Hello everyone!

Well, on the good side, the kidney infection I had that started last Saturday has cleared up. That had really gotten in the way of things, but now I can hopefully dive into things with more gusto.

This should be a shortish blog post because of that, but I have got a fair amount done, despite that.

First off, straight into writing news, I left last week with having completed all the background and notes for a swashbuckling fantasy background that I'd like to write several stories in. I'd got the setting and characters done and also had laid out synopses and chapter plans for a short story and a novella. This, by the way, is the setting that I'd researched a lot into the history of the Anglo-Scottish borders between the Norman Conquest and the end of the Elizabethan period. I still intend to delve into that and things are ready for when I do.

What I did do, instead of knuckling down and concentrating on those two stories, was... to plan a Gwaeloch Irisgarth story - the setting that I have several first drafts in about an elven barbarian. I've the plans down for that now. I wanted to do something that was like a dungeon delve, with a party of heroes sent to defeat an ancient subterranean terror. I know its based on a cliche, but I really wanted to give that cliche a twist. So, I wanted all the heroes to have turned on each other by the end, for greed or their own personal agendas to have screwed the party over by the end. I though twisting a cliche would be a really fun concept.

So, I was going to knuckle down and get that story down as a first draft, but got distracted again.

On Twitter - I still use it a lot and has still found it to be a very useful tool despite a certain owner's tampering - I seem to have fallen in with a few Splatterpunk authors to some degree. One of the author's I've done a review on some of her work. the review you can read here. Anyway, I wanted to try my hand at a Fantasy Splatterpunk story, doing a Grindhouse style story, something in the veins of Dirty Harry or Death Wish, but in a fantasy setting. I'm currently in the process of planning that out. I also wanted to turn the Sword and Sorcery concept on its head a little where instead of some burly barbarian going up a wizard and his retinue, an apprentice goes up against gangster and outlaws, mundane troubles in search of getting revenge for his master's death, whether I make this a single novella or a series of short stories, I'm unsure at the moment. I think it could be fun. I'm going to try and not channel some of Kim Newman's Filthy Harald stories while doing it.

By next week, I should have knuckled down to actually write one of these stories. I may even have returned to that extra long novella I started a few months ago, but I think I still need a break from that and will get some other projects done.

One thing I really want is to have two or three novellas ready to release as soon as I can. I'm not sure why I'm having difficulty getting that aim completed. I have a few thoughts that I have some anxiety about it to the point that its a bit problematic. I sort of want to rush these and bust through a set of first drafts, but getting an adequate set finished seems to not be on the cards yet. I think I'm pressurizing myself too much about it, which gets in the way.

Anyway, that's the writing updates over.

Now onto a bit of gaming. This week I managed to get my copy of Crypt of the Devil Lich by Goodman Games. It's a Kichstarter that I backed about two years ago, and after a bit of a kerfuffle trying to organise the courier properly, I finally got my grubby mits on it.

If you'll excuse the quality of some of the photo's, I don't have the best of phones to take photos with. I hope to do an actual review on it and I'll have better photos up for that. This is basically a sort of unboxing. So, here's what I got:

Crypt of the Devil Lich,
by Goodman Games,
entire Kickstarter pledge
with stretch goals

Crypt of the Devil Lich DnD 5E cover

Stretch goal pack
for Crypt of the Devil Lich

Goodman Games Gazeteer with
Crypt of the Devil Lich postcard

Designer Diaries for
Crypt of the Devil Lich

The Lost Level for
Crypt of the Devil Lich
DCC edition,
Doug Kovaks cover

Player Handout Booklet for
Crypt of the Devil Lich,
for DCC and DnD 5e,
Doug Kovaks Cover

I got wasted by the Devil Lich poster,
New Doug Kocaks edition

I got wasted by the Devil Lich poster,
original version

What I had done originally was to back both the Dungeon Crawl Classics version of the scenario, and also the 5E DnD edition too. I'm really pleased with what came with it all. It was a really big Kickstarter and many of the stretch goals were reached, including a couple of posters of the modern cover and the original. There were a couple of options for covers too, with a holographic option, a Sanjulian cover and one by Doug Kovacs. there was a lost level in its own booklet, and handout likewise printed, and also pre-generated characters in their own booklet too. there was even a designers notes booklet too. I'm quite impressed by what is included. Though it took two years to arrive, and there was a couple of bits of drama along the way, I do appreciate the amount of extra effort that went into their production.

If you would like to get a copy, they are currently at the time of writing, able to be pre-ordered. If you would like the DnD 5E edition you can get it here. If you would like the DCC edition you can get it here. I'm unsure if much of the Kickstarter stuff will be included in the pre-order volumes, but you can always get in touch with Goodman games and ask.

I have the Dungeon Crawl Classics rules system and it's sci-fi Mutant Crawl Classics version, but wanted to get a couple of scenarios in before investing in the DnD rules set. But to be honest, because of all the drama surrounding Wizards of the Coast, I'm currently reluctant in investing in the 5E DnD rules set just yet. Regardless, DCC is a great game, really fun, based in the OSR and has some quirky stuff to do with magic and the dice used and has a real pulp feel to them. I'm probably going to have a lot more fun running that than I would DnD 5E to be honest.

I should eventually do a review on DCC at some point, or some game play blog posts or videos.

That is pretty much it for this week. All that I'm left with to say is that for those that have read to the end and quite enjoy this section, while I've been writing this post, I've had a couple of mugs of lovely builder's tea and I've been watching an MWG Table Top Games battle report of Warhammer Fantasy Armies Project where Lizardmen battled against the Vampire Counts.

All the best for the coming week and I hope to see you all soon.

 Hello everyone!

Well, this last week has been a busy writing week for me, which is nice.

I was wondering whether to postpone this post a few more days until I'd finished the first draft of my current novella, but that may still a little while off nonetheless. I should still finish it during the week, over the next couple of days or so in fact, but still.

I had wondered if I may have been able to have finished it by now, but that wasn't the case, where I had wondered originally - a few months ago - if it would total 25,000 words, I did start wondering if it would be nearer 12,000 words when I made my last post. But its currently totalling a little over 19,000 words and I've still the main climax and conclusory passage to do, so it probably will be nearer 25,000 words like I originally thought.

What that means is that I'll have the first draft of a novella that will be 60 to 70 pages long.

But enough numerical stuff. I should have this done by Friday, which is good because my main character, Gwaeloch Irisgarth is to be accompanied by a version of a friend of mine who will appear as a wizard's apprentice. I really am hoping to have it completed by Friday as it will be her birthday then and it'll make a nice little present for her, even if it is in rough form.

Yes, I've just to somehow work out how to do a four way showdown - with a liche and a being from the stars, and the apprentice's old master, and someone who'd previously captured the heroic duo. Easy (suppresses a mild sense of panic deep down inside).

But otherwise, in my writing world, nothing much has taken place. I am still enjoying Jungle Tomb of the Mummy Bride for DCC with all its added content.

Jungle Tomb of the Mummy Bride,
for Dungeon Crawl Classics - DCC

It really is a good book with plenty of options to expand the original quest and to probably triple or quadruple its run time. It really fleshes out the jungle around the Mummy Bride's tomb with snake men, cannibals, fungal men of universal knowledge and other things.

Other  than that, there isn't really much else to say about things. Next week, I should definitely have the current novella first draft finished and should have either started or be planning the next first draft - there is a small selection of stories I'd like to write, in various states of preparation. Its just a choice of which to work on first.

 Hello everyone!

Well, that was a good writing week. I'm really quite pleased with progress so far. To be honest, I had planned on making a post on Monday, but to be honest, I'd lost track of time. So, here we go.

I still feel a bit awkward about how life had got in the way before with writing and to be honest, I'm not really sure how to think about it, it still feels a bit of a weird two or three weeks having to divert my attention so whole-heartedly.

But needless to say, I'm back writing and have managed to dedicate much of every day over the last nine days to writing, though I did have to start the novella over again, which is a shame.

Looking back, I wasn't too happy about the way that the original draft was going, so starting again was probably for the best. The previous draft had taken three weeks to get half way through - about ten thousand words - and though its looking to be a shorter story than expected, not by much but after nine days, I'm at the same word count and I think the first draft could total around seventeen thousand words.

I seem to be averaging about one thousand one hundred words a day. Its not much, but its manageable for me. I think I could have the rest of the story finished by next Tuesday. Its the day after I normally do a blog post, but I may hold off on the next post until then so that I can fully update folks on things and plans. I think I know what I'll be doing next, but I'll wait until then to write about it.

Anyway, you may be asking what this novella is about. Well, in short, its about an elf barbarian called Gwaeloch Irisgarth who gets employed by a wizard apprentice called Yasmina Bruhns - who is actually based on a friend who gave me permission to do so - to help find her mistress, a fully qualified wizard who lives deep in an ancient forest that covers a vast area. They think the wizard had gone after something called the Royal Star, and on the way, they get involved with evil satyrs and also find a ruined elven city, dead for centuries, filled with the undead. And things culminate there.

Its a story that I've been trying to get my head around for a few months and its been a bit difficult. I've not really been used to writing something so long and its been hard planning to get the level of content suitable for a story two or three times the length of what I'm used to. To be honest, its wound me up quite a lot on occasion and I had originally planned to have this ready for publication with another novella by Christmas and that hasn't happened. Its sort of something that's really got to me, even if I don't always like to admit it.

Its one of those things, sometimes and for some reasons that I'm not sure I fully understand, I sometimes have great anxiety over projects. I think it stems from a time when I was basically anorexic and a workoholic and had to give up writing for a while to recover. I even ended up in hospital a couple of times with a suspected heart attack.

I think some of my anxiety around trying to get fully back into writing is down to that. If anyone has any tips to help, that would be great as I do feel that I still pressurize myself with it a lot and I want to get passed that. I keep remembering the days where I used to be able to do seventeen thousand words a day - a word count I've only heard of Michael Moorcock rivalling when he was on cocaine.

I realise that's not practical in the slightest, but improving my daily word count would be great too. I'd sort of like to average about four to five thousand words a day, but at best, I manage half that and it sort of feels a bit disappointing. Anyway, if anyone has any times about that too - improving word count, please let me know.

Anyway, that's enough from me. To be honest, I can't really think of anything else that's particularly bloggable at this time, other than me ordering an all female dwarf Blood Bowl team, but that's still to arrive. I still want to get the main box set to learn the game. I miss it. I may even do a write up of some games or some videos or something once that's sorted.

All Female Dwarf Blood Bowl Team

With that all out of the way and with part of that getting a lot deeper than I thought it would, I just want to wish everyone good health and prosperity.

Bye bye everyone!