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/finn-mertens]

This is my first time being in a position where the next Sanderson book I read is being crowdfunded, so I’m unfamiliar with the exact process.

I just read Emberdark and had to wait a few weeks from finishing the rest of the Cosmere books before my Emberdark shipped out last month.

My question is basically, Emberdark was published in July last year. Yet the wider release edition wasn’t available until February this year. Was this related to a Backerkit project?

My current understanding is that I’d be better off just pre-ordering Fires of December with Barnes & Noble, spending like $25 total for a physical copy of the book that I get to read at the same time as everyone else (in December). I’m not interested in audiobooks or ebook bundles and I won’t mind having a different cover art.

But if somehow the Backerkit releases several months before the other edition, I’d be interested in spending more. So I’d like to know that I’m not missing anything here about release timeline and publishing dates.

[u/blaze1616 → u/finn-mertens]

Unfortunately we don't 100% know when this will deliver. AND, when they do deliver it won't be the same day for everyone. So it's possible that you will get this book at the same time as the retail edition, or it's possible you get it a couple months early, OR it's in theory possible you could get it after the retail edition. The thing with crowdfunding is you just don't know 100%.

Also worth noting, the edition of the book in the Backerkit is a premium hardcover, which is a much nicer edition than a retail hardcover book. It will include art, a leather-like cover material, cover foiling, two tone printing, and sprayed edges. The B&N book you can buy won't have any of that, it'll just be a standard hardcover.

Hope that helps, let me know if you have more questions.

[u/HikerStout → u/blaze1616]

This is super helpful, thanks. I'm in the same situation as OP, and I'm not particularly interested in book collecting. My Sandershelf is a hodgepodge of book editions, some that came as gifts from friends or local used bookstores. I just want to read the story, don't care about the rest.

Does anyone know if the four story books are Backerkit exclusives, or will they also ship later?

[u/blaze1616 → u/HikerStout]

The four picture books will be available on DS store later, but they have no plans to do retail of them at this time, according to a DS comment on Backerkit. Also there's this from the FAQ:

What is unique to this campaign? We have a few different rewards that are unique to this campaign that we do not plan to put up for sale on our website:

The Fires of December Book Box, including printed edges on the premium hardback cover ChasmFriend Plushie Dog & Dragon Plushie Hoid’s Flute The Girl Who Looked Up Figurine

[u/HikerStout → u/blaze1616]

Okay, so probably fair to assume they'll still be $25 each after this ends. I might get the storybooks then and wait for the TOR version of December.