DONE!!!!!
Final line penned (er – keyboarded) this morning – The Cold Commands is a wrap! As they say in Spanish, Cha-Chan!!!
Of course, this is all slightly deceptive. There’s actually a fair bit of work still to be done. The rough cut goes out to Simon Spanton at Gollancz tomorrow, and I now have to back up and read the whole manuscript through from scratch, trying to form some kind of overall impression of where we’ve been and what we’ve ended up with. There’ll be tweaking, there’ll be proofing, there’ll be polish to layer on – less at the front end than the back, since the earliest sections have been buffed smooth with a couple of years of constant revisiting and revising as the story inched its way forward. The back end, though, is probably still altogether too cask-strength rough and ready in places. Will need tempering.
Still – feels like coming through the door and setting down a very heavy pack at journey’s end. Sure, I’ll still need to unpack it all, do a hot wash or two, a tumble dry and put shit away, but we’re home, man! Even the gap between yesterday – when I only had about a page and a half left to write, and knew it – and today when it’s done…..well, the sides of that gap feel weirdly worlds apart.
So, meantime, by way of celebration, here’s a quick round-up of the soundtrack. These albums were all wiring repeatedly through my head at one time or another during the making of The Cold Commands:
The Black Angels – Directions to See a Ghost, Passover
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - Beat the Devil’s Tattoo, Baby 81, Live
The Black Ryder – Buy the Ticket, Take the Ride
The Black- (stop that! ed.) Bomb the Bass – Clear
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds – Let Love In
Curve – Doppelganger, Cuckoo, Gift, Come Clean
The Dandy Warhols – Come Down, 13 Tales from Urban Bohemia, Odditorium
The Dead Weather - Horehound
David Gray – A Century Ends, Flesh, Lost Songs, A New Day at Midnight
Heroes de Silencio – El Espiritu del Vino, El Mar No Cesa/Senda ’91
Jehst – The Return of the Drifter
The Kills - Keep On Your Mean Side, No Wow, Midnight Boom
The Killers – Sam’s Town
Kings of Leon – Only by the Night
Mazzy Star – Among My Swan
Tom McRae – King of Cards, All Maps Welcome, Tom McRae
The Rolling Stones – Let it Bleed, Beggar’s Banquet, Voodoo Lounge
Sisters of Mercy – Floodland, Vision Thing
Slobberbone – Everything You Thought Was Right Was Wrong Today
Richard Thompson – Mirror Blue, Rumour and Sigh
Two Gallants – What the Bell Tolls, Two Gallants
Tom Waits – Bone Machine, Mule Variations
The Warlocks – Phoenix
You have been warned!
Congrats! Looking forward to it (and also Crysis 2).
Congratulations, sir! Good to see you’re on the home straight with this one!
Can’t wait!! Any way of getting a signed copy (in Spain)?
Rock and ROLL amigo! And well done! At the start it read like you were struggling to put it together, and maybe were not even sure you WANTED to put it together!
So, is sometime October 2011 still a likely date for publication?
Mark C
WONDERFUL. Congratulations! Can’t wait!
Yay and congrats! What a great feeling to have it done. Looking at some of the band’s names: black, black, black, bad, dead, etc. – it’d be nice to have an appendix linking the albums/songs to bits of the book!
Ah, the Sisters of Mercy! _Floodland_ and _Vision Thing_ were the soundtrack to my college days. _Floodland_ came out the fall I started at university. I still love those two albums.
Congrats on finishing _The Cold Commands_. I’m looking forward to reading it.
Congrats. Just finished re-reading Steel Remains and excited see where it is all headed. How do you think Crysis 2 came together? Is it a worthy medium worth working in? Again?
10 sleeps til Crysis 2…
Got permission to talk about it yet? The screen shots and clips i’ve seen look fantastic, visually it seems to be a bit of a spiritual sucessor to the Half-Life series, looking forward to another high quality sci-fi FPS, Bioshock Infinite (3) is due out later in the year too, and Arkam City… Good year for Video Games it seems…. Crysis 2, Rage and Skyrim are on “MUST HAVE NOW!” list….
BTW, You going to update your games review page/piece?
Congrats Richard!!
I’m really looking forward to reading it.
Are you available to DJ childrens’ parties?
That’s good to hear. Hopefully it lives up to your other works.
I have a question. Given your work with Crytek and potentially a great game that will have a known excellent writer attached, is it possible for more of that kind of work?
http://www.gamersyde.com/news_unreal_engine_3_real_time_demo-10714_en.html
have a 1080p version of the demo. I couldn’t help seeing Takeshi Kovacs in that character.
Do you think you could direct something like that in a game with that kind of cinematic impact?
I Thought Richard was signed on to a 3 game contract? or was i just day dreaming again…..
Congrats on finishing, Richard – man, do I ever know that drop-the-pack-then-drop-into-a-chair feeling, having finished the 3rd part of my Humanitys Fire trilogy. My father fell seriously ill when I was charging into the final lap of it, all kinds of very upsetting stuff – had to dig deep to maintain, to get through it. Course, my tribulations were nothing compared to the life-threatening crises which my dad had to face, though which he has come. The man is 72, has had a heart attack and other heart-related probs, had a chunk of his bowel removed, then was confronted by a colon blockage which necessitated a major op…and then a second. After all that, he still fought on, refused to give in, and he’s now on the mend. Makes me think, and gives me hope too. Anyway, I`m now waiting for editorial feedback (and playing the odd game till ma eyes bleed kinda thang).
Oh, should have pointed out that my dad’s problems have occurred over a period of about 20 years…not all at once. Reading it, makes it sound as if he had a hell of a winter.
I know Crysis 2 will be great, but… can we not talk about it on Richard’s celebratory post on finishing his new novel?
just sayin, not trying to start any arguements.
anyway congrats on the cold commands.
Woohoo! Congratulations Richard, and good lookin’ out on Return of the Drifter. Absolute classic!
That’s great news! Congratulations – can’t wait to read it.
Mark.
This is definately a non sequitor as far as the thread goes, and no apology’s for that ;D….
Mike Cobley, loved Humanity’s Fire so far, GREAT to read something with aliens in it again. Chev is the best character i’ve read in a while. Up there with Kovacs and Jant imho….
Keep up the good work…. (i don’t need to tell Richard that, as if you could stop the bastard).
i realise i should have posted this on your site, but your books don’t list it… but thanks, now i have someone else to harass….
Congratulations! I’m so looking forward to this….
Great playlist. The Killers kick ass. The Kills and The Dead Weather as well. I’m really excited for Crysis 2 to come out!
Much love for The Black Angels. “Young Men Dead” will be the song at my funeral. I’m a little surprised that there’s no Nine Inch Nails on there, figured you’d like that. I really enjoy Reznor’s “Ghosts” album when I’m working on something.
You might also like The Black Keys and Arcade Fire’s “The Suburbs”. The latter having a very haunting style like Kings of Leon.
The Steel Remains is on my Kindle (along with 73 other books), so I’m glad to hear you’ve taken a major step in The Cold Commands. I’m guessing this is a trilogy; looking forward to reading it.
I’d ask what your literary goals were with these books but I think that’d defeat the purpose since we’d look for them, then.
Well done, mate!! Really looking forward to it. It’s been too long since my last Morgan fix.
Fantastic! I’ve got my girlfriend reading Kovacs now, and Cold Commands is on pre-order!
Congratulations!
Can’t wait to read it! (and plug it to everyone that comes into our store
) I feel safe in the assumption that once it’s finished ‘Land Fit for Heroes’ will be my favourite fantasy series 
certainly seems that way from Steel Remains ^_^
Also as stated by others very much looking forward to Crysis 2 (which is saying something since I’m not the biggest FPS fan
) an FPS with actual effort put into the plot is a rare thing indeed ^_^
as a side note also waiting with baited breathe on the announcement on the other games you’ve been hired to work on
…kinda desperately hoping one will be a Kovacs game 
(BTW come back to Perth sometime
)
Any word on Takavach and what he’s been up to?
Started rereading Altered Carbon and thought I’d have a look on here to see what’s new. That’s great news. I’ve never read a fantasy book before but you’re one of my favourite authors so I thought I would give The Steel Remains a go and I was not disappointed. If anyone can recommend any other fantasy I might enjoy while I wait for Cold Commands it would be much appreciated.
@David: If you haven’t read any other fantasy, try George R R Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire series, or Stephen Erikson’s Tales of the Malazan Empire series (Gardens of the Moon is the first book). If you can find it, Poul Anderson’s The Broken Sword. But there’s nothing quite like Richard’s take on things…
Also @ David: Joe Abercrombie’s ‘First Law’ trilogy is damn good, as is Scott Lynch’s ‘Lies of Locke Lamora’… And I’d second GRRM’s ‘Song of Ice and Fire’, though I am happy to say I am only one book in. I need something to read while I wait on TCC!
Mark C
Likewise @David,
Charles Stross has a full fantasy series out (Merchant Princes), and that’s worth a go though I don’t really rate it that highly. And John Courtenay Grimwood has a decent vampire novel out. They’re all very different works indeed, but their authors’ shared heritage somehow infuses them all: there seems to be a microvogue for British SF writers to venture into fantasy right now, and it’s great to see the ways they bring the worldbuilding rigour of their SF works to the (imo) often lazy domain of fantasy.
@Linda P / outeast / Mark C,
Thanks for the tips folks. “But there’s nothing quite like Richard’s take on things…” I guess I was hoping there was! I’ve started a few fantasy books but lost interest rapidly whereas I was just sucked into The Steel Remains and each of the characters journeys. My flat mate is a fantasy buff so I’ll have a rummage for your suggestions. I keep trying to get him to read TSR but he’s on book 7 of whatever series he’s reading. Think I’d still prefer a Nemex to an axe anyway
Congratulations! TSR is a great ‘take’ on the fantasy genre, and I can’t wait for the next installment. I trust the editorial process will not be too painful
@Mike Cobley, there’s only one other book I’m waiting for at the mo (aside from The Cold Commands) and that’s the next Humanity’s Fire. How… curious you should show up here
Keep ‘em coming, loving it so far.
I’ve learned over the couple of years of lurking on your blog that whether you agree with it or not, you prefer honest and heartfelt opinion’s from your fans. So here’s mine regarding your finishing The Cold Command’s.
About Fucking Time!!!! Now I can think about reading the first one. I’ve never liked too much time between installments of a series. But I know that you have always delivered a very good story and wont rush things for the sake of the ka-ching.
Regards
Excellent and congratulations! I’m looking forward to getting the hard cover in my hands.
And the audio book too actually. I bought it so I could listen while taking a long trip and the dramatization was a positive experience.
Still, I want the hard cover.
Crysis 2 has been picked up in reviews for flimsy dialogue and awkward pacing. Does Richard have any comment on that for his blog?
Not really – this is a blog entry about the Cold Commands.
As and when I have something to say about the – actually pretty even-handed and largely 90 or 90+ – reviews of Crysis 2, it’ll be posted as such.
Fair enough?
A bit of a non sequitur…but you, sir, have fantastic taste in music.
Just finished re-reading The Steel Remains, and now I really can’t wait for the The Cold Commands. End of October, says Amazon. I don’t suppose books ever come out ahead of their announced dates?
I half expected to see Godspeed You Black Emperor or Mogwai on there, I’ve always envisioned bands like that almost as a “soundtrack” to your books (especially the science fiction ones). But I digress, Two Gallants! Are us American readers going to have a long wait for Cold Commands? I know we had to wait awhile for an official release after the UK release.
Beggar’s Banquest and Beat the Devil’s Tattoo: highly erotic music. Can’t wait to see your book.
Don’t be too cold. ;
Can’t wait to read more of your work.
Looking forward to it.
Visit Canada more so I can be a fan all up in your face.
That is all.
Sounds quite fair, but don’t take it as an attack. A discussion would have proved far more even handed, I look forward to seeing what your other fans thought of your work on it.
As for Cold Commands, one can’t wait to see the where it takes the genre. Subversion is a beautiful thing when done well.
@ Jimbob
Didn’t take it as an attack, I was just stating a position – my apologies if it came off as curt. Thing is, I discovered last year back in April that the game world has a huge nerd-rage surplus slopping about just looking for release, and anything you say that has even the shreds of an unvarnished opinion in it will be seized on, mis-reported, disseminated and misinterpreted to feed that rage. So anything I say here is likely to be seized on, mis-reported, etc, etc….. I’m waiting out the initial impact of the game release and when that’s settled down, I’ll doubtless have stuff to say, but in the meantime I’m not looking to become a lightning rod.
Thanks for the kind words.
I am a huge fan of Mr.Morgan here, but that being said, I feel that his writing always sports the same protagonist. I would like to see a main character who is more original as opposed to another “fuck all y’all”/rebel/angry cynic guy.” Chris Faulkner, Kovacs, Dragonsbane…really.. they are all the same damn guy. I’d like to see something new.
Also, whats up with the sex scenes? Do we always really need a blow by blow, detailed account of every sexual encounter? Do people really always have orgasms at the same time in the real world (with extreme gushing results)? Sex is never sloppy, badly-executed, half-hearted or unsatisfying? Honestly, some of that stuff came off as cheap erotica for teenage boys.
Love your stuff dude, just some constructive criticism for you. Obviously, I’m still buying your new book anyways… even if you do all that stuff all over again.
@Christopher: Dude, if you don’t like the sex scenes, skip ‘em. But it seemed to me the sex scenes were a little more complicated: psychological manipulation, power play, love, lust, etc. All the reasons humans do anything. Same thing with the “angry, cynical guy”: the protagonists are far more complicated than you’re making them out to be. While waiting for Richard’s next book, maybe you should give his others a re-read. You might find something new.
I used to feel the same way, Chris. But Mr. Morgan in my opinion did a very good job explaining his literary angle in a previous blog post (“Jim and Will and Ray,” I believe it’s called). Also, I have developed the opinion that it’s not my place to ask Mr. Morgan to satisfy my personal sensibilities. If I want to part-take in the story he’s provided, great. If it doesn’t fit my needs I feel it’s my responsibility to find something else or, better yet, try my own hand at writing and realize just how damn difficult it is.
As for Steel Remains, writing fantasy can be especially difficult to write because of the rigid expectations of the genre. Mad props for Steel Remains, because it seems like the book was written with the explicit intention to BE different.
@Christopher
I’m pretty sure there was a sex scene in Broken Angels that went far astray of the ideal. Probably due to the onset of radiation sickness, but still.
I have a question. not related in the slightest. I was wondering what is the funniest or most insulting thing some disgruntled fan has called you??
You’re is awesome by the way and cant wait to get the cold commands!
@ Matthew Pacitto, James and Linda P.
I am not saying that the characters are *exactly* the same, but they do indeed have the same feel. They share the same mannerisms and overall psychological profile; shimmering desire violence just below the surface, incapable of accepting authority, father issues, feelings of alienation from soceity, outcast/ostracized (gay, black, genetic variant or envoy), drifter lifestyle, eternally impatient, warrior/special forces background, Porn star/ Bull-like sex skills, etc etc. All of his characters match and share these traits, and then some. I am not for one moment saying that these characters are not enjoyeable, however, I am definately saying that having Mr.Morgan try his hand a more unique character archetype would be refreshing.
Ringil, as a gay anti-hero character in a fantasy setting, seems refreshing on a quick glance. However, again, you could easily replace his name in the book with Kovacs or Marsalis and you don’t immediately see a contrasting difference. Ringil reacts the same way in the great myriad of situations (vis a vis his father, enemies etc) as a Kovacs or Marsalis would…
Listen, I’m not trying to be a gaping, negative ass. I am by no means calling him a one-trick pony or saying that he can only do one type of character or story. Morgan is an awesome author and I own and have read and have re-read all of his books (my favorites being Market Forces, Thirteen and the Kovacs series). I even offer my collection to anyone and everyone who has not heard of the man because that’s how much I value Morgan’s books and his quality of writing. I’m just saying that I would like to see Mr.Morgan try his hand at something out of the box.
Regarding the sex scenes, I am not criticizing them on the basis of my own prudishness. I just feel that they are excessive and generally do not offer anything to the story or character development (except for a few cases that I can admit, and that you guys have listed)…, but honestly, in general, do we really need to know how many strokes it takes before the guy blows his load?
@Christopher: Briefly, perhaps you could describe specifically the sort of unique character you’d like Richard to write. What would you consider “out of the box”?
“..do we really need to know how many strokes it takes before the guy blows his load?” No, we don’t need to know. But I’m assuming that’s the author’s choice.
Without going into too many specifics right now – I’d say Chris Faulkner is way different from Carl Marsalis, who didn’t even know his parents. Are you sure you read the end of Woken Furies? I think I know where you’re coming from re your superficial analysis of these guy’s character traits, but really, again, go back and re-read them again to look below the surface. There’s so much more there than you’ve seen.