My Interview with Suvudu.com

Hi everyone,

Just wanted to drop by and let you know that a new interview with yours truly went up on Suvudu.com. I’m pretty happy with the way the interview turned out.

One of the questions was about how a recent reviewer pegged me as a “fearless author.” Here’s part of my answer:

You know, I’m the type of author and game designer who loves to experiment with my work. In that way, I’d say that fearless is an appropriate description. I’ve had a lot of people look at me in shock when I tell them I included my first draft in this e-book. Several other pros told me before I even worked on this that authors would be crucified professionally for publishing less-than-superior work. To me, I think that some readers might find a first draft a fascinating read. I view writing to be a process and if it makes sense, why not clue a reader into what went on behind-the-scenes? — Source: Interview with Monica Valentinelli at Suvudu.com

If you get the chance, drop by and check out The Queen of Crows interview at Suvudu.com.

As always, I really appreciate your support! Happy reading!

September 24, 2010
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My Guest Post: Aliens, Naming and Naming Conventions

Hi,

Just wanted to drop a brief note that this month’s post over at Apex Book Company continues my series on How To Create an Alien Language with names and naming conventions.

In this post, a talk about how names and naming conventions are often a reflection of culture rather than a mechanical permutation of letters. Here’s a quote:

Whether you’re describing our world or an alien planet, any intelligent life form will associate values with a particular place or location. Some languages employ proper nouns that don’t have a meaning associated with it. Other languages that describe certain locations may translate to a string of phrases and is truncated for the proper noun. “Tall Mountain” may be one way of describing a mountain top. “Gateway to the gods” might be another. When it comes to naming conventions, there’s really no right or wrong way to do it, because the names are often a reflection of culture and technology. Take, for example, how common surnames like Miller, McGilroy, Johnson, etc. were created. Some were based on where you lived, who your father or clan was, or what you did for a living. Consistency in naming conventions depends upon where you live, your genealogy, and what period of history you live in. –SOURCE: Creating an Alien Language: Names and Naming Conventions

If you’re interested in this month’s article, be sure to hop on over to Creating an Alien Language: Names and Naming Conventions at Apex Book Company.

Cheers!

September 3, 2010
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My Guest Article at Innsmouth Free Press

Hi everyone,

Thought you’d be interested to find out that I wrote an article about the appeal of Cthulhu in gaming for Innsmouth Free Press, a Lovecraft-inspired webzine. Written with the casual gamer in mind, I list some horror games that I enjoy and talk about why the Cthulhu mythos is a great backdrop for a horror game.

For hobby gamers, the idea of losing your sanity while investigating the things that go bump in the world of Lovecraft has a strong appeal because it gives the characters a very tangible cost to uncovering the truth. — SOURCE: Cthulhu In Your Game at Innsmouth Free Press

If you’re interesting in gaming, I hope you drop by to read my article entitled Cthulhu In Your Game at Innsmouth Free Press.

Also, I’d like to mention that as part of our FlamesRising.com Cthulhu Week promotion, the publisher at Innsmouth Free press wrote a guest article for us entitled Cthulhu Week: A Note from the Editor at Innsmouth Free Press. Be sure to read this informative article written by Silvia Moreno-Garcia and find out more about their upcoming anthology.

August 23, 2010
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Guest Post: What’s in an Alien Alphabet? (Or Why Some Languages Are Really Fonts…)

While I was away at GenCon, Apex Book Company posted the next installment of my series on creating an alien language. This installment was a lot of fun to write, because I addressed the difference between creating an alien alphabet and designing a font, in addition to quite a few resources that you might be interested in checking out.

Part of the goal behind writing this post, is that people tend to confuse an alien font with a fully-develope alien language.

Here’s a quote from the article:

in many ways, your alien alphabet is a complex key that will serve as the building blocks for everything else you will do. Keep in mind that the order of the letters, symbols and numbers may or may not matter to you. The English alphabet, for example, doesn’t mean anything semantically when you put the letters in their proper order. The alphabet only becomes a crucial part of a language when you identify what the letters represent, combine them into words, or rank these words in alphabetical order. As a result, you have a built-in system to place permutations of letters, phrases and sentences into lists.

So, the first thing I’d like you to consider is to ask yourself if you know what an alphabet is. Well, I can tell you what it isn’t – it’s not a font! –SOURCE: Creating an Alien Language: What’s in an Alien Alphabet?

The article is really in-depth this time around, so if you have an interest in the topic be sure to check out Creating an Alien Language: What’s in an Alien Alphabet? on the Apex Book Company Blog.

August 11, 2010
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Hack/Slash Card Game and my Role as a Developer

Cassie Hack from HACK/SLASH by Tim SeeleyHi everyone,

I am excited to announce that I am one of the developers of a card game based on the horror comic HACK/SLASH by Tim Seeley!

Produced by Eden Studios, the game was designed by Matt Papa and the development team includes M. Alexander Jurkat, James Lowder, who is also the current editor for the HACK/SLASH comics series, and yours truly!

Currently, the comic is published through Image Comics. You can read a really good interview with Tim Seeley conducted by Newsarama.com about the move from DDP to Image.

Both the HACK/SLASH card game and the RPG will be published through Eden Studios, who published the BUFFY: the VAMPIRE SLAYER, ARMY OF DARKNESS and ANGEL RPGs.

Here’s a quote from the press release:

HACK/SLASH creator Tim Seeley will take an active role in the development of the games. “I grew up reading comics and playing RPGs,” Seeley explains, “so I’m thrilled that a company as great as Eden Studios is giving people a chance to play around in the world of HACK/SLASH. And it’s fantastic to see Cassie and Vlad on a roster alongside such stellar horror licenses as Buffy and Army of Darkness!”

A prototype version of the HACK/SLASH card game will be available for demo play at the Eden Studios booth (#209), at the upcoming Gen Con Game Fair, August 5th through 8th, at the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis. — SOURCE: Eden Studios To Bring Fan Favorite Comic HACK/SLASH To The Gaming World

I am absolutely thrilled to be a part of this for many reasons on so many different levels. As a fan of HACK/SLASH and horror, well, everything, I can tell you that this card game really targets the mood and theme of the comic. Matt Papa did an exceptional job as the primary designer and the collaboration that we’ve done on this game has made it even better.

Don’t take my word for it, though, because you know I’m going to rave about it. So, if you’re going to GenCon: Indy, stop by the Eden Studios booth and play the game for yourself. Or… as Cassie would say… “Suck it.”

August 2, 2010
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