Adventues in SciFi Publishing: Nightborn

Today, I am a guest on the Adventures in Scifi Publishing podcast episode 307, talking about Nightborn, world building, writing for middle readers, transitioning from one side of the desk to another, and role playing games, among other things. Shout outs to Rpg G Amer-Dad and a big discussion of Evil Hat Productions' Fate (role-playing game system). Check it out here!

Sit, Write, Bleed... Talk!

Today, Sit.Write.Bleed posts a review of Frostborn (Thrones and Bones).I'm very gratified by the

words, which, though not without criticism, say:

This isn't my Hobbit, but after reading it twice through, I am almost certain it would have been if I was eleven in 2014. Anders has crafted a tale filled with ages-old themes and lessons that I think are often missing from a lot of today's fantasy, be it Middle-Grade or Adult. Friendship, Courage, Intelligence, and Trust--these are things that are often assumed to be in the background of every children's novel, but rarely are they talked about openly and pursued passionately, let alone done well. I believe this to be a major reason why I dislike Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson series so much--when it is done out in the open it is too campy to my taste, and when it hidden in the background I just don't care. Anders falls more in with JK Rowling and Lloyd Alexander, so much so with the latter that I almost felt like I was reading The Book of Three (another classic everyone should read.) To put a point on it, I was taken on a great adventure and learned something.

Meanwhile, I'm interviewed on Adventures in SciFi Publishing. I used to be a frequent guest of the show, though haven't been on since host/founder Shaun Farrell stepped away. Now Shaun has returned (yay!) and I join him, Moses Siregar, and Brent Bowen for a discussion of:

• Worldbuilding with the help of modern technology;
• Gaming culture and how that works in medieval societies;
• The distinction between YA and middle grade writing;
• Traveling to Norway to research the setting and cultural inspiration for Norrengard;
• Working with Robert Lazzarreti;
• The incredible video game found on the Thrones and Bones website, not mention other media tie-in products and experiences!
• Fractal Terrains 3, which Lou used to design his world;
• Shooting Vikings (context in the interview!);
• How important gaming can be to developing world-building skills. Lou loves Skyrim, by the way;
• Testing the module for the Thrones and Bones game with Howard Andrews Jones, Howard Tayler, Scott Lynch, Dave Gross, and Saladin Ahmed.

Podcast: James Enge on Adventures in SciFi Publishing

James Enge, author of A Guile of Dragons (A Tournament of Shadows, Book 1), is a guest of Adventures in SciFi Publishing as part of an indepth, two part interview. Here is Part One and Part Two (and the episodes are available for download on iTunes).


They discuss Jack Vance, writing political fiction without pushing political agendas, how his University colleagues view his novels, writing “Philosophical romance shot through with elements of horror and morbidity,” the potentially negative impact of higher education on imagination, writing for popular appeal and much more.

Adventures in SciFi Publishing

The latest episode of Adventures in SciFi Publishing features an interview with The Desert of Souls author and Black Gate managing editor Howard Andrew Jones.  They talk about the novel (which sounds great), his other novel, Black Gate's plans for the future, and the importance of heroes. At the end, I return for my first "Ask the Editor" segment in some time. I appear to be panting, as the segment was taped as I paced back and forth around my den, but hopefully there's some information in amid the heavy breathing.

Podcast: My "umpteenth appearance" on AISFP

Post Show Toy Hunt

I've been honored to be a frequent guest on Shaun Farrell's excellent Adventures in SciFi Publishing podcast. The show has really grown in it's almost-100 episodes(!) and I've loved every one. When I was recently at the San Diego Comic Con in July, I got to be on Adventures in SciFi Publishing 2.0. Shaun and I sat down with coffee, muffins, and only minimal background noise, to talk about my anthologies Masked, Swords & Dark Magic (with Jonathan Strahan), ebooks, the various big conventions, and several forthcoming Pyr titles (among them Tome of the Undergates and The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack). I'm very pleased with how this interview turned out too (even if I don't look it in that photo). You can listen to it here at the direct link, or download on iTunes.

The Man Behind the Magic

AgeofMisrule and forthcoming The Silver Skull (Swords of Albion)author Mark Chadbourn is the latest guest on Shaun Farrell's magnificent podcast, Adventures in SciFi Publishing. Mark and Shaun discuss spy-fantasy, Mark’s love of history and mythology, and how Mark balances a fulltime television career with novel writing demands.