My good friend Jamison has read a bit of In the Land of the Penny Gnomes and sent this message to me yesterday,

I also just finished Red Shirts so I see where you got some inspiration.

I’d never read Red Shirts so I had no idea what he meant. I grilled him for a bit, but he wouldn’t budge as he didn’t want to give away any of the main points of the book ¹. So, last night I decided I would purchase the book and see if I could figure out what he meant. It’s been on my radar for a while, this just moved it up in my queue a bit.

My first reading of the book brought three points to my attention.

1. This is an amazing piece of fiction which I recommend for any fan of science-fiction.
2. Red Shirts may, indeed, have some common roots with Penny Gnomes. Jasper Fforde’s name comes up in its pages and he is a source of creative inspiration for me.
3. Having taken the journey that is Red Shirts I why why anyone would want to read a hack like myself. John Scalzi is more meta than I could ever hope to be ².

If you enjoy Jasper Fforde, Terry Pratchett, or Douglas Adams this is a book you will enjoy. If you are a fan of Star Trek and have ever made any joke about being a red shirt, this is a book you will enjoy. It might be the perfect novel to take outside and enjoy on a spring day. Once spring decides to arrive, that is.

I’m still moving forward on Penny Gnomes, it just took me a bit to find an editor ³. Next up is cover art. I have ideas.