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I just got a PDF of the lettered pages for the first issue of the Dracula’s Revenge comic book from IDW Publishing. It rocks. It’s amazing to see the whole package come together like this. I’ve been going back and forth with the artist (Szymon Kudranski) and the editor (my old friend Jeff Mariotte) over the artwork, helping hone it until it sings. Then Ben Templesmith gave the book a little love by helping with the color correcting. It looks great.

When the letters hit the pages, though, it all leaps to life. Suddenly, it’s not just a script or a series of panels. It’s a story, a real comic. The book is scheduled to be in stores on April 30, and I can’t wait. If you want a look at the covers for both issues, stop by the IDW Publishing store.

I just spent a few weeks pulling back the curtain on the secrets behind Brave New World, I think I hit upon most of the major secrets. Of course, it’s been over three years since I finished work on the last book in the series, so there’s probably a ton of details that just don’t spring to mind any more. If you have any questions I haven’t answered, drop me a line or post a note in the comments section here. I’ll answer them the best I can, even if all I can come up with is, “I never got to that part, but here’s what I think I might have done.”

I just had to share this.

Anyone out there into Neopets? Well, my five-year-old son loves it and is always dragging me over to help him read directions and play games on the site. Some of them are pretty good, and we have a blast.

While we were poking around the site the other night, we discovered something hilarious: a game called Whack-a-Staff Member. It’s like Whack-a-Mole, but it’s set in a matrix of office cubicles and you whack the Neopets staff members as they prairie-dog out of random spots.

The best part is my good pal John Wick is on the Neopets staff. When he popped up the first time, I was too shocked to whack him, but I got in a few good lick later on! You have to register with the site to play, but it’s more than worth it.

I just finished my first article for Games Quarterly Magazine, the consumer partner to the indispensible Games Quarterly Catalog, published by Matthews-Simmons Marketing. You can read the press release here. It doesn’t mention me by name, as I hadn’t signed on when the magazine was announced. However, it does mention my good friends Marcelo Figueroa, Ken Hite, Peter Adkison, and John Kovalic. It’s one heck of an all-star team of contributors, and I’m looking forward to seeing the first issue soon.

The Alliterates front page just got an update. Stop by Alliterates.com to see what my fellow Alliterates are up to next.

When I last left off talking about the Brave New World Roleplaying Game, I’d gotten to the destruction of the city of Chicago by the Devastator in 1976 during an event known as the Bicentennial Battle. It’s finally time to reveal what really happened on that terrible day.
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A couple other things happened at GTS that weren’t meant for the Human Head update, as they involve my freelancing.
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I had a great time at the GAMA Trade Show in Las Vegas last week, and I’m just now getting my head screwed back on right. Part of that involved writing up a report on the show for Human Head Studios. You can read it here.

I’m going to the GAMA Trade Show next week primarily to push games for Human Head Studios. However, the fine people at GAMA shanghaied me into helping out with a few seminars too. If you’d like to see me wing my way through a conversation or two, stop in and say hi.

Mike Stackpole and I hope to handle the “Negotiating Contracts for Writers” seminar. Although I’m going to miss the Monday session, I’ll be there Tuesday and Wednesday.

Steve Kenson, Aaron Rosenberg, and I run the “Freelance to Salary and Back” seminar. I should be there for all three sessions, although the Monday one might be missed if my flight is delayed.

Today Anthony Gallela called me to ask if I could step in for a missing host for the “Seven Habits of Effective Freelancers” seminar, and doped up on cold medicine I said yes. I’ll be shaking my head at both sessions.

If you have any interest at all in these, stop by. If no one else shows, we’ll go grab a beer and talk shop instead.

I’ll be in Las Vegas next week for the GAMA Trade Show. If you’ll be there too, stop by the Human Head Studios booth and say hi!

Since I’m not sure about my internet access from the show, I’m not planning an update for next week. When I get back, though, you can expect to hear all about it.

If you’ve been following along with my Brave New World exposé, you may already have your own guesses as to what the rest of the secrets are. Despite that, I’m going to continue on with my effort to fill in all those missing parts of the puzzle.
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This week is the mad rush of preparations for the GAMA Trade Show held next week at the Orleans Hotel in Las Vegas. I’ll be in the Human Head booth most of the time, when I’m not helping out with a seminar or three. If you’ll be there, stop by the booth, and I’ll tell you all about Human Head’s plans for Dracula’s Revenge, Age of Conquest, and our upcoming roleplaying game too.

Jesse Scoble of Guardians of Order tells me that the April release date of The Authority Role-Playing Game didn’t account for delays in licensing approvals. The game should hit shelves by June at the latest. We can hope for earlier, but June seems like the safest bet at the moment.

Still, Guardians should have some sample pages from the game to show off at the GAMA Trade Show. Plus, there’s a preview of the book in the March issue of Game Trade Magazine.

This is “Part Two” of my ongoing exploration of all the things that never got said in while my Brave New World roleplaying game was in print.
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