![]() Author has written 9 stories for Elder Scroll series. Why SuperGreG? What I do: -ex electrician & muso/vocalist-Traditional Metal (retired from both). Currently Favoured authors: Asimov (esp Foundation/Robots), Tolkien (more for storytelling/worldbuilding), Peter David (in various mediums), Neil Gaiman (in various mediums), George R R Martin (Wild Cards, Ice & Fire/Game of Thrones), Bill Willingham (Fables-DC Vertigo), Mike Carey (The Unwritten-DC Vertigo), Brian K Vaughan (Y the Last Man-DC Vertigo), Grant Morrison (various-DC Vertigo), and of course others. As of Jan 2019, I've also started posting an original story to the SciFi section of the FictionPress sister site, under the same author name: SuperGreG. What's it about? I suppose that it's a somewhat eclectic epic sci-fi construct, with some fantasy elements viewed through a sci-fi lens. A somewhat naively idealistic civilisation comes into contact with another civilisation and together they seek to build a broader space-faring community. Certain things pass perhaps unexpectedly easily, while others not so easily at all, as alliances and empires rise and stumble. Each of the Elder Scrolls universe stories below are connected through various characters over a longer narrative arc. However in each case, I've tried to make each one functional as an independent starting point. Broader events of previous tales are touched upon lightly as characters are reintroduced each time. So, it's certainly possible to start at almost any point, but perhaps works best by starting at the beginning. That's for you to decide. Regarding "Accident and Destiny: An Elder Scroll Novel" I started this project a short while after reading Bethesda's official novels. That left me wanting something more. I came here looking for more fresh and original stories of the Elder Scrolls universe. I found only a few. Some were really good. Some seemed like they could have been, but were maybe too much 'fan' and not enough 'fic'. I was inspired enough to have a go at writing something that vaguely reflected what I was hoping to find more of. I aimed to construct a full in-depth novel, rather than just another rehash of the same old stories with the same old characters. I certainly wasn't interested in emulating the numerous dragonborn diaries or retelling the main action sequences of the games. Really, I just wanted to tell some new stories with some new characters. That's why I picked that time period (nearly 50 years after Oblivion & about 150 years before Skyrim). Accordingly, this story starts quite slowly before building toward the climax points later in the story. As well as the novels, I took some cues from the Elder Scrolls games themselves, where things also start off quite slowly and gradually build. I also tried to flesh-out the personalities, histories and motivations of the leading characters, attempting to add some plausible gravitas to their circumstances as they evolve. Fully accepting my amateur status in such things, arriving at the end of the project, I find myself reasonably satisfied with the final result. Looking back, some of the writing could have been done better in certain places, but I was quite pleased with the characters and overall plot. Of course, you can judge for yourself, if you care to. Regarding: "Evening Star: An Elder Scroll Novel" As previously, I needed to map out a beginning, an ending, and all the major points in-between before getting started. The second story follows on from the first one, but with a slightly different structure. This follows a broader cast of characters, each beginning in a variety of locations. Things still start off quite slowly and gradually build as pawns are moved about the board. Much of the story revolves around the lives of the characters, having little idea of the parts they play in bigger things. In some respects, the culture, locations and politics of Tamriel during 4E48 feature as major supporting 'characters'. Regarding: "The Hammer and the Anvil: An Elder Scroll Novel" Once again, I mapped out a beginning, an ending, and all the major points in-between before getting started. The third story picks up from threads intentionally left behind from the first two stories. Nevertheless, I have taken effort to allow it to function as stand alone. I've pulled back a little on the size of the primary cast, but the support cast remains broad. Moving into some territories not well examined since Daggerfall, I've needed to get more creative with limited available material. I'm doing my best to remain 'lore-friendly', taking just a few more plausible liberties in service of the story. Now that it's done and dusted, I'm fairly happy with the end result. For an eloquent non-spoiler summary, see the story review posted by Jupitus Garth [Dec 6 2013]. In a concise fashion, those comments explain just why it works as intended. Regarding: "The Sons of Baroth: An Elder Scrolls Novel" Again, I mapped out a beginning, an ending, and all the major points in-between before getting started. This fourth story grows out of carefully placed threads from those first three. This time, I shifted the focus to a prominent secondary character. He's had a fully constructed back story since "Accident and Destiny", but I hadn't had the opportunity to fully exploit that throughout those three stories. I suppose this one seemed more likely to be dominated by political intrigue within the Fighters Guild, but it also provides for opportunity to examine the events of the Stormcrown Interregnum from one character's perspective, as his past is laid bare. Given the scant details in place, I elected to go with the freedom that it provides, but in a reasonably 'lore-friendly' fashion. As I was writing this, an alternative title in my head was... 'Working-class Orc'... ;-) Regarding: "Under Autumn Skies: An Elder Scrolls Novel" The fifth tale picks up on several threads from the third and fourth stories. The primary plot takes a few chapters to get things properly started (for both those that are new to this and those already familiar). A number of lesser plot-threads emerge from within that main framework. Though there are quite a few players on the field for this one, the main focus holds closer to just a few. At first, the primary plot should appear fairly straight-forward, but the ultimate destination of the tale remains intentionally obscured. At least, until various twists lead down a secondary path, after just a few clues and distractions are layered in throughout. Those things are meant to be presented in a fairly subtle fashion (some more than others). In a way, the underlying theme is there in the title. Everything takes place under the autumn skies, over a period of just a few weeks. In one way or another, several of the unanticipated threats actually relate to the skies. Of course, it's more about the people than anything else. Regarding: "Winds of Change: An Elder Scrolls Novel" The sixth (and not quite final) tale in this run of stories picks up about a year after the events of the previous one. Once again, it reintroduces several of those core characters from the previous stories. 'Winds of Change' starts off looking like nothing more than a get-together for a day at the festival. Of course, something will go wrong with all that, leading to somewhat unexpected destinations for some. Regarding: "Winds of the Ashfall: An Elder Scrolls Tale" Though possibly more stand-alone than some previous tales, this one picks up on a thread regarding a Dunmer character notably absent from the end of the previous story. The story runs more or less concurrent with the time period of the ending of 'Winds of Change'. Though the back story of that character has only been previously touched upon very lightly, this will serve to illuminate the details of that story (which I've always had). It's also an opportunity to explore the post-calamity landscape of Morrowind in greater detail. Regarding: "Winter of Intent: An Elder Scrolls Tale" While gathering some lesser threads from previous stories, this tale should remain relatively stand-alone for anyone just looking at any of these stories for the first time. Feeling the call of Iliac Bay once again, after a great deal of research, reading and gathering up of whatever I could find that seemed conceivably relevant, I started pouring all of that into a pot with some story ideas that I had bubbling away in my mind. The story takes place shortly after the ending of the previous two stories I'd written. Regarding: "Wisdom in Words: An Elder Scrolls Tale" I've decided to try something a little different with this one. When creating stories in Tamriel, I often come up with numerous side stories and characters that I try to fit in with an already structured narrative. With this one, I've actually set out to try to tell a whole run of short stories, all linked within a longer story about stories. It will revolve about a character trying to write for the Black Horse Courier, but will allow to me to tell several other tales within the main story. Though I'm not exactly trying to do the same thing, inspiration came from recently reading the first two Witcher novels, which were actually a series of short stories, link by a framing sequence. In that case, the tales were effectively about the same character. With my story, I'm trying to tell a wider variety of tales, though still linked to the ongoing development of the primary character, as she hears the stories of others. Now, my main challenge is to come up with enough short stories of some interest to work into the main story. I'm also looking toward mixing up the delivery of those tales a little, so as not make it seem repetitive in the structuring. SGI |