The Raven’s Tale Newsletter

The setting for the Raven’s Tale fantasy novels is a setting I have been working on since I started tinkering with it around when I was 18—that was in 1988. So I’ve been at it, expanding the setting and deepening the lore ever since. And out of that process, the story emerged that slowly built into the Raven’s Tale Series as it is now being published, a trilogy of trilogies spanning a huge trace of time and many magical realms. The first book, King of the Forgotten Darkness, introduces the most fundamental dichotomy in the series: Midworld and Erentyr.

MIDWORLD

In our near future, the World Democratic Union will achieve it’s ultimate goal: to create the perfect society. Everyone is taken care of. There is almost no crime. There is no want. Technology saturates everything, and bioscience makes freely available medications that erase all suffering and pain in any who wish to take it. This was only achievable, however, by closing the Dream Gates between Midworld and…the other place.

ERENTYR

A dark, magical world of chaos, war, and mysterious gods, Erentyr and Midworld were once connected via the Dream Gates, and across the ages, certain individuals could travel between the worlds. But the Magnolents of the WDU closed the gates after centuries of effort. Now travel to Erentyr is illegal and viewed as extremely dangerous. And this is exactly where Liam, who grew up in Erentyr, must go to rescue someone he thought long dead in Erentyr.

Erentyr is an entirely different world, itself separated into many realms. The story in King of the Forgotten Darkness takes place in one of these realms—the home land of Liam and his slaughtered family, a primitive kingdom decimated by invaders and crawling with strange, overgrown Fairywilds, where magic and darkness blend into terror and mystery…

Liam Panregon begins this story through two worlds, and you can read a free sample of King of the Forgotten Darkness by signing up on my website, where you’ll also get a free video series on untangling your own dreams. Or sign up here as a paid subscriber to show your support of me and my work—it means a lot!

1. The Raven’s Tale Fantasy and Mysteries of the Mind

Subscribing to the Imaginarium Substack will get you free access to all my newsletters on The Raven’s Tale dark fantasy series. Expect:

FREE Tier: Opening chapters of my latest published novels and short stories, available on my website. Worldbuilding and Lore. Maps, regional flags, lore snippets from Erentyr—you name it, I’ve made TONS of it. Character concept artwork, magic rules, costs, and history of dark sorcerers and darker enchantresses. News on upcoming releases, cover reveals, book release announcements, musical playlists! Aesthetics that capture the atmosphere of the cold, sterile but comfortable Midworld, or the raw, dark, and feral world of Erentyr. You’ll get detailed guides to the mysteries of magic, in-universe myths and historical events, fairytales, etc. from Erentyr, character lineages, hidden histories, writing advice and techniques, mood boards and music that inspired specific scenes and characters, and comment threads where subscribers can ask questions or discuss theories.

For Mysteries of the Mind content, FREE tier gives access to the 9-part video series on untangling dreams and fantasy from my website, abstracts, conference notes, key takeaways from the latest in the fields of analytical psychology and related disciplines. Also you get discussions on the links between mental health and fantasy fiction, and reviewing books—get my take on some popular fiction and non-fiction books out there. Here I also analyze folktales - Cinderella, Rumplestiltskin, the White Snake, Snow White, etc.—and lots more, including more modern fare such as Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Conan, etc. Also subscribing unlocks commentary on storytelling and personal wellbeing—the importance of storytelling to the human experience and how powerful it really is, as well as updates on the world of hypnotherapy and how it applies to fantasy fiction, symbols and the imagistic imagination. Finally, you will get articles involving complexes, archetypes, and general mental health advice on how to tackle common problems in life.

PAID Tier: To really support my work! For the Raven’s Tale. Also here will be raw writing updates, where I get my ideas, and insight into my writing process, as well as free samples of upcoming novels as they become available as EXCLUSIVE previews!

For Mysteries of the Mind content, the PAID tier offers access to my lecture notes from my lectures in the US and in Europe, available on request.

MASTER IMAGINARIAN Tier: This tier is for super-fans of my fiction and nonfiction work, and I really appreciate it. And to show my appreciation, for this tier, For The Raven’s Tale, you will get a signed copy of King of the Forgotten Darkness, and direct access to occasional live group video calls. Also included will be ARC invites if you are a fellow writer or publisher.

For Mysteries of the Mind content, you will get posts which include my academic papers which involve the non-fiction world of analytical psychology, ritual, philosophy, neuroscience, neurogenetics, and the evolutionary science of the imagination and therapy, available on request.

2. How Often Will I post?

I will be posting about 2-4 times per month with Newsletters, with mainly two overlapping kinds of content outlined above: The Raven’s Tale Fantasy Newsletter, and the Mysteries of the Mind Newsletter. Each tier gets access to the tiers below it.

ONE MORE THING:

Don’t forget to visit www.erikgoodwyn.com. If you sign up there, you will get for FREE an extended sample of the first book in The Raven’s Tale, King of the Forgotten Darkness. ALSO, you will get access to a 9-part video series on unlocking your dreams and fantasy, from beginner to expert. So don’t forget to sign up there for that.