Here I am, hard at work on fresh horrors, courtesy of Nick Gucker

Two New Releases

In the last few months, two previously announced Call of Cthulhu books through Kickstarter have made their way into wide release.

Fear’s Sharp Little Needles from Stygian Fox is a collection of short scenarios (around 2,500 words each) set in the modern day. There are over twenty writers in it with me, so there are bound to be some favorites in there. Some of the scenarios, including my own “Waiting To Be Born,” can easily be run for one player. As a solo experience, mine becomes survival horror as the investigator wakes up in dire straits (if you survive–my partner didn’t when I ran her through it). There’s a more conventional hook for a group of investigators available, as well.

Devil’s Swamp from New Comet Games is a source book and scenario collection based in the Bridgewater Triangle, an area of reputed paranormal activity in Massachusetts. My scenario, “Deeper Than Skin,” was a stretch goal for its Kickstarter campaign.

What’s Coming Next?

That’s a good question, and I don’t have an answer myself. I have five scenarios, two articles, and a book-length campaign (and probably some things I’ve forgotten), waiting for publication from a few different publishers. I also have a couple of orphaned scenarios that I’d like to have come out at some point. The majority of these haven’t been announced publicly yet, so there’s not much more I can say yet, other than that I eagerly await their release into the world.

I’m play-testing the scenario I’ve written most recently, and it’s been a great experience. This one is quite dreamlike in many ways, and I got to exercise my imagination with it. Like a lot of what I’ve written over the last couple of years, I took the opportunity to expand beyond my previous horizons, trying new things, which I hope are successful. I sometimes wonder if what I’ve written is horrific enough, but I think I was successful this time. I asked a player what she wanted to do after being attacked by the villain. In response, she said, “I projectile vomit in her face.” I suppose that means it’s effective. It’s not all disgusting, though; the players had to make a number of hard decisions in an extremely difficult situations.

Me, as Envisioned by Nick Gucker

I attended the H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival and CthulhuCon in Portland, Oregon, again this year with my partner. Nick Gucker, whose art you may have seen in the numerous books he’s illustrated, was drawing custom illustrations. I’ve picked up some of his art (prints, stickers, T-shirts, and illustrations) at previous conventions, so I was interested in having him do something unique for me. I didn’t have any particular desires in subject matter, so I finally decided to see what he could do with me as that subject. Later that day, he revealed the result, and I was delighted.