The end of the month is fast approaching, which means it’s time for another giveaway at Experiments in Manga. It also means that the Kickstarter campaign for Year Four of Sparkler Monthly is drawing to a close. I actually held a Sparkler Monthly giveaway last year to coordinate with the campaign to raise funds for the magazine’s third year. Normally, I try not to repeat myself too much when it comes to giveaways, but this year’s campaign still needs some boosting if it’s going to succeed. Also, I love what Sparkler Monthly is doing and I want to share that love! And so for this year’s Sparkler Monthly giveaway, the winner will have the opportunity to choose not one, but two Sparkler paperbacks, ebooks, or audio dramas. (Don’t worry, I’m more than happy to make specific recommendations if needed or desired.) And of course as always the giveaway is open worldwide!
I adore Sparkler Monthly and have been an avid supporter of both it and its publisher Chromatic Press for years. Although I am a little behind in my reviewing, I do make a point to feature the novels and comics released in print here at Experiments in Manga, but there is even more content available digitally, either as ebooks or freely serialized online. And it’s all marvelous; I have honestly loved everything that I’ve read or listened to from Sparkler Monthly. The magazine, which is currently a mix of prose, comics, illustrations, and audio, provides a wonderful variety of stories in a number of different genres. There’s romance, fantasy, horror, mystery, science fiction, historical fiction, comedy, satire, drama, adventure, and so much more.
As Sparkler Monthly continues to grow, so does its catalog. A fourth year will mean even more fantastic content including (but certainly not limited to) the Paper Star Studio’s visual novel Out of Sync, the light novel The Decoy and Retrofit by Hazel + Bell, a continuation of Denise Schroeder’s lovely comic Before You Go, and even a Skyglass novella that I personally commissioned from Jenn Grunigen. The work that the staff and creators of Sparkler Monthly and Chromatic Press is doing is phenomenal and important, too. I sincerely hope that the Kickstarter campaign succeeds because they all deserve another year and then some! If you can, please consider directly supporting the campaign if you haven’t already.
So, you may be wondering, how can you win some Sparkler Monthly goodness?
1) In the comments below, write a little about a Sparkler Monthly series that you’ve enjoyed. (Haven’t read or listened to any before? That’s okay! Simply mention that, or take the time to try one out!)
2) If you’re on Twitter, you can earn a bonus entry by tweeting, or retweeting, about the contest. Make sure to include a link to this post and @PhoenixTerran (that’s me). You can tag @SparklerMonthly, too, while you’re at it if you’d like!
That’s all there is to it. As usual, giveaway participants will have one week to submit comments and can earn up to two entries. If needed or preferred, comments can be sent to phoenixterran(at)gmail(dot)com and I will then post them here in your name. The winner of the giveaway will be randomly selected and announced on August 3, 2016. Good luck and sparkles to you all!
VERY IMPORTANT: Include some way that I can contact you. This can be an e-mail address in the comment form, a link to your website, Twitter username, or whatever. If I can’t figure out how to get a hold of you and you win, I’ll just draw another name.
Contest Winner Announced–Giveaway: Sparkler Monthly Year 4 Giveaway Winner
1) for a while was into Dire Hearts (followed Christy’s series from the Tokyopop trainwreck, supersad her work went on hiatus ) but now have gotten into Knights Errant
2) tweet tweet
https://twitter.com/persoconchii/status/758310944711868416
1)I’m really into Knights Errant! I love the art style and the way the stories been going. Also the fact that its an LGBT+ HISTORICAL drama makes me really happy somehow.
2)https://mobile.twitter.com/shotacare/status/758349158029766657
I enjoyed the Mahou Shojo Chimaka I got from this contest last year! I did the Kickstarter for Knights Errant, but I probably only read a few pages and went “yep, I’ll take it!” after I think the Blindsprings Kickstarter recommended it.
Thanks for taking the chance to write about this – I’d not heard of Sparkler, or of their Kickstarter, so this is really interesting! Actually, I thought the name Chromatic press looked familiar, and when I looked at some of the stuff you wrote in the past, I saw your article about The Ring of Saturn, which is wonderful because I had totally forgotten about that title from ages ago, but was really interested in it several years back; if this is the same group, I’m really excited to see what they are publishing now. After reading some of your posts, and looking at their site (and their Kickstarter page), I’m really interested in starting Mahou Josei Chimaka, as well as Knights Errant.
Actually, I have a question that’s tangentially related. I can see that for some of their series, they’ve put out limited print runs. I recall spending a lot of time searching for a print copy of The Ring of Saturn in print 2014/2015 – ish. I was wondering if you had any recommendation for a way to get ahold of a copy? I know it’s a long shot, but I had to give it a try.
It seems as though Sparkler short comics tend to be limited runs aimed for con sales with the “extras” later becoming available through the Sparkler online shop. I hadn’t realized the print edition The Ring of Saturn had already sold out! (The ebook edition is still available, though.) I’ll ask the artists if they have any remaining copies in reserve, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they’re sold out, too. I’ll let you know! (And thanks for visiting!)
Thanks, that’s a good thing for me to keep in mind in case I see any other print runs that I’m interested in. Also, regardless of how it works out, thank you so much for following up about The Ring of Saturn for me!
Lastly, it’s a pleasure to get to read your thoughts on manga! I’ve stumbled off and on across this site over the years, but recently I’ve been regularly visiting this sites (and a couple others in the Manga Bookshelf collective) and really appreciate the time and thought that you, as well as some of their other writers, put into discovering and sharing different aspects of contemporary manga (and other things too!). When I recently read your review of Complex Age, which I’d never heard of, I knew I had to read it; the captivating and thoughtful story and art, and the interplay between the two, affected even more than I expected and it immediately was added to my current reading list – I can’t wait for volume 2 to come out! Your role in enlightening me to the existence of this manga that resonated so deeply with me was a significant factor in my decision to become a more regular reader of this site. Thank you so much, and I look forward to continuing to visit!
Thank you so much for the kind words! I love hearing from readers, and I’m very happy to know when a post I’ve written encourages someone to try something they might not have otherwise. ^_^
(I’m looking forward to the second volume of Complex Age, too!)
I enjoy the WHOLE catalog and choosing one is kinda hard. Since previous commenters mentioned comics, so I’ll gush over the audio dramas because they need some love, too.
I immediately loved The Cat Lover’s Circumstances. Misaki is SUCH a socially awkward cat lady that she reminds me of myself a LOT. xD I admit that I re-listen to chapters ALL the time and can’t wait to hear the next chapter.
Note: I own everything in Sparkler’s catalog, so you don’t have to add me into the drawing. ^_^_v
1) Really loving Knights Errant right now but I also enjoy Windrose and Jen Lee Quick’s stories! I’m in love with Wil.
2) https://twitter.com/rheiders/status/759489205420437504
I’m afraid that I don’t know any. :(
Sparkler has a lot of great stuff, but Knights Errant is hands down my current favorite.
1. Right now, my favorite series is Knights Errant. I love the art style and story!
2. I tweeted about the giveaway as @Bamboopanda27. Thanks for the chance! :)