The Life of a Battletech Writer

I write Battletech, but what does that mean?

To be a a writer in an IP with such a rich and deep background, it can't be a casual relationship. While other IPs, such as Star Trek and Star Wars have a much more open universe, Battletech has a single unifying history and well-defined factions. While Star Trek's canon is malleable, and  Star Wars is only now beginning to unify their canon (after removing a large chunk of the previous 'canon'), Battletech's has been consistent (in general terms, some details were altered by following authors to better fit in with what is now canon.) for almost 40 years. 

I remember when The Sword and the Dagger came out -- that novel, if it was written today, because today's canon would have not allowed a number of places and events to be in it. It isn't a bad novel, but the author was writing that novel with only a few notes and no background to base the story on. So reading it today, it doesn't have the same ring of later novels.

Any Battletech story or novel today has to past through a battery of fact checks, ranging from correct military ranks in a faction's military, the correct 'Mech variant, history check, and even language. Yes, things will slip through, but most are caught and the writer notified about what needs to be changed.

So, what does this mean to me, as a writer? What follows is a rough outline about how I go about writing a story. This is about story fiction, not sourcebook fiction.

Stories come in two ways: me writing a story, and John saying, "Hey, I need you to write this!" (like the Elements of Treason series). 

For my own stories, it sometimes starts with a story idea -- A "What if?" question. For example, "What if a soldier gains an undeserved reputation?" (The Lance Killer) or "What if a priest found his faith being tested?" (State of Grace). Other times, it could be an image that inspires a story. Hikagemono was inspired by the first TechManual cover.

After the idea is born, I research. When would be a good time and place to set this story? Sometimes,  it can be lines from a sourcebook that set the time and place -- The Lance Killer was set in time and place by two lines in the FedCom War sourcebook. Heroes' Bridge was inspired from a description of the fighting on Mandate described in the Fourth Successor War sourcebook. Kurodenkou has it basis in a scenario from the The Dragon Roars scenario book. Every so often, I will read through a Battletech book, seeing if anything sparks a story idea.

After I have a story's basic idea, along with a time and place, I research details. 'Mechs need to be the right ones for the time and place the story occurs, and things like ranks (Important to have the right ranks), anything from a planet's description I can use, such as locations, and where a unit should be.

While I'm researching, I'm writing. Depending on the level of detail, I may skip a section, or use things like "XXXXX" for words or locations I don't know at the moment and come back later and fill it in. I don't usually outline a story, but let it flow naturally.

Once the story is done, I send it in and continue onto the next story. Sometimes, I have more than one story I'm working on at any time. When I get feedback on a story, I make the corrections, or make an argument to leave certain details as they are.

Now, novels are John Helfers IMing me and saying, "I have something for you. You interested?" Icons of War was passed onto me because the original author didn't have the time to write it. The Elements of Treason series have their roots in the Tamar Rising sourcebook. In this case, I take the events from the sourcebook, and construct a plot around them. 

I also am not afraid to go back and revisit characters to use them in other stories. I feel that their usefulness is far from over and they have more to say. I've done that with several characters, and I find they are still as fresh as they were when they first appeared.

With novels, it allows me to broaden the number of characters and subplots. While I have the events I must include, I can put my own spin on them, staying with the spirit of the sourcebook's words while adding depth to the events.

In Icons of War, I had to come up with a reason why the McKenna's Pride was in the Inner Sphere with General Kerensky's body onboard. The largest problem was the Wolves left the Clan Homeworlds in 3071, but the McKenna's Pride is still there in 3076. It is this problem that led to the main plot of Icons, and the characters and events that branch off of this plot. The blank slate of non-warrior Homeworld Clan society and a mention of Free Guilds in the Jade Falcon, combined with the presence of the Dark Caste led to Satinka and her people being created. To show the Clan government wasn't completely clueless led to the creation of Bhu Telinov and Warrior Kyne. Stas and the Wraiths came about because I needed a 'Mech battle and only a couple of my other characters were Mechwarriors. The running space battle at the climax was  necessary to maintain tension. As the pieces came together, they answered questions that I had, like "Why did it take Garman's team five years to steal the battleship?" and "Why did Garman take the McKenna's Pride instead of just the General's body?"

Once I've completed the first draft, I send it in and wait for the editor to read though it, make notes and changes. Once I have the list of changes, I read through them and change what I agree with and argue those changes I don't agree with.. I know that I do not write perfect first drafts; few people do. And most changes are made without complaint, a few with muttered curses, but not worth arguing about, and a few changes I strongly oppose. I will sometimes take a note and incorporate into the story in a way they don't expect. The second draft gets sent back and the process is repeated until everyone is satisfied. 

Sometimes, the Word Count is the limiting factor. I am given a word count and I have to try to stick to that. Sometimes I can hit the WC, other times, I have to ask for another 5K words to complete the story. The word count is why some events are not covered, but are glossed over. I have told John that "It's stuffing a 60K story into a 45K bag." I'm looking at writing short stories to cover some of those events I glossed over in the novels.

I am never not writing; if it isn't Battletech, it's for my other projects. For Battletech, I have several short stories started, as well as novellas in various states of written. Some may see the light of day, others won't -- for those I don't, I may strip out characters and put them into other stories that need them.

I think I've rambled on enough for this post. Enjoy yourselves and be safe.

Craig
 

The rise of the SuburbanMech

Things are moving along as well as can be expected on the writing side of the Battletech Universe. I am waiting on feedback on a couple of projects and working on others. but I thought I would take a blog post on a 'Mech design I am very proud of -- the UM-R90 SurburbanMech.

As I described it in the article in Shrapnel #4, The SurburbanMech is an overcaffinated UrbanMech. It's faster than the original, can jump farther, and switches to an all-energy readout. By replacing the autocannon with a PPC, enough weight was freed up to install a larger engine and an extra jump jet. There are not enough heat sinks for an Alpha Strike, but with a some effort, it can do the job.

The SurburbanMech is an old design, one that has been around for over two decades. One day, I was looking at the design and something clicked. So, I did the redesign and used it in a couple of battles. At the time, Battletechnology was being published, so my friend Rob Madson and I decided to start submitting things to the magazine. The SurbarbanMech was the first thing we submitted and the first thing we had published in Battlechnology #16 -- my first Battletech writing credit.

For a couple of decades, the design was nothing more than a side note in the Battletech Universe. When the magazine decanonized, the SurburbanMech was in limbo. It wasn't until other Battletechnology designs started showing up in canon products, I brushed off the design, wrote a new entry for the 'Mech and submitted it. The rest is history.

Both the industries mentioned in both the TRO articles -- Hammerstorm Electronics Corporation (HEC) was my company, while Phoenix Heavy Industries (PHI) was Rob's company. The two appeared in the entry for the Rattlesnake in Battletechology #21. And while Rob is no longer with us, I had to keep his touch on the design as a tribute to his memory. 

I'm proud of the SurburbanMech being canon again. When I heard that the 'Mech was now part of the Battletech computer game, I couldn't help but smile. It's a nice upgrade to the UrbanMech. Death From Above Wargaming recently did an Battlytics of the SurburbanMech on their YouTube channel (Located here: UrbanMech Shootout PART 3 - UM-R90: Battlytics | Classic BattleTech Mech Review | Clan Invasion), along with the original UM-R60 and the UM-R60L UrbanMechs in other videos. Watch all three and see how the SurburbanMech stacks up with the others.

Oh, and if anyone wants to run the UM-R100, go ahead. I have never run it before in battle and I'm curious to see how it stacks up on the battlefield.

That's it for today. See you later!

Craig

 

Icons of War Audiobook

In early September, Icons of War as released as an audiobook. Read by the Battletech's novel voice actor, Tren Sparks, this full-length audiobook is unabridged and bring Garman, Satinka, and the other characters to life. It's only five hours, seventeen minutes long, and can be burned to four or five CDs.

This isn't the first novel I've had involvement in that's an audiobook: the Outcast Ops novels I co-authored are also audiobooks. But Icon is my first solo novel on Audio, and it's strange to listen to the words I wrote. As an author, you can hear he character speak those lines -- you imagine they way they speak, their accents, their micro expressions. Now, I had no interaction with Tren -- I didn't give him any notes about how a character should sound, how to pronounce any of the words, or any other advice.

Yet, he did a great job. The voices he use, especially for Kyne, are good. Tren brings the characters to life -- maybe not exactly the way I envisioned them, but I have no complaints. In fact, I think Tren's Kyne is better than the voice I imagined for him. I love the audio version of Icons.

Now, it's only available on Audible, and can be found here: BattleTech: Icons of War Audible Audiobook – Unabridged. If you are a Audible subscriber, you can use your free monthly audiobook to chose Icons. Tren is a great narrator and he brings my words to life.

That's all for now.

Craig

 

BattleTech is Officially One of the Biggest Names in Tabletop Gaming Now

At least according to both Catalyst and Polygon....

I hadn't intended on making a blog post this quickly after the last one, but I thought I would say something about the article. The Catalyst article can be found here:A Look Back–And Ahead–at BattleTech’s Success. The Polygon article can be found here: BattleTech is officially one of the biggest names in tabletop gaming now. What I want to do is take a look a the numbers Catalyst has put out.

At the end of 2022, the seventh printing of A Game of Armor Combat and the eighth printing of the Beginner's Box had been shipped out. In the last four years, 160,000 copies of both those boxed set have been printed up and sent to the market place.

160,000 copies.

Not bad for a game that was declared dead and buried the on the late 90's, or on life support in the 00's. A game that has been around close to 40 years, with an initial high learning curve, and whose rules had remained mostly the same in that time. In this day of short attention spans and computer games, Battletech has held its own and has brought in new players and those returning to the game after years of inactivity.

The key is no doubt the plastic miniatures that come with each box. The minis, well-detailed and relatively cheap (Compared to the metal minis, which have their own place in the play of things), have been overhauled and resized to make clear the differences between each 'Mech class from light 'Mechs up to the assault 'Mechs.

On that foundation, Catalyst launched a highly successful Kickstarter to  bring in Clan 'Mechs into the mix. A Boxed set was backed with multiple Lance, Star, and Level IIs packs, (AKA, Force Packs) along with a wave of swag. The Clan boxed set is currently on it's fourth printing and brings another 55,000 copies to the marketplace, bringing the number of copies of the three boxed sets to 215,000.

And the New Alpha Strike boxed set, that adds another 25,000 to the initial print run, and a second printing run of 20,000 already in progress, will boost the number of boxed sets to over a quarter of a million for all boxed sets.

As for force packs? 600,000 force packs printed up, of which most have already been sold. According to the Polygon article, over 9,000,000 plastic minis have been manufactured. NINE MILLION. (It can be argued that's more 'Mechs than the 'Mech combat strength of the combined militaries of every faction in the game) and the four new merc-themed lances coming out in January and four more in March will add another 160,000 force packs, bringing the total number of force packs up to three quarters of a million.

But I have to include the other part of the Battletech line -- sourcebooks, rulebooks, and supplements. The Total Warfare rulebook is on its tenth printing, and comparing a first printing with a tenth printing will show that the two printings rules set are 97-98% the same. Catalyst has gone heavily into digital products, allowing series that would otherwise never be seen a chance to find an audience that is more tech-savvy than ten years ago. 

And Fiction.... What can I say? Only a few IPs can boast over a hundred novels, covering several hundred years of war, political intrigue, and skulduggery and have a base consistency few other IPs can match. Shrapnel has been a success, and the next issue will be #12 -- three years of consistence work to get the magazine out on time. I have had some success in  both fiction and sourcebook writing and hope to do more of it in 2023.

I can't wait to see the Merc Kickstarter!

Craig

What's on the Horizon for me in Battletech in 2023?

 

2023 is a new year and I hope will see more growth in both Battletech and my writing for it.

A note about upcoming projects: I have little insider knowledge of what's in the works unless I am directly involved in it. And even if I did know anything, I have an NDA preventing me from revealing it. So, when things are announced, I am as surprised and delighted as you are.

Right now, things are looking up. If things go right, I will have three Battletech novels out this year. I won't go into great detail, but want to say something about them.

The first one up should be Elements of Treason: Honor. This is a Hell's Horses-center novel, the first one about the combined-arms Clan. Like the other two Elements of Treason novels, the background for the novel can be found in the Tarmar Rising sourcebook. But unlike the other two, I couldn't fit the story into the word count of the other two. So, with John Helfer's (Catalyst's fiction director) permission, I expanded the novel to 75,000 words to broaden the story. The second draft was turned in just before the holidays, and hopefully, I will get the needed feedback before the end of the month.

The second novel has been written, but there are changes that will have to be made to bring it into line with the current timeline. The novel dives deeper into one of Major Houses' culture in an area that hasn't really been explored before. I won't say anything more than that, as I still need feedback from the powers that be on what needs to be changed.

The third novel is in the planning stages, and is part of a trilogy along with two other well-known BT authors. The three novels will cover events that have been talked about in sourcebooks, but have never been really explored before in fiction. More when the process is father along -- as I said, it's in the planning stages right now.

As for other projects, I'm still writing short stories and hope to have two more published in Shrapnel this year. I also have a few ideas for gaming content for Shrapnel I need to pitch to Phil. And if other lines ask for something from me, I will do my best to accommodate them.

That's the plan at any rate......

That's it for now, I'll try and be more proactive in the blogging part of the occupation. Until next time!

Craig