S.E. Lindberg resides near Cincinnati, Ohio working as a microscopist, employing scientific and artistic skills to understand the manufacturing of products analogous to medieval paints. Two decades of practicing chemistry, combined with a passion for the Sword & Sorcery genre, spurs him to write graphic adventure fictionalizing the alchemical humors (primarily under the banner “Dyscrasia Fiction”). With Perseid Press, he writes weird tales infused with history and alchemy (Heroika: Dragon Eaters, Pirates in Hell, Lovers in Hell). S.E. Lindberg co-moderates a Goodreads group focused on Sword & Sorcery.
Dark Muse News: JANGAR! Beastlord of Muu – #1 and 2
Jangar! by Logan D. Whitney, Issues #1 and #2, Cliffhanger Press, 2026. Cover art by Mike Hoffman
Dark Muse News has been a fan of Rogues in the House podcast and their books (i.e., A Book of BladesVol I and Vol II); one of those rogues is Logan D. Whitney. This June and July, he released the initial entries of an expected six chronicling his lone jungle warrior: Jangar! These are fantastic, compact adventures that somehow balance immediate crazy challenges (i.e., save a princess from a sacrificial ritual, and survive gladiator combat viewed by cannibalistic harpies) with the more chronic concerns (seeking vengeance for the slaughter of family members, and overcoming the decline of civilization).
In August 2025, we hailed the emergence of a second Chain Story project championed by Michael A. Stackpole. This is a Sword & Sorcery-focused, contagious set of connected (“chained”) stories.
Each is:
A standalone tale
Readable in any order
Free to read! (for at least three months from its posting date)
Interconnected via a theme involving a Crown
We round up groups every several weeks, but check the Chain Story website for the latest. Here we highlight the latest set of five, Episodes 29-32.
Gregory Mele brings swordplay, sorcery, and the dark gods of a lost Meso-American world vividly to life in his Heart of Vengeance & Other Tales of Azatlán (Obsidian & Bronze Ltd.); it is a thrilling collection of occult mysteries, brutal battles, and weird adventures where the dead rarely stay dead. Dark Muse News jumped on it when it became public in August 2026 (available in several places; check out the author’s website).
It has 14 stories, 4 original and 10 published previously in various magazines. Their connection? All share characters, deities, and the land of Tehanuwak (map below).
Games Workshop’s Warhammer Quest: Darkwater,Agents of the Order Azyr expansion, and White Dwarf Issues #520 and #527 (featuring expansion material)
Delving into the drowning Jade Abbey
This January, Dark Muse News began preparing for Warhammer Quest: Darkwater. Back then, I had just finished clicking the miniatures together (link to post). Finally, this post follows to cover an introductory foray into Warhammer Quests: Darkwater (2025) the latest cooperative dungeon crawler in Games Workshop’s lineup.
The original was released in 1995, and the series had a resurgence with Silver Tower in 2016, then Shadows Over Hammerhal (2017), Blackstone Fortress (2018), Cursed City (2021): and Lost Relics (2022). Unlike the skirmish and mega-battles that Warhammeris known for, these Quest games are cooperative (i.e., all players are on the same team fighting together against the game board). They have pre-generated character cards with stats and asymmetrical/unique actions. Expect lots of dice rolling and flipping of map tiles during exploration phases to reveal the sprawling dungeon. …
Mad Shadows 4: All of Colors of Darkness by Joe Bonadonna (305 pages, July 18, 2026). Book design by Ruth de Jauregui
Some mysteries leave no fingerprints or footprints — only shadows, strange colors, and the dead. As Dorgo the Dowser investigates necromancers, demons, and a zombie plague, he discovers that darkness comes in many shades.
Book 1: Mad Shadows: The Weird Tales of Dorgo the Dowser blessed our bookshelves in 2011 (winning the 2017 Golden Book Readers’ Choice Award for Fantasy). The protagonist wields a dowsing rod to sense otherworldly signatures, but this is no Harry Potter wand trickery. Bonadonna’s style is more in line with Michael Shea and Fritz Leiber, and his Mad Shadows tackles supernatural mysteries. In television terms, this would appeal to fans of TheX-Files , Supernatural, or Grimm. The author has been a blogger and regular guest at Black Gate forever, and his love for cinema shines through his work. We at Black Gatehave already tracked Dorgo’s adventures across three volumes, so we provide a tour guide here to showcase the series.
SOIL by James D. Mills (Arcanist: Fantasy Publishing, December 2026); cover art by Henrik Karippen
This Dark Muse News post reviews James D. Mills’ soon-to-be-released, stand-alone novel SOIL (coming to BackerKit October 29, 2026; freely available for digital viewing now on Arcanist Online). Excerpts are shared to give you a feel for the style. This article also provides a tour guide for the other books in the Dusk and Dawn series.
Just this July, we covered James D. Mills’ crowdfunding Backerkit campaign Mordschlag Sword and Sorcery Magazine. Besides publishing, he writes a fair amount too. His SOIL is a folk-horror fantasy firmly rooted in the soil, or spirit, of the British Isles. Sword and Sorcery fans will enjoy the elements of melee action, direct encounters with strange gods, and exploration of mystic temples. The world and culture are fleshed out, and super-infused with intense child-bearing motifs (more on that below). With a cast of 6+ protagonists, the book is a solid, dark-fantasy epic. It is the second stand-alone entry in the Dusk and Dawn series.
Issue and cover artists: 1 Keith Parkinson (2000), 4 Charles Keegan (2002), 10 Denis Rodier (2007), 12 Bruce Pennington (2008), 15 Donato Giancola (2011)
Learn the lore and allure of Black Gate!
Building on our June 2026 coverage of The Legend of Top-Shelf Books Open Mic, the near-mythical, yet true, confluence of many Black Gate contributors and authors, this Dark Muse News post corners Chief Editor John O’Neill to detail the history of the magazine. It’s over 25 years old!
I learned about Black Gate magazine in 2010 at the World Fantasy Convention, when Howard Andrew Jones espoused about it on a panel. I immediately ordered Issue #15, and then the print run ended! Eh gad. I was late for the party again! (Context in The Legend of Top-Shelf Books post).
In August 2025, we hailed the emergence of a second Chain Story project championed by Michael A. Stackpole. This is a Sword & Sorcery-focused, contagious set of connected (“chained”) stories.
Each is:
A standalone tale
Readable in any order
Free to read! (for at least three months from its posting date)
Interconnected via a theme involving a Crown
We round up groups every several weeks, but check the Chain Story website for the latest. Here we highlight the latest set of five, Episodes 24-28.
One of the most fun, unique aspects of Goodman Games’ Tales from the Magician’s Skull was the blending of Sword & Sorcery with Dungeon Crawl Classics statistics for the stories. That’s a wonderful recipe that has not been reproduced, despite many super-cool S&S periodicals being available (Dark Moon Quarterly, Battleborn, New Edge S&S, Heroic Fantasy Quarterly, Swords and Sorcery Magazine, Savage Realms, Swords & Sorceries: Tales of Heroic Fantasy, etc. plus loads of anthologies).
Well, this Dark Muse News post has a Press Release for The Arcanist: Fantasy Publishing’s Backerkit campaign showcasing Mordschlag Magazine!Once again, S&S adventure and RPG gaming are combined. Every pocket-sized issue of Mordschlag promises new short fiction, an article analyzing the genre, and monster stat-blocks pulled straight from the tales and ready-to-play in ShadowDark RPG.
Blue Fire, a Jirel of Jory tale by Molly Tanzer (Brackenbury Books, 2026). Cover art by Saša Đurđević
In February 2025, Black Gate covered Molly Tanzer’s release of “Jirel Meets Death” (published with permission from Moore’s estate); and in March 2026 Black Gate’s Dark Muse News covered Tanzer’s next story, “Jirel in the Forest of Night.” These were brought to us by Brackenbury Books, the same outfit that champions New Edge Sword & Sorcery magazine.
And now, Dark Muse News (your biweekly Black Gate blog) has coverage of Brackenbury Books’ current campaign, bringing the first-ever Jirel of Joiry book-length adventure to life (crowdfunding launched June 11th, and is still ongoing).
Blue Fire begins with Jirel fighting a foe her sword cannot smite: a terrible illness nobody can explain, let alone heal. Her search for a cure takes her many miles across many worlds, encountering friends and foes familiar and frightening!
Like Alice in Wonderland with a big f***ing sword, Jirel has compelling adventures in bizarre dream-logic realms, balancing a rich emotional life with terrifying struggles against dark forces! — boasts Brackenbury Books
Here ye, here ye. Read on to see:
A tour guide of the Jirel of Jory writings
Excerpts from Blue Fire
Special Perspectives from author Molly Tanzer, artist Saša Đurđević, and editor Oliver Brackenbury
