New episode today!

Jack solves one problem by "Standing on the Shoulders of Giants". And McNab saves him from being shot in the back by Caitou, but now it looks like the inspector has got him in his sights. Fun and games are over; from here on the bad guys will be closing in.

Read today's episode here and the whole story so far here. And don't miss next week's episode which has never been seen before in any form.

Free interactive fiction

UPDATE: Oct 14 2012 - I've taken down the free Heart of Ice file because the book is due to be re-released in spring 2013 by Osprey Books, along with half a dozen other gamebooks by me and Jamie Thomson - with more to come after that, we hope. Read all about it on the Fabled Lands blog. Still haven't picked up your copy of the Heart of Ice e-gamebook? What are you waiting for? It's free!

Oh, I get it. You're worried that you might not enjoy it. You're saying to yourself, "I know it's a whopping 453-section adventure game with multiple routes through the story, loads of mutated monsters to fight, characters to interact with and intriguing mysteries to solve. And I know it's a completely diceless game system and has an auto-fill character sheet so no need to fuss around with pencils and stuff. But can I be sure it's a more worthwhile use of my time than watching Jedward-v-Lady Gaga mashups on YouTube?"

Ooh, you're hard to please, you are. Well, this snippet from an interview with gamebook aficionado Efrem Orizzonte may help you to make up your mind:

EO: Heart of Ice is arguably the most mature gamebook ever written. The plot is superb, character design and development is among the finest ever seen, the atmosphere is perfect and the multiple endings mean that if you survive to the end, you can always “win” – if you can call any of the ambiguous, bittersweet finales a victory! Heart of Ice is a story full of deeper meanings, and it is so good that it may even have inspired a movie, called Post Impact. What inspired you to write such an original and mature story in gamebook format? Is there some particular message you wanted to convey to your readers?DM: I’m not so much into trying to give my readers messages, I just have certain topics that interest me and I like to get readers thinking about them. Questions, not answers. Heart of Ice got started as a role-playing session. I can pinpoint it exactly to Christmas 1976. I was back home after my first term at college and I needed a scenario for a large number of players. Believe it or not, I started with the idea of doing a serious version of It’s A Mad Mad Mad Mad World, kind of the way Failsafe Point is a serious version of Dr Strangelove. The idea of Du-En came from marvelling at the buildings of Christ Church, absolutely deserted late on a frosty night after the end of term, with the buildings lit up pale against this immense field of stars and the unyielding smell of cold sandstone, I love that. After the first game session, I was walking home with one of the players and he said how he was imagining Du-En as a movie, and what he liked was that the focus of the session had been in the tension among the characters camped out in this ruined, snow-filled city. It was big end-of-the-world action but it was centred on a small group of characters. And a mere 18 years later I took all that and put it into the book.
Made up your mind yet? 'Cause I've done all I can. The Earth is dying, ultimate power is up for grabs, and what the human race needs now is a hero. If you think you fit the bill, grab your barysal gun and get to world-saving right here.

Up above the world so high

This one is for Peter Richardson, co-creator of the brilliant Cloud 109. He and writer David Orme are going the right way about bringing their brainchild into the world: they own it, they have total control of it, and they're building an enthusiastic following by showing it off for free online. If you haven't yet latched on to the exploits of Cary, Gina and Rabby then head over and start reading here and pick it up here.

Anyway, Peter mentioned recently the vertiginous effect of some of the scenes in Mirabilis, and that set me to noticing how many instances there are in the story of our heroes teetering on high places or falling from a long way up. A glance through the Silver Age covers will show you what I mean, and that's just a (long) drop in the ocean compared to what we've put Jack and Estelle through. I hope they have a better head for heights than I do.

Take the panel above, from the start of Chapter Five: "The Darkest Hour". Now I know what you're thinking - ah, that's just a dream. But no, it's actually a lot stranger than that...

New episode

"Bad Blood", in which Estelle escapes death but the engine driver does not, Inspector Simeon ponders the curious incidence (sic) of the blood on the rug, Gargantua plays with trains, Gus describes the experience of a life lived backwards, and Jack swipes McNab's coat again.

Read it here. Start the story from the beginning here.

On the other channel...

All this week on the Fabled Lands blog, a 15-page trailer for SF comic Gifted, by the fabulously talented Siku of Judge Dredd and The Manga Jesus fame. In 2032, life on Earth has been transformed by a literal windfall of alien technology. But what happens when the bill comes due?

And, whether you are a Christian or not, I can unreservedly recommend Siku's Manga Jesus trilogy. It's comics storytelling at its very best: a literate, exhilarating, cinematic experience that is sure to surprise you.

And if sci-fi and religion aren't your bag, don't fret. There'll be an all-new Mirabilis episode tomorrow.

What's in store

So, now that we've run all the episodes that were originally published in short-lived UK comic The DFC, what now?

Starting this Friday, there are three more weekly episodes to come that have never appeared before in print.

That'll make three chapters (out of nine) from the Winter book that are available to read online absolutely free. Gosh, it's like stowing away aboard the Orient Express and having somebody bring you Camembert sandwiches.

New episode today!

Jack’s on the Orient Express and Gus shows up with bags of important stuff to tell him about the green comet, the Kind Gentleman and the year ahead. But is Jack even listening? It looks like he’s too busy eavesdropping on Estelle and McNab. Oh, and trains aren’t built to fly, but try telling that to a one-year-old. Especially a one-year-old who’s as tall as a cathedral. All in “Outside Looking In” right here.

This is the last of the 10 episodes that were originally serialized in The DFC, so make the most of them while they’re still up as the publishing company that has the rights could ask us to take them down at any time. (I’m not aware that they have any plans to publish them, but who knows.) Anyway, from next week we’ll be running all-new episodes that have never been seen in print. Warm yourself up for some steam-powered fantasy action with the whole story to date here.