Category: Fanart

Posted on by — Leave a comment

July Created Works Round-Up: 11 New Works by Our Creators!

Our monthly “created works round-ups” are Duck Prints Press’s opportunity to spotlight some of the amazing work that people working with us have done that ISN’T linked to their work with Duck Prints Press. We include fanworks, outside publications, and anything else that creators feel like sharing with y’all! Inclusion is voluntary and includes anything that they decided “hey, I want to put this on the created work’s round-up!”

Check out what they’ve shared with us this month…

Reports by MizuShiba

art || cod: modern warfare ii || m/m || ghost/soap || general audiences || no major warnings apply || complete

TUMBLR – TWITTER

Ikarose by Elsin

fiction || the good place || platonic or familial || general audiences || creator choses not to use warnings || 1,105 || complete

summary: Icarus, in dual.

(or: what’s it like, to be Kamilah Al-Jamil?)

other tags: Character Study, Relationship Study, Canonical Character Death, Grief/Mourning, Mythology, Magic, A Study in Metaphor

AO3

Home is Where the Hearts Are (Shared or Otherwise) by firefly124

fiction || mcyt, hermitcraft smp, double life smp || m/m, poly (one gender: male) || tango/jimmy, tango/impulse/zedaph || general audiences || no major warnings apply || 1,263 || complete

summary: Tango was happy to be home on Hermitcraft after Double Life, even though he already missed Jimmy. Adding a new relationship to this already-complicated family, across servers no less, seems like it’s going to be like wiring up some seriously wonky redstone. Good thing Impulse and Zedaph have a knack for that sort of thing.

other tags: offscreen Impulse/Skizzleman

AO3

I Came Here to Have a Good Time and I’m Honestly Feeling So Attacked Right Now by nursinggeek

fiction || mcyt, hermitcraft smp, new life smp || no ships || n/a || general audiences || creator choses not to use warnings || 3,554 || complete

summary: Pearl let Gem talk her into spending some time on the New Life SMP.

“It’s a different sort of server,” she said.

“It’ll be fun” she said.

Why does Pearl let herself get talked into these things?

other tags: canon-typical non-permanent character deaths, mentions of EVO SMP, Hermitcraft SMP, and Traffic Life series

AO3

Modulate the Minor to the Major by Shadaras

fiction || modao zushi – moxiang tongxiu || m/m, poly (one gender: male) || lan wangji/mo xuanyu/wei wuxian || explicit || no major warnings apply || 5,555 || complete

summary: Mo Xuanyu travels back in time to prevent Wei Wuxian’s death. He does this, of course, by going to Lan Wangji and warning him of Wei Wuxian’s impending doom.

AO3

In Preparation for Another Day by Shadaras

fiction || link click (donghua) || platonic or familial || cheng xiaoshi & lu guang & qiao ling || general audiences || no major warnings apply || 2,455 || complete

summary: In theory—and solo practice!—Cheng Xiaoshi is great at gongfu. When it comes to sparring, however, he always hesitates. Liu Siwen offers him some advice about how to improve.

AO3

The White-petal Rose by Terra P. Waters

fiction || stranger things || m/m || jonathan byers/steve harrington || teen & up || no major warnings apply || 2,636 || complete

summary: Steve always thought he was bad at magic, unable to do even the simplest spells. Then he meets a boy named Jonathan and flowers begin growing in his wake.

other tags: Alternate Universe – Fantasy, Alternate Universe – Soulmates, Alternate Universe – Magic, War, Serious Injuries

AO3

To Sleep Underneath by Terra P. Waters

fiction || stranger things || m/nb, “m/agender alien” is more accurate… || steve harrington/demogorgon || explicit || creator choses not to use warnings || 35,579 || complete

summary: When the demogorgon is drawn by the scent of blood to Steve Harrington’s backyard, Nancy and Barb have already left. Instead, it finds Steve Harrington, whose scent doesn’t scream “food” but instead “MATE.”

other tags: Non/Dub-con, Human/Monster romance, Transformation, Mating, Oviposition, Alien Biology, Alternate Universe — Canon Divergence, Memory Loss, Sex Pollen

AO3

The Definitive Leda House and the Kraken Verse by Vee Sloane

fiction || our flag means death || f/f, m/m, m/nb, poly (one gender: male) || ed(dy)/stede, izzy/lucius, lucius/pete, jim/oluwande, frenchie/john || mature || no major warnings apply || 700,819 || complete

summary: A modern AU that follows the entire staff of the drag bar named Revenge as well as their partners and the Bonnet children. Features drag shows, late in life coming out stories, romance in many forms, and as much found family as you could ask for.

other tags: Modern AU, Found Family, Gender Journeys

AO3

“Welcome to the Internet” but it’s wuxia tropes by theleakypen

filk || wuxia fiction || no ships || teen & up || no major warnings apply || 371 || complete

summary: It’s exactly what it says on the tin: I’ve written a filk of “Welcome to the Internet” focusing entirely on wuxia tropes.

other tags: some mentions of violence and death, including child death

AO3

Enjoy! 😀

Who We Are: Duck Prints Press LLC is an independent publisher. We work with fan creators to publish their original work. We are particularly dedicated to publishing stories and art featuring characters from across the LGBTQIA+ spectrum. Love what we do? Sign up for our monthly newsletter and get previews, behind-the-scenes information, coupons, and more! Want to support the Press, read about us behind-the-scenes, learn what’s coming down the pipeline, get exclusive teasers, and claim free stories? Back us on Patreon monthly!

Posted on by — Leave a comment

“Aim For The Heart” Creator Spotlight: Jupiter V

We are on the cusp of the FINAL 24 HOURS of the crowdfunding campaign to publish our next anthology, Aim For The Heart: Queer Fanworks Inspired by Alexandre Dumas’s “The Three Musketeers”! Our project is funded, we’re inching toward our first stretch goal, and we’re delighted to introduce you to the last of our creators, Jupiter V.

Jupiter is doing two interior pieces for the book, and is the creator of the 12-page comic! This teaser is for one of their sketches, not for their final piece. 😀

Where Hearts Cross by Jupiter V

About the Artist: Hailing from Kjipuktuk/Halifax, Nova Scotia (that’s in Canada), Jupiter V is an artist, musician, and creative crackerjack with a career spanning over a decade. Cutting their teeth designing award-winning gig posters, they’ve gone on to illustrate for film, graphic fiction, children’s literature, and more. At times, they have been caught painting murals at the circus (?!) and whooping their child mercilessly in Rivals of Aether.

Jupiter is currently toiling away at their next graphic work of fiction, Wizards 99k, as we speak.

Today is your last chance to back this awesome campaign, support independent publishing and queer creators, and get this amazing book and the accompanying exclusive merch! Don’t miss out – pledge to our Kickstarter NOW!

Posted on by — Leave a comment

“Aim For The Heart” Creator Spotlight: Author Catherine E. Green and Artist Cris Alborja

There’s only a few days left in the campaign to crowdfund Aim For The Heart: Queer Fanworks Inspired by Alexandre Dumas’s “The Three Musketeers” – gosh, I can’t believe it’s almost over already. Here’s our last two-fer creator spotlight! 😀

Want to get a copy? Make sure you back before the campaign ends at 10 AM Eastern on July 15th, 2023!

Start your engines by Cris Alborja

About the Artist: I’m an illustration and comic artist from Spain. I’ve got a nursing degree, but I decided to pursue my passion. I have studied Illustration at EASD Pablo Picasso in A Coruña and comics at O Garaxe Hermético in Pontevedra. I have done cover art for an anthology called Infiniteca by Retranca Editorial and comics for Altar Mutante, Nai dos Desterrados, and Abraxas en Cuarentena fanzines, as well as in Gaspariño 21 by Retranca Editorial.

Link: Instagram

The Serendipity of a Late Train by Catherine E. Green

About the Author: Catherine E. Green (pronouns: xe/xem/xyr or they/them/their) is an agender person, one who’s had an on-again, off-again love affair with writing. Xe began writing when xe was a wee thing, when xyr other major pastimes were playing xyr mother’s NES and roughhousing with the boys next door. It’s only in the past few years that they have begun writing consistently and publishing their writing, fanfiction and original writing alike, leading to their first published short story titled “Of Loops and Weaves.”

Outside of writing, xe is a collector of books and sleep debt and an avid admirer of the cosmos. Playing video games, reading a variety of fiction genres (primarily fantasy, queer romance, and manga and graphic novels of all kinds), and working on wrangling their own personal data archiving projects occupy most of their free time. Xe has also started meeting up with a local fiber arts group and is excited to be crocheting xyr first scarf.

Story Teaser:

Oh, no. This is not happening.

Athos picks up the threads of Porthos’ insults. “One has to wonder if this is the same girl who gave me lip for interrupting her, frankly, dangerous stunts? Weaving sloppily through bunches of brand-new skaters, nearly bowling into several of them, and then acting like it was no big deal?”

“Excuse me?” Lottie replies, sharp and in disbelief.

Aramis starts in, “Or the girl who arrives late to tryouts—”

“It’s not my fault the train out of Gascony was late!”

“—and then proceeds to make a huge commotion thereafter. No doubt, a calm, polite conversation with our NSOs would have sufficed,” Aramis finishes, nonplussed.

“Don’t forget: this is the girl who insulted my plumage!” Porthos cries, gripping said rainbow-colored plumage to her chest.

Lottie raises an eyebrow. “Excuse me for mentioning it was a tripping hazard.”

“Like you’re one one to talk, girlie!”

Posted on by — Leave a comment

“Aim For The Heart” Creator Spotlight: Artist MidnightSilver and Author Rhosyn Goodfellow

We have 9 days to go, and Aim For The Heart: Queer Fanworks Inspired by Alexandre Dumas’s “The Three Musketeers” is 94% funded, and things are lookin’ great…and we still have 11 creators to meet!

Today, we introduce two more: MidnightSilver and Rhosyn Goodfellow. Take a peek at the teasers…

Affaire D’amour by MidnightSilver

About the Artist: I’m MidnightSilver (They/Them). I’m a freelance artist who specialises in fandom art, most often inspired by Supernatural the TV show, and I can usually be found illustrating stories for independent authors—my favourites are those that combine adventure/magic/horror with a boatload of feels! As a bi, non-binary, mixed-race person, I don’t believe in restrictive boundaries, and I love tales that highlight diversity and freedom of expression while at the same time incorporating the fantastical and magical elements that I fell in love with when reading stories as a child. It’s my aim to take all the many wondrous worlds and people with whom we visit when lost in book pages at 2 o’clock in the morning and to share them with you in visual form. It’s a project I never tire of pursuing.

Links: Archive of Our Own | deviantArt

Pierced Hearts by Rhosyn Goodfellow

About the Author: Rhosyn Goodfellow is an author of queer romance and speculative fiction living with her spouse and two dogs in the Pacific Northwest, where she is sad to report that she has not yet mysteriously disappeared or encountered any cryptids. Her hobbies include spoiling the aforementioned dogs, drinking inadvisable amounts of coffee, and running unreasonably long distances very slowly. She’s secretly just a collection of loosely-related stories dressed up in a meat suit.

Links: Personal Website | Instagram | Mastodon | Tumblr | Twitter

Story Teaser:

“The plan is simple,” Porthos tells d’Artagnan the next day. “We spar. You lose. Badly.”

“I don’t see how letting you win a few sparring matches will help.”

Porthos smirks. “Who said anything about letting me win? But you’re missing the truly brilliant part of the plan,” he continues. “If you’re injured, you can ask Athos to help patch you up.”

“Athos has patched me up more times than I care to count,” d’Artagnan points out. “How will this time be any different?”

“This time, you’ll be paying attention. You want to know if Athos returns your affections, and the fastest way to ascertain someone’s true affections is to ask for help tending your injuries. It works especially well with leg injuries,” he adds with a waggle of his eyebrows, “because you can ask them for help taking your breeches off.”

D’Artagnan frowns. “But I don’t have a—” He breaks off with a curse as Porthos drives a knee into his thigh, just below the hip. “Ow! Was that necessary?”

“Quit whining. It’s only a bruise. You’ll need several more if you want this to be convincing.”

Tags: age difference, alcohol use (casual), first kiss, friends to lovers, getting together, love declaration, m/m, meddling friends, pov third person limited, present tense, story diverges from the original work’s canon

Posted on by — Leave a comment

“Aim For The Heart” Creator Spotlight: Author Nova Mason and Artist Amalia Zeichnerin

We are 2/3rds of the way through our crowdfunding campaign for Aim For The Heart: Queer Fanworks Inspired by Alexandre Dumas’s “The Three Musketeers” – only 10 days left (we end at 10 AM on July 15th!), and we’re still $600 away from our goal! This is a great opportunity to support a small, queer-owned business with its roots in fandom, as we write and art and publish completely legal fanworks! HOW COOL IS THAT?

If you want to learn more about Duck Prints Press, our owner @unforth, our staff, and our contributors, you should visit our webpage.

If you want to learn more about this book and the people involved in it, you should visit our Kickstarter campaign page.

And, if you want to learn about today’s two awesome, spotlighted contributors, Nova Mason and Amalia Zeichnerin, you should read on…

Three of Hearts by Amalia Zeichnerin

About the Artist: Amalia Zeichnerin (she/her) lives in Hamburg, Germany. She is a disabled queer woman with a chronic illness and lives in a polyam polycule. Amalia mostly writes original fiction (SFF, cosy Victorian mysteries, Queer Romance) in German and has also one English Star Wars fan fiction on AO3, with one of her favorite shippings, StormPilot. Amalia also likes to draw and paint, especially fantasy world maps, character portraits, and sometimes also fanart. Amalia’s hobbies include pen-and-paper RPG and LARPing; these also have inspired some of her writing and artworks.

Link: Linktree

Paris-ish by Nova Mason

About the Author: Nova Mason spent a significant portion of her childhood fantasizing about dragons, spaceships, and other worlds. She is now, allegedly, a grown-up, with two kids, and more varied interests. Dragons, spaceships, and other worlds are still pretty high in the list, though.

Story Teaser:

D’Artagnan stared at the agenda in his hands and shifted against the uncomfortable metal folding chair. Somehow, it didn’t matter when they showed up to the HOA meetings; he and his friends always missed out on the good chairs.

The treasurer, Richelieu, was at that moment scowling and preaching about the evils of outdoor pests. He implored the members of the Paris Neighborhood Homeowner’s Association to ensure that they kept their trash under lock and key until at least 8 p.m. the night before trash pickup, as per the bylaws. D’Artagnan had to stifle a chuckle every time Richelieu said the word “Paris,” halfway between the English pronunciation and a strange faux-French accent. There was nothing Parisian about the neighborhood other than its name and that the ladies’ garden club wore berets and scarves to the annual summer cookout.

Tags: alternate universe, anxiety, break-up, character has a different gender than in the source material, character has a physical disability, getting together, m/m, modern, past tense, politics, pov third person limited

Posted on by — Leave a comment

“Aim For The Heart” Creator Spotlight: Amy Alexander Weston

Amy Alexander has contributed two pieces to the anthology we’re currently crowdfunding, Aim For The Heart: Queer Fanworks Inspired by Alexandre Dumas’s “The Three Musketeers”! To see one, you’ll have to wait to admire it in the book. The other…

Mousquetaires de Marseille by Amy Alexander Weston

About the Artist: Alex, AKA foxymoley, (she/her) is best described as a jack of all trades, but practices digital art more than anything else. She just wants to make things and change the world for the better.

Links: Archive of Our Own | Instagram | Tumblr

Learn all about our campaign, and check out all the other awesome art and story teasers, by visiting our Kickstarter page!

Posted on by — Leave a comment

“Aim For The Heart” Creator Spotlight: Author Aeryn Jemariel Knox and Artist C

Another day, another two creators from Aim For The Heart: Queer Fanworks Inspired by Alexandre Dumas’s “The Three Musketeers” for y’all to meet!

untitled by C

About the Artist: A massive drinker of coffee and a lover of old TV shows and movies, C is a small-time concept artist and illustrator who likes to dabble in all things literature and history. When she’s not busy drawing and nodding along to Bruce Springsteen while researching the Kentucky Cave Wars, she’s trying to save up for grad school to become to a forensic artist so she can draw some more.

Link: Tumblr

Fast Times at Treville High by Aeryn Jemariel Knox

About the Artist: Aeryn Jemariel Knox first identified as a writer in second grade. With both parents involved in theater and a house full of bookshelves, they grew up surrounded by stories, and as soon as they could hold a crayon, they felt the urge to tell their own. In 2001, they discovered the wide and wonderful world of fanfiction; since then, they have gone by Jemariel in fandom spaces across the internet, engaging with their favorite media and communities in the best way they know. Previous fandoms include Harry Potter, Star Trek (The Original Series), Torchwood, and BBC’s Sherlock, but their most prolific writing and strongest community ties are in the Supernatural fandom. Now, nearly a decade after their last original fiction attempt, Aeryn is eager to explore the wider writing word.

A native of Portland, Oregon, Aeryn currently lives in the suburbs with their husband and 16-year-old cat. For a day job, they work as a tech writer and general paper-pusher for an energy drink factory. Their favorite stories, both to tell and to read, are stories about love, identity, and magic.

Links: Archive of Our Own | Tumblr

Story Teaser:

As the last bell rings, Dorian stands in an empty bathroom peering into the spotty mirror, fists against the cold ceramic edge of the sink. Three separate people want to decorate his face, all at the same time. He’s a scrappy asshole, but he’ll be lucky if he can get out of this as more than bloody pulp.

Whatever. He’s gotten this far on a devil-may-care attitude. Maybe if he can take the punk chick—Portia—the other two will fold. Athena hadn’t looked like the fighting type, and Leg-boy… that’s another story.

The others have already gathered by the time he finds the bleachers, the three of them in a loose clump under a banner proclaiming “Go Muskets!” strung across the back of the sagging wooden structure. The football team is practicing at the far end of the field, but the bleachers themselves are empty.

Portia catches sight of him first. “Look who didn’t chicken out,” she shouts, deliberately loud enough for his ears.

As one, the others turn to Dorian, who feels his legs turn to jelly and his stomach to ice. He should have expected this.

“You all… know each other?” he asks in a tremulous voice.

“Yeah. We freaks gotta stick together.”

Tags: alcohol use (casual), bullying, drunkenness, gay character, found family, friendship, high school setting, homophobia, homophobic slurs, homosexual character, lesbian character, m/m, misunderstandings, modern, pov third person limited, present tense, underage drinking

It’s a great Sunday to help support an anthology full of great stories and art! Come check out our Kickstarter now!

Posted on by — Leave a comment

“Aim For The Heart” Creator Spotlight: Jagoda Zirebiec

Today’s creator spotlight for Aim For The Heart: Queer Fanworks Inspired by Alexandre Dumas’s “The Three Musketeers” (the awesome fanwork-ful anthology that Duck Prints Press is currently crowdfunding on Kickstarter!) has made three contributions to this anthology, creating two full-page art pieces for the book’s interior AND making the bookmark!

Meet Jagoda Zirebiec…

Bookmark:

This bookmark, 2 in x 9 in (5 cm x 23 cm), will be printed on thick paper in high gloss, will have contributor signatures on the back, and will have a shimmery gold tassel to accent the rich yellow and orange tones of the artwork!

We’re also giving you a teaser for one of Jagoda Zirebiec’s interior contributions – to see the other, you’ll have to buy the book!

Knight Commander by Jagoda Zirebiec

About the Artist: Hiya! I’m Jagoda or MizuShiba. I am a game dev artist currently working on a few unannounced titles. In my spare time I love to join collaborative projects like this, or charity Zines. This is my first project with DPP and hopefully not last!

I’m located in Poland and currently live here with my family. Aside from art, I’m interested in collecting dice and playing ttrpgs with friends.

Links: ArtStation | Tumblr | Twitter

Our Kickstarter is SO CLOSE to being funded – so come on over, learn all about it, appreciate this creator and our others, and maybe grab yourself a copy…

Posted on by — Leave a comment

“Aim For The Heart”: Campaign Updates and Spotlights on Artist Jennifer Smith and Author R. L. Houck

The campaign to fund Aim For The Heart: Queer Fanworks Inspired by Alexandre Dumas’s “The Three Musketeers” is now halfway done and going strong! For those not super familiar with how campaigns go, usually the bulk of funding comes in during the first 48 hours and the last 48 hours of the campaign. I personally usually look to see us at 50% funded by the end of the first 48 hours; if we hit that metric then I can say with a fair degree of confidence that we’ll reach our goal. This campaign did hit that, handily, and now with 15 days left, we’re only $750 shy of our goal! While I’m not hosting any parades yet, as I check in midway through our campaign…we’re doing great.

A huge, HUGE thank you to everyone who has backed so far, and also to everyone who has helped spread the word about the campaign. Word of mouth is 10000% the most effective way to help people find out this project exists and get them interested in buying the anthology; we’d never get to the goal without our supporters, and we’d never get there without every person who says, “hey, have you seen this?” Y’all rock. We love that we get to bring you awesome books.

Anyway, on to today’s contributor spotlights!

Knight and Squire by Jennifer Smith

About the Artist: Smith has been drawing since a young age. With a focus in traditional drawing techniques, she has recently started using digital mediums to imitate traditional styles. Her focus is in portraiture and landscapes, especially with watercolor. You can find more of her art on her Tumblr.

Link: Tumblr

Allergy Girl and the Hate Arrangement by R. L. Houck

About the Author: R. L. Houck (she/her) still has one of the first stories she ever wrote, all the way back from elementary school. It was about flightless penguins reaching the sun and was a good indication of her boundless imagination and her love of animals. The latter became a full-time veterinary career; the former keeps her occupied with fanfiction and original fiction in her downtime.

She’s sometimes found wandering the woods around her house in Virginia with her dog. If not there, she’s sitting on the couch, catching up on a Netflix series, and smothered by her five cats. Sometimes, there’s even space for her wife.

Links: TikTok

Story Teaser:

“Oh, no! Mom’s been very supportive of me being trans. I just meant the name change. For an English lit professor, she has a real hard-on against Shakespeare,” Portia said. “It was one of the main reasons I chose the name.”

Christa didn’t want to bring the conversation down by discussing unsupportive parents of LGBTQA+ kids. Instead, she jumped on the mention of Shakespeare. “Well, Portia was a kick-ass character too,” Christa said.

“Right? Thank you!”

“You’re quite welcome. Oh! Phoenix! Is that why you chose the tattoo? Never mind, you don’t have to answer that. I apologize—I’m being super nosy,” Christa said, immediately backtracking.

Portia laughed. “You’re fine. That is exactly why I chose the phoenix: rebirth. And those pictures are sent; tell me what you think.”

A few seconds later, Christa got a text message from an unknown number. She opened it to see a gorgeous flower arrangement shown in several pictures taken from multiple angles.

“Wow. This is beautiful,” Christa said, voice faint from awe. “Are you sure this says, ‘I hate your guts and wish abstract misery upon you for the rest of your natural existence’ in flower language?”

“…in so many words, yes,” Portia said, sounding amused.

Tags: allergies, attraction at first sight, character has a different gender than in the source material, customer service representative, deadnaming (accidental), f/f, florist, getting together, the language of flowers, meet awkward, modern, past tense, pining, pov third person limited, siblings, tattoo, triplets, trans

We’ve already raised $7,250 to fund this anthology, and we’re 90% of the way to our goal. Come see what all the fuss is about, and help us spread the word by sharing today’s awesome teasers or any of our past posts!

Posted on by — Leave a comment

“Aim For The Heart” Creator Spotlight: Giulia Malagoli

Hope y’all are having a lovely Thursday! I’m sure y’all have a lot going on today. What do we at Duck Prints Press have going on? Why, of course, introducing another contributor to our currently crowdfunding anthology Aim For The Heart: Queer Fanworks Inspired by Alexandre Dumas’s “The Three Musketeers.”

A Toast to Scars by Giulia Malagoli

About the Artist: Giulia Malagoli (she/they) got into art because of generally friendly competition with a classmate in middle school, and now she has an entire Bachelor’s Degree in Concept Art to show for it.

For about ten years, she has been hopping through fandom spaces—from video games, to comics, to movies and TV series—and has drawn inspiration from each of them for both fan and original art. The result is a passion for character design and for art that weaves a story into its visuals, with a whole lot of feelings about the role of The Narrative to boot.

To chase this passion Giulia has moved from their home country of Italy to the United Kingdom and back again. They now work as a freelance illustrator with enthusiasm, always scraping some time at the end of the day to keep up with fandom friends.

Links: ArtStation | Twitter

Only a teaser for now – you’ll have to get the book to see all of this gorgeous piece in it’s full grayscale A4-size (8 1/4 inches x 11 3/4 inches/21 cm x 30 cm) glory.

Better back the Kickstarter now so you don’t miss out!

(By the way, in case you’ve missed some other things we’ve got going on, we’re selling short story bundles and giving a portion of the proceeds to two queer charities. Read all about it!)