S.E.’s Comments (group member since Nov 01, 2012)

S.E.’s comments from the Sword & Sorcery: "An earthier sort of fantasy" group.

S.E. wrote: "Any new release is fair game. For this genre, anything after 2000 is "new" given that it was born ~1930. Some recent discussions indicate the below will be tackled...but you are invited to read/di..."

Barbarian Crowns was also mentioned as a new release to read:

New Releases and We Are All Legends are our Sept-Oct Group read topics!

New Release DISCUSSION link

We Are All Legends DISCUSSION link

And the banner...


L-->R
We Are All Legends by Darrell Schweitzer, interior art by Stephen Fabian 1981
Seven Princes by John R. Fultz, cover art by Richard Anderson 2011
King of The Bastards by Brian Keene and Steven Shrewsbury, coverart by 2015 Daniel Kamarudin
Stealer of Flesh by William King, cover art by unknown (2013)

Any new release is fair game. For this genre, anything after 2000 is "new" given that it was born ~1930. Some recent discussions indicate the below will be tackled...but you are invited to read/discuss anything:
1-Seven Princes by John R. Fultz,
2-King of The Bastards by Brian Keene and Steven Shrewsbury
3-Stealer of Flesh by William King

In the vein of cursed, wandering Kane, Darrell Schweitzer's apostate warrior (in We Are All Legends) is a must read for Sword & Sorcery fans... well I think so anyway. Read and discuss this weird fiction take on adventure!

S.wagenaar, the Shaper series looks more like Clark Ashton Smith than REH, but still Swords and Sorcery .... So I'm in.

This discussion helps for the banner and my to-read pile. I was thinking of John Fultz's Seven Princes (book of the shaper series too).

Jack, Stealer of Flesh looks good (free on Amazon.com kindle too). Thx

Steve, best of luck to you and your nerves. If things go well, feel welcome to spread the word. And if not, we can provide therapy of some sort. Given your expertise in beer, you should be drinking in any case! Which brew calms nerves ?

Steve wrote: "Thanks, S.E.! I am shopping an historical pirate thriller novel now, and working on a sequel. Not sure when I will get back to Faceless Sons."

I'm patient, but I pledge to keep harping. A historical pirate thriller sounds very interesting. Are you already done with a manuscript...just looking for a publisher?

Jack wrote: "Fun review, sounds like a winner. Added to my list to read soon."

I agree with Steve as per my review of The Bones of the Old Ones. I also like Steve's writing and still crave for more "Mask Oath" stories.

S.wagenaar wrote: "King of the Bastards by Steven Shrewsbury and Brian Keene."

Thx S.wagenaar.

All, it looks like "New releases" will win the key spot for the next group read (We Are All Legends being the second). For the image banner... I need help selecting some covers!
Suggestions anyone?

Derek, I haven't but I own the third (quest for the white witch). I understand that the second book deals with the witch's son. I am only 1/3 done with Birthgrave. I'd like to here feedback of the rest of the series too.

Got past the impressive chariot race in Birthgrave. Good dark stuff so far.

Ashe wrote: "Yeah, Ragnarok is good stuff. They just released a short story collection for Edward M. Erdelac too."

Aug 16th 2015... Tim Marquitz has his Demon Squad series on sale for ~1USD each currently. I just grabbed the Kindle of Blood Wars for free = Dawn of War.

Ashe wrote: "I bought Demon Squad 1 finally but I've known Tim in varying degrees for a while now, and he's a great guy. Very in love with the business and loves genre. On top of that, some family stuff has pop..."

I do not know Tim's work yet, but he is the editor-in-chief of Ragnarok Publications. Also, I have begun to follow Grimdark Magazine and he seems connected with it... he's on the judging panel of the Excerpt Battle-Off competition:
http://grimdarkmagazine.com/pages/the...

S.Wagenaar, I hope you finish your WIP. For others interested, the submission time is still open for a few weeks. I copy the key bits from the URL below:
http://grimdarkmagazine.com/pages/the...

Sounds awesome! How will the Battle-Off work?

Send your 1,000-word entry to competitions@grimdarkmagazine.com between 00:01 AEST 15-Aug-2015 and 23:59 AEST 14-Sep-2015 (Australian Eastern Standard Time). Entries sent outside of this timeframe, or to one of our other addresses, won't be accepted. Depending on the amount of entries received, a cap may be introduced at our own discretion.

A voting system will be set up on our website and readers encouraged to read and vote on pieces. The leaderboard will be updated as votes come in. Each piece will have its own page and cover image. Our affiliate links to your Amazon/Apple/etc sale sites will be posted beneath each work should readers decided to find out more or purchase your book.

Once the author window is completed, the voting will remain open until 15-Oct-2015.

Our judging panel will make a decision on the top 3 by early November, 2015

The winners will be announced and prizes awarded in November, 2015.

Anything else I need to know before entering?

There are a few last items that are hard-and-fast rules
-The author must be a self-published or published by a small-publisher and have their books up for sale on, at a minimum, Amazon.com, or iBooks, or Kobo.
-The author must provide an excerpt and cover image to be placed on Grimdark Magazine's website free of charge. Novellas and short stories published on the aforementioned platforms are fine. WIPs aren't accepted.
-The excerpt must not exceed one thousand (1,000) words, exclusive of the title, author name, associate links, etc.
-The excerpt must be submitted to competitions@grimdarkmagazine.com in either doc or docx. No other formats will be accepted. Entries provided in other formats will be rejected without being read.
-The excerpt must portray a battle (e.g. two substantial forces engaging in conflict - not 1 vs 1 or squad vs squad). This can include fleets (ocean-based and space-based), planes, jetbikes, dinosaur mounts, etc.
-The excerpt must have a fantasy or sci-fi setting.
Our voting system has a cheat prevention system. If it overdoes it and blocks your vote, please contact me on adrian@grimdarkmagazine.com.

In the case of a tie for a prize, the judging panel will be expanded by one member to provide a resolution. We will source this panel member when and if they are required.
Good to go?

At 00:01 on the 15-AUG-2015 AEST, the submissions email address will open. We're looking forward to seeing your submission!

Grimdark Magazine's Battle-Off competition has begun (Aug 2015), and excerpts are rolling in. Please support your fellow Grimdark authors!

<1000word entries of epic grim fantasy await your feedback and voting! Please support me and other grimdark authors. The list of entries is just being populated now (Aug 16th):
http://grimdarkmagazine.com/pages/the...

Lords of Dyscrasia's excerpt is there: "Lysis carved into their ranks with Ferrus Eviscamir, its blade slicing only their bones, invisible to metal and flesh and incapable of being parried or blocked...."

S.wagenaar, Barbarian Crowns sounds interesting. Report back with a review if you will. It may be a good one for next month's group read (new S&S)!

All,

We'll need an extra vote or two to break a runner-up tie:
https://www.goodreads.com/poll/list/8...