Stormslayer - 9 out of 10!

Jon Oliver kindly directed me towards this review of my Fighting Fantasy adventure gamebook Stormslayer over at Fantasy Book Review.

It's almost wholly positive, except for the bit where the reviewer

says, "The story feels a little lacking in originality at times." What's that supposed to mean? I mean, has he played many meteorology-based gamebooks before?

I am aware that this last comment may come across as a little petty, but it annoys me when reviewers make such sweeping statements without backing them up. What was it about the adventure that lacked originality? Going down a Dwarf mine in a drilling machine and battling a giant golem made of rusted pit props? Exploring the inside of a volcano? Battling the villain aboard a flying brass fish? And if it's so unoriginal, why give it 9 out of 10?

Reading reviews can be a harrowing experience, but if somebody makes a criticism I always try to take it on board, as I am always striving to improve as a writer and if nobody ever comments on your work you're never going to know where you need to up your game.

So, 9 out of 10 - great! Sweeping generalisations without any examples to back them up - a tad annoying.

Until next time...

Howl of the Werewolf - the Fighting Fantasy fans favourite gamebook!

The long-awaited Fighting Fantazine #5 is here and includes a fantastic cover by Natalie Gingerboom, an interview with one of my favourite (and most under-used FF artists) John Sibbick, the massive amateur adventure Bones of the Banished, news of the revised Advanced Fighting Fantasy range, and the readers' poll to find out the most popular Fighting Fantasy gamebook.

It's that last part that I'd particularly like to draw your attention to here.

Seventy different gamebooks feature in the readers' poll and mine are ranked as follows:

45= - Curse of the Mummy

31= - Knights of Doom

31= - Night of the Necromancer

30 - Spellbreaker

23= - Bloodbones

23= - Stormslayer

1 - Howl of the Werewolf

Yes, you read that right - Howl of the Werewolf topped the survey with an overall score of 84.6% (Plot 85.8%, Gameplay 82.5%, Atmosphere 88.3%, Illustrations 81.7%). I have to say that I am utterly thrilled (needless to say) but should also mention that without Martin McKenna's fantastic illustrations, I doubt Howl would have placed so high, so thank you to him.

It must have been a mammoth task collating all of the votes and working out the rankings so I would also like to extend my thanks to Alexander Ballingall and his team over on the Fighting Fantazine for all their hard work.

You can download Fighting Fantazine #5 from here, and, best of all, it's free!

The Fighting Fantasy Collection

A pack of ten Fighting Fantasy gamebooks - including Bloodbones, City of Thieves, Creature of Havoc, Deathtrap Dungeon, Eye of the Dragon, House of Hell, Stormslayer, The Citadel of Chaos, The Warlock of Firetrap Mountain, Night of the Necromancer - available here.

Now I've started, I just can't stop...

When I input the text of Stormslayer into the I Write Like site I got the following astounding result...

I write like
William Shakespeare

I Write Like by Mémoires, Mac journal software. Analyze your writing!

... as did Howl of the Werewolf.

The novella Conqueror Worm gave me this...

I write like
Charles Dickens

I Write Like by Mémoires, Mac journal software. Analyze your writing!

While The Horror of Howling Hill produced this...

I write like
H. P. Lovecraft

I Write Like by Mémoires, Mac journal software. Analyze your writing!

Tomorrow night is the launch of 33 which features my short story I Love Richmond. It's something a little different to the usual stuff I write, and the 'I Write Like'-bot seemed to think so too...

I write like
H. G. Wells

I Write Like by Mémoires, Mac journal software. Analyze your writing!

Now, how to fit all this into a usable tag-line for the back of my next book:

'Jonathan Green - writes like the bastard love-child of James Joyce, William Shakespeare, Charles Dickens and H. P. Lovecraft!'

Hmm... needs some work...

UK Games Expo 2010

I had a very enjoyable weekend up in Birmingham at the 2010 UK Games Expo. This was my first visit, and I was taken aback by the size and accomplishment of the event. As well as the expected traders, demo games and tournaments, there were no less than three Daleks, three different Doctors, stormtroopers and Darth Vadar, as well as Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone!

In fact, Fighting Fantasy had a notable presence at the event. Not only was there an FF stand, hosted by Wizard Books, and the aforementioned Jackson and Livingstone, there were also fans, old and new, by the score, and me. And best of all, the cover of the programme was Emerson Tung's glorious painting of the Eye of the Storm from Stormslayer! That gave me a real buzz, I can tell you.

One of the highlights of the weekend was the talk on Saturday give by Steve and Ian about the history of Games Workshop and Fighting Fantasy. It was very amusing and not only because of all the photos from the 70s. I even got an honourable mention and a round of applause - which was nice.

Steve Jackson, Ian Livingstone and their stalker (at least that's how it appeared in some of the other photos).

The crowds waiting to meet Steve and Ian (the queue went out the door!) whilst Gav Thorpe and Alessio Cavatore sign too.

FF editor Nick Sidwell proudly displaying his wares.

His wares - the brand-spanking-new FF gamebooks!

I also caught up with Ralph Horsley (who I collaborated with a couple of times back in the day), chatted jungle maintenance and work avoidance tactics with Gav Thorpe, and met Alessio Cavatore who was there promoting his new board game Shuuro (which I heard a punter describe as 'Chesshammer').

Ralph Horsley surrounded by his phenomenal body of (vibrantly colourful) work.

Alessio demonstrates Shuuro.

So all that remains now is for me to thank all those who organised the weekend (Tony and his team), everyone who dropped by and said "Hi!" and let me deface their new books, and Nick Sidwell, the FF editor, who manned the stand all weekend, doing sterling work, and who scored me a pass for the event.

Fighting Fantasy featured in Mass Movement Magazine

Mass Movement Magazine (which featured a piece by me, back in issue 23 - a year ago today, as it happens) has an extensive feature on the Fighting Fantasy phenomenon in the current issue.

Stormslayer gets a mention, which is nice, and you can download issue 26 for yourself (and for free) here.

How to write an adventure gamebook - Part 2

So, here it is, at long last, the second in an ongoing series of articles regarding the writing of adventure gamebooks...

The Proposal

Having spent a long time brainstorming a gamebook, once I'm happy with the overall plot and structure, I set about writing the proposal itself.

Basically, a proposal is a sales pitch. It has to explain clearly and concisely everything about your book and is often the thing that will lead to the book being (or not being) commissioned. As a result, you don't want to miss anything out - especially not the dramatic denouement you've spent ages working out. Leaving that out is sure to see your proposal being rejected outright. But I digress...

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When I write a proposal for an adventure gamebook I start with a paragraph giving an overview of the book - what it's about, what makes it different to others, the cool conceit that is going to make people want to pick up and play it, etc.

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I then describe the structure of the book. My gamebooks have often had three, four, or even five act structures. For example [WARNING - SPOILERS AHEAD!] Stormslayer is a classic three-act adventure. Act 1 involves actually finding out what your quest is. Act 2 has you tracking down the various artefacts you need to beat the bad guy, and Act 3 is the climatic battle aboard the villain's base of operations.

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If relevant (and with Fighting Fantasy adventures, it usually is) I then go on to explain any new rules that the adventure has (such as the POISON score in Curse of the Mummy, or the CHANGE score in Howl of the Werewolf) with a brief description of how they will work within the context of the adventure itself.

Next up is new monsters. These a vital in FF adventures. This paragraph usually takes the form of a simple list. With FF adventures I will also point out monsters that I'm using from Out of the Pit that haven't seen print in any of the official books yet.

Now I finally get to the plot synopsis itself. Because of the very nature of gamebooks, as well as describing what happens if you follow the correct path through the book, I also outline what happens on side quests and wild goose chases. I break the synopsis into clearly defined areas. For example in Night of the Necromancer [WARNING - SPOILERS AHEAD!] the first part of the adventure takes place out in the wilds, it then transfers to a castle and various places within the castle. Each of these major areas (or even set-piece scenes) was a new paragraph in the original plot synopsis. And of course, at the end I reveal the climactic twist or dramatic encounter that ends the adventure.

It is whilst writing the proposal that I often finalise certain areas of the adventure within my own mind but that's not to say that everything is set in stone at this point - far from it.

However, for the time being, what has to happen next is for me to forward the proposal to my editor and wait for them to give me the go ahead to write the book. And that's the topic I'll be dealing with next time...

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Coming soon: Part 3 - Writing the Adventure

Emerson Tung - Stormslayer artist's blog

Emerson Tung, the talented guy behind these amazing colour Stormslayer pics, has got himself a blog, on which you can see some of the paintings he created inspired by my last Fighting Fantasy gamebook. You can check it out for yourself here.


And just a reminder that there's only a couple of months now until Night of the Necromancer, my next Fighting Fantasy gamebook, is published.

Stormslayer - Beauty and the Beast

Came across this online today...


It's a painting of the Manticore that appears at the start of Stormslayer (my most recently published Fighting Fantasy adventure gamebook). It's by a very talented artist called Angeline and I for one am very impressed.

And here's the original illo by artist Stephen Player.


You can see more of Angeline's work at her blog Follow the Muse and at her gallery at DeviantART. I checked it out myself and came across this...


... which I can't help thinking is Larni the Huntress and her Sabretooth taking on the Yeti, who also appear in Stormslayer. So colour me pleased! And here's the original illo by artist Stephen Player...


If anyone else comes across any other Stormslayer-inspired illos, do let me know, and I'll post them here.

Unnatural History - SFcrowsnest's 16th most popular book of the year!

I'm feeling rather pleased with myself right now, to be honest. The reason is I found out today that Unnatural History (the very first Pax Britannia adventure, starring dandy action hero Ulysses Quicksilver) is at number 16 in SFcrowsnest's top 100 Fantasy, Horror and Science Fiction Books of 2009, as voted for by SFcrowsnest.com's readers.

(In case you don't know, SFcrowsnest is author Stephen Hunt's popular online SF, Fantasy and Horror magazine, which polls its readers every year to assemble a "top 100" books list.)

And in at number 34 was Al Ewing's El Sombra, so well done that man too! And if you enjoyed El Sombra, you'll be pleased to here that the sequel - Blood and Thunder - will be out next year!

Bizarrely Unnatural History and the Pax Britannia series were launched at Alf.Fiction in Derby a couple of years ago. And Stephen Hunt was also there promoting The Court of the Air. It really is, as they say, a small world...

Oh and I'm also feeling chuffed because Emerson (a.k.a. Zeo-X) Tung's rendition of the Steam Golem from Stormslayer has made it into Design Your Way's Best collection of robots illustrations. So champagne all round, I feel! Don't you?

What is Myrrh Anyway? at Ealing's leading Art and Craft fair

Just a reminder that I will be at St James' Art and Craft Fair tomorrow - Saturday 7 November - between 10.00am and 4.00pm, selling - and of course signing! - copies of What is Myrrh Anyway? Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Christmas.


I also have a limited number of copies of the brand new American edition of the book Christmas Miscellany available, as well as some of my latest Fighting Fantasy adventure gamebook Stormslayer.


Admission is free, so if you're in the area, why not pop along and say "Hello"?

Bloodbones

Good news, Fighting Fantasy fans! Bloodbones, one of my older FF adventures is going to be re-printed and re-packaged next year to bring it into line with the new look FF adventures, such as the brand new Stormslayer and forthcoming Night of the Necromancer.

And here's the brand spanking new look cover!


And here's a little more about the adventure (for the benefit of those not already in the know)...

Bloodbones lives! Cinnabar, evil Pirate-Lord and scourge of the twelve seas, is back from the dead and seeking revenge with the dark powers of voodoo at his command. Only YOU can stop the pirate captain and his crew of bloodthirsty cut-throats.

In this fantastic new adventure you are a heroic sailor seeking revenge on one of the most feared pirate-lords of Titan 'Cinnabar', a creature without remorse, a murderer, and a follower of the bloodthirsty voodoo death-god Quezkari, whose mark is the black skull.

Having sworn to have your vengeance against Cinnabar, for the past six years you have sailed the seas of Titan never forgetting a promise you made to yourself a decade ago. Throughout the years you have spent at sea you have learned more and more about Cinnabar and this information eventually leads you to Ruddlestone and the notorious Port of Crabs.

Prepare to set sail on the adventure of a lifetime.

Stormslayer redux

I came across this the other day, thanks to the magic of Google alerts...


I was absolutely blown away when I realised that someone had re-imagined a scene from Stormslayer and done such a fantastic job of rendering it in full colour. The level of detail is amazing, and it is totally faithful to a scene described in the book.

I did a little digging and discovered that the piece was by Emerson Tung (a.k.a. Zeo-X) who has also produced his own versions of the Steam Golem and the Tremor Worm from the book.


There's loads more to see through his online gallery which you can find here. And if you happening to be reading this, Zeo, drop me a line and say "Hi!"

Writing - what's the point?

Came across this the other day:

It is almost reassuring to read Jonathan Green's Stormslayer and realize that he is still one of the most sadistic gamebook designers in existence.

It goes on... To read more of Mrs Giggles(!) review of Stormslayer yourself, click here - go on, I dare you! Having read more myself I was reminded of this quote by the novelist Kingsley Amis:

If you can't annoy somebody, there's little point in writing.

So there. ;-)

Fighting Fantasy at GamesFest 4

Just to report that I had a brilliant time on Saturday at GamesFest 4, a one-day convention encompassing RPG’s, Board Games, CCG’s, War Games, Comics, Books, Film & Video gaming.The organisers' aim was to create an informal event that enabled the enthusiast and casual gamer to sample the best the hobby has to offer, and they certainly achieved that. I got to speak to all sorts of people for a decent amount of time that is much harder these days at an event such as Games Day.

JG defacing another copy of Stormslayer

One of those people was Jervis Johnson, Games Workshop games designing legend. I also got to catch up with the guys from the Black Library, including Nick Kyme, Alex Davis, Graham McNeill and James Swallow. (Apologies to Richard Williams and Gav Thorpe for not managing to chat to them.)

One legend meets another - Graham McNeill gets his copy of Warlock signed by Steve Jackson himself

But the real reason I was there was as part of the team from Fighting Fantasy, which included Nick Sidwell from Wizard Books and another legend - Steve Jackson himself! It was great to see all these other luminaries of the business queuing to have their original copies of The Warlock of Firetop Mountain signed by Steve and tell him that that one book was the reason why they are doing what they do today. (And the same goes for me.)

Jonathan Green, Steve Jackson and Jamie Fry

I was also a great pleasure to meet so many fans myself and sign multiple copies of Stormslayer, Bloodbones and Howl of the Werewolf. But the biggest shout has to go out to Jamie Fry of www.fightingfantasycollector.co.uk. He turned up with a bag full of books for me to sign, including an original Puffin edition of Curse of the Mummy, which he tells me now it quite a desirable item these days! The man is a legend himself!

So, all in all, a great day was had by all and all that remains is to thank Nick for inviting me along and the GamesFest organisers for a very well organised con. Here's the GamesFest 5!

Ever get the feeling someone's trying to tell you something?

Scanning the Interweb for reviews of my books the other day, I came across this review of Stormslayer by a certain Mrs Giggles.

I then dug deeper and uncovered a deep and lasting resentment of my work, combined with a bizarre masochistic streak as she(?) had read at least four of my gamebooks.


Well, from what I've read elsewhere, I would have to say that Mrs Giggles is in a vocal minority - of one! Her(?) criticisms of the book's structure smack of someone who made the wrong choices and went the wrong way and then blamed the book and the author for their own shortcomings. But never mind, there's always the next one - Night of the Necromancer - to get them really wound up all over again!

And remember, just because you are paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get you!

Juggernaut Redux

I came across this today...


It's another artist's interpretation of the Juggernaut from Stormslayer and you can see the influence of the movie Transformers in this version (which also inspired elements of the gamebook, as it happens).

And here's artist Stephen Player's original illustration from the book.


To comment on TheFoundingFields version at deviantART, click here.

The Return of the Interactive Fantasy Book!

Whilst trawling the Internet for reviews of Stormslayer, I came across this rather pleasing piece from the Birmingham Post entitled, 'Welcome return of the interactive fantasy book'.

To read the article - and its accompanying review of Stormslayer - click here.

Stormslayer - available at Harrods!

It's my birthday tomorrow - just in case you'd missed that little titbit of information - and as a birthday treat the family and I went to Harrods today. And I was very pleased to see the newly re-formatted Fighting Fantasy adventure gamebooks in Waterstone's inside the store.

I was so pleased, in fact, that I took a photograph.


If you've yet to discover the delights of Stormslayer, you can buy it here. And if you need any persuading, here's what other people are saying about it...

'I was pretty much blown away. Stormslayer snatches many of the rich ingredients from the original Fighting Fantasy titles, but bravely pushes the classic series into the next generation... 9/10' - Sci-Fi-Online.com

'Stormslayer is... another triumph of storytelling and design.' - Amazon.co.uk

'In the first of the new titles, Stormslayer, the hero... needs to harness the four Elements before going on a terrifying adventure into the kingdom of Femphrey... The first decision is made on page one... From then on in, it is your story. Mine featured Earth demons, skeletons, impenetrable landscapes and firewyrms. I battled enemies and thought hard about where I should go next. It was fun. The instructions in the book/game are easy to follow and there is something special about guiding the story yourself. Was I successful in my task? That would be telling – and, of course, your story will be completely different.' - BirminghamPost.net

Come on now, don't be shy

Stormslayer's been out for nearly a month now and Evolution Expects even longer, but they've yet to garner any reviews on Amazon, that bookseller to the world. Both have received critical acclaim elsewhere, but it never hurts to have a few (no less than 3, please) stars up on Amazon.

Now, I am fully aware that this blog post might be a bit of a 'be careful what you wish for moment' but if any of you good folk feel like submitting a couple of lines explaining what you have enjoyed about recent publications of mine then please, go ahead. You never know, I might find some way of thanking you in the future.

Fingers crossed...