Interview with Rolling Empires creator Nick Fong
Shards of Power, Free Sci-fi Reads, and How I Finally Won "Dead Reckoning"
Summer is here! And mine kicked off with a visit from my nephew, Nick Fong, who also happens to be the creator of Rolling Empires, the board game Shards of Power is based on. Even though I was still testing positive for Covid when he arrived (I know, right? Don’t even get me started), I recovered enough to take advantage of his visit and get some video footage. Here’s a piece of a little interview we did together:
If you haven’t yet delved into this FREE READ on RoyalRoad.com, here’s some snobby elf queen head talk to whet your appetite:
I’m giving this story away to help build my C.P. Swift brand and gain some traction on Royal Road. If you like it, the best thing you can do for me is to complete an Advanced Review. Each Advanced Review (where it asks you to rank the work in 4 different areas) boosts my ranking immensely, so if you are up for it and want to help an author out, I would appreciate it!
More Free Sci-fi/Fantasy Reads…
If you love to read sci-fi and fantasy, I’ve got some more for you! Click on the graphic below to gain access to a number of free sci-fi/fantasy fictions. You’ll be prompted to sign up for the authors’ newsletters in order to gain access, so it’s a great way to find new talent. You can unsubscribe any time.
Sci-fi TV…
So, I’m not typically a video game person (unless you count Beat Saber; I will destroy anyone at Beat Saber). However, I got sucked deep into the vortex that is the TV show Fallout, and I never wanted to get out.
Featured on Amazon Prime, this is a tongue-in-cheek, superbly crafted post-apocalyptic romp based on the video game by the same name. And while I wasted valuable seconds asking questions like, “What the heck are the ghouls all about?” those of you who have played the game will be enjoying the homages (like the ghouls).
Highs: Ella Purnell as a naive vault-dweller who, paradoxically, is as unfazed and badass as a GenX-er and Walton Goggins as the morally gray (well, more like morally charcoal) ghoul whom it’s too late to hate because they already made you like him in the first episode’s prologue.
Lows: It’s gory as hell.
Next up is Foundation on AppleTV, based on the epic Isaac Asimov book spanning 1000 years which nobody ever thought could be adapted to the screen, but they were wrong.
Highs: Lee Pace as the sexy middle-aged clone Brother Day, sharing the ruling of the known galaxy with his clone “brothers” Dawn and Dusk. Lou Llobell as the beautiful, misunderstood math genius. The special effects, characters, mind-bending everythingness just sings.
Lows: Made me feel dumb. Probably should have taken calculus.
Board game life…
But you know what makes me NOT feel dumb? Winning at board games. Like I finally did for the first time with Dead Reckoning.
The first couple of times I played, I tried to avoid confrontation and just do my thing, but it turns out that’s not the pirate way. This time, I went in ready to pick fights, bought all the cannons I could, and ran away with it. Yo ho ho.
I love this board game 3000, and even though I didn’t win this time, I did get a T-rex early on and that was awesome. Our friend, Frank, actually won—with a mutant strategy! I’ve never seen anyone win with a mutant strategy OR fill up their entire park, but he did it, with like zero reputation! Well played, Frank.
On the personal side…
Things are heating up with my nerdy romcoms! Just turned in 2nd round edits on Celebrity Crush and am hoping for a cover reveal soon. If you want to follow that side of me, find me on social media at @christyswiftbooks and check out my romcom newsletter.
We’ve got a new grandbaby joining the family! Malachi James Austin is due July 3rd. He’ll be our third grandson. Can’t wait to meet him!
Had a great Memorial Day Weekend kayaking, shopping, and enjoying the beach. So many mullet were leaping out of the water, I was sure one was going to land in the kayak or on the paddleboard. Saw a manatee surface and a baby alligator, too. Life is good in Florida.
If you know someone who loves sci-fi, fantasy, and/or board games, or who knows me personally and might want to follow along on this journey, please feel free to share this newsletter with them. I will never share or sell their information.
Thanks again for reading. See you next month!
