Teaser: With Only A Razor Between
Arriving August 13th from Reactor, check out the stunning artwork from Yuta Shimpo . . .
Just drink it in . . . the red! The flags waving like dead tongues! The mug of scissors and razors. The hand on the back of the neck! The sign in the upper right hand corner. That expression of weariness!
Ugh. It’s so beautiful.
This is a story that came from the inherent tension of the social contract; coin paid, services rendered, that sort of thing. If someone has a razor to your throat, the only thing stopping them from killing you is themself. Why? Where does that social contract come from?
And as happens with my stories, it grew. It became about empire, the appetite of conquerers, what we do and who we become when all we want is to survive . . . it became about how empire naturally subverts, breaks, or rewrites the social contract, how empire smooths, flattens, and kills anything that isn’t them.
It became a story about an old man who’s kept his head down for years and what it takes for him to look up again.
This is a fantasy story, yes, but there’s nothing fantastical about it. A secondary world, but there’s no magic, no myth.
Just people.
Looking forward to sharing it with you all soon!