Nick Kyme

These have been knocking around for a few weeks now, but here’s a quick round up of some very nice reviews for both Fireborn and Salamander.

First up, from Graeme’s Fantasy Book Review on Fireborn…

then from My Battalion for Salamander…

and lastly, but not leastly (ha, ha), here’s one for Salamander that featured in the Edinburgh Waterstones’ Geekzine, which also takes the form of a rather natty interview. Enjoy!

Figured it was high time for an update as to the status of Kyme.

So, I guess limbo would describe it pretty well at the mo but at least it’s limbo with a rudder and paddle (and at least the creek isn’t full of smelly brown stuff anymore, so that’s good).

Seriously, it has been the maddest six months in my life. Bonkers. Utter bollocks, most it, too.

As I sit here in a towel (sorry, bad mental image I’m sure but it’s my blog so I’ll say what I like, plus I’ve just got out of the shower and I usually find I’m more creative and prone to want to write something after having just emerged – must be the water flow or something; I’ve heard Graham say he’s more creative after having been swimming. Water = Creativity – is that a scientific fact? Calling all those with writer’s block or some such malady, get yourselves in the tub, pronto!), I’m pondering where I’m at right now with life, the universe and writing.

First up, can I say: thank you to all the blog fans who have supported me during this time of bloggage and writing paucity. You have my sincere apologies for my lack of interaction with you through the medium of my site. I hope that will change in the coming weeks. Also, dear friends, I have noted the absence from the blog (and I’m thinking comments here, people – is anybody listening… I mean anybody? Show me your love by posting comments, peeps) of certain folks who used to be regulars. I shall do my best, crestfallen and dejected once-believers, to drag you back into the fold. It’s nice and warm and cosy here, the cold winds are receding and summer is poking through the grey clouds (sort of reminds me of the opening lyrics to the theme tune to Happy Days…).

Randomness aside, there’s a lot to be cheerful about of late. Number one (but not necessarily the most important thing, and understand that the following list has no order as such, it’s just a list that has to come in some sort of order, usually as I think of the thing going into the list…), my laptop has been returned to me! Yes, that’s right, after a dodgy motherboard and £200 later, my beast is back and all-singing, all-dancing again. Crap excuse though it is, I actually blogged a lot less because I was on my tiny, ‘ickle netbook and that little fella, despite being awesome for train, plane and automobile journeys, just couldn’t cut the mustard (or the cheese) in the blog stakes – too slow, you see and with a screen too small. Pah!

Still, with the return of my 17″ beauty, I’m back in the blogging business… and how.

The lack of ‘puter didn’t impact on my writing too much, which brings me neatly to number two on the list of all things cheerful on a sunny Sunday afternoon. Yup, it seems after several weeks (nay, months) of wading through a mire of ineffectual writing and simple work lackage (and I’m coining that term, along with Bowdenian – i.e. something having the characteristics or manner of a certain Aaron Dembski-Bowden – and crimminy – say it with me people, ‘crimminy’ – thanks!), I have finally got back – or least ways am approaching a place where it’ll be back – my mojo.

Sweet baby Moses, it has taken its time but I can start to think again, whereas before I was merely acting. Going through the motions sucks in almost every circumstance (there are, of course, notable exceptions that I shan’t delve into here…), and this was no different. As a result of my newfound ‘writerlyness’, I have reached the midway point of Firedrake. Yeah, yeah, I know, I was pretty damn close to that a few weeks back. Shut it. This is different. I have got to the 50,000 word mark and I can now see forward to the other 50,000 words. This, dear readers, is nothing short of miraculous for me.

I’ve now started to have some fun with the story again and am adding little bits of character development here and there, weaving in new plot threads (only little ones, oh mighty editor of mine – nothing that’s going to make you cry or shout or… twist, I guess). The dark eldar are the antagonists for this one and it struck me as I was writing a scene with Tsu’gan in that I needed to show exactly who these guys were – what makes them tick (nasty, perverse and debased stuff, actually). After adding a few scenes to inject a bit of much needed personality into the dark eldar, as well as establish – or suggest – a relationship that exists between them and the Salamanders, I felt a lot more connected to them and it even resulted in a spinning story thread that won’t get resolved until Nocturne. Coo!

Looking to write another couple of thousand words today for Firedrake too and while I’m going to miss my deadline, it won’t be by a country mile as I had originally feared. Phew!

Just as well, really, as I’ve got a lot of work that’s recently landed on my slightly over-sized plate.

I’ll keep disclosure brief as some of this has yet to be ratified and should be considered speculative, but I’ve been commissioned to write a short story for a forthcoming Horus Heresy anthology. At present, it’s called ‘Forgotten Sons’ (the short story, NOT the anthology) and features an Ultramarine and a Salamander who are on a special mission as the two protagonists. It’s also set post-Dropsite Massacre. Let the speculation begin!

I’m trying out for Dan Abnett’s Sabbat Worlds anthology, too. I have a few ideas for this but haven’t exactly settled on one just yet. In any case, I need to float it by the great man himself first, but I will say that it’s very flattening and humbling to potentially be a part of this book. I’ve been a fan of the Ghosts for years (every since Gaunt said the word ‘balls’ in First and Only, I’ve been hooked) and to add to that world in some small way is a great thing indeed. Now I just need to come up with something awesome (already feeling the pressure…).

It’s really nice to be thinking about some short stories again. I honestly love writing them, and I guess that’s why there’s so many for the Tome of Fire saga and the Salamanders. Fresh, or should that really be ‘hot’, on the heels of Fireborn I also have a hankering to write another Salamanders audio. This one, I think, will be slightly out of time, but shall feature none-other than Forgemaster Argos, possibly when Kadai was still captain. Details yet to be worked out but I have the central story conceit in mind and it’s very cool.

Moving swiftly back to the realm of novels, I have my eye on the book between Firedrake and Nocturne to be a Space Marine Battles novel. Again, nothing has been ratified yet, but if it comes off (i.e. I’m allowed to write it), it’ll signal a return for the Ultramarines of 2nd Company – a sort of unofficial sequel to Assault on Black Reach. Watch this space for more in due course.

The upshot of all that is, the pipe is pretty full at the moment, which is great. I’ll definitely need to apply myself over the next few weeks and months, especially concerning getting Firedrake in the bag but it’s nice to be busy and in demand.

Oh, as far as my upcoming releases go, I have a short story in an anthology, an audio book and a new Warhammer novel all recently released or coming soon. Here are the linkys, which will take you to the spanky new Black Library website – can I get a woot!?

Legends of the Space Marines (anthology – May)

Fireborn (audio CD – June)

Grimblades (novel – August)

Ooh, and I almost forget, another short in another anthology…

Fear the Alien (anthology – September)

Shameless plug over, but as folks do ask about my upcoming releases I thought I’d oblige.

Right, that’s it for the mo. I’m off to clean the bathroom, put on some pants and get a cup of coffee (and in that order).

Exeunt!

You’ve only got a few more hours before I shut my doors to entries for the Fireborn competition.

Can I say, though, that I’ve been overwhelmed by the monstrous response and I’m heartily glad that so many of you have entered (I know that reduces your chances, but I’m feeling the love and I thank you all for that).

Over 80 replies and counting (so, I know some of those are multiples or miscellaneous comments but, hey ho, it’s still cool).

And just for being such lovely people, here’s the front cover artwork to Firedrake, the sequel to Salamander…

(I’m too good to you lot )

So, can anyone guess who this angry chap is… grrr!

I’ll admit it, I’ve been slightly crap of late.

There, it’s out there, I said it. Bad me.

Very few blog posts, very little writing.

I guess I’d earned a break, given that I’d not only finished Grimblades (my new Empire army novel released in June – shameless plug, but I’ve a feeling the book will need it as soldiers of the Empire never get as much attention as Space Marines), but that I’d also, rather heroically, finished up a second (yes, that’s now two I’ve done – more than anyone else) audio book (incidentally, I understand that Fireborn was recorded last Wednesday – I wasn’t there, but can’t wait to hear the rushes etc).

But, even so, I’ve been slack. I could go into all the reasons for that. I could bemoan the fact I’ve been ill (risking Cecilia’s ire once again, no doubt – bless you, I need telling when I’m in a mope ), but who cares about that crap. It doesn’t change anything worth a damn, now does it. I had a poster on my bedroom wall (in fact, I still have  – it’s the bedroom I had growing up at my mum’s as a kid – last time I went over it was still there). On it was a picture of the legendary Bruce Lee. Now, I’m not a huge martial arts fan or anything like that, but I did admire the man’s style. The poster carries a quote as well as a picture that reads something like (and I’m paraphrasing a little): Will is nothing. Doing is everything.

It’s fighting talk, all right. Well, here’s to doing. Something that’s not really been happening for me lately.

It’s changing, people, like a slow-shifting ice berg it is changing. Finally, I’ve made some real headway on ‘Prometheus Requiem’, my short story for Fear the Alien. I’ve almost reached the halfway mark and things are going very well, I think (never easy to tell when you’re as close to this to something).

I’m hoping to get this one done by the end of the first week in December, which will then allow me the rest of the time to find a way into Firedrake and hit my midway.

I wouldn’t say I’m full steam ahead or anything, but I have at least discovered the coal bucket and am starting to load up the engine again. Running on empty is hard to do, believe me. I think it’s probably the reason I was ill in the first place. Living hard when you’re finding it hard to live is tough – I don’t recommend it. Regroup, give it time, heal.

Thanks to all for the kind messages and keeping the faith. You are all my rocks, everyone of you.

I’ll keep you posted with further updates as and when…

You’d be forgiven, I think, for not recognising the name in the subject bar, but Lance Reddick is one of those TV genre-show actors that deserves some recognition in my book.

His list of film acting credits (at least according to Wikipedia) is modest but it’s in TV where Lance Reddick excels. He first came to my attention in Fringe as Agent Philip Broyles, masterclassing a combination of dour and cool that really made me sit up and take notice. But in actual fact, I’d seen him before in an earlier show, one that you might know the name of… He also plays Matthew Abaddon (such a cool character name) in Lost, exuding a faint air of menace and ‘ends justifying the means’ mentality.

Lately, I’ve been a student of The Wire (okay, so it’s taken me a little time to start watching and see what all the fuss was about, but I’ve finished season one and am into season two) and here Reddick looms large again as the supposedly career-obsessed Officer Cedric Daniels.

It seems whatever Reddick turns his hand to he  really makes it work. I can’t claim that any of his characters, leastways those mentioned above, are that different from each other. There’s a detached, almost cold air to his performances (with splashes of warmth, made more real due to his default persona) that really put me in mind of a character I’ve included in one of my novels.

What regular readers of the blog may know is that when coming up with a cast to populate the Salamander series of novels and short stories (which, day by day, is growing into something of an opus) I actually tried to put names to faces by imagining who the actors would be that would play them. That’s not to say I wanted to envisage ‘Salamander the Movie’ or anything like that, I just wanted to anchor my abstract idea of the characters (the main ones, anyway) by giving them faces. Lance Reddick has an extremely interesting and unusual face. It’s intense, as is his manner and he has one of those really characterful voices that’s instantly recognisable and really makes him stand out. This was a man I wanted as part of my cast of Space Marines.

Okay, so most people will know that Kratos in God of War formed a big part of the inspiration for Tsu’gan – who seems to be known in a lot of circles as the Salamanders’ ‘angry man’. Quite right, too – that’s exactly what he is. On my laptop I’ve actually got an entire folder with headshots of the various actors that I revisit whenever I’m writing something significant involving a particular character in it.

Lance Reddick is part of that folder. He, in fact, was one of the first characters I ‘got down’ as it were. He was actually the inspiration for Apothecary Fugis (who will return, folks, oh yes). Thin-faced, intimidating but with the capacity for warmth and compassion, it was a perfect fit for the character.

It is strange sometimes to think about where inspiration can come from. I can certainly say it’s helped me immeasurably in the conceptualisation of Salamander and all the stories within and surrounding it.