First Page Look: A New Magic Kingdom Short Story

When I asked Terry to write a short story for Unfettered II, he said he had just the right idea.

A Word/Void short story.

Months went by as he worked on a super secret novel project—no, we still aren’t talking about it really yet—and when I asked him if he had finished the short story he smiled sheepishly and said, “I got a better idea. What if…”

And just like that, Terry went to work on a new Magic Kingdom short story featuring Ben Holiday, taking place after the events of A Princess of Landover. It must have been a tale that had built up inside of him because it took him mere days to write it. And once I received it and began reading, it left me cackling all day long.

But building and editing anthologies is a strange business and I am still learning a great deal about it. One of my authors needed a bit more time for his Unbound contribution, which pushed Unfettered II into mid-2016. I didn’t like that you guys would have to wait until then to read a new Magic Kingdom story, so I moved it up into Unbound!

Unbound publishes on December 1, 2015, right in time for the holidays. And it features one of the best line-ups you’ll see in any anthology.

Here are the formats it will be available in:

• Hardcover Advanced Reader Copy: $50 (shipping late October)
• Trade Hardcover: $30 (shipping December 1st)
• Signed & Numbered Leather Hardcover: $125 (Spring 2016)
• eBook: $9.99 (available December 1st)

Notes: The hardcover ARC ships earlier than the final trade hardcover and is not proofed, does not feature the final interior artwork, has a different dust jacket, and is limited to 250 copies. Pre-ordering for the ebook will begin next week. And those who own the Signed & Numbered edition of Unbound have first right of refusal for the Signed & Numbered edition of Unfettered II.

To celebrate Unbound and its announcement here, I’ve decided to post the first page of An Unfortunate Influx of Filipians by Terry Brooks:

Anyone out there excited for a new Magic Kingdom story? I think you guys are going to love it!

Post your comments below!