As I mentioned back in December, Erick Wujick was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and not given long to live. According to his good friend Kevin Siembieda at Palladium Books, Erick lost his ongoing battle yesterday, having turned those six weeks into more than six months. Although I didn’t know Erick well–we’d talked a few times over the years–I always respected …
Hard Times on the Tabletop
The tabletop games industry seems to be contracting again. The last couple weeks have seen more layoffs from Upper Deck, the closing of Tenacious Games, and the ending of games at Press Pass. This put a number of good, talented friends out of work, including Ed Bolme, Sean K. Reynolds, and Hyrum Savage. (If you can hire them, do.) Traditionally, …
Good-Bye, Bob
Late last night I learned that Robert Lynn Asprin had died early that day. I didn’t know him all that well, but I loved his work. In high school, I devoured both the hilarious Myth Adventures books and the gritty Thieves’ World anthologies. When I went to college at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, I knew that Bob …
If You Can’t Go to the Con…
have the con come to you. Because I skipped GTS this year (for the first time in memory), I missed out on seeing a lot of friends that I often only get to see at that show. Some of them, I’ll run into at Gen Con, of course, but that’s a bigger show with so much going on that it’s …
Storytelling and Distance
“Necessary Distance,” my latest essay for Storytellers Unplugged, is up and ready for your enjoyment. This month, I write about how hard it is to come back to read my own writing–and what I’ve found is the cure.
Good Vibes for Uncle Duke
Word from GAMA and the Miniatures Page is that “Uncle” Duke Seifried had triple-bypass surgery last month (much like my father did last year). Duke got through with flying colors and is now recuperating in his home in Janesville, WI. I sat next to Duke at Gary Gygax’s funeral, and he seemed fine then. As I saw with my father, …
Credits Where Due
As I continue with purging my office of all (well, most) unnecessary things, I discovered I don’t remember everything I’ve worked on. This, again, is the product of a long career in games, I suppose. For instance, I found a bunch of copies of Madness in Freeport, and I couldn’t recall why I had them. Then I checked the credits …
Categorizing the Past
In my old office, I had a bookshelf on which I put one of everything I’d ever worked on. It was one of those slap-together, particle-board cheapies from Staples, taller than me, with five shelves. I filled it up a while back and had started in on a new shelf. I’m proud of my work, and I figured if I …
Spring Cleaning
It’s been quiet on the site here over the past few weeks as I scramble to catch up with deadlines. I’ve had a lot of work tossed at me this year, which I’ll be the last to complain about, but it’s meant long days juggling it all. When I’m crunching on a project, I always hate to post here, as …
Orcs Cover Spotted
The fine people at Del Rey have posted a cover for my upcoming hardcover, coffee-table book Orcs. It looks pretty sharp, and I’m told the shield on the cover will have an embossed texture and that a couple holes will appear where arrows have gone through it. Orcs should be on shelves by November 4, just in time for the …