I haven’t. Apparently I should?
Maybe. The PC’s bond with their dragon is a lot of fun to read about, but it was intended as the first game in a series of three and the author lost interest partway through the second book and never finished it.
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Ah. I might check it out to see what their take on the bond is. Thanks for the rec and the warning that the series wasn’t finished.
Sometimes, especially when I’m in the middle of a project that might have similar themes, I try to stay away from other authors’ work so I’m not influenced by it. But between projects I like to dip into what other people’s perspectives are on things I tend to weave into my stories. I’ll probably save Fourth Wing for after I’ve finished Ink for that reason.
Also, I should point out that one of my favorite books on my shelves is The Fionavar Tapestry by Guy Gavriel Kay. That one really expanded my ideas of portal fantasy and how myths can be mashed together in new ways.
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Makes sense.
While we’re discussing dragony ChoiceScript games, have you played Choice of the Dragon and/or The Dragon and the Djinn?
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I’ve played some of the first and none of the second. Yet.
You should remedy that! (And don’t worry about being influenced, since all they really have in common with your current project is that they’re really good games where dragons exist.)
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Oh? I’ve been in a reading slump for the last few weeks, do you think that might be a good one to pull me out of it?
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If you’ve never read The Fionavar Tapestry, I wholeheartedly recommend it. It’s one of those books that made me stay up until dawn, laughing and weeping and feeling all the feels. I don’t know if it will pull you out of your reading slump, but it’s definitely worth a try. Do let me know if you enjoy it!
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Will do!
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If I’m being honest due to my reading disabilities I don’t find regular books super entertaining, but it was really cool to see your setup
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Another book series that does the dragon rider bond is “The Dragonriders of Pern.” It’s an older series, and the story gets a little disjointed but it’s very unique world building and it explores the culture centered around the bonds very well.
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I read quite a few of the Dragonriders of Pern series years ago. I don’t have any of them on my shelves at this point…I think I got most of them from the library, but it was an interesting series, for sure!
I’m glad you enjoy seeing my writing space, and that interactive fiction engages you and allows you to enjoy reading. 
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Wow, the theme and concept sound so exciting, and even the title is cool! Magic tattoos! Awesome. I unfortunately cannot help with beta testing, but I’ll definitely be looking forward for this one to release.
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Yes! The tattoos are such a fun concept. I’m glad you like it!
Update: the DEMO is LIVE!
You can now play the first three chapters of Ink and Intrigue! This 87,000-word demo is an entry to the IF festival, Spring Thing, which has just opened!
There are thirty-two entries to Spring Thing this year, and I’m happy to be part of it. Be sure to check out the other games, too!
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Happy Friday, all!
I got book mail today! 
I finally bought Fourth Wing. With dragon riding and romance, it comes highly recommended. I want to see what the hype is about.
I also one-clicked a kindle copy of Inked by Rachel Rener, which is at the top of my TBR list. I follow the author and have had her books on my wishlist for a while but haven’t gotten to actually reading them yet.
Like my game and many other stories (Shadowhunters jumps to mind), Rachel Rener’s Guilded Blood series includes magic tattoos. The premise, setting, and nature of her series appears to be vastly different than Ink and Intrigue, but I’m really curious to see what her approach to magic tattoos is about. This series is advertised as hot fantasy romance with a comedic twist. The art for Rener’s books is gorgeous and the cover on my kindle doesn’t do it justice, so here’s a screenshot of the author’s FB page:
I love the art! Rener has an amazing omnibus of the Guilded Blood series available for preorder. 
I figured I’d read the first book on kindle to make sure it’s as good as the reviews say before I commit to a box set or that glorious omnibus.
I meant to come here and post an update, but instead I’m fangirling books I haven’t read yet. 
Ink and Intrigue update:
Reading these pretty new books will be my reward once I’ve finished drafting Ink and Intrigue for Heart’s Choice. I’m just starting chapter seven now, which will be a complex one, as will chapter eight. Chapter nine is more of an epilogue, so I expect that will be shorter, but seven and eight will require a lot more words (and brain power).
I’m in the thick of the game now, and I’m determined to keep making progress.
I find the hardest part of writing IF is when there’s a branch where something massive has happened on one path of the game, while that ground-breaking event has not happened on another path. It can be hard to wrap my brain around and can get overwhelming if I look too far ahead.
Then I remind myself that writing is simply putting one word after another. As long as I keep doing that, any forward progress is worthwhile. I know there will be days where I’m able to get a lot of words in, and days where a few hundred words is all I can manage. Life is busy, but I keep carving out time to work on this game. It’s a wholly satisfying endeavor.
TL;DR — I got some cool books! Also, I’m starting chapter 7 of Ink. Wish me luck!
I hope you have an excellent weekend!
Bonus question: What book or game is next on your TBR list?
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I’m reading The Wild Silence by Raynor Winn at the moment, which is a memoir about illness and hiking. I’ve got a big TBR pile on top of that but I want to read The Saint of Bright Doors by Vajra Chandrasekera as I’ve heard so many amazing things about it.
I hope Chapter 7 goes great! Writing complex branches is such a thing of having to contain multitudes in one’s head.
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I’m reading The Rabbit Hutch by Tess Gunty. It’s weird and uncomfortable literary fiction of the self-consciously modern sort, and none of the characters are remotely likable, but I can’t stop wanting to read about them.
As for IF, I’m still working my way through Dragon Racer.
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I meant to read more fantasy, but was putting winter things away (and getting them back out, and putting them away, and getting them back out) and came across one of my old (half-destroyed) copies of Use of Weapons, which made me want to reread my favourite Banks novel out of the lot of them, Excession. Which unfortunately still means sailing the high freaking seas.
After that I think I’ll either re read Nix’s Left-Handed Booksellers books, or T L Huchu’s Edinburgh Nights (so far) series. Or maybe I’ll re read Gideon the 9th. Or one of Harkaway’s books, I love The Gone-Away World. Or I may read the Seizure series by de Abaitua.
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Spicy content and poly options? I’m sold!
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Wow, is it ever!
This makes me think of watching a show where you’re mad at the characters for making bad choices but you can’t stop watching because you have to find out what happens next.
I can totally see myself doing this, halfway through a cleaning project that seemed like a good idea at the time, but now I’m sitting on my floor reading a book when I should be putting away the mess I made.
Absolutely! And lots of sweet moments and camaraderie, too. 
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