Jonathan Green's Blog, page 105

Christmas Explained - The perfect stocking filler this Christmas!

The Good Book Guide described my book on the history and origins of Christmas as being, "As welcome as a warm glass of mulled wine on a wintry night, Green's guide to Christmas enhances the pleasures of the festive season, offering a witty cornucopia of Christmas facts and folklore."

It would make the ideal gift for a trivia fan, an elderly relative, or for your works Secret Santa. And what could be better than having is signed and personalised by the author too?

The book is in a hardback format and comes with a gold ribbon bookmark too.

For £15* I will send you a signed and personlised copy of  Christmas Explained: Robins, Kings and Brussel Sprouts , via Royal Mail second class and signed for, to make sure it reaches you safely.

So don't delay, drop me a line today via info@jonathangreenauthor.com!


* This price covers postage and packing within the UK.

Christmas Explained: F is for Figgy Pudding

What exactly is figgy pudding, and how does it differ from the more usual plum pudding? Read Christmas Explained: Robins, King and Brussel Sprouts  to find out!

Happy Krampusnacht!

Today, or rather tonight, is Krampusnacht!

Krampus - from the Old High German word krampen, meaning claw - is a Christmas devil, the bad to St. Nicholas' good, whose purpose is to warn children to behave and to punish those children who've been bad.

In the Alpine regions of Austria and Hungary, young men still dress up as the Krampus in the first two weeks of December, particularly on the evening of 5 December, and roam the streets frightening children and women with rusty chains and bells. In some rural areas the tradition goes so far as to include the birching of young girls!

Images of Krampus usually show him with a basket on his back used to carry away bad children and dump them into the pits of Hell.

I was inspired by the legend to write my own story about Krampus and you can download a pdf of the story Claws here.

You can find out all about the Krampus, and other darker Christmas traditions, in my festive-themed book  Christmas Explained: Robins, Kings and Brussel Sprouts .

Thought for the Day

"Outlining, researching, talking to people about what you're doing, none of that is writing."

~ E. L. Doctorow (1931-2015)

Dragonmeet 2016

I had a great time yesterday at Dragonmeet. This year, as well as selling my own books - with both Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland and Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu proving popular - I was also manning the Fighting Fantasy stand, at which Steve Jackson did a couple of signings during the day.

Books, beautiful books.
Steve Jackson signing for fans.
It's always good to catch up with friends like James Wallis (who had just delivered the PDF of Alas Vegas to the Kickstarter backers in the early hours of the morning), Tony Hough (who presented me with a print of his artwork for Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu ), and Graham Bottley (with whom I discussed plans for Advanced Fighting Fantasy at Fighting Fantasy Fest 2).

Tony Hough, Laylah, and Stuart Lloyd.
And it's always a pleasure to meet my readers, who ranged from ten to three-score years and ten.

This finely-mustachioed gentleman was asking if there were plans for a ninth Ulysses Quicksivler novel.
A talking of FFF2, that was the big news that we broke at the event yesterday. In case you haven't hear the news yourself, Fighting Fantasy Fest - the convention dedicated to all things Fighting Fantasy - will be returning in 2017, to mark the 35th anniversary of the publication of The Warlock of Firetop Mountain .

Christmas Explained: E is for Elves

Why do elves labour beneath the North Pole in Santa's toy factory, and have they always been the innocuous little characters they are today? Find out in  Christmas Explained: Robins, King and Brussel Sprouts .

And don't forget to Elf Yourself, and your friends and families, this year!

Christmas Explained: D is for December 25th

Just why is Christmas celebrated on 25th December? The answer lies within  Christmas Explained: Robins, King and Brussel Sprouts ...

Dragonmeet 2016 is here!

Dragonmeet is back, with its largest number of exhibitors yet, at the new venue of the Hammersmith Novotel.

And I'll be there all day, and I will be joined by Steve Jackson - creator of the  Sorcery!  series, author of the Fighting Fantasy novel  The Trolltooth Wars , co-creator of the Fighting Fantasy series of gamebooks, co-founder of Game Workshop, and godfather of the UK gaming industry - from around 1.00pm.

So why not drop by stand Q10 and be among the first to hear about some very exciting news...

Christmas Explained: C is for Christmas Carols

Why do we sing carols every Christmas? And can they be sung at any other time of year? And what exactly is a 'carol' anyway?

Find out with  Christmas Explained: Robins, King and Brussel Sprouts , available now.

Gamebook Friday: Dragonmeet 2016 is this Saturday, 3rd December!

Featuring Steve Jackson, Fighting Fantasy, Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland and the Pax Britannia Steampunk Tombola and Lucky Dip!