Dungeons & Dragons: The Legend Of Drizzt: Neverwinter Tales #3
Written by R.A. Salvatore and Geno Salvatore
Art by Agustin Padilla
Colors by Leonard O’Grady
Letters by Chris Mowry
Covers by Gonzalo Flores, Tim Seeley, Leonard O’Grady, Eric Deschamps
IDW Publishing
Release Date: November 9, 2011
Cover Price: $3.99

It seems that R.A. Salvatore is everywhere these days. And I love it! He and his son, Geno Salvatore, are writing all-new adventures for Drizzt in The Legend Of Drizzt: Neverwinter Tales #3. I’m always a sucker for new dark elf adventures. I miss his old allies but, as with all stories, things change. As always he has Guenhwyvar with him, plus his unique unicorn steed. Dahlia, his dark-hearted elven companion, accompanies him as well. Unfortunately, I didn’t read the first two issues, so I’m playing catch up with this one…luckily, it wasn’t difficult.

In this, the second part from my interview with author R.A. Salvatore, I explore his writings and other projects in which he is involved. I wanted to split the interview in order to create some continuity regarding the subjects our conversation covered. Being a New York Times bestselling author with more than 15 million books printed in the United States, having him take the time to answer so of my questions was both an honor and a privilege. As we talked, we kind of bounced from subject to subject as most people do when talking. Bob was very relaxed and very down to earth which enabled me to relax a bit. He is, after all, one of my favorite authors of all time. Hopefully I didn’t gush too much while we talked. If you have ever wondered how he got started in the business or what inspired him, he was kind enough to reveal that to me. He also explained his connection to the Forgotten Realms, who his favorite character is, and whether or not we will be seeing a Drizzt movie in the near future. Be sure to check out Part 1 of the interview, where he gives his take on electronic books and media, his preference between digital and physical books, and explains why he hates talk radio.

And with that, here we go…

This is the first of two articles based upon an interview I did with R.A. Salvatore, New York Times bestselling author.

In this one, we explore his take on ebooks, publishing, and the world at large. I can only say that I was so excited to be offered the interview and just about wet myself during it. This man is cool. And not just in a nerdy, book-loving kind of way. I mean, he is passionate about everything he does. Needless to say, this is officially a highlight in my life. Not just a quick hello and scoring his signature…this was an hour of just the two of us chatting about a wide variety of things. I’ve been reading his work for twenty years and getting a chance to speak candidly with him was awesome. We discussed his take on electronic books and media, his preference between digital and physical books, and even why he hates talk radio! 

So without further ado, I present to you answers to questions you didn’t even know you wanted to ask.

R.A. Salvatore‘s first published novel, The Crystal Shard, exploded onto the book scene in 1988 and cemented his name as one of today’s greatest fantasy authors. His first trilogy, set in the Dungeons & Dragons‘s Forgotten Realms, was such a huge hit that he was signed to write both prequels and sequels in the years following. Now, after more than twenty years and over twenty New York Times bestsellers, he continues to excite and amaze his readers with his heroic tales in his latest book, Neverwinter: Neverwinter Saga, Book II.

His most popular character, Drizzt Do’Urden, has been featured in more than two dozen books with no real ending in sight. A Drow Elf ranger is probably not the first choice most people would have picked to write about, but Salvatore did just that. I recently had the chance to sit down the author to talk about various topics, but one subject we touched upon was Drizzt and his weapon of choice, the scimitar. See here below an excerpt for our interview where Salvatore reveals why Drizzt carries scimitars.

May the Force be with you all! Geeks of Doom will be posting a couple of Star Wars articles today, May 25, for Universal Day of the Jedi, which celebrates the anniversary of the release of the first Star Wars movie.

This year, Universal Day of the Jedi also celebrates the anniversary of Timothy Zahn‘s novel, Heir to the Empire. The initial release of this novel 20 years ago this month is significant, because it was quite literally groundbreaking: its impact would open the floodgates for an amazing deluge of Star Wars novels and comics – turning the Expanded Universe into an EXPANDING Universe.

Zahn’s Thrawn Trilogy, of which Heir to the Empire is the first part, is widely regarded by many fans as one of the best series of Star Wars books to ever have been released. Some fans even consider the trilogy to be the equivalent of the closest we may ever get to a Star Wars Sequel Trilogy. Timothy Zahn has continued his journeys into the Expanded Star Wars Universe through the years – exploring deeper into the history and legacy of Grand Admiral Thrawn, the continual growing relationship between Luke Skywalker and Mara Jade, and also the mysteries behind the enigmatic Outbound Flight.

I figured with this month being the anniversary of Zahn’s masterpiece, and also with today being Universal Day of the Jedi, it would be a good opportunity to take a look back at some of the finer examples of Star Wars novels over the years.