My not-so- secret project is starting to take shape.
Last year, I put together the Cobalt City Christmas in a very short amount of time, thanks in no small part to some fantastic stories cranked out quickly by author friends of mine. I feel that the anthology was a great success. Much was learned, and much fun was had. And the feedback has been very favorable. It’s encouraged me to continue the Cobalt City Anthology project. But this time, it’s not going to be as rushed.
I put out the call to some authors with familiarity with the Cobalt City Universe or an interest in super-hero fiction recently, widening the circle of the earlier submission pool a bit. Titled Cobalt City Timeslip, the premise is to use this city of super-heroes as an anchor to tell stories of high heroics in other time periods. The only conditions were these – they have to involve Cobalt City in some way and the time periods and use of established characters had to be cleared with me to avoid too much overlap.
The pitches from authors have started to roll in, and I can now give hints at what kind of things might be in the works:
A pre-history of the site where Cobalt City was built is revealed by the myths of the region’s indigenous tribes.
A modern time-traveler with shadowy ties to Stardust’s greatest enemy goes searching for a legendary artifact from the last of the Crusades.
The Wrecker of Engines, great-uncle to Wild Kat makes a dangerous trip into China in the 1940’s.
The daughter of the Huntsman must don her father’s costume in the late 1800’s to protect Cobalt City from an army of clockwork ex-presidents.
In 1975, a soldier in Vietnam inherits the archetype of Thor, Norse God of thunder, and must return home to Cobalt City to reclaim the soul of his city from Loki, owner of the Bifrost Roller Disco.
In the 1930’s, Devil Cat and Imp play host to a warrior from another world and his alien princess companion, but when the men are taken captive by a mad scientist, it falls to the ladies to come to the rescue with ray guns in hand.
Tales from the Ragged Edge 