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Announcing the Winner of the Autographed Set of John R. Fultz’s Books of the Shaper Trilogy

Announcing the Winner of the Autographed Set of John R. Fultz’s Books of the Shaper Trilogy

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Seven SorcerersTwo weeks ago we told you about the arrival of Seven Sorcerers, the third and highly-anticipated final volume in John R. Fultz’s Books of the Shaper trilogy. The trilogy opened with Seven Princes (January 2012), and Seven Kings (January 2013). To celebrate the publication of the concluding book, we announced a contest to win a complete autographed set of all three, compliments of Orbit Books and John R. Fultz.

It’s too late to enter the contest now, but it’s not too late to discover Fultz’s unique heroic fiction, which Barnes & Noble calls “flawless epic fantasy.” You can try some of John’s exciting stories right here at Black Gate, including “When the Glimmer Faire Came to the City of the Lonely Eye,” which appeared as part of the Black Gate Online Fiction line, or the three stories that appeared in our print version: “Oblivion Is the Sweetest Wine”(BG 12); “Return of the Quill” (BG 13); and “The Vintages of Dream” (BG 15). And you can read more about John’s philosophy of fantasy in his recent article, “One Man’s Trash…”

We received a record number of entries, which just shows the high level of excitement among our readers for everything written by John. All the entries were recorded on a spreadsheet, and the winner selected using the office percentile dice.

We are pleased to announce that the winner of the autographed set of John R. Fultz’s Books of the Shaper trilogy is Massimiliano Izzo. Congratulations, Massimiliano! We’ll be touch to let you know how you can claim your books.

Thanks to everyone who entered, and to John R. Fultz and Orbit Books for sponsoring the contest. Seven Sorcerers was published on December 10th by Orbit Books. It is 448 pages, priced at $17 in trade paperback and $9.99 for the digital edition. Look for it in bookstores everywhere.

Win a Complete Autographed Set of John R. Fultz’s Books of the Shaper Trilogy!

Win a Complete Autographed Set of John R. Fultz’s Books of the Shaper Trilogy!

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seven-princesLast week we celebrated the arrival of Seven Sorcerers, the third and highly-anticipated final volume in John R. Fultz’s Books of the Shaper trilogy.

The trilogy opened with Seven Princes (January 2012), which Barnes & Noble called “flawless epic fantasy,” and Seven Kings (January 2013), which thebookbag.co.uk called “wonderful stuff… Tarantino and Tolkien have a literary love child and his name is John R. Fultz.” Seven Sorcerers brings the sequence to a close with thundering climax that does not disappoint.

Now you have a chance to win a complete autographed set of all three volumes, compliments of Orbit Books and John R. Fultz.

How do you enter? Simple — just send an e-mail to john@blackgate.com with the title “Seven Sorcerers” before Friday, December 20, 2013, and we’ll enter you in the drawing. One lucky winner will win all three books.

Can’t wait for the contest? Try some of John’s exciting fiction right here at Black Gate, including “When the Glimmer Faire Came to the City of the Lonely Eye,” which appeared as part of the Black Gate Online Fiction line, or the three stories that appeared in our print version: “Oblivion Is the Sweetest Wine”(BG 12); “Return of the Quill” (BG 13); and “The Vintages of Dream” (BG 15). And you can read more about John’s philosophy of fantasy in his recent article, “One Man’s Trash…”

All entries become the property of New Epoch Press. No purchase necessary. Must be 12 or older. Decisions of the judges (capricious as they may be) are final. Terms and conditions subject to change. Sorry, US and Canada entrants only. Not valid where prohibited by law. Eat your vegetables. And good luck!

The Finest Sword & Sorcery: Announcing the Winners of the Stalking the Beast Contest

The Finest Sword & Sorcery: Announcing the Winners of the Stalking the Beast Contest

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Pathfinder Tales Stalking the Beast-smallLast month we invited Black Gate readers to tell us about the best sword & sorcery tale they’d ever read, in one paragraph or less.

In return, we offered to award a copy of Howard Andrew Jones’ terrific new Pathfinder Tales book, Stalking the Beast, the follow-up to his hit Pathfinder release Plague of Shadows from Paizo Publishing, to five lucky winners.

Those five winners were randomly drawn from the list of all qualified entrants.

Before we announce the winners, let’s have a look at some of the story suggestions. As much as we’d like to, we can’t reprint all the entries we received, so we’ll limit it to the 10 we found most insightful, well written, or intriguing. In the interest of diversity, we’ll limit our sampling to one entry for each author or major work. (But fret not — all qualifying entries received before December 1st were included in the drawing.)

We’ll start with David Kahler, who kicks things off in excellent fashion with the tales of Fritz Leiber:

My favorite Sword and Sorcery book is Fritz Leiber’s Swords Against Wizardry, a Fafhrd and Grey Mouser tale. From the very beginning, when the pair consult an old hag ( because, according to Fafhrd, before embarking on any great enterprise, it’s customary to consult a warlock or witch”) to the Lords of Quarmall and the battles with Hasjarl’s wizards, Swords Against Wizardry is (IMHO) one of the best of Leiber’s tales. His prose is superb, and the action sequences just as good. Fafhrd and Grey Mouser epitomize the “Neutral-Good” actions of adventurers who (even while they seek to enrich themselves) strive to do the right thing even if the “wrong” course of action would have been easier and more convenient. Thanks for the opportunity to win HAJ’s latest book! I always enjoy finding new reads and authors on your site. Keep up the good work!

You’re most welcome, David. Thanks for the enthusiastic entry — and good luck!

…

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Last Chance to Win a Copy of Howard Andrew Jones’ Stalking the Beast

Last Chance to Win a Copy of Howard Andrew Jones’ Stalking the Beast

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Pathfinder Tales Stalking the Beast-smallTwo weeks ago, we announced a contest to win one of five copies of Stalking the Beast, compliments of Paizo Publishing.

In the weeks since the book’s release, Howard has been interviewed by Suvudu, released a sample chapter from the book, and posted the first two parts of his new story “Bells For the Dead,” featuring the gunslinging bounty hunter Lisette from Stalking the Beast, at Paizo.com.

Man. I need a full-time staff just to keep up with the guy.

How do you win one of those sweet giveaway copies? Easy — just tell us about your favorite sword & sorcery tale — novel or short story. Send us a one-paragraph review telling us what makes it so special, and be sure to include the author and (if it’s a short story) where you read it.

We’ll publish the best responses here on the blog and randomly draw five names from all qualifying entries. Those five winners will each receive a copy of Stalking the Beast, compliments of Paizo Publishing.

To enter our contest, just send an e-mail to john@blackgate.com with the title “Stalking the Beast,” and your one-paragraph entry, before December 1, 2013.

All entries become the property of New Epoch Press. No purchase necessary. Must be 12 or older. Decisions of the judges (capricious as they may be) are final. Terms and conditions subject to change as our lawyers sober up and get back to us. Not valid where prohibited by law, or outside the US and Canada.

Good luck!

Tell Us Your Favorite Sword & Sorcery Tale, and Win One of Five Copies of Stalking the Beast!

Tell Us Your Favorite Sword & Sorcery Tale, and Win One of Five Copies of Stalking the Beast!

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Pathfinder Tales Stalking the Beast-smallWe enjoy discussing sword & sorcery here at Black Gate. And we love to give away free stuff. So this week, we decided to combine our two favorite hobbies.

Specifically, we want to hear about your favorite sword & sorcery tale — novel or short story — and we want to give you one of five copies of Howard Andrew Jones’s exciting new Pathfinder Tales novel, Stalking the Beast, the follow-up to his hit Pathfinder release Plague of Shadows,

All five copies were provided by the fine folks at Paizo Publishing. Paizo will mail copies directly to five randomly-selected qualifying entrants.

How does this work, exactly?

It’s simple. Just send us a one-paragraph review of your favorite sword & sorcery novel or short story. Tell us what makes it so special and be sure to include the author and (if it’s a short story) where you read it.

Old or new, acknowledged classic or overlooked masterpeice, makes no difference. If it’s your favorite, we want to hear about it. And we’ll publish the best entries right here at Black Gate.

To enter our contest, just send an e-mail to john@blackgate.com with the title “Stalking the Beast,” and your one-paragraph entry, before December 1, 2013.

All entries become the property of New Epoch Press. No purchase necessary. Must be 12 or older. Decisions of the judges (capricious as they may be) are final. Terms and conditions subject to change. Sorry, US entrants only. Not valid where prohibited by law. Eat your vegetables.

And good luck!

Enter to Win One of Five Copies of King of Chaos by Dave Gross

Enter to Win One of Five Copies of King of Chaos by Dave Gross

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Pathfinder Tales King of Chaos-smallLast week, we announced a contest to win one of five copies of Dave Gross’s new Pathfinder Tales novel, King of Chaos.

You still have a week to enter. All you have to do to be eligible to win is send an e-mail to john@blackgate.com with the title “King of Chaos” and a short 2-3 sentence review of your favorite Pathfinder product, novel or short story, before October 1, 2013.

Need a quick primer on Pathfinder? No problem! You can check out the latest right here at Black Gate — including the first chapters of both King of Chaos and Dave’s previous novel, Queen of Thorns.

Want to read a complete story instead? Try Bill Ward’s 4-part tale, “The Box,” or Howard Andrew Jones’s 4-part mini-epic, “The Walkers from the Crypt,” both available for free at Paizo.com as part of their expansive library of free Pathfinder Tales web fiction — which also includes stories from Elaine Cunningham, Richard Ford, Tim Pratt, Ari Marmell, Robin D. Laws, James L. Sutter, Monte Cook, Ed Greenwood, Erik Mona, Richard Lee Byers, and many others.

If you want to try a complete novel, may we suggest Howard’s Plague of Shadows, or Tim Pratt’s Liar’s Blade?

Interested in the Pathfinder game instead? Read all about the latest releases at the Pathfinder Booth at Gencon last month. We also recently covered Ultimate Campaign, Fey Revisited, and Chronicles of the Righteous.

Dave Gross is the author of Prince of Wolves, Master of Devils, and Queen of Thorns. You can read Dave’s introduction to King of Chaos here and his free stories, “Killing Time” and “The Lost Pathfinder“, at Paizo.com.

And when you’re done, don’t forget to send us an e-mail with your one-paragraph review before October 1, 2013. We’ll draw five winners from all eligible entries and those lucky folks will receive a free copy of King of Chaos.

All entries become the property of New Epoch Press. No purchase necessary. Must be 12 or older. Decisions of the judges (capricious as they may be) are final. Terms and conditions subject to change as our lawyers sober up and get back to us. Not valid where prohibited by law. Or anywhere postage for a hefty paperback is more than, like, 5 bucks. Good luck!

Win One of Five Copies of King of Chaos by Dave Gross

Win One of Five Copies of King of Chaos by Dave Gross

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Pathfinder Tales King of Chaos-smallIt’s time to give away some books.

Black Gate has five copies of the brand new Pathfinder Tales book from Dave Gross, author of Prince of Wolves, Master of Devils, and Queen of Thorns, compliments of the great folks at Paizo Publishing. And we want to get them into your hands.

To avoid the usual methods of selecting winners (hand-to-hand combat, best impromptu rendition of Aragon’s speech at the Black Gate of Mordor, etc.), we’ve decided to award the copies to five randomly-selected qualifying entrants. How do you qualify? Easy! Just send us a one-paragraph review of your favorite Pathfinder product, novel, or  short story.

Unfamiliar with Pathfinder? No problem! You can check out the latest right here at Black Gate — including the first chapters of both King of Chaos and Queen of Thorns, Bill Ward’s complete four-part story “The Box,” and the 4-part mini-epic “The Walkers from the Crypt” by Howard Andrew Jones. If you want to try a complete novel, may we suggest Howard’s Plague of Shadows, or Tim Pratt’s Liar’s Blade?

You can read Dave’s introduction to King of Chaos here, and his free stories “Killing Time” and “The Lost Pathfinder” at Paizo.com. In fact, check out the complete collection of free Pathfinder Tales web fiction, with stories from Elaine Cunningham, Richard Ford, Tim Pratt, Ari Marmell, Robin D. Laws, James L. Sutter, Monte Cook, Ed Greenwood, Erik Mona, Richard Lee Byers, and many others.

To enter our contest, just send an e-mail to john@blackgate.com with the title “King of Chaos,” and your one-paragraph entry, before October 1, 2013.

All entries become the property of New Epoch Press. No purchase necessary. Must be 12 or older. Decisions of the judges (capricious as they may be) are final. Terms and conditions subject to change. Sorry, US entrants only. Not valid where prohibited by law. Eat your vegetables.

What Makes a True Hero? Announcing the Winners of the Writing Fantasy Heroes Contest

What Makes a True Hero? Announcing the Winners of the Writing Fantasy Heroes Contest

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Writing Fantasy HeroesThree weeks ago, we asked Black Gate readers to tell us about their ideal hero in one paragraph or less. It could be a fictional character, or a general description of those qualities that make a hero ideal.

In return, we offered to award a copy of the new book, Writing Fantasy Heroes, edited by Jason Waltz and published by Rogue Blades Entertainment, to three lucky winners.

Those three winners will be randomly drawn from the list of all the entrants.

Before we announce the winners, let’s have a look at some of the best entries. As much as we’d like to, we can’t reprint all the entries we received, so we’ll limit it to the 20 we found most insightful, well written, or original. We’ll start with Daran Grissom, who tells us an ideal hero is:

Someone who, when confronted by the possibility of adventure, enters into it reluctantly, but with determination. A man or woman with a unique trait or skill who is delivered, by fate or vocation, to a place where he or she chooses to go above and beyond what is reasonably asked of them. An exceptional person, in exceptional circumstances, doing exceptional things. That is a hero.

A fine summary, and we’ll see plenty of examples in the next 19 entires — including Han Solo, Conan, Kane, The Gray Mouser, and of course John Wayne.

…

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Last Chance to Win a Copy of Writing Fantasy Heroes From Rogue Blades Entertainment

Last Chance to Win a Copy of Writing Fantasy Heroes From Rogue Blades Entertainment

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Writing Fantasy HeroesTwo weeks ago, we announced a contest to win one of three copies of Writing Fantasy Heroes, compliments of Rogue Blades Entertainment.

In the weeks since its release, Writing Fantasy Heroes has won accolades from around the genre, and has already been proclaimed the definitive text on creating original and compelling 21st Century fantasy characters.

How do you win? Easy — just answer the question “What makes a true hero?” by telling us about your ideal hero in one paragraph or less. It can be a fictional character or a general description of those qualities that make a hero ideal.

We’ll publish the best responses here on the blog and randomly draw three names from all qualifying entries. Those three winners will each receive a copy of Writing Fantasy Heroes, compliments of Rogue Blades Entertainment. Each of these experts on heroes will also be invited to submit a brief review of the book, to be published here on the Black Gate website.

Just send an e-mail to john@blackgate.com with the title “My Ideal Hero,” and your one-paragraph entry. All entries become the property of New Epoch Press. No purchase necessary. Must be 12 or older. Decisions of the judges (capricious as they may be) are final. Terms and conditions subject to change. Sorry, US entrants only (foreign winners will be offered digital versions). Not valid where prohibited by law. Eat your vegetables.

Tell Us About Your Ideal Fantasy Hero, and Win a Copy of Writing Fantasy Heroes From Rogue Blades Entertainment!

Tell Us About Your Ideal Fantasy Hero, and Win a Copy of Writing Fantasy Heroes From Rogue Blades Entertainment!

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Writing Fantasy HeroesPop culture is dominated by fantasy heroes like never before, from Zelda to Harry Potter, Gandalf to Tyrion Lannister. The truth is we’ve always been fascinated by heroes, but in the last few years we’ve turned to fantasy like never before.

What makes a true hero? And which ones will endure, and which will eventually be forgotten?

These are the kinds of questions that require greater minds than ours. In fact, a riddle like this demands the sharpest, most agile minds on Earth. I’m talking about the readers of Black Gate, naturally.

To help us answer the question, we’re inviting Black Gate readers — that’s you — to tell us about your ideal hero. It can be a fictional character, or a general description of those qualities that make one ideal. In one paragraph or less, tell us what makes her a hero.

We’ll publish the best entries here on the blog, and randomly draw three names from all qualifying entries. Those three winners will each receive a copy of the new book Writing Fantasy Heroes, compliments of Rogue Blades Entertainment. Each of these experts on heroes will also be invited to submit a brief review of the book, to be published here on the Black Gate website.

Please submit entries by e-mail to john@blackgate.com with the title “My Ideal Hero.” All entries become the property of New Epoch Press. No purchase necessary. Must be 12 or older. Decisions of the judges (capricious as they may be) are final. Terms and conditions subject to change as our lawyers sober up and get back to us. Not valid where prohibited by law. Or anywhere postage for a hefty trade paperback is more than, like, 10 bucks. Good luck!