New and Exciting #14: Coming Down the Pike

Sensica V
(look for theblood stains)

Hey all!

It's been a busy year, and I've been out of touch for far too long. I'm way overdue for updating y'all, and some interesting projects loom in the future. So without further ado...


What I've Been Up To
Last Adventure
Those of you who follow my work, probably know about the last published adventure, Citadel of Pain. Feedback from fans has been marvelous and Erik the publisher over at Gaming Paper, told me he was happy with sales. So, thank you all!

New Blog Site
I'm writing a novel. There, I said it. I own it, and I've decided to blog it as I learn the form and craft. Putting the decision into action, I built and launched this website: www.bootstrapfiction.com  I cooked down multiple learn-to-write-novels/teach-yourself-to-write from the books on my shelf into one A-Z course, centered around Michael Stackpole's 21 Days to a Novel. Now I'm taking the course I designed as I write my first book. Take a peek and maybe join me for the ride.


What I'm Currently Up To
Sinister Stuff 
I've been in discussions with Nick Logue and took a hard look at some of the work I did for his (now defunct) Sinister Adventures. Two things have come out of that so far: Fire as She Bears and The Known Universe Gazetteer (the KUG).

1. Rite Publishing has agreed to launch a patronage project for Fire as She Bears. For those of you not following the saga, Fire as She Bears was a contest I conceived and launched under the Sinister banner looking for the best rules to handle d20/Pathfinder ship-to-ship combat. I want Age of Sail full broadsides in a Master and Commander mode that fits seamlessly into any d20/Pathfinder game -- and I want every player doing something awesome every turn. No one should ever sit twiddling thumbs while cannons blast and boarding parties rage! I'm very excited about this. My next job is to get Steve the manuscript, and I'm working on converting the draft to a final now. The interested should check back in for more blog posts and updates on the project.

2. Nick turned the entirety of the Known Universe Gazetteer over to me. Lock stock and barrel, including rights to all the art he bought (see example at the top of this post) -- most of it downright awesome -- and I plan to publish the book myself. The KUG is a space setting written for d20 modern. I'm looking into Pathfinder and Traveler conversion -- let me know if there are any other systems that interest you. This book of aliens, monsters, polities, hooks, deadly planets, colorful characters, hooks, and assorted bizarre and macabre space nastiness was written by the Werecabbages, most of them Paizo fan favorites, and I think its pretty awesome. No timetable just yet, but I'm doing it. I'm also talking to my cousin Tiara (Smallville, Leverage) about layout (http://tiararocks.com/); so, we may wind up with some pretty awesome design. Finally, I'm changing the name -- suggestions welcome -- as "the Known Universe" is a working title with no connection to other intellectual properties of the same name.

Now, here's the bad news: Sinister had no plans to release the product, and I'm not meeting any of Nick's preorder obligations on it. Sorry. I just cannot afford to do so. Nick owed you that money. He still owes you that money.


Here's the good news: I'm not going to make any money off of this. It's a labor of love, driven by loyalty to the authors who worked so hard on it and my craving for creative closure. As a result, I plan to give the PDF for free to anyone who can show they pre-ordered from Nick. After which he still owes you your money. I also plan to offer the print-on-demand version at cost to everyone. I don't want to make a dime for myself, and I'm cool with that. More details as this firms up. Timetables and such when I can commit to them, but not before! :)

What I'm Getting Up To
A New Adventure
A ways back Nick and I wrote an adventure for the Dungeon Magazine. They accepted it and planned to release it, just before our beloved magazine died. It was titled "Scorned" and it saddened me, immensely, that this very fun piece never saw print. It was also the last adventure Nick every worked on for Dungeon. Recently, Nick released all the rights to me. It's been Pathfinderized, and I've turned it over to Greg Vaughan at Frog God Games. Word is he's going to publish it; I'm just not sure when. Keep yer eyes pealed if it interests you, and I'll update you whenever I know more.


A New Piece on Flintlocks
For Sinister Adventures, I wrote a mechanics piece -- intended as a companion to Shackleton's wonderful Art of the Duel -- on flintlocks. It never saw the light of day, but its been Pathfinderized by John Ling, and I found another publisher for it. A great 3PP I respect and admire. Don't want to say who until I hear about a publication date, but it should be coming out for Pathfinder in (hopefully) early-mid 2012. Very happy to see this come to closure as well. Again, as I hear more I'll post here.

That's about all for now. Thanks, dear reader, for hanging in there! More words soon.