Three small independent Presses have joined forces to publish Mirrors Reflecting Shadows: an anthology to support the Trevor Project. Roi Fainéant Press, Outcast Press, and Anxiety Press wanted to find “a smorgasbord” of short stories across all genres for this charity anthology. The 30 original stories aren’t all LGBTQ+ in content or context (though my story, “Viven’s Heir,” is), and they run the gamut from literary to fairy tale.
About the Anthology
The anthology call was for stories to benefit the Trevor Project – a charity dedicated to supporting the safety and well-being of LGBTQ youth, particularly focused at ending suicides in that at-risk community. The combined forces of three independent presses created a really unique collection of stories.
I’ve got to admit, the stories in this anthology are darker than I usually prefer. While my story is fluffy and light-hearted, a number of the others lean much more into horror. I’ve read about 40% of the stories in the anthology, because I’m not always able to deal with the horror content. (Hey, I live in the woods. If I want to get spooked, I’ll walk the dog after dark.)
The story “Lady in Waiting” by Friedrich Sarah E. Thompson is a lovely, happy counterpart to my story, though. A retelling of Sleeping Beauty, that honestly I think I needed to read for some broken bit of my own heart. “The Reaper” by Sadee Bee is much darker, but I found it to be deeply satisfying and thought-provoking.
About the Story, “Vivien’s Heir”
This story was brought on by reading Alfred, Lord Tennyson’s poem, Merlin and Vivien. I wanted to “dream the dream forward” into the next what-if scenario. The story tracks Gwen, a young trans woman who had recently come out. When bulldozers threaten a giant oak that is important to her family, she protests, doing everything in her skant power to stop the oak from being destroyed. In the process, she frees and wakes the wizard Merlin, who was bespelled by Vivien centuries before. The story treats Tennyson’s poem as historical fact, and builds upon it in the present day.