The Literary Khan: fiction, wisdom, and writings of The Khan

         Welcome back members of the Khanate. Today we have a special guest for our readers. If you have been reading this blog for some time now you will be well aware of the my love for fiction. One of my favourite authors being Graham McNeill you can understand my excitement to host him here. As he shares some of his wisdom on writing, 40K, and the nature of writing. Before we begin I want to thank Graham for taking the time to answer some questions from your humble Khan.       KHAN: It is fair to say that you are a pillar, if not some of the base and roof, of the monolith that is Games workshop. With almost one hundred written works of fiction under Black Library, and a number of game design credits spanning a career that reaches back almost two decades. What was it like in those early days?        GM:  That’s kind of you to say so, though I continue to stand upon the mighty shoulders of those who came before ...

  A month in review: Of miniatures, and mental health I am not a massive Stormcast fan, but man I have painted a few       It is july 29th, and I am sitting in a doctor's waiting room as I pretend to read a white dwarf until my name is called. I am about to ask for a month of mental health leave. The doctor calls me in and I explain the events that have led me to this. He is understanding, and goes through some questions with me. He asks me what I plan to do with my month off, and what I hope to achieve. For my part I tell him that I plan to go walking, spend time with my son, and paint some miniatures. To engage in my hobbies, try to see some mates, and try to build myself up again. He nods and smiles saying that it was the right answer. He tells me not to just sit around the house all day.  I was meant to enter this in the monthly painting comp     It is the 4th of August and my first day to myself. With no real agenda or plans. My walks had been goi...

  THE BLOCK: Mortal Realms Edition Making some terrain.     Welcome to this shameless slam against a reality TV show and building company I cannot stand. All whilst attempting to take the plans from the classic tome "Warhammer Townscapes", and attempt in my own way to bring them into a more fully realised modern style.       For those playing along at home, or are what could be called 'young', before plastic and resin gaming terrain, Warhammer used 'cardstock' buildings. That is to say we would get cardboard cut out buildings you would fold and glue to create the terrain for you games.      With the change in tastes, and progression of techniques we saw the change in materials. For this project my construction company 'Schmuckschmonald Schmones" will be attempting to create the prototype for our new display home. In our new street on Plagaway avenue. A growing concern.      Getting started we printed the plans and transfer...

Before We Begin     Before we begin I would like to give a few warnings to my readers. The following blog has a tragic ending, and includes subject matter including suicide.      There is an old theory known as Moore's Law. It states that essentially computer power can double every eighteen months. This would be of no surprise to gamers. After all, we are used to the speed at which new titles and consoles are released. Xbox has had eight versions since 2001, and Playstation has spawned a similar variety of consoles as technology has improved. During these releases we have also seen a number of games that have been in their time fan favourites. However, as the technologies have progressed. We have also seen generations of games, much like CDs to the music consumer, become discarded as new formats arrive. The issue of backwards compatibility was once a major selling point in the console war. Yet, now I wonder if it is seen as important to the current consumer....

  Look here it says RAW things aren't what you think     The Great Work     For many years now I have been on a deliberate effort to be who I want to be. To be happier than I was, and when I started to achieve this I would talk endlessly about it. So I decided that it was time to put these lessons into the written word. But why? Simple I want other people to see what I have done and more importantly see if those lessons might assist them in their life. I see so many people of potential in my day to day life, who merely want to enjoy the pursuit of happiness. The book began, and quickly turned into a mix of self help and memoir that was quite therapeutic to write.      A quick trip to a book store will show you entire sections dedicated to the topic of self help. I would often look over them, usually as I made a beeline for the sci fi and fantasy section, and think I do not know if my book fits in here. Not from an arrogance stance, but rather from...