I'll be honest – it's been a hot minute since I last ate a Malteser (thanks, diet restrictions). But Maltesers used to be my movie snack of choice, and I've done plenty of experiments as to the optimal method for consuming them. Possibly I am odd in this. 

However, inquiring minds want to know: have you also? What's your Malteser-eating game?

Make sure you get your vote in the latest Chocolate Poll! And please do send the survey to your unsuspecting friends and family. Don't forget, the results of this ultra-important research will end up in the book. The stakes are high!

Meanwhile, I was listening to an audiobook the other day but it was time to work, so I sketched Keraun making magic while the chapter finished. (No, I didn't get my edits done, what do you mean drawing isn't work)


Keraun gets into trouble in one of the bonus stories (already included) and will be the protagonist of the next stretch goal scene. Let's get there!

Kel

P.S. Rest assured I've tried ALL the options on the poll. There is only one that doesn't jibe with me – care to guess which? 

We FUNDED! This tasty edition is happening.

Now the fun really begins – stretch goals! First up, we have a bonus scene, inspired by a post I made on Bluesky a while back. It goes something like this:

WHO: Gabby and supersoldier mean mentor Donovan.

Gabby throws a cup of Milo. Donovan, after a moment of stunned bewilderment, retaliates with vodka. Gabby picks a strawberry off the pavlova and hits Donovan's eye. Donovan, regretting having thrown her vodka away, hurls the whole pav at Gabby's face. And is immediately mortified that she has stooped so low as to be in anything as ridiculous as a food fight. FFS.

(Gabby meanwhile is smirking and licking her fingers like the cat that got the cream)

Personally, I'm not big on food fights. It sounds gross to me – I don't like being sticky, and I'd be struck with a compulsive urge to clean every time something hit the walls or the floor. And I can't think of anything Donovan is less likely to do. But that makes it all the more fun, because how is Gabby going to goad her into such shenanigans?

We'll find out if we get to $750! 

Please help make the food fight happen by sharing the campaign with your bookish associates. Let's cover Donovan in cold Milo! (Because let's face it, she deserves it.)

Meanwhile, do vote in the Choose the Deluxe Milkshake if you haven't already, and do ask your friends to back up your choice with their votes (I mean, they can choose their own thing. But the results will be published in the book and you want your favourite to win, right?! 😉 Not that it's a competition or anything. Everyone's a winner in milkshake land.).

Happy voting!
Kel

Hello and welcome to the first update for Darkhaven – Operation: Chocolate Overload! 

We are well over 50% funded, and it's only day 2 of 21! Thank you so much to everyone who jumped in with early pledges – I am so grateful for your support and enthusiasm.

One of the fun features of this project is the Chocolate Polls, where you get to be part of the action. While Gabby is lamenting her career choices and that she'll never figure out what to do with her life, we're tackling the big questions:

And we're kicking off with perhaps the most important, your go-to chocolate in a crisis. Peruse the list, pick your favourite, and if – shock! horror! – your favourite isn't listed, shout about it in the comments. Or politely mention it. Whichever vibe most suits your chocolate.

Every few days, a new poll will drop, and results from the polls will be incorporated into the Operation: Chocolate Overload annotations. 

Please vote! For, er, science. Or at least entertainment. And please do ask your friends to vote – we want this to be a comprehensive study of life's great questions, after all.

Happy chocolate polling!

Kel