Tradition: Spring and the Legend of Dochia
almost 3 years ago – Tue, Jun 22, 2021 at 01:34:03 AM

Hello everyone, this is Ava. In this last update from me before the campaign ends, we're talking about spring, pagan traditions, and some related legends. We are still aiming for the fully illustrated book and our final goal, and we all believe we can reach it. Thank you for being here and letting people know!

Spring and the Mărțișor

Renewal is an important theme in Romanian tradition. Winter is marked by the last day of November, as the moment when nature goes to sleep, to rest so it can rebirth anew. Then, the first day of March beacons the arrival of spring.

The celebration on March 1st is called Mărțișor. On this day, a twined thread of red and white is gifted, worn pinned to the chest or around the wrist. When the trees bloom, this thread is tied to a tree branch, to invite abundance: the earth to give fruit, the home to be healthy, the animals to be happy, etc. Nature, to revive in plentiful glory.

Often the thread comes with a tiny pendant, a small knick-knack to be worn in these incipient spring days. The most encountered motifs are depictions of snowdrops, bees, horse shoes, four leaf clovers, people in folk costumes, and in older times, a chimney sweeper. Why the sweeper? Because spring is also a time of deep cleaning in Romanian lands. "The spring clean" is an overhaul of the entire home, a renewal in pace with nature. Nowadays, in urban areas, spring cleaning is synchronized with Easter, because of the holiday-related time off, but in more rural areas it happens once it's warm enough to wash the windows.

Mărțișoris a pagan tradition, and it doesn't come alone: the first nine days of March are special. They are called The Old Ladies (Babele) and the myth is like this: choose an Old Lady, and the weather on that day will tell you about your upcoming year. Bright and sunny, warm or chilly, dark and gloomy—my personal interpretation is that a good year is signaled by the type of day you take most comfort in. Now, when I was a child, there were two ways to choose a Babă. Either randomly, based on your own whim, or as a result of adding the digits of your birth day until a number from 1 to 9 is left. Me? I always choose two of them. One of my own and one formed by my birth day, to see what I want and what the world wants to give me. Choosing a Babă should be fun and not binding so keep that in mind and take this "prediction" with a few grains of salt.

But hey, some of you would say: what's so special about those nine days that each Baba has a chance to be unexpected in regards to weather. See, it's always like this in Romania: the beginning of March is a wild swing of warm and cold days. As children, one day we'd shiver in our thick winter coats, and the next we'd walk around carrying them in our arms. Over the years, as climate change became more and more obvious, the shift in temperatures has affected these days in ways that have left me rather dissatisfied. I was used to the abrupt shifts and now they're happening at a different scale, in different months.

The Legend of Baba Dochia

The origin of the Babe is in the Legend of Baba Dochia. It is said that Dochia was a crotchety old woman who didn't approve of the young woman her son, Dragobete, fell in love with. One cold winter day, Dochia gives the young woman (Nora, which also means daughter-in-law in Romanian) a yarn of wool, asking her to wash it in the river and not return until it was white and clean. But, you know, the wool is actually from a black sheep and not white wool that had been dirtied, so good luck with that, lady of the story. Passing by, a magical entity takes pity on Nora and gives her a red flower that would change the color of the yarn, allowing her to return home.

Nora names this entity Mărțișor, although the legend, unbeknownst to her, reveals to the listener this entity being either God (the Christian one), or God-as-Jesus, or one of the three mythical magic users of Romanian legends: Saint Wednesday, Saint Friday, or Saint Sunday, whose sanctity is merely a way to reflect their status as supernatural creatures and not a religious meaning. Here is where we see this influence of 1st century CE christianity spreading around the Roman empire and its surrounding areas, to take root in local mythology and co-evolve with it over the next millennia and a half. Wednesday, Friday and Sunday are wise old women, often gifting caring protagonists with powerful boons, or letting the uncaring hateful ones fall into traps of their own making. They are matriarchs of magic. In opposition, God and God-as-Jesus, usually accompanied by Saint Peter, present as male with fickle temperaments, sometimes giving, other times punishing.

Back to our legend, Nora returns with the white yarn and the red flower, but Dochia is mightily upset, for good reason (her plan was foiled!). She believes that Nora can only have the flower if spring has arrived, so in a fit of anger she sets off up the mountain with her sheep. Coincidentally, the weather is warm at her departure, causing her to shed her nine coats one by one, until way up the mountain, the cold catches up with her again. You guessed it, she is the artist of her own punishment. Together with her sheep, Dochia is turned into stone.

In Romania, February 24th is the day of the Dragobete: a celebration of love (parallel, if you will, with the western Valentine's day).

The Legend of Beautiful Dochia

The Legend of the Beautiful Dochia comes from Dacian times as well. In this one Dochia is the daughter (or sister) of a king (in some versions Dacian king Decebal), quite beautiful and smart, who refused any and all suitors. One day, one of these suitors (in some versions Roman emperor Trajan) starts a war against Dochia's father (or brother). To avoid capture, she goes to a witch, asking to be turned into a wrinkled old woman. Because of the cold weather, she clothes herself in nine coats and goes off into the woods.

Dochia runs through the woods as spring comes, and for nine days, while the weather gets warmer, she sheds her coats one by one. But on the ninth day, the wind grows so strong that Dochia freezes and turns to stone. And so it is said that once one sheds the coat in the first days of March, better expect the cold to make a swift return. After the ninth day of Dochia, legend says that winter loses its power and spring is free to settle in fully.

(In other versions of this legend, Dochia is hunted up a mountain by the attacking soldiers and when she cannot escape them anymore, she prays to Zamolxis to be turned to stone. At least two natural rock formations in Romania are connected to this legend: Stânca Dochia in the Ceahlău Mountains and Babele in the Bucegi Mountains.)

To me, it seems that Dochia got an undue punishment because of people refusing to take no for an answer, having to change her own appearance to be less appealing... victim blaming, anyone?

We should rewrite this story into one of acceptance. It's what legends are for, aren't they? To teach us something. So what does it say about the world when being unwilling to marry (read: aro, ace, or aro-ace) is punished in the worst way possible? It's why Alia Terra is important, with the message that happiness comes not as a result of societal pressure, but is tightly connected to self-acceptance.

So here's an alternate ending to this legend, from me: On the ninth day, the wind grows so cold that Dochia thinks she'd freeze. But as the sky grows darker with clouds, she backtracks to her coats, gets warm again. She finds a cave, makes a fire, because, you know, people can do that. And at a crossroad of forest paths, she leaves one of her coats on a rock, to mark the way to safety for others like her.

Later on, she learns that because of the ice-covered coat, she is deemed perished. Dochia's new dwellings become the forest shelter she is meant to represent, the place where one can find compassion and understanding.

Take that, allocisheteronormativity!

Ending this long update, which I hope you've found entertaining, is the bookmark we're offering with Alia Terra. In red and white thread, to be kept inside a book, keeping company for the tree that lives in those pages. A friendship of restoration. The snow of winter, the bloodlife of spring, the words to feed your soul. It is included in the Print Hoard, Dragon Hoard, and Wish Fairy - or you can add as many as you’d like to any level with shipping. They are woven by a Romanian small business and are so soft to the touch.

Thank you for joining me on this journey through Alia Terra and the Dragon Realm,

Ava

Tradition: the Famous Dobrogean Pie and the New Year
almost 3 years ago – Fri, Jun 18, 2021 at 05:12:44 PM

Hello, everyone! As we enter the last days of our campaign, I have a couple of traditions dear to me to share with you all. Today, a pie specific to Dobrogea and its significance during New Year. The pie is enjoyed all year round, and quite famous across the country, yet no matter where I tasted it, the one from "home" remains the best. Maybe it's the ingredients, maybe it's childhood nostalgia, who knows.

New Year's! Ah, the step toward the future. A chapter closes, another opens, and it is a time to reflect upon where we come from and where we're going. It is a time of prediction. The pie eaten during the night between years and in the days following is large, cut in pieces, and… holds surprises. Small messages of well-wishing and fortunes, but even a series of objects with specific meaning:

• The coin stands for material wealth
• The feather is a harbinger of luck
• The twig is the reward of the earth
• The silver cross is for protection against harm

Either a note or an object, they are folded in paper suitable for baking and then tucked inside the pie. The two twigs in this image are ones I found as a child and kept over the years. As with anything in food, please make sure you properly clean and sanitize them (or, as was custom with us, keep these items separate, to be used in The Pie and the pie only).

So, let's see about ingredients. We need cheese, eggs, sour cream or yogurt, a little bit of grease (like vegetable oil) and pie sheets. What are pie sheets, you ask? Well, Romanian pies are usually pastry-like, they are made of many dough sheets and filling, either layered or rolled, or, as is the case with the Dobrogean one, squeezed (it's the pie that hugs itself! no). We can find them at stores here, but if you want to make your own, you'll need flour, water, a pinch of salt, a bit of vinegar and a bit of vegetable oil. The sheets should be very well stretched, like paper. It takes a while and some skill to make at home (I bought mine).

Cheese! Dobrogea is a region where sheep are predominant, so most of the white Romanian cheese produced there is made of sheep milk. It's salty, with various consistencies. For this pie, we want cheese we can grate easily into small pieces on the saltier side (but as all balanced things, not too salty). If you want to try this for yourself and cannot find Romanian cheese, go for Greek feta, it's quite close.

Eggs are... eggs. Chicken. Whip and mix with the grated cheese (make sure to remove accidentally grated fingers from mixture!). How much of everything? Eh. I made this without measuring anything, but it's pretty difficult to absolutely ruin it (not like I ruined apple pie once by confusing the salt jar for the sugar jar). Keep consistency not too watery and not too solid.

Ta-daa! We have the filling. Easy, yes? If less eggs, you might want to add some sour cream to the mixture to make sure it's not too dry.

Next, it's the part where we lay out the sheets, sprinkle or brush a teensy bit of oil on them, then put the mixture on them. Fold the sheets over the mixture, and then squeeze the sides in until it looks like an accordion of sorts. I wasn't very good at this part, but I gave it a valiant effort! This is also when you place the hidden messages and objects into the pie. (I didn't do this because it's not New Year's right now, but if you do make this around New Year, you're welcome to it. Even if that New Year is in February and not in December.)

In the tray and in the oven! Cook at a medium temperature (depends on your oven, do experiment!) for half an hour. (Wait, you all preheat your ovens? Joking, joking. Please, preheat your ovens.)

It's been half an hour but don't turn that heat off. Prepare a topping in the meantime. Sour cream (the Romanian one is thick) or yogurt mixed in with a whipped egg and a pinch of salt. Pour this equally all over the pie. I pretty much failed at pouring but hey, I also managed not to touch the hot tray, so we'll count that as a win. 

The role of this is to soften the top of the pie and make it less flaky, which, if you prefer, skip the topping. Ten more minutes in the oven and it's done! Hopefully you've lined that tray with baking paper beforehand to make cleaning and removal of the pie easier.

The tray I used was rectangular, so my pie slices ended up almost rectangular themselves, but with a round tray, you might get triangle pieces. You are the knife master, cut as you will! Now, the fun part of the round tray is that if you have a lot of people at the New Year table, you get to place the entire tray on the table, spin it like a wheel of fortune, and have people pick the slice that ends up in front of them. Bite carefully though, you wouldn't want to break your teeth on coins! (No, coins are not edible, even if you have dragon teeth, spit that out.)

Now, I haven't tried it with vegan replacements. This pie is eaten outside a fasting period, so it is what it is. However, variations are available for experimentation, like mixing cabbage, carrots, and some mashed potatoes for the filling, mushrooms and dill, and whatever else you might enjoy (between you and me, the package had too many sheets, so I made a pizza pie, too! As in, a pie with a filling consisting of pizza toppings, heh). Our pumpkin and apple pies are similar in structure to this one, too, so go wild, I say. And let me tell you a secret. If you don't have pie sheets, cooked pasta works well! This one also keeps in the fridge and smells like breakfast, heh (and for those among you who eat it, the dish takes deli meats well).

And now, a word from our overlord, Emily, for whom I will endeavor to make a vegan Dobrogea pie that matches the taste as soon as I figure out how to handle tofu. Or? Hey, if you all have ideas, do tell.

Happy baking!

Ava

A Word from the Vegan Overlord

From our...what?  * makes very Emily face

Now, can we fund the illustrations with just a few days? I truly believe we can! At $10K, we'll hold a live event with Ava, and trust me, this would be very funny and good, plus you could learn a little Romanian. And at $12.5K, we can fully illustrate the book - with pictures and love, and little borders and such. Now, back to that in a moment. Quick notes on pie!

I'm very grateful to Ava for sharing this, I love the small objects and the hopeful nature of this. Veganizing? So at first guess, I would not use tofu (as much as I love tofu). Probably Violife Feta, old school EnerG powder (my gut says that would work better than VeganEgg or JUST? Though...perhaps some Veganese mayo would be good), Forager sour cream, then oil and pie sheets. I think to try a variation, I'd fold in maybe Upton's (or if I had it, Chris' homemade) seitan, cabbage, garlic, and mashed potatoes made with Miyoko's butter. Mmm. That's my first gut feel on it, anyway.

I am just so fascinated by everything Ava is teaching us, and I hope you’re enjoying it too. I love the surprises and the symbolism of the pie.

So, about these last few days! I can't emphasize enough, if we're going to fund the full illustrations, we're going to need help. If you're here, we're simply thrilled! But if you do want to help us get to full funding so Matt can paint and paint for our little book, here are things that really would help:

•  Let people know. Ava, Matt, and I are singing from every rooftop but we need some gentle breezes (you, you sweet gentle breezes) to get more eyes on this. Shares with a recommendation (even "Please help get this to full funding so there are more illustrations" or "I got one of these books!" or "This is so cool" or "A queer book and a D20? Yes, please") are more effective than simple shares or re-posts. And the most effective way is to send personal messages to people you think might be interested in backing and/or sharing, especially if they have a platform themselves. Every pledge helps (it's really true, each adds momentum and visibility plus, truly, morale: we love to see them), and they start at a dollar. Here's the link to share: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/atthisarts/alia-terra 
•  Consider our add-ons. In addition to upgrading to a hardcover book, to a hoard level, or to a custom story or original art, we offer à la carte add-ons to shipped levels: art cards, the exclusive dragon D20, Romanian woven bookmarks, sweet and colorful Atthis Arts hard enamel hummingbird pins, and three of our delightful, fun-to-read queer books: The Dragon of Ynys, a queer fairy tale novella by Minerva Cerridwen, The Traveling Triple-C Incorporeal Circus, our award-winning paranormal road trip by playwright Alanna McFall, and my own not-cow-not-boy silly (but also wistful) adventure, Just Bart. Most of the campaign exclusives will not be offered again after the campaign is over, so now is the time to pick one up.
•  Pay it forward. If you like what we're doing and want to up your pledge by any amount (a dollar is super!) it will cover the costs of offering discount books here (plus free books to people who don't feel safe pledging) as well as helping fund the art.

Thanks so much for being here with us, and we hope you enjoyed our pie post. If anyone makes a Romanian New Year's Pie, I know Ava would love to be tagged on their Instagram.

And most importantly, we hope you're doing well. Sending a little extra love from România and from Michigan.

Cheers - Emily.

P.S. If you have difficulty adding a new add-on, some people have reported that switching pledge levels then switching back clears whatever issue they were having. However, most people are able to just click through (instructions are in Update 12).

Character Cards!
almost 3 years ago – Wed, Jun 16, 2021 at 09:56:55 PM

Good morning from sunny Detroit - Emily here. (*waves hi*)

I am extra excited about this update, not just because Matt and Ava put so much love into it, but also because it's really fun. You've seen them on the graphic, you've seen them in sketches - now the team has designed a set of character cards for the adventurers of Alia Terra. I hope you love them like I do and hopefully they bring you a smile. For screen readers and accessibility, the full text is underneath the images. I also have a few notes to share, but first, without further ado...I present our heroes!

What Next?

In this last week, we have two huge goals. At $10K, Ava Kelly will offer a live reading and Q&A. We've been going through possible topics for this, and I can say two things 1) the session may not be all-ages like the book 2) you won't want to miss it. And if we can get there, at $12,500 we can fully illustrate the book! Do I believe we can reach both of these? Yes, I actually do. I believe so hard. That said, it will only happen with help. Ava, Matt, and I are singing from every rooftop that we can, so we'll need shares and recommendations to get it to new eyes. Yes, we want to get this book into people's hands, but we also want to show the world there is an audience for queer, kind, gender-diverse, aromantic, affirming, multi-language art. And that people do value learning about culture. So thank you. This project is very personal to the team, and I know to many of you as well.

I'm also excited about the last week of updates. I have proof that Ava is right now baking pie...

In these last days, if you'd like to and are able to help: (Thank you! It's so appreciated!)

•  Let people know. Shares with a recommendation (even "I got one of these books!" or "This is so cool" or "A queer book and a D20? Yes, please") are more effective than simple shares or reposts. And the most effective way is to send personal messages to people you think might be interested in backing and/or sharing, especially if they have a platform themselves. Every pledge helps (it's really true, each adds momentum and visibility plus morale: we love to see them), and they start at a dollar. Here's the link to share: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/atthisarts/alia-terra 
•  Consider our add-ons. In addition to upgrading to a hardcover book, to a hoard level, or to a custom story or original art, we offer à la carte add-ons to shipped levels: art cards, the exclusive dragon D20, Romanian woven bookmarks, sweet and colorful Atthis Arts hard enamel hummingbird pins, and three of our delightful, fun-to-read queer books: The Dragon of Ynys, a queer fairy tale novella by Minerva Cerridwen, The Traveling Triple-C Incorporeal Circus, our award-winning paranormal road trip by playwright Alanna McFall, and my own not-cow-not-boy silly (but also wistful) adventure, Just Bart. Most of the campaign exclusives will not be offered again after the campaign is over, so now is the time to pick one up.
•  Pay it forward. If you like what we're doing and want to up your pledge by any amount (a dollar is super!) it will cover the costs of offering discount books here (plus free books to people who don't feel safe pledging) as well as helping fund the art.

I did hear someone was having difficulty adding the hardcover add-on. It should be working, several people have upgraded already, from various countries. If you're having difficulty, please contact us - we'd love to help. We're doing our best to balance options against making things easy for you.

Thanks so much for joining us in Alia Terra! Full illustrations ahead? I think so. : D

- Emily. ♥

Full Character Card Text

This section repeats the text of the images above for accessibility.

The Dragon and the Curse of the Glittering Tower

The Tower Princess | Domnița din Turn

The Tower Princess has short, dark hair. She wears roundish glasses and a white ie (traditional Romanian tunic) with embroidery in red thread. Her tiara is coppery with swirls, rebel curls poking out from underneath.

Pronouns: she/her/hers

Likes: Quiet times spent reading.

Dislikes: Uninvited dragons busting into her tower.

Defining personality trait: Pretends to be grumpy but is actually a worrying softie.

Goal: To read everything she can get her hands on.

Favorite time of day: Morning, as the sun shines softly through the leaves, when the coffee is hot and the world is quiet.

The Tower Dragon | Dragonul din Turn

The Tower Dragon is covered in purple scales and wears narrow glasses over which their brown eyes gaze with playful kindness. Their wavy horns complement their majestic presence.

Pronouns: they/them/theirs

Likes: Others not butting into their business.

Dislikes: Others butting into their business.

Defining personality trait: Always finds ways to be mischievous but doesn’t do anything that might hurt others.

Goal: To be free of societal pressure.

Favorite time of day: Tea time, which is all the time, all the tea, all the time.

The Dragon at the Bottom of the Sea

The Fishdragon | Dragonul-pește

The Fishdragon has gentleness on her face and blue eyes. Her scales are smaller, giving a smooth effect in shades of greens. Her two horns bracket the long fin extending from her forehead to her tail.

Pronouns: she/her/hers

Likes: Smiles, kittens, books, and apple pie.

Dislikes: Loud repetitive and unexpected noises.

Defining personality trait: Always puts the needs of others before her own.

Goal: To one day have her own garden.

Favorite time of day: Whenever the sun is shining the brightest and there’s a place to lie and bask in the warmth.

The Stingray | Pisica de Mare

The Stingray swims happily, looking upward toward the waves. Their eternal smirk feels like they’re about to beckon you closer to share a funny tale.

Pronouns: they/them/theirs

Likes: The Sea Snake.

Dislikes: The Sea Snake.

Defining personality trait: Loudmouth of the eternal smirk. There’s no moment when the smirk is absent and no moment when they’re able to keep quiet, which is more endearing than they think.

Goal: Poking (gently), especially the Sea Snake.

Favorite time of day: When the sun shines just so from above, making spots of warmth on the seafloor.

The Sea Snake | Șarpele de Mare

The Sea Snake has a wide grin on his face. With playful eyes and fluttery fins, their long body shines underwater in sparkly grey with yellow stripes.

Pronouns: he/him/his / they/them/theirs

Likes: Water.

Dislikes: Not water.

Defining personality trait: Is a smartypants that just can’t get enough of teasing his friends. Within limits, of course, he doesn’t want to hurt them. Manners matter!

Goal: To have more than one best friend, because then they’d all be the best together and nobody should feel like they’re less than the best!

Favorite time of day: When the night is dark and deep and the stars shine from above.

The Octopus | Caracatița

The Octopus is purple with soft spots and big yellow eyes. She might seem scary at first glance, with eight tentacles around her, but she’s smiling to herself while waiting for you to say hi.

Pronouns: she/her/hers

Likes: Foodstuffs!

Dislikes: Meanness and conflict.

Defining personality trait: Appears calm. Has a secret, sarcastic side, that she only shows glimpses of. Best to keep others on their toes!

Goal: To care for others, because everyone deserves at least one moment of kindness.

Favorite time of day: When sleepiness catches up with everyone after a nice yummy meal.

The Dragon, the Princess, and the Knight

The Mage | Magul

The Mage has long brown curly hair with blue flowers woven in. They’re wearing a ie (traditional Romanian tunic) with embroidery in red and blue, and a red scarf around their neck. They look a little vexed at the world.

Pronouns: they/them/theirs

Likes: The smell of fresh ink on paper.

Dislikes: Assumptions.

Defining personality trait: Appears to be grumpy and displeased. Actually is grumpy and displeased.

Goal: To unlock as much knowledge as possibly useful.

Favorite time of day: None. Days are evil. Night, on the other hand, means candlelight and reading and the universe opening itself to scrutiny.

The Knight in Gold | Cavalerul în Auriu

The Knight in Gold wears a red cape of which only the shoulder fastening is visible. His hair is grey under a brown cap which is adorned with a round red jewel and a tiny golden feather. A crease between his eyebrows and a sparse but fashionable goatee completes his presence.

Pronouns: he/him/his

Likes: Cherry trees in bloom and the sharp air of spring.

Dislikes: Questions about his prosthetic leg.

Defining personality trait: Permeating tiredness and weariness. Needs more than one nap.

Goal: To lift the curse so he can finally take at least two naps per day. Doesn’t dare wish for things too out of his reach.

Favorite time of day: Evening, right after the sun has set and the world settles in to sleep.

The Dragon in Gold | Dragonul Auriu

The Dragon in Gold appears in a profile pose. Zir countenance inspires a sort of distinguished magnificence. Zir horns are small and neck is thick, but they fit zir golden scales perfectly. A round red jewel adorns zir forehead.

Pronouns: ze/zir/zirs

Likes: Shiny, shiny things. If they glitter, ze is interested.

Dislikes: Talking, zirself, though the opposite does not apply.

Defining personality trait: A cuddly goof that seems aloof.

Goal: A hug a day from friends who like hugs. Otherise, a wing flutter is good, too. Just, friends. Having them around. All day.

Favorite time of day: Nom time.

The Princess in Gold | Domnița în Auriu

The Princess in Gold has curly, frizzy dark hair, and an eyebrow lifted with surety. Her coolness is only enhanced by her golden tiara, a myriad of white stones like stars specked around a central red jewel.

Pronouns: she/her/hers

Likes: Swords, the sharpness of blades, and their swishing through the air.

Dislikes: Being told to smile—she will if she feels like it!

Defining personality trait: The manifestation of a summer storm: quick and wild, but entirely amazing to have known.

Goal: To master all sorts of sword mastery, but also secretly to bake the perfect cake.

Favorite time of day: Training time!

Kogaionon: the Sacred Mountain and the Other Realm
almost 3 years ago – Tue, Jun 15, 2021 at 04:16:16 PM

Hello, everyone. Ava here. As we aim toward the hardcover for Alia Terra, let's take a look at the other part of its title.

Stories from the Dragon Realm – this has been a deliberate choice on my part to reflect on one aspect of Romanian folkloric mythology that is somewhat special to our stories. The Other Realm, in Romanian Tărâmul Celălalt, is a parallel universe, if you will. It is a world of magic, neither a heaven, nor a hell, but a universe co-existing with the realm of the living, the realm of the skies (i.e. the heavens), and the realm of hell.

In folklore, the Other Realm is neither under-, nor overground, reached through challenging and dangerous quests, the home of various beasts and creatures, the place where "the end of the world" can be found. Not the world of the living, mind. Its own, as it were: the Other Realm contains itself, beginning and all. Often, this realm offers immortality, shelter. These sort of worlds are not unknown in mythology across the globe, but what makes the Romanian one special is perhaps its intrinsic function of being pain-free. Nobody suffers in the Other Realm, and life here is eternal. Of course, leaving the Other Realm removes its magical properties and the protagonists of the stories return to their original form, which might be dust and bones if enough time has passed.

Otherness is prevalent in Romanian mythology, spilling over into passing myths and rites. The Romanian language has over twenty synonyms for to die (a muri), and a plethora of euphemisms. One of these, an interesting one, is: to pass into the other world (a trece pe lumea cealaltă); although, the mythological Other Realm is not a place reached necessarily through death. Also, note the capitalization.

So, with Alia Terra, we open the gates toward yet another parallel universe, one of dragons. Of characters we sorely miss in traditional folklore, like nonbinary princesses and transgender knights and sea-dwelling dragons.

The origin of the Other Realm idea comes from pre-roman ancient times: Kogaionon. This sacred mountain was said to be the place where Zamolxis (the lightning/thunder god of the Dacian pantheon, assimilated with the Thracian Gebeleizis) lived. Historical texts hint that Kogaionon was the dwelling of the Dacian king's most trusted advisor. Its beginnings seem to track back to King Burebista (1st century BC), and I say seem because archives of the time are scarce and this sacred place might have been centuries older instead, depending on the interpretation of Strabo's work. Later on, it might have been the site where King Decebal hid the Dacian thesaurus of the time, around the conflict with the Roman Emperor Trajan (1st century CE).

Research on Kogaionon cannot determine its actual geographical location. It might have been in the Northern mountains of Dobrogea (hey, I'm from there!), or in the Southern Carpathian chain. Of the latter, the Godeanu Peak in the Șurei Mountains seems very likely due to the cluster of Dacian settlements around it, including Sarmizegetusa Regia, the Dacian capital at the time.

Closing up with an interesting factoid: the Gugu Peak in the Godeanu Mountains (same name, but this one a massive range to the east of Șurei) is riddled with globular lighting and associated natural phenomena, enough to make one wonder: electricity connects us today and electricity connected us millennia ago.

Perhaps the lightning gods are not gone, but merely spread out, residing in our pockets, connecting us through the ether and bringing the otherwheres into the real world.

See you around the internet realm,

Ava

Hardcover! Here's how it works.
almost 3 years ago – Tue, Jun 15, 2021 at 09:42:52 AM

We Did It!

Wow! Thank you so much for believing in this project. We're so, so grateful. The bottom line is: We can now offer an Alia Terra hardcover, and we can now add more illustrations than simply one per story. Because of you!

What Now

We've added an "add-on" to the campaign called Hardcover Upgrade. It costs $10 + shipping, and for every one you add, one of your paperbacks will be upgraded to a hardcover. (Note: This applies only to Alia Terra, not the three add-on books.) If you pledged for one Alia Terra book and want it to be a hardcover, add one hardcover upgrade.

So - I need to address the shipping. Again, we are printing and shipping from Michigan. That means international shipping was already expensive, and it's more expensive for a hardcover. We know that, and we've done our best to add other options, including sticking with the paperback, and also fully digital rewards. But we get it.

How To Upgrade

• Go to the Alia Terra main page (and log in) https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/atthisarts/alia-terra 
• Click [Manage Your Pledge] at the top
• Click [Change Your Pledge] near the bottom
• Click [Pledge $xx] at the pledge level you want (the one you already have if you don't want to change it - your current level will be in a thin blue outline)
• Click [Add] next to the Hardcover Upgrade item
• Click [Continue]
• Click [Confirm Changes]
• Make sure you get a confirmation

And while you're selecting this add-on, take note that we have others you could add (you don't need a hardcover to add these):

• An exclusive metal dragon D20
• A set of beautiful Matthew Spencer art cards
• A traditional red and white woven Romanian bookmark
• A copy (print with included ebook) of our other gentle, queer, funny adventures: The Dragon of Ynys, The Traveling Triple-C Incorporeal Circus, and Just Bart 
• An Atthis Arts hummingbird hard enamel pin
• Additional copies of Alia Terra  (paperback by default or coupled with another hardcover upgrade)

Please message us (here on KS or atthisarts on social media) if you have questions! We're happy to help.

What Next

We are hoping that interest in this hardcover edition will help us move toward the $10K goal, at which point Ava will do a live Q&A, speak to you about the stories and Romanian language and culture, and then we will be -so close- to fully funding the illustrated book. We can do it! We believe! (And again, thank you for believing with us.)

Other Notes

And again, Happy Pride! There are so many amazing creators out there, and we are so grateful to people like you, who support indie creators, coloring outside the lines and staying true to their art. A few mentions:

On the subject of diversity, I ran across this shop in Liverpool, who make custom pins in a rainbow of genders and attractions and with custom pronouns. It's like the gay version of being able to find an amusement park keychain with your name on it. : )

And - if you haven't checked out Storybundle's latest offerings, they are hot! A Pride bundle and an Afrofuturism bundle, filled with wonderful stories written by some of the nicest and most giving people, who are also awesome, award-winning writers!

Cheers! Wishing everyone joy and a smile today (you deserve it) -

Emily.