RIP Chris Achilleos

I was sad to learn yesterday that the legendary fantasy artist Chris Achilleos passed away suddenly, after a short illness, on Monday afternoon. My thoughts are with his wife Tasha, as well as the rest of his family and his friends at this difficult time.

I first became aware of Chris's work in the 1980s, through his contributions to the Fighting Fantasy series and artbooks such as Sirens.

Many years later, I met Chris when he attended Fighting Fantasy Fest 1 in 2014. I had spoken to him prior to the event and he kindly offered to paint a cover for YOU ARE THE HERO, but I had already commissioned Martin McKenna to do just that. However, when YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2 was scheduled, I took him up on his offer.

This involved two trips to his loft-space studio at his home - which was an experience in itself, seeing where the master worked - and I was made to feel very welcome by Chris and Tasha. On the first trip, we discussed the commission but also ended up talking about his previous work, with Chris getting out pieces of original art from his map chests, including some stuff he had painted for Games Workshop. On my second visit I collected the finished painting, which I have since had framed.

Although Chris couldn't make Fighting Fantasy Fest 2, I am pleased that he was able to attend FFF3, and on that occasion he was interviewed by Martin Noutch about his work.

Chris will be greatly missed, for he was a true master of his art, but the body of work he has left behind is a legacy that will live on for years to come.

Chris Achilleos and his wife Tasha at Fighting Fantasy Fest 3, in 2019.

YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2 has 6 hours to go on Kickstarter!

YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2 has just 6 hours to go on Kickstarter, so if you've been considering upgrading your pledge, now would seem like a good time to do so - just make sure you do so before 1:00pm today!

Pledge at the £20 Gargoyle reward level (or above) and simply add £15 to your pledge to receive a second copy of the book.

Pledge at the £60 Gark reward level (or above) and add £40 to your pledge to receive a second copy of the limited edition hardback.

Add £120 to your pledge to receive the Golden Fleece canvas print of Chris Achilleos's cover art for the book.

Since YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2 reached its fourth stretch goal yesterday, everyone who pledges to receive a physical copy of the book will also receive:

1 x art print of Chris Achilleos's cover art for YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2
1 x art print of John Blanche's painting of Kharé - Cityport of Traps
1 x art print of Leo Hartas's painted map of north-west Allansia
1 x MP3 download of music inspired by Fighting Fantasy gamebooks

On top of that all copies of YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2 will now be hardbacks rather than softbacks.

Gamebook Friday: YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2 has 24 hours to go on Kickstarter!

YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2 has only 24 hours to go on Kickstarter and is creeping ever closer to the stretch goal whereby all softbacks that people have pledged to receive automatically become hardbacks!

Backers who have pledged to receive physical copies of the book will already be getting two bonus art prints and an MP3 download of Fighting Fantasy-inspired music, but if the next stretch goal is reached they will also receive a full-colour print of Leo Hartas's map of Allansia.

A new art add-on has also been announced. Add £120 to any other pledge (or select the Golden Fleece reward by itself) and you could be the proud owner of a canvas art print of Chris Achilleos's cover art for YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2.

So if you've been holding out, hoping that  YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2 would be published as a hardback, don't delay - back the Kickstarter today!

YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2 is into its final 48 hours on Kickstarter!

The YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2 Kickstarter finishes at 1:00pm BST on Saturday 1st April 2017 - no joke!

If you enjoyed the original YOU ARE THE HERO then you will definitely enjoy this follow-up, which contains all new material - 12 chapters' worth!

As well as the usual signed book rewards and the like, everyone who backs to receive a physical copy of YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2 will also receive a full-colour A4 art print of Chris Achilleos's brand-new cover art for the book and another of John Blanche's classic painting of Kharé - Cityport of Traps from Steve Jackson's Sorcery! series.

And if we hit £22,000 on the Kickstarter, everyone who backs at the £10 Golem reward level or above will also receive an MP3 download of music inspired by Fighting Fantasy, by the likes of Groan, Isle of Avalon, and Jaldaboath!

But the big one is the £25,000 stretch goal. If we achieve that, then all of the softbacks of YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2 that people have pledged to receive will become hardbacks!

So what are you waiting for? If you haven't already, pledge your support today (after all, it's pay day tomorrow), and whether you're a new backer or not, keeping spreading the word.

Thank you for joining me on this journey and may your STAMINA never fail!

YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2 - Kickstarter update!

I was going to post an update yesterday about the progress of YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2 on Kickstarter, but then things went a bit crazy!

The project only went and funded in just over 21 hours!

So now we're working towards the first stretch goal, which is to have legendary fantasy artist Chris Achilleos paint the cover for the book. If the project raises £11,950 (or more) everyone who backs to receive a physical copy of the book will also receive an adorned art print, signed by the artist!

So if you've not backed the project already, what are you waiting for? Don't delay - back today!

Fighting Fantasy Fest 2014 - 3 weeks to go!

There are just 3 weeks to go until  FIGHTING FANTASY FEST 2014 takes place at the DoubleTree Hilton in Ealing, West London, and 2 weeks left to buy your tickets.

For those attending we have all of the following on offer:

6 Fighting Fantasy artists - including Russ Nicholson, John Blanche, Chris Achilleos, Malcolm Barter, Tony Hough and Leo Hartas.

3 Fighting Fantasy authors - Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone, co-creators of the Fighting Fantasy series, and Jonathan Green, author of seven FF gamebooks.

An extremely collectible goodie bag, including a Fighting Fantasy gamebook, a poster, a novel, a Tin Man Games download app code, and a ZAGOR THE WARLOCK miniature, only available to those FF fans attending FIGHTING FANTASY FEST and based on this piece of artwork by Russ Nicholson!

A talk on the early days of Fighting Fantasy by Steve and Ian, with special guest Philippa Dickinson, the editor who first worked on The Warlock of Firetop Mountain.

Arion Games running Advanced Fighting Fantasy sessions throughout the day.

Tin Man Games talking about and demonstrating their latest FF apps.

Inkle Studios talking about their Sorcery! apps.

Various others traders, offering books for sale, wargaming miniatures, dice and gaming equipment, and more!

The official book launch of YOU ARE THE HERO - A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks, written by Jonathan Green and supported by hundreds of FF fans through the Kickstarter crowd-funding website.

An exhibition of never-before-seen and highly-collectible items from FF's history.

An auction of rare Fighting Fantasy memorabilia from the vaults of the Warlocks of Firetop Mountain themselves.

And if all that wasn't enough you'll be able to have a drink with the creators of Fighting Fantasy at the Black Lobster Tavern, from Port Blacksand, City of Thieves, themed bar!

If you've not bought your ticket yet you can do so here. Please tell all your friends via social media and any other means at your disposal (such as telephone, email, carrier pigeon, smoke signals, sorcery...) and we'll look forward to seeing you in September!

Fighting Fantasy Fest 2014 - 1 month to go!

There is just 1 month to go until  FIGHTING FANTASY FEST 2014 takes place at the DoubleTree Hilton in Ealing, West London, and 4 days left to buy your tickets.

For those attending we have all of the following on offer:

6 Fighting Fantasy artists - including Russ Nicholson, John Blanche, Chris Achilleos, Malcolm Barter, Tony Hough and Leo Hartas.

3 Fighting Fantasy authors - Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone, co-creators of the Fighting Fantasy series, and Jonathan Green, author of seven FF gamebooks.

An extremely collectible goodie bag, including a Fighting Fantasy gamebook, a poster, a novel, a Tin Man Games download app code, and a ZAGOR THE WARLOCK miniature, only available to those FF fans attending FIGHTING FANTASY FEST and based on this piece of artwork by Russ Nicholson!

A talk on the early days of Fighting Fantasy by Steve and Ian, with special guest Philippa Dickinson, the editor who first worked on The Warlock of Firetop Mountain.

Arion Games running Advanced Fighting Fantasy sessions throughout the day.

Tin Man Games talking about and demonstrating their latest FF apps.

Inkle Studios talking about their Sorcery! apps.

Various others traders, offering books for sale, wargaming miniatures, dice and gaming equipment, and more!

The official book launch of YOU ARE THE HERO - A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks, written by Jonathan Green and supported by hundreds of FF fans through the Kickstarter crowd-funding website.

An exhibition of never-before-seen and highly-collectible items from FF's history.

An auction of rare Fighting Fantasy memorabilia from the vaults of the Warlocks of Firetop Mountain themselves.

And if all that wasn't enough you'll be able to have a drink with the creators of Fighting Fantasy at the Black Lobster Tavern, from Port Blacksand, City of Thieves, themed bar!

If you've not bought your ticket yet you can do so here. Please tell all your friends via social media and any other means at your disposal (such as telephone, email, carrier pigeon, smoke signals, sorcery...) and we'll look forward to seeing you in September!

Fighting Fantasy Fest 2014 - Featuring Chris Achilleos

There are 14 days left to buy your ticket for Fighting Fantasy Fest (so that we have enough time to produce all the fantastic goodies that will be available for attendees on the day) so if you've been holding off from buying your ticket, now would be a good time to do so.

One of our guests at the event is fantasy art legend Chris Achilleos. Well known for painting everything from Doctor Who novel covers to beautiful fantasy-themed ladies, a number of pieces of Chris's art appear in YOU ARE THE HERO - A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks which is launching at Fighting Fantasy Fest.

His work for FF includes the covers Steve Jackson's novel The Trolltooth Wars, Ian Livingstone's gamebooks Temple of Terror and Armies of Death, at the covers of the background books Out of the Pit and Titan - The Fighting Fantasy World.

So head over to the DoubleTree Hilton Hotel in Ealing, West London, on Sunday 7 September, and get your copy of YOU ARE THE HERO signed by Chris himself!

Fighting Fantasy Fest 2014 - Only 2 months to go!

It's hard to believe, I know (and just a little bit scary), but two months today the DoubleTree Hilton in Ealing, West London, will be opening its doors to attendees from across the world visiting FIGHTING FANTASY FEST 2014. And you could be there too.

For those attending we have all of the following on offer:

6 Fighting Fantasy artists - including Russ Nicholson, John Blanche, Chris Achilleos, Malcolm Barter, Tony Hough and Leo Hartas.

3 Fighting Fantasy authors - Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone, co-creators of the Fighting Fantasy series, and Jonathan Green, author of seven FF gamebooks.

An extremely collectible goodie bag, including a Fighting Fantasy gamebook, a poster, a novel, a Tin Man Games download app code, and a ZAGOR THE WARLOCK miniature, only available to those FF fans attending FIGHTING FANTASY FEST and based on this piece of artwork by Russ Nicholson!

A talk on the early days of Fighting Fantasy by Steve and Ian, with special guest Philippa Dickinson, the editor who first worked on The Warlock of Firetop Mountain.

Arion Games running Advanced Fighting Fantasy sessions throughout the day.

Tin Man Games talking about and demonstrating their latest FF apps.

Inkle Studios talking about their Sorcery! apps.

Various others traders, offering books for sale, wargaming miniatures, dice and gaming equipment, and more!

The official book launch of YOU ARE THE HERO - A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks, written by Jonathan Green and supported by hundreds of FF fans through the Kickstarter crowd-funding website.

An exhibition of never-before-seen and highly-collectible items from FF's history.

An auction of rare Fighting Fantasy memorabilia from the vaults of the Warlocks of Firetop Mountain themselves.

And if all that wasn't enough you'll be able to have a drink with the creators of Fighting Fantasy at the Black Lobster Tavern, from Port Blacksand, City of Thieves, themed bar!

If you've not bought your ticket yet you can do so here. Please tell all your friends via social media and any other means at your disposal (such as telephone, email, carrier pigeon, smoke signals, sorcery...) and we'll look forward to seeing you in September!

YOU ARE THE HERO and the problem with Kickstarter projects

I often find myself feeling guilty that YOU ARE THE HERO is six months overdue and still not out yet, although I feel less guilty than I used to, especially when I've been doing this all evening...

And when we have something akin to a publication date in place...

I think many people underestimate how long it will take them to (a) run their Kickstarter campaign, (b) finish their project, and (c) get the thing made/published/downloaded so that everyone who pledged to the project can enjoy the finished product. I know I certainly did. Which got me thinking about all the various Kickstarters I backed in the run-up to launching the YOU ARE THE HERO campaign, during it and since it successfully funded.

So here are some fun, throwaway stats for you:

• To date, via Kickstarter, I have run 2 projects. One funded, raising 142% of its target funding goal. One failed to fund, only achieving 40% of its target before it ran out of both time and steam.
• However, I have backed 31 projects. Of these, one was cancelled and one failed to fund. 
• Of the remaining 26, 9 I supported without asking for any reward. That leaves 17.
• Of those 17, I have received the finished product from 10. 
• That still leaves another 7 unaccounted for. Of those 7, all but one are overdue, the worst by over a year.

YOU ARE THE HERO is going to be about 8-9 months late by the time it comes out, but at least it is coming out, and it's ended up being three times the length originally anticipated. And you could join myself, Steve Jackson, Ian Livingstone, Russ Nicholson, Chris Achilleos, Tony Hough and Philippa Dickinson at the official launch of the on Sunday 7 September.

May I'll see you there...

Fighting Fantasy 2014 - Official Press Release

For immediate release!

Fighting Fantasy Fest 2014

The first dedicated Fighting Fantasy convention, with Special Guests of Honour Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone, featuring the official launch of YOU ARE THE HERO – A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks by Jonathan Green.

Sunday 7 September 2014 will see the first dedicated Fighting Fantasy convention take place at the DoubleTree Hilton Hotel in Ealing, West London. Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone, co-creators of the publishing and gaming phenomenon that is Fighting Fantasy, will be Special Guests of Honour at the event, where they will be joined by legendary fantasy artists Russ Nicholson, Chris Achilleos and Tony Hough. A highlight of the day will be Steve and Ian’s own talk on the History of Fighting Fantasy.

Fighting Fantasy Fest will see the official launch of Jonathan Green’s YOU ARE THE HERO – A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks, along with an exhibition of rare FF memorabilia – including original artwork and other more obscure artefacts connected to the series – as well as trade stands, and an auction of Fighting Fantasy treasures. Arion Games will be running Advanced Fighting Fantasy role-playing game sessions during the day, while Tin Man Games and Inkle Studios will also be in attendance, talking about their digital versions of such classic gamebooks as Ian Livingstone’s The Forest of Doom and Steve Jackson’s Sorcery! epic.

Tickets for the event cost £50 each, and every attendee will receive an event-exclusive Adventurer’s Backpack containing various Fighting Fantasy Fest and YOU ARE THE HERO goodies.

“The success of the YOU ARE THE HERO Kickstarter project demonstrated that there is still an active community of Fighting Fantasy fans out in the world who would relish the chance to not only meet their heroes, but to get together and share their stories of battling the horrors of Deathtrap Dungeon or braving the perils of Kharé – Cityport of Traps,” says Jonathan Green, author of the History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks, “ideally whilst quaffing a flagon of ale in Port Blacksand’s infamous Black Lobster Tavern.” (The event will even feature a themed bar!)

Ian Livingstone, co-creator of Fighting Fantasy said, “It’s crazy really that it’s taken 32 years for a dedicated Fighting Fantasy event to take place!  But that’s going to make it all the more special. It will be brilliant to see old friends, artists, authors and fans again after all this time. I’m going to bring along some special Fighting Fantasy items that have never been seen in public before. It certainly will be a Return to Firetop Mountain! I can’t wait.”

Steve Jackson, who is famed for his Sorcery! series, said, “Amazing to think it’s almost 40 years since the first Games Day was held, at Seymour Hall and Baths in Central London. There was a great buzz at that event. Visitors – and organisers – felt they were attending a special occasion. I’m sure it will be the same kind of buzz at Fighting Fantasy Fest. FF celebrities will be there, dealers and memorabilia, game demos and a special auction of items from the Jackson and Livingstone personal archives. This will be an event not to be missed by FF readers. I’m really looking forward to it.”

For more information, or to arrange interviews with the organisers of Fighting Fantasy Fest, please email Jonathan Green at info@jonathangreenauthor.com.

@fightingfantasy @stevejacksonuk @ian_livingstone @jonathangreen @You_Are_TheHero #FightingFantasyFest2014

Sunday 7 September 2014 • The DoubleTree Hilton, Ealing, London, UK

Artists • Panels • Book Signings • Games • Exhibition • Special Guests • Auction

www.FightingFantasy.com