Bridgewater

Posted on by

I have been a comic book fan since I was a kid. I know waaaaay too much about the mid-200s issues of Incredible Hulk, I have a complete run of the Denny O’Neil Question series, and until its mysterious disappearance, I had an original sketch of Malekith the Dark Elf by Walt Simonson gracing my office. But my efforts to actually write comics always sort of foundered. I did a couple of short pieces for White Wolf back in the day – the example of play in Wraith 2nd Edition and the opener to Corax – but mostly it was stuff like my former employer asking me to write comics scripts for tie-ins to a game I had worked on, receiving the scripts, and then claiming that they never existed in the first place and I had no idea what I was talking about.

So it gives me great pleasure to announce that coming soon from Delcourt will be my first official foray into writing a graphic novel. I am co-authoring a horror project called Bridgewater with the legendary French graphic novelist Matz. Art will be by the mighty Aurélien Morinière. And it’s going to be creepy as hell.

Looking forward to telling you more!

Space AND Time All In One Place

Posted on by

Really happy to announce that the spring/summer issue of Space and Time magazine (#148) is now loose in the wild. This issue features my story “Used Sleep”, which is my take on the old “magical store that is sometimes there and sometimes not there” trope, though since this is one of my stories, it may not end well for all concerned….

Hope you enjoy it!

 

 

AuthorCon V and Cruise to the Edge

Posted on by

Last weekend I was at Scares That Cares AuthorCon V, a charity horror writers’ convention in Williamsburg, VA. I go every year and it’s a great time. Lots of horror fans, lots of horror authors, and apart from my inflatable Sasquatch costume trying to kill me during a charity event Saturday night, it went great. Always lovely seeing folks there, catching up with old friends and making new ones, and I told the True Story of the Zombie Frog many, many times.

Tomorrow I take off for Cruise to the Edge, a 5-day journey….someplace. I mean, honestly, I don’t care. There are going to be bands I love that I never thought I would ever see live on that ship, and so I’m staying on board the whole time. The real issue, apart from the fact that I haven’t been on a cruise in something like 20 years and have no idea what I am doing, is that I need to figure out which prog rock concert t-shirts I’m bringing. Too obscure might seem like a flex. Too common might seem like I’m a poser. Decisions, decisions….

 

Writing Update

Posted on by

Just got in off the road from GDC, just about to roll out to AuthorCon, but I’ll talk about both of those later. In the meantime, here’s an update on my current writing projects…

  • Just finished my second short of the year, a non horror ghost story called “Letters To The Dead”. It’s with readers now and I am looking forward to feedback.
  • I should have two stories hitting next month: “Used Sleep” in Space and Time, and “Paws” in Black Cat Weekly.
  • I have six stories out for submission, plus another two I am looking for the right market to sub to. Another story has been pulled from the submission rotation because upon due consideration, it seemed likely that the underlying themes might get misread in a way at odds with my intent.
  • I have one completed novel on sub with a publisher and with agents. I am also waiting to hear back from a publisher on a second novel pitch, featuring my recurring Reb Palache character.
  • I owe one anthology a story that is mostly complete. I have been asked by another editor to send a story along. Beyond that I have eight stories in partial stages of completion, which I intend to wrap up this year.
  • My non fiction book The Video Game Writer’s Guide To Surviving an Industry That Hates You, has a release date. I should be getting proofs shortly, and I had a great chat with my editor while at GDC. I will be announcing the release date and preorder links as soon as the cover art is ready.
  • I have two unannounced projects in progress. More details soon, I hope.
  • My card game, Squatches and Scotches, is under review by multiple publishers. I look forward to hearing back, hopefully with good news.
  • And I am keeping up my ongoing twice a week LinkedIn posts on game narrative, for reasons I will go into another time.
This….feels like a lot, especially on top of a writing based day job that I enjoy immensely. Some folks want to know how I can do it. Some folks think I am lying.
I am not lying.
The secret is twofold. One, many of these projects have evolved over time. I am not writing all the things every night. These are carefully prioritized and sequenced to ensure things are actually getting knocked out as needed.
Two, a steady application of words every night goes a long way towards creating substantial output. I have had my 10000 word days and even a 20000 word day or two. But I find hitting a hard minimum of 500 words per, with room to do more if my muse is feeling randy, ends up producing more than you would think.
Throw in the facts that my romantic partner lives in Albany, my cats have gone on to The Great Comfy Couch In The Sky, and I fell out of the television habit in 2016, and I generally have plenty of time to write every night.
Your mileage may of course vary. But this is what I’ve got.

North Carolina DoubleHeader

Posted on by

Saturday, March 15 is going to be a busy day.

During the day, I’ll be down at the Lee County Local Authors Festival in lovely Sanford, NC. I’ll be there 10-4 with all sorts of books, including the re-released versions of my fantasy trilogy set in the Exalted RPG universe.

And once that’s done, I’m hopping the car and heading to Wilson, where there’s a Noir at the Bar at the lovely Larema Coffeehouse. Join me and some amazing authors like award-winner Mur Lafferty and rising star Jes Malitoris as we unleash verbiage beyond imagination!

 

 

This Week In Review/Preview

Posted on by

Earlier in the week, the nice folks at the GenCon Writers’ Symposium posted a short interview they did with me about, well writing. You can check it out here.

Coming up this Sunday, I will be teaching a workshop on video game writing at the Orange County Library in Hillsborough, NC! All the details are here, and it’s not too late to grab one of the few remaining seats.  Did I mention it’s free?

 

Nevermore 2025

Posted on by

Last week was the fun-filled Ret-Con, where I shared a table with my friend Holly Morris of Conjured Concepts art, hosted the rambunctious Thomas R. Clark, and got to hang out with folks like the delightful Michael Williams and Nicole Givens Kurtz. I also got to take an elevator ride with Lou Ferrigno, who was in town to do a signing at a local comics shop and who had unfortunately been booked into the one hotel in the area hosting a nerd-fest where he was recognized instantly.

For the record, I directed Mr. Ferrigno to the elevator, rode up to the fourth floor along with him, and wished him a pleasant evening. Absolutely no fanboying whatsoever.

But this weekend, Friday and Saturday, I will be holding down a table at the legendary Nevermore Film Festival at the Carolina Theatre in Durham. For those of you who are unfamiliar with it, it’s a 3 day long extravaganza of independent horror films from all over, including short films and feature length ones as well. Last year’s slate included the Zom-Rom-Com All You Need Is Blood, which is possibly the funniest movie I have seen in the last ten years. This year, I once again have no idea about any of these films, but it looks like a great lineup once again.

Hope to see you there!


 

 

The Trilogy of the Second Age Is Back In Print

Posted on by

Way back in the day, I did a trilogy of fantasy novels as a tie-in to the wildly over the top fantasy TTRPG Exalted. Called the Trilogy of the Second Age, they featured swordplay, derring-do, magic, heroism, villainy, and a brief examination of the practical problems with being a walking corpse hitching a ride on the underside of a boat.

They went out of print ages ago.

But now, thanks to Crossroad Press, they’re back.

Ebooks and print books are here. Audiobooks are coming.

Check them out!

The End (of the Manuscript) Is Nigh!

Posted on by

I am rapidly closing in on the finish line for my first full non-fiction book (unless you count uncredited work in various video game-related projects), The Video Game Writer’s Guide To Surviving An Industry That Hates You. It’s a book that I jokingly tell people that I have been writing for 25 years, but there’s a kernel of truth to that.

What the book is, is a guide to navigating the ins and outs and day to day of being a working video game writer. Very little of it is about how to write. Most of it is about how to survive as a writer, navigating team dynamics, deliverables, feedback loops, career building, and more. In other words, it’s about the stuff they don’t and largely can’t teach you in school.

I’ve been doing this a long time, and at times it feels like I’ve hit every pothole on the professional road. Now, though, I am at a place in my career where I can dispense some knowledge in good conscience with the hopes of hoping other people out. I don’t claim to know everything, and I know my circumstances have been weird even by the standards of the video game industry. But I have been there for some big games and some big moments and some big disasters, and I have some stories to tell that I think will simultaneously amuse and instruct.

In any case, I have completed the first draft of the manuscript and sent it to readers for feedback. This, I am already in the process of incorporating. With luck, what will emerge will be equal parts entertaining and educational, clear-eyed and encouraging.

We shall see…