint is listed as "magical musings in a mundane world," and I strive to embody that in my writing. Looking for wonderment in fantasy and the world beyond. What are you currently working on? I am developing an urban mythological fantasy series in prose, and an epic fantasy comic series called Legends of the Realm . What has/have been your proudest moment/s as a writer? The first issue of Legends of the Realm funded on kickstarter earlier this year. This se...

RC Hopgood is a featured author in the upcoming anthology Once Upon Another Time: Fresh Tales from the Far Side of Fantasy , an international publication available for free from Amazon on May 23, 2022. Story in the Anthology: The Fairytale of Solana's Real Books A Few Questions What are some authors/books/events that have been influential to your work? I grew up in Puerto Rico with a cuentista family. Everyone had stories to tell. As a child, abuelo Pachu would make up children stories that I could participate in. Abuela Ame would tell mystical/magical stories that made me question the nature reality. Abuela Nanana would tell old family stories and political stories. And always, during the big Saturday family lunches, out of the din of multiple simultaneous conversations, would suddenly arise a story. And everyone would listen to the teller (uncle, mom, cousin) tell their story about this or that thing that happened to them, or something they learned about, and the story would be...

J. Moody is a featured author in the upcoming anthology Once Upon Another Time: Fresh Tales from the Far Side of Fantasy , an international publication available for free from Amazon on May 23, 2022. Stories in the Anthology: Hansel and Gretel Were Here The Deliverer A Few Questions What are some authors/books/events that have been influential to your work? The SEPA Project explores what makes us human, which may be a nod to my favorite novel, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (Dick). My characters fight against leaders who can modify your memories, which came from the manipulation I was seeing in the news, but you could argue that 1984’s themes are just a part of my DNA at this point. Margaret Atwood, James Baldwin, Bernardine Evaristo, James S.A. Corey, Lois Lowery, and Suzanne Collins have all been inspirations at one point or another, guiding my style as I try different tools and genres. How do you see writing fitting in (or not) within the current world of books? I would lov...

Mariam Naeem is a featured author in the upcoming anthology  Once Upon Another Time: Fresh Tales from the Far Side of Fantasy,  an international publication available for free from Amazon on May 23, 2022.   Story in the Anthology: Within Deep Green A Few Questions What are some authors/books/events that have been influential to your work? I've always been a fan of James Herbert, Raymond Feist, Stephen King and Tamora Pierce. Fantasy and horror have been worlds so enjoyable to dive into. I'm also an avid reader when it comes to Le Guin and Lovecraft, as well as Jules Verne. How do you see your writing fitting in (or not) within the current world of books? I'm not too sure of where my writing will fit in, I only know it should be the kind of writing that takes you places, lets you dream, lets you lose yourself to the story. What are you currently working on?  I'm currently working on a collection of short horror stories about individual encounters with the same ki...

A. A. Rubin is a featured author in the upcoming anthology  Once Upon Another Time: Fresh Tales from the Far Side of Fantasy,  an international publication available for free from Amazon on May 23, 2022.   Story in the Anthology: The Three Capitalist Pigs A Few Questions What are some authors/books/events that have been influential to your work?   I first knew I wanted to be a writer when I read The Hobbit in 7th Grade. Reading Tolkien made me think that some of the games I was playing with my castle legos at the time might make good stories.  Over the years, other writers have influenced me as well, probably to a greater degree when it comes to style. These include Kurt Vonnegut (whose books changed the way I thought about speculative and literary fiction, as well as the connections between the two), Douglas Adams, Terry Pratchett (whose wit is probably the biggest influence on my story in the Once Upon Another Time anthology), Neil Gaiman (for the way h...