Jonathan Green's Blog, page 48
January 24, 2020
Gamebook Friday: Dracula - Curse of the Vampire
There are now just 37 days to go until Dracula - Curse of the Vampire goes live on Kickstarter. If you're thinking of backing the project, you are going to want to do so from Day One.
Why? Because everyone who backs the Dracula - Curse of the Vampire Kickstarter within the first 24 hours, and selects a reward level that includes a physical copy of the gamebook, will also receive a copy of The Grim and Gothic Art of Martin McKenna artbook for free!
The Grim and Gothic Art of Martin McKenna. [Cover art not final.]
The Grim and Gothic Art of Martin McKenna will be filled with colour artwork, as well as black and white illustrations, by the master of the morbid and macabre himself, Martin McKenna .
Dracula - Curse of the Vampire will mark the fourth time that Martin and I have collaborated on a gamebook - the previous occasions being the Fighting Fantasy gamebooks Curse of the Mummy , Howl of the Werewolf , and Night of the Necromancer - and he also produced the cover painting for 2014's YOU ARE THE HERO - A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks .
The reward levels on offer for Dracula - Curse of the Vampire will be familiar to regular backers of my Kickstarter gamebook projects. The lower pledge levels are as follows...
I will reveal the higher level rewards over the coming weeks, but rest assured that they offer some exciting opportunities for fans of both ACE Gamebooks and Bram Stoker's vampiric classic.
Why? Because everyone who backs the Dracula - Curse of the Vampire Kickstarter within the first 24 hours, and selects a reward level that includes a physical copy of the gamebook, will also receive a copy of The Grim and Gothic Art of Martin McKenna artbook for free!
The Grim and Gothic Art of Martin McKenna. [Cover art not final.]The Grim and Gothic Art of Martin McKenna will be filled with colour artwork, as well as black and white illustrations, by the master of the morbid and macabre himself, Martin McKenna .
Dracula - Curse of the Vampire will mark the fourth time that Martin and I have collaborated on a gamebook - the previous occasions being the Fighting Fantasy gamebooks Curse of the Mummy , Howl of the Werewolf , and Night of the Necromancer - and he also produced the cover painting for 2014's YOU ARE THE HERO - A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks .
The reward levels on offer for Dracula - Curse of the Vampire will be familiar to regular backers of my Kickstarter gamebook projects. The lower pledge levels are as follows...
I will reveal the higher level rewards over the coming weeks, but rest assured that they offer some exciting opportunities for fans of both ACE Gamebooks and Bram Stoker's vampiric classic.
January 22, 2020
Warhammer Wednesday: Journey of the Magi
I am delighted to be able to report that my Thousand Sons short story,
Journey of the Magi
, is this week's digital eShort release on
BlackLibrary.com
.
I love what the graphic designer has done with the cover. Very clever.
When I first submitted the outline for the story, I dreamed that it might become a Digital Monday release, but then it was commissioned for Inferno! Volume 4 instead. And yet here we are, some xx months later, and my dream has come true. Such are the twisty-turny ways of Tzeentch.
In case you don't already know what they tale is about, here's the blurb from the Black Library website:
On an artificial world far from the light of any sun, three sorcerers of the Thousand Sons emerge from a portal. Together, this trio will face ancient horrors – but the prize that awaits them is worth any danger. Long have these three sought the Godstar, piecing together its location from scattered scraps of knowledge. The immortal guardians of the place sleep, but it is not undefended, and the children of Prospero will pay a heavy price for that which they seek as they delve deep into the ancient mysteries of the necrons.
You can buy Journey of the Magi here , and you can read more about the story here.
I love what the graphic designer has done with the cover. Very clever.When I first submitted the outline for the story, I dreamed that it might become a Digital Monday release, but then it was commissioned for Inferno! Volume 4 instead. And yet here we are, some xx months later, and my dream has come true. Such are the twisty-turny ways of Tzeentch.
In case you don't already know what they tale is about, here's the blurb from the Black Library website:
On an artificial world far from the light of any sun, three sorcerers of the Thousand Sons emerge from a portal. Together, this trio will face ancient horrors – but the prize that awaits them is worth any danger. Long have these three sought the Godstar, piecing together its location from scattered scraps of knowledge. The immortal guardians of the place sleep, but it is not undefended, and the children of Prospero will pay a heavy price for that which they seek as they delve deep into the ancient mysteries of the necrons.
You can buy Journey of the Magi here , and you can read more about the story here.
January 20, 2020
Thought for the Day
“Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe.” ~ Albert Einstein
January 17, 2020
Gamebook Friday: 10 Years of Night of the Necromancer
It dawned on me the other day that
Night of the Necromancer
, the last of the seven Fighting Fantasy gamebooks I have written to date, will be ten years old this year!When I came to propose the idea to Wizard Books back in 2009, I couldn't quite believe that no one had suggested writing an FF adventure that started off with the hero being murdered and then coming back as a ghost before. I had great fun developing that aspect of the game, giving the reader all manner of spectral powers that sometimes worked to their advantage, but sometimes didn't.
One of the things I particularly loved about the process of writing the book was knowing that it was going to be illustrated by Martin McKenna . Martin was a favourite FF artist of mine, ever since I saw his work in Daggers of Darkness *, and I had been fortunate to have him also illustrate both Curse of the Mummy and Howl of the Werewolf .
Martin and I clearly had exposure to similar genre influences growing up and he just seems to get where I'm coming from, which means that when we collaborate, text and art mesh very nicely together. It is for this reason that I am delighted Martin agreed to illustrate the forthcoming Dracula - Curse of the Vampire .
Many of Martin's illustrations for Night of the Necromancer - including such personal favourites as the Sea Demon, the Hellfire Golem, and the Shadow King - are available to buy as prints from ArtPal .
The Sea Demon.
The Hellfire Golem.
The Shadow King.
* Produced when he was only 17 years old!
January 13, 2020
Thought for the Day
“If you tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything.”
~ Mark Twain
~ Mark Twain
January 12, 2020
The Beowulf Beastslayer Teacher's Pack
Now available for anyone who teaches
Beowulf
to students in Key Stage 2 or Key Stage 3, is the
Beowulf Beastslayer Teacher's Pack
, or indeed for any teacher who wants a fun topic of work for a week or two, perhaps even as a focus for their school Book Week.
The pack contains ten activities that range from comprehension and long-form writing exercises, to code-breaking and game design, as well as suggestions for more
The Beowulf Beastslayer Teacher's Pack can be downloaded from tes.com.
The pack contains ten activities that range from comprehension and long-form writing exercises, to code-breaking and game design, as well as suggestions for more
The Beowulf Beastslayer Teacher's Pack can be downloaded from tes.com.
January 10, 2020
Gamebook Friday: Curse of the Mummy is 25 years old this year!
My third Fighting Fantasy gamebook,
Curse of the Mummy
, will be 25 years old later this year*. I was recently reminded of this fact when Family Green visited the Tutankhamun exhibition at the Saatchi Gallery in London. (Tickets are still available.)
It must be the fourth time I've seen artefacts from King Tut's tomb - twice in situ in Egypt, and once before in the UK - and I even wrote my university thesis on Myth and Symbol in Ancient Egyptian Art. So you won't be surprised to learn that
Curse of the Mummy
isn't the only thing I've written that was inspired by the wonders of Ancient Egypt.
Egyptian death and the afterlife: mummies (Rooms 62-3)** appeared in The Book of the Dead, published by Jurassic London in 2013.
Then there was Worthless Remains , a Ulysses Quicksilver Pax Britannia story that was published in Clockwork Cairo: Steampunk Tales of Egypt . (There was also a Spring-Heeled Jack story called Favoured Son that was never actually written but which had a strong Egyptian theme.)
Wonderful Things
came out last year in
Scarlet Traces: A War of the Worlds Anthology
, and even featured Howard Carter as the protagonist!
Of course, any Warhammer 40,000 story about the Necrons - like as But Dust in the Wind - comes with an automatic Ancient Egyptian hit, but in my most recent such tale, Journey of the Magi , is a double whammy, since a trio of Thousand Sons' sorcerers are the protagonists.
I also have an idea for a Egyptian-themed Scrooge & Marley (Deceased) story, and the ACE Gamebook I will be writing next is another cursed tome - Dracula - Curse of the Vampire - which will be illustrated by Martin McKenna , who also happened to illustrate Curse of the Mummy !
* This is going to be a regular thing now, since I've been published every year since 1993. There was a hiatus from 1998-2001, when I didn't have any books published, but in that time I still had short stories and magazine articles come out in the name.
** Which has to be the weirdest title I've ever used for a published story.
It must be the fourth time I've seen artefacts from King Tut's tomb - twice in situ in Egypt, and once before in the UK - and I even wrote my university thesis on Myth and Symbol in Ancient Egyptian Art. So you won't be surprised to learn that
Curse of the Mummy
isn't the only thing I've written that was inspired by the wonders of Ancient Egypt.Egyptian death and the afterlife: mummies (Rooms 62-3)** appeared in The Book of the Dead, published by Jurassic London in 2013.
Then there was Worthless Remains , a Ulysses Quicksilver Pax Britannia story that was published in Clockwork Cairo: Steampunk Tales of Egypt . (There was also a Spring-Heeled Jack story called Favoured Son that was never actually written but which had a strong Egyptian theme.)
Wonderful Things
came out last year in
Scarlet Traces: A War of the Worlds Anthology
, and even featured Howard Carter as the protagonist!Of course, any Warhammer 40,000 story about the Necrons - like as But Dust in the Wind - comes with an automatic Ancient Egyptian hit, but in my most recent such tale, Journey of the Magi , is a double whammy, since a trio of Thousand Sons' sorcerers are the protagonists.
I also have an idea for a Egyptian-themed Scrooge & Marley (Deceased) story, and the ACE Gamebook I will be writing next is another cursed tome - Dracula - Curse of the Vampire - which will be illustrated by Martin McKenna , who also happened to illustrate Curse of the Mummy !
* This is going to be a regular thing now, since I've been published every year since 1993. There was a hiatus from 1998-2001, when I didn't have any books published, but in that time I still had short stories and magazine articles come out in the name.
** Which has to be the weirdest title I've ever used for a published story.
January 9, 2020
Cthulhu Cthursday: Choose Cthulhu
The news was actually announced on Facebook just before Christmas but in case you missed it, I am going to be helping the
Choose Cthulhu
team polish the English translations of the next tranche of books.
January 8, 2020
Alice no País dos Pesadelos
I had an unexpected delivery today - the Portuguese language editions of
Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland
,
Bloodbones
and
Howl of the Werewolf
, all published by
Jambô Editora
.
Translated by Vinicius Ferreira Mendes, Alice no País dos Pesadelos - which literally means 'Alice in Nightmare Country' - looks very fine indeed, with Manga-style cover art by Eudetenis Paulo Giovana, spot UV on parts of the cover, and even some embossed elements.
Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland is now available in English, German, Czech, and Portuguese!
Translated by Vinicius Ferreira Mendes, Alice no País dos Pesadelos - which literally means 'Alice in Nightmare Country' - looks very fine indeed, with Manga-style cover art by Eudetenis Paulo Giovana, spot UV on parts of the cover, and even some embossed elements.
Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland is now available in English, German, Czech, and Portuguese!January 6, 2020
Seven years on Kickstarter
This morning, Facebook reminded me that seven years ago today
YOU ARE THE HERO - A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks
funded on Kickstarter.
Since then, I have run another eight successful Kickstarter campaigns and am currently preparing my next one, for my sixth ACE Gamebook , Dracula - Curse of the Vampire, which launches on Sunday 1st March 2020.
I read an interesting piece on the Stonemaier Games website the other day, which makes the point that Kickstarter is not a pre-order store and that we should even drop the idea of Kickstarters being 'late'. You can read it here.
I agree with the first point - Kickstater itself makes this point on their site - but I think part of the reason why so many backer treat the crowdfunding platform as a pre-order store is because so many creators do, myself included.
However, I cannot get behind the idea that we exonerate creators for projects being late. I received some criticism after YOU ARE THE HERO funded for not meeting my original, self-imposed deadline. The reasons for this were manifold, but, on the upside, backers ended up with a bigger and better book than they were expecting, and for a bargain price.
YOU ARE THE HERO was nine months late in the end, which is nothing compared to many Kickstarters, including several I have backed myself, but just because this is the case, I do not believe people should go into a Kickstarter - either the backer or the creator - expecting it to be late. If, as a creator, this is your attitude, then you need to rethink how long it's going to take you to fulfil your commitments to your backers if the project funds.
It is precisely because I don't want Dracula - Curse of the Vampire to be late that I am considering very carefully at the moment whether I can have it out by October, or whether I should wait until Spring 2021.
To be kept informed about develops regarding the Dracula - Curse of the Vampire Kickstarter, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter, and join the ACE Gamebooks Facebook group.
Since then, I have run another eight successful Kickstarter campaigns and am currently preparing my next one, for my sixth ACE Gamebook , Dracula - Curse of the Vampire, which launches on Sunday 1st March 2020.
I read an interesting piece on the Stonemaier Games website the other day, which makes the point that Kickstarter is not a pre-order store and that we should even drop the idea of Kickstarters being 'late'. You can read it here.
I agree with the first point - Kickstater itself makes this point on their site - but I think part of the reason why so many backer treat the crowdfunding platform as a pre-order store is because so many creators do, myself included.
However, I cannot get behind the idea that we exonerate creators for projects being late. I received some criticism after YOU ARE THE HERO funded for not meeting my original, self-imposed deadline. The reasons for this were manifold, but, on the upside, backers ended up with a bigger and better book than they were expecting, and for a bargain price.
YOU ARE THE HERO was nine months late in the end, which is nothing compared to many Kickstarters, including several I have backed myself, but just because this is the case, I do not believe people should go into a Kickstarter - either the backer or the creator - expecting it to be late. If, as a creator, this is your attitude, then you need to rethink how long it's going to take you to fulfil your commitments to your backers if the project funds.
It is precisely because I don't want Dracula - Curse of the Vampire to be late that I am considering very carefully at the moment whether I can have it out by October, or whether I should wait until Spring 2021.
To be kept informed about develops regarding the Dracula - Curse of the Vampire Kickstarter, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter, and join the ACE Gamebooks Facebook group.
