- Hello!
- Space Hulk: Deathwing Video Game
- Kickstarter
- Warbeast Interviews
- Blog Post Round-Up
- Upcoming Events
- Newsletter Q&A
- Bi-Monthly Competition Winner Announced!
Hello!
So I usually start each newsletter with a bit of a recap on what I’ve been up to lately, both in work and the gaming hobby. You can find that in the blog recap below because this month I have something a bit different to talk about.
It’s no exaggeration to say that the forthcoming release of Angels of Caliban is the most significant for me in some time – both personally and financially.
The Horus Heresy stands like a giant over even a 40K series in terms of visibility and sales, and Angels of Caliban is a keynote title toward concluding the ‘Imperium Secundus’ arc of the story. It involves several Primarchs, all of whom have been portrayed by other authors previously, as well as setting and characters well established by Dan Abnett and wonderfully continued by Guy Haley in Pharos. With hardback, paperback, MMPB (‘Legacy edition’) and audio formats being released I expect Angels of Caliban to become my top-earning title – a position that was held by Angels of Darkness for about ten years before Deliverance Lost blew it away in the first six months of release!
There is, to put it mildly, some pressure for it to be a success.
Defining ‘success’ as an author isn’t easy. You can’t rely on reviews alone, as it’s impossible to please everybody and the nature of a tie-in work means those ratings depend as much upon the subject matter and readers’ established views of characters and factions as they do on the quality of the work itself. Earnings is a good indicator, but that is based on a wide number of factors not directly related to how well I’ve written a particular tale.
Buzz and general consensus are what are left, in all honesty. Conversations at events are a good indicator, and general chatter, feedback on social media all help to generate a nebulous idea regarding whether the fans like or don’t like a particular title or series. A good example is The Beast Arises, which has a very good froth of expectation and excitement surrounding each title release.
It also means that I’ll be going double-barrelled in getting the word out, up to and around the release. Expect several updates on writing the book, my author's notes, extracts, the art and music playlist and maybe features on people’s favourite Dark Angels moments and miniatures. I would appreciate any and all help in this regard from you, my loyal* First Legion of newsletters subscribers! I'll also be doing an Angels of Caliban specific Q&A a few weeks after release, so get ready to fire your questions at me!
*Of course, as you will see in Angels of Caliban, the definition of loyalty is subjective...
Space Hulk Deathwing
There was much excitement in the Thorpe household this month, with the first gameplay trailer release for the Space Hulk: Deathwing video game. It looks simply awesome.
I have consulted on and co-written the story for the game, and it has been great to get aboard ship again, after writing Space Hulk: The Novel for the latest edition of the board game. Expect significantly more use of the word awesome as new trailers and images of the game are released.
Kickstarter
No big miniatures KS this month, instead I have backed Knuckle Sammich - Kobolds Ate My Card Game, the very interesting Sol: Last Days of a Star (hopefully might hit another stretch goal or two before the end), and Thin Ice, complete with polar bear meeple (ending tomorrow).
I first met Ralph Horsley back when he created some great pictures for Inferno! Magazine, and he has been producing fantastic artwork for many years. If you fancy something a bit different, check out his Kickstarter for Wildborn: Dragons in their Natural Habitat.
Warbeast Interviews
If you like your shelves to look swanky, you can still get your hands on the Exclusive Edition of Warbeast over at Black Library.
Age of Sigmar was always going to be divisive - ending a world that hobbyists and readers (and myself) had grown up with for many years - but despite the continuing debate about its success and future, I'm really pleased that the vast majority of feedback onWarbeast has been extremely positive, and there is genuine interest in the story.
I recorded a podcast on the subject of Warbeast and everything Age of Sigmar with HeelanHammer on Tuesday, which should be available soon, and you canread this interview with Mengal Miniatures which came out earlier this month.
(And if you would like an interview about Angels of Caliban for your podcast or blog etc, please get in touch - newsletter subscribers can simply reply to this email). I am also available for book signings and Bar Mitzvah's...
Blog Post Round-Up
If you want to prepare for the release of Angels of Caliban, here's some homework I've set.
Warhammer Fest took place this month, and this blog details some of the news and announcements, while here you can download the artwork for Corax which was revealed at the event.
Authors and illustrators can find out about PLR (free money!) in this blog post.
And finally, if you want to find out why I spent much of April 30th quilting, read this blog.
Upcoming Events
Hopefully I'll be attending one or two gaming events with Carl of Second Thunder, showcasing Open Combat. More details as and when I have it.
Do come and say 'hello' if you're attending any of these events.
Newsletter Q&A
Carlos ”Dark Angel” Gomez asked: Question! Will we have any Dark Angel Character Cameos from your books in the upcoming game Space Hulk?
The character designs, and thus the primary characters of the story, were already well underway by Streum On by the time I was brought on board. The only character with any crossover with my books is Grand Master Belial.
If you want to ask a question, just reply to the newsletter and I'll get back to you as soon as my schedule allows. I'll pick the best question to go in the next newsletter, and combine them all into a blog post for the website. Click the button below for the full Q&A round-up for May.
Bi-Monthly Competition Winner
One of the perks of subscribing to my mailing list is that you get entered into the bi-monthly draw to win a personalised, signed copy of one of my books. This month's winner is Toby Carlyle who will be receiving a copy of my next Horus Heresy novel Angels of Caliban, when it is released in June.
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