Legends of Kalda is a fictional fantasy universe created by Dan Zangari and his son Robert Zangari.
Its primary world, Kalda, is the birth place of dragon-kind
and home to men, elves and a host of other mythical creatures. However, the world of Kalda has been linked to a myriad of other realms by magic, harnessed by dragons and channeled into objects known as the
tethering stones; spheres of pure rogulin which can open portals between worlds.
One of the defining events of Kalda is a war that was waged among the various breeds of dragon-kind, which lasted for a thousand years; its struggle ripped apart humanity and drove elven-kind into isolation.
Amid the conflict, known among men as the Dragon Wars, the tethering stones were forged as well as another artifact with the power to strip the wills of those that opposed the ancient Kaldean Alliance; with these mythical devices, the war was won by the metallic dragons, known in their tongue as the Mi'na, the elves and a small faction of humanity.
The first published literary work of this fictional universe is A Prince's Errand, as part of the series entitled, Tales of the Amulet, which follows an unlikely duo as they re-forge the Amulet of Draconic Control.
Tales of the Amulet is slated to include twelve large novels (~300k words), four prequel novels (~120k words) and twelve companion novellas/short-stories (between 18k-33k words). Versions of the story told in novels 2-5 were previously self-published but are currently undergoing a revision. Novels 6-9 were written by Dan in early 1990's, but will need to be rewritten to match the style and caliber of A Prince's Errand.
Several spin-off series are planned, including a fantasy murder mystery trilogy, and a prequel series following the lives of Iltar and Cornar--two main characters in Tales of the Amulet.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Dan Zangari was born in 1960 and raised in the Mojave desert as an only child. Throughout his childhood, he discovered his first love, reading. At a young age he had become an avid reader, digesting fantasy and science fiction.
In 1978 he attended the University of Southern California and received a Bachelor's of Science in Aerospace Engineering in 1982; afterwards, Dan served as an officer in the United States Air force, during which time he earned his Master's Degree in Systems Management in 1984.
Nevertheless, fantasy and science fiction held a dear spot in his heart all throughout his academic studies, from table-top games with friends, to books and formulating ideas of his own which would provide the framework of the Legends of Kalda.
During his time in the armed services, Dan met his future wife, and they were married in 1984.
In 1986, his only son was born. During that year, the Zangari's moved to the East Coast and two years later relocated to Northern Utah.
After settling in Utah, Dan began to piece together his ideas and in 1991 he sat down to draft his story which had been marinating in his mind for the last decade.
For the next ten years Dan wrote his story, creating a trilogy which he called, Chronicles of Lorn; set on a large island-continent within the world of Varland--a sister world to Kalda.
In 2001, Dan had completed rough drafts of each of the three manuscripts and was nearly finished with his final version of his first installment. At this time he decided to show his work to a fellow co-worker who was an engineer and a published author. As observed by his peer, the story seemingly started in middle, with flashbacks shown continuously throughout the novel. It was suggested that he go back and start from the very beginning, to the initial incident which sparked
the conflict in his tale.
So, after careful consideration, Dan compressed his trilogy to two parts and compiled his flashbacks into a single book, then titled, The Dark Necromancer.
For the next six years Dan worked on this new project; but due to increasing responsibilities, his writing time was cut short, leaving his works in dormant states, until 2011.
Robert Zangari was born in 1986 in Southern California and is an only child. Much akin to his father, he was drawn to the world of storytelling. At a young age, his father told him the stories of Almar, Iltar and the dragons of Lorn; in essence, his father's tales were his first introduction to the world of fantasy.
At the age of 5, he watched as his father put finger to keypress and drafted the Chronicles of Lorn. He marveled as his father crafted hand drawn maps of his fictional setting. All throughout his childhood, this younger Zangari was intrigued by the world of fantasy; from immersing himself in the literature, to viewing cinema and engaging in video games.
In 2004, he attended the University of Utah, studying Biomedical Engineering. However, he choose to serve a proselyting mission for the Church of Jesus Christ, of Latter-Day Saints in 2005, temporarily setting his education aside.
After two years, Robert returned home to Northern Utah and resumed his academic studies.
The following year, in 2008, he married his first wife (to whom he was married for seven years) and continued his schooling but changed his major to Mechanical Engineering and was self-employed; he worked as a distributor for a health and wellness company, a life insurance agent, operated a Martial Arts school and self-published a Martial Arts instructional book; the latter of which was done at the end of 2009. In 2011 he began working with his father on Legends of Kalda.
After six months of rewriting The Dark Necromancer--which had five individual storylines--they decided to split the book up into thirds. The first two storylines remained as The Dark Necromancer, then the third and fourth storylines were made into The Mages' Agenda. The last part was moved back into the Chronicles of Lorn.
For the next year they sent queries to a various publishers. There was some interest, but on the condition that they split the book up further. So, they divided The Dark Necromancer and The Mages' Agenda into four books. From 2014-2016 they published four novels and five short-stories.
In 2017 Robert married his second wife, Tamila, who has been greatly influential in the development of the Legends of Kalda universe.
Shortly after marrying Tamila, Robert and his father decided to revise the series again and start over with a new first book, A Prince's Errand.
LOK Publishing, LLC
Established in 2015, LOK Publishing is the independent publishing company of Dan and Robert Zangari, specializing in producing high-uality fantasy fiction that rivals the best of traditional publishing.
The company's name was derived from the abbreviation of Legends of Kalda, while the logo uses the silhouette of a dragon's eye that was part of an illustration commissioned for Dan and Robert's first publication, The Dark Necromancer (2013).
LOK Publishing is not currently accepting solicited or unsolicited manuscripts.
Meet the Team
Though independently published, Dan and Robert work with a dedicated group of professionals who are among the best in their fields. Their notority in the genre has helped establish the "Zangari" name in the fantasy genre.
Kerem Beyit - Cover Artist
Kerem has a vast range of illustrating experience, from as working as a cover artist to a key art specialist. He has worked with traditional and self-published authors, including authors Tad Williams and Naomi Novik. Some of his key art pieces have been created for the following game studios: Wizards of the Coast, Blizzard, and Daybreak Games (formerly Sony Online Entertainment).
Sara Lawson - Editor
Specializing in editing independently published fantasy, Sara Lawson has professionally edited many noteworthy manuscripts from authors Jeffery L. Kohanek, Rachel Rener, Christopher Russell, Kay L. Moody, and many more.
Michael Kramer - Narrator
Michael Kramer enters his fourth decade of audiobook narration. Fortunate to work for so many fine authors and audiobook publishers, he has received 10+ Earphones Awards from Audiofile Magazine, a Publishers Weekly ListenUp Award, 4 Audie nominations and the 2015 Audie Award for Fantasy/Science Fiction with his wife and co-narrator, Kate Reading, and a 2016 Voice Arts Awards nomination for fantasy. They reside in Hyattsville, MD and have two children, Henry and Vivian.
Erik Synnestvedt
Erik has been a full-time, working actor for almost 20 years. He was trained as a narrator at the Library of Congress' Talking Books for the Blind studio in Washington, DC, and monitored fellow narrators and proofed hundreds of titles for all kinds of publishers--Hachette, Penguin Random House, Macmillan, HarperCollins, Tantor, Audible,
Common Mode and more. Now, he works from his home studio, providing proofing, editing and mastering for producers and narrators alike. He has recorded over 300 titles himself and has a unique perspective and a highly developed ear for making performers sound their best. Noises, mispronunciations, misreads, stumbles--he hear it all.