With the release of Whispering Ember, Vargr #3, it’s been exactly one year since the Cubi series finished, and I alluded to a new series in the same universe in the last chapter. The third book of that new series is the one coming out today.
The responses to the Cubi series let me know that I’ve managed to build something that readers loved, and I was sad when I learned that City of Beauty would be the last in that series.
Writing series leaves authors falling in love with their characters and worlds, too. Even though Vargr is set in the same world, the premises for it is so very different from Cubi in that it has almost no sex in it. When it does, it’s to further something like character or worldbuilding.
Cubi was written because I needed a playground after writing a very plot, action, and research heavy series. Going back to writing such a series with Vargr, I’ve kept myself and my Patreons entertained by writing short fun and sexy snippets from both Cubi and Vargr—the scenes that don’t fit the overall feel of the main books.
One such short took flight, meaning the muse stuck around and kept tossing ideas at me. In fact, Aaron kept introducing new ideas and characters, and I recognized that my Patreons wanted more of the stripper friend who grew up with Daniel and got himself kidnapped to become an Untouchable to the Cubi King of the West. The main series didn’t get to explore him a lot. Now we get that chance.
And I don’t mind one bit! Well, he completely screwed over my WIP and writing plan, but, hey…we’re having fun with sexy times.
The book still doesn’t have a title because the Patreons will be helping me find that while alpha reading—meaning they read the first raw draft as I go, looking over my shoulder during the entire process. That also means a lot will change from first to final draft, but it’s a fun challenge to not be able to go back and tinker with worldbuilding and stuff. It’s fun to explore the story like this.
What I didn’t expect was that one of the characters turning up to have his say is an active feeder of women, but he loves big and strong men. This means that, unlike the main Cubi series, this one is bi-focused with MM, MF, and ménage that crosses all the possible pairings. It means there’ll be something for all readers, and they can skip some scenes and there’ll be plenty other relevant heat.
I did say I wanted a playground with Cubi, and these muses certainly delivered a new challenge. Since I rarely back down from those, they kept coming with ideas, and Aaron will be a series.
Top that off with a muse I constantly have in my ear, Nol-Elakdon, a new novel with him as an MC is in the works, too, and that’ll also have a lot of sexy fun, which will also be bi-focused. And it’ll also cross the Cubi and Vargr world.
But how to do that when I’m writing MM under Lyhne, and I can’t make up a new pseudonym because of the existing series? The last thing I want is to confuse my readers, making them doubt what they looking at. It was why I made Meraki P. Dark, too.
This became the solution: MF stuff will have Lyhne mirrored on the covers. The logo has been ordered, and it’ll go live with the release of the first Aaron or Nol-Elakdon book at the end of this year. There will be spinoff novels—especially for Patreons—with characters you’ll meet in Vargr #3, too.
But that’s not all. Considering there are suddenly multiple series in the same world, that world needed a name. Only my group members on Facebook, Merakinky’s Minions, know this because they helped pick the name.
“Vidundr”. It’s a Norse spelling of a word that means “Wonder”. That logo has also been drawn and will soon be handed over to a graphic designer along with a boatload of other original art like the Cubi language, the Royals’ crests, and Vargr symbols, runes, and sigils.
All this news hasn’t been shared before, and you (other than my Patreons) are the first to hear about it.
I hope you’ll find many fun and challenging hours in the world of Vidundr. News of this world will be shared on my Patreon page, in my Facebook group, my Newsletter, and on my website.
All links can be found here: www.linktr.ee/merakiPLyhne
