Rob Sanders's Blog, page 8

Czevak to the Dark Tower Came

Released today is my contribution to the Black Library Advent. It is an Inquisitor Czevak short story called Czevak to the Dark Tower Came. I say a short but as usual, I've blasted beyond my word limit. Beyond his adventures in the novel Atlas Infernal, Czevak's conflict with Ahriman of the Thousand Sons and his exotic galaxy-hopping exploits have recently continued in short story form. Lately we've had the short story Necessary Evil presented in Hammer and Bolter, Shadow Play in the Black Library Weekender Anthology - Volume 2 and now Czevak to the Dark Tower Came. Here's the blurb from the Black Library website.

Like all the Advent stories, Czevak to the Dark Tower Came can be digitally downloaded for the very reasonable price of 79p. Just click the link below:

Czevak to the Dark Tower Came

If you're in the mood for more dark adventures with Bronislaw Czevak, then click the link below for Necessary Evil.

Necessary Evil

If you have yet to get in on the action, there is no better place to begin than with Inquisitor Bronislaw Czevak and Ahriman of the Thousand Sons going head to head in the novel Atlas Infernal. Click below:

Atlas Infernal


Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and Mayan Faux-Apocalypse!

If you wish to stay up to date with the latest releases and assorted blog goodness then you can do so in several ways. You are cordially invited to join me on Facebook here and/or Twitter
I like to play games from time to time on the blog. Here is one based upon the short story Czevak to the Dark Tower Came. Below are several Xenos artefacts that have been mislabelled in the Universitae-Imperialis archives on Savignor. They need correctly identifying. Can you identify their name, nature and Xenos origin? Feel free to have a go on Facebook, forums or in the comments section of the blog. Good luck!

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La Légion des Damnés

I was never very good at languages at school - well, except English. Thank goodness then for Google Translate. It's a blunt tool and has its limitations but essentially gives you the gist of documents written outside of your mother tongue. It allowed me to check out this review of Legion of the Damned on a French critique site called 'The Reclusiam'. 'The Reclusiam' is run by a great guy called Maestitia. I've added the site to 'The Scene' on the side bar. I provide both the French and English versions of the review for the polyglots out there. Thanks, Maestitia!

"Ce roman est de loin l’un des meilleurs que j’ai lu de la Saga des Space Marine Battle ! Tout d’abord, Zachariah Kersh est un personnage qu’on aime de suite. Il vient juste de perdre son titre de ‘’Champion’’ pour devenir Capitaine. Or un homme de terrain comme Kersh aura toutes les peines du monde pour se mettre à la place d’un leader et réussir à convaincre ses frères de défendre un Monde perdu d’avance.
A côté de cela, on apprendra qu’il est torturé par des rêves étranges suite à une tragédie, mais je n’en dis pas plus. Ses rêves auront une importance non négligeable.
Mais ce que j’ai le plus aimé dans ces rêves (ou plutôt cauchemars), c’est qu’ils sont écris à la première personne du singulier.

Et le ‘’je’’ vous aspire avec une étonnante force dans la peau de Kersh. J’ai vraiment adoré les passages ou Sanders nous offre cette profondeur car ils sont assez récurrents et nous mettent de façon efficace dans la tête de cet Excoriator perturbé.

J’ai aussi aimé l’originalité de l’histoire, car la défense de Certus Minor n’est pas le centre de l’intrigue. La comète Keeler (qui porte un nom qui devrait vous dire quelques chose, sinon je vous renvoie ici bande de renégats) suit un parcours vers Terra elle-même. Et dans le sillon de celle-ci, la flotte des World Eaters. Les champions de Khorne suivent cet astre mystérieux et annihilent toutes les planètes qui se trouvent sur son chemin.

Un autre bon point pour Sanders, est sa vision de l’univers de Warhammer 40 000.
Je crois que c’est le premier roman qui aborde les Space Marines et leurs actions avec un regard beaucoup plus Science-Fiction que Black Librarien si je puis m’exprimer en ces terme. J’ai ressenti le vrai, le sombre, le meurtrier univers de W40k à travers sa plume. Grâce à son approche S-F, Rob fera aussi bien voyager les fans de fluff que les amoureux de fictions. Et ce n’est pas donné à tous les auteurs. Car oui il y a du fluff, mais je vous stop encore une fois : rien à propos de la Légion des Damnés, et c’est tant mieux, car elle garde tout ses mystères, même si nous n’aurions pas dit non à quelques infos. Mais concernant les Excoriators, il y a de quoi se mettre sous la dent, comme j’aime souvent le dire.

Le rythme est totalement maîtrisé en ce qui me concerne et suivre les pérégrinations de Kersh et de son Apothicaire n’a rien de lassant. Les dialogues ne sont jamais inutiles et les descriptions ne comblent aucun vide. Il y a beaucoup de bonnes idées et de terribles scènes que je n’oublierais pas de sitôt car elles ont su s’imprégner d’originalité et de cette noirceur qu’est la guerre au 41ème millénaire.

En fin de compte les Space Marine Damnés sont vite oubliés, effacé par un roman captivant et des personnages bel et bien vivants.

Pour finir, voici les plus et les moins :

Les + :

Une vision Science-Fiction, qui renouvelle un peu le genre et que j’ai adoré.
Un personnage principal étonnant avec des passages à la première personne vraiment agréables. Un très bon rythme, des descriptions et une atmosphère de tensions palpables.
Une Feast of Blade (Fête des Lames) épique.

Les - :

La Black Library joue la carte de la carotte comme dans Prospero Brûle avec ce cover aguicheur et nous spoil cet excellent récit rien qu’à la lecture du titre.

Note :

Rob Sanders nous offre un très bon roman. Un super mélange de personnages charismatiques, de dilemmes, et de sombres réalités. Le fluff est là mais c’est celui des Excoriators que vous y trouverez.

Maestitia"




"This novel is by far one of the best I have read the Saga of the Space Marine Battle!
Firstly, Zachariah Kersh is a character you love away. He just lost his title'' Champion'' to become Captain. However, a field man Kersh will all pains to put himself in the place of a leader and succeed in convincing his brothers to defend a world lost in advance.

Besides this, we learn that he is tormented by strange dreams after a tragedy, but I say no more. His dreams have significant importance.
But what I like most about these dreams (or rather nightmares) is that they are written in the first person singular.

It sucks you in with amazing strength in Kersh. I really loved the passages or Sanders gives us that depth because they are quite recurrent and we are effectively in the head of this Excoriator disturbed.

I also liked the originality of the story, for the defense of Certus Minor is not the center of the plot. Comet Keeler (who has a name that should tell you something, if I refer you band of renegades) follows a path to Terra itself. And in the wake of this, the fleet of World Eaters. Champions of Khorne follow this mysterious planet and annihilate all the planets that lie in its path.

Another good point to Sanders, is his vision of the world of Warhammer 40,000.
I think this is the first novel that addresses the Space Marines and their actions with a much more science fiction than Black Librarien if I can express myself in these terms.

I felt the true, dark, deadly W40k universe through his pen. With its approach SF, Rob will both travel fans that love fluff fiction. And it is not given to all authors. Yes because there is fluff, but I'll stop again, nothing about the Legion of the Damned, and that's good because it keeps all its mysteries, even if we could not say no to some info . But on Excoriators there something to put in their mouths, as I often like to say.

The pace is completely controlled with me and follow the peregrinations of Kersh and his Apothecary is nothing boring. The dialogues are never useless and descriptions do not fill any empty space. There are many good ideas and terrible scenes that I will not forget anytime soon as they were able to soak originality and this darkness is war in the 41st Millennium.

Ultimately the Damned Space Marine are quickly forgotten, erased by a captivating novel and characters alive and well.

Finally, here are the most and least:

The +:

Vision Science Fiction, which renews a bit like that and I loved it.
A main character with amazing passages in the first person really nice.
A very good pace, descriptions and an atmosphere of palpable tension.
A Feast of Blade (Feast of Blades) epic.

The -:

The Black Library plays the card as in Prospero Burns with this enticing cover and risk spoiling this excellent story by just reading the title.

Note:

Rob Sanders gives us a very good novel. A great mix of charismatic characters, dilemmas, and grim realities. The fluff is the only one of Excoriators you'll find.

Maestitia"

Sketching the Scourge

I may be a man of the word - and of my word - but I also appreciate fine art. You know how much I respect artists I work with like Neil Roberts, Jon Sullivan and Stefan Kopinski. I view their fabulous pieces as invaluable ambassadors for my fiction work and in turn I hope my words do their creations justice. I also like to draw attention to the work of other artists who post their work on the web, for the adoration of others. I'm not ashamed to say that I simultaneously pillage and showcase examples regularly on the blog. Recently, a great artist called Scott Santana asked me if I'd like to see some sketches he had done of Zachariah 'The Scourge' Kersh - the main character of my novel Legion of the Damned . Of course, I said yes. He sent them and I was blown away. I think that he really captures Kersh's grim indomitability. I thought it would be wonderful to share them here. Thanks, Scott!

The Choppy Waters of Crafting Titles

I came across an unusual review for Legion of the Damned a couple of days ago. It's from a video review site called 'Choppy Reviews' and run by a reader / presenter called Cocolito. A great deal of thought goes into the reviews and even more into the presentation. Cocolito had many nice things to say about Legion of the Damned , which were nice to hear. It would misrepresent his review, however, if I didn't identify a key issue he had with the novel: the four words of the title. Cocolito is not the first to identify this and I've talked about this a few times. Cocolito addresses his issue with great humour and fairness. He deserves a response for that alone, even if I don't agree with him.

While considering the book very good, he doesn't like that 'Legion of the Damned' occurs on the front cover. To justify the title, he would like even more Legion of the Damned in the book. It's not an unfair expectation. We live in a world where many book publishers and authors expect little of their readers. They give their books Ronseal does-what-it-says-on-the-tin titles because they don't expect their readership's attention span to be able to handle anything else. Meanwhile, authors who respect their readership's intellectual capabilities have been using titles as literary devices in their own right for hundreds of years. How does this work in respect to Legion of the Damned? In two ways.

Firstly, there are many books and series that utilise titles that relate to forces, phenomenons and presences that are always present in the book / series but actually spend little time 'on screen' as point-of-view characters. The best example I can think of is the famous title 'The Lord of the Rings'. The 'Lord' is always present - but not always 'on screen'. The Legion of the Damned work in a similar way. They are present in almost all chapters of the novel (read it carefully) before entering and performing their literary function. I won't give away spoilers here. If you haven't read the book, let me encourage you to do so. Not all titles are Ronseal titles. Legion of the Damned isn't. Are the Legion of the Damned present throughout the book. Yes. Do they act in accordance with the background that everyone knows and loves. Yes. Their function necessitates a group requiring their intervention. This allowed me to bring in the Space Marines Excoriators Chapter. I build them from the foundations up in the novel and many readers have loved that a Space Marine chapter could be presented in depth, at the same time as narrative intrigue and action is maintained.

Secondly, the title is a metaphor. There a several legions presented in the novel that are unequivocally 'damned'. Again, without introducing anything that isn't covered in the blurb, there is the 'Legion of the Damned', the Excoriators - who believe themselves damned and doomed to failure - and the World Eaters: a Chaos Space Marine legion enslaved to the god of bloodshed and hatred. All of these legions are damned. The title could relate to any one of them but in fact relates to all three. Titles are literary devices and a good author will make four words work hard for him. A lazy one will slap a Ronseal title on their book and underestimate their readers. It also does raise the issue of the blurb. It is the blurb's responsibility to accurately convey the content of the novel it is introducing. Check it out: it doeas.

Anyway, Cocolito put a good deal of effort into his review and I believe that he deserved a response. I encourage you to check out his review here. Beyond his issue with the title, he says many nice and insightful things about the novel. Beyond even that, it is a funny and entertaining review that is well worth watching. I've also put a link to Cocolito's review site - called 'Choppy Reviews' - on the side bar blog roll. He deserves to be part of 'the Scene'.

Black Library Weekender Aftermath

Well, what a fantastic weekend. I can honestly say that I had a brilliant time. A+ for Black Library. The venue was great and the Black Library crew, under the steely-eyed leadership of Captain George Mann, pulled off a peerless event. Thanks to all who worked so hard and those brave souls who attended. It was great seeing you all. I thoroughly enjoyed talking to you, the signings, the impromptu signings, the Question and Answer sessions and the Seminars. It was brilliant to spend time with fans in the evening and to experience / partake in the entertainment. I thought that the Pitch Factor event was a particular success. Kudos to all those with the stones to step up on that stage and pitch to veteran editors Laurie Goulding,Graeme Lyon and my good self. Not easy at all. Congratulations to Alex: she was a worthy winner.

It was also great to spend time with all the Black Library authors and artists. That's a lot of talent in one location. There are too many to namecheck individually, although I'd like to think that I got to catch up and spend some quality time with all of them. Special shout outs do go to Neil Roberts and Jonathan Green, however. Neil and I travelled down together, while at the same time putting the world to rights. He's Black Library's Horus Heresy artist and illustrator: his upcoming graphic novel 'Macragge's Honour' is going to be something special indeed. Check it out here. I spent late Saturday night and the small hours of Sunday morning looking through the bottom of a pint glass at Jonathan Green - a one man ideas-factory. More like one man military-industrial ideas complex. Jonathan - it's always a pleasure. Check out his brilliant Pax Britannia series here.

Mostly, I just want to say thank you to all the people buying and reading my books. That's what it's all about - after all! Can't wait until the next event. In the meantime, it's been straight back to the keyboard and the classroom.

Caption Competition

Thanks to all who took part on the blog, social media and forums. This week I'm going to select Raziel's contribution. The Emperor is a dad, after all...


Horus: I just found him like that Dad, I swear it!

Emperor: Like hell you did! You're grounded for a week, no exceptions! And stop this heavy metal nonsense, you look like an idiot dressed all in black.

Black Library Weekender

Just got back from one of our regular Horus Heresy meetings. Excellent stuff. Always brilliant to be part of the process that guides and shapes the direction of this fantastic series. I've just finished a cool Horus Heresy project (hush, hush) and got into thrashing several more (even more hushing!), so I found the day particularly useful.

A quick reminder that I will be at the Black Library Weekender over the next two days. The Black Library Weekender is a two-day event at the Nottingham Belfry Hotel including seminars, signings, exclusive releases, previews and entertainment. Should be a blast. I look forward to seeing and spending time with Black Library fans. Bring your books. Happy to sign them and have a chat. There are lots of things going on with many authors in attendance. My events include:

Saturday 10.30-11-30 am - Space Marine Battles novels - Marlborough / Wellington Suite

Saturday 1.45-2.45 pm - Rob Sanders Q & A - Hardy Suite

Saturday 3.00-4.00 pm - Signing - Victory Suite

Saturday Evening - Pitch Factor

Sunday 11.15-12.15 pm - Villains of Warhammer 40k - Marlborough / Wellington Suite

I've probably forgotten something but I'll be around regardless - enjoying the events and hanging out with fans and authors. I also have an exclusive story available in the Black Library Weekender Chapbook Volume 2 - available on Sunday. My short story is called Shadow Play and sees the return of Inquisitor Bronislaw Czevak from my novel Atlas Infernal.


The Black Library Weekender should be a lot of fun. There is fun to be had here, also. Whether you're there or not, why don't you have a go at the caption competition below. Post captions on the blog, Facebook or boards. After the Weekender, I'll nominate a winner for our respect and adoration.

Answer Me This...

Spending a little more time on answering 'Ask the Author' questions. Today's question is an interesting one from Maestitia.


"Hi there Rob,

I wanted to ask you a question or two about your novel "Legion of the Damned."
I do critiques of novels "W40k" on the French site "The Reclusiam" (I've talked a bit on your blog).

I've already written my review as I finished your novel some time ago and I want to tell you that I found it excellent.
This is the most original of all the series "Space Marine Battle". You write more with the SF feeling than other writers of Black Library and this is what I loved : grim and hard.

Nevertheless, there is something that shocked me deeply.
Why spoil the end of the novel with the cover and the title?

Let me explain: I know that the authors do not write the synopsis but do you decide the title at least?
I mean, the "punch" ending is totally ruined by sublime Art of Jon Sullivan and the title.

I'd like to really know your point of view about it.
Thank you for your future answers.
Maestitia"



Hi Maestitia,

Sorry, I’ve been a little behind with the answers to some of my Ask the Author questions. It’s great that you liked the Legion of the Damned. I look forward to your review on ‘The Reclusium’. On to the answer to your question. Let me break it down into several parts.

“I know that authors do not write the synopsis”. This is a common assumption about authors working for publishing companies that showcase shared universes. It is true that there are people at Games Workshop who have been responsible for colossal amounts of fantastic background and IP: they can justifiably be regarded as ‘loremasters’. The great editors at Black Library are also walking encyclopaedias of Warhammer, Warhammer 40k and Horus Heresy knowledge. These experts obviously have significant influence over specific details with individual projects and the direction of the different Warhammer series. Black Library author, however, are responsible for writing the synopses of their respective novels and short fiction. It is true, however, that authors do not necessarily write the blurbs on the back of their books.

“do you decide the title”. Quite often, authors submit a numbers of titles. ‘Legion of the Damned’ was one of the titles of submitted. It’s a cool title and the aforementioned ‘Legion’ is identified in the blurb. This does raise an interesting point in respect to the title of the novel. Anyone reading the blurb of the novel knows that the story concentrates on the Excoriator Space Marine Chapter. The Legion of the Damned is a mysterious phenomenon and the title of the novel might suggest that that the novel focuses exclusively on the Legion. Fair point. The problem with doing that is that you will ruin the background for many readers and gamers. A good author will take their readers part of the way and then allow them their own interpretations. Does the Legion of the Damned feature prominently in the novel? Yes. Are the Legion of the Damned present all the way through the novel? Yes. Does the representation of the Legion of the Damned conform to the background – Space Marines against impossible odds benefitting from the supernatural intervention of the Legion of the Damned? Yes – it even states so in the blurb. It’s funny – no-one thinks it is strange that the titular ‘Lord of the Rings’ doesn’t feature in every sentence on every page of every book in the series.

“punch ending” Thanks, Maestitia - it is a punch ending and intended as so. It is more than the involvement of the Legion of the Damned that make it a “punch ending”. After all, the Legion’s intervention is identified in the blurb. At the end of the day, readers do like to know the direction the writer is going. We can’t call all of our novels ‘Unspecified Space Marine Project’!

Great questions, Maestitia. Hope the answers helped you out!

Want To Play?: Know Your Tyranids!

More games and puzzles! Today's conundrum concerns my latest short story called Fearful Symmetries. Fearful Symmetries features the Deathwatch Space Marines - the Imperium's redoubtable xenos hunters.

The Deathwatch are summoned to the Opus Ersaticus forge world by Inquisitor Kryptman to have the secrets of a new and deadly species revealed to them: the Tyranids! Fearful Symmetries can be found in the Xenos Hunters short story anthology, which has just been released this month. You can find Xenos Hunters here.

The Tyranids are well known for the diversity of their bio-engineered forms and the horror of their deranged construction. Check out these different species of Tyranid. Do you recognise any? Can you unjumble the letters to confirm your identification?









Answers up soon. Some fantastic pieces of art there from sketchers of alien monstrosity from across the web.

Thanks for playing! If you would like to enjoy more games based upon Rob Sanders fiction, check out:

Want To Play: Worth a Thousand Words

Want To Play: Imperial Navy Identification

Want To Play: Iron Warriors Fortification Crossword

Want To Play: Alpha Legion Search

Nexus 6 (10-10-12)

It's been a little while since my last Nexus 6. It is well overdue time to check out what I've been reading on the internet science fiction, fantasy and horror scene.

1) The Most Ingenious Worlds Ever Invented By Science Fiction


I love building worlds. Science fiction gives me great opportunities to do so and on a huge scale. Of course, world building is worth little without engaging characters and a sizzling plot. If you have those in science fiction and fantasy, however, I think you owe it to your reader not to cop out of the setting. Here's Cracked with some observations on some of the worlds created in science fiction film and fiction.



2) Cloud Atlas


This is the trailer for a film called 'Cloud Atlas', which is based upon one of my favourite literary novels by David Mitchell. It's a beautifully constructed story with one tale sitting Russian doll style within another. Several of these stories reach into the future and the far future. Check out the generous trailer below.




3) Top 100 Best Science Fiction Novels


Esteemed science fiction editor David Pringle picks out his one hundred best science fiction novels at 'Worlds Without End'. Pringle was the founder and editor of Interzone Magazine for many years and knows his stuff. His list makes interesting reading for the science fiction reader. Do you agree with the books he has included and his ranking of his favourites? Check the list out here.


4) Horus Heresy on the Tabletop


The Horus Heresy Book One - Betrayal is out. It is a supplement for Warhammer 40,000 dealing with war and battle in the dark age of the Horus Heresy. I know people have been looking forward to bringin the Horus Heresy to the tabletop for a long time. This book contains extensive background information on the Imperium as it stood at the end of the Great Crusade. Also detailed are the histories of the four Legions who took part: the Sons of Horus, Emperor's Children, World Eaters and Death Guard and an extensive campaign system. And don't forget all the beautiful pictures!

This book also contains a complete Space Marine Legion Crusade Army list as well as games rules for the Primarchs of the four Legions, super-heavy vehicles and special characters featured in the story. Got mine already. It really is a handsome book. Check it out here.


5) Does a galaxy filled with habitable planets mean humanity is doomed?


More from i09 here. An interesting article in which economist and futurist Robin Hanson from George Mason University, and philosopher Nick Bostrom from Oxford University examine humanity's chances of survival in a crowded galaxy. I'd like to think that largely being the aggressive, mindless thug of a race that we are, that our chances are fair! Read more here.

6) Predator