Thought for the Day

"The job of a writer is not to convey emotion but to invoke it."

~ Eric T Benoit

International Biodiversity Day

Today is International Biodiversity (and World Goth Day, and International Sherlock Holmes Day) and you don't get much more biodiverse than sharks, cthulhoid horrors from the Elizabethan era, and dinosaurs!

Thought for the Day

“Self editing is the path to the dark side. Self editing leads to self delusion, self delusion leads to missed mistakes, missed mistakes lead to bad reviews. Bad reviews are the tools of the dark side.”

~ Eric T Benoit

The Freeway Fighter signing at Forbidden Planet, London

Yesterday, Saturday 20th May 2017, fans of comics and gamebooks gathered at the Forbidden Planet Megastore in London for the signing of the very first Fighting Fantasy comic, Ian Livingstone's Freeway Fighter, published by Titan Comics.

In attendance were writer Andi Ewington, artist Simon Coleby, letterer Jim Campbell, variant cover artist (and original cover artist for the Freeway Fighter gamebook) Jim Burns, creator of the original adventure Ian Livingstone, and Yours Truly, since I edited the comic.

Signing pre-orders in the back room at Forbidden Planet.

Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks were also available for fans to pick up and have signed at the event, as were copies of my Pax Britannia novels.

The fans gather for the signing, including the usual suspects.

Two fantasy legends were reunited for the event - the original Freeway Fighter cover artist and author, Jim Burns and Ian Livingstone.

It was a special day for me too, because I got to meet Jim Burns for the first time, having interviewed him for the original YOU ARE THE HERO - A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks.

Jonathan Green, author and editor, with Jim Burns, artist.

You can see more photos from the signing here.

Ian Livingstone's Freeway Fighter has been very well-received and you can read reviews of it all over the web. And of course Issue #2 goes on sale next month and is available to pre-order now, while the variant covers for Issue #4 have also been released.

Ian Livingstone's Freeway Fighter issue #4

Cover A by Simon Coleby & Len O'Grady - Cover B by Ben Oliver - Cover C by Tazio Bettin & Luis Guerrero

Gamebook Friday: Freeway Fighter signing at Forbidden Planet, London!

Tomorrow, Saturday 20th May 2017 from 1:00-2:00pm, many of the creative team behind Ian Livingstone's Freeway Fighter, published last Wednesday by Titan Comics, will be visiting the Forbidden Planet Megastore in London to sign copies of the very first Fighting Fantasy comic.

Joining writer Andi Ewington, artist Simon Coleby, original gamebook cover artist Jim Burns, letterer Jim Campbell, and author of the original Freeway Fighter gamebook, co-creator of the FF series and co-founder of Games Workshop, Ian Livingstone, will be Yours Truly, since I worked as editor on the title. Having edited three short story anthologies (to date) this is my first professional comic-editing gig and it's been a lot of fun to work on.

As well as being able to pick up various variant cover editions of the comic, at the Forbidden Planet signing Freeway Fighter fans will also to be to buy two limited edition Jim Burns giclee prints (each one £29.99, 18" x 24"), signed by Jim Burns and Ian Livingstone. These will only be available at the event and will not be available later from the Forbidden Planet website afterwards!

The event is bound to be very busy, so make sure you start queueing early, may your STAMINA never fail, and maybe I'll see you there...

SHARKPUNK cover artist at Forbidden Planet this Saturday!

This Saturday, Simon Coleby - the ace artist behind the SHARKPUNK  cover - will be at London's Forbidden Planet Megastore, on Shaftesbury Avenue, from 1:00-2:00pm, signing copies of Ian Livingstone's Freeway Fighter comic.

Also in attendance will be the selachian anthology's editor, Jonathan Green, and it is rumoured that Alec Worley, who wrote Sharkcop 2: Feeding Frenzy, will also be attending the event.

So if you're in London on Saturday, and maybe planning on attending the signing already, don't forget to bring along your copy of SHARKPUNK to get that signed too!

Happy 117th Birthday to L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz!

On this day, 17th May, in the year 1900 - which just so happened to be a Thursday - L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz was published for the first time, making his world famous children's book, and classic of American literature, 117 years old today!

And to celebrate the occasion, here's a sneak peak at the character paintings that will be adorning The Wicked Wizard of Oz collector bookmarks, courtesy of illustrator extraordinaire Kev Crossley.