Afterword

Afterword

 

HELLO, THIS IS KIKI, the author of Roll Over and Die: I Will Fight for an Ordinary Life with My Love and Cursed Sword. Thanks for picking up the second volume in the series.

In this second volume, I was hoping to tell a full-throttle story full of lesbian romance with just a hint of horror right from the cover. I hope it worked out that way.

There is one thing I’d like to say, though: the slow life is all over now.

I’m sure even those of you who were expecting the change of pace may have found yourselves in for a shock at some of the pictures in the middle of the book. Don’t worry—I felt exactly the same way. I’ve been referring to this volume as “Ink’s story” in my own head, but what do you think? Does it fit?

I made a lot of revisions and additions to the version of Chapter 003 that appeared online, which has led to the final version you see here. The web version ended at Chapter 010, but in addition to all the little sentence tweaks and the major revision to Chapter 003, I’m pretty sure even those who read all the way through the online version of the story will still have a few surprises waiting for them. Just know that I’m working hard to make sure Roll Over and Die will be an exciting new experience for all readers—both those who’ve never experienced the series before and those who already read through it online.

By the time this book hits the book shelves, I believe the manga adaptation will have already been announced. Sunao Minakata, the author in charge of the manga, has done an absolutely stunning job blending cuteness with action in the art. I’ve actually known of Sunao’s work for several years now after a friend introduced me to a manga being serialized in a popular lesbian romance manga magazine. It’s an absolute shock to me that they would be in charge of turning my story into a manga. I guess you just really don’t know where life will take you, huh?

To be honest, I still don’t really believe that this is all happening. Between the volume of the manga I’m looking at, right here in my hand, and Kinta’s excellent character designs…it’s all too much. My mind is a whirlwind of thoughts lately: “Is this really my book?” “I wonder if this is all really okay…” “Am I going to die tomorrow??” “…Wait, am I already dead?” “Did I die and go to a land of lesbian fantasy romance?”

Sorry, that last one’s not true. Men aren’t allowed in these mythical lands of lesbian romance, and I suspect I’d be decontaminated right at the entrance.

Once again, it’s really, really hard to write an afterword. For some reason, it takes a lot longer than writing chapters of an equivalent length. After looking around online to see what other authors write in these things, I’m at least relieved to see I’m not the only one struggling.

I guess my only real option is to go with the tried-and-true approach of letting the characters talk for themselves and throw myself into the conversation.

 

ETERNA: “Hi, I’m Eterna Rinebow. I was rudely called in here on short notice.”

INK: “I dunno, this seems kinda fun! Nice to meet ya, I’m Ink Wreathcraft!”

AUTHOR: “And it’s me, ki…”

 

Okay, never mind, that was awful. Just writing these three lines was painful enough. I can only imagine the amount of mental fortitude it must take for an author to carry on conversations with their characters.

Maybe someday I’ll get good enough to do that. Like in my next life, maybe.

Lastly, I’d like to take an opportunity to thank those who helped bring this book together.

Kinta, you truly are amazing, and your work on all the additional character designs is greatly appreciated. I always found myself completely blown away by each new character design or book insert. Thank you for your excellent work.

To my editor—thank you for your immense patience with all the annoying little problems I caused and the massive increase in word count over volume one. You’ve been an immense help, and I don’t think I could have done it without you.

And of course, there are the many other people working in publishing and you, my dear readers, who also deserve a lot of credit for making this book a reality. I truly am in your debt.

I hope you stick around for the continuation of Flum’s exciting adventure!