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DPP Contributor Interview: A. L. Heard

A photograph of an open hard-cover book resting on a white surface. It's sunny and bright. A blurred-out background suggests the outdoors. Text over the image reads "Author interview! Meet A. L. Heard." The Duck Prints Press logo is at the bottom middle of the image.

A. L. Heard is one of the founding members of Duck Prints Press and has been a part of our planning team since before our official inception, offering her advice and expertise to the Press since mid-2019, and she’s been an editor on our anthologies Add Magic to Taste, And Seek (Not) to Alter Me, He Bears the Cape of Stars, She Wears the Midnight Crown, and Aim For The Heart. She’s also a prolific author of stories of all lengths and in all genres, and one of the most active authors involved with the Press.

Pre-orders of the revised edition of A. L. Heard’s debut novel Hockey Bois open on December 1st, 2023!

Want to meet A. L. Heard and ask her YOUR questions? YOU CAN! Join us TOMORROW, Thursday, November 30th, at 8 p.m. Eastern time (converter) on our Book Lover’s Discord server for a very special Ask Me Anything session with the author of Hockey Bois!

A photograph of a slim white woman, shown from the shoulders up, with a forest in the background. She is casually dressed, her hair up, and large aviator-style sunglasses cover her eyes. This is an author portrait of A. L. Heard.

Author Biography: Ashley, pen name A. L. Heard, fandom name jhoom, is a 35-year-old teacher, writer, and mother of two little boys. She’s been writing fanworks since she discovered fanfiction.net back in her middle school days; the platform has changed and the writing’s improved, but Ashley ultimately still spends her free time writing about characters she adores in worlds she’d like to explore. Her first novel, Hockey Bois, was published in 2021. In between writing projects, she works as a language teacher in the Pittsburgh area, plays hockey, and plays trains with her sons.

Links: Bluesky | Instagram


How did you pick the name you create under?

It’s a combination of my [real life] name and family names, making it unique but also still connected to me.


When and why did you begin creating?

I started writing fic during middle school and went through phases where I’d write fic and original work and then long periods with no writing. I’m happy to be settled into writing on a regular basis 🙂


What’s your favorite part of the creation process?

The brainstorming and playing around with a new story and characters, where everything is still possible and I haven’t had to commit to any particular plot point.


Describe your ideal creation space.

An office that’s well lit with an endless supply of tea or coffee or snacks, with no distractions or extra noises except birds. Either that or a brewery or cafe with background noise.


What are your favorite snacks and/or drinks to consume while creating?

Tea, coffee, and baked goods (cookies, scones, that sort of thing)


What’s one thing (style, genre, etc.) that you think you’ll never do, and why not?

Epic fantasy – they’re awesome stories but I don’t have the creativity/brain for a large scale world and magic system like that.


Short Stories A. L. has published with Duck Prints Press:

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Progress on Fulfillment for Duck Prints Press Crowdfunding Campaigns

We’ve got three crowdfunding campaigns currently in the midst of fulfillment, and we wanted to take a moment to post about our progress on each of them!

Aim For The Heart: Queer Fanworks Inspired by Alexandre Dumas’s The Three Musketeers

Our most recent campaign on Kickstarter, to fund Aim For The Heart, ended on July 15th, 2023. After some print challenges revealed in the proof copy of the book, we had to make some fairly extensive tweaks to the manuscript, and getting that completely set has taken a fair amount of time. But we’re there now – the book is done and printed, and we’re just doing some final preparation on the e-book and backer data in anticipation of packing and shipping everyone’s orders this weekend, November 18th and 19th!


Many Drops Make a Stream by Adrian Harley

We were 100% on track to fulfill Many Drops Make a Stream orders within the next week or so…and then the enamel pins arrived, after 6 or so weeks in production, with an error that makes them undistributable (the poor tiger part of Droplet has no stripes on her back and hind legs!). Everything else for this campaign is ready to go, and the pin manufacturer has been very receptive to our issue and is rushing replacements for us, but we’re still at least a few weeks from having them even if they’re expedited – manufacturing enamel-ware takes time, and they have to ship from China.

That said, because we have everything else, we will be doing some distribution shortly: namely, for people who also backed Aim For The Heart, if we can save them shipping money by combining their orders, we will do so and refund the difference in shipping cost – combining the book shipping for these individuals, and then forwarding them their pins separately, will be a big savings for them.

For everyone else, we will prepare everything we can, and as soon as we have the pins we will distribute everything. If it looks like we will not have the pins before the December holidays start, we will send out everything BUT the pins, and send out pin orders alone subsequently. We appreciate everyone’s patience as we make sure that y’all get items of the quality and accuracy that you deserve!


To Drive the Hundred Miles by Alec J. Marsh

All of the merchandise for To Drive the Hundred Miles has arrived, and it looks great. We’re almost done repackaging it and preparing it for distribution. The proof of the book arrived last week, and we’ve reviewed it and made a few necessary tweaks; we re-submitted those files to the printer yesterday, and are awaiting their confirmation so we can sign off on production of the full print run. Once it’s in the print queue, our best guess is that it’ll be roughly two weeks before it arrives at our door. At that time, we’ll be able to get everyone’s pre-orders turned around pretty quickly.


Thank you everyone for your orders with us! We’re excited to bring all three of these large projects to a close, and get amazing books into all of your hands!

And keep your eyes open, because there’s more to come – the re-release of A. L. Heard’s Hockey Bois, revised and reprinted, will open for pre-orders on December 1st, and our next Kickstarter campaign for the anthology Aether Beyond the Binary will be launching on December 26th. We also expect to run a Kickstarter campaign in February for Tris Lawrence’s Twinned trilogy, and we’ve got more in the pipeline after that! So make sure you follow us on social media, subscribe to our newsletters, back us on Patreon for sneak peeks and backer-exclusive extras, and leave us reviews on Goodreads or Storygraph!

Want one or more of these books, and/or the merchandise that goes with them, but missed out on the campaigns? Don’t despair – the books and leftover merch will become available during this coming winter! So be on the look out!

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It’s Bisexual Visibility Day! Come See Duck Prints Press’s Bisexuals!

Earlier this week, we celebrated the start of Bisexual Awareness Week by sharing 18 books we’ve read and loved that include bisexual characters. Today, we aim to bring visibility to some titles that aren’t as widely known: our own! We’ve got three anthologies, two novels, and five short stories that feature explicitly bisexual characters. Learn all about ‘um now!

To Fill My Cup by Violet J. Hayes

“Here, Grandma, let me get you a stool.” Talia hurried to bring one from the other side of the island and helped her settle down into it. “Do you want a fresh cup of coffee?”

“No, dear, I’m fine.” One by one, her grandmother picked up each sweet potato. Her fingers were stiff with arthritis, the knuckles swollen. Talia wondered if she could get her plain gold wedding band off even if she wanted to. She turned each potato in her hands, murmuring as she did so. Talia knew she was doing math to calculate the number of servings, but it gave the impression of a sorcerer muttering an incantation.

I think my grandma might be a witch, she texted Rachael, and was surprised when her phone rang a moment later. “Hey, Rach.”

“Hey.”

It only took that single word for Talia to know something was off. “What’s wrong?”


Add Magic to Taste with contributions by 20 authors; five of the stories include bisexual characters

For Add Magic to Taste, 20 authors have come together to produce new, original short stories uniting four of our absolute favorite themes: queer relationships, fluff, magic, and coffee shops! Our diverse writers have created an even more diverse collection of stories guaranteed to sweeten your coffee and warm your tart.


A Mutual Interest by Alec J. Marsh

Tirsa stopped arguing with Jeromy after they reached the outskirts of the city, and by the time they’d made it to open countryside she had fallen asleep, snuggled against the window of the jeep under his coat. He didn’t mind her arguing, not exactly, but she was arguing against her own best interests. She deserved a weekend off.

The traffic grew thicker as they neared the army checkpoint into Kestilav Province, and Jeromy pulled to a stop. Tirsa didn’t stir, and her breathing whistled a little bit. Jeromy’s heart squeezed with fondness.


Commit to the Kick by Tris Lawrence

For eighteen years, Alaric has lived under the cloying politics of family and his Clan community. His freshman year is supposed to be a chance to explore a world where Clan and his shapeshifting Talent isn’t central to his life. But when his inner bear bursts forth during his first football game, endangering those around him, Alaric realizes that it’s not so easy to ignore his past, or his own internalized anger.

In his quest for anger management, Alaric begins to train in taekwondo, and makes new friends in both sports. He finds that he is creating his own small community, where Clan, Mages, other Talents, and even humans come together and build their own found family.

When Alaric receives news that something has happened to his brother Orson, he must return and deal with his Clan and his place in their world. He discovers that old prejudices are still strong between Clan and Mage communities, but that both may be in danger from a creature long thought to be only a legend. Alaric must figure out how to move forward and prevent a war and protect both his home and newly built communities, his found family with him every step of the way.


Bubble, Bubble by Sage Mooreland

“Punk, if you don’t get your rear end down here, we’re not going to be able to go!” Charlotte called up the stairs. “I thought you wanted to do three blocks tonight?”

There was a muffled thump, some child-friendly cursing, and then running feet. “Mama, gimme a minute! Dad’s fixing my costume!”


And Seek (Not) to Alter Me: Queer Fanworks Inspired by Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing, an anthology with contributions by 16 authors and 16 artists; three of the stories include bisexual characters

In And Seek (Not) to Alter Me, 16 authors and 16 artists have come together to create an exquisite, full-color collection of artwork and stories inspired by William Shakespeare’s play Much Ado About Nothing. We encouraged contributors to stretch their imaginations, think outside the box, and put their own unique—and queer—twists on Benedick, Beatrice, Hero, Claudio, Don Pedro, and the whole gang! In true Shakespearean fashion, our creators utilize gender, sexuality, romanticism, and a host of costume changes to tell unique artworks and stories—some featuring original characters, some characters from the play—that show Shakespeare’s work in a whole new light.


A Glimmer of Hope by Nina Waters

Gregory Adalwin’s life ended the day in 1746 when his liege lord, Duke Haribert Schultheis-Königsmann, was murdered. With everything he’d spent a thousand years building in ruins, Gregory set out to wreak vengeance on those who had killed the Duke. He didn’t expect to survive. Yet, a century after completing his revenge, Gregory is somehow still breathing. He wastes his days in an alcoholic stupor, clothed and fed and housed at the sufferance of Teyrngar Gwehydd, once sworn to his service, now owed more than he can ever hope to repay. The only things that get him out of bed are the vodka that Mstislav Alkayev sneaks to him and the prospect of spending time with the beautiful pixie Yermolai Praskovya. No one remembers who Gregory is, no one knows him, and no one cares about him. After how Gregory failed his Duke, he deserves nothing more.

Or so he thinks, until someone tries to kill him, and Gregory is confronted by a stupefying question: who on earth could possibly give enough of a damn about him to want him dead?


In Which James Willoby Enjoys a Ball Far More Than One Should by A. L. Heard

It was halfway through the second dance when “the moment” finally came.

James caught sight of him at a distance, a familiar form lurking at the periphery of his vision. As he turned with the dance, James focused on that corner of the ballroom, locking eyes with none other than their host.

Haywood Keating was by all accounts a handsome man. Nearly ten years James’s senior, he exuded the type of charm and confidence only the wealthy could afford, coaxing smiles and earning admiration wherever he went. His dark suit, although perfectly tailored and pressed, was almost boring when viewed among the other gentry wearing their best, but the bright-purple cravat dotted with yellow paisley made him stand out all the same. His hair was longer these days, the dark strands beginning to curl but currently tamed; his footman must have pulled it back and fastened it with that vibrant-green ribbon that complemented his dark complexion. A sight to behold, as always.


He Bears the Cape of Stars, an anthology with contributions by 17 authors; three of the stories include bisexual characters

He Bears the Cape of Stars is one of our two paired masquerade-themed anthologies. It features 17 stories exploring mlm relationships developing, growing, and changing while the characters attend or participate in masquerades!

The collected works in He Bears the Cape of Stars feature men and masculine-leaning genderqueer characters, with a spectrum of sexualities, and these diverse individuals inhabit worlds ranging from a science fiction setting where everyone must be masked to breathe, to a fantasy world where no one wears a literal mask but everyone shows the world a false guise, to an iteration of the real world where all the characters truly want is to take their masks off and show the world who they really are. Our contributors stretched their imaginations to present innovative stories exploring what a masquerade can be…and, of course, tell rich, engaging tales of wonderful queer folk finding love, companionship, acceptance, the queer platonic relationship of their dreams, or the found family they deserve.


No One Right Way by R. L. Houck

Sometime a little past 9 p.m., Rachel swanned into the bedroom from the bathroom. She paused suddenly a few steps past the doorway. Nikkōka glanced up, noting she wore the shorts-and-T-shirt combo she normally donned for bed. Her mouth was pinched with anxiety despite her confident stance.

“I am horny, and I am going to get off,” she announced.


Did you know? You can read many of these stories RIGHT NOW, and claim the others as freebies, by becoming a support of Duck Prints Press on Patreon!

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“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!