"There once was a goblin slave named Chuba..."
I got an e-mail from Chris yesterday. Edits of a Chuba story he had written. But I was buried under e-mails from artists, other authors, James over at RPGnow, and before you could say "Grimbones calls it a night - time to go skate," I had shelved the new stories for reading the next day.

Mistake.

Big mistake.

I didn't get a chance to read them until this afternoon, and let me tell you, friends and enemies, these little shorts are brilliant. This is vintage Chuba, told by the man who knows him best. Can you remember the sheer joy you had when you read "Chuba's Beloved" for the first time?

These stories are of that caliber, only they're new.

I've always read how editors light up when they come across a great story, how that joy makes everything else worth while, and today I finally understood what they meant. On any average day I'm so excited about the antho that I have trouble sleeping. Reading these stories brought that excitement to a whole new level. My brain is on fire.

So now I'm hustling harder than ever, harassing artists and colorists, designers and printers, not because your stories are great (they are), not because I know the anthology will look beautiful (it will), but because I'm simply in love with this character.

As much as Conan, Arthur, Merlin and the rest, this goblin is real.