Newsletter April 2009
Hello everyone,
I hope that everyone is having a good spring. The weather in San Francisco has been cooperative, but still a little chilly. The flowers are starting to bloom, which always used to mean allergy season, but now it also means new things for Abby to see on walks. The library next door has a small but close-enough-for-baby-arms-to-reach garden that is very popular with the under 1 crowd.
The big news, though, is with writing. I got a gig to write a module for a table top miniature game! That is the fancy way of saying a war game where you use little army men on a table with little trees, hills, buildings, and such. Many of these games give you information about the various armies involved in a historical war, fantasy world, or science fiction setting. I pitched the idea of writing a narrative story that players can read and then at key points in the story, they play out the fights that would normally have been described. The results of each fight determines how the story evolves. So they can play the module multiple times and the story will play out differently each time.
I suggested a science fiction version of World War 2 occupied France as a setting with alien invaders in a human colony. You can play either side. To give an idea about the tone I would go for, I sent a link to my short story "Supply Raid". The owner of the (one-man) company liked the idea and the short story and told me to write it up and send it in. The deal will be for a cut of each module sold. Probably won't make much money, but he has a big fan base for his games, so it will be a good way to spread my name around, and hey, anytime I can get paid for my stories is good for my writing career. Plus, you know, it's fun to do.
You can check out the company here: http://www.angelfire.com/az3/twohourwargames/index.html
And the short story I sent: http://toddcedwards.com/index.php/Main/SupplyRaid
I didn't read any novels since last month (bad Todd), but I have a lot of travel coming up in April, so I've loaded up my ebook reader with a bunch. I'm all set.
Take care and enjoy spring,
--Todd