The Discommodious Wedding cited as one of Ken Schneyer top three favorite novelettes of 2015

Once again, The Discommodious Wedding, third book of The Elephant and Macaw Series, has been cited as one of the top works of 2015. This time, author Ken Schneyer listed it as one of his three favorite novelettes of 2015, in his 2015 Award-Eligible Stories and Recommendations. For those unaware of his work, Ken is a writer, an active member of the Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America, and a member of the Cambridge Science Fiction Workshop. He received the Nebula Award in 2014. Ken also had great publications in 2015, such as “The Plausibility of Dragons” in Lightspeed Magazine #66

 

You can see the rest here. Be sure to check it out the rest of his recommendations as well!

#ElephantMacaw

Press release – Douban Read Licenses Chinese Rights to The Elephant and Macaw Banner

Logo of Douban

 

Douban Read Licenses Chinese Rights to The Elephant and Macaw Banner

Award-winning Brazilian fantasy series to be sold via 100 million user social network Douban

 

Douban Read, editorial arm of Chinese social network Douban, has acquired Chinese publishing rights for Christopher Kastensmidt’s The Elephant and Macaw Banner series. The stories will be sold through Douban.com, a site with over one hundred million registered users. Douban Read’s catalog contains major international authors such as David Mitchell, Nancy Kress, Ken Liu, Thomas Olde Heuvelt and Aliette de Bodard.

 

The Elephant and Macaw Banner is a series of fantasy stories set in colonial Brazil. The stories have been nominated for the Nebulas and other international awards. Christopher Kastensmidt, author of the series, writes: “It’s an immense honor to sign this deal with Douban. I can’t imagine a better partner for transporting the world of The Elephant and Macaw Banner to China, the world’s largest audience.”

 

Pei Liu, foreign rights editor of Douban Read, states: “I was fascinated by the creatures inspired by Brazilian folklore when I read The Fortuitous Meeting for the first time.  We then decided to build in China a nice home for stories of The Elephant and Macaw Bannner.  We think Douban Read is the best choice for them because it has the largest reader group in China. This is also a great chance for Chinese readers to meet the beauty, mystery, and magic of Christopher’s writings.”

 

According to The Global Ranking of the Publishing Industry 2014, China is responsible for 12% of the world editorial market, second only to the United States.

 

About Douban Read

Douban is one of China’s most visited SNS websites, with more than one hundred million registered users. People gather at Douban, buying ebooks and sharing comments of their favorite readings, music and films. Douban Read is Douban’s e-book store launched in 2012, accompanied by set of apps for iPad,  Kindle, and desktop PC reading within a web app. To keep the experience social, the Douban Reader app allows users to leave comments and reviews on the ebooks they’re reading. It is also China’s largest self-publishing platform, with works by over 15,000 amateur writers e-published exclusively at Douban Read.

 

About the Elephant and Macaw Banner

The Elephant and Macaw Banner is an award-winning fantasy series set in sixteenth-century Brazil. The stories tell the adventures of Gerard van Oost and Oludara, an unlikely pair of heroes who meet in Salvador. News, artwork, and in-depth explanations of historical and cultural references from the series can be found at the website www.eamb.org.

 

About Christopher Kastensmidt

Christopher is a native Texan who immigrated to Porto Alegre, Brazil, in 2001. A former Creative Director at Ubisoft, he has authored games, comics, and books published around the world.

The Discommodious Wedding cited as Aliette de Bodard’s favorite novelette of 2015

The Discommodious Wedding, third book of The Elephant and Macaw Series, has been cited by Aliette de Bodard as her favorite novelette of 2015, in her interview at The Book Smugglers. For those unaware of her work, Aliette is a writer of speculative fiction, with stories that have appeared in Interzone, Clarkesworld Magazine and the Year’s Best Science Fiction, among others. She won the Nebula Award in 2012 and 2013. This year marked the launch of her amazing new novel, The House of Shattered Wings, published by Gollancz.

 

You can see the interview here. Be sure to check it out! There’s lots of  great recommendations there.

Smugglers

Many thanks to Alliete!

The Elephant and Macaw Banner in the Whitney Plantation Museum of Slavery

I’m honored to announce the contribution that The Elephant and Macaw Banner was able to make to the Whitney Plantation Museum of Slavery.

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Last year, Dr. Ibrahima Seck, Academic Director of the museum, entered in contact with me and Leonardo Amora, asking permission to include the painting “Arrival in Salvador” as part of their permanent collection. I had commissioned this painting from Amora back in 2010, to represent Gerard’s arrival in Salvador, although it just as easily represents the tragic arrival of the slave ships from Africa. Both of us readily agreed to donate a permanent license to the museum. You can also find the image on their website, listed as “Portuguese Caravel”.

I’m honored that The Elephant and Macaw Banner was able to make this contribution, however small, to further education about the terrible past of slavery in the Americas. Education is the only way we can begin to correct the effects of these wrongs which continue on today.

If you’re ever near Wallace, Louisiana, please pay the museum a visit and see for yourself the incredible educational work they’re doing there.