It's hard out here for an antipaladin.
The city of D is in trouble. The forces of 'good' want to keep the people down, by using an iron fist in a velvet glove- but they're going to draw back an iron stump if Kannon has anything to say about it.
The world needs an antihero. Here he is in demonic armor, joined by an unorthodox wizard, an alchemist trying to break the glass ceiling, and the "Last of the Red-hot Archliches" as they hack-and-slash their way through an irreverent postmodern bloodbath, dragged kicking and screaming from behind a GM's screen in your mom's basement.
What's up, yo. So, this book will be coming out later this year. I posted something very similar on GitP, but figured I would come here as well and get some feedback. If anyone who is literature/fantasy savvy would like to take a look at this ms. and give me their thoughts, comment and I will see about getting a pdf to you. I do namecheck the [Tomes] in the author's afterword, and while this work may not be as focused on the logistics, I do like the idea of being on 'the right side' when it comes to deconstructing. Anyhoo, read the afterword for the full story on how this book came to be, and feel free to hit me up with questions and comments. I might try to come up with a homebrew setting based on this trilogy.
AUTHOR’S AFTERWORD
This book nearly wasn’t.
In fact, it seems as close to cursed as a book can be. Antipaladin Blues has weathered delay, divorces, illness, bereavement… and even the looming specter of China Mieville’s awesomeness. I began it years ago on little yellow legal pads written in the mill control room at my job. When I mentioned the concept to a friend, they described its apparent similarity to Perdido Street Station, and I was crestfallen. I had already abandoned the sequel to MEL when I read a Dan Simmons novel and realized my intended plotline was almost identical. So it sat gathering dust while my world fell apart around me.
A few things changed. I was free of the abusive marriage and had time to write. I read Perdido Street Station and found that aside from a general urban anachronistic fantasy vibe, the two novels were very different. Then I found Evil Nerd Empire. Jeremy Needle liked what he read, and believed in both me and the book, enough to want there to be a trilogy. Now you’re holding the result in your hand.
I won’t condescend to explain the layers and nuances beneath the cursing and ultraviolence of this book, dear reader- I’ll simply point out that they are there. Pieces of art can have a transformative value for both the producer and consumer, and my meditations on the nature of good and evil have been quite the revelation to me. I hope that you will continue on this journey with me- along with Kannon and the rest of the crew.
No afterword would be complete without acknowledging those people who helped make it possible. I'd like to thank Ray and Brigitte, my tattoo sponsors, for making my forays into publishing as awesome as being a red hot guitar shredder. If you need any kind of ink, and are in Portland for any reason, look them up at Lucid Ink. You will not be disappointed. I'd also like to thank the amazing talent that went into this book: my editors Garrett Cook and Whitney Streed, and illustrators Nick Rose and Jesse Lindsay. Jesse's cover art now adorns my body permanently, and if you want a nerd shibboleth geekier than having the word 'antipaladin' tattooed on your body, you will not find one.
It came to be that after this book was long done, I ran into a webcomic called Order of the Stick, by Rich Burlew, which is not only amazing and hilarious, but shares a number of similarities with Antipaladin Blues. Coffee-loving powerful lich... check. Morally questionable protagonists... check. Anachronistic pop culture and gaming references... DOUBLE CHECK. These similarities are not only unintentional, but probably unavoidable. If you're deconstructing fantasy roleplay, you're either going to go with some 'blurring the fourth wall' pap or in our case, 'trope madness'. So to Mr. Burlew, and the fine folks on his forum, thanks for introducing me to a whole new world of dungeon shenanigans... like Frank Trollman's [Tomes]. Read, and be forever changed.
Last but not least, I'd like to thank my mother, who encouraged me through some dark times and tolerated a lot of listening to The Doors, and I'd mostly like to thank my wife Kayla. You are the love of my life, and I'm so glad you were here when I typed those last few words.
