Jonathan Green's Blog, page 143
June 8, 2015
Thought for the Day
"Everybody seems to earn more than you when you're an author. It's a very painful fact but it's true."~ Michael Jecks, author
June 5, 2015
Gamebook Friday: Walk the Path to Victory
You wait a week for a new Gamebook Friday post to appear, and then two come along on the same day.The reason? Black Library are selling off the rest of their stock of Print on Demand titles, specifically their Path to Victory adventure gamebooks, including my Vampire Counts title Shadows Over Sylvania .
According to New@BL, Shadows Over Sylvania "tells a compelling Warhammer... story that unfolds through your decisions – but watch out, because death could be around any corner (well, on any page)."
It seems that there are just a handful of each Path to Victory book remaining, and when they’re gone, they’re gone. Along with any potential royalties.
So if you want to star in your very own Warhammer adventure, you’d best hurry over to blacklibrary.com and secure yours.
Gamebook Friday: YOU ARE THE HERO, the UK Games Expo Awards 2015, Pod Your Own Adventure, and Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland
A quick round up of all the gamebook news for you this week.
First off, I took YOU ARE THE HERO - A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks , to the UK Games Expo last weekend... and it only received an Honourable Mention in the UK Games Expo Awards 2015!
On the Saturday evening of the Expo I also recorded an episode of
Pod Your Own Adventure
, during which I played through
Bloodbones
with host Robin, and died four times before we gave up having only got about halfway through the adventure.
Now this will doubtless cause many people much amusement, and some may whisper comments like "Karma" and "Hoist by his own petard". But in my defence, Bloodbones was my 6th book and my 53rd book was published yesterday, and I can't even remember details of books I wrote two years ago, never mind twenty years ago.
And before I go, I just wanted to draw your attention to this. If you're a fan of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, Steampunk, horror, or gamebooks (or even all of the above), then please consider joining the Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland Facebook group, which will be the first step leading to the launch of a new Kickstarter, and getting a brand new gamebook published, in this the 150th year since the publication of Lewis Carroll's seminal children's portal fantasy.
Thank you.
First off, I took YOU ARE THE HERO - A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks , to the UK Games Expo last weekend... and it only received an Honourable Mention in the UK Games Expo Awards 2015!
On the Saturday evening of the Expo I also recorded an episode of
Pod Your Own Adventure
, during which I played through
Bloodbones
with host Robin, and died four times before we gave up having only got about halfway through the adventure.Now this will doubtless cause many people much amusement, and some may whisper comments like "Karma" and "Hoist by his own petard". But in my defence, Bloodbones was my 6th book and my 53rd book was published yesterday, and I can't even remember details of books I wrote two years ago, never mind twenty years ago.
And before I go, I just wanted to draw your attention to this. If you're a fan of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, Steampunk, horror, or gamebooks (or even all of the above), then please consider joining the Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland Facebook group, which will be the first step leading to the launch of a new Kickstarter, and getting a brand new gamebook published, in this the 150th year since the publication of Lewis Carroll's seminal children's portal fantasy.
Thank you.
June 4, 2015
World of Warriors!
My 53rd book is published today. :-)
World of Warriors is the latest game world concept from Mind Candy, the people behind Moshi Monsters, and I've written a couple of titles for the launch of the book line.
First up is the Warrior Quest Sticker Activity Book , with the Official Sticker Book to come later in the year.
Does what it says on the tin, as it were.
Some sample pages.
World of Warriors is the latest game world concept from Mind Candy, the people behind Moshi Monsters, and I've written a couple of titles for the launch of the book line.
First up is the Warrior Quest Sticker Activity Book , with the Official Sticker Book to come later in the year.
Does what it says on the tin, as it were.
Some sample pages.June 3, 2015
Warhammer Wednesday: Ebook Bundles going, going, gone!
Black Library are discontinuing some of their eBook bundles, as of this Friday, and doubtless creating some newly revamped ones from the remains. But for the time being, if you would like to pick up my Warhammer 40K story
The Relic
, or my last Warhammer story
Sticks and Stones
, then don't delay - grab them today!
June 1, 2015
YOU ARE THE HERO at the UK Games Expo 2015
At the weekend I attended the UK Games Expo. It was the first time I had attended since it moved from central Birmingham to the NEC Metropole and a very impressive venue it was too. Graham Bottley of Arion Games kindly let me share his table, so Fighting Fantasy was well represented at the expo, with his Advanced Fighting Fantasy books on sale alongside some of the few remaining hardbacks of
YOU ARE THE HERO - A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks
.
Graham Bottley and Simon Strafford on the Arion Games stand.
Despite being stuck behind a table for most of the weekend (and so not getting to see much else that was going on) I had a great time, with people stopping by to pick up YOU ARE THE HERO (some of whom had seen it mentioned in the programme), backers of the original Kickstarter stopping by to get their copies signed or to pass on their very kind comments about the book, and old friends turning up just to say hello (people like Jim Swallow, James Wallis, and Matt Elliott). On Saturday night I recorded a podcast for Pod Your Own Adventure (but more on that another time), and then on Sunday afternoon this happened...
The now officially 'award-winning'
YOU ARE THE HERO - A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks
.
The 10th UK Games Expo was a fantastic event, excellently organised and brilliantly run, and that's thanks to Tony Hyams, Richard Denning, John Dodd, and a host of others, so a big thank you to all concerned who helped make this run in such a smooth and relaxed way. And here's to the UK Games Expo 2016. (I might have something new to promote games-wise by then.)
Graham Bottley and Simon Strafford on the Arion Games stand.Despite being stuck behind a table for most of the weekend (and so not getting to see much else that was going on) I had a great time, with people stopping by to pick up YOU ARE THE HERO (some of whom had seen it mentioned in the programme), backers of the original Kickstarter stopping by to get their copies signed or to pass on their very kind comments about the book, and old friends turning up just to say hello (people like Jim Swallow, James Wallis, and Matt Elliott). On Saturday night I recorded a podcast for Pod Your Own Adventure (but more on that another time), and then on Sunday afternoon this happened...
The now officially 'award-winning'
YOU ARE THE HERO - A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks
.The 10th UK Games Expo was a fantastic event, excellently organised and brilliantly run, and that's thanks to Tony Hyams, Richard Denning, John Dodd, and a host of others, so a big thank you to all concerned who helped make this run in such a smooth and relaxed way. And here's to the UK Games Expo 2016. (I might have something new to promote games-wise by then.)
Thought for the Day
"You might not write well every day, but you can always edit a bad page. You can't edit a blank page."~ Jodi Picoult, American author
May 30, 2015
Sharkpunk Saturday - Starburst Review
Another Sharkpunk Saturday and another glowing 9 out of 10 stars review of
SHARKPUNK
, this time courtesy of Starburst Magazine.
As an editor, it's great when reviewers don't notice the editor's involvement in an anthology. It means you've done your job properly, allowing the different authors' voices to shine through. However, it's also nice when reviewers do recognise your efforts, as Ed Fortune does here:
"The editor, Jonathan Green, has curated an interesting collection and has presented them in the best possible order; some of the tales are deep psychological horror, others are deeply silly parody. It takes a firm editorial hand and a keen understanding of the tone of each piece to make a collection this diverse work, and Green makes it look effortless."
Various stories get singled out for particular attention, as is most often the way in reviews of anthologies. You're rarely going to find a reader who likes everything equally, if you've managed to curate a range of different stories and styles. However, with
SHARKPUNK
it doesn't seem to be a case of people not enjoying any of the stories, it's just that they enjoy some more than others.
You can read the whole review for yourself here, and you can pick up a paperback or download the ebook edition of SHARKPUNK here.
As an editor, it's great when reviewers don't notice the editor's involvement in an anthology. It means you've done your job properly, allowing the different authors' voices to shine through. However, it's also nice when reviewers do recognise your efforts, as Ed Fortune does here:
"The editor, Jonathan Green, has curated an interesting collection and has presented them in the best possible order; some of the tales are deep psychological horror, others are deeply silly parody. It takes a firm editorial hand and a keen understanding of the tone of each piece to make a collection this diverse work, and Green makes it look effortless."
Various stories get singled out for particular attention, as is most often the way in reviews of anthologies. You're rarely going to find a reader who likes everything equally, if you've managed to curate a range of different stories and styles. However, with
SHARKPUNK
it doesn't seem to be a case of people not enjoying any of the stories, it's just that they enjoy some more than others.You can read the whole review for yourself here, and you can pick up a paperback or download the ebook edition of SHARKPUNK here.
May 29, 2015
Gamebook Friday: Bloodbones the App, and YOU ARE THE HERO at the UK Games Expo
Let's start with the first thing in the heading of this blog post last, and the last thing first.
On Saturday and Sunday (30th and 31st May) I shall be attending the UK Games Expo at the NEC Metropole hotel outside Birmingham. I'll be sharing a table with Graham Bottley of Arion Games (table P41 in the Palace Suite) and I will have the last few boxes of hardbacks of the limited first edition print run of YOU ARE THE HERO - A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks with me. So, if you've not yet picked up a copy, you know where to come.
In other Gamebook Friday-related news, Tin Man Games' ad-app-tation of Bloodbones has received another glowing review, this time courtesy of Pixel Perfect Gaming. In a nutshell, this is what you need to know:
"Needless to say, Bloodbones continues the long-standing quality that both the Fighting Fantasy series and Tin Man Games are known for – robust story elements, knuckle-whitening combat sequences, and solid game mechanics. If you haven’t already, add Bloodbones to your Android/iOS collection today; you won’t be disappointed."
If you've not yet downloaded the app to your device, and you think you might like to, click this link.
On Saturday and Sunday (30th and 31st May) I shall be attending the UK Games Expo at the NEC Metropole hotel outside Birmingham. I'll be sharing a table with Graham Bottley of Arion Games (table P41 in the Palace Suite) and I will have the last few boxes of hardbacks of the limited first edition print run of YOU ARE THE HERO - A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks with me. So, if you've not yet picked up a copy, you know where to come.
In other Gamebook Friday-related news, Tin Man Games' ad-app-tation of Bloodbones has received another glowing review, this time courtesy of Pixel Perfect Gaming. In a nutshell, this is what you need to know:
"Needless to say, Bloodbones continues the long-standing quality that both the Fighting Fantasy series and Tin Man Games are known for – robust story elements, knuckle-whitening combat sequences, and solid game mechanics. If you haven’t already, add Bloodbones to your Android/iOS collection today; you won’t be disappointed."
If you've not yet downloaded the app to your device, and you think you might like to, click this link.
May 27, 2015
New Fantasy Fiction on Inkitt.com
I've tried something I've never tried before - I've submitted a short story of mine to a writing competition.
Who Walks With Death* has been entered into the Epic Worlds contest on Inkitt.com, so if you'd like to read one of my fantasy short stories for free, simply follow this link. And if you like it, you can vote for it in the competition.
I have no idea how I'll get on, but it'll be an interesting experiment.
* The story first appeared in Legends: Stories in Honour of David Gemmell, edited by Ian Whates and published by Newcon Press, but I've given it a wash and brush-up for the competition.
Who Walks With Death* has been entered into the Epic Worlds contest on Inkitt.com, so if you'd like to read one of my fantasy short stories for free, simply follow this link. And if you like it, you can vote for it in the competition.
I have no idea how I'll get on, but it'll be an interesting experiment.
* The story first appeared in Legends: Stories in Honour of David Gemmell, edited by Ian Whates and published by Newcon Press, but I've given it a wash and brush-up for the competition.
