Women in Horror Month Spotlight: Clemence Annie Housman

Posted on February 19, 2017 by Steven

Clemence-HousmanAs ’Warp fans are aware, on February 7th we launched our new SWC Horror Bites chapbook series (“short tales to appease your monstrous hunger for suspense”) with White Fell—The Werewolf, the classic horror tale by renowned author, artist, and suffragette Clemence Annie Housman. Today, as part of our recognition of February being Women in Horror Month, I thought it would be the perfect time to take a closer look at Ms. Hosuman and her work.

Born on November 23, 1861, in Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, England, Clemence was one of six children born to Edward and Sarah Jane Housman; one younger brother, Laurence, would grow up to become a writer and illustrator, while their older brother Alfred would later be known as the famous poet A. E. Housman. In 1883, Clemence began attending the South London School of Technical Art, where she learned engraving, which would prove useful for her artistic career.

Her first novella, The Were-wolf, debuted in 1896 from London-based publisher J. Lane at the Bodley Head; illustrations were provided by Laurence. A tale of twin brothers put at odds to each other by the arrival of a mysterious woman in their village, it was praised by critics—among them H.P. Lovecraft, whose work, especially his Cthulhu Mythos stories, has inspired generations of horror writers. In his lengthy examination of the genre, “Supernatural Horror in Literature” (first published in 1927), he remarked:

“Clemence Housman, in the brief novelette ‘The Were-wolf’, attains a high degree of gruesome tension and achieves to some extent the atmosphere of authentic folklore.”

Clemence Housman (in gray, 3rd from right) at a suffragette gathering. Photo courtesy of Schwimmer-Lloyd collection, NYPL

Clemence Housman (in gray, 3rd from right) at a suffragette gathering. Photo courtesy of Schwimmer-Lloyd collection, NYPL

But it was her work outside literary circles that brought Clemence the most attention and praise, particularly her efforts in the suffrage movement to gain voting rights for women in the United Kingdom. In 1909, she and Laurence, along with cartoonist Alfred Pearse, founded the political organization/publication Suffrage Atelier; a majority of its members were women who, like Clemence, were professional illustrators. She was also a member of the leading suffrage organization, the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU), and the Women’s Tax Resistance League. Clemence also gained attention by being, in September 1911, the first woman imprisoned by the British government for nonpayment of taxes (she’d done so intentionally, to make a point about British tax laws). She was released after spending a week in Holloway women’s prison.

Clemence Housman (center) at a demonstration by the Women's Tax Resistance League.

Clemence Housman (center) at a demonstration by the Women’s Tax Resistance League.

In addition to The Were-wolf, Clemence wrote a number of short stories as well as the novels The Unknown Sea (1898) and The Life of Sir Aglovale de Galis (1905), and provided illustrations for the books Moonshine & Clover and The Blue Moon, both written by Laurence. She retired from both writing and engraving in 1924, and died on December 6, 1955.

As for Clemence’s most famous literary work, it recently became the debut release in our new SWC Horror Bites line of chapbooks, published under the title White Fell—The Werewolf. If you’re unfamiliar with this story—regarded by some literary scholars as perhaps the first feminist werewolf tale—here’s the back-cover copy from our edition:

white_fell_large_book_cover2017A beautiful woman wanders into a snowbound village—and into the hearts of twin brothers, one of whom immediately becomes smitten by her.

The other brother, however, soon grows suspicious of the enigmatic White Fell. Where did she come from? Why does she always carry an ax? And is her sudden appearance somehow related to the recent sightings of a bloodthirsty wolf in the area?

He may come to regret being so inquisitive…

Critics have continued to enjoy it, even 121 years after its first publication:

“For Housman, the female werewolf is a vehicle for her to present a strong feminist-inspired female character…. It is possible that Housman was telling the world that women had a hidden strength and that men should beware of their own hidden nature.”
—The Nuke Mars Journal of Speculative Fiction

“Housman manages to show women as dangerous and more developed than what the thinking of the time gave them credit for…. By being an intelligent, beautiful, and primal woman, [White Fell] is a revolutionary antagonist that only Housman and her political ideals could conceive of.”
—Spectral Visions

“White Fell is interesting because she subverts many of the tropes of the monstrous woman—i.e without maternal instincts, animalistic, lustful, etc. She is a femme fatale only in the most basic sense that she is a deadly woman.”
—International Gothic Association

White Fell—The Werewolf is on sale right now in print and digital formats, so visit its product page for further information and order it today.

Sources:
Crawford, Elizabeth. The Women’s Suffrage Movement: A Reference Guide 1866–1928 (London: UCL Press, 1999)

Lovecraft, Howard Philip. “Supernatural Horror in Literature” (The H.P. Lovecraft Archives)

New York Public Library Digital Collections: Suffragette procession, Oct. 7, 1911 [Miss Clemence Housman], Schwimmer-Lloyd collection, 1852–1980

Valancourt Books: Clemence Housman author biography

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Simian Saturdays: King Kong (1933)

Posted on February 18, 2017 by Steven

Simian-Saturdays-logoWelcome to the first installment of Simian Saturdays, a series of reviews I’m writing that will examine the movies (and other media) that focused on King Kong, the giant monkey who’s captured generations of monster fans’ hearts over the course of eight decades. It’s part of our countdown to the March 7 release of King Kong, the next addition to our Illustrated Classics library.

King Kong is an e-book exclusive that will reintroduce monster fans to the 1932 novelization of the original movie classic. Written by Delos W. Lovelace, based on the story by Edgar Wallace and Merian C. Cooper and the screenplay by James A. Creelman and Ruth Rose, it includes scenes that didn’t appear in the final cut of the film—including the notorious “spider pit” sequence in which Kong’s human pursuers are attacked by horrific arachnids and insects. Our version features six original black-and-white illustrations by comic artist Paul Tuma, whose pulp-influenced style has appeared in the pages of The Twilight Avenger, Flare, and Dan Turner: Hollywood Detective.

King_Kong_LG_CoverNot familiar with the beauty-and-the-beast story of Kong and his “love interest,” Ann Darrow (who was played in the 1933 original by the queen of the scream queens, Fay Wray)? Well, here’s our edition’s back-cover copy to bring you up-to-date:

Ann Darrow was a down-on-her-luck actress struggling to survive in Depression-era New York when she met moviemaker Carl Denham. He offered her the starring role in his latest film: a documentary about a long-lost island—and the godlike ape named Kong rumored to live there. Denham needed a beauty as a counterpart to the beast he hoped to find, and Ann was the answer to his prayers.

Mystery, romance, a chance to turn her life around, even the possibility of stardom—to Ann, it sounded like the adventure of a lifetime! But what she didn’t count on were the horrific dangers that awaited her on Skull Island—including the affections of a love-struck monster . . .

king_kong_ver7To kick off Simian Saturdays, I figured nothing could be better than to take a look at the movie that launched a monster legend: the original King Kong!

To be completely honest, I have a soft spot in my heart for this version of Kong. It was one of the first horror movies that left a lasting impression on a developing monster kid—others being Bela Lugosi’s Dracula, Boris Karloff’s Frankenstein, and Lon Chaney Jr.’s The Wolfman—and star Fay Wray was my first scream queen (and like the saying goes, you never forget your first scream queen). It was also a movie that, oddly enough, became a staple of New York television broadcasting, running every Thanksgiving (!) on WOR-TV/Channel 9 during the 1970s. (For more about this weird annual tradition, check out this article at DVD Drive-in.)

At face value, Kong has all the pulp-inspired earmarks of a 1930s movie: tough-talking men, a pretty woman who acts self-assured but melts into her romantic lead’s arms at the first sign of danger, sexism (a ship is no place for a woman—you’re only gonna get in the way!), and racist stereotypes (Charlie the Chinese cook with his mangled English, the only black members of the cast being the “savages” who inhabit Skull Island). And Lord knows there’s a good-sized info dump right at the start: who Carl Denham is; the mysterious, potentially dangerous film expedition he’s set up; the fact no agent in New York will provide him with an actress for this project, so he’s got to find one himself (“even if I have to marry one!”). But in spite of those things, Kong remains an enjoyable, fast-paced film.

Robert Armstrong and Fay Wray in a publicity photo for King Kong.

Robert Armstrong and Fay Wray in a publicity photo for King Kong.

A lot of that has to do with the performances of Wray as Ann Darrow and Robert Armstrong as Carl Denham. When she isn’t screaming in terror—which she does way too often—Wray presents Ann as the plucky heroine who hints at a tragic background (out of work, starving, no family) but who’s eager for the chance of adventure. Unfortunately, that aspect of Ann’s character disappears once Kong arrives on the scene, forcing her into the role of swooning damsel in distress for the remainder of the picture. In fact, except for screams and whimpers, Ann (when she’s onscreen and conscious) doesn’t have a word of dialogue from the time she’s kidnapped by the natives until she’s rescued by love interest Jack Driscoll—a forty-minute chunk right in the middle of the film! As for Armstrong, his Denham is brash and loud and just a hair short of scenery chewing—the closest modern parallel I can think of is J.K. Simmons’s memorable portrayal of newspaper editor J. Jonah Jameson in director Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy. Except ol’ JJJ never shot a stegosaurus in the head at point-blank range with an elephant gun, the way Denham does! There’s also another level to Armstrong’s performance—in Denham, he’s basically playing a composite of Kong’s two directors: creator/producer Merian C. Cooper and Ernest Schoedsack, both of whom were showmen and adventurers in their own right.

What I found really interesting in this rewatch was that, for all the harping Denham does on his “beauty and the beast” love-affair theme—subsequently expanded on in the 1976 and 2005 remakes, in which both Jessica Lange and Naomi Watts fall in love with the big lug—the one person who wants nothing to do with a romantic monster is Ann. Unlike her cinematic descendants, 1930s’ Ann has no love for Kong. She isn’t looking to protect him from biplanes or helicopters—she just wants to get the hell away from him.

For her, the events in King Kong are a living nightmare: she’s kidnapped by the islanders and offered as a sacrifice to their monster god; almost eaten by a T-Rex, an elasmosaur, and a pterodactyl; has her clothes partially torn off by Kong (who even leers and sniffs his fingers after pawing her!); jumps off a cliff to escape him and is then chased by him through the jungle. And after Kong is captured and the story shifts to New York, he breaks free, tracks her down, and carries her off to the top of the Empire State Building.

That sounds more like an abusive relationship than a romance, doesn’t it?

Characterizations aside, it’s stop-motion-animation sequences by Willis O’Brien and his team that are the heart of the movie, giving Kong plenty of screen time to menace Ann and battle his enemies. And he does it all in brutal fashion, shoving people in his mouth and biting down, snapping a T-Rex’s jaws, derailing an elevated train filled with passengers, and throwing a woman from a building. And of course there’s Kong’s climactic showdown with army planes at the top of the Empire State Building—the one scene where you can really feel sorry for the “beast-god” destroyed by civilization. As a whole, it’s an astonishing feat of visual effects that still looks amazing eighty-four years later, especially when compared to the often badly rendered computer-generated digital animation of modern films.

Beyond the adventure and monster shenanigans, there are also humorous moments that involve the sort of snappy one-liners common to movies of this period—as, for example, demonstrated in this exchange between audience members at Kong’s Broadway debut after Denham drags him back to New York City:

Woman: Say, what is it, anyhow?

Man: I hear it’s a kind of a gorilla.

Another man rudely shoves past her. The woman glares at him.

Woman: Gee, ain’t we got enough of them in New York?

If that isn’t an observation of life in the Big Apple that still resonates today, I don’t know what is! 😉

Bottom line? If you’ve never seen the original Kong before, you owe it to yourself to give it a viewing—it’s a classic (monster) movie and a fun time. If you have seen Kong before, break out the popcorn and Raisinets and take another look at it; like me, you might notice things in it you never saw before. And then you can compare it to the upcoming SWC release of Delos Lovelace’s novelization to see how the book differs from the movie!

King Kong (1933)
Starring Fay Wray, Robert Armstrong, and Bruce Cabot
Directed by Ernest B. Schoedsack and Merian C. Cooper
Screenplay by James A. Creelman and Ruth Rose
Story by Edgar Wallace and Merian C. Cooper
Produced by RKO-Pathe Studios

Coming Next Saturday: The disco era is in full swing, and it’s back to Skull Island we go, this time accompanied by Jeff Bridges, Charles Grodin, and Jessica Lange in her big-screen debut, in producer Dino de Laurentiis’s 1976 remake of King Kong. “When the Jaws-a die, nobody cry. When my Kong-a die, ev’rybody cry!” de Laurentiis imitator John Belushi declared in an old Saturday Night Live skit. Let’s see if that’s still true!

King Kong (the SWC Illustrated Classic) goes on sale on March 7, 2017. In the meantime, visit its product page for further information.

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Happy 145th Anniversary, Carmilla!

Posted on February 17, 2017 by Steven

carmilla_bookfestJust as the title suggests, today’s the day we begin celebrating the first publication of J. Sheridan Le Fanu’s trendsetting vampire tale, Carmilla, which debuted in serialized form in the pages of the magazine Dark Blue—running from the December 1871 issue through March 1872—then was reprinted in Le Fanu’s short story collection, In a Glass Darkly, which was published later that year. And what better time to mark the occasion than during this year’s Women in Horror celebration?

If you’re unfamiliar with what’s probably Le Fanu’s most famous work, here’s the back-cover copy from the edition that we published in 2010, which has become the most popular title in our Illustrated Classics line:

Before Edward and Bella, before Lestat and Louis, even before Dracula and Mina, there was the vampiric tale of Carmilla and Laura.

Living with her widowed father in a dreary old castle in the woods of Styria, Laura has longed to have a friend with whom she can confide; a friend to bring some excitement to her pastoral lifestyle. And then Carmilla enters her life.

Left by her mother in the care of Laura’s father, Carmilla is young, beautiful, playful—everything that Laura had hoped to find in a companion. In fact, the lonely girl is so thrilled to have a new friend that she is willing to overlook the dark-haired beauty’s strange actions…which include a disturbing, growing obsession for her lovely hostess.

Carmilla, it seems, desires more than just friendship from Laura….

What makes it a “trendsetting vampire tale,” you ask? Well, beyond acting as an inspiration for Bram Stoker in the creation of the vampire brides who threaten Jonathan Harker in Stoker’s seminal novel, Dracula, Carmilla is regarded by a good number of literary experts as being one of the first lesbian vampire stories. Beyond Le Fanu’s well-written prose, it’s that “scandalous” aspect that’s helped keep the tale of Carmilla and Laura in the public’s awareness, and which (naturally) has appealed to filmmakers for decades—Hammer Films’ The Vampire Lovers, director Roger Vadim’s Blood and Roses, and the comedy Lesbian Vampire Killers (starring talk-show host James Corden!) are prime examples of sex being the primary box-office appeal of Carmilla.

On a more literary note, critics continue to enjoy this tale:

“What makes Carmilla so endearing [is] the fact that the story is centered around two female characters, whose complicated relationship is colored by thinly veiled lesbian undertones.”—Slate

“Like many vampire romances, Carmilla and Laura’s love is doomed and unhealthy, but glorious.”—io9

“Carmilla manages to pack in a lot of creepiness, narrative complexity, and moral ambiguity. It is worth reading both as a progenitor of the vampire genre and as a nuanced portrayal of a female relationship—part romance, part horror story—that exists outside the confines of masculine power.” —The Toast

“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, [the StarWarp Concepts] 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

On Monday, we’ll begin looking at some adaptations of Carmilla, starting with a comic version that first appeared in the pages of Warren Publishing’s Creepy #19, from 1968. Come join us in celebrating Carmilla’s anniversary!

Carmilla—the SWC edition, featuring six original illustrations by artist Eliseu Gouveia (Lorelei: Sects and the City, A Princess of Mars)—is available in print and digital formats, so visit its product page for ordering information.

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Simian Saturdays Starts This Weekend!

Posted on February 16, 2017 by Steven

Simian-Saturdays-logoComing to the SWC blog this Saturday, February 18, is the first installment of Simian Saturdays, a series of reviews that will examine the movies (and other media) that have focused on King Kong, the giant monkey who’s captured generations of monster fans’ hearts over the course of eight decades.

Simian Saturdays is part of our countdown to the March 7 release of King Kong, the next addition to our Illustrated Classics library. Kong will be joining J. Sheridan Le Fanu’s vampiric paranormal romance Carmilla; Edgar Rice Burroughs’s science-fantasy adventure A Princess of Mars; and the Brothers Grimm’s fairy tale Snow White.

King Kong is an e-book exclusive that will reintroduce monster fans to the 1932 novelization of the original movie classic. Written by Delos W. Lovelace, based on the story by Edgar Wallace and Merian C. Cooper and the screenplay by James A. Creelman and Ruth Rose, it includes scenes that didn’t appear in the final cut of the film—including the notorious “spider pit” sequence in which Kong’s human pursuers are attacked by horrific arachnids and insects. Our version features six original black-and-white illustrations by comic artist Paul Tuma, whose pulp-influenced style has appeared in the pages of The Twilight Avenger, Flare, and Dan Turner: Hollywood Detective.

KING_KONGFirst up on Simian Saturdays will (naturally) be the movie whose novelization we’re publishing: the original, 1933 version of King Kong, starring Fay Wray, Robert Armstrong, Bruce Cabot, and the stop-motion-animation magic of visual-effects master Willis O’Brien.

Then on February 25, we’ll take a look at Kong’s 1976 remake, which starred Jessica Lange in her big-screen debut alongside Jeff Bridges and Charles Grodin, and was produced by Dino De Laurentiis, who also brought genre film fans such hits as John Milius’s Conan the Barbarian, David Lynch’s Dune, and Sam Raimi’s Army of Darkness.

On March 4 we’ll look at Kong’s 2005 remake, which was written, produced, and directed by Peter Jackson (The Lord of the Rings), and starred Naomi Watts, Jack Black, Adrian Brody, and motion-capture actor supreme Andy Serkis as Kong.

I’ll also have a review of the brand-new take on the king’s story, Kong: Skull Island (after that movie makes its debut on March 10). And after that? Well, there’s still quite a bit more Kong material to dive into—sequels, comics, sound tracks, etc.

So, join us this weekend for the debut of Simian Saturdays. See you then!

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Author Richard C. White at Farpoint 24

Posted on February 15, 2017 by Steven

pieces_gold_large_book_cover2017This weekend, science fiction, fantasy, horror, and comic book fans from across the United States will be gathering at the 24th annual Farpoint convention, being held at the Radisson Hotel North Baltimore in Timonium, Maryland. And among the guests in attendance will be SWC’s own Richard C. White, who’ll be there to promote the release of his latest book, For a Few Gold Pieces More, which came out just this past Tuesday.

For a Few Gold Pieces More is a collection of ten critically acclaimed short stories by Rich, who’s the author of Star Trek: Starfleet Corps of Engineers: Echoes of Coventry, Gauntlet: Dark Legacy: Paths of Evil, and the SWC titles Terra Incognito: A Guide to Building the Worlds of Your Imagination, Troubleshooters, Incorporated: Night Stalkings, and The Chronicles of the Sea Dragon Special. For Gold Pieces, think Lord of the Rings meets the “spaghetti Westerns” of director Sergio Leone (A Fistful of Dollars; The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly), as a Rogue With No Name travels a world of epic-fantasy adventure, looking for treasure—and revenge against the woman who sent him to prison for a crime he didn’t commit (but she did).

For a Few Gold Pieces More is available right now in print and digital formats; visit its product page for ordering information. And if you’re attending Farpoint this weekend, be sure to purchase For a Few Gold Pieces directly from Rich, who’ll be selling hot-off-the-press copies all weekend!

For more information on the convention, visit the Farpoint 24 website.

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For a Few Gold Pieces More Now On Sale!

Posted on February 14, 2017 by Steven

gold-pieces-cvrHe’s a Man With No Name…but probably not the one you were expecting.

On sale now is For a Few Gold Pieces More, a collection of ten critically acclaimed short stories by Richard C. White, author of Star Trek: Starfleet Corps of Engineers: Echoes of Coventry, Gauntlet: Dark Legacy: Paths of Evil, and a few SWC titles. Think Lord of the Rings meets the “spaghetti Westerns” of director Sergio Leone (A Fistful of Dollars; The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly), as a Rogue With No Name travels a world of epic-fantasy adventure, looking for treasure—and revenge against the woman who sent him to prison for a crime he didn’t commit (but she did). Here’s the back cover copy:

For the right price, he’ll get you out of trouble. Cross him, and you’ll never pay enough…

It’s amazing what you learn living on the run.

Fleeing for my life, convicted on trumped-up charges, and denied the use of my own name, I’ve stayed one step ahead of the Imperial Guard by focusing on one thing—taking care of myself first. So, I don’t know where you heard the ridiculous rumor about me helping people here and there around the Empire. And if, and that’s a big if, it was me, there was something in it for me. Trust me on that.

In the various towns and villages I’ve visited over the years, I’ve seen depravity, cruelty, torture, greed, lust—and that’s just the humans. Trust me; compared to them, the creatures that haunt the edges of the Empire are more honest and trustworthy. At least they’re not trying to slip a knife into your back…usually.

Only a few things have been constant while I’ve been on the run. My desire for revenge against the person who framed me all those years ago tops the list. Weird things happening in quiet villages, dark forests, or icy mountains never seem to change. And third? Well, that would be my luck.

I can always count on it to be bad.

And what exactly makes these stories “critically acclaimed”? Well, just look at what these folks have to say:

“Entertaining, old-school sword and sorcery, in the tradition of Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser.”—Jim C. Hines, author of the Magic ex Libris, Jig the Goblin, and The Princesses series

“Richard C. White knows how to spin a yarn. These stories do not disappoint.”—Bobby Nash, author of Evil Ways, Domino Lady: Money Shot, and Alexandra Holzer’s Ghost Gal: The Wild Hunt

“What a fantastic ride! If you like sarcasm and snark reminiscent of Harry Dresden, good doses of magic, treachery, and myth, this is the book for you.”—Goodreads

Weighing in at a hefty 420 pages, For a Few Gold Pieces More sports a cover painting and a frontispiece illustration by fantasy artist Shane Braithwaite, who also provided the cover art for Rich’s 2015 SWC release, the writer’s reference book Terra Incognito: A Guide to Building the Worlds of Your Imagination.

For a Few Gold Pieces More is available right now in print and digital formats. Visit its product page for ordering information.

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The Worlds of Richard C. White: Terra Incognito

Posted on February 13, 2017 by Steven

Rich-New-PicHe’s the bestselling author of the licensed fantasy novel Gauntlet: Dark Legacy: Paths of Evil, and a popular writer of fantasy, science fiction, and crime tales, including Star Trek: Starfleet Corps of Engineers: Echoes of Coventry and The Dark Leopard: Mouse Trap. But if you’ve been paying attention to the works of Richard C. White, you’ll notice he’s been building quite the backlist here at StarWarp Concepts.

He has a brand-new title hitting bookshelves tomorrow: For a Few Gold Pieces More, a collection of ten critically acclaimed short stories that star a Rogue With No Name who travels a world of epic-fantasy adventure, looking for treasure—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), with a healthy dose of monsters, magic, and swordplay mixed in.

With Gold Pieces so close to publication, I thought reminding you of his backlist would be a good idea, since all his titles are still very much available for order from the SWC webstore. On February 30, I told you about his supernatural-superheroes graphic novel Troubleshooters, Incorporated: Night Stalkings. On February 9, we examined his digital-comic ode to seafaring adventure, The Chronicles of the Sea Dragon Special. And today we wrap things up by taking a look at his guide for genre writers who are interested in building fantastic settings for their stories and novels.

terra_ingoc_lg_coverTerra Incognito: A Guide to Building the Worlds of Your Imagination was Rich’s 2015 release. In this nonfiction reference book for writers, Rich takes you through the step-by-step process of constructing a world for your characters, from societies and governments to currency and religion. Included 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 the pages of Terra Incognito is information that’s vital for just about any writer, 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
  • Identify 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 not just fantasy writers, but role-playing gamers as well. When it debuted in October 2015 at the e-book distributor DriveThru Fiction and its sister sites DriveThru RPG and RPGNow, it immediately shot to the #1 position on all three as their top-selling title, and then remained for weeks as DriveThru Fiction’s #1 Hottest Nonfiction Book and #1 Hottest How-To for Writers! If you’re a writer or gamer, you might just want to check it out.

Terra Incognito: A Guide to Building the Worlds of Your Imagination is available in print and digital formats, so visit its product page for ordering information.

Bonus! Because Rich’s interview with Hickman was so lengthy, and touched upon some topics that didn’t pertain to the world-building focus of Terra Incognito, I made the editorial decision to cut those parts from the final version of the book. However, if you want to discover what else Rich and Hickman discussed—including their shared experiences in the licensed-publishing writers market—then head over to Richard C. White’s blog and read all about it!

For a Few Gold Pieces More goes on sale tomorrow, February 14, 2017.

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Blocky Animated Superheroes? Yeah, I’ve Written Them…

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Steven

Hey, Bat-fans! As you’re no doubt aware, today’s the U.S. release date for The Lego Batman Movie, a not-quite sequel to 2014’s incredibly popular The Lego Movie, in which Batman (voiced by Will Arnett) costarred. This time he has to deal not just with the Joker, but Batman’s new sidekick, Robin, who wears bright green shorts that are waaay too short for the Caped Crusader’s liking.

Speaking of animated superheroes, were you aware that I once wrote an adventure for a certain group of merry mutants? And that it counts as my sole writing credit on the Internet Movie Database? Well, now you do!

xmen-darktide-dvdX-Men: Darktide was a licensed short created by the students of the DAVE (Digital Animation & Visual Effects) School in Orlando, Florida. Like The Lego Movie, it involved blocky toy versions of the characters—in this case, the Minimates line produced by toy manufacturer Art Asylum—and was developed as a special straight-to-DVD supplement.

My involvement came in 2005, when I was contacted by Marvel Comics’ Licensing division. The folks there had been impressed with my writing of the X-Men: The Chaos Engine Trilogy novels (published between 2000 and 2002), and now they wanted to know if I’d be interested in stepping into this animated project to do some script-doctoring. As it was explained to me, the DAVE School’s plot and character storyboards had been approved, but the script was lacking in terms of dialogue and a clear understanding of the X-Men.

My response to the offer was an enthusiastic yes, and soon enough I was tweaking the script—which (he said modestly) was approved on my first draft. It’s a pretty simple story: the X-Men start out fighting the giant robots called Sentinels, and end up going toe-to-toe with their archenemy Magneto and his Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. Good wins out in the end, and the team heads home. The DAVE School was happy with my changes and, best of all, so was Marvel.

I didn’t see the results until months later, and that’s when I received a copy of the finished set of DVD and three X-Men Minimates that were included. I thought the final video turned out pretty well. You can judge the results for yourself—it’s on YouTube.

An unexpected bonus was that, not only did I get paid for the work (the most important aspect, of course), but my involvement with X-Men: Darktide led to me getting my own entry in the Internet Movie Database! Sure, it’s only one credit, but it was a pleasant surprise when I came across it.

So, interested in seeing X-Men: Darktide, now that I’ve hyped it so much? Then just click on the screen grab below and get to watchin’!

xmen-darktide-screengrab

And while we’re on the subject of comic book superheroes, especially Batman, allow me to direct you toward a free digital comic that you can download right from this very site—a comic that features a certain psychotic Bat-villainess you might have seen in a 2016 movie called Suicide Squad, tormenting a certain Amazon warrior who’ll be starring in a movie of her own this year…

heroines_large_coverHeroines & Heroes is a collection of comic stories and pinups all drawn by me, dating back to my days in the early 1990s small-press movement—that age of dinosaurs in which creators like me used to make our comics by printing them out on photocopiers and then stapling them by hand. In H&H you’ll find mainstream heroes and small-press heroines, and even a couple of anthropomorphic bikers.

Leading off is “V-A-C-A-T-I-O-N (in the Summertime),” a three-page Wonder Woman vs. Harley Quinn story that I wrote and drew in the late ’90s as a sample for a DC Comics editor who thought I’d be a good fit for their Batman: The Animated Series comic (it didn’t work out). It’s followed by an adventure of small-presser Jeff Wood’s rabbit-eared superspy, Snowbuni; three pages from the long-canceled indie comic Motorbike Puppies; and an adventure of the indie superheroine The Blonde Avenger.

And did I mention it’s a free download? (Yes, I did.) Then what’re you waiting for? Head over to the Heroines and Heroes product page and get your own copy today!

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Supernatural Superheroes? Yeah, We Know a Few of Those…

Posted on February 9, 2017 by Steven

“Troubleshooters, Incorporated was ahead of its time, coming before DC Comics’ Justice League Dark.”—Horror Talk

jl-dark

On sale right now is Justice League Dark, the latest straight-to-DVD feature from Warner Bros. Animation. A loose adaptation of the (now canceled) DC Comics series of the same name, it features among its voice cast Matt Ryan as John Constantine (reprising his role from the short-lived Constantine TV series), Jason O’Mara (Agents of SHIELD) as Batman, Rosario Dawson (Sin City) as Wonder Woman, Alfred Molina (Spider-Man 2) as Destiny, and Jerry O’Connell (Sliders) as Superman. In it, an offshoot of the Justice League of America gathers to combat a supernatural threat to the world—and when demons and monsters are involved, it’s best to pick a team of crimefighters who have some familiarity with the supernatural. Like Justice League Dark.

Or Troubleshooters, Incorporated.

troubleshooters_lrg_coverYes, years before DC Comics tried mixing their horror and superhero characters in a team setting, author Richard C. White (Terra Incognito: A Guide to Building the Worlds of Your Imagination, The Chronicles of the Sea Dragon Special) assembled his own set of costumed heroes who fight supernatural monsters—only they do it to turn a profit!

Perfect for superhero fans, Troubleshooters, Incorporated: Night Stalkings is a graphic novel about a supernatural team of superfolk-for-hire, consisting of a wizard, a sorceress, a female ninja, a high-tech-armor-wearing rock concert lighting designer, and a werewolf. Not every superhero team has Tony Stark’s billions to play with, you understand, and the Troubleshooters are just looking to earn a living while fighting the monsters that have always lurked in the shadows. Makes sense, right? Of course it does!

The Troubleshooters consist of: Silver Oak, the team leader and a sorcerer; Yolanda, a sorceress who wants to be a veterinarian; Nightstalker, an intelligent werewolf who was already fighting crime before he joined the team; Lightshow, a rock ’n’ roll lighting designer who built himself a suit of armor with laser blasters and other weapons—think Tony Stark designing an Iron Man suit for the Dazzler, but then keeping it for himself because he thought it looked cool; and Shadow Mist, a blond, female ninja.

Written by the husband-and-wife team of Richard C. White and Joni M. White, and illustrated by Reggie Golden and Randy Zimmerman, Night Stalkings presents the TSI members on their first mission: protecting a multimillionaire from a trio of Middle Eastern demons out to raise a little hell! If Justice League Dark intrigues you, then you should definitely check out Troubleshooters, Incorporated.

Troubleshooters, Incorporated: Night Stalkings is available in print and digital formats, so visit its product page for ordering information and sample pages.

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The Worlds of Richard C. White: The Chronicles of the Sea Dragon Special

Posted on February 8, 2017 by Steven

Rich-New-PicHe’s the bestselling author of the licensed fantasy novel Gauntlet: Dark Legacy: Paths of Evil, and a popular writer of fantasy, science fiction, and crime tales, including Star Trek: Starfleet Corps of Engineers: Echoes of Coventry and The Dark Leopard: Mouse Trap. But if you’ve been paying attention to the works of Richard C. White, you’ll notice he’s been building a backlist here at StarWarp Concepts.

Rich has a brand-new title hitting bookshelves next week: For a Few Gold Pieces More, a collection of ten critically acclaimed short stories that star a Rogue With No Name who travels a world of epic-fantasy adventure, looking for treasure—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), with a healthy dose of monsters, magic, and swordplay mixed in.

With Gold Pieces so close to publication, I thought reminding you of his backlist would be a good idea, since all his titles are still very much available for order from the SWC webstore. Last Monday, I told you about his supernatural-superheroes graphic novel Troubleshooters, Incorporated: Night Stalkings. Today we’ll examine his ode to seafaring adventure.

seadragon_lrg_cov_revThe Chronicles of the Sea Dragon Special was Rich’s second SWC release since our 2010 relaunch—a 48-page pirate-fantasy comic created and written by Rich, and drawn by Bill Bryan (artist of Caliber Press’ Dark Oz and DC Comics’ House of Mystery). It’s Rich’s love letter of sorts to the classic pirate movies he grew up watching on TV, like The Crimson Pirate, Against All Flags, Captain Blood, and The Sea Hawk—not to mention it has a certain resonance with the more contemporary Pirates of the Caribbean movie franchise, of course! (Hey, with a new movie coming out this year, it’s not a bad thing to let Jack Sparrow fans know about Sea Dragon’s availability.)

Sea Dragon originally made its debut in print form, through Rich’s NightWolf Graphics publishing company, and premiered at the 2005 Comic-Con International in San Diego, California (which was also The ’Warp’s final appearance at that West Coast madhouse). The general reaction to the one-shot, which sported cover art by interior artist Bill Bryan, was overwhelmingly positive from fantasy and comic fans at the show, but it was easy to overlook its virtues in a venue that, even in 2005, was catering more and more to the pop-culture crowd and less to comic readers.

Still, I knew that Sea Dragon had potential, which is why I approached Rich in 2012 about reviving the special as an e-comic and releasing it in time for 2013’s International Talk Like a Pirate Day (celebrated every September 19th). For the updated version, I commissioned new cover art from Eliseu Gouveia, the super-talented artist of the SWC projects Lorelei: Sects and the City, The Saga of Pandora Zwieback Annual #1, Carmilla, and A Princess of Mars, and had designer Mike Rivilis clean up the interior art scans and lay out the balance of the comic. And, even better for comic fans, we made the digital version available for just 99¢!

In the special you meet Asheera, captain of the Sea Dragon, and his elfin first mate, Safir, as they lead a crew of privateers—soldiers of fortune—on a mission to intercept a supply train during a war between two island kingdoms. But, as you might expect, things don’t exactly work out how they’ve been planned, and the crew of the Sea Dragon soon find themselves sailing some very rough seas—both in and out of the water…

The Chronicles of the Sea Dragon Special is available right now in digital form, so visit its product page for ordering information and sample pages. Pick up a copy today—it’ll give you something to read while you’re waiting for the May release of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales!

Next Monday, we’ll wrap things up by taking a look at Rich’s 2015 release, the writer’s guide Terra Incognito: A Guide to Building the Worlds of Your Imagination. Be sure to join us!

For a Few Gold Pieces More goes on sale February 14, 2017.

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