Two Things That Would Be Nice, But...

These are not new ideas. They've been boiling in the back of my mind for quite a while. But... both require art, and only one artist has followed through on commitments to me (thanks, Steve).

One. Figs. Even printable cardboard W-Fold, where you have front and back on a rectangle, where you can fold it down to see side a and side be, with footing flaps to help it hold up - or glue it to a penny. Being able to see Jorune characters could help with a game. And help newcomers grok the game. The scale is not a problem with printed figs - scale between player characters gets easy to comprehend. Dhar Corondon, vs. Boccord or Muadra or Bonth — no problem.

But... Art.

Two. Cards. Not or gameplay. I hate cards in gameplay. The just create a new channel for players with issues in the real world to become Masters. Of? Never clear other than masters of the card game.

But cards would be useful for introducing players to a race or a creature or an object or an aspect of the game.

But... Art.

And I can barely get people to follow through with spot illustrations. Cards and Figs require commitment, and the ability to follow the spec laid out for them. Some of the art has been very surprising and downright Jorun-ish.

But to do these two projects would require a professional level of commitment and follow through.

The novelization is a natural shift of gears for me. I have some fiction out in the world already. Moving to novels will give me some satisfaction, but I would still need art. Covers at the very minimum. I would l really like some little illustrations for the interior - half a page in a normal paperback or digest format.

Cover of SONG OF ORPHANS
My first novel, circa 1977. Back.

Miles refers to Jorune as "A lingering dog fart" (to quote his website), so it is unlikely anything will attract his considerable talent. But there are other artists. And repeatedly I have had them show me great work, then tell me there is no room for Jorune in their schedule. Not one person, but repeatedly.

I have fiction out in the world, and I have published a great deal of long-form non-fiction without my name attached (ask me privately, I can explain). SONG OF ORPHANS was my first novel, back in 1977, and it sold to the second publisher to see it – and was unsold because of my drunk rage phone calls between California and New York. Yes — I did that. How many people do you know who un-sold their novel which was sold?

My novel CLIMBING THE SPIRAL MOUNTAIN is not niche fiction - but a 500+ page odyssey, of which I am most proud of all my various efforts, including anything Jorune. Straight, mainstream, dare I say "literary" fiction in the long form. Long, long form.

And I have to say that from time to time I re-read this work and it satisfies me. It holds up. Fourteen days or a man to find out who he is, based on the personal testimony of people who have known him. Some of whom like him. Some of whom only know him from the damage he has caused — in their lives. Some of whom who wonder why he is being nice, instead of the man they knew. Some are meeting him for the first time. Including him.

I will open the book to a random page, and it does not disappoint me. Thanks to a very good proofreader, it does not embarrass me when I do this kind of "test-read". Just open it to some random moment.

And, like Jorune, it is all about the dream time.

There are several short stories in THE TASTE OF FIRE. Some of which are science fiction, including the title tale and it's companion follow-up, MICROSCOPIC SLEDGE. But not all science fiction. There is a murder mystery with a man who is not sure who he just killed. A woman comes home to find a letter from a ghost in her past, dealing with the loss of a beloved pet, and the personal experience of life after death on the great Field of Arbol. And, as I am so fond of saying, more.

NIALL'S DREAM is ... different. A return to Africa story delivered to me whole cloth in one dream, and when I woke I hurt myself with a very long session of wild typing, trying to get it all down before the dream faded. And I did.

My stage drama is easy to find. Full length and one-act plays. Radio drama - no so easy (Although CHAPEL PERILOUS is on archive.com.)

My non-fiction deal with something much more personal and my name does not appear on those books. Ask me nicely, personally, and I will tell you, but it is about something much more important than the name. And those works are good. I am proud of them.

For THE ANGEL OF DRAIL, in addition to the cover, it would be nice to have some illos of them hacking their way south into Drail to find the missing Angel. And some revelations from the Earth Colony that I never head anyone else mention. I think it is a fresh take on that whole aspect of the world.

Will I combine my two loves?
PULP and JORUNE?

For next book, ALLIDOTH CONFIDENTIAL (not a new idea, I've mentioned it many times before(  will leave some room for some very pulp type illustrations. Litho crayon and lots of dark to fulfill. This is the missing chapter in the life of Mord Joran, from SLAM DESTI, BOY YORD (Sholari v1n3), and SCARS OF FAR TEMAUNTRO (Sholari v2n1). It is dark romance in a seedy shipping city north of the fashionable crown city of the realm where the blossoming 'yule dreadful' industry has open some desires that have resulted in death. And after that, my original plan for a grand RPG campaign may come down at fiction. THE CHILDREN OF BOMOVERIS runs from Thantier, Ponteer and the West Trinnu Jungle, to a finale in the waters of Lake Dah-ah-dey in the conspiracies of the crown of Burdoth with the great houses of Khodre, Thantier and beyond. They are really fighting for control of the planet. And you know what planet we are talking about.

It would be nice to have some room or for some nice pictures to fill out the feel. Pictures better than what I can do. Painted covers. Line and litho crayon or the interior

But ... Art.

So that is my returning headache for Jorune. These are the kinds of things that make me ready to quit.

Art.

And I just realized my blood sugar is low. Maybe I should not have written all that.

But I did.