The Iron Code - Stories in Honour of David Gemmell

On this, the 20th anniversary of David Gemmell's passing, NewCon Press have published The Iron Code, a short story anthology inspired by the works of the legendary fantasy author, edited by Ian Whates.

I join the likes of Joanne Harris, Dan Abnett, Anna Smith Spark, Mark Lawrence, Juliet E McKenna, Adrian Tchaikovsky, John Gwynne, R J Barker, and many others, in having a story of my own in the anthology, called The Wolf in Winter.

You can find out more and order the book here, or on Amazon here.

Short Story Saturday: The Iron Code

Available for pre-order now is The Iron Code, an anthology of short stories celebrating the life of legendary fantasy author David Gemmell, published to mark the 20th anniversary of his untimely passing.

The anthology has been edited by Ian Whates and is published by NewCon Press. It includes epic tales by the likes of Dan Abnett, John Gwynne, Joanne Harris, Anna Smith-Spark, and Adrian Tchaikovsky. I also have a short in there, entitled The Wolf in Winter.

To pre-order your copy, click this link.

This month's meeting of the Super Relaxed Fantasy Club is dedicated to The Iron Code. It will be taking place at The Star of Kings pub, York Way, near Kings Cross Station, starting at 6:30pm, on Tuesday 14 July 2026.

In attendance will be James Barclay, Mike Carey, Stephen Deas, Juliet E. McKenna, Kari Sperring Gavin Smith, J. L. Worrad, and Ian Whates*. The event is free, but to reserve your place, click this link.

* But not me.

Happy Deathday, Mr Shakespeare!

Today - Saint George's Day - is William Shakespeare's deathday*, so it seemed like the perfect time to remind gamebook fans that Shakespeare Vs. Cthulhu: What Dreams May Come is available to buy now. You can even buy a signed hardback here.

Shakespeare Vs. Cthulhu at Anne Hathaway's Cottage
in Shottery, Warwickshire.

However, before the Shakespeare Vs. Cthulhu: What Dreams May Come gamebook there was the Shakespeare Vs. Cthulhu short story anthology. Check it out here and watch the video below to find out more.

 

* And possibly his birthday as well.

Short Story Saturday: The Iron Code

One Kickstarter only finished on Thursday, and here I am telling you about another.

Currently funding on Kickstarter is The Iron Code, an anthology of stories in honour of David Gemmell, which will be published to mark the 20th anniversary of his passing.

As the Kickstarter says, "Pick up your sword and your axe and prepare to be dazzled by some of the best fantasy fiction you will ever read." And a story by Yours Truly.

Publisher Ian Whates, of Newcon Press, asked 21 authors to write 21 new short stories to celebrate the man's life and his work. Among those contribution authors are Dan Abnett, M. R. Carey, John Gwynne, Joanne Harris, Juliet E. McKenna, Mark Lawrence, Gavin Smith, and Adrian Tchaikovsky.

By supporting this Kickstarter - which is currently 342% funded! - you will receive a copy of the book ahead of its official release date. In addition, your name will be listed in the Roll of Honour at the back of the book, acknowledging your support (unless you choose not to be included).

To find out more, click this link to visit The Iron Code Kickstarter project page.

Warhammer Wednesday: Best Black Library sales

Today I received my latest royalty statement from Games Workshop. It may be a while since I last wrote for Black Library but I still get a few pounds and pence in royalties each year from sales of my novels and short stories, thanks to the prevalence of eBooks.

I thought it might be interesting to share the best-selling titles, based on earnings. So, here we go...

1) Iron Hands

2) The Relic - published in the Warhammer 40,000 anthology Legends of the Space Marines.

3) But Dust in the Wind

4) Journey of the Magi

5) Paradise - published in the Necromunda anthology Uprising.

Steampunk Thursday: Scarlet Traces anthology on sale now!

Rebellion are clearly having a massive clearout of their warehouse since loads - and I mean loads - of grpahic novels and other books are heavily discounted over on their webstore.

Among the books that have been knocked down massively in price is the Scarlet Traces short story anthology, which includes a contribution from me: Wonderful Things.

Another book that is currently massively discounted is Judge Fear's Big Day Out and Other Stories, which features four of my Judge Dredd short stories - Psimple Psimon, One-Way Ticket, You'd Better be Good, for Goodness' Sake, and Miracle on 34th and Peltzer.

So head over to the 2000AD webstore now and grab yourself a bargain!

Warhammer Wednesday: Sticks and Stones

I haven't done one of these for a while - a Warhammer Wednesday post.

However, with the news that the Orc & Goblin Tribes Arcane Journal is soon to be released for Warhammer: The Old World, it seemed as good a time as any to remind you* that my Empire vs. Orcs short story Sticks and Stones is available to download as an eBook from the Black Library.

War against orcs and goblins is never easy for the soldiers of the Empire. Their foes and savage and brutal and revel in battle. and never more so than when a mighty idol of their gods marches to war alongside them, fuelled by magic and the power of the Waaagh! In the midst of battle, it falls to Rutger Erlang and his pistolier comrades to deal with the manifestation of Gork (or is it Mork?) and prevent the total destruction of the Empire army.

The Bretonnian Grail Reliquae was recently featured on the Warhammer: The Old World home page. I also wrote a story about one of these back in the day, entitled Sir Dagobert's Last Battle, which can be found in Issue #9 of Hammer and Bolter .

 * Or let you know, if you're new to this blog.

Warhammer Wednesday: Warhammer eBooks

Monday saw the release of Krakenbane's Curse, a new Age of Sigmar short story by Yours Truly. 

A few of the short stories I have written for Black Library over the years are available as digital eShorts and three of the six novels I have written set within the Warhammer and Warhammer 40,000 universes as eBooks. Why not check out one of them today?

 

Krakenbane's Curse - A Warhammer Age of Sigmar story

Today sees the launch of the Warhammer Age of Sigmar eShorts Subscription, which includes my first, and probably only, Age of Sigmar short story. Not only that, but from today you can buy Krakenbane's Curse as a standalone story.

"The forces of Death and Order clash on the high seas of the Mortal Realms."

I wouldn't read the story synopsis on the Black Library website if I were you, as it gives away one of the major twists of the story.

My last Black Library short story was published three years ago, almost to the day, and that was the Necromunda-set Paradise. The reason why it has taken so long for another tale to appear is a story in and of itself.

Ten months bfore Paradise was published, my Warhammer 40,000 short story Journey of the Magi appeared, and that was my first new Black Library story for six years. However, because of the leadtime for Black Library publications, I actually started pitching stories for Warhammer Age of Sigmar towards the end of 2019, and from a list of three, one was selected to go forward to full submission.

To give you an idea of how stories can change, the title went from Gloomtide to Scourgetide, to Black Tide, until finally settling on Krakenbane's Curse, with the outline of the story changing slightly every time as well. 

The story was commissioned in March 2020, just as Covid-19 hit. In no time at all, the UK was in lockdown and the vast majority of businesses went into a form of stasis, including Games Workshop. I submitted the first draft of Krakenbane's Curse at the end of April 2020. And then I waited.

As a direct consequence of the Covid-19 lockdown, priorities changed at GW and Black Library, and I didn't receive feedback on my story until the start of September 2021. It went through three sets of revisions and was finally passed as finished at the start of December 2021. At the time I was told my story would appear in a forthcoming Age of Sigmar anthology. And then I waited.

And here we are today, at the start of October 2023, with Krakenbane's Curse being the first title to be released as part of the Warhammer Age of Sigmar eShorts Subscription, which will be available until 8:00am BST on Monday 16th October 2023 (although the individual eShorts will remain available for individual purchase after that).

I'm please to see that one of the other releases this week is by me old mucker C L Werner, and has the intriguing title of The Abominations of Kriik Weirdpaw.

Warhammer Wednesday: Warhammer Age of Sigmar

On Sunday, Games Workshop announced the latest Black Library eShorts week. It starts on Monday 2nd October 2023 and the focus this year is on Warhammer: Age of Sigmar.

The sharp-eyed among you will notice that one of the eShorts is a story by Yours Truly. Expect more news on Monday, when the eShorts subscription goes live.

Short Story Saturday: Shakespeare Vs. Cthulhu

Shakespeare Vs. Cthulhu is an anthology of short stories inspired by the works of Stratford's most famous son and the literary endeavours of cosmic horror master H. P. Lovecraft.

Shakespeare Vs. Cthulhu includes stories by the likes of Adrian Tchaikovsky, Graham McNeill, James Lovegrove, Jan Siegel, Andrew Lane, Jonathan Oliver, and John Reppion. So, if you've not already picked up a copy, do so today and treat yourself to what one reviewer called "a fun concept, that delivered on its premise."

And if you have read the book, a review on Amazon is always much appreciated.

Warhammer Wednesday: Journey of the Magi

Now that Christmas is over and we are approaching Twelfth Night, it seemed like the perfect time to plug my Warhammer 40,000 short story Journey of the Magi, in which three wise men follow a star...

On an artificial world far from the light of any sun, three sorcerers of the Thousand Sons emerge from a portal. Together, this trio will face ancient horrors – but the prize that awaits them is worth any danger. Long have these three sought the Godstar, piecing together its location from scattered scraps of knowledge. The immortal guardians of the place sleep, but it is not undefended, and the children of Prospero will pay a heavy price for that which they seek as they delve deep into the ancient mysteries of the necrons. 

You can buy Journey of the Magi here, and you can read more about the story here.

Warhammer Wednesday: The Emperor's Champion

This Saturday, 8th October 2022, is Warhammer Day, and is focused on celebrating 35 years of the tabletop miniatures game Warhammer 40,000.

To mark this occasion, Games Workshop is releasing a new Emperor's Champion miniature/diorama. Although it's entitled Bayard’s Revenge, the model of an Emperor’s Champion triumphing over a mighty Ork Nob, reminded by of my Warhammer 40K novel Crusade for Armageddon, which just happens to features an Emperor's Champion of the Black Templars Chapter triumphing over multiple Ork Nobs.

Although Crusade for Armageddon is no longer in print, and not available as an eBook either, my popular short story The Relic, that features many of the same characters from that particular novel, is available in both Legends of the Space Marines and War for Armageddon: The Omnibus.

JG at the Super Relaxed Fantasy Club

Just a heads up to let you know that I will be one of the guests taking part in next Tuesday's Super Relaxed Fantasy Club meeting at The Star of Kings pub near King's Cross in London. Proceedings begin at 7:00pm and we should be all done by 9:00pm.

So, if you're in the vicinity, and would like to hear me read something I have written, do pop along on Tuesday 11 October 2022, and come armed with some questions to ask as well.

Happy Birthday, Mr Shakespeare!

It's that time of year when I like to remind everyone that I edited an anthology of short stories called Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu, back in 2016, featuring tales inspired by the Bard and the literary endeavours of H. P. Lovecraft.

Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu includes stories by the likes of Adrian Tchaikovsky, Graham McNeill, James Lovegrove, Jan Siegel, Andrew Lane, Jonathan Oliver, and John Reppion. So, if you've not already picked up a copy, do so today and treat yourself to what one reviewer called "a fun concept, that delivered on its premise."

And if you have read the book, a review on Amazon is always much appreciated.

Warhammer Wednesday: Tales from the Grim Darkness of the Far Future

Last week I alerted you to the old Warhammer short stories of mine that are still available to download as eBooks from the Black Library. This week it's the turn of my ever-popular Warhammer 40K tales.

All of the stories feature Space Marines of one kind or another. But Dust in the Wind has Imperial Fists facing off against Necrons, The Relic features Black Templars battling Orks, and Journey of the Magi sees Thousand Sons* versus more Necrons**.

So, if you haven't tried one of my Warhammer 40,000 stories before, why not check out one of these today?

* Yes, I know they're technically Chaos Space Marines.

** I just can't get enough of those undead robots!

Warhammer Wednesday: Tales from The-World-That-Was

My latest royalty statement arrived from Black Library last week*. What it highlighted to me is that a number of my old Warhammer stories - from what would now be referred to as 'The-World-That-Was' - are still available in eBook format, either alone or as part of larger collections.

If you would like a taste of my old school Warhammer writings, why not check out one of them today?

Hammer and Bolter Issue 9 contains my short story Sir Dagobert's Last Battle, which is one of the best Warhammer stories I think I ever wrote. Sticks and Stones appeared near the end of Warhammer's life, before it evolved into Warhammer: Age of Sigmar.

* Yes, I still earn a few pennies from sales of my BL stuff.

Happy Birthday, 2000AD!

Today marks the 45th birthday of the Galaxy's Greatest Comic - a.k.a. the British sci-fi, fantasy and horror anthology title 2000AD. I have been collecting the comic since the early 1990s and have been a subscriber for many years. When times were tough I got rid of 100 or so comics from my collection and have always regretted having to do so.

There is so much to love about 2000AD, although I am not a fan of some perennially popular strips. My favourites include Judge Dredd (of course), Nikolai Dante, Brink, Brass Sun, Kingdom... and those are just the ones that come to me now off the top of my head.

My work has actually appeared within the pages of 2000AD, once, when my festive tale Miracle on 34th and Peltzer appeared in Prog 1961 back in 2015. In 2020 it was reprinted in Judge Fear's Big Day Out and Other Stories, along with the Judge Dredd stories I wrote for the Judge Dredd Megazine.

I am fortunate that over the years I have got to work with a number of 2000AD artists. Usually it means that have provided a cover painting or internal illustrations for one of my books - most recently Neil Googe, Chris Weston, Simon Fraser, and Tazio Bettin - but some have actually illustrated comic strips I have written, such as Steve Yeowell on The Tale of the Hound.

I attended the 40th anniversary celebrations in London back in 2017, but for some reason the Imposter Syndrome was strong that day and so I barely spoke to anyone, even though many of the creators are known to me personally.

But tonight I shall be raising a glass in Tharg's honour and wishing 2000AD a very Happy Birthday. Here's the next 45 years!

Tie-in Tuesday: Sherlock Holmes and the Beast of Bodmin

Happy Chinese New Year of the Tiger!

In other news, Further Associates of Sherlock Holmes, edited by George Mann, is still available to buy. Why am I telling you this? Because it contains my first published Sherlock Holmes short story, Sherlock Holmes and the Beast of Bodmin.

Here's a little background on the tale.

Further Associates of Sherlock Holmes is available from Titan Books, and via Amazon, now!

A Winter Solstice Selection

Having been a published author since 1993, over the years I have written numerous short stories, books and games that have a strong connection to Christmas. Just check out these if you're interested...

Scrooge & Marley (Deceased): The Haunted Man

A sequel to Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol.

'TWAS - The Krampus Night Before Christmas

A festive ACE Gamebook inspired by the legends and folklore of Yuletide.

'TWAS - The Roleplaying Game Before Christmas

A rules-lite festive RPG that's fun for all the family.

Christmas Past

A Ulysses Quicksilver Pax Britannia short story set at Christmas time.

(Published as part of Pax Britannia: Human Nature)

Christmas Explained

Everything you ever wanted to know about Christmas but were afraid to ask.

Christmas Miscellany

The US edition of What is Myrrh Anyway? which was the precursor to Christmas Explained.

Journey of the Magi

A Warhammer 40,000K short story in which three wise men follow a star.

Happy Yule!