Interview with Laurie Goulding about BL / GW

[Noserenda]

I suspect people may be being trolled...

[A D-B]

In your quest to be all super serial and whatnot and prove yourself inarguably right, you've completely missed that I was just having fun and making some salient points at the same time. I mean, you're THAT upset over the carrying water line? Sounds like I hit a nerve somewhere I wasn't even trying to hit. <------------DO YOU SEE WHAT I'M TRYING TO DO HERE?!?!

Oh.

Ah.

I see.

Well.

LISTEN HERE, you. If I want to badly and categorically misunderstand your tone and lose my temper over imagined slights, then you can't stop me. How dare you try to inject levity into the super-seriousness taking place? I'm going to continue being dense and assume the worst, and then enjoy a bubble-bath in a pool of my seething indignation.

EDIT: I went looking for Throne polish. All I had was Pledge (for wood), though. Soz. I'll give it a go, anyway.

http://i.imgur.com/CpGqKnG.jpg

Now... Good day, sir/madam.

GOOD DAY.

[bluntblade]

I still can't shake the image of AD-B with a jug of water on his head. The jug, of course, has skulls on it.

 

AD-B, are the shorts and novellas actually linked to the issues Laurie talked about? Because the likes of Blackshield and Into Exile seemed more like "I wanna do a thing" than "writer, flog this product for us".

[Draakur]

And just like that, balance to the Force was restored :)

[b1soul]

A few thoughts on my end...

 

Consumers aren't in the position to grade or critique GW's/BL's internal decision-making processes, as consumers simply are not privy to those inner workings.

 

That's the job of the shareholders...to provide constructive criticism and pressure to improve the business model.

 

What consumers can validly do is voice their complaints and preferences regarding the quality of BL's output.

 

Consumers don't have to care about the complicated backstory behind why BL is engaging in certain sales practices. Consumers can just say "I don't like what BL is trying to do...and I'll take my money elsewhere".

 

BL can either try to understand consumer preferences and adapt accordingly...or it can ignore the voices of dissatisfaction, telling itself "What do these ignorant hobbyists know about managing a business?"

 

Well, hobbyists may not be corporate managers...but their preferences do affect corporate margins.

 

I don't think it would be feasible for a business to cater to the every whim of picky consumers...but there should be efforts toward some accomodation, for the sake of profit.

 

Happily, it seems BL is doing this.

[mc warhammer]

I suspect people may be being trolled...

that was some subtle trolling

[wtwhizz]

In your quest to be all super serial and whatnot and prove yourself inarguably right, you've completely missed that I was just having fun and making some salient points at the same time. I mean, you're THAT upset over the carrying water line? Sounds like I hit a nerve somewhere I wasn't even trying to hit. <------------DO YOU SEE WHAT I'M TRYING TO DO HERE?!?!

Oh.

Ah.

I see.

Well.

LISTEN HERE, you. If I want to badly and categorically misunderstand your tone and lose my temper over imagined slights, then you can't stop me. How dare you try to inject levity into the super-seriousness taking place? I'm going to continue being dense and assume the worst, and then enjoy a bubble-bath in a pool of my seething indignation.

EDIT: I went looking for Throne polish. All I had was Pledge (for wood), though. Soz. I'll give it a go, anyway.

http://i.imgur.com/CpGqKnG.jpg

Now... Good day, sir/madam.

GOOD DAY.

I'll accept that.

Now, please get right on doing a book about the Flame Falcons and how they totally were loyal and super cool dudes that were walking flamethrowers yet got royally screwed over by the Imperium because sales of promethium were going to drop.

[HeritorA]

 

I suspect people may be being trolled...

that was some subtle trolling

 

Subtlest, lol.

 

A few thoughts on my end...

 

Consumers aren't in the position to grade or critique GW's/BL's internal decision-making processes, as consumers simply are not privy to those inner workings.

 

That's the job of the shareholders...to provide constructive criticism and pressure to improve the business model.

 

What consumers can validly do is voice their complaints and preferences regarding the quality of BL's output.

 

Consumers don't have to care about the complicated backstory behind why BL is engaging in certain sales practices. Consumers can just say "I don't like what BL is trying to do...and I'll take my money elsewhere".

 

BL can either try to understand consumer preferences and adapt accordingly...or it can ignore the voices of dissatisfaction, telling itself "What do these ignorant hobbyists know about managing a business?"

 

Well, hobbyists may not be corporate managers...but their preferences do affect corporate margins.

 

I don't think it would be feasible for a business to cater to the every whim of picky consumers...but there should be efforts toward some accomodation, for the sake of profit.

 

Happily, it seems BL is doing this.

Exactly what b1soul said:

'Consumers don't have to care about the complicated backstory behind why BL is engaging in certain sales practices. Consumers can just say "I don't like what BL is trying to do...and I'll take my money elsewhere. BL can either try to understand consumer preferences and adapt accordingly...or it can ignore the voices of dissatisfaction,

I don't think it would be feasible for a business to cater to the every whim of picky consumers...but there should be efforts toward some accomodation, for the sake of profit.'

 

The problem us - BL is doing this very slowly - like a crawling child who just stand up for the first time and then decided that 'well I better crawl'

 

 

[WarriorFish]

A large amount of junk has been removed. Stay on topic, please - if you want to discuss something else that is within the purview of the B&C please take it to an appropriate topic.

 

Last but not least, please try to be considerate of other members. If you want to score "points" then please take the time to reflect on what the B&C is about, and how you approach the hobby of little plastic men. Thanks.

[bluntblade]

Is the preponderance of shorts and novellas separate from the issue of tie-ins?

 

Edit: upon reading AD-B's post, I realise that was a redundant question. But to salvage it, did authors have issues with the rise of shorter formats?

[HeritorA]

Yeah, I remember calling this YEARS ago on this forum. I said the quality of the Black Library was taking a long walk off a short pier because of its switch to poorly done audio books, legions of overpriced short stories, an unrelenting horde of reprints, and lack of real novels. I was roundly mocked and vilified. Even ADB chimed in, chastising me and doing a magnificent job of carrying water for the company. I stopped buying stuff, but I'd check in from time to time. To my complete and utter non-surprise there weren't any new Gaunt's Ghosts books. Or Black Legion books. But hot damn if there weren't a plethora of two-page short stories about crap no one cares about to choose from!

Games Workshop has been a train wreck for as long as I can remember. Maybe it all stems from Blizzard hoodwinking them, stealing their IP, and then going on to become the biggest gaming company on the planet. Everyone I know spends oodles of time whiling away the hours on Blizzard products like WOW, Starcraft, and Hearthstone. Meanwhile, the only thing you can find about WH40K is guys like TotalBiscuit lamenting how utterly awful the games are that absolutely no one plays because GW hands out its IP willy-nilly to anyone and everyone.

Hopefully the BL really is getting back to its old standards. And hopefully the folks running GW do the smart thing and hand the decision making over to people that actually love this IP and know what to do with it.

I agree with you that from roughly end of 2013 to beginning of 2016, BL was mostly crap

As for gaming...Space Marine and Dawn of War I and II were solid

Everything else...bleh

GW has such incredibly strong IP...it's amazing they've mostly squandered it in the realm of games

Exactly

Yeah, I remember calling this YEARS ago on this forum. I said the quality of the Black Library was taking a long walk off a short pier because of its switch to poorly done audio books, legions of overpriced short stories, an unrelenting horde of reprints, and lack of real novels. I was roundly mocked and vilified. Even ADB chimed in, chastising me and doing a magnificent job of carrying water for the company.

I knew that wouldn't go down well when I read it this afternoon

It did gave me an actual image of ADB, balancing a big bowl of water on top of his head, much like women in central Africa.

Well thought. Turn on our imagination geller field

Is the preponderance of shorts and novellas separate from the issue of tie-ins?

Edit: upon reading AD-B's post, I realise that was a redundant question. But to salvage it, did authors have issues with the rise of shorter formats?

They don't. Cause they are now paid the same amount for the smaller word count

[A D-B]

Is the preponderance of shorts and novellas separate from the issue of tie-ins?

 

Edit: upon reading AD-B's post, I realise that was a redundant question. But to salvage it, did authors have issues with the rise of shorter formats?

 

I didn't talk to all of them, and the authors I talk to most are Dan and John, and it never affected us for various reasons, so it's not something I can weigh in on with overarchng authority. But it wasn't, by and large, seen as positive, no. It was primarily seen as a symptom of the strange cultural shift in the company at that period, and pretty scary stuff. I can only speak personally, but I'm a novelist. 90% of what I do is write novels, with a side order of 5% comics and 5% shorter fiction. I want to write novels set in the Warhammer 40,000 universe for as long as they let me, and that's what I bring to the editors. I'm not a short story machine where you put in requests and out pops a 2,000 to 10,000 word story, or a novella tied into the miniature of the month. Novellas and short stories are format choices, not limitations. I do them sometimes, and they can be a palate cleanser and a lot of fun. They're not inherently evil or whatever. But just those, no, it wasn't seen as a good thing.

 

I don't say that because I have any vaunted integrity, but because they're completely different jobs. One I do as well as I can, one I'd be terrible at and would never even try. (And, thankfully, was never asked to try.)

 

More practically, it'd also be far less money. BL's novels run on royalties, as you'd expect. Short stories don't - again, just as you'd expect - and novellas don't always.

 

 

 

They don't. Cause they are now paid the same amount for the smaller word count

 

Quite the opposite. Drastically the opposite.

[HeritorA]

 

Is the preponderance of shorts and novellas separate from the issue of tie-ins?

 

Edit: upon reading AD-B's post, I realise that was a redundant question. But to salvage it, did authors have issues with the rise of shorter formats?

 

I didn't talk to all of them, and the authors I talk to most are Dan and John, and it never affected us for various reasons, so it's not something I can weigh in on with overarchng authority. But it wasn't, by and large, seen as positive, no. It was primarily seen as a symptom of the strange cultural shift in the company at that period, and pretty scary stuff. I can only speak personally, but I'm a novelist. 90% of what I do is write novels, with a side order of 5% comics and 5% shorter fiction. I want to write novels set in the Warhammer 40,000 universe for as long as they let me, and that's what I bring to the editors. I'm not a short story machine where you put in requests and out pops a 2,000 to 10,000 word story, or a novella tied into the miniature of the month. Novellas and short stories are format choices, not limitations. I do them sometimes, and they can be a palate cleanser and a lot of fun. They're not inherently evil or whatever. But just those, no, it wasn't seen as a good thing.

 

I don't say that because I have any vaunted integrity, but because they're completely different jobs. One I do as well as I can, one I'd be terrible at and would never even try. (And, thankfully, was never asked to try.)

 

More practically, it'd also be far less money. BL's novels run on royalties, as you'd expect. Short stories don't - again, just as you'd expect - and novellas don't always.

 

 

 

They don't. Cause they are now paid the same amount for the smaller word count

 

Quite the opposite. Drastically the opposite.

 

Drastically the opposite - ? I'm kinda confused. From the point of logic - the lesser the word count,  lesser the payment? In that case I'm kinda off can't understand how that work

[veterannoob]

golly gee is going on? Refresh the page and so much is missing now. Whatever, all good. Reading this and the absolute insanity on Robotech KS drama mixes the perfect martini of misery. I'll hear later today at a Trump rally that BL and/or B&C had devastating attacks yesterday...

So...I too look forward to part 2 of Laurie's interview. And finishing Magnus so I can tackle Slaughter at Giant's Coffin.

[Taliesin]

 

Is the preponderance of shorts and novellas separate from the issue of tie-ins?

 

Edit: upon reading AD-B's post, I realise that was a redundant question. But to salvage it, did authors have issues with the rise of shorter formats?

 

. I can only speak personally, but I'm a novelist. 90% of what I do is write novels, with a side order of 5% comics and 5% shorter fiction. 

 

Confirmation that Emperor's Spears is a novel folks.

[HeritorA]

is going on? Refresh the page and so much is missing now. Whatever, all good. Reading this and the absolute insanity on Robotech KS drama mixes the perfect martini of misery. I'll hear later today at a Trump rally that BL and/or B&C had devastating attacks yesterday...

So...I too look forward to part 2 of Laurie's interview. And finishing Magnus so I can tackle Slaughter at Giant's Coffin.

Is where part 2 planned? By the way solid plan with Magnus - and then right into the Slaughter at Giant's Coffin with the Daedalus in tow.

[ronin_cse]

Wow this was an entertaining read. I glad I checked this thread from my stalking of ADB posts ;)

[HeritorA]

Hussah! Part 2 of the interview has arrived!

https://trackofwords.wordpress.com/2016/12/02/interview-with-laurie-goulding-part-two/

[R_F_D]

Hussah! Part 2 of the interview has arrived!

https://trackofwords.wordpress.com/2016/12/02/interview-with-laurie-goulding-part-two/

 

Scroll to the bottom, it was published December 2016.....

 

Laurie has done two interviews with Track of Words, the second part of the second one (There and Back Again from February 2017) isn't up yet.

[Taliesin]

I am hopeful we may see the second part of that interview before the year is out.

[HeritorA]

Hussah! Part 2 of the interview has arrived!

https://trackofwords.wordpress.com/2016/12/02/interview-with-laurie-goulding-part-two/

Scroll to the bottom, it was published December 2016.....

Laurie has done two interviews with Track of Words, the second part of the second one (There and Back Again from February 2017) isn't up yet.

ahhhh - I see. A little bit confusing He should separate them more clearly. That one is indeed a old one - but it;s could only be checked by the text and date

[Bulwyf]

I am glad to finally read both parts of the interview. I do remember posting on this site a couple of years ago or so pointing out how fewer novels were being released from BL. It concerned me greatly at that time and I wondered at the change in BL practice. After watching my beloved Warhammer Fantasy Battles IP get destroyed after my personal investment of thirty years plus into the hobby it almost drove me completely away from the 40k setting.

 

I am relieved to see the old BL starting to return. I have no interest in audio dramas or novellas. ADB said he is a 90% novelist. I respect that as I only want to read 90% novels with a soupcon or short stories of novellas. I would love to see more stories told from the pov of any non Imperium faction. A World Eater that wants to remove his Butcher's Nails before he totally loses himself, Dark Eldar in any non Commorragh setting, the story of the Ork that wants to know why red really is faster, etc. 

 

Hopefully we will see more variety in the years to come. There's only so much loyalist Space Marine or Imperial Guard stories that can be told.

[Taliesin]

I am glad to finally read both parts of the interview. 

 

The second part still hasn't been posted yet, so where did you read it?

[JH79]

 

I am glad to finally read both parts of the interview. 

 

The second part still hasn't been posted yet, so where did you read it?

 

Voila :-)

[R_F_D]

 

 

I am glad to finally read both parts of the interview. 

 

The second part still hasn't been posted yet, so where did you read it?

 

Voila :-)

 

 

That's part 2 of the December 2016 interview.