This coming weekend, science fiction and fantasy lovers will be gathering at Shore Leave 46, being held at the Lancaster Wyndham Resort and Convention Center, in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Rich is the bestselling author of the licensed novel Gauntlet: Dark Legacy: Paths of Evil, as well as a bunch of titles published by us: the swashbuckling adventure novel Harbinger of Darkness; the fantasy-adventure story collection For a Few Gold Pieces More; the writers’ and RPG gamemasters’ aid Terra Incognito: A Guide to Building the Worlds of Your Imagination; the supernatural-superhero graphic novel Troubleshooters, Incorporated: Night Stalkings; the noir-fantasy story collection Chasing Danger: The Case Files of Theron Chase; and the pirate-adventure digital comic The Chronicles of the Sea Dragon Special.
You’ll find Rich hawking his wares in the dealers’ area, so be sure to stop by his table and pick up any titles you might have missed, and to learn about his upcoming projects.
Shore Leave 46 runs July 10–12. For more information on the show, visit their website.
Hey, book lovers! Today’s the day when e-book distributor Smashwords launches its annual Summer/Winter Sale, during which you can purchase thousands of digital books at special prices! It runs from July 1 to July 31—and yes, you’ll need to set up an account (it’s free) to take advantage of this promotion.
As for why Smashwords gives this event such an unusual name: “Because Smashwords serves a global readership where it’s summer in the Northern hemisphere and winter in the Southern hemisphere. So whether you’re looking for a great beach read, or you want to curl up in front of a warm fireplace with a great read, we’ve got you covered!”
Included among the many participating publishers is StarWarp Concepts (of course), which means you can get the following digital titles at 25% off:
On Wings of Steel: The Darkside Chronicles, Book 1 is a sci-fi steampunk thriller from science fiction and fantasy author Richard C. White (Gauntlet: Dark Legacy: Paths of Evil, Battletech, Star Trek: SCE), in which Erica Halgrim, a new member of the Angels of Steel courier service, finds herself drawn into political intrigue, and her situation turns even more dangerous when she becomes a murder suspect—and a target for assassins!
Cry Havoc: The Furies, Book 1 is a pulp-action collection of three novellas by author Richard C. White that introduces a trio of costumed heroines—Black Venus, a black-catsuited fighter pilot; the super-spy Miss Espionage; and the Cat, a Hollywood stuntwoman turned lead actress turned crime fighter—who fought both overseas and on the homefront during the darkest days of World War II, doing all they can to protect post–World War II democracy from an evil organization seeking to take up where the Nazis left off!
Terra Incognito: A Guide to Building the Worlds of Your Imagination is our popular how-to book for writers and gamers in which Richard C. White takes you through the step-by-step process of constructing a world for your characters, from societies and governments to currency and religion. A bonus feature is an exclusive interview with New York Times bestselling author Tracy Hickman (Dragonlance) that discusses his methods of world building, as well as his creative experiences during his time as a designer for gaming company TSR, the original home of Dungeons & Dragons.
Blood Feud: The Saga of Pandora Zwieback, Book 1, by Steven A. Roman (that’s me!) is a young adult novel that’s introduces readers to Pandora Zwieback, a 16-year-old Goth girl who’s spent the last decade being treated for mental health problems because she can see monsters. It’s only after she meets professional monster hunter Sebastienne “Annie” Mazarin that Pan discovers she’s never been ill—her so-called “monstervision” is actually a supernatural gift that allows her to see into Gothopolis, the not-so-mythical shadow world that exists right alongside the human world. Pan, her parents and friends, and Annie are drawn into a conflict among warring vampire clans searching for the key to an ultimate weapon (or so the legend goes)—a key that just so happens to have been delivered to the horror-themed museum owned by Pan’s father.
In Blood Reign: The Saga of Pandora Zwieback, Book 2 (also by me), Pan and Annie face even greater challenges as the vampire clans draw up plans to go to war with humanity. Leading the charge is a fallen angel named Zaqiel, whose previous attempt at subjugating the world was stopped by Annie—who, back in the day, was Zaqiel’s lover! But Pan isn’t about to let some ancient monster win the day, not when the lives of her parents and friends—along with those of every human on the planet—are at stake, so she leads a charge of her own. But whose side is going to emerge the victor remains to be seen…
For a Few Gold Pieces More is Richard C. White’s’s collection of linked fantasy short stories about a Rogue With No Name who travels a world of epic-fantasy adventure, looking for treasure, romance—and revenge against the woman who sent him to prison for a crime he didn’t commit (but she did). Think Lord of the Rings meets the “spaghetti Westerns” of director Sergio Leone (A Fistful of Dollars; The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly).
Harbinger of Darkness is Richard C. White’s original fantasy-adventure novel in which a thief named Perrin steals an extremely valuable—and magical—gem from the evil king ruling her home country. With thugs and fellow thieves and the king’s assassins hot on her trail, Perrin finds just staying alive is becoming a full-time occupation, which directly conflict with her secret life—and identity—as a humble bookseller’s daughter. It’s sword-swinging adventure at its finest!
And Chasing Danger: The Case Files of Theron Chase is Richard C. White’s collection of fantasy-noir, pulp-detective tales starring a private eye working the supernatural beat in the city of Calasia. From a sexy chanteuse who literally turns into a beast when the moon is full to a string of pearls that kills its owners, and from the ghost of a dead woman seeking justice to the Grim Reaper’s little girl seeking her stolen chicken, Theron Chase certainly has his hands full—of danger, death, and dames!
Again, the Smashwords Summer/Winter Sale runs July 1 to July 31, so head over to the StarWarp Concepts publisher page at Smashwords and start your summer (or winter) shopping!
If you’re a fan of role-playing games, then you probably know that today is Free RPGDay. If you’re not, it’s an annual event that’s sort of the gaming equivalent of Free Comic Book Day, intended to drive traffic to your local games shop and boost sales.
Launched by the organization Gaming Days in 2019, it involves over 700 stores around the world (according to their website) and “provides free exclusive content for a wide variety of tabletop roleplaying games.”
And what do you know? It just so happens that StarWarp Concepts has a book that’s perfect for game masters and gamers and fantasy fans alike. It’s not free, though, but it will provide the avid gamer and game master a wealth of information:
Terra Incognito: A Guide to Building the Worlds of Your Imagination is our popular how-to book for writers and gamers in which sci-fi and fantasy author Richard C. WhiteOn Wings of Steel, Cry Havoc: The Furies, Book 1) takes you through the step-by-step process of constructing a world for your characters, from societies and governments to currency and religion. A bonus feature is an interview with New York Times bestselling author Tracy Hickman (Dragonlance) that discusses his methods of world building, as well as his creative experiences during his time as a designer for gaming company TSR, the original home of Dungeons & Dragons.
What you’ll find in its pages is information that’s vital for just about any creator, especially when it comes to world building, and Rich shows you how to do it:
Avoiding the pitfalls of naming characters, regions, and countries
Applying the technique of “outside in” to develop and then refine ideas for your world
Creating a world your readers can relate to, regardless of its technological levels
Identifying how to create backstories and conflict by observing how your world comes together
Adding details to make your story richer without overwhelming your readers
Identifying useful resources for research
From its first publication, the book has been a hit with both fantasy writers and role-playing gamers. In fact, it’s currently being used as a textbook in the Interactive Media & Game Development program at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Worchester, Massachusetts!
“Terra Incognito is a solid introduction to the subject of world building. The book succeeds in helping the aspiring writer in creating a skeletal framework for which to hang the moving parts required of a believable fictional setting.”—The Gaming Gang
This coming weekend, science fiction and fantasy lovers will be gathering at Station Unity, being held at the Hilton McLean Tysons Corner in McLean, Virginia.
Rich is the bestselling author of the licensed novel Gauntlet: Dark Legacy: Paths of Evil, as well as a bunch of titles published by us: the swashbuckling adventure novel Harbinger of Darkness; the fantasy-adventure story collection For a Few Gold Pieces More; the writers’ and RPG gamemasters’ aid Terra Incognito: A Guide to Building the Worlds of Your Imagination; the supernatural-superhero graphic novel Troubleshooters, Incorporated: Night Stalkings; the noir-fantasy story collection Chasing Danger: The Case Files of Theron Chase; and the pirate-adventure digital comic The Chronicles of the Sea Dragon Special.
You’ll find Rich hawking his wares in the dealers’ area, so be sure to stop by his table and pick up any titles you might have missed, and to learn about his upcoming projects.
Station Unity runs June 19–21. For more information on the show, visit their website.
Celebrated on the first Saturday in June, InternationalTabletop Day is an annual event celebrating tabletop and board games of all sorts, launched in 2013 by creator Boyan Radakovich and originally hosted on actress (and gamer) Felicia Day’s Geek & Sundry YouTube channel. As the website Days of the Year explains, it’s “an opportunity for players to remember why they got into playing tabletop games in the first place. It’s all about pitting yourself against strangers and finding ways to survive through to the next turn.”
Well, if you’re looking to celebrate this special event, it just so happens that StarWarp Concepts has a book that’s perfect for tabletop RPG gamers:
Terra Incognito: A Guide to Building the Worlds of Your Imagination is our popular how-to book for writers and gamers in which sci-fi and fantasy author Richard C. White (Harbinger of Darkness, For a Few Gold Pieces More) takes you through the step-by-step process of constructing a world for your characters, from societies and governments to currency and religion.
What you’ll find in its pages is information that’s vital for just about any writer and game master, especially when it comes to world building, and Rich shows you how to do it:
Avoiding the pitfalls of naming characters, regions, and countries
Applying the technique of “outside in” to develop and then refine ideas for your world
Creating a world your readers can relate to, regardless of its technological levels
Identifying how to create backstories and conflict by observing how your world comes together
Adding details to make your story richer without overwhelming your readers
Identifying useful resources for research
A bonus feature is an exclusive interview with New York Times bestselling author Tracy Hickman (Dragonlance) that discusses his methods of world building, as well as his creative experiences during his time as a designer for gaming company TSR, the original home of Dungeons & Dragons.
In fact, it’s a book that’s become so popular with gamers that it’s currently being used as a textbook in the Interactive Media & Game Development program at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Worchester, Massachusetts!
Today marks the debut of Amazon Prime’s Spider-Noir, a Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse live-action spin-off series starring iconic actor Nicholas Cage as Ben Reilly, a retired pulp-era superhero who now works as a private eye. (Cage, in case you might have forgotten or didn’t know, voiced the same character in Sony’s blockbuster Spiderverse animated films.)
Spider-Noir is just the latest example of a growing interest in 1930s/40s pulp-fiction heroes, as evidenced by such recent comic series as Mad Cave’s The Phantom, Dick Tracy, and Flash Gordon, and Dynamite’s Red Sonja: Noir. Revivals of Golden Age comic book and pulp-fiction characters have become all the rage in the last decade among publishers, and author Richard C. White has joined the fun with his latest release: a novel told in three novellas!
Cry Havoc: The Furies, Book 1 introduces a trio of costumed heroines—The Cat, Black Venus, and Miss Espionage—who fought both overseas and on the homefront during the darkest days of World War II, doing all they could to protect democracy—and doing it all with no superpowers!
Black Venus, a black-catsuited fighter pilot, was created by artist Charles Tomsey (Patsy Walker, Captain Midnight), and made her comics debut in Holyoke’s Contact Comics #1 (cover-dated July 1944). The super-spy Miss Espionage, the International Detective, was created by writer Bill Woolfolk (Airboy, Captain Marvel) and artist Rudy Palais (Blackhawk, Phantom Lady), and first appeared in Narrative Publishers’ Power Comics #3 (cover-dated September 1944). As for the Cat, a Hollywood stuntwoman turned lead actress turned crime fighter…well, she may be an original Rich White creation, but her adventures fit perfectly into that Golden Age timeline.
Here’s the back-cover copy to pique your interest:
Black Venus. The Cat. Miss Espionage.
A legendary fighter pilot, a Hollywood star turned crime smasher, and the daughter of Mata Hari—renowned adventurers still fighting the good fight in post–World War II America.
When the war ended, each moved on with their respective lives, but always with an eye out for trouble—just because the Reich has fallen doesn’t mean every spy and saboteur retired, or that criminals have suddenly changed their ways…or that there aren’t madmen eager to pick up where der Führer left off…
Lurking in the shadows is a new threat to freedom and democracy: the Triumverate. An organization whose global influence may rival that of the Third Reich—and whose plans for world domination may be more than just three costumed heroines can put a stop to….
Cover art is provided by Astor Alexander (Fallout 76, Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus), with interior illustrations by Eliseu Gouveia (Carmilla, A Princess of Mars, Lorelei: Sects and the City) and cartoonist Rock Baker.
Cry Havoc: The Furies, Book 1 is available in print and digital formats from such online retailers as Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Bookshop.org. If you’re a fan of pulp adventure, be sure to order a copy today!
That Lord of the Undead, he sure likes to celebrate. Back in February, we noted that Valentine’s Day marked the 95th anniversary of the cinematic debut of Dracula, the 1931 Universal Monsters classic starring Bela Lugosi in his most iconic role. And today is another special occasion: the 2026 edition of World Dracula Day!
World Dracula Day was launched in 2012 by the Whitby Dracula Society 1897 (which is based in Whitby Abbey, England), to mark the day in 1897 when Bram Stoker’s seminal novel was first released by publisher Archibald Constable & Co.
So, what’s the best way to celebrate the occasion? Well, you could read Dracula, of course, or binge a movie marathon of horror flicks starring the count—there are certainly enough of those to watch, not to mention this year’s US release of Dracula: A Love Tale, from writer/director Luc Besson (The Professional, The Fifth Element).
Or you could purchase an entry in our SWC Illustrated Classics line…a book that helped to inspire Stoker in creating the count’s unforgettable debut—especially when it came to the presentation of his vampiric “brides.” In fact, it’s a book that’s been ranked a “Best of #BookTok” title!
Carmilla is J. Sheridan Le Fanu’s 19th-century classic vampiric tale of love gone wrong. Laura is so desperate for a friend that when a young woman named Carmilla practically turns up on the doorstep of the castle owned by Laura’s father, she thinks her prayers for companionship have been answered. But as she comes to realize, Carmilla isn’t as interested in making friends as she is in spilling blood…
Regarded as the one of the earliest female vampire tales—if not the first—Carmilla was an influence on Stoker’s Dracula, and remains a popular character in fiction to this day. Our special edition contains six exclusive illustrations by the super-talented Eliseu Gouveia (Lorelei: Sects and the City, A Princess of Mars,The Saga of Pandora Zwieback Annual #1).
“With a cover that looks like it belongs on the paranormal romance shelf in a bookstore and half a dozen illustrations provided by Eliseu Gouveia, this edition stands a good chance of tempting some younger readers to pick up this classic vampire tale…. I wish I’d picked this book up in seventh grade instead of slogging through Dracula.”—The Gothic Library
Carmilla is available in print and digital formats. Visit its product page for ordering information.
This coming Memorial Day Weekend might be the unofficial start of the summer season (which really begins June 21, the summer solstice), but that doesn’t mean you can’t start on your summer reading list. And you know what would make for perfect reading this summer? The currently most popular titles from our awesome backlist!
Cry Havoc: The Furies, Book 1 is a pulp-action collection of three novellas by author Richard C. White (Chasing Danger, Doctor Who: Short Trips, Star Trek Corps of Engineers), that introduces a trio of costumed heroines who fought both overseas and on the homefront during the darkest days of World War II, doing all they could to protect democracy—and doing it all with no superpowers! Black Venus, a black-catsuited fighter pilot, was created by artist Charles Tomsey (Patsy Walker, Captain Midnight), and made her comics debut in Holyoke’s Contact Comics #1 (cover-dated July 1944). The super-spy Miss Espionage, the International Detective, was created by writer Bill Woolfolk (Airboy, Captain Marvel) and artist Rudy Palais (Blackhawk, Phantom Lady), and first appeared in Narrative Publishers’ Power Comics #3 (cover-dated September 1944). As for the Cat, a Hollywood stuntwoman turned lead actress turned crime fighter…well, she may be an original Rich White creation, but her adventures fit perfectly into that Golden Age timeline.
On Wings of Steel: The Darkside Chronicles, Book 1 is a steampunk sci-fi novel by Richard C. White in which Erica Halgrim is a proud new member of the Angels of Steel: a courier service whose all-female members navigate through the streets of Underworld and the skies of the Aerie with the aid of winged flying devices that allow them to traverse the toxic Dark Cloud that separates the downtrodden masses on the ground from the wealthy socialites who live aboard enormous airships. Her job becomes secondary, however, when Erica attends a soiree at the Aerie with her fellow Angels and witnesses what appears to be an unfortunate accident (but could it perhaps have been murder?) and she becomes a suspect!
Terra Incognito: A Guide to Building the Worlds of Your Imagination by Richard C. White is our popular how-to book for writers and role-playing gamers that takes you through the step-by-step process of constructing a world for your characters, from societies and governments to currency and religion. A bonus feature is an interview with New York Times bestselling author Tracy Hickman (Dragonlance) that discusses his methods of world building, as well as his creative experiences during his time as a designer for gaming company TSR, the original home of Dungeons & Dragons. In fact, the book is so popular that it’s currently being used as a textbook in the Interactive Media & Game Development program at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Worchester, Massachusetts!
From the Stars…a Vampiress: An Unauthorized Guide to Vampirella’s Classic Horror Adventures, by Steven A. Roman (X-Men: The Chaos Engine Trilogy, The Saga of Pandora Zwieback) is a nonfiction history that takes an extensive look at the queen of comic book bad girls, from the debut of her series in 1969 to the death of Warren Publishing in 1983, featuring an in-depth guide to all her Warren stories; a checklist of all her Warren appearances; an overview of the six novelizations by pulp sci-fi author Ron Goulart that were published in the 1970s by Warner Books; the story behind the rise and fall of Hammer Films’ proposed Vampi movie of the 1970s that was meant to star Playboy model Barbara Leigh and horror icon Peter Cushing—along with a peek at Peter Cushing’s personal copy of the ’70s Vampirella screenplay; and a look at the awful 1996 direct-to-cable-TV movie that was made, starring Talisa Soto as Vampirella and rock god Roger Daltrey as Dracula. There’s also a foreword by Official Vampirella Historian Sean Fernald, a frontispiece by Warren artist Bob Larkin, and photographs from the personal archives of Vampi’s cocreator (and creator/editor of Famous Monsters of Filmland), Forrest J Ackerman.
Carmilla is J. Sheridan Le Fanu’s 19th-century classic vampiric tale of love gone wrong. Laura is so desperate for a friend that when a young woman named Carmilla practically turns up on the doorstep of the castle owned by Laura’s father, she thinks her prayers for companionship have been answered. But as she comes to realize, Carmilla isn’t as interested in making friends as she is in spilling blood! Regarded as the one of the earliest female vampire tales—if not the first—Carmilla was an influence on Stoker’s Dracula, and remains a popular character in fiction to this day. Our SWC Illustrated Classics edition contains six exclusive illustrations by the super-talented Eliseu Gouveia (A Princess of Mars,The Saga of Pandora Zwieback Annual #1)—and has been ranked a “Best of #BookTok” title!
And Lorelei: Sects and the City is a Mature Readers graphic novel in which a soul-stealing succubus battles a cult of Elder God worshipers attempting to unleash hell on Earth. Basically a love letter to 1970s horror comics like Vampirella, Tomb of Dracula, and Ghost Rider, it’s written by Steven A. Roman, and illustrated by Eliseu Gouveia, Steve Geiger (Web of Spider-Man, Incredible Hulk), and Neil Vokes (Tom Holland’s Fright Night, Elvira, Mistress of the Dark). It also features work by three legendary Warren Publishing artists: Esteban Maroto (Vampirella, Zatanna, Lady Rawhide: Other People’s Blood), who provided the cover painting; a frontispiece by original Vampirella artist Tom Sutton (Ghost Rider, Man-Thing, Werewolf by Night); and a one-page history of succubi illustrated by Ernie Colon (Vampirella, The Grim Ghost).
All these books are available in both print and digital formats—although, unfortunately, Amazon has decided to no longer directly offer From the Stars (see Monday’s post about that maddening situation), but it’s still on sale at retail sites like Barnes & Noble. Visit their respective product pages for ordering information.
This coming Memorial Day weekend, fans of science fiction, fantasy, and horror will be gathering at Balticon, being held at the Renaissance Baltimore Harborplace Hotel, in Baltimore, Maryland’s Inner Harbor entertainment district.
Rich is the bestselling author of the licensed novel Gauntlet: Dark Legacy: Paths of Evil, as well as a bunch of titles published by us: the swashbuckling adventure novel Harbinger of Darkness; the fantasy-adventure story collection For a Few Gold Pieces More; the writers’ and RPG gamemasters’ aid Terra Incognito: A Guide to Building the Worlds of Your Imagination; the supernatural-superhero graphic novel Troubleshooters, Incorporated: Night Stalkings; the noir-fantasy story collection Chasing Danger: The Case Files of Theron Chase; and the pirate-adventure digital comic The Chronicles of the Sea Dragon Special.
You’ll find Rich hawking his wares in the Dealers’ Room, so be sure to stop by his table and pick up any titles you might have missed, and to learn about his upcoming projects.
Balticon runs May 22–25. For more information on the show, visit their website.
So, here’s an infuriating story of book publishing and corporate indifference.
The trouble started a couple of weeks ago. Richard C. White—author of Terra Incognito, On Wings of Steel, and other SWC titles—was heading off to a convention, and had checked Amazon for the availability of his latest release, Cry Havoc: The Furies, Book 1…but it was listed as Out of Stock, only available from third-party sellers as a used book. A book that came out a month ago.
So I took a look and discovered the problem was bigger than that: Amazon had removed the Buy Buttons from all StarWarp Concepts titles—Rich’s, mine, the Illustrated Classics; Cry Havoc was the one exception. No heads-up, no reason given.
So I contacted the sales rep at SWC’s distributor, wholesaler Ingram Content Group, and asked them to look into this. They did and responded:
“Amazon uses a proprietary algorithm. Titles will disappear from the website, only to reappear a short time later. We make sure metadata is being fed correctly to them and rebroadcast to help.”
So, Amazon’s algorithm removes listings on a whim and then restores them at some point? That’s insane. For what purpose is this done?
The sales rep re-sent (or “rebroadcast,” as they call it) the publishing information on our titles. A couple of days later, most of the Buy Buttons were restored and the books offered for sale…except for our edition of A Princess of Mars and my Vampirella history book, From the Stars a Vampiress: An Unauthorized Guide to Vampirella’s Classic Horror Adventures, which were (and are) still listed as only available from third-party vendors.
When I asked why, Ingram said that Amazon’s response was that From the Stars was a nonreturnable book, and that’s why the Buy Button was removed. But I pointed out that none of SWC’s titles have ever been returnable. So they went back to Amazon to request an adjustment and got this answer:
“I’ve checked your ASIN and can confirm that the Amazon offer is active, however, it was not selected to be the Featured Offer.The Featured Offer algorithm will always choose the best offer to display to our customers, even if it is a third-party seller’s offer.”
Unfortunately, Ingram told me, “Amazon has chosen not to offer the Amazon Buy Button, but rebroadcasting may still be helpful.”
I thought it might all be due to the fact that From the Stars doesn’t have an ePub edition that could be sold through the Kindle Store; its only digital form is as a PDF—since there are photographs involved—and unavailable through Kindle. But no, Amazon sells non-ebook titles from, for example, TwoMorrows Publishing (home of Back Issue magazine) and Fantagraphics’ James Warren: Empire of Monsters. They’ve just decided, for whatever reason, that they won’t directly sell From the Stars—although Amazon will fulfill the order for the outside vendor—in spite of Ingram’s repeated attempts to reverse that situation.
And no, they haven’t changed the situation with A Princess of Mars, either.
So, what can be done for the Vampirella book? Well, all I can do is point interested readers and fans of the character to Barnes and Noble’s listing, and Bookshop.org, where From the Stars can still be found, and hope that maybe one day Amazon’s nonsensical algorithm will restore the book to availability.
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