Jason M. Hardy - writer

Do you want Shadowrun fiction by me and lots of other talented authors? Humble Bundle has a big fiction bundle going on right now, and for my part, you get fun stuff like:

* The novels Hell on Water, Undershadows, and Drops of Corruption.

* A novella that concludes the complete Frame Job.

* Stories in the World of Shadows and Man, Machines, and Magic anthologies that, conveniently, are connected to each other.

* A story in the Spells & Chrome anthology.

Plus so many other riches! Russell Zimmerman, R.L. King, Mel Odom, Jennifer Brozek, and tons of other talented people! For one low price! You should check it out! https://www.humblebundle.com/books/shadowrun-fiction-mega-bundle-catalyst-game-labs-books?fbclid=IwY2xjawGUmJ5leHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHYfSmTHhMGRw8wuAhVN3N32ivXfnMUf60_5-DrX7GAwK8w86hYty9UM-gQ_aem_DNlyjeqNP-WSM2tkS3tKiA

Humble Book Bundle: Shadowrun Fiction Mega Bundle by Catalyst Game Labs We’ve teamed up with Catalyst Game Labs for our newest bundle—get the base game and additional campaigns like Shadow Borders. Pay what you want & support charity!

I'm part of a number-one bestselling anthology--never mind where--_and_ I have a featured book. I'm going to try to not let this very small bit of prestige go to my head, but also, I intend to fail at that.

Back in the World of Shadows anthology, I wrote a story called "Swamp of Spirits" that I liked a lot about a spirit named Louis and a runner named Ciel. It was nominated for a Scribe Award. Well, Ciel and Louis are back in a new anthology! See what they're up to! https://www.amazon.com/Shadowrun-Magic-Machines-Mayhem-Anthology-ebook/dp/B0DDSH4WV9/?fbclid=IwY2xjawFaiatleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHS6WuNFguYh1v4S6GohitzXvT1S6luzGWn4oAgnu98179-FSmjFZp0Kybg_aem_NYoZefpGwWCciwNAWDoBBw

Shadowrun: Magic, Machines, and Mayhem: (A Shadowrun Anthology) Shadowrun: Magic, Machines, and Mayhem: (A Shadowrun Anthology)

A new Shadowrun anthology is up for pre-order! I have a story in it, called "Night Shade"! Here's how it starts:

Ciel squatted in the swamp, water squelching behind her knees. “He’s not working out.”

Louis floated only a few meters away, dematerialized and unseen. He communicated in the silent way of spirits. "You’re being too hasty. At least give him the whole job to disappoint you."

Available now at your favorite digital store! Shadowrun: Magic, Machines, and Mayhem (A Shadowrun Anthology) by John Helfers, Jennifer Brozek

Just finished the first draft of my first BattleTech story in about 15 years. Now to read it over to see if it’s any good.

The work-in-progress line of the day:

“It was the type of building where the primary amenity was that it probably wouldn’t fall down.”

—from Bad Faith, coming in 2025, probably!

Excerpt from the novel-in-progress that amused me:

“Looking at the car, he was impressed that you could tuck two bodies in the back. More companies should use that in their advertising. ‘The new Ford Juggernaut! All the hauling and off-road power you need, plus enough cargo space for at least two dead bodies!’ Booker could think of at least five runners who would buy a vehicle on that pitch alone.”

Starting the first draft of the last chapter of a Shadowrun novel. Finally figured out one character's motivation. The second draft will make sure that's consistent!

Since I’ve been writing a novel for a few months (it’s called Bad Faith), I should probably put some excerpts up here as I go! Here’s a brief dialogue exchange on one of my favorite subjects:

“What do they want?”
“Power.”
“Power is a means to an end, not an end itself.”
“That’s what people without power say.

Writing Shadowrun is fun because you get to write sentences like this: “A spirit had emerged from the wall, a being of concrete and cinderblock fists. The hitter had no idea how to prepare for it. Do you shoot concrete? Try to tackle it?”

For the novella I’m working on, I wrote the first and last sentences at about the same time, which made it fun to craft the path between them. I won’t share the last sentence, because spoilers, but here’s the first one:

“Look, it’s important to know that every time Henry did it, he knew it was wrong.”

Time for the second draft of a new novella! It's a good idea and has some good lines, but the real question now is: Is it actually a good story?