My latest column is up at The Escapist. In “The Art of Writing Tie-In Fiction,” I discuss some of the differences between tie-in and original fiction. Stop on by for a read — it’s free — and let me know what you think.

My latest column for The Escapist‘s High Adventure series is up. In “The Play’s the Thing,” I write about the wrap-up for the first adventure in the D&D campaign I started for Marty and his friends. Check it out, and comment there or here to let me know what you think.

Also, should I continue to write about the campaign, or should I take up other topics? Now would be a good break point if I’d like to switch, and I’m open to suggestions.

As a pick-your-holiday gift, I present to you “Inn Peril” (1.5 MB PDF), a Dungeons & Dragons 4E adventure designed for use with five 1st-level adventurers. This originally appeared in issue #114 of Game Trade Magazine this past summer, and a PDF of it was posted on the magazine’s website for free. The magazine has since retired the adventure, but I’m giving it a permanent home here.

I recently used this as the first adventure in the new campaign I started with my son Marty and his friends. I’ve been writing about this in a monthly column for The Escapist magazine, as part of their High Adventure series. If you read those, be sure to check out the adventure so you can see exactly the sort of fun we’ve been having in our game.

The adventure originally appeared without the maps I designed for it, but I’ve included those in this version of the PDF. These are my hand-drawn originals, not the polished pieces you usually see in a published adventure. Look at them, and you’ll see how much a professional cartographer does to earn his keep.

No matter your religion or lack thereof, I wish you and yours the happiest of holidays this season! 2009 was an amazing year in many ways, and here’s hoping for 2010 to be even better.

I recently signed on to be part of a team of tabletop game designers writing “High Adventure,” a series of columns for the best all-around gaming magazine on the web: The Escapist. I’ve been a faithful reader of the magazine for years and even wrote an article about Prey back in early 2007. Now, though, I’ll be chipping in something every month, alongside Allen Varney, James Maliszewski, and Monte Cook.

For my first column, “Back in the Game,” I write about how being a professional game designer can affect your gaming habits, then I segue into going to Gary Con with my son Marty, and I wrap up with how the second thing is going to help change the first. Be sure to go give it a read, and then tell me what you think.