The The Impotence of Proofreading

Scottish Miscellany - four months and counting...

I can hardly believe it's only about four months now until my next non-fiction title - Scottish Miscellany - is published by Skyhorse Publishing.

If you liked What is Myrrh Anyway? (a.k.a. Christmas Miscellany in the States) then you'll love this book too. From Scottish culture to the ancient history of the country to modern pastimes, this book has all this and more.

Find out why the thistle is the floral emblem of Scotland, how Scotch whisky is made, why the Scots celebrate Hogmanay, how to play the bagpipes, and much more. This delightful book is the perfect gift for anyone planning a visit to Scotland, with an interest in Scottish history, or a drop of Scottish blood.

Blood Royal is here!

Blood will out!

Magna Britannia reels from the events that saw some of its citizens mutated into hideous insect hybrids. The streets are awash with rumours of a twisted new religion created from the destruction surrounding St Paul's Cathedral. In Europe, the spectre of war rears its ugly head, a war fought by unnatural beings. In the centre of the chaos, hero of the Empire, Ulysses Quicksilver, must maintain his calm, while madness reigns and he fights to protect civilisation itself. From the insect-haunted streets of a shattered London, to the cold snowy wastes of Russia, Ulysses finds himself on an adventure into the heart of a dark and bloody empire.

Get your copy here!

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 yours truly - what a fine collection of shirts.

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.

Pax Britannia - Blood Royal

It's here, at long last! And here's the fantastic ad from the back of the current issue of 2000AD to prove it.


You can get hold of your copy of Pax Britannia: Blood Royal right here. So, what are you waiting for?

Siege of the Necromancer is here!

The long-anticipated second Gamebook Adventure from Tin Man Games is here at last! So pop over to the Apple App Store and search for Siege of the Necromancer now!

To read more about the latest GA release, follow this link.

UK Games Expo 2010

Thought some of you might like to know that I'll be at the UK Games Expo 2010 this weekend, dropping by the Fighting Fantasy stand from time to time, and the bar as well, I expect.


You might also be interested to know that Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone will be there on the Saturday, signing books as well as giving a talk...

An illustrated history of Games Workshop and Fighting Fantasy

We are delighted to have a visit from Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone, co-creators of the Fighting Fantasy Books who are also exhibiting at UK Games Expo. Steve and Ian will be signing books and will give a talk about the Fighting Fantasy Books. After their talks they will also sign copies of Family Games: The Top 100

I'll also be there on the Sunday, so if you're around why not pop by the FF stand and say 'Hi!'

Maybe I'll see you there...