A book with a new Brandon Sanderson story raises $1 million on Kickstarter

Unbroken also includes work from Dungeon Crawler Carl author Matt Dinniman and The Magicians author Lev Grossman

Brandon Sanderson's next book, Songs of the Dead, leaves behind his Cosmere universe and focuses on a fantastical version of modern London, where a secret society of magic-wielders keeps the city safe. Sanderson’s co-author, Peter Orullian, has had a series of health issues, and he’s raising money to cover his medical costs through a science fiction and fantasy anthology that includes an excerpt from Songs of the Dead, along with stories from 34 other authors.

Unbroken: New Tales by Masters of Fantasy has raised more than $1 million since the project launched on Kickstarter on April 21. The idea came from Shawn Speakman, who covered his own medical costs with the 2013 anthology Unfettered: Tales by Masters of Fantasy, and is editing this collection with Orullian. Along with Sanderson, the impressive list of contributors includes Dungeon Crawler Carl author Matt Dinniman, Dungeons & Dragons icon R.A. Salvatore, and The Magicians author Lev Grossman. Legends & Lattes author Travis Baldree will narrate an audiobook version.

A $15 ebook version will be available in August, along with the $50 trade hardcover. Versions signed by all the contributors start at $250, but are currently sold out. Backers can add on a copy of Songs of the Dead signed by Orullian, or his spin on It’s a Wonderful Life, The Bell Ringer, which releases in September.

Songs of the Dead will be available on June 16, kicking off a new series called The Strata Wars. Sanderson has a lot on his plate, with a new Cosmere novel, The Fires of December, releasing later this year, and an Apple TV movie based on his Mistborn series in the works. If The Strata Wars continues, he might largely leave the work to Orullian in the same way he passed control of his Cytoverse YA series to co-author Janci Patterson. Their next Cytoverse book, Blightfall, will be released in September.