The Steel Throne and assorted works (for Legend of the Five Rings)

Once the greatest samurai in all Rokugan, Toturi has managed to hold the Empire together despite warring clans and internal treacheries. But nothing has prepared him for the hordes of vile spirits ravaging his beloved realm. As battle rages across the battered land, Toturi and his children are the only hope for Rokugan.

Rokugan is a fantasy Asian setting. It draws from the culture of feudal Japan, with heavy elements of China, Korea, Mongolia, and other countries. This story covers the Spirit Wars, a conflict between the living and their returned ancestors, a terrible civil war that spanned almost twenty long years of the Empire’s history. This will always remain one of my favorite books, because samurai culture is such a fertile field for internal and external conflict.

Read a sample chapter.

Buy it from my store (or Amazon).

“The Director’s Cut” Bonus Material

When I wrote this book, I wrote it a bit long. Well, a lot long. I had to cut close to 20,000 words just to make the text fit in the book. The cut scenes that could stand on their own have been made into PDFs, available here.

These PDFs have been laid out so that you can print two pages onto a piece of letter-sized paper. Thanks to my editor, Mark Sehestedt, for making these happen.

Chapter ?: This appeared between chapters 2 and 3, as Empress Kaede speaks with the Void Dragon.

Chapter 4+: This section opened chapter 5, but proved unnecessary.

Chapter 6+: This was the original ending of chapter 6; read this instead of the last five paragraphs.

Chapter 25: This epilogue was meant to usher people into the Four Winds story arc.

Brothers of the Monkey

This is a round-robin short story written by those who had participated in telling the Clan War Saga. You can read it here.

In a round-robin story, each author tells a portion and turns the manuscript over to the next person in line without comment or direction. Thus, each author can (and must) take the thread wherever they wish. The goal is to end up with a cohesive story, and one in which each author ties off some threads and creates others. Of course, sometimes authors push the envelope and try to write the next author into a bit of a corner just to see how they’ll weasel out of it.

You may see a little bit of this last trick in this story.

Legacy of the Naga

This is a double-length serial short story that I wrote. I’ll get around to making it into a PDF. Really, I will.







	ISBN: 0-7869-2712-7 Released: March 2002 Once the greatest samurai in all Rokugan, Toturi has managed to hold the Empire together despite warring clans and internal treacheries. But nothing has prepared him for the hordes of vile spirits ravaging his beloved realm. As battle rages across the battered land, Toturi and his children are the only hope for Rokugan. Rokugan is a fantasy Asian setting. It draws from the culture of feudal Japan, with heavy elements of China, Korea, Mongolia, and other countries. This story covers the Spirit Wars, a conflict between the living and their returned ancestors, a terrible civil war that spanned almost twenty long years of the Empire’s history. This will always remain one of my favorite books, because samurai culture is such a fertile field for internal and external conflict. Read a sample chapter. Buy it from my store (or Amazon). Author’s Notes and Spoilers Below! “The Director’s Cut” Bonus Material When I wrote this book, I wrote it a bit long. Well, a lot long. I had to cut close to 20,000 words just to make the text fit in the book. The cut scenes that could stand on their own have been made into PDFs, available here. These PDFs have been laid out so that you can print two pages onto a piece of letter-sized paper. Thanks to my editor, Mark Sehestedt, for making these happen. Chapter ?: This appeared between chapters 2 and 3, as Empress Kaede speaks with the Void Dragon. Chapter 4+: This section opened chapter 5, but proved unnecessary. Chapter 6+: This was the original ending of chapter 6; read this instead of the last five paragraphs. Chapter 25: This epilogue was meant to usher people into the Four Winds story arc. Brothers of the Monkey This is a round-robin short story written by those who had participated in telling the Clan War Saga. You can read it here. In a round-robin story, each author tells a portion and turns the manuscript over to the next person in line without comment or direction. Thus, each author can (and must) take the thread wherever they wish. The goal is to end up with a cohesive story, and one in which each author ties off some threads and creates others. Of course, sometimes authors push the envelope and try to write the next author into a bit of a corner just to see how they’ll weasel out of it. You may see a little bit of this last trick in this story. Legacy of the Naga This is a double-length serial short story that I wrote. I’ll get around to making it into a PDF. Really, I will.