Jonathan Green's Blog, page 12

ACE Gamebooks news from Sweden and Poland

First up today, I am thrilled to announce that Swedish company Sound Realms (who are currently crowdfunding The Fortress of Death on Kickstarter) and ACE Gamebooks are collaborating to bring you Dracula: Curse of the Vampire the audio adventure!

Sound Realms are very proud and excited to announce a collaboration with ACE Gamebooks and author Jonathan Green to create an audio adventure version of Dracula: Curse of the Vampire (2021) for the Sound Realms platform. Oscar Carlquist: "We are very pleased to present the next upcoming addition to Sound Realms and I can't wait to start creating some truly haunting and immersive soundscapes for Dracula: Curse of the Vampire. The interactive gamebook version of Bram Stoker's classic is masterfully written by Jon Green and taking this into the audio realm will be as much of an honour as a challenge that we here at Sound Realms are ready to embrace with enthusiasm and dedication!"Jonathan Green: "I am thrilled that Sound Realms are turning Dracula: Curse of the Vampire into the first audio ACE Gamebook and can't wait to hear how they bring the horror to life through the use of soundscapes and top-notch voice talent. It's going to be bloodcurdlingly brilliant!"

Secondly, NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters! is now available in Poland, from Muduko.

Thirsty for adventure? We invite you to Neverland, where as shipwreck survivor Wendy Darling, the mechanical avenger Peter Pan, the fearless hunter Tiger Lily or the ruthless pirate Captain Hook, you will discover many of the island's secrets and face nightmarish monsters!
In this gamebook, you make choices for your characters, discovering dark paths leading to many different endings. NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters! is another part of the paragraph series of books by Jonathan Green, which is inspired by the classics of children's literature.
Also available, but only from the publisher's own webstore, is a special edition of the book that comes with dice, a bookmark, a pencil and a game bag.

Krakenbane's Curse - A Warhammer Age of Sigmar story

Today sees the launch of the Warhammer Age of Sigmar eShorts Subscription, which includes my first, and probably only, Age of Sigmar short story. Not only that, but from today you can buy Krakenbane's Curse as a standalone story.

"The forces of Death and Order clash on the high seas of the Mortal Realms."

I wouldn't read the story synopsis on the Black Library website if I were you, as it gives away one of the major twists of the story.

My last Black Library short story was published three years ago, almost to the day, and that was the Necromunda-set Paradise. The reason why it has taken so long for another tale to appear is a story in and of itself.

Ten months bfore  Paradise  was published, my Warhammer 40,000 short story Journey of the Magi appeared, and that was my first new Black Library story for six years . However, because of the leadtime for Black Library publications, I actually started pitching stories for Warhammer Age of Sigmar towards the end of 2019, and from a list of three, one was selected to go forward to full submission.

To give you an idea of how stories can change, the title went from Gloomtide to Scourgetide, to Black Tide, until finally settling on Krakenbane's Curse, with the outline of the story changing slightly every time as well. 

The story was commissioned in March 2020, just as Covid-19 hit. In no time at all, the UK was in lockdown and the vast majority of businesses went into a form of stasis, including Games Workshop. I submitted the first draft of Krakenbane's Curse at the end of April 2020. And then I waited.

As a direct consequence of the Covid-19 lockdown, priorities changed at GW and Black Library, and I didn't receive feedback on my story until the start of September 2021. It went through three sets of revisions and was finally passed as finished at the start of December 2021. At the time I was told my story would appear in a forthcoming Age of Sigmar anthology. And then I waited.

And here we are today, at the start of October 2023, with Krakenbane's Curse being the first title to be released as part of the Warhammer Age of Sigmar eShorts Subscription, which will be available until 8:00am BST on Monday 16th October 2023 (although the individual eShorts will remain available for individual purchase after that).

I'm please to see that one of the other releases this week is by me old mucker C L Werner , and has the intriguing title of The Abominations of Kriik Weirdpaw .

Spooky Season Sale Now On!

It's October, which these days also seems to be known as Spooky Season. So, it seemed like a a good time to run a sale of my two RPGs.

HEOROT - Roleplaying in the World of Beowulf Beastslayer is my mythic Viking RPG, inspired by a certain gamebook, while 'TWAS - The Roleplaying Game Before Christmas is the perfect pick-up-and-play RPG for experienced gamers and newbies alike. And I'm pleased to say that they're both DriveThruRPG bestsellers.

The PDFs of both these RPGs are on sale for just £5.00 each, as are these 'TWAS supplements.

Don't delay and grab a bargain today!

Gamebook Friday: The Wicked Wizard of Oz

Available now from Winged Hussar Publishing in the United States is my second ACE Gamebook, The Wicked Wizard of Oz.

For the uninitiated, it's Choose Your Own Adventure meets The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by way of Dungeons & Dragons.

The Wicked Wizard of Oz is a strange sort of a book. In fact, it is a portal to another world, the Marvellous Land of Oz. As well as the book itself, you will need two dice (or a standard pack of playing cards), a pencil and an eraser. Using these tools, and a simple set of game rules contained within the book, you will take on the role of the one of the protagonists of L. Frank Baum’s The Wonderful Wizard of Oz on a new and perilous quest as they find themselves called upon to save the world once more.
Also available now from Snowbooks is The Wicked Wizard of Oz Colouring Book .

Did you know...?A copy of  The Wicked Wizard of Oz  is on display at The All Things Oz Museum in Chittenango, New York.
Museum piece.

Warhammer Wednesday: Warhammer Age of Sigmar

On Sunday, Games Workshop announced the latest Black Library eShorts week. It starts on Monday 2nd October 2023 and the focus this year is on Warhammer: Age of Sigmar.

The sharp-eyed among you will notice that one of the eShorts is a story by Yours Truly. Expect more news on Monday, when the eShorts subscription goes live.

European Day of Languages 2023

Today is the European Day of Languages so it seems like a good time to share some of the foreign language editions of my books. Specifically my ACE Gamebooks.

Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland

The Wicked Wizard of Oz
NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters!
Beowulf Beastslayer and 'TWAS - The Krampus Night Before Christmas
Dracula - Curse of the Vampire

There are more foreign languages editions coming, including Brazilian and French editions of Dracula - Curse of the Vampire, Hungarian editions of Beowulf Beastslayer and RONIN 47, and the Spanish language version of Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland.

Gamebook Friday: Gamebook News Round-up

Earlier this week I was the guest of The Geek Pride Podcast, where I got to talk about all things gamebooks, but Moon Knight: Age of Anubis in particular. If you were unable to tune in at the time, you can watch it now below.

In other gamebook-related news YOU ARE THE HERO - An Interactive History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks is now with the proofreader, before going to layout in the next couple of weeks.

And lastly, Sir Ian Livingstone and I are in the process of putting the finishing touches to Magic Realms: The Art of Fighting Fantasy. If you haven't pledged your support to this project, you still can here.

International Talk Like a Pirate Day

As it's International Talk Like a Pirate Day, it seems like a good time to remind everyone that in the ACE Gamebook NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters! you can play as pirate Captain Hook himself.

You can buy the book through Amazon or the PDF through DriveThruRPG.

Arrrrr! 

Jonathan Green on The Geek Pride Cast today!

I will be the guest on The Geek Pride Podcast again tonight, Monday 18 September 2023, talking about all things Moon Knight: Age of Anubis, and gamebooks in general, no doubt.

The interview will be streamed live at 9:00pm BST via YouTube, Facebook and Twitch, but will also be available for you to enjoy later at your leisure.

You can watch my previous appear on The Geek Pride Podcast below.

Gamebook Friday: Jambô Editora Livro-Jogos

Available now in Portuguese language editions from Jambô Editora are the first two ACE Gamebooks, Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland and The Wicked Wizard of Oz.

You can pick up Alice no País dos Pesadelos and O Maligno Mágico de Oz direct from the publisher.