Welcome as we round up the Showcase on RBE. All thanks to Jason M. Waltz CEO of Rogue Blades Entertainment and the writers, artists, affiliates and associates who have or are working with RBE and most--no doubt--will be working with him again in the future.
Now then, back to the matters at hand. RBE is best known for anthologies and at the RBE site both original works of RBE and affiliated works are available. Let’s start at the beginning…
“Return now to the days of true adventure! Join fierce warriors in savage battles of survival and supremacy as they face hordes of vile foes, vie against inner demons, or struggle before onslaughts of both. Enter the halls of heroic fantasy in awe and marvel at the deeds of the mighty. Close upon the heels of Howard’s Conan, Moorcock’s Elric, and Leiber’s Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser come Ehart’s Ninshi, Heath’s Brom, and Hawkes’ Kabar. Unsheathe your sword and follow in their steps if you dare!” –RBE
Return of the Sword is RBE’s first original work and sports twenty two talented authors.
Sages & Swords
Sages & Swords is an original Pitch Black Books Anthology (Pitch Black Books) and is available for purchase on the RBE website.
I would like to add that Lords of Swords is also available from Pitch Black books and includes thirteen stories with authors from Tanith Lee, Vera Nazarian, E.E. Knight, D.K. Latta, Nancy Virginia Varian and more.
Boasts of at least twenty-eight stories by many authors who have already graced the pages of RBE’s anthologies as well as a few new faces.
Scheduled to release sometime in mid 2010. Don’t worry, you have plenty to read until then.
This RotB Anthology contains 21 stories about the biggest, baddest, boldest behemoths ever to roar across the pages of heroic adventure! Over 150,000 words of monstrous mayhem record the ferocious battles that rage between gargantuan creatures of myth and legend and the warriors and wizards who wage war against, beside, and astride them. Behemoths and battles will be presented in four-story sections of five different habitats introduced by the stunning illustrations of John Whitman and headlined by well-known authors Mary Rosenblum, C.L. Werner, Brian Ruckley, Lois Tilton, and – writing together for the final time - Andrew Offutt and Richard K. Lyon.
I may add that this anthology is a clever work of art. Here is a glimpse of the habitats and corresponding authors:
Frozen Wastes
- Mary Rosenblum ~ Ice Dragon ~ “Blood Ice”
- Carl Walmsley ~ Hydra ~ “Serpents Beneath the Ice”
- Jeff Stewart ~ Giant Bear ~ “Nothing Left of the Man”
- Bill Ward ~ Wolf-God ~ “The Wolf of Winter”
Scalding Sands
- Lois Tilton ~ Giant Sand Cobra ~ “Black Diamond Sands”
- Michael Ehart ~ The Behemoth ~ “As from His Lair, the Wild Beast”
- Martin Turton ~ Sagarki ~ “The Hunter of Rhim”
- A. Kiwi Courters ~ Manticore ~ “Stalker of the Blood-Red Sands”
Depthless Seas
- Andrew Offutt & Richard K. Lyon ~ Chinese Turdragon ~ “Portrait of a Behemoth”
- Sean T. M. Stiennon ~ Giant Crab-creature ~ “Black Water”
- Robert Mancebo ~ Storm Djinn ~ “Passion of the Stormlord”
- Kevin Lumley ~ Sea Monster ~ “The Beast”
Mysterious Jungles
- Brian Ruckley ~ Giant Serpent ~ “Beyond the Reach of His Gods”
- Bruce Durham ~ Yaggoth-Voor ~ “Yaggoth-Voor”
- Jason Thummel ~ Elephantine-God ~ “Runner of the Hidden Ways”
- Kate Martin ~ Cockatrice ~ “Poisonous Redemption”
Ageless Mountains
- C.L. Werner ~ Gashadokuro ~ “The Rotten Bones Rattle”
- TW Williams ~ Griffin ~ “Where the Shadow Falls”
- Jeff Draper ~ Wen Quaar ~ “Thunder Canyon”
- Daniel R. Robichaud ~ Bear-God ~ “Vasily and the Beast Gods”
The anthologies are not all the RBE site has to offer and don’t take my word for it go there and check it out yourself. Here, I’ll even make it easy on you just click: Rogue Blades Entertainment.
That wraps up the Showcase for Rogues Blades Entertainment. It has been a year of hardships, struggles and sore trials and Jason it seems has not been able to elude the grip of this year. Support him, help him, and lift small publishers upon your shoulders so that they may have a fighting chance against the giants of big house publishing. Jason, here are the comments from your friends, peers, and associates to help encourage you to trudge through the final days of this year and hope that the New Year brings greater victories.
…And now the praises for Jason:
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“Jason is a very good editor, striving for success and excellence in his writers, and has tons of potential. I really enjoyed working with him, he polished the story without trying to change it, and I'd work with him again any day.”
–Mary Rosenblum, author of Horizons, Water Rites, The Stone Garden, Chimera and The Drylands. Mary has over fifty published short stories and is an instructor at Long Ridge Writers Group.
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“I've worked with Jason off and on since his early days as an editor for Staffs and Starships, then on through his tenure at other publications and now in his leadership role at Rogue Blades. Though we've never met in person, I consider Jason more than just an editor, I consider him a friend. He has published a couple of my stories, one in "Return of the Sword" and another upcoming in the Demons: A Clash of Steel Anthology. He's also read a good bit of my short fiction and at least one of my novels, and he always has solid advice and offers praise where warranted. My only regret is I often don't have enough time to send him more stories and to lend a hand with RBE.”
-Ty Johnson (Author of the epic fantasy, Kobalas trilogy: City of Rogues, Road to Wrath and Dark King of the North. He also has numerous published short stories).
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"Through Rogue Blades Entertainment, editor Jason M. Waltz strives to bring the audience the best in contemporary heroic fiction. He brings vision, resolve, and an incredible store of enthusiasm to the process from inception to completion. He knows what he wants, and is willing to patiently work with the author to get it. In my own experience, Jason was a real pleasure to work with as both editor and human being, and I certainly hope to be able to do so again in the future."
-Jason E. Thummel (has appeared in multiple venues such as Rogue Blades' own Rage of the Behemoth, Ricasso Press' Magic and Mechanica, Flashing Swords, The Lorelei Signal and is forthcoming in Black Gate Magazine).
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"In the resurging genre known as Sword and Sorcery, few editors have proven what it takes to grasp the intricacies and nuances that set this style of fantasy apart from all others. I’m pleased to say that Jason Waltz is such that editor. I have had the pleasure of working with Jason from his days at ‘Staffs and Starships’ through his tenure with ‘Flashing Swords’ to his own current brand, ‘Rogue Blades Entertainment’. During that time I have found Jason to exhibit an uncanny sense of what works and what doesn’t, being one of those rare people who know how to squeeze the best from an author. He displays an almost childlike enthusiasm and passion for his projects, as witnessed with the ideally themed anthologies ‘Return of the Sword’ and ‘Rage of the Behemoth’. To top it all off, he’s a NICE GUY, a real pleasure to work with. And at the end of the day, what more could one ask?"
-Bruce Durham has appeared in both ‘Return of the Sword’ and ‘Rage of the Behemoth’, in addition to several anthologies as well as publications such as ‘Flashing Swords’, ‘Paradox’ and ‘Abandoned Towers’. He has authored over 20 stories and will see the release of the graphic novel based on his award winning story ‘The Marsh God’ in November.
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"There is a natural order in the publishing world, the same as in the bloodiest jungle. Writers write and Editors then rip the pound of flesh nearest the writer’s heart from their still palpitating chest and hold its dripping mass over their heads for all to see, all the while cackling maniacally the unholy editor’s chants of “doesn’t meet our current needs” and “restraining order”. I have worked with Jason Waltz since he was with Flashing Swords, and I can say without equivocation that I have never seen him kick a dog, steal candy from a small child, or cross a picket line unless he really needed to, or at least felt like it. In truth, Jason has purchased perhaps a half-dozen stories from me, and each time has shown professionalism, courtesy and a passion for the genre that make him stand out amongst his peers. Most importantly, his checks have all cleared, which fact alone makes him a prince among editors."
–Michael Ehart’s stories appear in Return of the Sword and Rage of the Behemoth, both available from RBE. He is the author of over 30 short stories and his second book, The Tears of Ishtar will release Feb. 14.
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"I think Jason Waltz is a positive force in keeping the torches burning for traditional sword-and-sorcery stories. It's not just that Jason comes up with interesting themes for his Rogue Blades Entertainment anthologies, it's that he buys my st... no, wait ... it's because he's a genuinely nice guy who cares about the writers he hires in the right way -- meaning he challenges them to polish and trim and pushes them to produce the most coherent, entertaining copy available."
-TW Williams wrote a John Humble tale "Where the Shadow Falls" for RBE's Rage of the Behemoth. "Born Warriors" is scheduled to be part of RBE's Demons: A Clash of Steel anthology. His works of speculative fiction have appeared in two Ricasso Press anthologies, "Black Dragon, White Dragon" and "Magic and Mechanica", as well as in other anthologies and magazines and e-publications, including Everday Fiction, Electric Spec, Flashing Swords, Abandoned Towers and Mindflights.
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"It has been a privilege and an honor to know and work with Jason Waltz. Not only is he a talented editor and dedicated publisher, he is also one of the most worth while human beings its been my good fortune to encounter anywhere. If he never edited a word of fiction again or published another book (and I hope he does much of both) he would still be one of the most important people I talk to every day."
-Michael D. Turner worked with Jason on the staff of Flashing Swords.
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Merry Christmas and have a great New Year!
-Christopher & Melissa Marshall
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