Empire of the Wolf Update, 2023 Recap, 2024 Forecast
Another year gone! And how quickly. This year The Tyranny of Faith was published (hardback Feb, paperback August), and with The Trials of Empire bearing down on us (hardback / ebook / audio release date 6 Feb) the time will soon come to close the door on the (medieval era of the) Empire of the Wolf. Please do pre-order it if you plan to buy it - you can do so here (UK) or here (USA) or here (Aus). As always please support your local independent bookshop where you can. For those of you about to read Trials, here is a detailed plot summary of Tyranny to jog those useless brains.
With the upcoming publication of Trials, the story of Vonvalt and Helena is done, though I'll be sure to revisit the world at some point in the future - I've lots more ideas for Law & Order: Sova.
What comes next? I've been working on a few projects this year. I had a short story published with Black Library - Blood Harvest - with another on the way next year.
This year I've also been working on:
A short post-apocalyptic novel (finished);
A new flintlock fantasy trilogy (book 1 of 3 written);
A new dystopian politcal space opera series (book 1 of 3 written); and
A contemporary crime novel about shark attacks (finished, but despised by my agent)
At least one of these will be seeing the light of day in 2025 (announcements to come when my publishers decide the time is right!). I also have some exciting news about my self-published space opera, The Art of War trilogy, for 2024 (can't speak about precisely what this is, but I CAN say that I'm in the process of re-editing these).
So: lots of exciting things in the pipeline as we move forward, not backwards, upwards, not forwards, and always twirling, twirling towards freedom.
Convention Appearances 2024
Currently confirmed:
I'll be doing TBR Con again in January (details to be revealed).
I'll also be at Worldcon Glasgow 2024
A veritable smorgasbord of interviews.
Nothing else currently in the pipeline but of course all subject to change!
2023 Interviews and Panels
Need more Richard Swan in your life? Here's a whole day's worth of videos to get stuck into:
Artwork
I've commissioned a bunch of Empire of the Wolf character art this year from the wonderful and talented Hannah Elizabeth. You can find her on Twitter and Instagram.
The Richard Swan Book of the Year Award
Last year I awarded this jointly to Tim Napper's cyberpunk tour de force 36 Streets and Chris Buehlman's exquisite medieval horror Between Two Fires. I've read some great books this year and honourable mention to Sarah Balstrup's The Way of Unity, which was such a wonderfully unique examination of a postreligious fantasy society and easily one of my favourite fantasy books in recent memory.
My Book of the Year Award however has to go to the utterly magnificent Jade Legacy by the peerless Fonda Lee.
I've still got 100 pages left to read but I have been absolutely gripped by this book. The Green Bone Saga is a bona fide masterwork of contemporary fantasy and I would urge everyone who has not yet picked up Jade City to give this series a go. It will blow your socks off.
Closing Remarks
Welp. That's all from me! If you want to get these updates directly in your inbox you can sign up to my mailing list (the form is here). Otherwise - Merry Christmas / happy holidays / pleasant nonreligious stretch of annual leave, nerds. I'll see you on the other side.
Richard
Sydney, December 2023
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