Marc Aplin's Blog, page 73

Critical Role Is A Natural 20 Of A Good Time

“How do you want to do this?” is a phrase that’s branded on t-shirts and hoodies, stickers and scarves. It’s hinted at around gaming tables, talked about on the Internet, and usually followed by screams of joy once a certain dungeon master says it during a game. The game is Dungeons & Dragons; the DM, […]

Character Development: Character Death and the Ultimate Sacrifice

Killing a character in your novel is a tried and true method for advancing your plot. Allegiances are torn, revenge is sought, kingdoms fall apart. Character death feels as essential to the fantasy genre as magic—perhaps more-so. But in a narrative sense, is death really the “ultimate” sacrifice? The most effective character deaths are those […]

Legend by David Gemmell

Legend introduces us to a tribe called the Drenai, who feature in 12 other books by Gemmell which form The Drenai Saga. Under attack from the Nadir, all is seemingly lost, but as a menagerie of characters merge together, they become an unstoppable force defending against the sieges of the Nadir. The initial irritation for […]

Announcing Agent Week!

If you’re an aspiring writer, dreaming of a publishing deal and one sacred day of seeing your hard work on the shelf at your local bookstore, then you’ll likely need an agent. These mysterious beings, hidden away under thick layers of concrete, in secret locations dotted around the countryside, accessible only to those in possession […]

Chasing Graves by Ben Galley – Cover Reveal & Guest Blog

I’m a firm believer that cover art is part and parcel of the book – conjoined twins impossible to separate. The cover plays an important role. It represents the words inside a book, communicates genre, indicates quality, and is ultimately responsible for attracting the eye of the reader. It’s got a vital job, and although […]

James Wolanyk Interview – Schisms

Today we have the pleasure of interviewing James Wolanyk, author of The Scribe Cycle. His latest book, Schisms, was released in the US by Rebel Base Books in February of this year and in the UK by Kensington Publishing Corporation in July. Let’s get right into it! First, would you please tell us a bit […]

Birth of the Firebringer by Meredith Ann Pierce

Spoilers Warning: This review contains spoilers. Please read with caution if you have yet to finish the book. “He was born under a dark moon.” I grew-up with a hearty, diverse digestion of equestrian nonfiction: Anna Sewell’s Victorian Black Beauty, Walter Farley’s The Black Stallion series and Will James’ Western Smoky the Cowhorse. Peter S. […]

Black Man (a.k.a. Thirteen) by Richard Morgan

Carl Marsalis is a Variant Thirteen, a genetically-engineered throwback to a strain of human that died out thousands of years ago. He is a tough, aggressive loner, instinctively cunning and brutal, predisposed not to follow rules. Thirteens are used as elite soldiers by the government and forcibly retired to Mars, where they can be kept […]

James Jakins Interview – Knights of the Dead God

Today we have the pleasure of interviewing one of SPFBO finalists from last year, James Jakins. His book, Jack Bloodfist: Fixer, was Lynn’s Books pick for 2017’s final ten. Its sequel, Jack Bloodfist: Freelancer, is due out around the end of the year. But urban fantasy is not all he has to offer. He currently […]

Darkly Dreaming by Chloe Hammond

This is a book about vampires, about becoming one and subsequently coping with the changes that being a fatal predator of the night brings (i.e. expect a high body-count). It’s also about the healing power of friendship, about marrying the wrong person, regrets, living life through fantasies and all the different ways that human beings […]