Forbeck.com - Part 4

Last Day! Lower the Goal!

12 for '12, Shotguns & Sorcery No Responses »

Mar 102012

As we roll toward the last day of the Shotguns & Sorcery Kickstarter drive, it seems clear that I set the final goal too high again. I think there may be a lot of reasons for this, and I hope to write a post-mortem about it all once this drive is over. Kickstarter is such a new thing — and writing 12 novels in a year is so insane — that I don’t have much history to base decisions on. In short — and in the best tradition of Indiana Jones — I’m making this up as I go.

Which I don’t think shocks any of you, right?

Anyhow, I really want to write these books — all three of them. So I’m going to do what I did last time to help ensure that.

I’m lowering the stretch goal for Book 3 — this time to $10k!

So, help me out here, folks! I’m reaching in your direction. Reach out in mine. Tell anyone you know who might be interested. Consider jumping in if you’re on the fence, or jumping in farther if you’re already there. Remember, one of the things I cannot change about this drive is the end date, and that’s tomorrow, March 11, at just before midnight. It all blazes across the finish line then, ready or not.

Thanks to each and every one of you for your support. Here’s to a fantastic race to the finish!

Two Days Left!

12 for '12, Shotguns & Sorcery No Responses »

Mar 092012

The Shotguns & Sorcery Kickstarter is winding down to its final moments. As I write this, we have jut 56 hours to go, and the total stands at just under $7,000. HUGE thanks to everyone who chipped in and helped out.

I’m pretty confident we can crack the $8k barrier, which unlocks Book 2. I don’t know if we’ll make the $12k to unlock Book 3 as well, but that’s all part of the way a Kickstarter ratchets up the tension at the end, I suppose.

With so little time left, it’s vital to get the message out to everyone who might be interested. If you can help out with that in any way, I’d truly appreciate it. Meanwhile, I’ll sit here and refresh my web browser and check my email constantly until the very end!

Shotguns & Sorcery Interview

12 for '12, Eberron, Shotguns & Sorcery No Responses »

Mar 092012

Over on his Have Dice, Will Travel blog, my pal Keith Baker interviews me about Shotguns & Sorcery. Among his many accomplishments, Keith is the man who created the Eberron setting for Dungeons & Dragons. As he writes in the interview, “When I pitched Eberron, I described it as The Lord of the Rings meets Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Maltese Falcon.”

If you know how I’ve pitched Shotguns & Sorcery, that might sound familiar. I actually came up with Shotguns & Sorcery back in 2001, the year before the world setting search that unearthed Eberron, so it seems that was just the kind of idea in the air back then. I brought those sensibilities with me when I wrote The Lost Mark trilogy of novels for Eberron, which were the first books for the setting after Keith’s own trilogy.

I’d tell you about the differences between them, but Keith asked me that question himself. So hustle on over there, and give it a read. Then — if you haven’t already — grab a copy of the still-free “Goblintown Justice” to try it out for yourself.

Then check out the Shotguns & Sorcery Kickstarter. It ends in 63 hours, so don’t wait!

Three Days Left!

12 for '12, Shotguns & Sorcery No Responses »

Mar 082012

At the moment, we have just over 80 hours left until the end of the Shotguns & Sorcery Kickstarter. We crossed the halfway mark — $6,000! — to unlocking all three of the books yesterday, which means 200% of the initial goal!

However, that leaves us with $2k to go to unlock Book 2 and $4k after that for Book 3. It’s a long way, sure, but most Kickstarters have a big surge in the last few days. Here’s hoping we can pull that off here, just like we did the last time around.

If you want to chip in but haven’t yet, don’t be shy. Go grab a free copy of “Goblintown Justice” for a sample of Shotguns & Sorcery goodness, and then head over to Kickstarter to check out the backer rewards.

Come Sunday night, the drive’s over. Remember, you can pledge now, and no one gets charged for it until sometime Monday.

If you have any way to get the word out, don’t hesitate to let me know. I’m happy to help out with interviews, blog posts, tweets, and whatever else might grab some more attention for us. This all sucks up time, but it’s now or never!

Meanwhile, I’m already starting to plan for the third trilogy. I’ve decided to write a set of thrillers set at game/comic conventions. They say write what you know, and I’ve pretty much grown up at such events over many, many years. Combine that with the fact that there are so many ex-military gamers running around such events, and you have a recipe for a great action yarn or three.

That’s for the future though. For the moment, let’s not take our eyes off the Shotguns & Sorcery ball!

Interview with Chuck Wendig

12 for '12, Raves No Responses »

Mar 082012

Back when I ran my first Kickstarter, Chuck Wendig was kind enough to interview me for his blog. Since he’s running his own Kickstarter now — and I’m running another one myself — I figured it was time to return the favor.

Much like myself, Chuck started out working in the tabletop gaming industry — he was a developer for White Wolf, among other things — but he’s since become one hell of a fiction writer too. He may be best known these days for his blog, on which he dispenses inspiring writing advice shot through with creative profanity, but his novels prove that he knows a lot more about writing fiction than just how to talk about it. I had the chance to read his upcoming Blackbirds, which is being published by Angry Robot in April, and it’s fantastic.

Your blog is named Terribleminds. What’s that about?

The name, or the blog?

Doesn’t matter; I can answer both in a single answer. Like Superman.

I procured the URL over a decade ago and my initial thought was to do this online zine bullshit writer’s community hoo-hah, but somewhere along the way I decided, “That’s going to be a lot of work.” Then I took a nap. When I awoke I decided it would be better instead to just keep the site as my own personal babble-space.

So, the name terribleminds comes out of that notion where the site would allow an unholy host of terrible-minded writer-types to gather. Which, in a sense, it has become over these many glacial epochs. Prophecy, fulfilled!

Continue reading »

New Kickstarter Benefit!

12 for '12, Brave New World, Shotguns & Sorcery 2 Responses »

Mar 072012

We’re in this drive’s final days (only 4 days left!), and I want to do everything I can to encourage people to jump on board and back it. To that end, I’m announcing a new benefit I call Respect the Streak.

If we manage to unlock all three novels (by cracking $12k in funding), I’ll give free ebook editions of the Brave New World trilogy from the first Kickstarter to everyone who pledges $50 or more!

These will be similar to the editions that backers of the first Kickstarter receive, although they will not be personalized or autographed. That’s reserved for those early backers.

If you backed the first drive and already have autographed copies coming your way, don’t fret. This means you can have an extra set of the books you can give to whoever you like. Plus you still get all the regular benefits for your backing level.

With luck, this will help make sure we keep the streak of getting all the books funded alive, which means more books for everyone. To that end, spread the word as far and wide as you can. If there’s any way I can help you with that, just let me know. Thanks for all your help!

Figuring Kickstarter Rewards

12 for '12, Brave New World, Shotguns & Sorcery 6 Responses »

Mar 062012

I’ve had a few requests from supporters of my current Shotguns & Sorcery Kickstarter to come up with a way for them to be able to get in on the original 12 for ’12 Kickstarter I ran for the Brave New World novels. On the face of it, that’s a great idea. I’d love to get more people to read the first trilogy, and I hate to penalize them for having missed word of it back when it was running. I want to encourage my readers to be enthusiastic, no matter when they jump on.

However, I want to make sure I remain fair to the people who did back the first project. They stepped up and backed those books, and I want to make sure they get everything they deserve for that. More to the point, I never want to make them feel like they should have waited for a better deal.

The best idea I have at the moment has its pros and cons. I call it “Respect the Streak.” It’s based around the idea of keeping the streak of funding all the books in each trilogy alive.

If we manage to unlock all three books for the Shotguns & Sorcery Kickstarter, which means raising $12k, then anyone who backs it at $50 or more would get the trilogy ebooks from the Brave New World Kickstarter added in for free. These ebooks will be the Kickstarter-backer editions, but they will not be autographed. That means you’d get those books earlier than the general public, and you’d get the limited editions, but you wouldn’t get my signature on them.

Does that seem cool? And more to the point, is it fair to earlier backers?

People who have pitched in $25 for each Kickstarter will get the autographed limited edition ebooks, so they have a bit of a bonus over the late-comers. They wouldn’t get the hardcopy book that comes at the $50+ levels that someone joining now gets, but if they pitch in $50 this time, they would not only get that but also a second set of ebooks they could give away.

Assuming I go with this, I’d probably do the same thing for the next two Kickstarters too, bumping the bonus level $25 each time.

So I’m turning to you. What should I do?

Six Days Left!

12 for '12, Shotguns & Sorcery No Responses »

Mar 052012

The second Kickstarter for my 12 for ’12 plan comes to a close this Sunday evening. That gives us only six days to raise the rest of the money needed to unlock the next two books in the Shotguns & Sorcery trilogy.

We shattered the goal for the first book in less than 32 hours. After that, the total climbed steadily for about a week. Then, like most Kickstarters, it leveled off. Now it’s started climbing back up again as people realize that time is running out.

We’re at over $5,300 at the moment, which puts us less than $2,700 from unlocking Book 2. I’m fairly confident we’ll manage that. The trick will be adding another $4,000 on top of that to unlock Book 3 too.

In the last Kickstarter, we managed to add on over $7,000 in the last week, and I’m hoping we can repeat that this time around. To do that, though, I’ll need your help.

First, tell people about the project. Twitter and Facebook are great venues. If you have a blog you can post on, better yet. If you’d like to interview me about the project, I’d love to help with that too.

If you have other ideas for promotion, don’t be shy about letting me know. I’m happy to do whatever I can to make this project a success.

Second, if you haven’t backed the Kickstarter project yet, please consider joining us! The project has gone fantastic so far. I wrapped the first drafts of both of the first two books on schedule, and I’m hoping to get the first book revised and into backers’ hands as soon as possible. With your help, this should prove to be one amazing year, and I’d love for you to be a part of it.

In any case, though, thanks to all of my backers for everything you’ve done so far. This literally would be impossible for me to pull off without you. I hope you’ll all stick around and keep tuned in for this final week. I’m thrilled to see how it all winds up!

New Magic: The Gathering Miniseries

Magic: The Gathering No Responses »

Mar 022012

Sharp-eyed fans have noticed that IDW has announced a second miniseries of the Magic: The Gathering comics I write for IDW, subtitled The Spell Thief. It features the exact same team that brought you the first miniseries, and it’s due out later this year. As the solicitation text says:

Planeswalker Dack Fayden has followed Sifa Grent into a mysterious plane, where a Titan’s castle looms invitingly in the distance. Entering the castle in search of Sifa, Dack is soon imprisoned by the Titan and added to his vast collection. Dack must find a way out before the trail to Sifa runs cold and he remains the Titan’s prisoner forever! Special playable Magic: The Gathering card polybagged in each issue!

And click on that cover for a look at series artist Martin Cóccolo’s variant cover for the first issue too.

Streams Crossed!

Carpathia, Professional No Responses »

Mar 022012

The Crossing the Streams contest came to an end last night, and today we have winners! First, we have Chris Bauer, whose Hollywood-style mash-up tickled my fancy the most:

Rotten Sweet Tooth
Imagine Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory meets Dawn of the Dead, okay? Starring Vin Diesel or John Cena (whoever is available) as the fearless, chainsaw-wielding candymaster who must use his wits, brawn and knowledge of confectionery delights to defend hapless tourists from the purple horde of rampaging, flesh-eating Oompa Loompas!

The random winner was Jim Auwaerter. I’ll send autographed ARCs of Carpathia out to both Chris and Jim next week. Meanwhile, stay tuned to learn who won the grand prize of a book from every one of the authors involved in the contest.

I had many, many excellent entries, and they gave me more than a few laughs and shivers. I’m happy to see so many creative people out there getting into the spirit of the game. Thanks to every one of them for joining in!

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