Author: priscellie

Lots to announce today!

As you may have already heard, The Aeronaut’s Windlass was nominated for Best Novel in the 2016 Hugo Awards!  This makes his third nomination, after Skin Game was tapped for Best Novel in 2015 and Welcome to the Jungle was short-listed for Best Graphic Story in 2009.  Jim’s fellow contenders are some of the most loved in the genre–Ann Leckie, N.K. Jemisin, Neal Stephenson, and Naomi Novik–so best of luck to all!  If you want to cast your vote in this or any category, you can register here.

Next, the Dresden Files Cooperative Card Came (or DFCO) Kickstarter ends in 48 hours!  For those late to the game, here’s a convenient summary of what each pledge level gets you!  You can read about the campaign in greater detail on the main page.

Also, we want to remind you of some upcoming conventions.  Jim has three more cons announced for this year, the first of which is this weekend!  Folks in the Kansas City area can meet him and get books signed at Planet Comicon this Friday through Sunday, then fans in Denver and Atlanta get their turn in mid-August and early September with Myths and Legends Con and DragonCon, respectively.  His schedule for this weekend is below.

FRIDAY, MAY 20th:
12pm – 2pm: Celebrity Area
3pm – 5pm: Wordfire Booth (#723)

SATURDAY, MAY 21st:
10:30 am – 12:30 pm: Celebrity Area
2pm – 4pm: Wordfire Booth (#723)

SUNDAY, MAY 22nd:
11am – 1pm: Wordfire Booth (#723)
2pm – 4pm: Celebrity Area

Finally, Issue #2 of the Wild Card graphic novel hits stores tomorrow!  Check out a five-page preview at Comic Book Resources, then snag a copy at your favorite local independent comics shop.

As always, you can keep informed about upcoming release dates at Jim’s Upcoming Works page.

Over the years, Jim has often been asked, “If you could go back and change anything about the series, what would it be?” He’s previously shrugged off such queries with a non-committal quip, but he admits the questions always struck a chord with him.  Today, on the 16^th anniversary of Storm Front’s release, Jim answers the fans’ call with The Dresden Files Special Edition.

This definitive collection seeks to bring the series more in line with his original vision, adding characters and worldbuilding details that would’ve been impossible given the constraints of the publishing industry at the time.

Jim credits the influence of his long-beloved Spider-Man franchise in this decision, citing the perennial appeal of Peter Parker’s origin story.  He muses, “I’ve always wondered what Harry Dresden’s early life would’ve been like if he’d faced functionally identical villains, but with a different love interest, and with him being slightly more attractive, in a millennial way.”

The first novel will be rebranded as “Harry Dresden v The Shadowman: Front of Storms.” Jim draws readers’ attention to the “v” as opposed to the more conventional “vs.,” citing this choice as a way of “keep[ing] it from being a straight ‘versus’ book, even in the most subtle way.” This essential installment is due out in bookstores April 31^st.

Jim hopes fans will embrace this new edition, as he looks forward to correcting an oversight in the dream sequence in Dead Beat, where he neglected to mention Harry’s father’s uncanny resemblance to Hayden Christensen.

If successful, Jim plans to reboot the series again in five years with an entirely different publisher.

Discuss this news on the forum here.

CON MAN

Hoping to see Jim in person in 2016?  A number of convention appearances are starting to trickle in. We’ll let you know when additional events are added!

Superstars Writing Academy
February 4th – 6th, 2016
Colorado Springs, CO
http://superstarswriting.com/

Houston Comicpalooza 2016
June 17-19, 2016
Houston, TX
http://www.comicpalooza.com/

Unfortunately, Jim’s Comicpalooza appearance has been canceled due to a scheduling conflict. Sorry!

Myths and Legends Con
August 12-14, 2016
Ramada Plaza Denver North
Denver, CO
http://www.malcondenver.com/

WIZARDS GONE WILD

Also, we have cover art and a release date for the first issue of Wild Card, the next Dresden Files graphic novel!  Look for it at your favorite comics shop on April 20th, 2016!  Click to embiggen.

As always, you can see the full list of Jim’s upcoming events at Calendar Event Discussion section of the forum and a schedule of new releases at his Upcoming Works page.

–Priscilla

HELPING HAITI

Today, for Giving Tuesday, Heifer International is matching all donations and putting them toward their work in Haiti!  Because Pat Rothfuss is pretty freaking awesome, he and his team have set up a system where if you donate to Worldbuilders today, Pat will match your donation, then take ALL that money to Heifer and they’ll match BOTH of them. So if you chip in today, your donation will be quadrupled!  As we’ve covered in previous blog posts, Worldbuilders offers some pretty spectacular prizes for fans of Jim and sci-fi, fantasy, and gaming in general.  Read more about the extraordinary work Worldbuilders is doing around the globe and the sweet incentives to give generously at Pat’s blog.  This offer ends tonight at midnight Central time (GMT -06:00)!

LAST CHANCE FOR VIRTUAL SIGNING

Also, today is the LAST DAY to submit preorders for Priscilla Spencer’s Cinder Spires map virtual signing!  The cutoff is 7am Pacific (GMT -08:00) tomorrow morning.  If you want to give a loved one (or yourself) a signed, personalized poster of the interior artwork for the Aeronaut’s Windlass in stunning copper foil this holiday season, don’t delay!  And what the hell.  I’ll donate 25% of each map sale today (by 11pm Central tonight) to Worldbuilders as well.

DFCO DEMO

In other news, Fred Hicks of Evil Hat will be demoing the upcoming Dresden Files Card Game at Games & Stuff in Glen Burnie, MD, on December 10th!  Get all the details on the store’s blog or at the event page on Facebook.

–Priscilla

GOODREADS: FINAL ROUND

The Aeronaut’s Windlass has made it into the final round of the Goodreads Choice Awards!  Jim has the honor of competing with luminaries of the genre like N.K. Jemisin, Brandon Sanderson, and Neil Gaiman.  There are dozens of amazing nominees in twenty categories, so be sure to check it out!  You have until November 23rd to make your voice heard.

HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE

This holiday season, there’s all kinds of Butchery goodness for that special reader in your life!

BOOKS: If you’re not up to speed on all of Jim’s writings (or if you need extra copies for your conversion efforts), you can score all the Dresden novels, short stories, and graphic novels in our store!  You can also brush up on the Codex Alera, the new Cinder Spires series, and even Jim’s Spider-Man novel!

RPG: There’s no better way to ring in the new year than with a kickass new gaming campaign.  Check out Evil Hat’s Dresden Files RPG and the thrilling new expansion The Paranet Papers!  And there’s no better stocking stuffer for your favorite tabletop geek than Dresden-themed Fate Dice.

JEWELRY:  Just in time for the holidays, Badali Jewelry has unveiled some fabulous new Dresden Files pieces, including the long-requested Ruby Pentacle and Harry’s force ring!  They have fabulous collections from all your favorite series, so they’re bound to have something covet-worthy for the fantasy geek on your list!  Also, if you use the code WBLD15, Badali will give you $10 off shipping AND donate 10% of the purchase price to Worldbuilders!

ARTWORK: Deck the halls with Jim-themed artwork!  It’s not too late to snag a limited-edition print of Tyler Walpole’s stunning Harry Dresden poster, signed by himself and Jim Butcher.  Also, fans of the Cinder Spires series can snag my (Priscilla Spencer’s) copper foil posters of the interior art from The Aeronaut’s Windlass: Habble Morning, Habble Landing, and the Predator schematic!  I also have Alera map posters for sale.  Note: There are TEN DAYS LEFT to participate in my “virtual signing” that allows fans to preorder personalized posters, signed by myself and Jim.  Orders must be placed by December 1st to arrive in time for the holidays!

GARB: Support Worldbuilders with their “Polka Will Never Die” shirt, let dinosaurs roam the earth once more with Gilly Hathaway’s “Dead Beat” mashup, or get your exclamation points on with SPLATTERCON!!!  All are linked from the Fan Shwag section of our store.

All of the items linked above are sold with Jim’s permission, so you can rest assured that you’re scoring fabulous goodies while respecting the author’s rights.  Booyeah!

WORLDBUILDERS

Pat Rothfuss and the Worldbuilders team have unveiled a massive suite of auctions and lottery prizes that are bound to be of interest to Jim’s fans!  His “The Kindness of Authors” post includes goodies from urban fantasy greats like Kevin Hearne, Richard Kadrey, and Welcome to Night Vale; fantastic fantasy authors like Shawn Speakman, Peter V. Brett, Robin Hobb, Jacqueline Carey, Myke Cole, and Harry Connolly (Harry’s donation is three copies of the exclusive Kickstarter edition of The Great Way, which features my artwork on the cover!); and sci-fi rock stars like Anne Leckie!

Publishers Del Rey and Grim Oak Press have also contributed LOADS of fabulous books, including an ARC of Shawn Speakman’s anthology, which contains Jim’s new Harry Dresden short story “Jury Duty.”

Then there’s also the Cards Against Humanity Fantasy pack, which contains contributions from many of our favorite writers: Pat Rothfuss, Kevin Hearne, Myke Cole, Jacqueline Carey, Neil Gaiman, Sam Sykes, Wesley Chu, Martha Wells, Sherwood Smith, Elizabeth Bear, Laura Anne Gilman, and Delilah Dawson!

If you’re a writer yourself, you may want to check out their auctions for professional critiques of your manuscript, including copyediting by Jim’s friend Richard Shealy, whom many of you may know as Shecky.

Be sure to keep an eye on Pat’s blog for further announcements!

–Priscilla