Jonathan Green's Blog, page 97

Shakespeare Sunday: Shakespeare Week

Next week is Shakespeare Week (running from Monday 20th March to Sunday 26th March) so what better time is there to pick up a copy of Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu and dip into the myriad short stories through the next seven days?

Gamebook Friday: Kickstarter loves YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2!

I am delighted to report that last night Kickstarter selected YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2 as one of their 'Projects we love', and indeed it is the most loved Publishing project in the UK at the moment, and #6 in the world!


I would just like to say, once again, thank you to all those people who have backed the project already and helped to spread the word, and you can rest assured that I am busy preparing some very special additional rewards.

This weekend I will announce further stretch goals for YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2 , so keep an eye on your inbox, and if you haven't already backed the project, you know what to do.

Appetite of the Spider God

Apparently, 25 million metric tonnes of spiders exist on Earth and between them they consume 400-800 million tonnes of insects every year, which is equivalent to the amount of meat and fish that humans consume over the same period!

There are quite a lot of spiders in my Gamebook Adventure  Temple of the Spider God , although not 25 million metric tonnes worth!

There is also a giant spider - albeit a rather unusual one - in the forthcoming The Wicked Wizard of Oz , as drawn here by Kev Crossley.

Happy π Day!

That's right π , as in Pi the mathematical constant.

And why is today called Pi Day? Because according to the American dating system, the 3rd of March is 3.14, which is Pi to three significant figures.

On such occasions as this, I try to link the event to my books, and in the case of Pi Day, the most suitable candidate is Match Wits With the Kids .

However, since that particular book is out of print, I'm going to go with Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland instead, because Alice's creator, Lewis Carroll, was really Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, a mathematics don at Oxford University. My gamebook even features a few mathematical teasers.

As regular readers of this blog will already know,  Alice's Nightmare  produced a spin-off colouring book, which went down a storm in the States, and so artist Kev Crossley has drawn a whole new set of pictures, specifically for colouring this time, so expect to see Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland Colouring Book 2 hitting virtual bookstore shelves very soon.

Thought for the Day

"The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt."


~ Sylvia Plath (1932-63)

YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2 - Kickstarter update!

I was going to post an update yesterday about the progress of YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2 on Kickstarter, but then things went a bit crazy!

The project only went and funded in just over 21 hours!
So now we're working towards the first stretch goal, which is to have legendary fantasy artist Chris Achilleos paint the cover for the book. If the project raises £11,950 (or more) everyone who backs to receive a physical copy of the book will also receive an adorned art print, signed by the artist!


So if you've not backed the project already, what are you waiting for? Don't delay - back today!

Gamebook Friday: YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2 launches on Kickstarter tomorrow!

Just to let you know that the Kickstarter to fund YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2 - the sequel to 2014's YOU ARE THE HERO - launches on Saturday 11th March 2017, at 1:00pm GMT*.



If you're only after the eBook, then the £10 Golem reward level is for you.


If you would like the A4 full colour softback then the £20 Gargoyle reward level is what you want.


However, if you would like to receive a hardback copy of the original YOU ARE THE HERO , as well as YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2 , then you want the £60 Gark reward level.


Other rewards on offer include Fighting Fantasy gamebooks signed by Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone, having your name appear in the book, and even a special lunch with the co-creators of the FF phenomenon.

At the moment there is not a hardback version of  YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2 . YOU ARE THE HERO only came out as a hardback because backers of the original Kickstarter raised so much money. So, in theory, if the Kickstarter raises enough money, then a hardback version of the sequel could become a reality. But for that to happen as many people as possible need to hear about the project and pledge their support.

So, fingers crossed then...


* Which is 8:00am in New York, 2:00pm in France, 9:00pm in Taiwan, 12:00am in Melbourne, and 2:00am on Sunday morning in New Zealand!

Gamebook Friday: Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland Gamebook Companion

Thanks to Mark Stoneham, with the Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland Gamebook Companion you can now play the first ACE Gamebook on the go.

Store your stats and equipment in the easy to use and convenient layout. There are dice, a handy Combat screen, and buttons to test all your abilities as you play. Navigation is easy using left and right swipes on each screen.






To find out more, and download the app yourself for only £1.99, simply follow this link.

Steampunk Thursday: Clockwork Cairo

Twopenny Press's inaugural anthology, Clockwork Cairo , edited by Matthew Bright will be released on 28th May 2017. An anthology of Egyptian-themed steampunk stories, it will take you on adventures from the steam-powered souks of Cairo, to the clockwork bazaars of Alexandria and the shadowy mysteries of the pyramids.

The table of contents had been announced, which includes a brand new Pax Britannia short story Worthless Remains .


The Curious Case of the Werewolf that Wasn't, the Mummy that Was, and the Cat in the Jar - Gail Carriger
(A story in the Parasol Protectorate world)
*
The Angel of Khan el-Kalili - P. Djeli Clark
*
Mock the Midnight Bell - Sarah Caulfield
*
Worthless Remains - Jonathan Green 
(A  Pax Britannia story)
*
The Lights of Dendera - Tiffany Trent
*
Ushabti - Zan Lee
*
Thermodynamics; and/or The Remittance Men - Chaz Brenchley
*
Lucky At Cards - David Barnett 
(A story in the Gideon Smith world)
*
Sun River - Nisi Shawl
(A story in the Everfair world)
*
The Sun Shall Lie Across Us Like Gold - Benjanun Sriduankaew
*
The Word of Menamhotep - George Mann
(A Newbury and Hobbes story)
*
Silver Linings - Tee Morris and Pip Ballantine
(A Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences story)
*
Antonia and Cleopatra - Matthew Bright
*
The Museum of Unlikely Occurrences - Rod Duncan
*
Jabari and the Giant - Christopher Parvin
*
To Kill A God - M.J. Lyons
*
The Infernal - Anne Jensen
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Imhotep's Dog - John Moralee
*
But For The Pieces He Left Behind - E. Catherine Tobler
*
The Copper Scarab - K. Tempest Bradford

International Women's Day 2017

Today is International Women's Day , so I thought I would tie-in today's blog post to the theme of strong, independent women, by highlighting a couple of my books which feature just that... Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland and The Wicked Wizard of Oz !