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Guild Wars 2 novel Sea of Sorrows releases on June 25
Tyrian lore fanatics have reasons to be excited as the third Guild Wars 2 novel is set to release on June 25th. Sea of Sorrows is written by none other than ArenaNet's Narrative Designer, Ree Soesbee, and takes place roughly 150 years before the events in the game. This time period lines up with the rising of Orr from the murky depths along with the elder dragon, Zhaitan, and his hordes of undead risen. Readers will get to experience how this cataclysmic event shaped the lives of many Tyrians and led to the destruction and rebuilding of Lion's Arch. The novel follows the life of a young sailor named Cobiah Marriner, who heads for the sea when his life in Lion's Arch takes a tragic turn. Cobiah's grandson is the current commodore of Lion's Arch, but other Easter eggs have been recently added to the game as well. A new statue of Cobiah has been added to Lion's Arch with an engraved book on it. Marriner's plaques have been scattered around the city for an unannounced upcoming activity, and ArenaNet has told us to expect more references and living story updates that will directly tie into the events in the book. Are you going to be picking up Sea of Sorrows next Tuesday? Let us know if you've got the sea legs for it in the comments below!
Massively interviews Genese Davis, author of MMO novel The Holder's Dominion
We all love video games, right? I mean, you wouldn't be here if you didn't, would you? Of course not. But you know what else is pretty great? Books! But who said you needed to choose between the two? Thanks to up-and-coming writers like Genese Davis, you can have the best of both worlds. Genese is the author of The Holder's Dominion, a novel that follows protagonist Kaylie Ames as she and her friends delve into the mystery of the fictional MMO Edannair, where the enigmatic Holder, leader of an in-game organization known as Sarkmarr, has begun sending his disciples on dangerous real-world missions. It's up to Kaylie and company to figure out who this mysterious Holder really is and foil his (or her) nefarious schemes. And as it so happens, we had the opportunity to take an advance look at The Holder's Dominion and pick Genese's brain on the MMO industry, girls in gaming, and much more. To find out what she had to say (and believe us, you want to), head on past the cut and check out the full interview.
Yep, there's now a 'seal of approval' for the scientific accuracy of novels
Ever think that the mystery and sci-fi genres could use an extra shot of reality? Well, if the Washington Academy of Sciences has anything to say about the matter, you'll never again need to wonder if a novel is littered with misinterpretations and inaccuracies. The group -- which dates back to 1898, when it was co-founded by Alexander Graham Bell -- has introduced a seal of approval to inform readers whether a novel conforms to generally accepted scientific fact. Any willing novelist may submit their work to the organization, which then sends it through the peer review gauntlet. The certification program has been in place since June, but has flown under the radar before now. Since its inception, four novels have been certified by the WAS, and an additional book is said to be under review. Maybe once the word gets out, authors will know where to turn when they're looking to get the facts straight.
WoW adds uniting element to YA novel about a transsexual teen
"Look! Look! Someone wrote something and actually mentioned World of Warcraft!" That used to be A Thing, a Really Big Thing. After eight years and millions and millions of players, though, it's much less of A Thing. Everybody knows WoW. In fact, the last time a group tried to make a big deal out of the fact that someone played WoW, the outcome didn't turn out in their favor. So WoW has evolved from A Weird Thing to An Everybody Thing, sort of like the latest hot TV show or book. It's something people talk about over coffee. And that's why author Rachel Gold chose to have the teenage protagonists of her young adult novel Being Emily play WoW -- that, and the opportunity WoW provides to try on different gender roles by playing characters of the opposite sex. You see, Being Emily is the first YA novel to tell the story of a transsexual girl from her perspective. "I've been playing WoW since its first weekend, and although I'm not transsexual myself, I know that a lot of my trans friends who game found relief in the ability to play a character that matched the gender they know themselves to be, regardless of what body they were born into," Gold observes. "I included that feature of gaming in the novel by having the main character and her girlfriend both play WoW (casually, since they're in high school)." Since Being Emily arrived in bookstores at the end of June, it's hit #2 on Amazon.com's Hot New Releases in Teen Fiction & Literature. Gold talks with us about why the book resonates with teens and how WoW is helping open doors for people searching for new identities and places to be accepted for themselves.
NaNoWriMo tools for Apple devices ... and a few hot deals on writing tools
When it's time for Halloween, it's also time for another autumn tradition -- National Novel Writing Month, also known as NaNoWriMo. Over the years, a number of TUAW bloggers and readers have participated in the annual event, which runs exactly thirty days and is designed to give would-be writers the confidence and support needed to write a 50,000-word novel. Let's look at some tools for helping you crank out your novel, and revel in some deals on tools for planning and writing that book. iOS You may mock the idea of using an iOS device as a serious writing platform, but with an external keyboard you can definitely get some work done. All of my NaNoWriMo 2012 pre-planning work has been done on an iPad with a Logitech Ultrathin Keyboard Cover in Apple's Pages (US$9.99) app, and it works very well. This year, thanks to iCloud syncing, I've decided to use Pages as my virtual typewriter and paper for NaNoWriMo. If I want to do work on the iPad, I can turn on the Logitech keyboard, fire up Pages, and get to work. When I am sitting at a Mac, I'll fire up Pages and pull in the document from there. The app, combined with iCloud, is finally quite useful in round-tripping between devices. One other advantage pointed out by my erstwhile publishing companion Erica Sadun was that I should be able to use Dictation on the iPad (as well as my OS X Mountain Lion Mac and iPhone) to write, so perhaps I can actually do some writing on the iPhone this year. When Erica brought this up, it occurred to me that Dictation could be very helpful in writing more realistic dialogue between characters. I'll let you know how that goes... Anyway, let's look at some app choices you have for the iPad other than Pages. I'll leave it to the reader to determine which app fits your writing style and wallet. My Writing Spot for iPad ($4.99) Novel in 30 ($4.99) NanoWriter ($1.99) Storyist for iPad ($9.99) Yarny (free, for iPhone, requires Yarny Pro cloud account) iA Writer ($0.99, universal app) PlainText (free, universal app) A Novel Idea (free, universal app) DraftPad (free, universal app) celtx script ($4.99, universal app, screenwriting) Write 2 ($2.99, universal app) Elements for Dropbox (On sale for $2.99, universal app) Free Writing (free, universal app) Just Type ($0.99, universal app) enso Writer ($3.99, universal app) WriteRoom ($1.99, universal app) Werdsmith (free, $2.99 in-app purchase for full features, universal app) Writing Kit ($4.99, universal app) Byword (On sale for $2.99, universal app) Of all of these choices, my personal recommendations would be Pages, Storyist for iPad, iA Writer, PlainText, or WriteRoom. Mac Many writers are probably going to want to sit down at a keyboard in front of a MacBook or iMac to do their work. It's comfortable, it makes you feel like a real writing professional and with a larger screen you have the ability to tweet your friends while slaving over your hot novel (that's known as having writer's block...). As mentioned, I'll be doing work on the iPad this year, if anything just to see how much the tools have improved. But my MacBook Air and iMac will also be pulling duty as I crank out my daily allotment of 1,666 words. Here are some Mac writing tools you can count on to get your novel written by 11:59:59 PM on November 30, 2012. Pages ($19.99) Write 2 ($6.99) TextEdit (free, comes with OS X, iCloud enabled) Notepad (free) FoldingText ($24.99) WriteRoom ($4.99) WordMate ($12.99) Clean Writer Pro ($0.99) Writer ($2.99) MultiMarkdown Composer ($9.99) StoryMill ($29.99) Manuscript ($39.99) Nisus Writer Pro ($79.99) Zen Writer ($19.99) Microsoft Word (Part of Microsoft Office 2011, $149.99 for Home & Student Edition) Scrivener 2.0 (50% off normal price of $45 for NaNoWriMo winners, 20% off for all participants, and free trial version available for the month of November) Storyist ($59 for download version, use code NANOWRIMO12 for a 25% discount, free Nanowrimo trial edition (download link) is available) Ulysses ($11.99) Although I've personally tried a lot of these apps for TUAW reviews, some tools I'd consider using are Pages, WriteRoom, StoryMill, Ulysses, Microsoft Word 2011 and Storyist. Why Word? Well, if I was going to send my novel to a publisher, chances are very good that they'd want the manuscript in Word format, so make sure that whatever app you use can save your document into Word. Me? I'm using Pages. Good luck, NaNoWriMo participants, and if you're so inclined sign me up as your writing buddy on the NaNoWriMo site -- I'm "Tantalus."
Halo: Silentium concludes Greg Bear's Forerunner trilogy in March 2013
Originally slated for January 2013, the third installment in Greg Bear's series of Halo novels will now drop in March 2013, Tor Books has announced. Entitled Halo: Silentium, the novel wraps up Bear's Forerunner trilogy, which appropriately details the story of the Forerunners, the mysterious, extinct race that ruled the galaxy thousands of years prior to the events of the Halo games.Curiously, Master Chief also runs into Forerunners in Halo 4. How does that work, you ask? Sounds like you have some reading to do.
Next WoW novel set to focus on Vol'jin
Anyone who has played through the troll starting zone or read the novels knows that Vol'jin, leader of the Darkspear, is not particularly happy with Garrosh Hellscream. In fact, Vol'jin and Garrosh had an altercation in which the troll leader flat-out informed the new Warchief that when his day of judgment came to pass, Vol'jin would be the one to deal the killing blow. Since then, tensions have continued to rise in the Horde. And while Vol'jin has been keeping quiet, that tension hasn't gone away. Between trying to lead his people, his problems with Garrosh and the sudden resurgence of the Zandalar in Cataclysm, Vol'jin has had a lot on his plate. According to Lead Quest Designer Dave Kosak via the AMA on Reddit, we're finally going to hear more from the Darkspear leader in the next Warcraft novel. Dave Kosak If you're getting psyched about the storyline, I think you'll love the next novel which focuses on Vol'jin. Have you played the troll 1-10 intro experience? Vol'jin flat-out tells Garrosh he doesn't trust him and he'll stab him in the back the moment he sees an opportunity. The novel carries his story forward and really meshes in with the events of patch 5.1. One of our ongoing goals is to make sure that the games and novels complement each other, and that major lore events don't happen in the novels without some kind of representation in-game. This is a huge challenge for us!! But I think we're getting better at it. source Is this the novel that Michael Stackpole is reportedly working on? We don't know -- but either way, it's Vol'jin. You know it's going to be good. Hopefully we'll see more on the new novel sooner rather than later. It's open warfare between Alliance and Horde in Mists of Pandaria, World of Warcraft's next expansion. Jump into five new levels with new talents and class mechanics, try the new monk class, and create a pandaren character to ally with either Horde or Alliance. Look for expansion basics in our Mists FAQ, or dig into our spring press event coverage for more details!
Star Wars/Battletech scribe Michael Stackpole to write new WoW novel
It's been a while since we've seen a new face write a WoW novel -- novels have been alternating pretty steadily between Christie Golden and Richard Knaak for a few years now. It looks like we've about to see some new blood in the lineup, though. Former tabletop designer Michael Stackpole, probably best known for his Star Wars and Battletech books, is confirmed by Simon & Schuster to be writing an untitled World of Warcraft book due out in early 2013. By the timeline, it's safe to assume that the book has something to do with Pandaria and the events surrounding it, but I'm sure we'll find out in the nine months before it comes out. In the meantime, you can check out Stackpole's website, where he offers advice for casual writers and fanfiction authors who want to get published, or get acquainted with his writing by picking up one of his many books. Wait, hold up, this dude designed Wasteland? Damn, maybe I'll buy five books instead of one.
Assassin's Creed: Forsaken novel out Dec. 3, will tell story of Connor
Ubisoft has announced a new novel set in the Assassin's Creed universe, coming about a month after Assassin's Creed 3 hits stores on October 30. Assassin's Creed: Forsaken will be written by Oliver Bowden, and will focus on "the story behind who Connor really is and how he has become a deadly killer."Sales of the Assassin's Creed novels, at around 380,000 copies, haven't come very close to the games' 38 million sales, but there's clearly an audience for the historical fiction. Assassin's Creed: Forsaken will be out for $9.99 on December 4.
Newest World of Warcraft novel gets a release date and cover preview
Jaina Proudmoore is one of the biggest lore figures in World of Warcraft despite the fact that her character history largely consists of trying to make reasonable compromises and being completely ignored. It's no surprise that she's the star of the newest novel based on World of Warcraft considering her prominence in the lore and her relationship to the war between the game's factions. Tides of War is written by Christie Golden and will be released in late August, setting the stage for Mists of Pandaria later this year. While Jaina has always tried to broker a peace between the Alliance and the Horde, the novel's plot revolves around Warchief Garrosh Hellscream launching an attack against Jaina's home in Theramore, demonstrating the same legendary thinking that's alienated several of the Horde's allies. Whether or not the erstwhile diplomat will be able to retain any hopes of a peaceful resolution remains to be seen, but with Mists of Pandaria promising to focus on the conflict between the two factions, it seems likely that players will be looking at silencing the last and loudest voice for peace.
Diablo 3: The Order novel shares the game's May 15 date
Come May 15, your pent-up Diablo-purchasing desire will be unleashed. Perhaps your furious buying will be so explosive that it also wings a couple of collateral purchases, like the Diablo 3 novel coming out the same day.Diablo 3: The Order, written by Nate Kenyon, follows longtime Diablo character Deckard Cain on his search for the other members of the Horadrim, accompanied by an eight-year-old girl who may be cursed.The book is up for pre-order now on Amazon, and Blizzard posted an excerpt on its community site, for those of you who aren't sure you're at the "tie-in novel" stage of your relationship with Diablo.
Daily iPad App: Desi Leaves Town is a surprisingly elegant puzzle game
Desi Leaves Town, available on the App Store now, has done something remarkable. It surprised me. The colorful screenshot above might suggest that it's a kids' storybook app, but it's not. In fact, most of the kids I know would find its story boring. Instead, Desi Leaves Town is an experiment that combines art, literature, and puzzles in a compelling way. Compelling but not perfect. The story, which is based on a French novel, is sometimes hard to follow, with many flowery words. Some puzzles are confounding, too. That could be a result of the game's style, but a few smarter design choices would make them more fun. But even the questionable design choices are bold and interesting. The charming script is well acted, and the game's absurdity (Desi is an aristocratic frog determined to improve his tiresome urban existence) is excellently counter-weighted by the heavy themes being dealt with. There's a lot to experience in Desi Leaves Town, a fascinating title that's more than it seems. I wouldn't recommend it to everyone, but if you favor art and the intellectual, and are willing to forgive a few design errors, spend the $3.99 to give Desi Leaves Town a try.
Fans find shiploads of errors in latest Mass Effect novel
Mass Effect: Deception is riddled with canonical errors, fans have found, and they're not content with letting them go under the guise of "artistic liberty." Some have started a shared Google document to chronicle every error, and have so far added more than 80 infringements, arranged by "Lore," "Timeline," "Characters" and "Oddities," complete with clarifying descriptions.Some of the most egregious errors include Nick and Gillian aging six years in the three years since Ascension, two volus wearing clothes that would cause their immediate deaths, and [spoiler] "Anderson thinking that the Citadel trap had been sprung 'so successfully' they were still reparing damage -- The entire point of the first game was that you prevented that particular Reaper plan from succeeding."There are plenty more on the list, which is available for public editing. The author of Mass Effect: Deception, William C. Dietz, is a video-game-novel veteran, having written Halo, Hitman and Resistance novels. He is not, however, the writer of the previous three Mass Effect novels (Drew Karpyshyn), nor is he J.K. Rowling, thus forbidding him this handy excuse whenever canonical inconsistencies spring up: "It's magic."
Darksiders novel supplements the story in May
When you're looking at trailers for Darksiders 2 or you see character art of skull-faced Death riding his zombie horse, wielding an enormous transforming scythe to murder countless monsters, do you ever think "I wonder what's going on in his head? How does Death feel about all this?"You'll find out in May, when Del Rey Books releases Darksiders: The Abomination Vault, a novel by Ari Marmell. Set long before the games, it follows Death and War as they attempt to foil a plot to "resurrect ancient weapons of unimaginable power."As part of this deal, The "Random House Worlds" IP development group will handle the official IP "bible" for the Darksiders universe. We could have sworn there was already a bible about these guys.
EVE Online's third novel dropping ship in January
CCP's Tony Gonzales is set to unveil his latest EVE Online novel, titled EVE: Templar One, this January 3rd. But for Gonzales, it is a bittersweet moment, as it marks his final contribution to the game world: "EVE: Templar One is a labor of love that began in 2009. For now, it is my last contribution to EVE's fiction as I was amongst the casualties of the recent difficult times CCP endured." EVE: Templar One should prove of particular interest to DUST 514 followers, as the novel reveals the backstory of the immortal soldiers who will make up the game. Gonzales also says that it will follow up on the events of his previous book, EVE: The Empyrean Age. Readers who want to beef up on the lore of both games will appreciate the explanations of how the immortals work and some of the many mysteries that have popped up in the EVE universe. Gonzales concludes the announcement of the novel's impending release with heartfelt appreciation to fans: "Your support over the years has been overwhelming, and I'll never forget it. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for everything." Currently the novel is available for pre-order through Amazon.com.
The Daily Grind: Do you read MMO novels?
In the lead up to Star Wars: The Old Republic, I find myself worrying that I'm missing out by not having read any of the BioWare-commissioned, game-centric novels and stories -- Fatal Alliance, Deceived, Revan, and the rest. SWTOR isn't alone, of course, in having its own custom novels. World of Warcraft, Dungeons and Dragons Online, and even unreleased games like Guild Wars 2 and ArcheAge all feature books that fill in the backstory missing from the gameplay. I have to wonder whether books based on a game are as important to the game as, say, books are to games that were spawned by those very books -- I certainly don't think I'd appreciate Lord of the Rings Online quite so much if I hadn't read Tolkien. So do you read game-related novels? Do you think they help you immerse yourself in the game, or do you just read them for fun? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Fahrenheit 451 now available as an ebook, memorize at your own discretion
E-books may have caught on in a big way these past few years, but there have been a few big holdouts. The Harry Potter series' ebook future was only confirmed earlier this year (with the release of the books themselves now slated for sometime next year), and now Ray Bradbury has finally allowed his dystopian classic, Fahrenheit 451, to be made available in electronic form (the title remains unchanged). Bradbury himself has been a longtime critic of ebooks -- and the internet itself, for that matter -- but he reportedly relented when his publisher, Simon & Schuster, explained that a new contract wouldn't be possible without ebook rights. Other Bradbury novels may also be released as ebooks eventually, according to his agent, but there's apparently no firm plans for those as of yet. There are plans for a new paperback edition of Fahrenheit 451 to be released in January, however, followed by new editions of The Martian Chronicles and The Illustrated Man that are slated for release in March. We're fairly certain you can still consider those the Bradbury-approved editions.
Stay awhile and read! Diablo 3: Book of Cain announced
You might have been laboring under the misapprehension that the Diablo series is only about clicking monsters and watching them die. The truth is it's only mostly about that, as revealed by the newly announced book, Diablo III: Book of Cain. The book tells the story of Sanctuary – the world of Diablo – from the perspective of none other than series stalwart, Deckard Cain. The book is "designed to look like an in-world artifact from the Diablo universe" and chronicles "the eternal war that rages between the High Heavens and the Burning Hells." Furthermore, the book will contain artwork by "some of the world's most renowned fantasy artists," including Alan Lee, Adrian Smith and the man known as "Brom." Diablo III: Book of Cain will be released in North America on December 13, with an international release planned for February 7. Think of it as pre-Diablo 3 warm-up for your mouse-clicking finger – assuming that's also your page-turning finger, of course.
The axe falls: DDO's first novel is released
It's not every MMO that is honored with a published novel set in its world, but when it happens, it's a cause for celebration. Today Dungeons and Dragons Online joins the ranks of other novelized MMOs by being immortalized in book form, as Wizards of the Coast has released The Shard Axe by Marsheila Rockwell. According to the description, The Shard Axe is steeped in familiar DDO settings: Sentinel Marshal Sabira d'Deneith has spent the last eight years trying to drown the memories of the mission that cost her partner his life and gave her the nickname, the Shard Axe. But all the old memories come flooding back when she's recalled from the city of Stormreach to carry out a mission on House Deneith's behalf-to protect and defend the heir of the dwarven city of Frostmantle during his murder trial. The same heir she and her partner guarded eight years ago in the same city-from the same style of murders. Is the dreaded Nightshard still alive and taunting her? Or is there another serial killer loose in the Mror Holds? We got the opportunity to talk to Ms. Rockwell back in February with an extensive interview about the book. The Shard Axe is just $6.99 and is available in both paperback and on a variety of e-readers.
Wolfheart audiobook to include game sounds
Not only will our friend and the king of Stormwind (and my heart) Varian Wrynn be getting his own novel soon, but said novel will also be released as an audiobook. Richard Knaak's Wolfheart will not just be released as a novel, but also as a recording with special effects, in-game sounds and narration. The novel is scheduled to be released Sept. 13, 2011, and the audiobook is expected not long after. Are you excited? I'm excited! I'm actually looking forward to seeing how King Varian and the Worgen, especially their king Genn Greymane, interact in this book. Thanks to BlizzPlanet for the heads up!
