Now, a lot of folks already have it in e-book format, since it was released electronically some weeks ago, but if you’re a guy or girl who still prefers paper, or you simply don’t have an e-book reader yet, there’re no more excuses not to join Talon Squad on their first lethal operation under the handler known only as Sigma.

As for me, it’s on to Deathwatch 2 and a number of other projects I’ll get around to talking about later. But enough, I say. Saddle your horse and get thee to a bookstore! And remember to take some currency.

Now, it’s time for me to get back to novel preparations for my next two books. In nomine Imperator.

That image is from the ingame ‘kill-cam’. Sounds like it’s shaping up very, very nicely indeed. Couldn’t we have Crimson Fists in there, though? Better yet, how about a special mod or DLC with Talon Squad missions with me writing them, of course.

And talking of Talon Squad, I hope you’ve all pre-ordered my upcoming Deathwatch novel from the Black Library website. There isn’t long to wait now. Here’s the link: http://www.blacklibrary.com/all-products/deathwatch-2013.html

Some lucky ladies and gents were able to grab it at the recent Black Library Live 2013 event, and I’ve had great feedback so far, so here’s hoping you all enjoy the ride when it hits in April.

In other news, I’ve recently co-authored a petition in an attempt to help Japanese activists protect sharks (as you may know, the global shark slaughter is out of control, and Japan have taken great pains to try to prevent any kind of protection for sharks). If you have a moment, please sign the petition. Signatures really do make a difference. Even better, if you can share it on facebook or tweet it, you would be doing even more good. Here’s the link: https://www.change.org/en-GB/petitions/muji-japan-stop-selling-shark-fin-soup?utm_campaign=twitter_link&utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=share_petition

Let’s see… anything else? Well, I’ve spent the last couple of days plotting out action set-pieces for my next Imperial Guard novel (possibly to be released between Deathwatch 1 and 2, pending discussion with my editor). I’m really excited about this novel and about returning to full-length IG work. Then again, I’m equally excited about writing the next Deathwatch book. Throne dammit, I can’t quite decide which I’d like to do first. Maybe the IG book would be a nice change, but maybe jumping right into Deathwatch 2 (that’s not the title!) will keep the momentum going.

F##k it. I’ll think about it after a quick game of Batman: Arkham City.

Click HERE to visit the article on Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Well worth a read.

In other news, Black Library Live 2013 sounds like it went down a storm (at least, the buzz on Twitter, etc. would seem to testify so). There have been lots of tweets about fan highlights from the event already. And… and someone posted a pic on Facebook of my new Deathwatch novel actually in his hands! Hot damn! Talk about pre-release. That thing isn’t supposed to exist, public-wise, for at least another month. I’m sure the proud owner (hey, Colin!) won’t mind me re-posting his pic here. One of the many disadvantages of living in Japan is that I don’t get my author copies quite as fast as I’d like. Rest assured, though, that when I do get them, I’ll be giving them some camera-love on the blog.

Now, I’d better get back to researching… umm… stuff for my next book. At ease, troopers.

I decided to go for a walk while listening to the Skyrim soundtrack (of which I’m a huge fan – Skyrim Atmospheres is now the only way I can get to sleep without earplugs!). To be honest, though, the planned mini-adventure was a washout. There’s no way Tokyo’s ugly, angular, suburban drudgery can compete with the deeply forested and steep-mountained realm of the Nords, despite the latter being entirely artificial and with occasional texturing/clipping issues. I guess I’ll keep my snow-laden wanderings for the woods and wastes of north Europe (whenever I make it back). Well, I shoulda known better anyway.

I loved the original Space Hulk. I was a teenager when it came out, and I remember really enjoying it, gunning down ‘nids with my Terminator’s assault cannon in particular. Great stuff.

I also loved the early videogame versions, most especially the EA game developed for the Commodore Amiga. The Saturn version, Vengeance of the Blood Angels, was pretty damned good, too. The developers really nailed the bleak, spooky nature of a dark, apparently lifeless hulk in 40k space.

There’s a link to the website for the new game HERE and an article about the game on PC Gamer HERE. (PC Gamer is my favourite gaming news website, though it’s really only relevant to PC gamers – funny that. For Xbox and PS3 news, I generally check IGN or Metacritic).

Anyway, check the links out if you’re a Space Hulk fan like me. And let’s keep our fingers crossed that developer Full Control (best known for Frontline Tactics) do a great job with it.

Bless your weapons.

Stefan’s paintings of Space Marines are iconic. You’ll have seen them on Graham McNeill’s Ultramarine books, and you probably loved them, right? Well, he’s done it again. Not only that, but if you check the BL blog, you’ll see that he provided three sketched poses for the BL team’s approval. I don’t know about you, but as something of a failed artist myself, I love seeing how the pros work. I thought the double bolt-pistol pose was really cool, but Karras doesn’t do that in the book, and Arquemann isn’t worn on his hip… so I guess that one was out. Not that cover paintings really need to reflect the book contents uber-accurately, of course. I mean, Arquemann is a two-hander, like a big claymore-style weapon with a psy-resonating matrix forged into the blade. And the Talon Squad bolters… well, you’ll see when you read the book. In any case, I love the cover painting, and it deserves to be seen in all its unobscured glory. Just check out the dead ‘nids at Karras’s feet. Brilliant!

See below for the full image without text, and click HERE to read the BL blog.

As for the other blog entry, why, it’s a short, snappy extract from the novel itself. I hope it will whet your appetite for the action to come. The extract features two members of Talon Squad training with three other Deathwatch trainees prior to squad allocation and eventual deployment. Clipper rounds? Frag grenades that don’t frag? Vanishing Dark Eldar? Don’t worry. It will all be explained come April. I just hope you can all wait till then.

HERE‘s the link to the blog entry with the extract in question. Fingers crossed that you guys enjoy it. Now it’s time to begin a new project before I get around to Deathwatch 2. That’s always a good feeling. I love the research/planning/building process. As always, I’ll keep you posted as and when I can.

Despite finding myself in a living nightmare without apparent end, I couldn’t let Hallowe’en pass without a blog post.

I haven’t had much time to revel in spooky stuff this year because of the ghoulish second (or is it third) draft of Deathwatch. But I always make some effort to celebrate the soul-staining, paganistic event so detested by Catholic bishops (especially in Poland, it seems). That usually means a good movie on the night in question.

Three years ago, I blogged about Stephen King’s Salem’s Lot. The book is fantastic, though I actually blogged about the movie/TV miniseries. I’m talking about the original 70s one, here, not the completely unnecessary and misguided remake from 2005. Once again, I’d like to recommend it to you – both the excellent book AND the terrifying movie. You can’t go wrong with proper vampires like Mr. Barlow. The word romance isn’t even in his dictionary.

Here is a cut’n'paste of the relevant parts of that blog entry from three years ago, though I’m including a different picture of The Master just because he’s so photogenic:

(From May 15th, 2009)

No, that’s not a picture of me after three cups of coffee. It is, of course, The Master from the 1979 TV adaptation of Stephen King’s utterly brilliant Salem’s Lot. I had the pleasure of watching it for what must be the tenth time (possibly more) last night, and it was just as damned freaky as ever.

If you haven’t seen Salem’s Lot, and you like a good vampire story, you really owe it to yourself to track down a copy of the DVD. The version I have is the uncut one, lasting a little over three hours, and, for my money at least, there’s not a wasted moment in the whole thing. David Soul and James Mason turn in awesome performances. Before The Master arrives, it’s a toss-up between them as to who steals the show, with Mason just edging ahead because he’s so brilliantly creepy and funny at the same time. Look out for the moment when he educates the fat local cop on the use of the word ‘ciao’. Priceless!

If you’ve seen the film/mini-series, but you haven’t read the book (published in 1975), what are you waiting for? I’ve read a good few Stephen King stories. He’s one of those guys who makes writing look truly effortless (though it bloody ain’t, King, you deceiver!). Of all the King works I’ve read, though, Salem’s Lot is far and away my favourite. Check it out.

With Deathwatch, I’ve done something I’ve never done before, as far as the writing process goes. I’ve used Excel to keep a spreadsheet of character names and descriptions, invented words, plot points and more. It has proven to be a really useful resource, especially now, going back through the entire book fixing or amending things flagged by my editor on his first pass (his only pass, more often than not, though it will go to proofreaders next). The spreadsheet thing is a practice I intend to continue for every story I write, whether short story, novella, or full length novel. It’s something I expect to improve at, too, since the first time is never perfect and we learn best from our mistakes.

Other than that, it’s just a matter of raw attrition. A novel is a like a stupidly difficult boss monster in a video game – he seems overwhelming at first, but if you’re patient and don’t give up, if you just keep chipping away at his health-bar piece by piece, you win out and get your reward – advancing to a new stage.

So, with that said, it’s time for me to hit that (A) button and have another go at the bastard.

“For the Emperor!”