<p>Continuing the “Letters from Namora” series, in which Fourteen Stones’s people introduce themselves and their world. This is a letter from the archives of Valdena Filtraikas, a woman who rises well beyond her own expectations and will play a pivotal role in the futures of two nations. In this letter, she is a young student (mosevin) &hellip; </p> <p><a href="https://krisfaatz.com/2023/03/02/a-letter-from-the-mosevin/" class="more-link">Continue reading <span class="screen-

<p>A &#8220;Letter from Namora&#8221; video, featuring Galvo Dendraikas, one of Sostavi&#8217;s political movers and shakers. Read the original Letter from the Council To find out more about Fourteen Stones, and get your own copy, please visit the book’s page. If you’d like regular updates from the blog, please consider subscribing. As always, thank you for visiting!</p>

<p>A reflection on the trip to Spain that inspired Fourteen Stones. My memories of Cudillero, the real town that became Sostavi, capital city of Namora. The first thing I feel is what I wouldn’t give to do that again. We can’t have exactly the same experience back; if Paul and I were to go to &hellip; </p> <p><a href="https://krisfaatz.com/2023/02/16/the-real-sostavi/" class="more-link">Continue reading <span class="screen-reader-text">The Real Sostavi</span></a></p>

<p>These last few days have been a little hectic, so I&#8217;m shamelessly borrowing from myself for today&#8217;s post. You might have seen some of my recent &#8220;Letters From&#8221; series, in which some of my favorite Fourteen Stones characters are featured here on the blog, in their own words. These letters are new content, rather than &hellip; </p> <p><a href="https://krisfaatz.com/2023/02/14/letters-from-namora/" class="more-link">Continue reading <span class="screen-

<p>Continuing the “Letters From” series, in which Fourteen Stones’s people introduce themselves and their world. ** Write a letter, my brother says. Letter? I say. Letter about what? I don’t do that kind of thing. Haven’t in years, not since my wife Virta and I got married and she moved out here to the village. &hellip; </p> <p><a href="https://krisfaatz.com/2023/02/09/a-letter-from-the-farmer/" class="more-link">Continue reading <span class="screen-reader-text">A Letter from

<p>The next in our series of letters from Fourteen Stones&#8216;s people. Here, a member of Namora’s governing Council introduces himself and Namoran politics. ** Galvo Dendraikas, at your service. I am a sventin, one of the seventeen members of Namora’s ruling Council serving our leader, the Tavin. I have been here in our capital city, &hellip; </p> <p><a href="https://krisfaatz.com/2023/02/02/a-letter-from-the-council/" class="more-link">Continue reading <span class="screen

<p>I know I’ve been posting a lot about my book lately. Today’s post touches on it too (sorry!), but I’m thinking about the bigger question of creativity, and why this particular book, and the process it went through in getting published, feels like a real benchmark for me. I’m a trauma survivor. Only recently, I’ve &hellip; </p> <p><a href="https://krisfaatz.com/2023/01/31/reclaiming/" class="more-link">Continue reading <span class="screen-reader-text">Reclaiming</span></a><

<p>In which Fourteen Stones&#8216;s matriarch introduces herself. “Orchard-keeper” is only one of her titles, by no means the most important – but she will tell more. ** My name is Pelayut Silvenis. You’ve met my elder son Ribas, who is the zhinin of our little village, Lida. He is the caretaker, so to speak, of &hellip; </p> <p><a href="https://krisfaatz.com/2023/01/26/a-letter-from-the-orchard-keeper/" class="more-link">Continue reading <span class="screen-reader-text">A Le

<p>Last week, I posted about how my book Fourteen Stones arrived “in the ink,” and how I got to see it for the first time. The best feeling. Book publishing is a strange game. In the writing process, you devote yourself for months or years to something that exists nowhere except inside your own head. &hellip; </p> <p><a href="https://krisfaatz.com/2023/01/23/a-long-and-winding-road/" class="more-link">Continue reading <span class="screen-reader-text">A Long and Winding&nbsp;R

<p>In which my favorite character from Fourteen Stones introduces himself and his home&#8230; ** Where to begin? I have no real gift with words, I’m afraid. But I’ve tasked myself with these, and so my stubbornness will have to stand in the place of skill. My name is Ribas Silvaikas. I am the zhinin of &hellip; </p> <p><a href="https://krisfaatz.com/2023/01/19/a-letter-from-the-zhinin/" class="more-link">Continue reading <span class="screen-reader-text">A Letter from the&nbsp

<p>I&#8217;ve been looking forward to writing this post for a long time. Yesterday, I finally got to hug my brand-new book, Fourteen Stones. If there&#8217;s anything like the experience of seeing your own story &#8211; the one you dreamed of, sweated over, adored and fought with, and gave the best of your energy to for &hellip; </p> <p><a href="https://krisfaatz.com/2023/01/17/the-books-have-landed/" class="more-link">Continue reading <span class="screen-reader-text">The Boo

<p>Join me next Monday, December 12, at 5 pm EST for a wonderful Zoom talk with my friend and colleague Dr. Julia Lee Barclay-Morton! Julia and I have both recently had books published: her hybrid collection The Mortality Shot is her first, and Fourteen Stones is my second. Our books are very different, but Julia and I have a lot &hellip; </p> <p><a href="https://krisfaatz.com/2022/12/06/dont-miss-it/" class="more-link">Continue reading <span class="screen-reader-text">Don&#8

<p>I&#8217;m very excited to share a wonderful upcoming event. In a couple of weeks, on Monday December 12, at 5 pm EST, I&#8217;ll be giving a Zoom talk with my friend and colleague Dr. Julia Lee Barclay-Morton. Julia and I have both recently had books published: her hybrid collection The Mortality Shot is her first, &hellip; </p> <p><a href="https://krisfaatz.com/2022/11/29/writing-talk-december-12/" class="more-link">Continue reading <span class="screen-reader-text">Writin

<p>The blog has been quiet for the past couple of weeks&#8230;life&#8230; 😉 But I&#8217;m excited to share two upcoming Fourteen Stones events with you. The paperbacks are printed! My publisher will be sending out the preordered copies and other crowdfunder rewards soon. (I can&#8217;t wait to get my hands on my box of books. There &hellip; </p> <p><a href="https://krisfaatz.com/2022/11/08/update-bookish-stuff/" class="more-link">Continue reading <span class="screen-reader-t

<p>The Fourteen Stones crowdfunder hit its target this morning. Thank you so much to everyone who helped us across the line! My book goes to print very soon: it&#8217;s going to be a real book, out in the world. I might be crying a bit right now. 🙂 I know I&#8217;ve said it before, but &hellip; </p> <p><a href="https://krisfaatz.com/2022/08/30/we-made-it/" class="more-link">Continue reading <span class="screen-reader-text">We Made It!!</span></a></p>

<p>We&#8217;re coming up on the end of the Fourteen Stones crowdfunder: two days and about six hours to go! We&#8217;ve made it three-quarters of the way to our target. Thank you so much to everyone who has pledged and preordered! If you haven&#8217;t yet, and would like your own copy or e-copy of this rich, &hellip; </p> <p><a href="https://krisfaatz.com/2022/08/29/bonus-post-fourteen-stones-suite/" class="more-link">Continue reading <span class="screen-reader-text">Bonus po

<p>We&#8217;re in the homestretch of the crowdfunder for the launch of my novel Fourteen Stones: only five more days! My publisher has put some cool new rewards up in the PledgeMe campaign, and I&#8217;d like to offer a little &#8220;bonus&#8221; too. Last night, my publisher and I did a live interview, which was so much &hellip; </p> <p><a href="https://krisfaatz.com/2022/08/26/bonus-post-book-talk-and-mood-music/" class="more-link">Continue reading <span class="screen-reade

<p>Today is the beginning of Fourteen Stones&#8216;s Special Launch Week. My publisher is having a week-long online launch party, and we&#8217;re also going into the last week of our crowdfunder &#8211; which means if you&#8217;d like to get your own copy, now is the perfect time. 🙂 That was my little commercial. The rest of &hellip; </p> <p><a href="https://krisfaatz.com/2022/08/23/launching-and-looking-back/" class="more-link">Continue reading <span class="screen-reader-te

<p>Today&#8217;s post isn&#8217;t the one I meant to write. I&#8217;d planned just to post a &#8220;musical teaser&#8221; about my novel Fourteen Stones, but yesterday I was looking through some old photos, and got a new idea. I&#8217;ve posted here on the blog about my experiences with mental health challenges, especially anxiety and depression. Both of &hellip; </p> <p><a href="https://krisfaatz.com/2022/08/16/the-writer-back-when/" class="more-link">Continue reading <span

<p>It&#8217;s getting real! Preorders are available now for my new novel Fourteen Stones, and I&#8217;m thrilled to share the cover. Will Thompson, the artist with my publisher The Patchwork Raven, did an incredible job turning a product of my imagination into a beautiful design. The building in this picture is a Circle House. Circle Houses &hellip; </p> <p><a href="https://krisfaatz.com/2022/08/09/its-a-real-book/" class="more-link">Continue reading <span class="screen-reade