Jonathan Green's Blog, page 106
December 1, 2016
Robin of Sherwood: The Knights of the Apocalypse
If you were wanting to buy a copy of my novelisation of Richard Carpenter's
Robin of Sherwood: The Knights of the Apocalypse
, but you just missed out, you'll be pleased to hear that it's back on sale over at Chinbeard Books and you have until Sunday to place your order.So what are you waiting for?!? Treat yourself to an early Christmas present from Sherwood Forest!
Christmas Explained: B is for Baubles
What do we hang decorations on a tree every Christmas and festoon our homes with sprigs of holly and boughs of mistletoe? Find out inside
Christmas Explained: Robins, King and Brussel Sprouts
.
November 30, 2016
Joe Dever - 1956-2016
I met Joe Dever, for the first time, at Dragonmeet three years ago.
Joe Dever at Dragonmeet 2013.
Today I discovered that he passed away yesterday morning, after battling with ill-health for a long time. He was 60 years old.
If you are reading this blog, then you probably already know that Joe was the creator and writer of the Lone Wolf series of adventure gamebooks, which were set in the incredibly well-developed world of Magnamund.
Although I only met Joe in 2013, I had been aware of his works since the 1980s. I owned a few Lone Wolf adventures, but I personally preferred the Fighting Fantasy range because they provided the reader with more choices. I felt that Lone Wolf books were more like solo RPGs that wanted to be novels. This is probably why I actually preferred reading the Legends of Lone Wolf (co-authored with John Grant).
However, as I grew older I began to appreciate all the more what an incredible, and richly detailed, creation of the world of Magnamund was. Where the Fighting Fantasy world of Titan was a fantasy realm created by a committee who never met, and who rarely seemed to even speak to one another, Magnamund and Lone Wolf were the vision of one man, developed over decades.
Joe Dever at the UK Games Expo 2016.
When I did finally meet Joe, I found him to be affable and encouraging, always willing to chat about all things gamebook-related and pose for a photograph.
Joe Dever at Dragonmeet 2015.
From then on I caught up with Joe once or twice a year - usually at Dragonmeet and the UK Games Expo - and he was always interested in what I was working on, and I'm pleased to say I was able to give him a copy of Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland on its launch day.
Dragonmeet will be a strange place without him this Saturday and he will be sadly missed by many, right around the world.
But although the man himself is lost to us - and there are still three uncompleted Lone Wolf adventures, which he was still working on up until Monday night - his work endures, and that is quite some legacy.
Or, to put it in the words of another much missed author: “No one is actually dead until the ripples they cause in the world die away...” ~ Terry Pratchett, Reaper Man
For Sommerlund and the Kai - RIP Joe Dever.
Joe Dever at Dragonmeet 2013.Today I discovered that he passed away yesterday morning, after battling with ill-health for a long time. He was 60 years old.
If you are reading this blog, then you probably already know that Joe was the creator and writer of the Lone Wolf series of adventure gamebooks, which were set in the incredibly well-developed world of Magnamund.
Although I only met Joe in 2013, I had been aware of his works since the 1980s. I owned a few Lone Wolf adventures, but I personally preferred the Fighting Fantasy range because they provided the reader with more choices. I felt that Lone Wolf books were more like solo RPGs that wanted to be novels. This is probably why I actually preferred reading the Legends of Lone Wolf (co-authored with John Grant).
However, as I grew older I began to appreciate all the more what an incredible, and richly detailed, creation of the world of Magnamund was. Where the Fighting Fantasy world of Titan was a fantasy realm created by a committee who never met, and who rarely seemed to even speak to one another, Magnamund and Lone Wolf were the vision of one man, developed over decades.
Joe Dever at the UK Games Expo 2016.When I did finally meet Joe, I found him to be affable and encouraging, always willing to chat about all things gamebook-related and pose for a photograph.
Joe Dever at Dragonmeet 2015.From then on I caught up with Joe once or twice a year - usually at Dragonmeet and the UK Games Expo - and he was always interested in what I was working on, and I'm pleased to say I was able to give him a copy of Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland on its launch day.
Dragonmeet will be a strange place without him this Saturday and he will be sadly missed by many, right around the world.
But although the man himself is lost to us - and there are still three uncompleted Lone Wolf adventures, which he was still working on up until Monday night - his work endures, and that is quite some legacy.
Or, to put it in the words of another much missed author: “No one is actually dead until the ripples they cause in the world die away...” ~ Terry Pratchett, Reaper Man
For Sommerlund and the Kai - RIP Joe Dever.
Christmas Explained: A is for Saint Andrew
What does Saint Andrew, the patron saint of Scotland, have to with preparations for Christmas? Buy
Christmas Explained: Robins, King and Brussel Sprouts
to find out!
November 28, 2016
Dragonmeet 2016
I shall be attending Dragonmeet 2016 this Saturday, 3rd December 2016, at the Hammersmith Novotel, in London. You will find me on stand Q10, where I shall be selling copies of my adventure gamebook
Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland
, as well as a few of my Fighting Fantasy books.You also have permission to quiz me about The Wicked Wizard of Oz - but no spoilers, okay?
I shall be joined during the day 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 one of the godfathers of the UK gaming industry.
So if you're coming to Dragonmeet, please drop by stand Q10 and say hello. Online ticket sales close on Thursday night, so if you don't want to miss out on getting in a much shorter queue on Saturday morning, get your tickets in advance here!
Thought for the Day
"If writing can be its own reward for you, it will survive whatever happens to you as a writer."~ Simon Spanton
November 25, 2016
Gamebook Friday: The Wicked Wizard of Oz OST
When I am working on a particular project, I often end up creating a quasi-soundtrack for the book, purely as a consequence of the kind of music I listen to whilst writing it, and that helps get me in the correct creative state of mind.
So far, much of The Wicked Wizard of Oz has been written whilst listening to the 'Doctor Strange' and 'Fantastic Beasts' soundtracks. But now that I've moved onto the Wicked Witch of the West's route through the adventure I find the music changing too, to that of Blackmore's Night, specifically the album 'Fires at Midnight'.
Oh, and for those of you keeping count, the writing of The Wicked Wizard of Oz is rapidly approaching section 700!
So far, much of The Wicked Wizard of Oz has been written whilst listening to the 'Doctor Strange' and 'Fantastic Beasts' soundtracks. But now that I've moved onto the Wicked Witch of the West's route through the adventure I find the music changing too, to that of Blackmore's Night, specifically the album 'Fires at Midnight'.
Oh, and for those of you keeping count, the writing of The Wicked Wizard of Oz is rapidly approaching section 700!
November 24, 2016
Happy Thanksgiving, America!
Today I am thankful for all my readers and followers in the United States. I should say I am grateful to all my fans, but as it's Thanksgiving Day in the US I am going to focus on my American friends, who are actually responsible for for than twice as many visits to my blog as the next nearest nation, which just happens to be the UK*.
Back in May 2011 I set up a widget on my blog to track how many visitors drop by to read through my missives. In the intervening five and a half years, the blog has received over 191,724 visits, and you can see many of them on this map of the World.
Click on the map to see a larger version.
And here's the USA.
As you can see, my readership comes from right across the country. It is also highly likely that some of those visitors picked up the Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland Colouring Book , which has now received 108 5-star reviews on Amazon.com!
So, Happy Thanksgiving Day, America!
* Russia is third!
Back in May 2011 I set up a widget on my blog to track how many visitors drop by to read through my missives. In the intervening five and a half years, the blog has received over 191,724 visits, and you can see many of them on this map of the World.
Click on the map to see a larger version.And here's the USA.
As you can see, my readership comes from right across the country. It is also highly likely that some of those visitors picked up the Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland Colouring Book , which has now received 108 5-star reviews on Amazon.com!
So, Happy Thanksgiving Day, America!
* Russia is third!
November 23, 2016
Happy 53rd Birthday, Doctor Who!
And what better way to celebrate the occasion than by joining the Doctor on one of his most recent adventures?
November 22, 2016
SHARKPUNK - The Audiobook!
Fresh from the minds of twenty-two top writers comes an anthology of killer shark stories to sate all appetites. From SF to WTF, from gritty to whimsical, these stories all have weight and depth as vast as the deep blue ocean. And now you can get it as an audiobook from
Circle of Spears Productions
!This is the first release featuring all the members of Circle of Spears, which presents SHARKPUNK in its entirety in both Download and MP3 CD format. Over 13 hours of shark-themed stories available for the first time in audio!
And if you need any more persuading, just check out the reviews the print edition has received.
Even if you've already read the stories contained within the anthology, you owe it to yourself to download and listen to the audio version as well - and it really helps make the time pass while you're preparing supper, or paintings your wargaming miniatures.
So what are you waiting for? Come on in... The water's fine...
You can buy the 2-disc MP3 CD set here, and you can buy the MP3 Digital Download here.
