Everybody loves a team-up!

Batman and Superman. Alien and Predator. Zatoichi and Yojimbo. The Six-Million Dollar Man and the Bionic Woman. Carol Danvers and Kamala Khan. Hercules and Xena. Gilgamesh and Enkidu. Iron Man and Captain America.

The popular-culture storytelling landscape is filled with team-ups. Now, the International Association of Media Tie-in Writers (IAMTW) presents a new anthology that takes a whole bunch of classic characters and pairs them up! (In some cases, triples them up…)

Want to see Miguel de Cervantes’s Don Quixote paired with William Shakespeare’s Prospero? Dracula in a story with Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde and John Henry? Jane Austen’s Lydia Bennet meeting John Polidori’s Lord Ruthven? The immortal Ayesha coming across the goddess Egungun-oya? Abraham Van Helsing encountering the Medusa and Athena?

Then you should seriously consider supporting Double Trouble: An Anthology of Two-Fisted Team-Ups, edited by two veteran anthologists: New York Times best-selling author Jonathan Maberry (Aliens: Bug Hunt, V-Wars) and IAMTW Grandmaster Keith R.A. DeCandido (Star Trek: Tales of the Dominion War, Doctor Who: The Quality of Leadership). The anthology will feature stories by some of the finest tie-in writers in the biz, including New York Times best-sellers Kevin J. Anderson (Dune), Greg Cox (DC Comics), Delilah S. Dawson (Star Wars), Nancy Holder (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), David Mack (Star Trek), Scott Sigler (Alien), and Dayton Ward (24)!

Characters and Authors

Here is the full list of team-ups and the authors doing them:

•  Captain Nemo meets Frankenstein’s monster (Kevin J. Anderson)
•  Prospero meets Don Quixote de la Mancha (David Mack)
•  Dr. Moreau meets Audrey II (Scott Sigler)
•  Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde meet Dracula and John Henry (Derek Tyler Attico)
•  Ace Harlem meets the Conjure-Man (Maurice Broaddus)
•  Marian of Sherwood meets Annie Oakley (Rigel Ailur)
•  Gulliver meets Sacajawea and Ernest Shackleton (Diana Dru Botsford)
•  Van Helsing meets Athena and the Medusa (Jennifer Brody)
•  Lord Ruthven meets Lydia Bennet (Delilah S. Dawson)
•  Bastet and Fenrir meet Quetzalcoatl (Ben H. Rome)
•  Dan Fowler meets Stinger Seave (James Reasoner)
•  Captain Battle meets Blackout (Dayton Ward)
•  Ayesha, a.k.a. She Who Must Be Obeyed, meets Egungun-oya (Keith R.A. DeCandido)
•  Flaxman Low meets Mezzanotte (Nancy Holder & Alan Philipson)
• And finally, The Brain that Wouldn’t Die must survive the Night of the Living Dead (Greg Cox)

Bonuses and stretch goals

Now you can just keep it simple and get the anthology itself, available in eBook, trade paperback, and/or hardcover form. By supporting this Kickstarter, you get a low price on all three editions, the same or lower than you’re likely to get once it’s formally published. And if you back the crowdfund in the first five days, you can get any of the three editions at a discount…

Plus, there are lots of extras. For starters, several of the authors are offering Tuckerizations, which means that you can have a character named after you (or someone you care about) in one of the stories! You can get an edition of the hardcover autographed by a half-dozen of the contributors! In addition, there are bonus books and stories that you can get in electronic form, you can get your name listed in the acknowledgments of the book, and we also have two slots open for you to get the book dedicated to you!

NEW! AUDIO READINGS, ARCs, AND MORE TUCKERIZATIONS! We’ve added some new rewards and new add-ons! Co-editor Jonathan Maberry is offering autographed ARCs of the first two books in his new epic fantasy series, Kagen the Damned and Son of the Poison Rose. You can get one for $100 or both for $175. Jonathan is also offering two more Tuckerizations in his next “Joe Ledger” book and a Tuckerization in an upcoming short story. In addition, most of the authors are offering audio readings of their stories! You can get individual readings as $10 add-ons, or you can get all the available readings (plus the eBook, trade paperback, and acknowledgment) as a single $125 reward.

COMPLETED! The first 10 backers will each receive an autographed copy of Disney Chills Book 6: Once Upon a Scream by Vera Strange, a.k.a. Jennifer Brody.

COMPLETED! The first 50 backers will each receive an eBook copy of Greg Cox‘s classic short story from 1989, “Hana and His Synapses,” a humorous take on cyberpunk originally published in Aboriginal Science Fiction.

NEW! COMMUNAL SUPPORT! The people behind two other current Kickstarter campaigns are good friends with excellent track records of their own: the eSpec Books Fantastic Novels campaign will fund three novels (including one by Double Trouble co-editor/contributor Keith R.A. DeCandido), and the Fantastic Books anthology Jewish Futures, edited by Michael A. Burstein. So, in an effort to lift all the boats on a rising tide, we’re offering this special, perhaps-never-before-attempted, Communal Support opportunity: back all three campaigns (Fantastic Novels, Double Trouble, and Jewish Futures) at their $7 or higher levels, and you will receive one original Keith R.A. DeCandido short story, one eSpec bonus digital book of your choice, and a classic Michael A. Burstein story, in addition to your chosen reward in each campaign. Simply make your pledge and select the $1 Communal Support Add-on. The reward will only be issued once all three campaigns are complete and your support collected for all of them is confirmed.

Plus, we’ve got STRETCH GOALS! The biggies are the first few, which will enable us to add three more authors to the table of contents, plus if we get enough pledges, we can add illustrations to each story!

IF WE REACH $10,500: We will add a story by Debbie Daughetee (featuring Jane Trent, Science Sleuth and Fantamah and Fury).

IF WE REACH $11,000: We will add a story by David A. McIntee (featuring Tang Sanzang, a.k.a. Tripitaka, and Emperor Taizong).

IF WE REACH $11,500: We will add a story by James A. Moore (featuring Moon Man and The Man in Black).

IF WE REACH $12,000: Everyone who pledges $35 or more will receive an eBook copy of co-editor Keith R.A. DeCandido‘s short-story collection Without a License: The Fantastic Worlds of Keith R.A. DeCandido. Those who pledge under $35 can get this as an add-on for $5.

IF WE REACH $12,500: Everyone who pledges $35 or more will receive an eBook copy of Scott Sigler‘s The Rookie, Book 1 of the “Galactic Football League” series. Those who pledge under $35 can get this as an add-on for $5.

IF WE REACH $13,000: Everyone who pledges $35 or more will receive a brand-new Dayton Ward short story collection, including several works of his original short fiction. Those who pledge under $35 can get this as an add-on for $5.

IF WE REACH $13,500: Everyone who pledges $35 or more will receive an eBook copy of the IAMTW’s first anthology featuring tie-in authors doing public-domain characters, Turning the Tied. This tome, edited by Robert Greenberger & Jean Rabe, includes stories by Double Trouble contributors Rigel Ailur (with a story featuring Hua Mulan), Derek Tyler Attico (Sherlock Holmes), Greg Cox (Mina Harker), Keith R.A. DeCandido (Ayesha), Nancy Holder (Frankenstein’s monster), Jonathan Maberry (John Carter of Mars), and Ben H. Rome (War of the Worlds), as well as Raymond Benson, David Boop, Jennifer Brozek, Max Allan Collins & Matthew V. Clemens, Kelli Fitzpatrick, Steven Paul Leiva,  Jeff Mariotte, Will McDermott, Yvonne Navarro, Weston Ochse, Scott Pearson, Marsheila Rockwell, Aaron Rosenberg, Stephen D. Sullivan, Robert Vardeman, and Tim Waggoner. Those who pledge under $35 can get this as an add-on for $5.

IF WE REACH $14,000: Everyone who pledges $35 or more will receive an eBook copy of Kevin J. Anderson‘s Captain Nemo: The Fantastic History of a Dark Genius. Those who pledge under $35 can get this as an add-on for $5.

IF WE REACH $14,500: Everyone who pledges $35 or more will receive an eBook copy of Voices of Varuna: A Renegade Legion Universe Anthology Volume 1, edited by Ben H. Rome and including stories from Marvel writers Marsheila Rockwell and Carrie Harris, as well as John Peel (Doctor Who), Jean Rabe (Forgetten Realms, Dragonlance), Will McDermott (Warhammer 40,000), Sarah Stegall (The X-Files), and more. Those who pledge under $35 can get this as an add-on for $5.

IF WE REACH $15,000: Everyone who pledges $35 or more will receive an eBook copy of the soon-to-be-released Voices of Varuna: A Renegade Legion Universe Anthology Volume 2, also edited by Ben H. Rome and including stories from Star Trek writers Kelli Fitzpatrick and Derek Tyler Attico, among others. Those who pledge under $35 can get this as an add-on for $5.

IF WE REACH $15,500: Everyone who pledges $35 or more will receive a Keith R.A. DeCandido short story bundle, including the Dragon Precinct story “The Midwinter of Our Discontent,” the Super City Cops story “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” the New York urban fantasy story “Unguarded,” and the Key West urban fantasy story “Stop Dragon My Heart Around.” Those who pledge under $35 can get this as an add-on for $5.

IF WE REACH $16,000: We will have interior illustrations! Every story will be accompanied by a black-and-white illustration by a top artist!

IF WE REACH $17,000: We will provide as an add-on for $20 a limited-edition T-shirt that will include the cover on the front and the eighteen interior illustrations on the back.

About the authors and editors

Author of Star Trek and Shadowrun short stories, Rigel Ailur also contributes to the Outside In series which reviews classic genre TV shows. She’s written twenty-four novels—including in the Tales of Mimion series, and The Vagabonds’ Adventures—and more than ninety short stories which appeared in such anthologies as The Angel Cat Collection, Brave New Girls, The Fans are Buried Tales, and Bad Ass Moms.

Kevin J. Anderson has published more than 175 books and is best known for his work in the Dune, Star Wars, X-Files, and Batman/Superman universes. He also worked with the late drummer/lyricist for Rush, Neil Peart, on three steampunk fantasy novels, Clockwork Angels, Clockwork Lives, and Clockwork Destiny, and has written the humorous series featuring Dan Shamble, Zombie P.I.

Derek Tyler Attico is a science fiction author, essayist, and photographer. He is a winner of the Excellence in Playwriting Award from the Dramatist Guild of America and a two-time winner of the Star Trek: Strange New Worlds short story contest.

A community organizer, teacher, and Afrofuturist, Maurice Broaddus‘s short stories have appeared in such places as Lightspeed Magazine, Black Panther: Tales from Wakanda, Weird Tales, The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, and Uncanny Magazine. His novels include Sweep of Stars, Unfadeable, Pimp My Airship, and The Usual Suspects.

Diana Dru Botsford‘s work includes the critically acclaimed Stargate SG-1 novels Four Dragons and The Drift and the Scribe-nominated short story “Perceptions.” She co-wrote the episode “Rascals” for Star Trek: The Next Generation, created, wrote, and produced the award-winning SF web series Epilogue, and worked on several cult-favorite animated series including Spiral Zone and Heathcliff.

Jennifer Brody, a.k.a. Vera Strange, is the Stoker-nominated author of the “Disney Chills” series, “The 13th Continuum” trilogy, and a contributor to Star Wars: Stories of Jedi and Sith, where she penned the Darth Vader story.

Greg Cox is the New York Times best-selling author of numerous movie novelizations and media tie-in novels. He has received six Scribe Awards, including one for Life Achievement, from the International Association of Media Tie-In Writers.

Delilah S. Dawson is the author of over twenty books, including the New York Times best-selling Star Wars: Phasma, The Violence, the “Minecraft: Mob Squad” trilogy, and many more. She’s written comics in the worlds of Marvel Action Spider-Man, Star Wars, Firefly, The X-Files, and Adventure Time.

Keith R.A. DeCandido is an award-winning best-selling author of sixty novels, 100 short stories, and a ton of comic books and nonfiction, including work in more than thirty licensed universes from Alien to Zorro. He has edited a score of anthologies (both publicly and behind the scenes), including ones in the universes of Star Trek, Doctor Who, Marvel Comics, and more. The IAMTW favored him with a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009.

Nancy Holder is a New York Times best-selling author. She received the Faust Grand Master Lifetime Achievement Award from the IAMTW in 2020. She received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Horror Writers Association in 2022. Alan Philipson has written 135 novels under his and house names. He has been a professional editor for over thirty years. They are currently writing noir graphic novels and fiction for Moonstone Books and IFWG/IPI Comics as a team.

Jonathan Maberry is a New York Times best-selling author, five-time Bram Stoker Award-winner, three-time Scribe Award winner, Inkpot Award winner, and comic book writer. His vampire apocalypse book series, V-WARS, was a Netflix original series. He writes in multiple genres including suspense, thriller, horror, science fiction, fantasy, and action for adults, teens and middle grade. He’s the president of the International Association of Media Tie-in Writers, and the editor of Weird Tales Magazine. He was a featured expert on the History Channel’s Zombies: A Living History and True Monsters.

David Mack is the New York Times best-selling author of more than thirty-six novels of science fiction, fantasy, and adventure. His writing credits span several media, including television, games, and comic books. In June of 2022 the IAMTW honored him as a Grandmaster with its Faust Award.

James Reasoner is a writer from Texas who has been spinning yarns for almost half a century.

Ben H. Rome is an award-winning writer, game designer, and communications expert who spent fifteen years editing, writing, and producing BattleTech game products. He lives in the Washington, D.C. area and is currently the Content Director and editor for the new Renegade Legion Universe.

#1 New York Times best-selling author Scott Sigler is the creator of eighteen novels, six novellas, and dozens of short stories. He is an inaugural inductee into the Podcasting Hall of Fame.

Dayton Ward is a New York Times best-selling author or co-author of more than forty novels and novellas, often working with his best friend, Kevin Dilmore. His short fiction has appeared in more than twenty anthologies, and he’s written for magazines such as NCO Journal, Kansas City Voices, Famous Monsters of Filmland, Star Trek, and Star Trek Communicator as well as the websites Tor.com, StarTrek.com, and Syfy.com.

About the International Association of Media Tie-in Writers

The IAMTW is dedicated to enhancing the professional and public image of tie-in writers — authors of licensed fiction based on works originally produced in other media such as TV, movies, comic books, and games. We work with the media to review tie-in novels and publicize their authors. We work to educate people about who we are and what we do. And we provide a forum for tie-in writers to share information, support one another, and discuss issues relating to our field (via a monthly e-newsletter, our website, and our active e-mail discussion group). Our members include authors active in many other professional writer organizations (Mystery Writers of America, Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers Association, Romance Writers of America, Writers Guild of America, Horror Writers Association, etc.) and who share their unique perspectives with their fellow tie-in writers.

Tie-writers and their work are often overlooked and underappreciated by the aforementioned writer organizations, even though some of their most respected members work in the field. Tie-ins represent a huge percentage of the books published each year, they are enormously successful, and are widely enjoyed by readers. And yet we had no organization that represented our unique business and professional interests or acknowledged excellence in our field, until the IAMTW was formed shortly after the turn of the millennium.

The organization’s name itself is a declaration of pride in what we do: I AM a Tie-in Writer. We say it with pride because we are very proud of what we do and the books we write.