Our short stories are finally up on Amazon and Audible!

Getting this part of the series in motion has taken longer than I anticipated, but we’re finally rolling forward with Tales From The Amaranth Chronicles: Volume 1.  

These short stories are meant to be a sub series to The Amaranth Chronicles: Deviant Rising where we explore individual characters and ideas in a shorter format and more episodic way. Each of these stories are self-contained and meant to expand the universe in such a way as to give our audience a broader picture without bogging down the grand story. Think of The Amaranth Chronicles: Deviant Rising as the feature film, and Tales From the Amaranth Chronicles as the weekly TV show. This short story series gives rise to literary experimentation with how we tell our story and how the fans can contribute moving forward.

The first story, “The Sky Is Not The Limit”, is a swashbuckling tale told by Lithia’s father about the proud Boson family line. It was important for Chris and I to establish an in-universe tale of someone from Lithia’s lineage who once had to defend his ship and his people from tyranny and oppression. Our hope was to begin fostering an image of Lithia’s father not covered in Deviant Rising while providing a backstory of one of our other very important vessels. 

Our second story in this volume, “What Men Do Lives After Them”, was written and recorded by the extraordinarily talented Emily Smith, our narrator from Deviant Rising. She became a fan during her contribution to the original novel and had a very compelling vision for some of the elements of Lithia Boson’s back story that we teased in Deviant Rising. We’re so happy to have her contribution to Lithia and The Amaranth Chronicles universe, and we think you’ll agree after listening.  

Chris and I are very excited to have you listen to these new installments and can’t wait to hear your feedback. We want these and future short stories to evolve over time. Our goal is to create a narrative that delves into a multifaceted universe like nothing you’ve ever experienced.

Thank you for being a part of this journey with is!

The Sky Is Not The Limit

Lithia’s father tells the story of Hoban Boson, a long-ago captain of a ship on Earth, and his defiance against those who would try to take their freedom. Hoban convinced his crew to go up against the Falcon, the ship that had landed in Buzzard Bay to lay claim to the town. Hoban’s crew and ship, the Success, was much smaller than the Falcon, but to him, that didn’t matter. What mattered was standing up to those who would subjugate and terrorize.

Lithia is old enough to know that bad guys don’t win in the end, and young enough to be scared when all seems lost. Will Hoban triumph over Captain Kajiura and the Falcon, or will Buzzard Bay be lost?

Written by Alexander Barnes & Christopher Preiman - Edited by Beth Dorward - Narrated by Emily Smith

The Evil That Men Do Lives After Them

Growing up, all Lithia wants is to go on the Journey with her father. But as she gets older, a dark secret seems to cloud their idyllic world. The neighbors ask questions about where her father goes, if he ever brings anything back from his trips around the galaxy. Lithia and her brother, Bobby, are instructed to be careful with whom they talk.

One day, her father comes home in a daze, and her mother announces they are leaving Venus to go on the Journey together. Lithia is elated – until tragedy strikes.

The two siblings are left with nowhere to go. They have nothing, and they don’t know who to trust. The secret her parents kept from her looms ever larger, still without the answers they need. Worse, Bobby seems like he has one last secret to tell. Do the two siblings have the strength to break free from this prison of anguish and terror?

Written by Emily Smith - Edited by Beth Dorward - Narrated by Emily Smith

While working on the first short story, I was inspired to produce a piece of companion art.