David Guymer's Blog, page 3
September 16, 2016
Fantasycon - Scarborough
Next weekend (September 23rd - 25th, I'll be taking the short drive from my East Yorkshire homelands to Fantasycon by the Sea in Scarborough. As the website explains: "Fantasycon comes to Scarborough. Celebrating the fantastic, the horrific and the awe inspiring in literature, image and film. Every year Fantasycon offers readers and writers the opportunity to come together to discover, learn and discuss fantastic fiction in all its forms. Three days of panels, talks, workshops and socialising. Bringing together the best in writing, publishing and reading. Fantasycon prides itself on its friendly members. Every year we welcome hundreds of first timers. But you are only a first timer once. Come along, meet like minded people and get the opportunity to network in the bar."There are more writers, publishers, and agents in attending than I can pretend to know, including, as guest of honour, one of my all time favourite authors, Scott Lynch. The hotel is probably filling up fast but there are still tickets available.
Finalist for the David Gemmell Legend Award
I've made it something of a rolling New Year's resolution to attend more of this kind of event, speak to people, put my name and face out there, but I've been too busy (edit: lazy) and socially awkward to get myself down to Nineworlds or Edgelit this year or last. This time out though I have the excuse of having to represent my novel, Gotrek & Felix: Slayer, in the David Gemmell Legend Award. The awards ceremony is on the Saturday night and is free entry even for people not attending the rest of Fantasycon. Scarborough's along way from anywhere, but if you're around you should come. There's a bar.
Other than that, I'm still going to be kept pretty busy:
Saturday 24th
10:30-12:30 - A signing at GW: Scarborough with my fellow Black Library attendees, Guy Haley, Gav Thorpe, and Laurie Goulding
19:00-21:00 - The Gemmell Awards Ceremony
Sunday 25th
11:00-12:00 - An Extended reading with Black Library, Gav, Guy, Laurie and I will be giving readings and doing a brief Q&A on our current works in progress. So keep your twitter feeds updated for some tasty reveals!
14:00-15:00 - A Little's Enough, a seminar on what makes a great short story
I'm also bringing my 2 1/2 year old daughter, Rosie, along, in the hope of influencing her reading tastes early. And my girlfriend too, in the vain hope of convincing her that I have a real job. Anyone that sees us, please help me out by demonstrating how popular and in demand I am!
See you in a week!
September 11, 2016
The Beast Arises Ten: Last Son of Dorn
The Last Son of Dorn finally made it out this weekend as an ebook, with a short wait still to go for the hardback version this coming Saturday. That date conveniently coincides with the Leeds Games Workshop store's birthday, and as part of the day's events I'll be there signing copies of the new book. And anything else that people want pen to put to. Last time I was at GW: Leeds was for a signing of Thorgrim (so way *way* back then) and it was actually one of the best attended sessions I've ever had, probably because I didn't have the likes of Chris Wraight and Guy Haley stealing all my fans!
If you're in Leeds on Saturday 17th October, then why not pop in, see what's happening, and get a signed book.
The Facebook page for the event is here: https://www.facebook.com/events/10694...
And in lieu of any deep thoughts on the process of writing part ten of this epic saga (I'm pretty busy right now, after all...), here's a link to something very similar that I wrote for the Ragnarok blog: http://www.ragnarokpub.com/single-pos...
If you're in Leeds on Saturday 17th October, then why not pop in, see what's happening, and get a signed book.
The Facebook page for the event is here: https://www.facebook.com/events/10694...
And in lieu of any deep thoughts on the process of writing part ten of this epic saga (I'm pretty busy right now, after all...), here's a link to something very similar that I wrote for the Ragnarok blog: http://www.ragnarokpub.com/single-pos...
September 5, 2016
FULGRIM review
Fulgrim by Graham McNeillMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Similar to The Flight of the Eisenstein, which came before, Fulgrim begins some way before the preceding novels ended, around the time of False Gods I believe, this time exploring the build-up to the Heresy from the perspective of the Emperor's Children.
This book achieved a number of spectacular feats:
1) it gave me just a smidgeon of sympathy for Lord Commander Eidolon
2) those rather silly sonic weapons now seem perfectly sensible
3) the Emperor's Children are now number one in my Chapter's I'd Like To See Given A Bloody Nose Somewhere Down The Line list
4) I almost cried for Fulgrim's final moment of realisation and inevitable fall
There are a number of important characters here, some returning, some new, and the same focus on the Remembrancer order as in previous entries, but the job Graham does in making a full rounded and, in the end, utterly tragic being out of Fulgrim is what will make this novel linger in my mind. I can almost forgive him the fate of my favourite Primarch. Almost. How can I still be angry with him after that...?
View all my reviews
September 1, 2016
2016: The Revenge of 2016
About six months ago (probably, Black Library puts these things out semi-annually so I'm taking this on faith) I published my personal best seller list of the year so far. Now then, with summer on the way out, here's what's jumping off the book stands in the second half of 2016
Quick Read
1. Gotrek & Felix: Rememberers
2. Final Duty
3. Deliverance Detail
Short Story
1. Infinite Circuit
2. Godless
3. Beneath the Black Thumb
Audio
1. The Beasts of Cartha
2. Fist of Mork, Fist of Gork
3. Great Red
Novel
1. Echoes of the Long War
2. Gotrek & Felix: Kinslayer
3. The Last Son of Dorn
Once again, Infinite Circuit surprises me by topping the short story pile. Unashamed bolter porn it may be, but there's something satisfying about blind priests frying Deathwatch Space Marines with lightning bolts from their hands!
The arrival of my figures for the year also lets me put to bed something I've been wanting to have a word on for a while now - this bizarre assertion that crops up on forums every so often that Age of Sigmar isn't selling. This always had a whiff of bollocks, but now I can confirm it. Here's just one like-for-like example:
Gotrek & Felix: Curse of the Everliving - lifetime sales in the mid hundreds
The Beasts of Cartha - over a thousand just in the last six months
Bear in mind won't you that Curse of the Everliving must be about four years old now, and belongs to the most popular Warhammer series of them all.
For another comparison, let's look at the short stories The Karag Durak Grudge and Unseen, both of which have sold in the lower hundreds, and my first AoS short Beneath the Black Thumb which is already pushing a thousand. Those first two stories were written early in my career, so it's possible that the lack of 'name' attached to them could have affected their performance. But, I remember being told long, long ago that Black Library sales are driven largely by what's been written about more than who wrote it; i.e. more people will buy the next Ultramarines book than the next book by Graham McNeill. Sad, but I can see the truth in that, and Queek Headtaker and Deathmaster Snikch are awesome enough to sell books on their own. You'd think.
You can still argue that Age of Sigmar is no good if you want to, indeed I think Unseen in particular is one of my best (so much so that I recently sent it along with an excerpt of Slayer as part of my begging letter to the editor of anther IP - hopefully more on that another time!) and if some of those AoS readers want to pick up a copy of that instead then I'd be thrilled. What you can't argue is that it's not selling. Because it is.
Quick Read
1. Gotrek & Felix: Rememberers
2. Final Duty
3. Deliverance Detail
Short Story
1. Infinite Circuit
2. Godless
3. Beneath the Black Thumb
Audio
1. The Beasts of Cartha
2. Fist of Mork, Fist of Gork
3. Great Red
Novel
1. Echoes of the Long War
2. Gotrek & Felix: Kinslayer
3. The Last Son of Dorn
Once again, Infinite Circuit surprises me by topping the short story pile. Unashamed bolter porn it may be, but there's something satisfying about blind priests frying Deathwatch Space Marines with lightning bolts from their hands!
The arrival of my figures for the year also lets me put to bed something I've been wanting to have a word on for a while now - this bizarre assertion that crops up on forums every so often that Age of Sigmar isn't selling. This always had a whiff of bollocks, but now I can confirm it. Here's just one like-for-like example:
Gotrek & Felix: Curse of the Everliving - lifetime sales in the mid hundreds
The Beasts of Cartha - over a thousand just in the last six months
Bear in mind won't you that Curse of the Everliving must be about four years old now, and belongs to the most popular Warhammer series of them all.
For another comparison, let's look at the short stories The Karag Durak Grudge and Unseen, both of which have sold in the lower hundreds, and my first AoS short Beneath the Black Thumb which is already pushing a thousand. Those first two stories were written early in my career, so it's possible that the lack of 'name' attached to them could have affected their performance. But, I remember being told long, long ago that Black Library sales are driven largely by what's been written about more than who wrote it; i.e. more people will buy the next Ultramarines book than the next book by Graham McNeill. Sad, but I can see the truth in that, and Queek Headtaker and Deathmaster Snikch are awesome enough to sell books on their own. You'd think.
You can still argue that Age of Sigmar is no good if you want to, indeed I think Unseen in particular is one of my best (so much so that I recently sent it along with an excerpt of Slayer as part of my begging letter to the editor of anther IP - hopefully more on that another time!) and if some of those AoS readers want to pick up a copy of that instead then I'd be thrilled. What you can't argue is that it's not selling. Because it is.
August 15, 2016
6 ways to help an author
Being a writer involves doing a lot of things that I really hate to do, speculatively pestering people, promoting myself. That sort of thing. And it feels like I’ve been doing more of that over the past couple of weeks than I have of actual writing. I’m getting back to work on the novel now, so this is going to be a short entry to the blog with a 6-point checklist of things that you could do to really help me (and your second favourite authors!) out.
1) Buy my books – kind of a given, but let’s start here just in case. A work colleague recently complained that he couldn’t Torrent my books and I couldn’t tell if he was intentionally or only accidentally being a dick
2) Review my books – These are so important to an author that I’ve recently started writing reviews for every book I read. Only on Goodreads at the moment, but I should really start transferring them over to Amazon too. Read my blog about it here
3) Retweet tweets about my books – ‘Liking’ them is great, but if you like them then why not share them too?
4) Tell people about my books – As above. Word of mouth is currency. Black Library does promote, but the number of people who only read Dan Abnett’s books is, anecdotally at least, awesome. Seek out these people. Explain to them why they need to read Headtaker. Convince all those lovers of fantasy put off by the 'Warhammer' logo above the title that Gotrek & Felix really is for them.
5) Mention my name – You never know when an editor might be listening...
6) Vote in the Gemmell Awards – I’m not sure if having Gotrek & Felix: Slayer voted best fantasy novel in the 2016 David Gemmell Legend Award will change my life, or even lead to a noticeable surge in sales, but hey, it can’t hurt. And my author picture is due an update and I could do worse than one of me brandishing Snaga. Vote here
That’s it for this week. Time to plug in.
The flesh is weak.
1) Buy my books – kind of a given, but let’s start here just in case. A work colleague recently complained that he couldn’t Torrent my books and I couldn’t tell if he was intentionally or only accidentally being a dick
2) Review my books – These are so important to an author that I’ve recently started writing reviews for every book I read. Only on Goodreads at the moment, but I should really start transferring them over to Amazon too. Read my blog about it here
3) Retweet tweets about my books – ‘Liking’ them is great, but if you like them then why not share them too?
4) Tell people about my books – As above. Word of mouth is currency. Black Library does promote, but the number of people who only read Dan Abnett’s books is, anecdotally at least, awesome. Seek out these people. Explain to them why they need to read Headtaker. Convince all those lovers of fantasy put off by the 'Warhammer' logo above the title that Gotrek & Felix really is for them.
5) Mention my name – You never know when an editor might be listening...
6) Vote in the Gemmell Awards – I’m not sure if having Gotrek & Felix: Slayer voted best fantasy novel in the 2016 David Gemmell Legend Award will change my life, or even lead to a noticeable surge in sales, but hey, it can’t hurt. And my author picture is due an update and I could do worse than one of me brandishing Snaga. Vote here
That’s it for this week. Time to plug in.
The flesh is weak.
August 4, 2016
The Writing of Slayer
Gotrek & Felix: Slayer is probably the most important novel I’ve written to date. When I was first to asked to write the Doom of Gotrek Gurnisson the immediate feeling was one of elation, descending slowly, slowly, but oh so inexorably into a kind of mewling terror. As I wrote last week, the cosy safety of one’s writing burrow can’t hide the fact that ‘out there’ are many thousands of rabid Gotrek & Felix fans, possibly with pitchforks, some of whom will have been following their adventures for twenty years and will not, not, tolerate an inferior offering for their beloved saga’s conclusion. If ever there was a time for a man to up his game, and get up off the kitchen floor then this was it.
Where it all began
(The King era)
Trollslayer (1999)
Skavenslayer (1999)
Daemonslayer(1999)
Dragonslayer (2000)
Beastslayer (2001)
Vampireslayer (2002)
Giantslayer (2003)
(The Long era)
Orcslayer (2006)
Manslayer (2007)
Elfslayer (2008)
Shamanslayer (2009)
Zombieslayer (2010)
(Collected Stories)
Slayer of the Storm God (2009)
Gotrek and Felix: The Anthology (2012)
Gotrek & Felix: Curse of the Everliving (2013)
Gotrek & Felix: Lost Tales (2013)
(The interregnum)
Road of Skulls (2013)
Gotre & Felix: City of the Damned (2013)
The Serpent Queen (2014)
(The Doom of Gotrek Gurnisson)
Gotrek & Felix: Kinslayer (2014)
Gotrek & Felix: Slayer (2015)
That’s a lot of books with, cumulatively, about 10,000 ratings and an average rating of comfortably around 4/5. That's not counting the brilliant Grey Seer Thanquol or Ulrika the Vampire spin-off series'. They also go back a long way, and even further if you count the short stories in the old gaming supplements. I even pleasantly surprised myself recently, flicking through a 4th edition Warhammer Undead army book and found a Gotrek & Felix book I’d forgotten about (fun fact – Gotrek & Felix originally arose from William King’s roleplaying sessions. And apparently, if you go back you can see the point in the short story Geheimnisnacht at which Gotrek was originally meant to die!).
Even though I’d grown up with Gotrek & Felix this meant a lot of reading, particularly as I wasn’t completely up-to-date (I hadn’t read the last two Nathan Long books yet). Crafting a satisfying conclusion to a 12 book saga in just two more volumes therefore required a great deal of notes, much scratching of heads, and one very, very long conversation with an editor. A lot of people have asked me since Kinslayer first came out if I consulted with William King or Nathan Long before starting to write, and the answer to that question is no.
I wanted The Doom of Gotrek Gurnisson to be as true to the feel of Gotrek & Felix as a new author could make it, but at the same time to fit the story into the wider narrative of the End Times and make the characters my own. That’s part of the reason why an older, more bitter Felix appealed; imagining how the characters would have turned out had Felix finally got the settled life he’d been wanting and waved Gotrek on his way.
Of the two novels, I’m actually marginally fonder of Kinslayer. It was a chance for me to revisit a lot of beloved locales before the End Times took them all away, a valedictory tour of the Old World in words. Added to that, Throgg and Helbrass turned out to be two of the most entertaining villains to write, every scene with Snorri Nosebiter was a blast, and the fight between him and Throgg at the end ranks as one of my all-time favourites. Neatly squaring a lot of plot circles in the process was a bonus.
Plus I cried. I cried a lot. And not just at the end.
Slayer was an altogether different beast. After all the bridges that had been burnt in Kinslayer it only really owed Kinslayer itself in terms of narrative loose ends. Ultimately, this book is all about Gotrek’s doom and his friendship with Felix – as it should be. While Kinslayer left me in tears, this book left me physically shaking. The final third I wrote in a flurry of middle of the night sessions hunched over my kitchen table with pen and paper. The rush to the climax had me, but it’d also be true to say that the birth of my first daughter (about six months old at the time, and with a cameo near the end) had me severely behind with my deadline. I wouldn’t recommend that style of writing for anyone that values their ability to perform basic human functions, but I can’t say it didn’t work for me or to the benefit of the story. My editor (different one by this point) wrote back to me that that final third was the best stuff I’d written and by the time I’d caught up on sleep and D vitamins I could see that he was right.
But I still won’t be doing it again.
The one time that I’ve met William King was at the Black Library Weekender 2012. This was before I’d started on my debut novel, but after I’d written Curse of the Everliving. I went to his Q&A panel where someone asked him how he saw Gotrek & Felix ending and he jokingly answered that it would have to be fighting the four Chaos Gods themselves while the world around them exploded.
Spoilers aside, I don’t think he’d be too disappointed with the outcome.
Vote for the Gemmell Awards here: http://www.gemmellawards.com/award-vo...
As well as marking the imminent paperback release (see what I cunningly did here?), this is also a reminder that there are two short weeks left to vote in the David Gemmell Awards to which Slayer has been shortlisted. The full lists are:
(Legend Award (best novel))
The Dread Wyrm by Miles Cameron (Gollancz)
Son of the Black Sword by Larry Correia (Baen)
Gotrek & Felix: Slayer by David Guymer (Black Library)
Ruin by John Gwynne (Pan Macmillan)
The Liar’s Key by Mark Lawrence (Harper/Voyager)
(Morningstar Award (best debut))
Battlemage by Stephen Aryan (Orbit)
The Traitor by Seth Dickinson (Pan Macmillan)
The Fire Sermon by Francesca Haig (Harper/Voyager)
Starborn by Lucy Hounsom (Pan Macmillan)
The Vagrant by Peter Newman (Harper/Voyager)
An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir (Harper/Voyager)
My own debut novel, Headtaker, made it to the shortlist for the Morningstar in 2014 and I was gutted to miss out on it so, a) don’t put me through that again with Slayer this year, and b) if you’ve read a book on this list that you think deserves recognition, then go vote for it!
(Ravenheart Award (best cover art))
Kerem Beyit for The Dread Wyrm by Miles Cameron (Gollancz)
Jason Chan for The Liar's Key by Mark Lawrence (Harper/Voyager)
Larry Elmore & Carol Russo Design for Son of the Black Sword by Larry Correia (Baen)
Raymond Swanland for Archaon: Lord of Chaos by Rob Sanders (Black Library)
Paul Young for Ruin by John Gwynne (Pan Macmillan)
Voting on the shortlists will close at midnight (GMT) on Friday 19th August. The results will be announced at a presentation ceremony taking place at 8pm on Saturday 24th September at Fantasycon in Scarborough, UK.
Both Elfslayer and Shamanslayer, written by Nathan Long, have previously been nominated for the Legend Award but neither took home the axe. Did I mention? The Trophy’s AN AXE.
You can read more about my thoughts on the Gemmell Awards in my previous blog post, but I have a feeling that 2016 could be Gotrek & Felix’s year.
Remember me.
Here a Slayer lies.
Where it all began
(The King era)
Trollslayer (1999)
Skavenslayer (1999)
Daemonslayer(1999)
Dragonslayer (2000)
Beastslayer (2001)
Vampireslayer (2002)
Giantslayer (2003)
(The Long era)
Orcslayer (2006)
Manslayer (2007)
Elfslayer (2008)
Shamanslayer (2009)
Zombieslayer (2010)
(Collected Stories)
Slayer of the Storm God (2009)
Gotrek and Felix: The Anthology (2012)
Gotrek & Felix: Curse of the Everliving (2013)
Gotrek & Felix: Lost Tales (2013)
(The interregnum)
Road of Skulls (2013)
Gotre & Felix: City of the Damned (2013)
The Serpent Queen (2014)
(The Doom of Gotrek Gurnisson)
Gotrek & Felix: Kinslayer (2014)
Gotrek & Felix: Slayer (2015)
That’s a lot of books with, cumulatively, about 10,000 ratings and an average rating of comfortably around 4/5. That's not counting the brilliant Grey Seer Thanquol or Ulrika the Vampire spin-off series'. They also go back a long way, and even further if you count the short stories in the old gaming supplements. I even pleasantly surprised myself recently, flicking through a 4th edition Warhammer Undead army book and found a Gotrek & Felix book I’d forgotten about (fun fact – Gotrek & Felix originally arose from William King’s roleplaying sessions. And apparently, if you go back you can see the point in the short story Geheimnisnacht at which Gotrek was originally meant to die!).
Even though I’d grown up with Gotrek & Felix this meant a lot of reading, particularly as I wasn’t completely up-to-date (I hadn’t read the last two Nathan Long books yet). Crafting a satisfying conclusion to a 12 book saga in just two more volumes therefore required a great deal of notes, much scratching of heads, and one very, very long conversation with an editor. A lot of people have asked me since Kinslayer first came out if I consulted with William King or Nathan Long before starting to write, and the answer to that question is no.
I wanted The Doom of Gotrek Gurnisson to be as true to the feel of Gotrek & Felix as a new author could make it, but at the same time to fit the story into the wider narrative of the End Times and make the characters my own. That’s part of the reason why an older, more bitter Felix appealed; imagining how the characters would have turned out had Felix finally got the settled life he’d been wanting and waved Gotrek on his way.
Of the two novels, I’m actually marginally fonder of Kinslayer. It was a chance for me to revisit a lot of beloved locales before the End Times took them all away, a valedictory tour of the Old World in words. Added to that, Throgg and Helbrass turned out to be two of the most entertaining villains to write, every scene with Snorri Nosebiter was a blast, and the fight between him and Throgg at the end ranks as one of my all-time favourites. Neatly squaring a lot of plot circles in the process was a bonus.
Plus I cried. I cried a lot. And not just at the end.
Slayer was an altogether different beast. After all the bridges that had been burnt in Kinslayer it only really owed Kinslayer itself in terms of narrative loose ends. Ultimately, this book is all about Gotrek’s doom and his friendship with Felix – as it should be. While Kinslayer left me in tears, this book left me physically shaking. The final third I wrote in a flurry of middle of the night sessions hunched over my kitchen table with pen and paper. The rush to the climax had me, but it’d also be true to say that the birth of my first daughter (about six months old at the time, and with a cameo near the end) had me severely behind with my deadline. I wouldn’t recommend that style of writing for anyone that values their ability to perform basic human functions, but I can’t say it didn’t work for me or to the benefit of the story. My editor (different one by this point) wrote back to me that that final third was the best stuff I’d written and by the time I’d caught up on sleep and D vitamins I could see that he was right.
But I still won’t be doing it again.
The one time that I’ve met William King was at the Black Library Weekender 2012. This was before I’d started on my debut novel, but after I’d written Curse of the Everliving. I went to his Q&A panel where someone asked him how he saw Gotrek & Felix ending and he jokingly answered that it would have to be fighting the four Chaos Gods themselves while the world around them exploded.
Spoilers aside, I don’t think he’d be too disappointed with the outcome.
Vote for the Gemmell Awards here: http://www.gemmellawards.com/award-vo...
As well as marking the imminent paperback release (see what I cunningly did here?), this is also a reminder that there are two short weeks left to vote in the David Gemmell Awards to which Slayer has been shortlisted. The full lists are:
(Legend Award (best novel))
The Dread Wyrm by Miles Cameron (Gollancz)
Son of the Black Sword by Larry Correia (Baen)
Gotrek & Felix: Slayer by David Guymer (Black Library)
Ruin by John Gwynne (Pan Macmillan)
The Liar’s Key by Mark Lawrence (Harper/Voyager)
(Morningstar Award (best debut))
Battlemage by Stephen Aryan (Orbit)
The Traitor by Seth Dickinson (Pan Macmillan)
The Fire Sermon by Francesca Haig (Harper/Voyager)
Starborn by Lucy Hounsom (Pan Macmillan)
The Vagrant by Peter Newman (Harper/Voyager)
An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir (Harper/Voyager)
My own debut novel, Headtaker, made it to the shortlist for the Morningstar in 2014 and I was gutted to miss out on it so, a) don’t put me through that again with Slayer this year, and b) if you’ve read a book on this list that you think deserves recognition, then go vote for it!
(Ravenheart Award (best cover art))
Kerem Beyit for The Dread Wyrm by Miles Cameron (Gollancz)
Jason Chan for The Liar's Key by Mark Lawrence (Harper/Voyager)
Larry Elmore & Carol Russo Design for Son of the Black Sword by Larry Correia (Baen)
Raymond Swanland for Archaon: Lord of Chaos by Rob Sanders (Black Library)
Paul Young for Ruin by John Gwynne (Pan Macmillan)
Voting on the shortlists will close at midnight (GMT) on Friday 19th August. The results will be announced at a presentation ceremony taking place at 8pm on Saturday 24th September at Fantasycon in Scarborough, UK.
Both Elfslayer and Shamanslayer, written by Nathan Long, have previously been nominated for the Legend Award but neither took home the axe. Did I mention? The Trophy’s AN AXE.
You can read more about my thoughts on the Gemmell Awards in my previous blog post, but I have a feeling that 2016 could be Gotrek & Felix’s year.
Remember me.
Here a Slayer lies.
July 29, 2016
Catching up with the 'in' crowd
A few months ago I finally caught up with what tens of thousands of people have been doing for years and started to read the Horus Heresy series. I’d dipped in here and there. My editor, Laurie, had told me that Know No Fear was a good point to jump in so I’d read that. For a bit of background reading for Last Son of Dorn I’d read Prospero Burns. For my current sparring partner/work-in-progress Iron Hands novel, I’d read Meduson and the Primarchs. But I hadn’t yet made the commitment. In fact, not reading it had become something of a battle-worn badge of honour, in the same way that refusing to listen to the *right* kind of music had been at school. Nevertheless, I’d clearly been tip-toeing towards this precipice for some time now, but the final shove came at Warhammer Fest when that man Laurie again pulled me aside to talk about an exciting future project, which hopefully you’ll get to hear about soon.
So that was it then. I’m in.
The journey so far...
Reading a series like this with writer brain engaged (does it switch off??), I can almost feel the authors upping their game. I saw it firsthand with the work I did on the End Times, and got close enough to smell the fear-sweat of it with the closure of the Gotrek & Felix series – you just can’t dissociate yourself from the knowledge that what you’re working on is *important* to a *lot* of people and that you are *not* permitted to f^*k this up. More on writing Slayer in next week’s blog. Here lies the evidence for the benefit of a few sleepless nights, because the first four books in the Horus Heresy series have been awesome.
With one big commitment however, there comes one even bigger.
Authors love reviews of their books. It helps to spread the word and it helps us to connect with our readers and know what they’re thinking, which I’d imagine is what readers want to so really it’s win-win. For all that however, I almost never write reviews. As I embark on my grand Horus Heresy adventure, I’m resolved to start mending my ways and writing reviews. Not just for this series, but for every book I read from hereon. I feel I owe it to the writer (especially as I’m not always... um... paying for Black Library books) and to my own readers whom I pester to write reviews of my books.
Like I’m about to do now.
Please go and review my books. On Amazon. On Goodreads. Anywhere. Please…
Here are my reviews of the Horus Heresy series so far:
Horus Rising) https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
False Gods) https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Galaxy in Flames) https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Flight of the Eisenstein) https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
At first I was a little wary, nervous perhaps that people would judge my writings based on my inelegant two paragraphs of after-action scrawl on Horus Rising. But I got over it. And now I actually rather enjoy it. For Flight of the Eisenstein, I even got so into the idea of doing a review at the end that I took notes!
I’d love to read some comments from people who regularly write reviews or even professional book bloggers on their ‘process’.
Now though, before diving headlong into Fulgrim, I’m taking a short break from all things Black Library to catch up on some other reading that I’ve left abandoned for too long. I’m half way through part 1 of the Regeneration Trilogy, I have a hankering to read Robert Harris’ Fatherland after something I read in the newspaper at the weekend, and I’ve had my heart set on Sharp Ends by one of my favourite authors, Joe Abercrombie, ever since I heard about it. Plus I have my Gemmell Awards Reading List to get through before the end of September.
Look out for reviews!
So that was it then. I’m in.
The journey so far...
Reading a series like this with writer brain engaged (does it switch off??), I can almost feel the authors upping their game. I saw it firsthand with the work I did on the End Times, and got close enough to smell the fear-sweat of it with the closure of the Gotrek & Felix series – you just can’t dissociate yourself from the knowledge that what you’re working on is *important* to a *lot* of people and that you are *not* permitted to f^*k this up. More on writing Slayer in next week’s blog. Here lies the evidence for the benefit of a few sleepless nights, because the first four books in the Horus Heresy series have been awesome.
With one big commitment however, there comes one even bigger.
Authors love reviews of their books. It helps to spread the word and it helps us to connect with our readers and know what they’re thinking, which I’d imagine is what readers want to so really it’s win-win. For all that however, I almost never write reviews. As I embark on my grand Horus Heresy adventure, I’m resolved to start mending my ways and writing reviews. Not just for this series, but for every book I read from hereon. I feel I owe it to the writer (especially as I’m not always... um... paying for Black Library books) and to my own readers whom I pester to write reviews of my books.
Like I’m about to do now.
Please go and review my books. On Amazon. On Goodreads. Anywhere. Please…
Here are my reviews of the Horus Heresy series so far:
Horus Rising) https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
False Gods) https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Galaxy in Flames) https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Flight of the Eisenstein) https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
At first I was a little wary, nervous perhaps that people would judge my writings based on my inelegant two paragraphs of after-action scrawl on Horus Rising. But I got over it. And now I actually rather enjoy it. For Flight of the Eisenstein, I even got so into the idea of doing a review at the end that I took notes!
I’d love to read some comments from people who regularly write reviews or even professional book bloggers on their ‘process’.
Now though, before diving headlong into Fulgrim, I’m taking a short break from all things Black Library to catch up on some other reading that I’ve left abandoned for too long. I’m half way through part 1 of the Regeneration Trilogy, I have a hankering to read Robert Harris’ Fatherland after something I read in the newspaper at the weekend, and I’ve had my heart set on Sharp Ends by one of my favourite authors, Joe Abercrombie, ever since I heard about it. Plus I have my Gemmell Awards Reading List to get through before the end of September.
Look out for reviews!
July 26, 2016
Gemmell Award Reading List
Having just finished Flight of the Eisenstein (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...) and needing a bit of a break from the Horus Heresy and all things of the grim dark far future variety, I've decided to put together a to-read list based on this year's David Gemmell Legend Awards. Partly because seeing a list filled with authors I've not read or read very little of is nothing if not a call to arms, and partly so I'll have something to talk about should I meet the guys!
Some of the nominees (like my own entrant, Gotrek & Felix: SlayerSlayer) come as part of an ongoing series, so these are the books I plan to read before Fantasycon in September.
1) Son of the Black Sword
2) Malice
3) Prince of Fools
4) The Red Knight
I'd love to be able to tackle the Morningstar list as well, but I think 4 books in two months is already pushing my limit. If anyone's read any of those and want to send me a recommendation, then please do!
The shortlists can be found here
Voting on the awards can be done < http://www.gemmellawards.com/award-vo...
Some of the nominees (like my own entrant, Gotrek & Felix: SlayerSlayer) come as part of an ongoing series, so these are the books I plan to read before Fantasycon in September.
1) Son of the Black Sword
2) Malice
3) Prince of Fools
4) The Red Knight
I'd love to be able to tackle the Morningstar list as well, but I think 4 books in two months is already pushing my limit. If anyone's read any of those and want to send me a recommendation, then please do!
The shortlists can be found here
Voting on the awards can be done < http://www.gemmellawards.com/award-vo...
July 25, 2016
This is not work
I'm generally pretty bad at blogging. I tend to put them out as and when, so I was feeling quite terrific after getting several out over the last few weeks, and then, today, getting well ahead of myself by getting enough stuff written to provide me with blogs for several weeks. All that on top of writing a review for Flight of the Eisenstein. https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
A cautionary note to all fellow authors however: this is not work. Tomorrow, it's time to get back to what they pay me for.
A cautionary note to all fellow authors however: this is not work. Tomorrow, it's time to get back to what they pay me for.
Mortarch of Night
I’ve been a little slow in promoting this one, reading to do, books to write, axes to claim, but here we now are: Book 9 of the Realmgate Wars saga, Mortarch of Night, out now!
"Look into my eyes... now buy me"
It’s a prose collection of the eight audio stories written by Joshua Reynolds and myself, so if you’ve already enjoyed these in their full glory then much as I appreciate and accept your money, you don’t need to buy this. Unless you’re a completist of course, and simply CANNOT have Book 8 followed by Book 10. If you are that person then I feel your plight. Every day I sit down to write, see my badgered old original editions of the first three Gotrek & Felix omnibuses next to the sleek new fourth one and die a little on the inside.
there's just something about a neat row of books, all in a line
To recap then, this anthology contains the following stories:
The Hunt for Nagash by Joshua Reynolds
1) The Prisoner of the Black Sun - Cast into the Vale of Sorrow upon thunder and lightning, the Stormcast Eternals of Lord-Celestant Tarsus Bull-Heart seek the Starless Gates and an audience with the fabled lord of the Undead, Nagash. But when the Hallowed Knights are ambushed by Khorne's own Bloodbound, they are forced into a pact with a creature from an elder age, a vampire of dubious provenance, one whose name resonates throughout history... von Carstein.
2) Sands of Blood - In the quest to find the Nine Gates to the underworld of Styxx and an audience with the great Nagash, Tarsus of the Hallowed Knights leads his Stormcast Eternals to the Blood Wastes. His guide, Mannfred von Carstein, warns that this is a tempestuous land, full of ill-intent. Whilst rescuing a conclave of priests from a Bloodbound warband, Tarsus and his men are forced to seek refuge from a spectral storm in a strange bastion. As the Bloodbound follow them and lay siege, Tarsus discovers this Temple of Final Rest carries a dark secret, one that could either save or destroy them.
3) The Lords of Helstone - The quest to find the Nine Gates that lead to the underworlds of Shyish and an audience with Nagash continues... Tarsus of the Hallowed Knights leads his Stormcast Eternals into the unearthly city of Helstone. Their enigmatic guide, Mannfred von Carstein, assures them that what they need to find his necromantic master lies within its halls, but there is more than darkness lurking in the ruins. Chaos has already taken root and a reckoning against the servants of the Plague God awaits.
4) Bridge of Seven Sorrows - At last, the great search for the Nine Gates is over as Tarsus and the Hallowed Knights reach the lair of the Great Necromancer himself, Nagash. Here, in the dark hollows of one of the underworlds of Shyish, the Stormcast Eternals will meet their fate. As they stand in the shadow of death, they must trust that their vampiric guide, Mannfred von Carstein, has not played them false.
Knights of Vengeance by… er… me
5) The Beasts of Cartha - After being reforged, Lord-Relictor Ramus of the Hallowed Knights is sent by Sigmar to capture the betrayer, Mannfred von Carstein. The quest brings Ramus to the Carthic Oldwoods of Ghur where he comes to the aid of the Astral Templars against a massive ogor horde. Victorious, but at great cost, Ramus discovers Mannfred is finally close at hand. Only with the help of the Astral Templars will the Lord-Relictor catch his quarry, but there are deadlier things in the woods than ogors, a fact the Stormcast Eternals soon discover.
6) Fist of Mork, Fist of Gork - After a bloody triumph at the siege of Cartha, Lord-Relictor Ramus’ Hallowed Knights and the Astral Templars of Knight-Azyros Vandalus press on with their search for Mannfred von Carstein, but they soon learn that orruks, not ogors, hold sway in the Carthic Oldwoods. The Stormcast Eternals must overcome not only these brutish warriors, but also the will of their gods. Ramus and Vandalus must prevail against the fist of Gork and the fist of Mork if they are to forge a path to the Sea of Bones where their hated quarry awaits.
7) Great Red - The hunt for Mannfred von Carstein takes the Hallowed Knights and Astral Templars far into the hazardous Sea of Bones. It is here that Ramus of the Shadowed Soul and Vandalus, the ‘King of Dust’, meet a worthy foe: the Ironjawz. Led by the fearsome Great Red, this orruk tribe sees the intrusion of the Stormcasts as a challenge. War against the orruks would threaten their mission, so Ramus and Vandalus set out to broker an alliance – but Ironjawz only value strength and, to appease their savage nature, the Hallowed Knights and the Astral Templars must prove they are mighty enough to be considered allies...
8) Only the Faithful - After a gruelling journey, the warriors of the Hallowed Knights and Astral Templars have found their quarry in the Sea of Bones. During the hunt, Mannfred the vampire lord has raised a mighty undead host to protect the realmgate he has claimed. Whilst Ramus of the Hallowed Knights seeks the vampire’s head and Vandalus of the Astral Templars wants to reclaim the realmgate, both must fight as one and alongside their orruk allies if they are to triumph. Against one of Nagash’s mortarchs, the test will be stern and only the faithful will prevail...
you can get the collected audios here
I’d highly recommend the audios (some of the voice acting is just stellar), but I know a lot of people prefer to their reading by actually, you know, reading, and if that’s you then you can get Mortarch of Night here, in standard hardback, ebook, or in glorious special edition (which I’ve still not seen yet, Black Library. Hint. Hint...)
"Look into my eyes... now buy me"
It’s a prose collection of the eight audio stories written by Joshua Reynolds and myself, so if you’ve already enjoyed these in their full glory then much as I appreciate and accept your money, you don’t need to buy this. Unless you’re a completist of course, and simply CANNOT have Book 8 followed by Book 10. If you are that person then I feel your plight. Every day I sit down to write, see my badgered old original editions of the first three Gotrek & Felix omnibuses next to the sleek new fourth one and die a little on the inside.
there's just something about a neat row of books, all in a line
To recap then, this anthology contains the following stories:
The Hunt for Nagash by Joshua Reynolds
1) The Prisoner of the Black Sun - Cast into the Vale of Sorrow upon thunder and lightning, the Stormcast Eternals of Lord-Celestant Tarsus Bull-Heart seek the Starless Gates and an audience with the fabled lord of the Undead, Nagash. But when the Hallowed Knights are ambushed by Khorne's own Bloodbound, they are forced into a pact with a creature from an elder age, a vampire of dubious provenance, one whose name resonates throughout history... von Carstein.
2) Sands of Blood - In the quest to find the Nine Gates to the underworld of Styxx and an audience with the great Nagash, Tarsus of the Hallowed Knights leads his Stormcast Eternals to the Blood Wastes. His guide, Mannfred von Carstein, warns that this is a tempestuous land, full of ill-intent. Whilst rescuing a conclave of priests from a Bloodbound warband, Tarsus and his men are forced to seek refuge from a spectral storm in a strange bastion. As the Bloodbound follow them and lay siege, Tarsus discovers this Temple of Final Rest carries a dark secret, one that could either save or destroy them.
3) The Lords of Helstone - The quest to find the Nine Gates that lead to the underworlds of Shyish and an audience with Nagash continues... Tarsus of the Hallowed Knights leads his Stormcast Eternals into the unearthly city of Helstone. Their enigmatic guide, Mannfred von Carstein, assures them that what they need to find his necromantic master lies within its halls, but there is more than darkness lurking in the ruins. Chaos has already taken root and a reckoning against the servants of the Plague God awaits.
4) Bridge of Seven Sorrows - At last, the great search for the Nine Gates is over as Tarsus and the Hallowed Knights reach the lair of the Great Necromancer himself, Nagash. Here, in the dark hollows of one of the underworlds of Shyish, the Stormcast Eternals will meet their fate. As they stand in the shadow of death, they must trust that their vampiric guide, Mannfred von Carstein, has not played them false.
Knights of Vengeance by… er… me
5) The Beasts of Cartha - After being reforged, Lord-Relictor Ramus of the Hallowed Knights is sent by Sigmar to capture the betrayer, Mannfred von Carstein. The quest brings Ramus to the Carthic Oldwoods of Ghur where he comes to the aid of the Astral Templars against a massive ogor horde. Victorious, but at great cost, Ramus discovers Mannfred is finally close at hand. Only with the help of the Astral Templars will the Lord-Relictor catch his quarry, but there are deadlier things in the woods than ogors, a fact the Stormcast Eternals soon discover.
6) Fist of Mork, Fist of Gork - After a bloody triumph at the siege of Cartha, Lord-Relictor Ramus’ Hallowed Knights and the Astral Templars of Knight-Azyros Vandalus press on with their search for Mannfred von Carstein, but they soon learn that orruks, not ogors, hold sway in the Carthic Oldwoods. The Stormcast Eternals must overcome not only these brutish warriors, but also the will of their gods. Ramus and Vandalus must prevail against the fist of Gork and the fist of Mork if they are to forge a path to the Sea of Bones where their hated quarry awaits.
7) Great Red - The hunt for Mannfred von Carstein takes the Hallowed Knights and Astral Templars far into the hazardous Sea of Bones. It is here that Ramus of the Shadowed Soul and Vandalus, the ‘King of Dust’, meet a worthy foe: the Ironjawz. Led by the fearsome Great Red, this orruk tribe sees the intrusion of the Stormcasts as a challenge. War against the orruks would threaten their mission, so Ramus and Vandalus set out to broker an alliance – but Ironjawz only value strength and, to appease their savage nature, the Hallowed Knights and the Astral Templars must prove they are mighty enough to be considered allies...
8) Only the Faithful - After a gruelling journey, the warriors of the Hallowed Knights and Astral Templars have found their quarry in the Sea of Bones. During the hunt, Mannfred the vampire lord has raised a mighty undead host to protect the realmgate he has claimed. Whilst Ramus of the Hallowed Knights seeks the vampire’s head and Vandalus of the Astral Templars wants to reclaim the realmgate, both must fight as one and alongside their orruk allies if they are to triumph. Against one of Nagash’s mortarchs, the test will be stern and only the faithful will prevail...
you can get the collected audios here
I’d highly recommend the audios (some of the voice acting is just stellar), but I know a lot of people prefer to their reading by actually, you know, reading, and if that’s you then you can get Mortarch of Night here, in standard hardback, ebook, or in glorious special edition (which I’ve still not seen yet, Black Library. Hint. Hint...)
