Category Archives: Worldbuilders 2010

Brilliance Audio, BBC, Unicorns and Felicia Day

You know what’s surprising? If you google “Unicorns and Felicia Day” you don’t get any direct hits.

I find myself oddly proud to be the first.

With less than a week to go, Worldbuilders is still going strong. We’ve raised more than 92,000 dollars for Heifer International so far, and I’m hoping we can break 100,000 by the end of the week.

So remember, if you donate on our team page before Dec 13th, Worldbuilders will match 50% of your donation. Plus you have the chance to win all sorts of cool swag like this:

Y’all know about The Guild, right? If you’re geeky enough to have discovered our fundraiser, I kinda already assume you know about the Guild.

But even if you do know about The Guild, you might not have heard about this yet, as it’s pretty new:

  • A copy of The Guild comic written by Felicia Day and illustrated by Jim Rugg.

Over the years I’ve come to think of The Onion’s A.V. Club as the gold-standard of reviews. This isn’t just because they gave my book one of the best reviews ever. It’s because if the reviewers in the A.V. Club think something is crap, they aren’t afraid to say so, at great length, and with many scathing words.

So read the following blurb with that in mind.

“Seamlessly integrates with the web series’ mixture of discomfort humor and deep understanding of-and wry sympathy for-gaming nerddom.” -The Onion’s A.V. Club

  • Five copies of the full-cast BBC radio dramatization The Adventures of Sexton Blake.

I’ve gushed about this on a previous blog. And after buying at least a dozen copies to give away as gifts I couldn’t help myself from picking up another five just to donate to Worldbuilders.

I do this in order to share the joy with as many people as possible. If you’ve ever read a Sherlock Holmes story you’ll laugh your ass of at this BBC production of the Adventures of Sexton Blake.

Anyone who’s been reading my blog for any amount of time knows how I feel about Dr. Horrible’s Sing Along Blog. Let’s just take that as read, shall we?

I’ve picked up five copies just for Worldbuilders this year because if you haven’t watched it, you really need to. And if you have watched it, but haven’t caught the musical commentary on the DVD then you’re really missing out.

Next we’ve got some lovely audiobooks from Brilliance audio.

  • A copy of the unabridged audio book of Wizard’s First Rule by Terry Goodkind. Read by Sam Tsoutsouvas.

While I never made it to the end of Goodkind’s series, I do have a certain fondness for this first book. I read it in 1998, back when I was having a bit of a creative slump. Reading this book for the first time jazzed me back up a little and got me back into working on The Name of the Wind.

“Wonderfully creative, seamless, and stirring.” – Kirkus Review

Whenever I read Catherynne Valente’s stuff, I’m made uncomfortably aware of the fact that she’s probably way smarter than me.

That said, she writes a hell of a book, and I was proud to discover she was one of the other authors who was writing for Scalzi’s Unicorn Pegasus Kitten chapbook.

While I haven’t listened to the audio version of Palimpsest, I have read it. Valente has a gorgeous use of language and she’s created a completely unique world. Plus the book is kinda sexy. Plus it has an awesome cover. Plus extra points for use of the word “palimpsest.”

“Overflowing with poetic images and epic repetition, Valente’s story washes us to an unexpected shore. –Regina Schroeder for Booklist.

First off, this is written by Bill Willingham. So you know you’re in for a good time.

Second off, this is actually a Fables novel. So you know you’re getting to explore a well-developed world with a cool mythic underpinning.

Lastly, this book is read by Wil Wheaton.

So there you go. Even before you consider the fact that this is in a neat collector’s tin, you’ve already got a trifecta of cool.

  • An unabridged set of Vol 1 and 2 of The Baroque Cycle: Quicksilver and King of the Vagabonds by Neal Stephenson. Read by Simon Prebble.

“BBC announcer/Shakespearean actor Prebble’s performance is wonderfully nuanced. His authoritative narration, combined with his chameleon-like facility for character and accent, is nothing short of enchanting… The experience of listening to this audiobook is something rare, as it’s a literary tale that brings history, science and philosophy to life in a heartily entertaining fashion.” – Publishers Weekly (starred review)

  • A copy of the unabridged audio book of Songs of the Dying Earth: Stories in Honor of Jack Vance edited by George R. R. Martin and Gardner Dozois. Read by Arthur Morly. Stories by Neil Gaiman, Robert Silverberg, Kage Baker and many more.

“The 23 stories not only capture the unique feel of Vance’s dying universe but stand individually as one of the strongest gatherings of writers to pay homage to one of their own. This is highly recommended.” – Library Journal (starred review)

  • A copy of the unabridged audio book of Wolfsbane and Mistletoe: Hair Raising Holiday Tales edited by Charlaine Harris and Toni L. P. Kelner. Read by MacLeod Andrews and Tanya Eby. Stories by Charlaine Harris, Patricia Briggs, Carrie Vaughn, and more.

“Fresh, interesting tales…[that] star some of the more famous series characters like Sookie Stackhouse.” – Alternative Worlds

“A captivating collection…offers up the Christmas spirit in a wonderfully wicked way.” – Darque Reviews

  • A copy of the unabridged audio book of Many Bloody Returns edited by Charlaine Harris and Toni L. P. Kelner. Read by Luke Daniels and Teri Clark Linden. Stories by Charlaine Harris, Jim Butcher, Kelley Armstrong and more.

“Thoroughly enjoyable…a toothsome collection of birthday treats you will not want to miss.” – Monsters and Critics

“Toothsome” is a word you don’t hear enough anymore. I’m going to make a point of using it today…

  • A copy of the unabridged audio book of Death’s Excellent Vacation edited by Charlaine Harris and Toni L. P. Kelner. Read by Christopher Lane and Amanda Ronconi. Stories by Charlaine Harris, Katie MacAlister, Jeaniene Frost and more.

“Harris and Kelner’s third short-story anthology sends paranormals on vacation… Sarah Smith, Daniel Stashower, L.A. Banks, Lilith Saintcrow, and Sharan Newman also contribute quality work, and readers will find this collection a great sampler for discovering authors they’ll want to follow.” – Publisher’s Weekly

  • A copy of the unabridged audio book of Intrigues: Book Two of the Collegium Chronicles by Mercedes Lackey. Read by Nick Podehl.

“Lackey makes a real page-turner out of Mags’ and the collegia’s development… this book’s outstanding characters, especially Mags, will greatly please Valdemar fans.” – Booklist

  • Two copies of the unabridged audio book of The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss, read by Nick Podehl. Signed by the author.

I had to get a special pen to sign these. I actually left the house. I don’t like to do that very often, so you better appreciate it.

  • A copy of The Last Unicorn DVD. Signed by author Peter S. Beagle.

This movie was made back when an author could actually be directly involved in creating a movie. Since Peter was actually had a hand in this project, it’s surprisingly true to the novel. Both in the tone of the story and the text of the dialogue itself.

This is a really great movie. It was animated by Rankin/Bass, the same folks that did the original animated Hobbit movie. It’s got a great score, and is very faithful to the spirit of the original novel. It’s sweet, mythic, tender, and frightening in places, just like any good old fashioned fairy tale is supposed to be.

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Lastly Conlan Press has donated a couple unique items that I can’t help but auction off.

What we have here are original film cells from The Last Unicorn movie. Each of them in a clear protective envelope signed by Peter S. Beagle himself.

If you want more details about the cells, or if you want to order a specific set of cells as, you can check out Peter S. Beagle’s newsletter over here.

  • The Last Unicorn 35mm Vintage Film Cells. Signed by Peter S. Beagle.

This is what Beagle’s signature looks like on the protective envelope.

When I think of all the magician characters I’ve read over the years, only a few really stand out. Gandalf is the first of these, of course. But after that comes Merlin, Pug, and Schmendrick.

To see more pictures or to bid on this Vintage Film Cell featuring Schmendrick the magician you can follow this link.

This cell shows a classic Rankin/Bass landscape with the unicorn on the hillside at night.

To see more pictures or to bid on this Vintage Film Cell from the Last Unicorn, you can follow this link.

And here we have a cell with a close-up of the unicorn herself.

To see more pictures or bid on this Vintage Film Cell from the Last Unicorn, you can follow this link.

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Remember folks, for every 10 dollars you donate to Heifer International, you get a chance to win these cool audiobooks and hundreds of others like them.

In addition to that, Worldbuilders is matching 50% of all donations made on our Team Heifer page before Dec 13th.

For more details about Worldbuilders, the auctions we’re running, and the other donated books, you can head over HERE.

Also posted in Dr. Horrible, Felicia Day | By Pat34 Responses

Delicious Webcomics and Guest Appearances

Before I talk about today’s donation, I need to mention that some of the auctions we’re running will be over soon. Most specifically, the signed ARC from Neil Gaiman and the signed collection of Girl Genius trades.

Fair warning. Don’t come crying to me because you weren’t paying attention and you missed out.

Also, don’t be too sad if the Gaiman ARC is out of your price range. He just sent us another cool book that we’ll be posting up in just a couple days. That one will be going into the general lottery, so everyone who donates on the team page will have a chance to win it.

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In the past most of the books we’ve given away for Worldbuilders have been… well… books. This is because most of the creative types I know personally tend to be sci-fi and fantasy authors.

This year we’re branching out a bit. We’ve put some lovely graphic novels in the mix. And, because I’ve made some webcomic friends at conventions, I can start hitting them up for donations too.

Now I’m fully aware that the distinction between cartoonist and web-cartoonist is a line so fine that in most cases it’s pretty nonsensical. I’m mostly including these comics here because I either discovered these comics on the web, or because that’s the easiest place for you to check out their work.

Anyway, here are today’s books. Some of them are donated by the authors themselves. Some of them are donated by me because I love the comics and I like to spread the word about them.

I’ve been reading webcomics since 1999. So I make the mistake of assuming I know most of the cool comics that are up and running these days. Still, sometimes I’m painfully out of the loop. Wonderella was completely off my radar until somebody sent me this link.

Description from the author: The superheroine Wonderella is lazy, crude, self-absorbed and short-sighted… which might make her the most authentically American superhero in existence. Her awkward situations and active avoidance of heroic deeds can only be categorized as “Non Adventures.”

This is a great example of a book that could easily go in just about any category. Comic. Webcomic. Graphic novel. Manga. Kim’s stories are sweet and strange and profoundly touching.

But you don’t need me to gush about him. This book has a blurb from Scott McCloud himself, calling it, “A literate, funny and beautiful piece of fiction.”

  • Two copies of Xeno’s Arrow, Book 1: The Intergalactic Zoo by Greg Beettam and Stephen Geigen-Miller. Signed and doodled.

We’ve got two copies of this book, not just signed, but doodled in too. Xeno’s Arrow is the story of a group of aliens who decide to escape from an Intergalactic Zoo. It’s more of an ongoing story than a gag comic, but that isn’t to say that it doesn’t have its funny moments, too…

Ignition is the first printed compilation of Carpe Chaos comics, a surprisingly slick-looking collection includes multiple stories: Filter Dregs, Strength in Numbers, Moments of Elation, Worst Case Scenario, Hard Lessons, and the first chapter (and half of the second) of Rising Up. There’s some cool worldbuilding going on in here, and their website puts mine to shame…

  • A copy of North World by Lars Brown. Signed and doodled by the author.

From Amazon: “Northworld really isn’t that different from our own… the biggest difference is the presence of mythical monsters, talking bears, arcane arts, and, of course, the heroes who stand ready to defend the innocent and helpless from these extraordinary threats!”

  • A set of The Book of Biff, #1-5 by Chris Halbeck. Signed and doodled by the author.

I can’t remember when I first stumbled onto Biff, but these comics are like little zen stories. They’re little haiku of bizarre misery. Fun stuff.

  • Two copies of Galaxion Book 1: The Jump by Tara Tallan. Signed and sketched by the author/illustrator.

I picked up Galaxion when I was at a Penguicon earlier this year. I always enjoy picking up books from webcomics I haven’t heard of before, just to try something new. I have to say that I enjoyed this one and I’m eagerly awaiting the second installment.

Each book includes a Galaxion-themed pad of sticky notes and a pin-back button.

“Tara Tallan has done a superb job; the cast is varied and have a viable chemistry that is fun to watch.” – Tangents Reviews

  • A set of Gunnerkrigg Court books: Vol 1 Orientation and Vol 2 Research by Tom Siddell.

You don’t need me to talk this comic up to you. It’s got a blurb from Gaiman:

“I was thrilled to hear that my favorite webcomic was going to be collected on paper. I wish that Antimony Carver and her adventures and mysteries and myths, not to mention her school, has been around when I was a boy, to shape and warp and twist my growing mind – but I don’t think you could ever grow too old to delight in Gunnerkrigg Court.” – Neil Gaiman

I’ve mentioned Lev Yilmaz  on the blog before. But it turns out that in addition to his hilarious deadpan youtube videos, Lev also does some really nice comic work too, vaguely in the style of Matt Groening.

In my experience, it’s rare that a comic is exceptionally smart, socially aware, and funny. But somehow Cat and Girl consistently manages all three.

As I mentioned long ago on the blog, this is one of my favorite comics, and I’ve been reading it forever. You should really check it out.

From Amazon: “There is a place, set in a reality and time unlike our own, where the eating of small children is not necessarily frowned upon…where prophecy, magic, and adventure is as common place as setting fire to and then re-animating a chipmunk into a skeletal minion (it happens more than you’d think); and where an epic journey can begin by an accident of fate. This is the world of Looking For Group.”

  • A copy of Goblins: Book 1 by Tarol Hunt.

Goblins has been one of my favorite webcomics ever since I found out about it. The art has grown in leaps and bounds into something really impressive. And it’s so rare that a storyline that deals with geek gaming humor also has an incredible sense of dramatic tension and an almost heartbreaking series of character arcs that stem from really emotional scenes. I swear that this comic has made me tear up a couple of times.

This is one of my absolute favorite comics, as I’ve said many times on the blog. Adding to my love is the fact that Tarol did a hysterical comic to help me promote the paperback release of The Name of the Wind.

You should really read it. But it has a strong storyline, so you have to start at the beginning…

When I stumbled onto the Devil’s Panties, it consumed about 8 hours of my life as I went through and I read the entire archive in almost one sitting. I don’t know how to describe it. It’s vaguely autobiographical, talks about the real-life adventures of comic artist Jenny Breeden.

After reading the comic, I actually met her at Dragon Con in 2007. And despite all of the other cool people who were there, she was one of the ones I was most excited to see. I was thrilled to buy this book and get it signed by her.

But now, for the good of the cause, I am donating it to Worldbuilders.

  • A copy of Colonel Sweeto and Other Stories by Nicholas Gurewitch.

This is a collection of the strips from Perry Bible Fellowship. While the comic itself isn’t currently being updated, you should really check it out if you haven’t already. It’s really the pinnacle of bizarre, dark humor. Over the years I’ve bought at least five copies just to give away as gifts…

  • A full set Yu+Me Dream Volumes 1-4 By Megan Rose Gedris.

I picked this comic up on a whim at a convention. Then, after reading the first volume, I had to go back and pick up the next two. I had to wait for the fourth volume to come out in print. But now that the story’s finished, you can read it the way I wanted to, in one great gluttonous chunk.

  • A set of Side A and Side B, edited by Rachel Dukes. 

These are two comic anthologies where a boatload of talented comic artists tell stories about lives influenced by music. After reading the reviews, I went over to Poseur Ink and ordered a couple copies for myself. (Bonus: they’re on sale right now for the holidays.)

“there are lush, flowing borderless works; punky, scratchy pieces that wear aggro on their sleeve; deceptively simple illustrations that wouldn’t look out of place in a children’s book, arty tales that use tone without line (and would look good in a French cafe); and arch photo-reproduction work that is so hip it bleeds. And the range of tales! Intensely personal, autobiographical tales; whimiscal flights of fancy; love and hate; joy and loss; robots and spaceships and clockwork people – they are all in here!” George Watson for Geek Speak.

  • A copy of Errant Story Volume One by Michael Poe. Signed by the author.

I’ve been reading Michael Poe’s comics since back before I was published. This is a signed copy of the first volume of Errant Story. A series that’s worth loving if only for its name…

I love Allison’s comics because they’re funny, surreal, and have brilliant use of the language. Also, one of the main characters, Shelly, reminds me of Sarah.

Though she doesn’t read many webcomics, Sarah likes this one, too. I think its because she likes watching someone as delightfully chipper and batshit crazy as she is.

(Edit: I was going to donate my copy of Allison’s Skellington, too. But I see it’s out of print now. So I’m keeping it. There are some lines I will not cross, even for Worldbuilders.)

Odds are, if you read webcomics, you already know about PVP. But just in case you don’t, you might want to check them out. They’re one of my daily reads for years now. Kurtz’s comic is a cool mix of humor, ongoing story, healthy red-blooded American geekery.

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Last but not least, we have two webcomic artists who really stepped up to the plate for Worldbuilders this year. The first of these is Greg Dean of Real Life.

Greg has been doing webcomics almost as long as anyone out there. He started up Real Life back in 1999, making him one of the rare people that can say they’ve been in the business more than a decade.

I met up with Greg at San Diego Comic-con in 2009, and we got to hang out. Greg wrote a comic about the encounter which is pretty much entirely true.

Despite my obvious conversational barbarism, Greg has not shunned me. Instead, he’s offered to help out Worldbuilders by donating a guest appearance in his comic.

  • A guest appearance in Greg Dean’s Real Life.

The details:

The winner of this auction will collaborate with webcomic artist Greg Dean on guest appearance in Real Life. While an appearance in only one comic is guaranteed, the guest appearance may span more than one strip if the character becomes entangled in a longer storyline or subplot. While the nature of the strip will be collaborative, the final call on content does belong to Greg.

Greg will also include a signed, framed, print of the comic as well, embossed and sparkling with all sorts of awesomeness.

You can check out the Real Life auction and place your bids over here.

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The other webcomic artist going above and beyond the call of duty to help out Worldbuilders this year is Howard Taylor.

I met Howard at Penguicon this year, and, well… kinda made an ass of myself in front of him. (I think I might be detecting a trend here…)

But again, despite my lack of social grace, Howard was willing to help out with Worldbuilders by donating both some lovely signed books and a named appearance in his comic, Schlock Mercenary.

Let’s list the books first:

  • Two copies of Schlock Mercenary: The Teraport Wars. Numbered, first edition with signed cover and sketch by  Howard Taylor.

  • Two copies of Schlock Mercenary: Resident Mad Scientist. Numbered, first edition with signed cover and sketch by  Howard Taylor.

  • A copy of Schlock Numbered: Under New Management. Numbered, first edition with signed cover and sketch by  Howard Taylor.

Schlock Mercenary is another one of the rare webcomics that’s been around since the olden times. And when these books showed up I felt morally obliged to… inspect them. For shipping damage. On a page-by-page basis….

While I was inspecting them, I was amazed at how easy it is to start reading the comic at any point in the story. (That’s why I’m handing these comics out individually instead of as a set.) The footnotes and additional information provided in the books reminded me that Howard is scary smart, and puts a ton of thought into the science of even some of his simple throwaway gags.

Each of these books has a hand-drawn sketch on the final page.  These sketches were part of the release for each book and quantities were limited.

  • A named appearance in Howard Taylor’s Schlock Mercenary.

The details:

The winner of the auction will have one or more of their given names used as a character name in the Schlock Mercenary online comic. The name will appear at least once in the next 8 months.  The survival or death of your named character is solely at the discretion of Howard.

If the winner provides a mailing address, Howard will send the original strip art once the comic has aired.

You can check out the Schlock Mercenary auction and place your bids over here.

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Remember folks, for every 10 dollars you donate to Heifer International, you get a chance to win these books and hundreds of others like them.

In addition to that, Worldbuilders is matching 50% of all donations made on our Team Heifer page before Dec 13th.

For more details about Worldbuilders, the auctions we’re running, and the donated books, you can head over HERE.

Also posted in a billion links, Webcomics | By Pat26 Responses

Yet even still more signed books

This is a Worldbuilders blog.

Well folks, we’ve got just a little more than a week left before the end of Worldbuilders, and as I type this we are just about to break 80,000 on our Team Heifer page. I’m thinking if we work hard to spread the word we can break 100,000 by the end of the week.

And maybe, just maybe, we might break last year’s total…

Today we’ve got another batch of lovely books donated by readers. Many of these are signed, or first editions, or both. Others are limited, numbered editions.

Some of these books would probably fetch a couple hundred bucks if we were to throw them up for auction. But personally, I like having cool, rare stuff in the general lottery.

Right now we have what I like to think of as a prize-rich environment. I did some quick math and discovered that right now, if you donate enough for a flock of ducks (20 bucks) you have, roughly, a 1 in 8 chance of winning something.

If you step it up a bit and give enough for a Gardener’s Gift Basket (170 bucks can buy a family everything they need to start a sustainable farm – tree seedlings, rabbits to generate organic manure, chickens to eat pests and a hive of bees to pollinate crops and increase yields.) Then the odds say you’ve got a 1 in 1 chance of winning something.

If that by itself doesn’t encourage you to chip in a little extra, maybe a look at these new books will…

[Edit: So apparently there’s a reason I failed statistics the first time around. (True story.) It seems logical to me that if buying one ticket gets you a 10% chance to win, then buying 10 tickets gets you a 100% chance to win. Ten ten percents is a hunnert percent, right?

Well, apparently not. As a few people pointed out in the comments below, my math is solid (I can still handle basic addition) but the underlying statistical logic doesn’t work.

This bugged me, so I actually wandered onto campus and hit up one of the math professors there. He was willing to take a couple minutes to explain to me that  yes, I was wrong.

It turns out that if you were to donate enough for a goat (120 bucks ) the odds of you winning something is actually…

(Pat fiddles with math. )

Um… the odds are good. Really good. Donating a goat to Worldbuilders means that you’re roughly a kajillion times more likely to win something than if you buy a lottery ticket.

This is why I don’t play roulette…]

  • A hardcover first edition of Changes by Jim Butcher. Signed and dated by the author.

“The fast-paced and compelling 12th book in Butcher’s bestselling series  is aptly titled… Butcher is deft at relieving some of the tension and grimness with bursts of gallows humor that keep readers coming back for more.” – Publishers Weekly

  • A hardcover copy of Hazards: The Chronicles of Lucifer Jones 1934-1938 by Mike Resnick. Signed by the author.

“This entertaining collection follows con artist, minister and adventurer Lucifer Jones, last seen in 1992’s Exploits, as he travels through South America… The likable scoundrel’s mix of lust, chicanery and naïveté moves the action along nicely, and though Resnick pokes fun at pulp adventure tales and the arrogance of early 20th-century imperialism, he never lets mockery interfere with good storytelling… Jones’s engaging narrative voice will endear it to fans of lighthearted adventure stories.” – Publishers Weekly

  • A hardcover first edition of Spook Country by William Gibson. Signed by the author.

“Gibson’s work is all edge and chill and incipient panic…His worlds are so striking, so plausible, that you’re just happy to be along for the ride.” – Chicago Tribune

  • A hardcover first edition of Worldwar: Striking the Balance by Harry Turtledove. Signed by the author.

“Turtledove’s historical scholarship, narrative technique, dry wit and deft characterization distinguish this novel just as they did its predecessors, making it a rousing wrap-up to a monument of alternate history from a master of the genre.” – Publishers Weekly

  • A hardcover copy of The Children of Men by P. D. James with signed bookplate.

“She writes like an angel. Every character is closely drawn. Her atmosphere is unerringly, chillingly convincing. And she manages all this without for a moment slowing down the drive and tension of an exciting mystery.” – The Times (UK)

  • A hardcover copy of Desperate Moon by R. Andrew Heidel with an introduction by Harlan Ellison. Numbered, limited edition in a protective slipcase. Signed by the author and by Harlan Ellison.

It’s not often I’m drawn into a book by the blurbs alone. But really, these two are pretty fabulous…

“Superb! Stirring! Bravo!” — Ray Bradbury

“Extraordinarily talented.” — Harlan Ellison

  • A hardcover copy of The Best of Robert E. Howard Vol. 1: Crimson Shadows by Robert E. Howard. Numbered, limited edition in a protective slipcase. Signed by the illustrators Jim and Ruth Keegan.

“Stories such as ‘The People of the Black Circle’ glow with the fierce and eldritch light of [Howard’s] frenzied intensity.” – Stephen King

“Robert E. Howard was a true storyteller–one of the first, and certainly among the best, you’ll find in heroic fantasy. If you’ve never read him before, you’re in for a real treat.” – Charles de Lint

  • A set of And Another Thing Part 3 and The Hitcherhiker’s Guide to the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Eoin Colfer. Signed by the author.

These are actually rare promotional materials released in advance of the newest installment of the Hitchhiker’s Guide. Both signed by Eoin Colfer, they’re a cool collector’s items.

“Wacky humor reminiscent of the original Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy rings true… You can’t go home again, but Adams fans will still appreciate the reunion with old friends.” – Publishers Weekly

  • A hardcover copy of The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi. Signed by the author.

“The most anticipated science fiction novel of the year. Bacigalupi takes the ideas and themes from his award-winning short and fiction and explores them in greater complexity and depth than ever before. The results are spectacular. You won’t see the future the same way every again.” – C. C. Finlay, author of the Traitor to the Crown series

  • A hardcover copy of Pump Six and Other Stories by Paolo Bacigalupi. Signed by the author.

“…astute social commentary in poignant, revelatory prose.” – Publishers Weekly, Best Books of the Year

  • A hardcover copy of Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi. Signed and dated by the author.

“Bacigalupi’s future earth is brilliantly imagined and its genesis anchored in contemporary issues…The characters are layered and complex, and their almost unthinkable actions and choices seem totally credible. Vivid, brutal, and thematically rich, this captivating title is sure to win teen fans for the award-winning Bacigalupi.” – Booklist (starred review)

  • A hardcover copy of Halting State by Charles Stross. Signed by the author.

“…Halting State is one extremely smart species of fun.” – William Gibson.

“The first couple pages had me hooked and I didn’t touch another book until I finished it.” – John Carmack.

  • A hardcover first edition of The Magicians by Lev Grossman. Signed by the author.

Simply said. I really enjoyed this book. If you’re looking for more details on it, including a blurb from Martin, you can check out the blog I wrote about it.

  • A hardcover copy of A Soul in a Bottle by Tim Powers. Numbered, limited edition, signed by the author.

I love all of Tim Power’s books. I read this one years back, and it’s every bit as good as all his other work. He mingles fact and fiction so cleverly that a lot of times I can’t tell what parts of his books he’s invented, and which parts he’s pulled from the stranger corners of human history.

“There are no thin, hairy specters lurking in this tale, and no cold grue to chill one’s bones. Its impact is more moral than visceral, evoking the pity and fear that are hallmarks of tragedy. Exquisitely illustrated by J. K. Potter, this slender volume is sure to appeal to epicures of the terrible.” – Publishers Weekly

“Antediluvian, in this collection of stories by New Orleans writer Brite, refers not to watery theology but, rather, to events occurring prior to the landfall of Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005… Brite chisels a few new facets in the diamond that was antediluvian New Orleans.” – Booklist

  • A hardcover limited edition of Stephen King Goes to the Movies by Stephen King.

From Stephen King’s website: The #1 bestselling author reflects on the filming of five of his most popular short stories, each tale included in this collection. Those movies are The Shawshank Redemption, 1408, Children of the Corn, The Mangler, and Hearts in Atlantis.

Includes an introduction, his brief personal commentary, and behind-the-scenes insights by Stephen.

The Subterranean Press edition of Stephen King Goes to the Movies is — so far — the only hardcover edition scheduled, and features full-color movie poster illustrations — one for each story — by Vincent Chong.

  • A hardcover copy of After the War by Tim Lebbon.

“Lebbon’s post-apocalyptic fantasy world is a bleak one, and his strong, descriptive writing and sympathetic characters make its horrors all too visible.” – Booklist

  • A hardcover copy of Mirror Kingdoms: The Best of Peter S. Beagle by Peter S. Beagle and edited by Jonathan Strahan. Numbered, limited edition signed by Peter S. Beagle.

This is a really great collection, including Beagle’s best work, including his Hugo award winning follow up to The Last Unicorn.

Even the regular edition is out of print and going for hundreds of dollars. This one is cooler than that, and is one of the 250 signed, numbered, limited editions.

It’s incredibly shiny…

“Beagle plays on the heartstrings as a master musician, and this definitive collection, a magnificent grand tour of his many created worlds, will thrill his legions of fans.” – Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)

*     *     *

Lastly, we have a cool item to add to our growing list of auctions.

From the renowned team of Brian and Wendy Froud comes a delightful and spiritual guide that offer believers a chance to connect with and experience the love and wisdom that comes from the hearts of faeries. The Heart of the Faerie Oracle box set includes 68 oracle cards, illustrated by Brian Froud. The accompanying book provides detailed instructions reading the cards.

The oracle cards feature Brian Froud’s recognizable faerie images, such as the enchanting Queen of Golden Bough and the mischievous Trickster.

For more details and pictures, you can check out the auction over here.

*     *     *

Remember folks, until Dec 13th, Worldbuilders is matching 50% of all donations made on our Team Heifer page.

Even better, for every 10 dollars you donate, you get a chance to win these books and hundreds of others like them.

For more details about Worldbuilders, or to see the other auctions and donations, you can head over to the main page HERE.

Also posted in fan coolness | By Pat41 Responses

Brett Favre Jersey

Every year we run Worldbuilders, we seem to get one donation that’s really cool, but that comes out of left field.

Last year, it was the guitar signed by Creed. (Turns out Mark Tremonti and his brother are old-fashioned geeks.)

This year, we ended up with a Brett Favre Jersey signed by, well… Brett Favre.

This is a lovely donation from a reader whose brother plays for the Vikings. Even though it’s not the sort of thing we usually have up for auction, I was flattered when he offered to get hold of one for me. And I was sure it would bring in some extra money for the fundraiser.

So here it is:

  • Vikings Away Jersey. Signed by Brett Favre.

To see additional pictures and a more detailed description you can check out the auction over here.

Since this item is a little different than the things we normally auction off, I’d appreciate it if y’all could help me spread the word a bit.

And remember all money from these auctions supports Heifer International through Worldbuilders.

To see other auction items, or to learn more the combined power of ten thousand charitable geeks, you can check out the main Worldbuilders page here.

Stay tuned. More coolness on the way…

Posted in Worldbuilders 2010 | By Pat17 Responses

Graphic Novels: Batman and Robin, Gaiman and Girl Genius.

This is a Worldbuilders blog.

It’s only been a couple days, and the auction for Gaiman’s signed, numbered ARC of Stardust is already at $1000 bucks. This makes me happy for Worldbuilders and Heifer international. But at the same time I can hear the wailing and gnashing of teeth from frustrated fans as they see the book pulled farther and farther from their desperately grasping fingertips.

So today I’m putting something from my personal collection into the general prize pool for the lottery. It isn’t quite as cool as the rare ARC, but it does have certain glow of awesome to it.

Best of all, you don’t have to bid against collectors for this book. Everyone who donates on our Team Heifer page has a chance at winning it.

When I first read Stardust, I read it as a novel. It wasn’t until a year later that I learned the story was originally published as a graphic novel of sorts. I say “of sorts” because it’s not a comic so much as it’s an novel with gorgeous illustrations by Charles Vess.

For example:

This is a beautiful hardcover, signed by Gaiman himself. And while it might not be all rare and numbered and such, I’m going to include something else to bring the coolness up a little closer to the ARC.

Since Stardust is a story about a star that fell from the sky, I thought I’d include a piece of honest-to-goodness star-iron with this book.

You see, before I was a book geek, I was a rock geek. By which I mean I used to collect rocks.

While I’ve let most of that particular madness go, I do still collect meteorites. This is a piece from my personal collection. It’s a cut, etched section of the Gibbeon meteorite. One of the rarer types of meteorites, it’s composed almost entirely of nickel and iron.

This picture shows one of the cooler things about the Gibeon irons. There’s a pattern embedded in the iron that looks like frost. Except frost shows up when water freezes, and these marks show up when iron and nickel slowly cool over millions of years.

It’s called a Widmanstätten pattern. And it forms because the different alloys of nickel and iron cool at slightly different rates while the molten iron is in space. The effect can’t be duplicated on earth, so it only shows up in iron-nickel meteorites.

Each different meteorite fall has a different mix of iron and nickel, so they each have a slightly different pattern. In my opinion, the Gibeon’s is one of the coolest looking.

Okay, enough rock-geekery. Let’s get back to the book-geekery.

*     *     *

This year, when I announced I was starting up Worldbuilders, several bookstores offered to donate to the fundraiser. Haven Comics contacted me and asked if I’d like to include some graphic novels in the mix this year.

“Yes,” I said. “Yes I would.”

“Do you have any suggestions?” they asked.

“Yes,” I said. “Yes I do.”

  • A copy of Batman: The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller.

Because of a few comments I’ve made in the past some people think I don’t like Batman. But this simply isn’t true.

The Dark Knight Returns is the very first comic I read as an adult, and it sold me on graphic novels as a legitimate medium for storytelling. Before that I was kinda stupid because I thought comics were only for kids. Grown ups read novels, right?

Wrong. This story absolutely knocked me over and I recommend it to anyone, whether or not they enjoy superhero comics or whether or not they give a damn about Batman. It’s just a brilliant story.

One of the main problems with trying to get into comics these days is that so many comics are superhero comics.

Now that by itself isn’t bad. The problem is all those superheros have 40 or 50 years of backstory. That means picking a comic off the rack and trying to read it can be unpleasantly similar to starting Wheel of Time with book #9.

None of the comics we’re putting up on the blog today have that problem. You can pick them up, start reading, and understand the story even if you’ve never read a comic before in your whole life…

Simply said, Fables is one of the best mainstream comics being written today.

The main characters aren’t superheroes. They’re figures from folklore. You have Prince Charming, Little Red Riding Hood, Aladdin, Baba Yaga, and the Big Bad Wolf. The basic premise is that these characters have been forced from their native lands and are taking refuge in our mundane world.

Bill Willingham just does a marvelous job of bringing these characters together into huge overarching story that comes to beautiful fruition over about 10 issues.

Another brilliant Batman story arc that I’m rather fond of. It maintains one artist and one author through the entire arc which I always tend to prefer, as I believe it helps a story maintain its consistent feel.

“Jeph Loeb has crafted a story that is unique to the characters. It’s a complex murder mystery, but its also a Batman story… Buoyed by a film noir-ish plot that features a Gothic twist on the gangster/murder mystery plot, terrific character-based subplots, and beautiful, cinematic art, [The Long Halloween is] an addition to your collection that you won’t regret.” – Yannick Belzil of The 11th Hour

Many of you might remember the Sin City movie that came out a while ago. It was a fairly good flick, but as is usually the case, the original book was better.

Normally I don’t notice the art of a graphic novel very much. I just don’t have much of an eye for the graphic. I’m in it for the words and the story. But even I have to acknowledge that Miller’s art style in Sin City is striking and unlike anything you’ll see anywhere else. The story itself is dark and gritty. And it has one of my all-time favorite characters in it: Marv. Marv is lovable and dark and vicious in way I know I can never hope to pull off in my own writing.

We’re all heartbroken over Firefly going away. But Joss Whedon has managed to continue the story in a few graphic novels.

So if you’re like me, still weeping bitter tears about the cancellation of Firefly. You can read Those Left Behind and spend a little more time with the crew of Serenity. It’s not season two. But it’s good.

Zombies movies have been fashionable for good long while now.

The problem is, a zombie movie almost has to be an action flick. You only have an hour and a half to tell the story in a movie, and so the story ends up being plot-driven. How do we get out of the city? What caused this? How do we survive?

What’s cool about The Walking Dead is that it’s a longer story arc. That means you get to see the long-term psychological story of a society that has fallen apart because of a zombie apocalypse.

This story doesn’t focus on the characters running around saying, “oh my god! Why is this happening? How do we survive until the government saves us?”  Instead you see them surviving for years after the apocalypse, dealing the a broken society and their incredible emotional baggage. It’s a brilliant concept for a comic, wonderfully well-executed.

*     *     *

Once I started entering the comics that Haven sent in, I started thinking about some other comics that I wanted to mention to people. So here are a few of my personal favorites I’m kicking in to this year’s lottery.

Warren Ellis is one of my favorite comic authors. He’s written so many books I adore, but I think I like Transmetropolitan the best.

How can I describe this book…?

Okay. Imagine if Henry Rollins and John Stewart had a baby. Then that baby grew up and had a baby with Hunter S. Thomson. Then that baby grew up and had Tourettes. Transmetropolitan would be that kid’s favorite book.

Right, I’ll admit that’s a terrible analogy. But it kind of gets the point across, this book is insane and hugely fucking smart. I love its dystopian future and over-arching storyline.

And I totally want a pair of glasses like Spider Jerusalem.

Mike Carey is another favorite comic author of mine. He has a particular gift for bringing together unique and obscure mythologies in his stories.

Crossing Midnight is a particular favorite of mine because it brings subtle elements of eastern culture and folklore into the story. No no. Not ninja and samurai. There’s more to Japan than Ninja and samurai. I’m talking about cool folklore. Things you probably never heard of before…

  • A copy of Scud the Disposable Assassin by Rob Schrab.

I’ve been wanting to talk about this book for more than a year. It deserves an entire blog all to itself, full of gushy enthusiasm and lavish praise. I’ll try to give it the credit it deserves in just a couple paragraphs.

Those of you who were reading comics back around the early 90’s might remember Scud. It was absolutely different from any other comic out there. Frantic. Light-hearted. Irreverent. Sweet. Bizarre. Dark. Sarcastic. Touching.

Unfortunately in 1998 the comic published a cliffhanger and just… stopped. Really stopped. For years. For a decade.

Then, in 2008, the artist and writer, Rob Schrab came back to finish the story. Despite the fact that he’s all Hollywood famous now, he came back and finished the series. What’s more, he put such a lovely ending on it that I actually cried.

This is a gorgeous collection, and it includes the entire story arc. As it says in the title: Beginning, Middle, and End.

This is Joss Whedon. What else do I need to say? This comic actually made me give a damn about the X-Men despite the fact that I didn’t know anything much about them before I picked up the book.

So yeah. Joss Whedon. Brilliant.

*     *     *

These next few books were donated by artist Ray McCarthy. Turns out he’s a fan of Name of the Wind, and after checking out some of the titles he’s worked on, I’m a fan of his, too.

  • A copy of Batman: Contagion. Signed by illustrator Ray McCarthy.

This is one of the classic Batman storylines from back in the mid-90’s. A slew of great writers and illustrators collaborated on it, including Ray McCarthy who donated this book and has signed it.

  • Two copies of Catwoman and Vampirella by Chuck Dixon and illustrated by Ray McCarthy. Signed by the illustrator.

Part of me wants to feel guilty about looking at this cover for as long as I have, and the rest of me doesn’t care.

  • A set of Red Robin graphic novels . Collision signed by Ray McCarthy.

I’ll admit that this new series was completely off my radar until Ray brought it to my attention. But I picked it up and was immediately pulled in despite the fact that I’m not up-to-date on the current Batman storylines. Dynamic storytelling. Cool art.

  • Original Red Robin Art and matching comic from Ray McCarthy.

Lastly, Ray was cool enough to donate an original page of art from Red Robin #16.

To make sure this unique item ends up in the hands of someone who will love it properly, we’re putting it up for auction. Remember, the proceeds from the auctions go to support Worldbuilders and Heifer International.

You can bid on the Red Robin original art over here.

*     *     *

Two months ago I gushed about Girl Genius on the blog.

In that blog I professed my undying love for the series. I even went so far as to tell people that if they bought the first book on my recommendation and didn’t like it, I would buy the comic back from them.

Since then, people keep emailing me, wondering how many copies of the book I’ve had to buy back.

The answer: None. Not a single one.

Given my love for this series, I’m so excited to add this item to the mix today.

Phil and Kaja Foglio were cool enough to donate two full sets of Girl Genius to Worldbuilders this year. Both sets are signed by both Phil and Kaja.

One of these will be going into the general lottery so anyone can win it.

The other one we’re putting up for auction.

You can bid on the autographed set of Girl Genius over  here.

*     *     *

Remember folks, for every 10 dollars you donate to Heifer International, you get a chance to win these books and hundreds of others like them.

In addition to that, Worldbuilders is matching 50% of all donations made on our Team Heifer page.

Matching donations and a chance to win cool swag. What more could you ask for? Go on. Do it. You know you want to.

To see the other books you can win, and other auctions Worldbuilders is running, you can head over to the main page HERE.

Also posted in Neil Gaiman, recommendations | By Pat49 Responses

Rare books from Gaiman, Sanderson, and Generous Fans

Before I talk about today’s donations to Worldbuilders, I feel a moral obligation to point out that you only have until Dec 3rd to bid on the professional read-and-critiques we have up on e-bay.

So if you have a manuscript you’re dying to have professionally critiqued, or if you’re looking for the perfect Christmas gift for the aspiring writer in your life: be warned. You only have a few days left to bid….

*     *     *

Those of you who participated in last year’s fundraiser might remember that I had a hard time deciding what to do with a couple cool books donated by Gaiman and Sanderson. Specifically, I didn’t know if I wanted to auction them off to the highest bidder, or put them in the general lottery so anyone could win them.

In the end, I asked y’all what you thought would be best. Most people seemed to want it in the general lottery, because they hoped to win it. But everyone also seemed to agree that they would raise more money for Heifer International if we auctioned them off.

In the end, I ended up putting them in the lottery. Mostly because I’m egalitarian at heart, and I like having some really cool prizes in the mix.

Eventually the fundraiser came to a close. We drew names to see who won Gaiman’s and Sanderson’s books and it turned out that both the winners had donated 120 dollars. Enough for a goat. I contacted the winners personally to tell them  that they had won two of the cooler prizes in the auction. Needless to say, they were delighted.

Then something unexpected happened.

Both of the winners offered to donate the books back to Worldbuilders so we could use them again for next year’s fundraiser. But they both said the same thing: that the books should be auctioned off to bring in more money for Heifer International.

Needless to say, I was more than slightly amazed. I mean, personally, if I’d won Gaiman’s book, I don’t think I would have been able to give it up.

All in all, this goes a long way to proving my theory that people are basically good. Sometimes we screw up. Sometimes we’re lazy. Sometimes our animal natures get the better of us. But deep down, given the chance, most people are kind, helpful, and generous beyond all expectations.

Anyway, it’s next year. So I’m putting those books up for auction. In my opinion, these books are even cooler than before because they’ve been donated twice, once by the author, and again by the fans.

  • A first edition hardcover of The Gathering Storm, signed by Brandon Sanderson, Harriet Jordan, and many others.

Huh. I just noticed that Sanderson’s handwriting is a little bit like mine. His signature is much cooler though…

Needless to say, this is pretty much a one-of a kind item.

You can bid on the auction for The Gathering Storm over here.

  • A numbered, limited edition ARC of Stardust in its own slipcase. Signed by Neil Gaiman.

This is a cool book, folks. I covet.

You can bid on the auction for the Gaiman’s signed ARC over here.

  • A hardcover copy of Spectrum 8. Signed my 52 of the featured artists, including Dave McKean, Todd Lockwood, and Charles Vess.

It seems appropriate to include this book alongside these previous two auctions. Not only is it above-and-beyond cool. But it was also donated to Worldbuilders by a generous reader and book collector. It goes without saying that this book is about as unique as it gets.

You ready for the list of artists who have signed their work in the book?

Here we go:

Thom Ang, Brom, Dennis Beckstrom, Nancy Butler-Beckstrom, Frank Cho, Stuart Compton, Mark Covell, Kinuko Y. Craft, Brian Despain, Tony DiTerlizzi, Dave Dorman, Tommy Lee Edwards, Bob Eggleton, Jason Felix, Arnie Fenner, Cathy Fenner, John Van Fleet, Jon Foster, Donato Giancola, Gary Gianni, James Gurney, Richard Hescox, Greg Hidebrandt, Tim Hidebrandt, Joe Jusko, Todd Lockwood, Larry MacDougall, Gregory Manchess, Stephan Martiniere, Tony Mauro, Dave McKean, Christopher Moeller, Steve Montiglio, Jon J. Muth, Terese Nielsen, Glen Orbik, Martina Picerova, Greg Polutanovich, R.K. Post, George Pratt, Luis Royo, Robh Ruppel, Ron Spears, William Stout, Michael Sutfin, Brian R. Thompson, Bleu Turrell, Matt Wilson, Christopher Vacher, Charles Vess, Ashley Wood, and John Zeleznik.

You can bid on the autographed copy of Spectrum 8 (and see pictures of some of the autographs) by following this link.

*     *     *

Don’t forget, Worldbuilders is matching 50% of all donations made on our Team Heifer page until December 13th. What’s more, every 10 dollars you donate to Heifer International gets you a chance to rare signed books like these.

To see the other books and learn more about Worldbuilders, you can head over to the main page.

Stay tuned, folks. In the next week we’re going to posting up more hundreds of donated books, graphic novels, and DVDs. We’ll be doing more auctions too. More general coolness all around.

pat

Also posted in Neil Gaiman | By Pat29 Responses

Still More Signed Books

This is a Worldbuilders blog.

Today we’ve got another batch of gorgeous books donated by generous authors.

As if I didn’t have enough reasons to love Peter S. Beagle.

Not only is The Last Unicorn my favorite book of all time. Not only is Peter nice enough to send along some signed copies with the cool new cover for the fundraiser. (Not only was he nice enough to send along a copy especially for me, too.) But we have a few other amazingly cool goodies from him that we’ll be auctioning off soon.

For this book, I will write the glowing blurb myself. Ready? Here it is.

“When people tell me The Name of the Wind is their favorite book, I’m always flattered. Then I encourage them to read The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle. It is so much better than my book. It is like a diamond. Like a pearl. It is the platonic form of Book. I read it once a year, and every time I cry.”

  • A hardcover copy of Caliban’s Hour by Tad Williams. Signed by the author.

A lovely donation from Tad Williams himself. I’m ashamed to admit that this book was below my radar until right now. I’ll have to go pick up a copy now….

“The best-selling author of To Green Angel Tower (1993) offers a fantastical sequel to Shakespeare’s The Tempest replete with elements of both Beauty and the Beast and Robinson Crusoe… A lyrically romantic voyage of discovery charting the mysterious depths of the human heart and soul.” – Margaret Flanagan for Booklist

“Kristopher Reisz’s Unleashed has one of the most unique takes on an established mythology that I’ve ever seen. Its twist on the werewolf tales will keep readers guessing right until the end.” – TeensReadToo

“Hot, wrenching, and wise, this book is fantastic!” – Holly Black, author of White Cat

  • A hardcover copy of The Darker Mask: Heroes from the Shadows. Signed by Doselle Young.

“Themed along the grayer areas of superhero fiction, this anthology of 18 original stories nonetheless covers a wide spectrum… Deceptively simple and entertaining while never skimping on serious topics, this tight anthology will satisfy any superhero enthusiast. ” – Publishers Weekly

  • A hardcover of The River King’s Road by Liane Merciel. First edition. Signed by the author.

“[An] impressive epic fantasy debut… Merciel has constructed an inspired new world where unexpected plot twists bedevil strong, clearly visualized characters, in a story that glints with intelligence and hums with life.” – Publishers Weekly, starred review

  • A hardcover copy of Otherland by Tad Williams. Signed by the author.

“The ultimate virtual-reality saga, borrowing motifs from cyberpunk, mythology and world history.” – San Francisco Chronicle

“One of the best works of science fiction I’ve ever read.” – Katharine Kerr

  • A set of The ThiefThe Queen of Attolia, The King of Attolia and A Conspiracy of Kings by Megan Whalen Turner. All signed by the author.

The Thief is a Newbery Honor Book, and that’s not something to take lightly. But if you need more convincing, here’s a starred review from Publisher’s Weekly: “Turner’s storytelling is so sure that readers will want to go along with her-and discover whatever it is that Eugenides will do next.”

  • Two UK sets of The Thief and The Queen of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner. Signed by the author.

“Thoroughly involving and wholly satisfying on all fronts.” – The Horn Book

  • A set of the Kira Chronicles: The Whisper of Leaves and The Song of the Silvercades by K. S. Nikakis. Signed by the author.

For those of you who live here in the US, these books are a bit of a treat. This series isn’t even published in the US (yet) so if you win them, you’ll be on the cutting edge of fantasy chic.

“An impressive debut novel, which combines assured writing and well-paced storytelling. K.S. Nikakis is a welcome addition to the ranks of Australian fantasy authors.” – Juliet Marillier

“From New York Times best seller Elaine Cunningham comes a fantastic new adventure of swords and sorcery, set in the award-winning world of the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game.”

  • A set of Pathfinders Tales: Winter Witch and Prince of Wolves. Signed by Dave Gross.

From fan-favorite author Dave Gross comes a new fantastical mystery set in the award-winning world of the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game.

“Brilliantly detailed worldbuilding and complicated characters makes this an engrossing read.” – Laura Anne Gilman

  • Two hardcover copies of A Spider on the Stairs by Cassandra Chan. Signed by the author.

The Library Journal says that Spider on the Stairs “will appeal to fans of the traditional Golden Age British mystery. Her inclusion of humor and her well-drawn characters make Chan a good choice for readers of Martha Grimes.”

What’s more, Chan went above and beyond with her signature pages, too. Check them out…


(Click to Embiggen)


(Also Click to Embiggen)

I can never think of cool things to sign in books like this. And I certainly can’t do that three-dimentional shading thing she pulls off with the Worldbuilders 2010, either. Hell, I don’t think I even own a green pen….

Honestly, looking at these makes me feel more than slightly inadequate.

And just think, if she’s this creative when signing the books, imagine how original the books themselves must be….

*    *    *

Don’t forget, Worldbuilders is matching 50% of all donations made on our Team Heifer page. What’s more, every 10 dollars you donate to Heifer International gets you a chance to win these books and hundreds of others like them.

To see the other books and learn more about Worldbuilders, you can head over to the main page.

Posted in Worldbuilders 2010 | By Pat27 Responses
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