The trailer was launched on the Twisted Showcase website - http://www.twistedshowcase.com/ - today.

They’d had my story on the shortlist for a while, they were looking for more military/war themed stories to come in, but unfortunately none did meaning my story was on it’s own. Because of this the direction of the anthology veered away from my story resulting in it not making the cut.

They did say that it would fit nicely with a publication called Steampunk Tales - http://www.steampunktales.com/ - which looks like a great place for stories of that genre. But only draw back I can see is their submission policy has a word count of 4,500 and my story is 6,602 words. That’s a hell of a lot to prune off for a short story.

Unsure what I’m going to do yet, I am working on a anthology of my own that I plan to self publish on Kindle, I might put my story in there. But as it is due to other project’s I’ll let my steampunk story sit for a while and take a look at it in a couple of months.

To launch the series they’ve posted an interview with Joe Abercrombie (The First Law, Best Served Cold, The Heroes), where he talks about his work, his current novel and shoots the breeze in general.

A good start to what I hope is a weekly treat for fantasy fans all over.

Here is a linky to the podcast http://fantasy-faction.com/2012/fantasy-faction-podcast-joe-abercrombie#comment-13041

My writing is haphazard, it flows and changes direction as every conversation, scene, major event occurs. I find planning all that out beforehand hard to envisage. I do have an idea where my story is going, I have the start and the end. What happens in the bits in between is in the laps of the gods.  I primarily write short stories, perhaps that is why I work this way? With a shorter narrative to produce there is little need to plan ahead. If this is true then that is perhaps why I have struggled so much on the two occasions I’ve pushed the limit beyond the standard 8,000 words.

I’ve one completed novel under my belt, it was written for the first Pratchett Prize 18 months or so ago. I topped out at a little over 81,000 words, it never made the cut and I’ve not revisited it since I got the rejection. Just after Christmas I decided to have a look at it and see if anything needed doing, boy, did something need doing. It was all going OK up until about chapter 5 – just over 8,000 words in ironically – when things started going a bit Pete Tong.

Somehow I managed to include a character I’d killed off in chapter two, I also revisited a location that was destroyed – killing said character – without any mention of it being re-built (or allowing for the time it would take to re-build it). As I progressed the story meandered around the central characters in such a way that my the middle I’d given up all hope of understanding what was happening – and I’d wrote the bloody thing.

I’m working at the moment on another novel, so far I’m about six chapters in and over 15,000 words. I’ve spent a lot of time re-reading and re-editing as I go. This has made the first section more fluid and makes it follow the story. But it is time consuming and means I’m writing with a stutter and not getting a good head of steam up.

I suppose what I’m saying is am I doing it wrong by forging ahead without a map? Should I try to get into the plan ahead mindset?

Interestingly there was an article on Joe Abercrombie’s site in May last year along similar lines – you can read it here  http://www.joeabercrombie.com/2011/05/04/gardening-and-architecture/ - where he places authors into two categories, architects and gardeners. The architects plan and stick to the plan, and the gardeners go with the flow (or as he says write more organically). So I guess I’m not alone in working this way, just sometimes feels like it, which makes me feel somewhat better. But knowing others work the same doesn’t help get that novel written.

When it was first announced that Peter Jackson and New Line intended to film the book I decided I should get it and find out what it was like. I struggled, I’ll be honest and say I never got beyond Bilbo and the Dwarves going into the goblin caves. It was just so unlike the other books and so I gave up. I have now finally read it – all the way from start to finish – and I really surprised at how much I enjoyed it.

For anyone who has read it, they will know it is nothing like The Lord Of The Rings, this is very definitely a children’s story, and it is told in the style of an adult telling the story to a child. This was part of my problem the first time round – that and all the songs. If you were to compare the style of this and the later books, you would think it had been penned by different authors.

Its not only the style that is different, the characters are nothing like what follows. The Dwarves come across as cowardly and lazy, they leave all the dangerous work up to Bilbo. I know they come good in the end, and do prove themselves during the Battle of the Five Armies, but up until that point they don’t come across very well.

I was amazed that how much I already knew that happened during the book, didn’t actually seem to take very long to get through. Bilbo and Gollum barely covered a couple of chapters, the trolls and the battle with the spiders in Mirkwood just sort of happened.

But it’s what was missed out that amazed me. I know from reading the appendex to Lord Of The Rings all about the White Council and the fight to drive the Necromancer from Mirkwood. But this isn’t even mentioned, except a few lines maybe in passing and the but that’s a story for another day line.

I will be honest though, for a children’s story it is very dark, so I believe Tolkien wrote it for his own children as a bedtime story. Not sure if it the sort of story I’d want to read to a child of mine.

HBO have released a set of new images from the second season of Game Of Thrones. Amongst the familiar faces there are some good shots of the major new characters introduced.

First up is a shot of Bran Stark with Hodor.

Next is a shot of Arya Stark, you will see she has her hair shot (it was cut off by Yoren in episode 9 Baelor), if the series follows the book I’m guessing the boys behind her are part of the troop she is travelling north with heading for the Wall. She has assumed the identity of Arry, a boy. One of the group is Gendry – one of Robert Baratheon’s bastards who was last seen when Eddard Stark visited the blacksmith where he worked.

This is the first image we’ve seen of Lord Balon Greyjoy – Theon’s father – he’s played by British actor Patrick Malahide. Balon is lord of the Iron Islands and Theon is sent back home with a letter from Robb Stark requesting the Iron Islands side with the North and bow to Robb as their King.

Another first image and this time of Brienne of Tarth – played by Gwendoline Christie. Brienne is a masculine looking woman who is skilled with a sword. She becomes a member of King Renly Baratheon’s Rainbow Guard (an alternative to the Kingsguard).

Catelyn Stark.

Cersie Lannister

A forlorn looking Daenerys Targaryan. I’m guessing this shot is from the journey across the Red Waste enroute to the eastern city of Qarth.

Another shot of Daenerys, based on the recent trailer I’m guessing this is taken outside Qarth.

The Onion Knight Lord Davos Seaworth – played by Liam Cunningham. Davos is a former smuggler and sworn sword to King Stannis Baratheon.

King Joffrey Baratheon.

Jon Snow, again based on the recent trailer I’m guessing this shot is from the Night Watch’s ranging beyond the Wall.

Melisandre of Asshai – played by Clarice van Houten – and King Stannis Baratheon – played by Stephen Dillane. Melisandre is a priestess of R’hollr and seems to have a strong influence of Stannis and his bid for the Iron Throne.

King Renly Baratheon.

King of the North Robb Stark.

Sansa Stark, this appears to have been lifted from the recent trailer where she is at the mercy of King Joffrey.

Theon Greyjoy, judging by his armour – it looks like the Kraken sigil of his house – I’m guessing this is a shot with Theon back on the Iron Islands.

And lastly, no set of promotional images could be complete without the Imp Tyrion Lannister, now sporting his badge of office as Hand of the King.

Less than two months until the season premier, my times going slow.

Along with the current state of progress he also posts a rough synopsis.

“Shy South comes home to her farm to find a blackened shell, her brother and sister stolen, and knows she’ll have to go back to bad old ways if she’s ever to see them again.  She sets off in pursuit with only her cowardly old step-father Lamb for company.  But it turns out he’s hiding a bloody past of his own.  None bloodier.  Their journey will take them across the lawless plains, to a frontier town gripped by gold fever, through feuds, duels, and massacres, high into unmapped mountains to a reckoning with ancient enemies, and force them into alliance with Nicomo Cosca, infamous soldier of fortune, a man no one should ever have to trust…”

Already a lot of people – myself included – are latching onto the character Lamb and his bloody past, speculation already rife that he is Logen “The Bloody Nine” Ninefingers, last seen falling from a castle window into a fast flowing river at the end of Last Argument Of Kings.

But even if it is his return, the book features another great character with the return of Nicomo Cosca.

According to Joe’s comments this book is set roughly six years after The Heroes, making it fifteen years since the end of The First Law trilogy.

Here is a link to Joe’s site - http://www.joeabercrombie.com/2012/02/02/part-iv/

The anthology will be a mix of new and unsigned authors who’s work will appear alongside established writers such as Mark Lawrence, Adrian Tchaikovsky, Jon Sprunk. Myke Cole and Michael J Sullivan. There are other authors planned but not announced as yet.

Submissions will remain open until June 30th.

Anyone interested can find the details on the Fantasy Writing Contest website – http://fantasywritingcontest.com/ - and join in the conversations over on the Fantasy Factions forum via the main site - http://fantasy-faction.com/ - and lastly both can be followed on Twitter @FantasyFaction or @FantasyContest

Roll on April 1st (USA) & 2nd (UK).

Attic Clowns is a slice of madness all of us have no doubt come across at some point or another in the dark of night. Each chilling slice revolves around a clown in some shape or form, it is used as a manifestation of certain characters quirks and hidden personalities. The imagery Jeremy creates is graphic, worrying and scarily familiar to anyone who’s had a vivid nightmare.

Each tale cranks up the horror, making the reader squirm,  painting a picture with flowing prose riddled with colourful language that is not recommended for for use in front of your granny. I’d recommend you not read this at night, after a supper of strong cheese. I doubt Jeremy would claim responsibility for the resulting nightmares – though he’d probably like to incorporate them into another anthology.

The Sun Never Rises In The City is a noir crime story set within a horror tale. It is set in a strange world, that though it is like ours it so obviously isn’t. There is a defined class system of master and serf, the use of the term Sire and and underclass of Dollhouse-like creatures who’s purpose is to bring pleasure to their masters. Mixed in is a technology equal or in advance of ours. I had the distinct feeling of being inside a computer game, or virtual reality world, where everyone who could afford it lived out their fantasies.

This is a hard hitting short story – a little over 5,500 words long – that manages to build a world as well as tell a story.

I enjoyed my brief glimpse inside the twisted imagination of Jeremy C Shipp, sometimes it scared me, sometimes it made me think, but one thing it did do is make me want more.