Fighting Fantasy at Dragonmeet 2024

Fighting Fantasy co-creator Sir Ian Livingstone and FF historian Jonathan Green will be attending Dragonmeet on Saturday 30 November 2024. You will find them at the Fighting Fantasy stand in the Upper Trade Hall (indicated by the small blue tent under the FF logo on the map below).

Click on the map to enlarge it.

Jonathan will have copies of YOU ARE THE HERO: An Interactive History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks to sell, and Sir Ian will have copies of MAGIC REALMS: The Art of Fighting Fantasy, which they worked on together, and a few hardbacks of The Dungeon on Blood Island.

YOU ARE THE HERO: An Interactive History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks

Available now from Snowbooks is the 40th anniversary interactive edition of YOU ARE THE HERO by Jonathan Green, featuring brand new cover art by none other than FF legend Iain McCaig.

Fighting Fantasy gamebooks – the publishing phenomenon of the 1980s – has sold over 20 million books worldwide, in over 30 languages. But when Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone sat down to write the original Fighting Fantasy gamebook, The Warlock of Firetop Mountain, they could not have predicted that this one, simple adventure would go on to spawn over 100 titles, let alone begin to guess at the impact it would have on a generation of children growing up in the 80s.

Part history, part celebration, YOU ARE THE HERO chronicles four decades of the Fighting Fantasy phenomenon. Written by Jonathan Green (author of eight Fighting Fantasy gamebooks), this mighty tome will appeal to anyone who ever whiled away a washed-out summer holiday with only two dice, a pencil, and an eraser for company.

As well as updating and revising the text from the original two volumes of YOU ARE THE HERO, there is a significant amount of new content, particularly concerning the 40th anniversary of Fighting Fantasy in 2022.

Not only that, but you can either read YOU ARE THE HERO: An Interactive History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks from cover to cover, or you can read it as a gamebook. The blue boxes you can see in the sample spread above give you the option of turning to different sections (there are 400 in total, of course) that are in some way related to the paragraphs you have just read.

As well as being available from Amazon, YOU ARE THE HERO: An Interactive History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks will be on sale at Fighting Fantasy Fest 5 as well.

The Master of Firetop Mountain

Have you ever wondered what Zagor the Warlock would look like if painted by Iain McCaig. Well, wonder no more...

This is the completed cover art for the new edition of YOU ARE THE HERO - A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks by Jonathan Green.

The book will be published later this year and it's not too late to place a Late Pledge to the project, if you missed the original Kickstarter.

YOU ARE THE HERO - An Interactive History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks

YOU ARE THE HERO - An Interactive History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks launches on Saturday 8th October 2022 on Kickstarter!

40 years ago, on 27 August 1982, the very first Fighting Fantasy Gamebook, The Warlock of Firetop Mountain by Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone, was published.

In 2012 and 2017, FF author Jonathan Green ran successful Kickstarter campaigns to publish YOU ARE THE HERO - A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks and YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2. This year he is planning to publish a revised and updated edition to mark this landmark anniversary - and this time it's going to be interactive!

Check out the rewards and pledge your support on Kickstarter tomorrow.

 

Dice Men Cover Reveal!

The cover for DICE MEN: The Origin Story of Games Workshop has been released by publishers Unbound, and it's another classic in the making.

The cover features FF fan favourite Iain McCaig's artwork for the original Games Workshop carrier bag.

The book tells the story of the first 10 years of the global games company, Games Workshop, and the struggles faced by Steve Jackson, Sir Ian Livingstone and John Peake at the time.

The book currently has 1538 supporters through Unbound, the crowdfunding publisher, and there's still time to lend your support, before DICE MEN: The Origin Story of Games Workshop is published this autumn.

In other news, did you see Sir Ian Livingstone on BBC 1's The Apprentice last night? In case you missed it, you can catch it again here, on iPlayer, if you are in the UK.

The Dice Men

DICE MEN: Games Workshop the Early Years 1975 to 1985 tells the story of the first 10 years of the global games company, Games Workshop, and the struggles faced by Steve Jackson, Ian Livingstone and John Peake.

The book already had 915 supporters through Unbound, the crowdfunding publisher, but it's not too late to lend your support too. There are still various pledge levels available, but don't delay, as with the final text being delivered to Unbound this month, there's not long left.

Dice Men - Turn to 400!

Yesterday, DICE MEN: Games Workshop the Early Years 1975 to 1985 exceeded 400 backers and is on the verge of being 50% funded.

YOU ARE THE HERO - A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks touched on the foundation of Games Workshop, but for the full story you need to make sure you back DICE MEN on Unbound.

If you need another incentive, the book is co-written by Fighting Fantasy Gamebook author Jamie Thomson.

Dice Men: The History of Games Workshop Unbound!

Some exciting news broke at Dragonmeet over the weekend. If you haven't already heard, Unbound will be publishing a new book about the early years of Games Workshop.

Dice Men: Games Workshop the Early Years 1975 to 1985 is co-authored by Steve Jackson, Ian Livingstone and Jamie Thomson. Steve and Ian need no introduction, and Jamie Thomson will be best known to Fighting Fantasy fans as the co-author of Talisman of Death, Sword of the Samurai and The Keep of the Lich-Lord, but he was also an employee of Games Workshop in those early days.

We've already had the history of FF gamebooks by Jonathan Green, which currently runs to two volumes and which touched on the foundation of Games Workshop, but Dice Men will explore that seminal time in much greater detail. It will take the form of a full colour, highly illustrated hardback over 300 pages long, A4 (210mm x 297mm) printed on 140gsm gloss art stock, with colour printed endpapers and a bookmark ribbon.

To find out more about this very special book, and to pledge your support to the project, follow this link.

One week to go until Fighting Fantasy Fest 2!

One week today the doors open on Fighting Fantasy Fest 2!

Featuring a host of special guests, including Guests of Honour Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone, along with the likes of Iain McCaig, Marc Gascoigne, Malcolm Barter, and Jamie Thomson, it is going to be a 35th anniversary celebration to remember.

There will be talks, gaming sessions, comics, a cosplay competition, video game demonstrations, signings, and all manner of traders. On top of that, Snowbooks will be launching YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2 at the event.

With so much going on, you might find it helpful to have a look through the talks schedule for the day, which runs across two strands in two halls.

It's not too late to buy your ticket and make sure you don't miss out on the Fighting Fantasy event of the year!