StanleyWheeler

  It was a Saturday, a day like any other day. I was in a small town, and the boys had come to play. It was my destiny. It's what we needed to do. They were telling me. I'm telling you.* The Corsican Brothers came. They came to play. We led off with HeroQuest, which my wife had purchased for our family back in the early 90's, I guess. They were actually anxious to play what we've come to call Our Custom Game, but I persuaded them to try this game first to expose them to a new game system. The thing about playing with the Corsican Brothers, is that there is an actual playing time of about 15-20 minutes for every 2 hours dedicated to the proposition. It all begins with a brief explanation of the rules. Of course, that brief explanation is expanded into a lengthy discussion about various aspects of play and the rules because: "Why?" Moss was particularly interested in the spells used in the game and why the wizard got three sets and the elf only got one set, and ...

  Author Interview with C.T. Phipps Author of: Space Academy Dropouts and The Rules of Supervilliany   Please tell me a little about your current work in progress. I am just about to release SPACE ACADEMY DROPOUTS, which is a humorous science fiction novel set in the Spiral. Vance Turbo, not his real name, is a recent drop out ready to take the universe by storm. However, he’s almost immediately dragooned into the service of a black ops division of Space Fleet and forced to save the universe. Too bad it’s with the worst crew in the galaxy. Where did you get the idea for this book or series? I am a lifelong fan of Star Trek and Star Wars , being part of both fandoms. I couldn't help but imagine what would happen if you combined them (and don't say Babylon Five ). The Galactic Community is an idealistic and noble organization that also has its flaws. Vance is every bit committed to that ideal but doesn't feel he can live up to it, hence why he drops out. What follows is ...

  While scanning through some of the highlighted passages from my reading over the last few years, I assembled these quotes wherein you may find a common theme. Feel free to react like Mr. Wilder here. "History is not just a tale of men’s making, but is a thing tied to the land. We call a hill by the name of a hero who died there, or name a river after a princess who fled beside its banks, and when the old names vanish, the stories go with them and the new names carry no reminder of the past" -  Bernard Cornwell Excalibur p.123. "A dragon will set up a complex system of rules and then attempt to impress you with how well he is following them. Of course, the rules are completely arbitrary and fashioned with the sole purpose of making certain the dragon gets what he wants. If you ever happen to catch a dragon violating his own rules, he’ll claim some obscure loophole, and if you back him into a corner, he’ll just modify the rules to accommodate his behavior....

  Interview with Alma Alexander Author of Changer of Days, Fractured Fairy Tales, and The Second Star Please tell me a little about your current work in progress. Currently wibbling between several projects to embark on – a science fiction novel, an urban fantasy, a historical fantasy, or an epic fantasy follow-up story on my “Changer of Days” novel which has just been released as a 20 th anniversary edition. I am leaning towards the SF book mainly because one of the characters is turning insistent – but I haven’t made up my mind yet…. Where did you get the idea for this book or series? If we’re talking about the science fiction novel I mentioned in question 1…the roots of it lie in a dream. I’ve done that before, for stories – dreamed either the whole thing or a beginning which then gets embroidered on and expanded as I start to think more about it. Do you write in more than one genre? Yes. Several. But mostly I swim in “fantasy” waters, with various subgenres coming in...