Sea of Spheres: No Route To Guide You - Part One

 

Today's the day for the start of a brand new story. I'd talked a while ago about working on a webcomic called Sea of Spheres, and while that's still on the backburner, this new short story, No Route to Guide You, should give you a window into this world of floating landmasses and flying ships, and most importantly, man's inhumanity to man.

A big thank you to Windlass, who not only did the artwork but was also instrumental in forming the direction of the story and the themes I wanted to explore. They really helped me bring this world to life.

The story takes inspiration from all fields and genres, but you'll notice in particular elements drawn from Planescape, Warhammer Fantasy, Judge Dredd and The Wire. If that sounds like your jam then read on.

The details follow:

In the city of Icon, centre of the skybound Sea of Spheres, Eva Reinheart is struggling to get by. As a Horn she has lived a life being dismissed by the city's administration and brutalised by the Waykeepers, Icon's ruthless law enforcers. Seeking a better life working for the Justices, Icon's detectives and investigators, she falls under the tutelage of the unpopular Justice Leo Gunter.

On her first case, what appears to be a simple break-in reveals a scheme that stretches far beyond the city's borders, and Eva discovers that the civilisation she was born into is far more corrupt and unjust than even she had ever suspected.

You can read part one Here. Part two will be uploaded next Friday.

Jack's November Update

 

Well, 2020 sure turns out to have been a bust. Now is usually the time of year I start looking in to convention bookings for the following year, but with another full national lockdown on the horizon, it's becoming increasingly unclear when the convention circuit will start back up again. In the meantime, there's nothing more for me to do beyond cracking on with my writing and artwork, and hope some folks out there continue to enjoy what I do.

- I'm continuing to work on the Comic Guide to Beer, but as the pandemic continues, there's clearly no rush on getting a physical edition to print right now. As ever, it'll be ready when it's ready, but other projects will likely get priority in the mean time.

- No Route To Guide You, my Sea of Sphere's short story with illustrations by Windlass, should be up soon, hopefully by the end of the month. If it's well received, I'll almost certainly look into doing more short stories within the Sea of Spheres setting.

- I'm still on the look out for a publisher to pick up Memoirs of the Fated, and I'm doing my best to keep an eye out for small publishers that might be open to picking the series up again.

- I'm going to spend November doing some artwork of characters from Small Press and Independent comic books. You'll be able to find them when I post them on my Twitter, Tumblr or Deviantart.

And that's all for now. In the meantime, keep yourselves safe, and hopefully better days lie ahead.

Jack's August Update

 

 

Wow, is it August already. It only feels like yesterday I had only posted the last update. Rest assured that I'm still working on multiple projects that I'm hoping to elaborate on soon, but I mostly wanted to post an update today to show off the recent commission work from Windlass.

You may remember me talking about working on Sea of Spheres as a webcomic a few years ago, and that I'd put it on the backburner. Well I still plan on dipping back into that world as you can see. I'm planning on following these with a short story that will elaborate on the setting and characters.

Some other stuff to keep you updated:

- Obviously no more conventions this year, what with the pandemic and all. Here's hoping some degree of normalcy will have returned next year, and I can get out there to get out my stuff once again.

- Work continues on my Comic Guide To Drinking beer. As with all my projects it's got a 'when it's done' deadline, but I'm hoping for something before the end of the year. Given the situation, It's likely a digital version on gumroad will be the first release.

- I'm still looking for another publisher to pick up Memoirs of the Fated and get it back into publication. If anyone can suggest a good home, a pointer would be greatly appreciated.

- I've got a few ideas for some more Warhammer 40'000 fanfics, but their just germs of ideas for now, but you may see more fanfic stuff from me sooner rather than later.

And that's all for now. In the meantime you can support financially by checking out Tales of the Modern Realms, Foul Cheeses and Space Diseases and The Whitehaven Siege. 

You can follow me on twitter, tumblr or deviantart.

Thanks for now, and you all stay safe.

Hook a Sister Up

Since lockdown has left me with free time I wouldn't otherwise have, I decided to revisit the Warhammer 40'000 universe I'd last wrote about with The Trials of Sister Roslyn.

This time following one of the secondary characters, Sister Touro, it's a story of smuggling contraband into a Sisters of Battle order and making the best of an awful universe during awful times.

Life as a Battle Sister in the Order of the Weeping Martyr isn't easy, but Sister Touro can provide life's little luxuries to take the edge off, for a price. However, when Touro's contraband line is cut off, all the favours she had accumulated evaporate into the aether. Can Touro navigate the factions and rivalries within the order to wrangle a new hook up? Or will Security and High Command decide the Battle Sister is more trouble than she is worth?

You can read Hook a Sister Up, here.

And finally a big thank you to Kristina Amuanm for the cover art, you can find more of her work here and follow her on twitter here.

Jack's April Lockdown Update

As you can probably expect, the lockdown has limited what able to do and work on, so no news on conventions or events until we have a better idea when this whole thing is over. But I haven't been doing nothing. Here's a rundown.

- As you can see from the picture above, I'll be returning to the world of Warhammer 40k fanfic, with a short story following one of the secondary characters from The Trials of Sister Roslyn, Sister Touro. I commissioned the cover from the frankly brilliant Kristina Amuan, who's work you can find here. I... uh, haven't exactly started work on the writing yet though, so I should probably get on with that.

-In case you missed it, I posted another quick fanfic a couple weeks ago. This time around the video game Unavowed, which I all recommend you play. You can read my story, A Muse Like You, here.

- I'm still working on a bunch of comic and writing projects. I'm hoping my Comic Book Guide to Beer will be finished by the end of the year, though given how long my John Paul Jones Comic took, it's on a 'when it's done' schedule.

That's all for now, remember you can follow me on twitter, tumblr and deviantart.

A Muse Like You - An Unavowed Fanfic

I didn't think I'd be stepping back into the world of fan fiction so soon, but isolation has left me with a lot of time to spare and I just couldn't get this idea out of my head. Good for a bit of practice working with an existing world and characters.

If you haven't played Unavowed by Wadjet Eye Games I highly recommend it. If you have, then read on.

Since leaving the police force and joining the Unavowed, Vicki Santina has found herself strapped for cash. Wearily joining a budget gym, a chance encounter with Calliope, the former spirit of creation, leads to a whirlwind relationship Vicki wasn't expecting. However, with the death of another muse in downtown Manhattan, Vicki finds what little she has can be taken away just as quickly. Can she and the Unavowed find the killer in time, and more importantly can she teach Calli to slow down and smell the roses?

Part love letter to Unavowed, part love letter to New York, part love letter to sapphic pulp novels, part love letter to the way Vicki Santina says 'ugh!', A Muse Like You is a short story of 11'500 words about slowing down and learning to enjoy the time you have.

You can read the whole story here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23629894

The George Lazenby of Podcasts

That's right Bat-Listeners. It's time once again to return to the minute-by-minute podcast genre with Bat-Minute Forever.

I join Niall and Jon to talk teenage wards, underappreciated character roles, and Val Kilmer's lips.

Bat Minute Forever - Minute 40: The Schumacher Way, Baby! (with Jack Harvey)

Bat Minute Forever - Minute 41: The End of the Bat and the Brat (with Jack Harvey)

Bat Minute Forever - Minute 42: You Can Call Me Al (with Jack Harvey)

 Hope you enjoy the episodes as much as I enjoyed recording with them, and be sure to check the outtakes for digressions on James Bond actors and Games Workshop store names.