|
Archive-name: books/david-gemmell-faq
Posting-Frequency: monthly Last-modified: 12/11/2005 Version: 2.1 URL: http://www.gemmellmania.co.uk/content.php?article=20 Copyright: (c) 1999-2005 Tony Evans Maintainer: Tony Evans (tony@gemmell-mania.org.uk) See reader questions & answers on this topic! - Help others by sharing your knowledge alt.books.david-gemmell Frequently Asked Questions version 2.0 last updated : 12th November 2005 Contents 0. What's New & What's Next 0.1. What's New 0.2. What's Next 1. Introduction to this FAQ 1.1. Welcome 1.2. Legal Bits Q1. Ok, slow down, what's Usenet? Q2. Where can I find more information on Usenet and netiquette? 2. The alt.books.david-gemmell newsgroup Q3. What can I find in alt.books.david-gemmell? Q4. What should I post to alt.books.david-gemmell? Q5. I can't find alt.books.david-gemmell on my news server, what do I do? 3. David Gemmell Q6. Who is he? Q7. Does he write under other names? 4. David's books Q8. Which books has David written? Q9. What order did he write them in? Q10. What order do the Drenai books take place in? Q11. What order should I read the Drenai books in? Q12. What order do the Sipstrassi books take place in? Q13. What is he currently working on? Q14. Why are his US release so far behind his UK ones? Q15. Did David write a book called "Lost Crown"? Q16. Why did David write "White Knight, Black Swan" under a different author name? 5. Other trivia Q17. Are there any maps for the Drenai books? Q18. Are there any timelines for any of the books? Q19. Are the different worlds Gemmell writes about actually all the same? Q20. Is Druss related to Rek? How does Tenaka fit in? 6. Other sources of information Q21. Are there any web resources? Q22. Are there any other usenet resources? Q23. Are there any mailing lists devoted to David's work? Q24. How do I contact David? 7. References 8. Credits ---------------------------------\\---------------------------------- 0. What's New & What's Next 0.1. What's New Version 2.1 * Added Lord of the Silver Bow Version 2.0 * First update in a long, long time. * Updated sections on books to include the latest ones. * Changed a few URL's. Version 1.2 * Added info about Ravenheart. * Cleaned up sections on web pages. Version 1.1e * Added contact details for Transworld UK and Transworld AUS in Q24. Version 1.1d * Added details of new work in progress by David (Q13). * Re-worded Q14 to be in the correct tense. Version 1.1c * Corrected the title of 'Quest for Lost Heroes' [was written as 'The Quest ....'] Version 1.1b * Changed the usenet reference in Q1 as the previous link was dead. * Corrected the mailing list information in Q23. Version 1.1a * Minor spelling/formatting corrections. * Added a new question about the relationship between Druss & Rek. Version 1.1 * Added Hero in the Shadows to the list of written work (Q8). * Updated Q13 to contain latest information. * Added Dale Rippke's map details to Q17. Version 1 * Question about White Knight, Black Swan added (Q16). * Contact details for Transworld added (Q24). * Details of Drenai map added (Q17). Version 0.6e * ISBN added for White Knight, Black Swan in Q8. * Address for Orbit added to Q24. * ISBN added for Drenai Tales in Q8. * ISBN added for The Complete Chronicles of the Jerusalem Man in Q8. * Q15 added [old Q15+ renumbered] * Chronological order option added to Q11. Version 0.6d * Reversed the order of the items in this section. * Added a link to http://www.faqs.org in 1.1 * Q18 updated with more information Version 0.6c * Trivial tidy-up of information. * Change of mailing list details in Q21 (again). * Change to Q13 to reflect latest facts, and some rumours. * Change of URL's to reflect change of FAQ location (i.e. now at http://www.gemmell-mania.org.uk) * Some detail added to Q11. * URL added to Q18. * Del Rey's detailed added to Q24. Version 0.6b * Approval has been given, and this is being posted to news.answers and alt.answers for the first time. Version 0.6a * Q8 now has most of the ISBN numbers for UK releases. Version 0.6 * Q13 updated to reflect release date of the new book. * Q19 updated to reflect the new Gemmell webring. 0.2. What's Next Tell me! What do you want to see added? ---------------------------------\\---------------------------------- 1. Introduction to this FAQ 1.1. Welcome Welcome to the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document for the Usenet newsgroup alt.books.david-gemmell. This document attempts to answer common or frequently asked questions, and provide pointers to further information about David, his books and his life. The FAQ tries to have a standard format. Each of the main sections (numbered 1. 2. etc.) has a brief introduction, and then contains a number of common questions and answers. Each question starts with Q and a number (Q1, Q3 etc.) to make them easier to search for. The author has tried to ensure the content of this FAQ is accurate, but sometimes mistakes are made - if you know of any information in this FAQ which is incorrect, please contact the author so it can be changed. However, please also remember, this is the FAQ for a discussion group - and discussion by its very nature can be ambiguous. This FAQ is in no way endorsed, supported or approved by David Gemmell or any of his publishers. This FAQ should be present in the alt.books.david-gemmell newsgroup, the alt.answers and news.answers newsgroups and also on the web at, http://www.gemmellmania.co.uk/content.php?article=20 The FAQ is also available at the Internet FAQ Consortium website, along with some 3500 other FAQ's. You can find the site at, http://www.faqs.org and this specific FAQ at, http://www.faqs.org/faqs/books/david-gemmell-faq/ 1.2. Legal Bits This document is Copyright (c) 1999-2004 by Tony Evans, all rights reserved. This FAQ may be posted to any USENET newsgroup, on-line service, web site, or BBS as long as it is posted in its entirety and includes this copyright statement. This FAQ may not be distributed for financial gain. This FAQ may not be included in commercial collections or compilations without express permission from the author. Q1. Ok, slow down, what's Usenet? Rather than try to describe Usenet in my own terms, why not check out this web site, which contains lots of documentation and is essential reading for the newcomer to Usenet. http://www.faqs.org/usenet/index.html The information on that web site is also posted to the usenet groups news.answers and news.announce.newusers which are also recommended reading for new users to Usenet. Q2. Where can I find more information on Usenet and netiquette? Again, the above URL contains links to some very good documents, and the reader is urged to look at "A Primer on How to Work With the Usenet Community" on that site at least. ---------------------------------\\---------------------------------- 2. The alt.books.david-gemmell newsgroup Q3. What can I find in alt.books.david-gemmell? The alt.books.david-gemmell newsgroup is a place for David's fans to hang out and chat. As a result, you'll find conversations about many different things, differences of opinion, questions, answers, thoughts and feelings. It's intended to be a social place. Q4. What should I post to alt.books.david-gemmell? Some newsgroups prefer you to keep your conversation entirely on-topic, and give a strict list of what that means. The alt.books.david-gemmell group is a place for David Gemmell fans to chat and mingle, and as such, almost anything of interest to the readers is on-topic and fine for posting. However, please use your common sense, and observe that the following will not be tolerated, Any binary/non-text posting of any sort. Keep binaries to the alt.binaries hierarchy. By all means, if you've got something relevant to show people, put it on the web and post a link in the group. Any HTML/non-plain text formatted posts. Usenet is a plain text environment. Many usenet readers do so using Unix systems and/or text only applications. If you post in HTML, many people will NOT be able to read your post. Don't do it. Do not post in both text and HTML and think this will be better, it isn't, it doubles the size of your post (at least) and just annoys people. Advertising, SPAM, chain-letters, make-money-quick schemes, etc. postings are not welcome. Keep them out. As long as you avoid these types of postings, your message will probably be on-topic and welcome in alt.books.david-gemmell. Q5. I can't find alt.books.david-gemmell on my news server, what do I do? You have several options, Request that your ISP adds the group. This is fairly easy, and can usually be achieved by mailing a relevant contact address at your ISP. This is the preferred option - since it increases the propagation of alt.books.david-gemmell and so everyone benefits! Try using a public access news server or a pay-for-use service. Use a web based usenet reader, such as www.deja.com or www.remarq.com - these solutions are imperfect since the web isn't a good forum for usenet, but they do work. ---------------------------------\\---------------------------------- 3. David Gemmell Q6. Who is he? David Gemmell was born in London, England, in the summer of 1948. Expelled from school at sixteen for organising a gambling syndicate, he became a labourer by day, and at night his six-foot-four-inch, 230-pound frame allowed him to earn extra money as a bouncer working nightclubs in Soho. He has also worked as a freelance journalist with the London Daily Mail, Daily Mirror, and Daily Express. His first novel, Legend, was published in 1984 and has remained in print ever since. He became a full-time writer in 1986. Q7. Does he write under other names? David has written a single book (to date) under a name other than David Gemmell. It is entitled White Knight Black Swan, and was written under the name of Ross Harding. ---------------------------------\\---------------------------------- 4. David's books Q8. Which books has David written? David has written the following novels, (US titles in square brackets, known ISBN numbers for UK publications in braces). Drenai Tales: Legend [Against the Horde, re-released as Legend] {1857236815} The King Beyond The Gate {1857236653} Quest For Lost Heroes {1857236718} Waylander {1857236211} Waylander II: In the Realm of the Wolf {1857235819} The First Chronicles Of Druss The Legend {1857236807} The Legend Of Deathwalker {0552142522} Winter Warriors {0552142549} Hero in the Shadows {0593044355} White Wolf {0593044444} Swords of Night and Day {0593044479} Hawk Queen Tales: Ironhand's Daughter {0099892901} The Hawk Eternal {1857238524} Sipstrassi Tales: Wolf In Shadow [The Jerusalem Man] {1857237889} Ghost King {1857236424} Last Sword Of Power {1857237978} The Last Guardian {1857235827} Bloodstone {185723832X} Rigante Tales: Sword In The Storm {0552142565} Midnight Falcon {0593037227} Ravenheart {059304438X} Stormrider {0552146765} Troy: Lord of the Silver Bow {0593052196} Others: Dark Moon {0552142530} Echoes of the Great Song {0552142557} Knights Of Dark Renown {1857236335} Lion of Macedon {185723622X} Dark Prince {1857236661} Morningstar {1857237854} White Knight, Black Swan (as Ross Harding) {0099217716} David has also had omnibus editions of his work published, they are, Drenai Tales: Contains Legend, King Beyond the Gate, and Waylander, plus a novella 'Druss the Legend'. {0712646299} Stones of Power: A Sipstrassi Omnibus: Contains Wolf in Shadow, The Last Guardian, Ghost King, and Last Sword of Power. {0712654461} The Complete Chronicles of the Jerusalem Man: Contains Wolf in Shadow, The Last Guardian and Bloodstone. {0099676613} The Drenai Tales Volume 1: Legend, The King Beyond the Gate, Waylander {1841490849} The Drenai Tales Volume 2: Quest for Lost Heroes, Waylander II, The First Chronicles of Druss the Legend {1841491306} The Drenai Tales Volume 3: The Legend of Deathwalker, Winter Warriors, Hero in the Shadows {0593049187} Finally, David has had two of his tales released as graphic novels, they are, Legend (Text by Stan Nicholls, Artwork by Fangorn) Wolf in Shadow (Text by Stan Nicholls, Artwork by Fangorn) Q9. What order did he write them in? It's hard to say what order he wrote them, but they were published in the UK in this order, Novels Legend (1984) The King Beyond the Gate (1985) Waylander (1986) Wolf in Shadow (1987) The Ghost King (1988) The Last Sword of Power (1988) The Last Guardian (1989) Knights of Dark Renown (1989) Quest for Lost Heroes (1990) Lion of Macedon (1990) Dark Prince (1991) Waylander II: In the Realm of the Wolf (1992) Morningstar (1992) The First Chronicles of Druss the Legend (1993) White Knight, Black Swan (1993) Bloodstone (1994) Ironhand's Daughter (1995) The Hawk Eternal (1995) Dark Moon (1996) The Legend of Deathwalker (1996) Winter Warriors (1996) Echoes Of The Great Song (1997) Sword in the Storm (1998) Midnight Falcon (1999) Hero in the Shadows (March 2000) Ravenheart (April 2001) Stormrider (April 2002) White Wolf (April 2003) The Swords of Night and Day (April 2004) Lord of the Silver Bow (September 2005) Shield of Thunder (coming September 2006) Omnibus Editions Drenai Tales (1991) Stones of Power: A Sipstrassi Omnibus (1992) The Complete Chronicles of the Jerusalem Man (1995) The Drenai Tales Volume 1 (????) The Drenai Tales Volume 2 (????) The Drenai Tales Volume 3 (????) Graphic Novels Legend (1993) Wolf in Shadow (1994) Q10. What order do the Drenai books take place in? In terms of Drenai time, this is the historical ordering of the books, Waylander Waylander II: In the Realm of the Wolf Hero In the Shadows First Chronicles of Druss the Legend The Legend of Deathwalker White Wolf Legend King Beyond the Gate Quest for Lost Heroes Winter Warriors The Swords of Night and Day Q11. What order should I read the Drenai books in? There are several schools of thought on this matter. Publication Order From Dustin Tucker (tearsong at u.washington.edu) "I would read them in order of publication because for me at least (and I haven't read legend of deathwalker or winter warriors), there are some things in Legend that are mentioned in Druss the Legend, and there's more history of the world in Legend than in Waylander, and so on. I find it easier to know what some of the traditions, nations, and history of the place is before reading about the place, and Legend gives a better idea of these facts than Waylander." From Dale R. (moonblossom at dodgenet.com) "This is not an easy question to answer. It depends on what you are trying to get out of what you are reading. I assume most people would prefer to read the stories in chronological order. I have a couple of issues about reading the saga this way. I preferred reading the stories in the order they were written. That way I get to see how the author improves and expands on his craft." Chronological Order From Sam (thurgood at mweb.co.za) "Personally, I read the series in more or less chronological order, starting with Waylander. After that, I recall reading the First Chronicles, Legend, King Beyond the Gate, Quest for Lost Heroes and Winter Warriors. I would personally recommend this, I feel that the series makes more sense this way - e.g. The first Earl of Bronze (Waylander) before it has already become an established position (Legend). The two exceptions that I found to this rule were The Legend of Deathwalker and Waylander II, since they both require substantial Drenai background, they would probably fit in best somewhere after Legend." Other From Grete (grete at tagman.demon.co.uk) "I find with any author that has ongoing series that you read them first in the order they come out in (because usually you are waiting with bated breath for the next one to appear) and then later on re-read them in chronological order. So.... I say both ways ;)" Q12. What order do the Sipstrassi books take place in? They take place in this order, Ghost King Last Sword of Power Wolf in Shadow The Last Guardian Bloodstone Q13. What is he currently working on? Current as of 11th November 2005. Lord of the Silver Bow has just been released (Sep 2005) and David is working on the second of the Troy books, Shield of Thunder. Q14. Why are his US release so far behind his UK ones? David is a UK author, and initially, his books were not released in the US. When Del Rey (his current American publisher) did start publishing his work, they had some catching up to do. Del Rey released 'Hero in the Shadows' in the US at the same time as it was released in the UK. They are promising to do this for all his new work, while at the same time, releasing older titles as fast as they can. Q15. Did David write a book called "Lost Crown"? David wrote "Lost Crown" as a childrens novel with his daughter in 1986, when she was just seven. His publishers liked the idea and commissioned the work. Not knowing when it would be printed they gave it a fake ISBN and a 1999 publication date. This date was used for any book not yet written, but that had been commissioned. This was fine way back in 1986, but when 1999 actually arrived, a great number of novels started to "appear" in bibliographies and publication schedules on the 'net, although they may not have been published or even written. David finished "Lost Crown" and sent the manuscript to his publishers. They didn't like it, saying that they didn't think it had a "voice" for children. So it was shelved. When David asked for the manuscript back the following year, so that he could work on it, he was told it had been lost. As if that wasn't enough, it had been saved only on an Amstrad PCW disk that was corrupted. So the "Lost Crown" was well and truly lost. Q16. Why did David write "White Knight, Black Swan" under a different author name? From Grant Cadey (grant_cadey at hotmail.com) "One of the items touched upon when I talked to Gemmell in LA was the question of White Knight, Black Swan. It took me nearly two years to lay hands on a copy. I know what Clay means when he asks why Gemmell, being world famous, should have published it under another name. It didn't seem to make any sense. Gemmell told me that, as a kid, he used to be a big fan of Michael Moorcock. He used to wait with baited breath for the next Moorcock novel. One day he bought one, took it home and started reading it. Instead of fabulous sword and sorcery with characters like Elric and Dorian Hawkblood [?] there was a tale of a cross dressing transexual named Jerry somebody, and there wasnt a sword or a wizard in sight. Gemmell says he never forgot the disappointment, and, when he decided to write a thriller based on his experiences in East London, he didnt want any of his fantasy fans to suffer the same disappointment. So he wrote it under another name. By doing this the book only sold about a hundredth of what it would have sold, and is the only Gemmell novel now out of print. Its a strong story about a Rocky type figure in the London underworld, and it explores issues like loyalty, courage, and personal codes of honour. It is also a redemption piece with a truly uplifting ending. In fact its quintissential Gemmell without the fantasy. I dont know who has the rights to the book now, but I would think thered be enough of a market to justify reprinting it." ---------------------------------\\---------------------------------- 5. Other trivia Q17. Are there any maps for the Drenai books? The closest thing to an official map of the Drenai world at this stage, is that drawn by Eric Davis (darkness13_ at excite.com) Eric drew the map for his own interest, but it eventually came to David's attention, and is now considered as 'approved by the author'. [ url removed - web page no longer exists - anyone have a new URL?] Dale Rippke (moonblossom at dodgenet.com) has also drawn a Drenai map, which can be found here, http://www.dodgenet.com/~moonblossom/Dratlas.html Q18. Are there any timelines for any of the books? There are at present no official timelines for any of David's books, however, there is an excellent unofficial timeline for the Drenai books here, http://www.dodgenet.com/~moonblossom/legendof.htm Q19. Are the different worlds Gemmell writes about actually all the same? James Jones wrote this on one of the David Gemmell mailing lists, "Well the one time I was able to meet DG I broached the same subject with him about all of his books being written within the same world. He agreed that they were. Different times and lands but he said his plan was to have a complete link between all of his books before he died, but he doubted he would finish considering he has no idea how many books he wants to write. But they are all the same world." Q20. Is Druss related to Rek? How does Tenaka fit in? Dale Rippke writes, "Angel and Miriel's child was Druss's Great-grandfather (Bardan being Angel's grandson). This child eventually married a Nadir woman and together they traveled to Drenai. This info appeared in LEGEND OF DEATHWALKER and was confirmed by David Gemmell in the recent questionaire posted on this newsgroup. So apparently Druss is part Nadir! Regnak was descended from Senta and Miriel's son. This was foretold by Dardalion in a conversation with Kesa Khan in the novel IN THE REALM OF THE WOLF (WAYLANDER 2). We don't know how many generations removed Rek was from Senta; we do know that his father's name was Argas. So it appears that Druss and Rek are related by blood. I'm not sure as what exactly, but I don't think you could go wrong listing them as distant cousins. Tenaka Khan is the great-grandson of Rek, and the grandson of Rek's son, Orrin. Orrin's son, Hogun, married Shillat, the daughter of Jongir Khan (who is descended from Ulric) and they produced Tenaka Khan as their only child. I'm not so sure that you could make a strong case of Tenaka Khan being blood relation to Druss, although they are both descended from Miriel (and indirectly from Angel, via Senta). I would be more inclined to list Druss as Tenaka's ancestor." ---------------------------------\\---------------------------------- 6. Other sources of information Q21. Are there any web resources? There is one David Gemmell webring, hosted here, http://b.webring.com/hub?ring=gemmellweb Q22. Are there any other usenet resources? Yes, alt.books.david-gemmell exists to discuss David and his work. news:alt.books.david-gemmell Q23. Are there any mailing lists devoted to David's work? Yes, the Gemmell Fantasy list is dedicated to David and his work. You can subscribe via this link, http://www.yahoogroups.com/group/GemmellFantasy or by mailing gemmellfantasy-subscribe@yahoogroups.com Other lists at the eGroups site may include conversation about David and his work, and you can search the site using this link, http://www.yahoogroups.com/search?query=gemmell Q24. How do I contact David? You can contact David through his publishers. When doing so, please make it obvious which author you would like the mail forwarding on to. UK Transworld currently publish David's new books in the UK. You can write to David via them. David Gemmell c/o Publicity Department Transworld Publishers 61-63 Uxbridge Road London W5 5SA Orbit also publish some of David's work in the UK, and they are happy to forward snail mail to David via this address, Orbit Little, Brown and Company (UK) Ltd Brettenham House Lancaster Place London WC2E 7EN USA Del-Rey publish David's books in America, and will forward snail-mail to him if you send it to, Del Rey Books 201 East 50th St. NY, NY 10022 USA Australia I don't know if Transworld publish David's Australian books, or if they forward mail to him on request, but here is their address anyway! Transworld Publishers Pty Ltd. 40 Yeo Street Neutral Bay NSW 2089 Australia Rest of the World? ---------------------------------\\---------------------------------- 7. References The information in Q6 is obtained from the website of Del Rey and the cover blurb in many of David's books. ---------------------------------\\---------------------------------- 8. Credits Thanks to, David Gemmell for writing the books, and for helping out with some of the information in this FAQ. Orbit and Del Rey for helping out with information in this FAQ. Robert Mammone (linrob at alphalink.com.au) info on omnibus editions, graphic novels and various release dates. JSH (sulamein at my-dejanews.com) general feedback and advice. Grete (grete at tagman.demon.co.uk) for the ISBN numbers, and for some info in Q11. Dale Rippke (moonblossom at dodgenet.com) for some info in Q11, and all of Q20. Dustin Tucker (tearsong at u.washington.edu) for some info in Q11. Nigel Kersh (nckersh at surfree.net.il) for the answer to Q15. Sam (thurgood at mweb.co.za) for some info in Q11. Grant Cadey (grant_cadey at hotmail.com) for all of Q16. ---------------------------------\\---------------------------------- User Contributions:
[ Usenet FAQs | Web FAQs | Documents | RFC Index ]
Send corrections/additions to the FAQ Maintainer: Tony <tony@gemmell-mania.org.uk>
Last Update March 27 2014 @ 02:11 PM
|
[alt.books.david-gemmell] David Gemmell FAQ
Search the FAQ Archives
N - O - P - Q - R - S - T - U - V - W - X - Y - Z
[alt.books.david-gemmell] David Gemmell FAQ
[ Usenet FAQs | Web FAQs | Documents | RFC Index | Forum archive ]
Comment about this article, ask questions, or add new information about this topic: