What Happened?
It seemed like things were going well once I finished the books. I got in contact with Robert Sirotek, the big boss man at Sir-Tech, he liked the stories, I felt confident about them... so why are they on my website instead of on a bookshelf?
It's a long story, really, so I'll just give you the condensed version:
Chris: "Hi Mr. Sirotek! I wrote these awesome books based on your even more awesome games, and I was hoping we could publish them together, share the profits, and possibly even fund a Wizardry 9 with the money! Sounds like a dream come true, huh?"
Mr. Sirotek: "Sorry, Chris, I love the stories, but Aeria Corporation in Japan owns the Wizardry copyright now. You have to talk to them, but no worries, because I'll put you in touch with them."
Chris: "Ok, thanks!"
...
Chris: "Hi Aeria! Want to publish these great books?"
Aeria: "Gee, they're really great and all, but we need you to have an agent before we can authorize anything."
Chris: "Ok. Hey, 150 separate agents from all over the United States! Want to publish these great books?"
Agents: "Gee, they're really great and all, but we need to have Aeria's authorization before we can be your agent."
Chris: "Ummm..."
Aeria: "We need an agent before we'll authorize anything."
Agents: "We need authorization before we'll be your agent."
Chris: :(
That's it in a nutshell. I took the books down because I seriously thought they would be published, and I could share my take on the Wizardry legacy with the whole world. You know, to try to give others a taste of the wonderful memories that Wizardry has provided me in my youth and today.
So two years, three books, and no publishing. That's why the books are back up here, so people can read them, despite them not being published.
I look back on this whole ordeal sometimes, and I wonder... if someone had told me that I would never be published, and things would turn out this way, with these hundreds of pages of my heart sitting in some dusty corner of the internet... would I have still written them?
The answer, of course, is yes. Despite the outcome, I had a blast writing these stories, and I'd write them again... even if I were the only one to read them. I love Wizardry, and I love writing; that will never change. :)
