Wild Stars IV: Wild Star Rising

A New Wild Star Is Born!
Wild Stars IV is bringing the whole family for the 35th Anniversary Event!
Posted by Michael Tierney on June 28, 2019

It's always gratifying for a writer when an editor wants to buy your work.

What's especially gratifying is when the editor says, to paraphrase, "Not only do I think it's a great story,
I think it makes all your earlier stories even better--and I want to publish them as
a package set for the Wild Stars 35th Anniversary."

Needless to say, I was thrilled when Cirsova editor "Alex" Alexander told me that.
But wait--the offer gets even better, too.

Not only will the previous three books be published as part of a matching set with the new Book 4,
and super-sized in the magazine format--featuring new covers by Mark Wheatley,
Cirsova is also doing a 720-page Omnibus hardcover that features a wraparound dust wrapper by Anton Oxenuk!

In his promo video (you can watch here) for the event, Alexander said:
"Wild Stars is incredible science fantasy ... on the scale of Jack Kirby's Fourth World. It's almost incomparable."

Here's the rundown of what each of Cirsova's five books in the Wild Stars 35th Anniversary set includes:

Click the image above, or this link to go directly to the Kickstarter offering.

Wild Stars 1: Book of Circles -- Cirsova Publications edition

Wild Stars 1: Book of Circles is a 296-page collection of the 1984 Wild Stars: Erlik comic, material from the 1986 Wild Stars Portfolio, the 1988 Wild Stars: First Marker comic, the 7-issue 2001-2002 comic series, plus all of the new art and bonus materials from Little Rocket Publication's 2004 and 2014 paperbacks, and the 2009 and 2014 hardcovers.

This epic story is presented in the enlarged magazine format for the first time!
The Cirsova Publications editon also features a new introduction by publisher "Alex" Alexander.

For more details behind Wild Stars 1, start your journey here.

Wild Stars 2: Force Majeure -- Cirsova Publications edition

Click the image above, or this link to go directly to the Kickstarter offering.
Wild Stars 3 - 2nd edition

Wild Stars 2: Force Majeure wraps an 83,000 word novel around 38 comic book pages that includes the
Little Rock Publications release of the Force Majeure: Prairie Bay comic in 2002.

In addition to the 38 pages of comics are 50 flashback illustrations
presented here for the first time in an enlarged magazine format!

Plus, we're doing some unique things with the packaging.
While virgin front covers are common in the comics industry,
they are fairly unheard of in the magazine and book industries.

We did it last year with the virgin wraparound dust wrapper for the
first edition hardcover of Wild Stars 3, and Cirsova is doing it again
for the entire Wild Stars 35th Anniversary set!

Another thing I've never heard being done before is how
the back covers of all four books can be joined together
to create a larger image.

Stuff like that is usually only done with front covers.

This is what happens when an aggressive publisher teams up
with a creator who's been active in the independent publishing industry since 1977.
That's when I released The Multiversal Scribe, a magazine for which I did all the art
and wrote stories in five different genres. Click the image to the right
or this link for more details about this and the 1980s Wild Stars comics.

I printed the 1988 Wild Stars: First Marker comic in my garage,
which is one of the only comics ever created, written, illustrated, lettered, and printed by the same person,
as well as being the first comic to feature foil stamping on the front cover,
and the first to feature die cutting on the front cover,
and to date, the only comics to ever feature die cutting on the back cover!
Then there's the whole limited edition aspect of each copy being a unique edition.
Again, click the image to the right or this link for more information.

For a preview into the contents of Wild Stars 2 click here.

Click the image above, or this link to go directly to the Kickstarter offering.

Wild Stars 3: Time Warmeggedon -- 4th Cirsova edition

The 35th Anniversary cover is shown above!

In 2018 Cirsova Presents first published Wild Stars 3: Time Warmeggedon in
thee different editions (shown below), and all of them instantly sold out.

Shown below is the main cover with art by Tim Lim,
a wraparound variant by Mark Wheatley,
and a second variant wraparound by Mark Wheatley done in a virgin format for the hardcover edition.

Bonus material contained in the new, 4th edition,
are reprints of Shark Fighter and
The Grass Maiden (originally published as The Bears of 1812),
each of which was previously released in Cirsova Magazine.

PLUS, this 4th Edition also contains the first publication of a new epilogue,
and a new Wild Stars short story,
The Grimgrip.

For the Kickstarter launch of the 35th Anniversary Set,
Cirsova Publishing will also be bonusing two limited edition art prints from Mark Wheatley's interior artwork.

The Red Grief was originally presented in color on the back cover of the main 2018 edition,
while The Battle of the Time Travelers is published in color for the first time!

For a preview into the story of Wild Stars 3, click here.

Click the image above, or this link to go directly to the Kickstarter offering.

Wild Stars 4: Wild Star Rising -- First Edition

The basic concept behind the Wild Stars is that 75,000 years ago, mankind made their first migration into the stars.
What hasn't been told before is why they took that exodus.
The cover of the Cirsova first edition reveals one reason.

Wild Stars 4: Wild Star Rising finally explains everything, taking readers back to the last days of the exodus and into the final battle
with an enemy intent on wiping all traces of man from the face of the Earth.
(Note: Wild Stars 4: Wild Star Rising should not be confused with my 1977 novel Wild Stars Rising,
which takes place later in the future history of the Wild Stars)

From there the story moves to the really ancient past,
where immortals battle on the edge of a black hole in the conclusion of the quest for Phaedra,
and their battle continues on into the no-so-distant future for a final confrontation.

But, wait! That's still not all!

Wild Stars 4 also features the bonus Wild Stars Glossary:
a 29,000 word navigational map to clue you in on every person, place, or thing
throughout the wild history of the Wild Stars.

Here's what all four full wraparound covers looks like:

And here's what the four back covers look like when combined:

Wild Stars Omnibus -- First Edition hardcover

This 720-page tome contains everything from all four Books of the Wild Stars
and features a wraparound cover (shown here without text) by Anton Oxenuk, who also
illustrated the cover for my posthumus collaboration with Edgar Rice Burroughs on Young Tarzan ,
which was also published by Cirsova.

Be warned! Because of this book's prodigous size and weight, it could be consided a leathal weapon.

Superversive Sunday Podcast -- July 14th, 2019

Publisher "Alex" P. Alexander discusses Wild Stars 4 and the Wild Stars 35th Anniversary.

Shane Plays Radio Show -- July 6th, 2019
Wild Stars on IndieGoGo

So there I am, sitting in the radio station's studio and waiting for the show to start,
when I see a frantic waving of the arms coming from the engineer's booth.
The host isn't there yet and the show is about to start in 3 ... 2 .... 1 ....

Critical Blast Interview -- June 29th, 2019
Wild Stars on IndieGoGo

This podcast opens with a discussion about the current comics industry in general,
and then switches to the Cirsova Publishing IndieGoGo offering of Wild Stars 4 and the 35th Anniversary Wild Stars set!

I should probably point out that no elephants were hurt in the making of the tusks you'll see in the background.
Those are ceramic sculptures!

Geek Gab Interview Cirsova Publisher -- June 29th, 2019
Wild Stars on IndieGoGo

Cirsova Publisher "Alex" P. Alexander discusses his release of Wild Stars 4 and the 35th Anniversary Wild Stars set,
and the trials and tribulatons of being a semi-pro independent publisher.

Wild Stars Coming Soon!
Posted by Cirsova on June 12, 2019

We've been working very closely the last two months with Michael Tierney on a very special project: a 35th Anniversary Edition of his Wild Stars epic!

The scope of this project is unlike anything Cirsova Publishing has ever done before.

Wild Stars IV: Wild Star Rising -- We will be releasing an all-new Wild Stars novel that is both prequel and sequel to the earlier Wild Stars saga, telling the story of the final space exodus from Earth 75,000 years ago and the Ancient Warrior's gambit to finally free Phaedra from her prison at the heart of a supermassive black hole. This volume will also contain the first ever extensive bio-glossary of the Wild Stars universe: a must have for old fans and new!

Wild Stars III: Time Warmageddon -- We will be reprinting the formerly Kickstarter-exclusive short novel, Time Warmageddon, with corrected text and a new epilogue. Plus this will collect two previous published stories, Shark Fighter and The Grass Maiden [originally Bears of 1812], and an all-new never-before published Wild Stars short story, The Grimgrip.

Wild Stars II: Force Majeure -- We will be reprinting a new edition of Force Majeure, the hybrid comic/novel that expanded the story of Prairie Bay and continues the time-travel adventures of Erlik, Daestar, Akara, and Mack.

Wild Stars I: Book of Circles -- We will be reprinting a new edition of Book of Circles, the original Wild Stars graphic novel collecting Erlik (1984), First Marker (1988) and the 2001-2002 run of Wild Stars.

Wild Stars Omnibus -- We will be collecting all 4 volumes of Wild Stars in a single massive hardcover volume!

The individual volumes will feature new virgin covers by art legend Mark Wheatley, and the omnibus will feature a wrap-around dust-jacket by Cirsova's own fabulous cover artist, Anton Oxenuk.

We'll have more info on the goodies we'll be offering soon, but we will be using IndieGoGo to take domestic pre-order beginning June 28th for a release in October. Important notice to our non-US fans and supporters

Cirsova Publishing has MANY loyal fans and devoted readers all over the world. Some who have supported us since the very beginning. We love you all and would not be where we are without you!

That is why, even though the IndieGoGo will be domestic only, we will do everything we can to make sure you are taken care of!

The truth is when we are not doing direct fulfillment, shipping costs swing very wildly based on country and package weight. Trying to predictively configure accurate shipping costs for every country we might conceivably ship to is difficult and time-consuming. Sometimes we've found we've undercharged and lost money; other times we've found we've overcharged [when we have, we've tried to refund the difference].

So, we humbly ask you to bear with us on this!

If you live outside of the US and want items from the Wild Stars IndieGoGo, please contact us so that we can offer you an accurate quote!

Overseas orders will be handled separately after the crowdfund has been completed.

Unlike the editions offered through last year's Wild Stars III Kickstarter, these editions will remain in print and be commercially available through normal channels.

Certain exclusive goodies that we have lined up will be held back in limited quantities and made available to our overseas supporters once we have had a chance to figure out our shipping costs and weights.

Please stay tuned for more details and announcements!

Wild Stars III: Time Warmageddon

SOLD OUT 2018 Limited Editions

Reviews:

Tara Cuvelier at Geekisphere.com rated Wild Stars III as an 8.8 on a scale of 10.

Tara described the basic concept of the Wild Stars as being:
". . . absolutely awesome."

About the story she said:
"The plot kept me engaged throughout.
It is definitely a fast-moving story, dropping you into the action right from the beginning.
There really are no slow spots . . .
There is so much happening--time travel, interdimensional travel, ships that can move planets around, and more.
It's a very richly imagined world . . . I thoroughly enjoyed the energetic romp that is Wild Stars III."

You can read Tara's review in its entirety at Geekisphere.com

Amazon.com has Wild Stars III rated 5 out of 5 Stars:

A strong addition to the series

The Wild Stars series is built for people who want a story that is rich with drama, thick with story...
Michael does a good job of making this a stand alone story or jumping on point...
If you're looking for well developed original content then this is a book series you need to check out.

Here are excerpts from a Review on Passing It Forward:

". . . a manly hunk of manliness . . .
"Wild Stars III will put hair on your chest."

For reviews of all the previous Wild Stars books, comics, and more of Michael Tierney's works, check out the Review page!

Who is Michael Tierney?

Michael Tierney has been involved in comics and the publishing industry since the 70s. Owner and proprietor of both The Comic Book Store and Collector's Edition, Michael was a Finalist for both the Star*Reach Comics Retailer of the Year Award in 1985 and the Will Eisner Spirit of the Comics Retailer of the Year Award in 1999, has been an Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide Advisor since the 1990s, and is a staple of Central Arkansas' comic scene. A former journeyman printer and printing division manager, he's written, published, and at times even penciled, inked, and printed his own comics. He is currently writing, lettering, and coloring Edgar Rice Burroughs' Beyond the Farthest StarTM online, and his four volume Edgar Rice Burroughs 100 Year Art Chronology was published by Chenault & Gray in 2018.

Michael has been a regular contributor to Cirsova Heroic Fantasy and Science Fiction Magazine, who released the 2019 35th Anniversary set of Michael's Wild Stars comics and books. Cirsova Publishing is a Central Arkansas semi-pro publisher of Science Fiction and Fantasy. Its flagship publication, Cirsova Heroic Fantasy and Science Fiction Magazine was a 2017 Hugo Awards finalist for Best Semi-Pro Zine.

They also published Michael's posthumas collaboration with Edgar Rice Burroughs on Young Tarzan in 2019.

Cirsova Publishing is a Central Arkansas small publisher of Science Fiction and Fantasy. Its flagship publication, Cirsova Heroic Fantasy and Science Fiction Magazine was a 2017 Hugo Awards finalist for Best Semi-Pro Zine.

For Information:
Michael Tierney/Little Rocket Publications: www.thewildstars.com
Cirsova: www.cirsova.wordpress.com / Twitter: @cirsova

To read what the critics thought of WILD STARS I and II, visit the REVIEWS PAGE.

Michael Tierney's bibliography can be found here!

Wild Stars: The Book of Circles - Recalibrated

Wild Stars: The Book of Circles - Recalibrated 30th Anniversary Edition

For other preview material, you might like the page dedicated to the
impressive oil paintings by Mary Tierney. In the trade paperback they
are reproduced in black & white. They can be seen in their glorious
full color only in the original comics and the new 35th Anniversary
Hardcover edition of Wild Stars: The Book of Circles -- Recalibrated.

Wild Stars navigational chart:

Wild Stars History