Projects of mine that don’t have a specific category.
Just a quick note to let folks know that the anthology for The Play’s the Thing which I contributed to is now live. It’s called By No Means Vulgar, and it features stories from Greg Stolze, Filamena Young, Jess Hartley, Will Hindmarch, J.R. Blackwell, Crysa Leflar, and Jason Corley. I contributed a short story telling Hamlet as a hard-boiled noir story. It’s only $2.99, so go check it out!
Have Blaster, Will Travel
I know that for the past several weeks my blog’s been a bit devoid of content, aside from mentioning the slew of interesting things I’ve been involved in. Most of that has been due to working on the two anthologies that hit my desk, as well as a number of podcast interviews. Further, I wrapped up one tabletop game I was running (or at least, the first season of it) and started a second. I’ve also been increasing my time at the gym, as I’ll be working with a personal trainer two to three times a week in addition to my usual cardio. There’s other personal stuff in there as well, but the practical upshot of all of it is that whenever lots of things are changing in my life, the blog is always the first thing to go.
I always intended this space to be irregularly updated as I had time, but after working on Tour de Holmes, I got used to posting at least weekly, and I feel like I’ve fallen off of that wagon. Anyhow, I’m hoping that I’ll be able to get back to more regular updates of actual content here soon. I’ve got another “What I Learned” in the back of my head, as well as another game design thought (this time about implicit rules). I also have a couple of topic requests from last year that I can get to. Finally, I’ve been kicking around an idea for a project with Meredith Gerber, but I don’t have any details to share yet.
In the meantime, one of the previously mentioned anthologies is getting a Kickstarter. This is the one for Bulldogs! called Have Blaster, Will Travel, which features some great writers like Greg Stolze, Gareth Skarka, Jared Axelrod, Christiana Ellis, and Mur Lafferty. The Kickstarter is to help fund the print run of the anthology. There’s all sorts of cool stretch goals, including hiring new writers, getting new artwork, and even (my personal favorite) getting me paid $100 more for my work! So, this is a really great way to support my work, as well as helping out Galileo Games, which is turning out to be a really smart company that puts out quality work.
I’ve been focused on work and writing a lot lately, so I haven’t had many chances to update. However, some things have broken loose that I can talk about.
The “not quite as big but still exciting” update is that Slices of Fate is now available in ePub and mobi (Kindle) formats, as well as print on demand. If you already bought the PDF, the other formats are now available for free from DriveThruFiction.com. And right now, it’s on sale! I actually get dividends from this, so please go buy a copy if you want to support my work.
The biggest is that one of the anthologies I’m slated for has been announced: Have Blaster, Will Travel, a fiction anthology for the Bulldogs! role-playing game. I’m looking forward to working on a sci-fi property, and especially excited to be working with J.R. Blackwell on the project!
It even has a book trailer!
Have Blaster, Will Travel from jrblackwell on Vimeo.
Just a quick update while I have a few minutes.
Tales of the Far West
While I’m waiting for the other formats for Slices of Fate to drop, another project I’ve worked on has arrived. Tales of the Far West is available in Kindle format, as well as through DriveThruRPG – I contributed the story “In The Name Of The Empire,” where a sheriff is charged with the murder of an Imperial Magistrate.
Imagine: A fantasy world, but not one based on Medieval/Dark Ages European culture and myth, but rather on the tropes of the Spaghetti Western and Chinese Wuxia. Add steampunk elements. Mix well.
A fantasy world that mixes the inspirations of Django and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon… The Good, The Bad & The Ugly and House of Flying Daggers… Fistful of Dollars and Fist of Legend.
A fantasy world that’s explored through a book series, a constantly-updated website, a tabletop role-playing game, comics, artwork, webseries and much, much, more.
This is FAR WEST.
If you’re curious to learn a little of the process I used while writing the story, you can read this series of posts:
Go! Buy Tales of the Far West! Spread the word! It’s a dozen stories of wuxia-western-steampunk-fantasy awesomeness!
Starting on Friday, I have 11 days of vacation set up. Of course, I’ll still be doing a little White Wolf work during that time (because “vacation” really means “a chance to catch up on work”), but I really do want to try and relax. So, the first announcement is that I’m planning to be less available on the Internet during that time. I have vacation responders set up for both of my email accounts, I won’t be on social networks as much, I won’t be updating this blog, and so on. I’m not going to be completely off the grid, but I do need some time away and live in my own head for a bit.
Part of the reason I’m doing that is that I want to finish off my Hamlet short story, and then roll right into revising and expanding my book of Tour de Holmes essays. Aside from comments on each of the stories, I also have in mind a discussion of Smart Watson vs. Dumb Watson, the popularity of Moriarty over the other (and sometimes more visible) villains in the canon, Holmes’ cocaine use, Watson’s wives, and (if I hate myself enough) the chronology of the cases.
So, faithful audience, what topics of the Sherlock Holmes canon would you like me to discuss/rant about in such a manuscript?
Cover for Slices of Fate
I’ll have more (likely a lot more) to talk about with this once it’s live, but for now I just wanted to pass along this press release. Thanks to Monica Valentinelli, Matt McElroy, and Jason Blair for helping me with this!
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FR Press Announces Slices of Fate, the Collected Works of Author Eddy Webb
December 2011, Madison, Wisconsin — Matt M McElroy, Publisher of FR Press, announced today that Slices of Fate, the collected works of author Eddy Webb, will debut early December 2011.
“Slices of Fate is a collection that spans the depth and breadth of Webb’s work,” said editor Monica Valentinelli. “Arranged chronologically, this is a beautiful representation of the stories and voices Webb has to offer his readers.”
Stories range from the author’s nod to literary tales like “A Sheepish Trip to Yorkshire” to more speculative works like “The Battlefield.” Essays include a series on two of Webb’s loves: wrestling and Sherlock Holmes. Combined with several pieces of microfiction, the collection is an in-depth representation of the author’s work thus far.
Both digital and print editions of the collection will be available through online retailers like DriveThruFiction.com in early December 2011.
About Eddy Webb: Eddy Webb (with a “y,” thank you) is a writer, podcaster, game designer, and transmedia developer. Hired on with CCP/White Wolf in late 2007, he currently designs content for the World of Darkness MMO. He lives a sitcom life with his wife, his roommate, a supervillain cat, and two pug dogs.
On the web: http://eddyfate.com
Twitter: @eddyfate
About Monica Valentinelli: Monica Valentinelli is an author and game designer who lurks in the dark. Her work has been published by several companies ranging from Crackle.com to Eden Studios. Her editing credits include Haunted: 11 Tales of Ghostly Horror and Ninja Burger 2nd Edition.
On the web: http://www.mlvwrites.com
Twitter: @mlvalentine
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Monica-Valentinelli/209618519050005
About FR Press: FR Press is the publishing arm of popular horror and dark fantasy webzine FlamesRising.com. FR Press’s recent releases include Haunted: 11 Tales of Ghostly Horror and Conventions for the Aspiring Game Professional.
On the web: http://www.flamesrising.com
Press Contact: Monica Valentinelli
Email Address: monica@mlvwrites.com