CM Simpson: Writer & Gamer

Here are some of the awesome titles I've spent time with this week. To the Hilt is one of the most memorable stories, with 'Mad Alexander' one of my favourite characters. Well worth looking up, if you haven't read it. And, don't forget the e-books. This month, I read:   The Road Back by Dean Wesley Smith is a short crime story about rattlesnakes and a police chief's missing son. You can find it over at Kobo . The Poop Thief by Kristine Kathryn Rusch , which is a book about familiars and pooh and secrets. This was one of the best reads this month, with a couple of angles on magic and familiars that I had never considered. Awesome, thank you :-). You can find it over at Kobo .  I also had a bit of time for reading rulebooks. Can anyone tell me if Mind Storm Labs, the creators of Alpha-Omega are still in business? The latest news I can see is from 2009 and 2012, so it doesn't look good. I would like them to still ...

You can find the introduction to the Babes in London adventure sequence HERE , the background to Act One HERE , the Overview for Act One HERE ., Act One Scenes 1-2 HERE and Act One Scene 3 HERE . Act Two Preparation and Scene 1 can be found HERE , Act Two Scene 2 can be found HERE , Act Two Scene 3A can be found HERE , Act Two Scene 3B can be found HERE , Act Two Scene 3C can be found HERE and Act Two Scene 3 Finalization can be found HERE . To play or run this game you will need the following: PLAYERS: Fireborn Player's Handbook ; GAME MASTERS: Fireborn Gamemaster's Handbook ; This is a piece of fan fiction. It is NOT endorsed or acknowledged by Fantasy Flight Game s; it is IN NO WAY official; it DOES NOT indicate any form of relationship between myself and Fantasy Flight Games; and I DO NOT CLAIM any of the setting specific material or setting specific concepts as my own. GMs, please note that there is one cut-scene and a final scene to this scene. You ...

With the demise of Google Reader, these are a lot fewer and further between. I don't have a lot of net-cruising time so I rely on my Facebook feed, some of the Yahoo groups I subscribe to, and chance. This month, these are the blog posts that made me stop and read all the way to the bottom: http://stornart.com/2013/09/action/ : Artwork and talk from fantasy artist Storn Cook. http://kriswrites.com/2013/09/11/the-business-rusch-story-demands/ : Kristine Kathryn Rusch on publishing constraints and freedoms in storytelling http://kriswrites.com/2013/09/04/the-business-rusch-we-dont-know-what-we-dont-know/ : more on publishing by Kristine Kathryn Rusch http://terribleminds.com/ramble/2013/09/10/25-steps-to-edit-the-unmerciful-suck-out-of-your-story/ : an irreverent, but very useful look at editing by Chuck Wendig over at terribleminds http://terribleminds.com/ramble/2013/09/09/why-i-like-the-term-author-publisher/ : on terminology http://terribleminds.com/ramble/2013/09/06/got-...

I caught a glimpse of this little beauty coming in to roost a few weeks ago and, this morning while taking my walk, I saw another fishing at the weir, so tomorrow I'm going to see if I can catch a picture of it not flying away. In the meantime, see if you can spot it: Finding a place to land, coming in to roost,  and, now it's gone... somewhere.

Here is a free preview of the first chapter in Yard Boss . Enjoy.   Yardboss is the first book in the Schoolyard Adventures series, which is set in the school grounds of multiple people, places and times. In Yard Boss , a new kid arrives at a boarding school and is targeted by bullies. Robert just wants to get on with getting on. He's at a new school and he's trying to find his feet. Allan knows he needs to put the new kid down hard, but which one? How about the big one that returns his gaze? His sidekick, Tom, doesn't think that's such a good idea, but since when did Allan listen to Tom, anyway? Yard Boss is available from Smashwords, Amazon-Kindle, Kobo, Nook, DriveThruFiction and iTunes.   First Chapter: Yard Boss Pick a Kid, Any Kid “Are you kidding?” Allan turned to his friend, his eyes wide. “You think we should trust them?” “I didn’t say that,” Tom replied. “I only said we shouldn’t pick on them… yet.” Allan lifted his eyebrows in a...

Note to all authors: hurting your back *will* compromise your ability to do ‘stuff’. So don’t be too impressed, 11,000 of the words below were produced on Monday, and then things went way south. I’m hoping this week will be better. On the up-side, it is a good lesson in the kinds of things that can affect an independent publisher’s ability to work for their living. Overview New words produced: 12,970 Old words revised: 0 Works completed: 8 (1 for release, 7 for inclusion in a larger work) Works revised: 0 Covers created: 0 (1-3 variations) Works published: 0 (2-3 release platforms) Works submitted: 0 Competitions Entered: 0 Extra Tasks ShortStory45 (previously ShortStory40 ) — The Reptile’s Blade : about a veteran of war caught up in intergalactic diplomacy between humanity and the lizardine. Added 12,164 words. Publishing Tasks Created 3 blog posts for this blog; New Arrivals The following ideas arrived this week: ShortStory77— Sto...