Familiar Sayings From Home

Have you ever been far from home, swimming in a sea of people you have little in common with? Then, out of the blue, you hear someone say something so familiar, your head turns. It might be a familiar accent, the same as yours, or it might be a saying from your hometown.

This is how Cormac, one of the main characters in Dragons in the Dungeon, finds Nimble, who is a prisoner in the dungeon he is thrown into.

SNIPPET

Cursing the guards, Cormac yelled at them, “Take a long walk on a short drawbridge!”

Nimble turned to him and said, “Pier.”

He glared at her, the fire of the fight still blazing in his eyes. Giving her the once over, the fire dwindled. “What?”

“Isn’t it pier? Long walk on a short pier?”

His expression grew curious. “Yeah. But…” He considered her for longer than she’d have liked, then spoke in a calm voice. “Where’d you hear that?”

Cormac questions her further. He’s desperate to find someone from his world without letting the other prisoners know where he’s from.

Continue reading “Familiar Sayings From Home”
Advertisement

“Dragons in the Dungeon” takes place in what era?

To listen to this blog post recorded by Anchor, click here. If you want to hear it on Spotify, click here. No, this is not my voice, but he reads very well. I hope to be set up to record my own voice next week.

Prefer to read? Here it is…

The original Dungeons and Dragons game was released in 1974 as a box set of three booklets. The creators were a circle of midwestern mages named Gary Gygax, Jeff Perren and Dave Arneson. The basic set arrived on the scene in 1977. This was probably around the time my Dungeon Master discovered the game. The Advanced Dungeons & Dragons – Dungeon Masters Guide by Gygax was published in 1979.

I’ve had this book for more than 40 years.

I didn’t start playing until 1979, which means most of my experiences took place in the 1980s.

I’ve decided that’s where this fantasy novel takes place. At least when this world is referenced. The fantasy land where the adventure happens is squarely set in some archaic time similar to mediaeval times. That means horses, outhouses, dirt roads, castles, swords, daggers and wagons, and no jeans or cowboy hats.

Continue reading ““Dragons in the Dungeon” takes place in what era?”

The title of my fantasy novel is…

Prefer to listen to this podcast?

No problem. I’m giving Anchor and Spotify a whirl.

To listen to this blog post recorded by Anchor, click here. If you want to hear it on Spotify, click here. Let me know what you think about it. No, this is not my voice, but he reads very well. I hope to be set up to record my own voice next week.

Prefer to read? Here it is…

Confession Time: I didn’t think hard about the title of my upcoming fantasy novel. One might say it landed in my brain and sat there while a story took shape. It started with a character whose name I had yet to hear. He was thrown into a dungeon rather roughly by the guards. Of course, he cursed at them. What else was a fellow to do?

A voice spoke behind him, and he turned to see a woman sitting on the stone floor wearing only a thin dress. Her matted hair hung in front of her face. I didn’t know who she was or why she was there. I knew only that he’d rescue her when he escaped.

For about three weeks, mumblings came and went in my head. Then one night, I saw the woman in my dreams. She was reaching for the steel handle of a door at a modern-day shop. The door wouldn’t open, and then I knew from where she came.

I feared the story would soon leave me and find someone else to write it, so I began. With the title. It was perfect. It spoke of the game I played in the 1980s, the game this story is based on: Dungeons and Dragons.

The title of the stand-alone fantasy novel I’m writing is…

Dragons in the Dungeon.

Currently, I have 37,559 words written.

LAUNCH DATE: Thursday March 23, 2023.