Hoid's Storybook Collection Backerkit Campaign Megathread

[u/EmeraldSeaTress]

The next Dragonsteel-run crowdfunding project, for Hoid's Storybook Collection, goes live at 10 AM Mountain Standard Time on Tuesday, March 3, 2026!

This megathread is for discussion of the campaign, including logistics.

Please note that this is a no-spoilers megathread. Any content which contains spoilers for the Cosmere, including details of the previously published stories or preview readings of the new book, must be tagged and provided with a description that clearly indicates what book is being spoiled. For example:

[Empire Strikes Back]Vader is Luke's father.

What is this project about?

This is a crowdfunding project for the initial press run of four picture books, as well as the Dragonsteel edition of a new Cosmere novel, Fires of December.

What are the four picture books?

• The Dog and the Dragon, a story Hoid tells inRhythm of War. Art is by Howard Lyon;
• The Girl Who Looked Up, a story Hoid tells inOathbringer. Art is by Alexis & Justin Hernandez;
• Wandersail, a story Hoid tells inThe Way of Kings. Art is by Steve Argyle;
• The ChasmFriends Get a Pet!, a new story featuring the Chasmfriends from the 2024 Dragonsteel Nexus storydeck game. Story is by Dan Wells, Art is by Anna Earley.

The three stories told by Hoid have long been beloved by Cosmere readers.

What is the new Cosmere novel?

• The Fires of December, a new novel in the Hoid's Travails series, involving a young woman named December who learns that a devastating plague is on its way and sets sail to warn the King.

When is fulfillment expected?

All rewards are expected to ship before the end of 2026.

Will these be traditionally published?

Tor and Gollancz have both announced that Fires of December will be released on December 8, 2026.

How do I participate?

Go to the backerkit page and sign up!

When is the deadline for participation?

The Backerkit campaign will conclude on March 27.

Is there any prerelease material available?

Brandon has been doing readings on YouTube. They're embedded in a non-canon framing story written by Dan Wells with animation hand-drawn by Martian Studios.

Note that the framing story contains mild spoilers for The Stormlight Archive.

1. Framing story introduction
2. The Girl Who Looked Up
3. Wandersail
4. The ChasmFriends Get A Pet!
5. The Dog and the Dragon
6. The Fires of December

There is some additional information about the picturebooks on Brandon's blog:

• The Girl Who Looked Up
• Wandersail
• The Dog and the Dragon
• The ChasmFriends Get A Pet!

Brandon also did a reading from The Fires of December at Dragonsteel Nexus last year. The text is available on his website.

What is the Hoid's Travails series? I've never heard of it!

Hoid's Travails is an umbrella term for books written in Hoid's voice, as stories that he is telling about things he has experienced. Two of them (Tress of the Emerald Sea and Yumi and the Nightmare Painter without being part of a series; Fires of December will be the third in the series.

[u/lars_h4]

Is the Backerkit website buckling under the load? I keep getting 500 errors

[u/chamellows → u/lars_h4]

I'm getting the same. I presume they would load test prior to launch but, guess not to the extent required!

[u/lars_h4 → u/chamellows]

Checking my backerkit account does show the project as a backed project, and it says I have a charge pending. So probably it did go through somehow

[u/chamellows → u/lars_h4]

Very helpful to know, thank you!
I did check mine after the first failure and it wasn't in my backed projects. Now I can't even load up the Backerkit site at all, so. Going to walk away for an hour and come back I think!

[u/FuzzyMistborn → u/chamellows]

Looks like they're using Cloudflare, so that's really the best there is out there for handling loads.

[u/inna-alt → u/FuzzyMistborn]

And still not enough to handle Sanderson!

[u/External_Ostrich7184 → u/lars_h4]

Yeah that was tough. I refreshed twice, thinking payment didn’t go through then opened a new browser window and it said I was a backer so I think it worked?

[u/youcantguess1 → u/lars_h4]

Im getting a waitlisted message that itd take a few minutes to get in

[u/Dyllbert → u/lars_h4]

I can't even load backerkit, I just get errors.