Let's go to Australia and poke horrible things with a stick for fun!

[seanan_mcguire]

It's time for my first Pocket Apocalypse giveaway! Hooray! This giveaway is going to be US addresses only; I'm still mailing T-shirts, and my post office workers are starting to mysteriously go on break when I show up, because of all the international packages. I know it's not fair, but I can't add more customs forms to the pile or they're going to close completely.

I will do open-to-international giveaways before the book is released, and I'm hoping to clear out more of the pending packages in the next week or so.

So, the rules for this one:

1. Leave a comment.
2. Indicate that you have a US address I can ship to. (You don't have to live in the US. You just have to have a US address.)
3. Name your favorite cryptid and why.

I will use the RNG to choose three winners on Tuesday, January 27th. But there's a twist! Only one person can win for each cryptid. So be honest! Name your favorite! Just be aware that the odds are lower for the Aeslin mice than for, say, the swamp bromeliads.

The field guide is here, if you need some help.

Game on!

Comments

[tylik.livejournal.com]

1. So on board for this.
2. In the US.
3. The Huli Jing. Though I don't know if the Prices would recognize them as being a separate species from the Kitsune and Kumiho (I think there's a pretty strong argument that they're at least a different population, and likely genetically at least somewhat distinct.) Really, this arises from my love of Pu Songling's "Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio" (really, the Qin dynasty literary version of Weird Tales) which draws on a lot of the northern chinese stories of fox spirits and their rather ambiguous interactions with humankind. (Also, lots of down on their luck scholars and strong and mysterious swordswomen. It's the best.)

[Sorry about the edit. Just can't be leaking apostrophes everywhere...]

[ontogenesis.livejournal.com]

Aren't we supposed to be using cryptids from Seanan's series? (Unless the foxes appear in one of her side stories, in which case you'd better clue me in so I can read it. ^^ )

I would argue that the three fox species share ancestors, similar to the human populations of China, Japan, and Korea, although they have some some notable cultural differences. But in the tales I've read, their actual abilities tend to be fairly similar regardless of the country (e.g., fox fire, illusions, etc.) which suggests shared genetics.

Pu Songling's book is great. Have you read Nozaki's Kitsune: Japan's Fox of Mystery, Romance & Humor or Zong In-Sob's Korean tales? Very interesting how each culture has put its own stamp on the fox myths.

[asg-qa-s7.livejournal.com]

Teh aeslin myss tast gud. I'm in ur u.s.

Seriously, I've long been a fan of "The Mouse and the Motorcycle" (Cleary), plus "The Witches" (Dahl). Plus they make great social symbiotes, if I'm not misusing the concept.

[loree.livejournal.com]

I have a US mailing address, and my favorite cryptid is the Waheela, because I want to be Istas when I (utterly fail to) grow up.

[sleightedge.livejournal.com]

US address, present and accounted for! My favorite incryptid has to be the Cuckoos. I love a properly scary villain (or a properly scary good guy; hello, Sarah-the-math-geek-who-could-also-fry-my-brain, hope you get well soon!), and I'm a sucker for the snarky and particularly fatalistic tone of their field guide entry. Excerpts of it may or may not be one of the things I use to badger other people into reading your stuff. =D

[apocalypticbob.livejournal.com]

I'm in the US.

My desire for honesty overrules my desire for winning by a very slim margin, so I have to say the Aeslin mice. (What can I say? I rolled up this character as Lawful Good and have to play it that way til the end!)

Edit: Forgot the why part! As I get older and lose family members, so many family stories die with them. I would love to have someone who could recount their tales on demand. They could tell me what I am missing when I fail to make my mother's French toast like she did. They could tell my niece stories of her father that she will never hear because he is gone. The Aeslin mice grant their family a truer immortality than any of us will ever know. Worth the lack of privacy and the sacrifice of cheese and cake.

[wendyzski.livejournal.com]

*sniffles*

[geekhyena.livejournal.com]

US address and while my list of favorites is pretty darn long, I'd have to say that my favorite of favorites is the church griffin, because dammit, I want one. I'd totally be willing to deal with all the chaos - god knows my old Maine Coon caused plenty of hilarious chaos around the house, and also, as my friend Liz would say, "kittehbirb!"

[reedrover]

I'm commenting from the USA.
My current favorite cryptid as a species/group is the gorgons, specifically the Pliny's gorgon group. I just love Clark in "One Hell of a Ride" and the whole "Nice to meet you, Mr. Pliny" innocent comment from Frances. The Kalakos family (lesser gorgons) were tons of fun to meet, too.

[mneme]

I have a US address (where I live).

My favorite cryptid is the boogeyman. Because they're spooky, but not evil (necessarily), and because I love their darks.

[sirfox.livejournal.com]

Hya! I have a US address.

While the Aeslin mice are dear to my heart, I think that for a favorite, i'd pick the Lesser Gryphon. Alex's pet/companion Crow from your recent novel reminds me of the Main Coon who's adopted me. I can only imagine the trouble he'd get into with wings.

[tigertoy.livejournal.com]

Still in the US. Since "all of them" isn't a valid answer, I'm going to choose dragon princesses. Because I've always loved dragons in general, and your unique interpretation does a good job of providing a good reality behind some of the standard tropes.

[michael (from livejournal.com)]

Oh man I'll comment the heck out of this - I have a US address!

Theres a ton of crytids that I love, but the first one that popped into my head was the majestic Fricken. I mean, how can you not loved a feathered frog? It's just so delightfully RANDOM and pointless! you just have to stand there scratching your head going "wtf evolution? why???"

[james b franks (from livejournal.com)]

I have a US address.

As much as I'd like to pick something rarer, Aeslin mice are my favorites because it's hard to be grumpy when reading about their antics.

[yarram.livejournal.com]

1. Giveaways! Yaaaay!
2. I have a US address.
3. The Boojum, because if you see one, you softly and silently vanish away... but to where? The only people who can tell us have all soflty and silently vanished away... (and just what, exactly, is their actual relationship to Snarks, anyway?)

Let's go to Australia.

[carlammm.livejournal.com]

Australia hummm, I've been dying to go.
I do live in the US...
I love the Tanuki.Well, because, they are a trickster at heart.

[shannon lorenz (from livejournal.com)]

I don't care if my chances of winning are smaller. My favorite is still the Aeslin Mice. Because they can make a party out of anything!

[elinox.livejournal.com]

1. Yo
2. I live near Chocolatetown, USA ;)
3. The most adorable cryptid would have to be the Aeslin mice. And while I love all the critters in the series, my favorites are the therian ones. :D

[acelightning.livejournal.com]

[replyhazy.livejournal.com]

OOH!

I'm in the US.

I'm a huge fan of sylphs at the moment, because OH TO CHANGE DENSITY AT WILL.

[l-o-lostshadows.livejournal.com]

Me and my mailbox are in the US.

My honest answer is dragons, princesses or otherwise, because, well, they're dragons. My love of dragons is longstanding, so that's really the best explanation I can give at this point.

[dibs-and-dlas.livejournal.com]

I am indeed in the US (and with an address, no less).

This is probably going to be almost as common as the (incredibly adorable) mice, but my favourite is the Church's Griffin (thus far, every book of the Incryptid series seems to present another animal that I'd really like as a pet).

[universal-gm.livejournal.com]

I have a US address.

My favorite is the dragons/dragon princesses because: a) dragons are just plain cool, b) the extreme sexual dimorphism fascinates me, and c) their culture in general is unique and interesting.

[thebluerose.livejournal.com]

Yes pls and I have a us shipping address 😊

[catsittingstill.livejournal.com]

Don't forget to pick a cryptid!

FRICKENS!

[alex bacon (from livejournal.com)]

I have a US address.

My favorite Cryptids are the frickens. Particularly the jewel-toned poison dart frickens. Something about a frog/chicken combination makes me happier than cats on a sunny windowsill.

[tsgeisel.livejournal.com]

I'm commenting, I'm in the US, and when I saw "Screaming Yams" I knew I'd found my favorite. Even as much as I like cats...

[kimuro.livejournal.com]

US address - Church griffin

I'm torn between Aeslin mice and the Church griffin but the latter won out because well, everyone likes Aeslin mice so snowball's chance there. I like the Church griffin because Crow is absolutely adorable - all the best features of a cat and raven. Cuddly, curious and helpful.

And I chose the Church griffin because this morning I started working on the griffin entry for the Scottish Gaelic field guide. Got distracted almost immediately, but I did start it.