Chuck Wendig

Charles David Wendig (born April 22, 1976)[1] is an American author, comic book writer, screenwriter, and blogger. He is best known for his popular online blog Terribleminds, and for his 2015 Star Wars novel Aftermath, which debuted at #4 on The New York Times Best Seller list and #4 on USA Today's best seller list. He has written comics for Dark Circle Comics, Dynamite Entertainment, Marvel Comics, and VS Comics.

Chuck Wendig
Wendig at WonderCon 2017
BornCharles David Wendig
(1976-04-22) April 22, 1976
New Hope, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Occupation
LanguageEnglish
Alma materQueens University of Charlotte
Genre
Spouse
Michelle Kane
(
m. 2009)
Children1
Website
terribleminds.com

He was a finalist for the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer in 2013.

Early life

Wendig grew up in New Hope, Pennsylvania. He studied English and religion at Queens University of Charlotte and graduated in 1998. After working various odd jobs and publishing early works under the name C.D. Wendig and C. David Wendig, he became a full-time freelance author writing under the name Chuck Wendig.[1]

Career

Game writing

Before writing fiction professionally, Wendig worked as a freelance RPG writer for over a decade. Wendig has contributed over two million words to the pen-and-paper roleplaying game industry.[2] He has worked as a writer and developer for roleplaying games, contributing to many White Wolf projects from 2002 to 2011, including Hunter: The Vigil (2008).[1]

Wendig is part of the advisory board of Storium, an online storytelling game by Protagonist Labs that launched a successful Kickstarter campaign and raised over $250,000.[3][4]

Screenwriting

Wendig co-wrote the Emmy-nominated interactive transmedia project Collapsus with Lance Weiler.[1]

Along with writing partner Weiler, Wendig was selected for the 2010 Sundance Screenwriter's Lab for their feature film HiM.[5] HiM is being produced by Ted Hope, Christine Vachon, and Anne Carey.[6] His short film, Pandemic 41.410806, -75.654259, co-written and directed by Weiler, was selected for the 2011 Sundance Short Film Program.[7] At one point, Wendig and Weiler were also developing television pilot for TNT with Marshall Herskovitz and Edward Zwick, but the network decided to pass.[6][8]

He also contributed to David Cronenberg's transmedia production Body/Mind/Change, in which Weiler served as Creative Director.[9]

Early novels

Wendig's first short story collection, Irregular Creatures, was published in January 2011.[10]

In November 2011 followed Wendig's debut novel, Double Dead, published by Abaddon Books as part of its shared-world series Tomes of the Dead.[11] Bad Blood, a sequel novella, was published in May 2012.[12] The books were later collected as The Complete Double Dead, released in February 2016.[13]

Wendig participated in the Evil Hat Productions Kickstarter, which raised money for a trilogy of novels penned by Wendig based on the Spirit of the Century RPG game.[14][15] After a successful campaign, he went on to release Dinocalypse Now in 2012 and Beyond Dinocalypse in 2013. Though slated to write the third (and final) volume of the Dinocalypse trilogy, Dinocalypse Forever, Wendig was unable finish the novel due to other commitments and was replaced by novelist Carrie Harris.[16]

For Abaddon, he also penned Unclean Spirits, out in May 2013, the first installment of the Gods and Monster series.[17]

Miriam Black and Mookie Pearl

The first novel in Wendig's Miriam Black series, Blackbirds, features a girl who can see the death of anyone she touches. It was published in April 2012 by Angry Robot Books.[18] It was followed by a sequel, Mockingbird, in August 2012. Also from Angry Robot, Wendig released The Blue Blazes in May 2013, the first novel in a new urban fantasy series following Mookie Pearl.[19] The third book in the Miriam Black series, The Cormorant, was published in December 2013.

The Miriam Black books were optioned as a television series by Starz in 2014, to be developed by John Shiban, writer and producer of Breaking Bad and The X-Files, with a writers' room already set up.[20][21] Wendig announced on his blog in November 2015 that Starz was no longer developing the adaptation.[22]

In October 2014, Saga Press bought six books in Wendig's Miriam Black series, including the first three novels, previously published by Angry Robot Books.[23] The first three books, Blackbirds, Mockingbird, and The Cormorant were re-published with new covers in 2015. Thunderbird, book four, followed in 2017, with The Raptor & The Wren and Vultures, books five and six, published in 2018 and 2019 respectively.[22]

In October 2015, Wendig re-released The Blue Blazes, as well as self-publishing a sequel, The Hellsblood Bride, after contract disputes with previous publisher Angry Robot.[24][25] He has stated that a third book, possibly titled A Sky Born Black or The Skyborn Bane might someday be published, should the first two books do well or be picked up by a publisher. However, Wendig said the first two books stand alone and a third book is not necessary to conclude the story.

Atlanta Burns and The Heartland trilogy

Shotgun Gravy, a young adult novella following Atlanta Burns, described as "Veronica Mars on Adderall," was self-published by Wendig in 2011.[26] Wendig ran a successful Kickstarter campaign during February 2012 to publish Bait Dog, a follow-up novel to Shotgun Gravy, raising $6,800, more than twice the goal.[27] Bait Dog was self-published in 2012, and was later acquired along with Shotgun Gravy by Amazon Skyscape, and republished as Atlanta Burns in January 2015.[28] The second book in the Atlanta Burns series, The Hunt, was published in February 2016.[29]

In July 2013, Skyscape launched Wendig's new young adult dystopian "cornpunk" trilogy, starting with Under the Empyrean Sky.[30] It was followed by a sequel in July 2014, called Blightborn.[31] The Heartland trilogy concluded in July 2015 with The Harvest.[32]

Star Wars

It was announced in March 2015 that Wendig would write the flagship Journey to Star Wars: The Force Awakens novel, titled Star Wars: Aftermath, to be published in September 2015. The book was the first in a trilogy of new canonical Star Wars novels published by Del Rey, bridging the gap between Return of the Jedi and the new Star Wars movie, The Force Awakens.[33] It was followed by Aftermath: Life Debt (2016) and Aftermath: Empire's End (2017).[34][35] Wendig's involvement with the books came after asking to write a Star Wars licensed novel on Twitter on September 4, 2014. He was approached by LucasBooks in New York Comic Con later that year, after seeing his tweet and reading his novel Under the Empyrean Sky.[36][37] Aftermath was published exactly a year later, on September 4, 2015, and debuted at #4 on both The New York Times Best Seller list and the USA Today's best seller list. Aftermath invited controversy for its inclusion of a gay man as a lead character.[38][39][40]

During the 2018 New York Comic Convention in early October 2018, Wendig announced that he would be writing a five-issue story arc with Marvel Comics entitled Shadow of Vader, which was set to begin in November 2018. The series would have explored the legacy of Darth Vader on the galaxy.[41] Wendig was also slated to write an unannounced Star Wars book. On October 12, it was reported that Marvel had fired Wendig for unknown reasons. It was presumed the firing was the result of Wendig's social media posts.[42][43][44][45] This resulted in the Shadow of Vader story arc being pulled from Marvel Comics' schedule.[46]

Zer0es

August 2015 saw the publication of Zer0es, a cyber-thriller from HarperVoyager.[47] Invasive, a novel set in the same world as Zer0es that takes place after the events of the book, was published in 2016.[48]

Comics

In 2015, Archie Comics announced a new comic series written by Wendig and Adam Christopher, featuring a new version of their superhero The Shield.[49][50]

Wendig was chosen in October 2015 as the writer of new Marvel ongoing comic book series Hyperion, based on the version of the character that appeared in Jonathan Hickman's run on Avengers, alongside artist Nik Virella.[51][52]

During the ComicsPRO 2016 annual meeting, Marvel Comics announced a five-issue comic book adaptation of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, written by Wendig and illustrated by Luke Ross, launching in June 2016.[53]

Blog and writing advice

Wendig has run his blog Terribleminds since 2000, where he dispenses regular writing advice. Much of his writing advice has been collected in his self-published e-books or his book The Kickass Writer, published in 2013 by Writer's Digest Books.

Personal life

He currently lives in Pennsylvania with his wife, son, and two dogs.[54]

Bibliography

Young Adult fiction

Atlanta Burns series
  • Atlanta Burns (2015)
  • The Hunt (2016)

Atlanta Burns was previously self-published in two volumes, the novella Shotgun Gravy (2011), and the follow-up novel Bait Dog (2012).[28]

The Heartland trilogy
  • Under the Empyrean Sky (2013)
  • Blightborn (2014)
  • The Harvest (2015)

A short story titled "The Wind Has Teeth Tonight" was released in 2014 and takes place between the first and second book.

Adult fiction

Miriam Black series
  • Blackbirds (2012)
  • Mockingbird (2012)
  • The Cormorant (2013)
  • Thunderbird (2017)
  • The Raptor & The Wren (2018)
  • Vultures (2019)

A bridging novelette titled "Interlude: Swallow" was released in 2015 in the anthology Three Slices, featuring work by Wendig, Delilah S. Dawson, and Kevin Hearne. It takes place between the third and fourth book.[55]

Mookie Pearl series
  • The Blue Blazes (2013)
  • The Hellsblood Bride (2015)

Zer0es series
  • Zer0es (2015)
  • Invasive (2016)

Standalone Novels
  • Wanderers (2019)

Tie-in fiction

Dinocalypse trilogy
  • Dinocalypse Now (2012)
  • Beyond Dinocalypse (2013)

Gods and Monsters series
  • Unclean Spirits (2013)

Star Wars: Aftermath trilogy
  • Aftermath (2015)
  • Aftermath: Life Debt (2016)
  • Aftermath: Empire's End (2017)

The Aftermath trilogy explores the events between the films Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens.[56]

Tomes of the Dead series
  • Double Dead (2011)
  • Bad Blood (2012) (novella)

Collected as The Complete Double Dead in February 2016 by Abaddon Books.[13]

Short fiction
  • "Bourbon Street Lullaby", Not One of Us #18, ed. John M. Benson (1997, as C.D. Wendig)
  • "Roachboy", Whispers from the Shattered Forum #5, ed. Cullen Bunn (2000, as C. David Wendig)
  • "Squirrely Skin", Vermin, ed. David A. Rose (2009)
  • "The Moko-Jumbie Girl", Beauty Has Her Way, ed. Jennifer Brozek (2011)
  • "The Toll", Human Tales, ed. Jennifer Brozek (2011)
  • "Riding The Thunderbird", Tales of the Far West, ed. Gareth-Michael Skarka (2012)
  • "I Want to Be a Lioness", Help Fund My Robot Army!!! and Other Improbable Crowdfunding Projects, ed. John Joseph Adams (2014)
  • "The Wind Has Teeth Tonight" (2014)
  • "The Forever Endeavor", serialized over 12 parts in Fireside Magazine, ed. Brian J. White (2014)
  • "Big Man", Dangerous Games, ed. Jonathan Oliver (2014)
  • "Queen of the Supermarket", Trouble in the Heartland, ed. Joe Clifford (2014)
  • "Interlude: Swallow", Three Slices (2015)

Collections
  • Irregular Creatures (2011)

As Editor
  • Don't Read This Book (2012)

Comics

Dark Circle Comics/Archie Comics

Dynamite Entertainment
  • The Sovereigns #0 (with Ray Fawkes, Kyle Higgins, and Aubrey Sitterson, April 2017)
  • Magnus #1-#2 (with Kyle Higgins, June 2017-July 2017)
  • Turok #1-#4 (with Aubrey Sitterson, August 2017-December 2017)

Marvel Comics
  • Hyperion #1-#6 (with Nik Virella, March 2016-August 2016)
  • Star Wars: The Force Awakens Adaptation #1-#6 (with Luke Ross, individual issues published June–November, 2016, published in hardcover December 13, 2016, and in paperback November 21, 2017)

VS Comics
  • "Shackletoon’s Hooch" (with Gavin Mitchell, in VS Comics #9, one-shot, 2013)

Non-fiction
  • Confessions of a Freelance Penmonkey (2011)
  • 250 Things You Should Know About Writing (2011)
  • Revenge of the Penmonkey (2011)
  • 500 Ways To Be a Better Writer (2011)
  • 500 More Ways To Be a Better Writer (2012)
  • 500 Ways To Tell a Better Story (2012)
  • The Kickass Writer: 1001 Ways to Write Great Fiction, Get Published, and Earn Your Audience (2013)
  • 500 Ways To Write Harder (2014)
  • 30 Days In The Word Mines (2014)
  • Damn Fine Story (2017)

Filmography
Year Title Credit Notes
2010 Collapsus Written by Short, co-written with Lance Weiler
2011 Pandemic 41.410806, -75.654259 Short, co-written with Lance Weiler, Official Selection 2011 Sundance Film Festival
2013 Small Small Thing Additional narration written by Documentary, co-written with Jessica Vale

Reception

Aftermath debuted at #4 on The New York Times Best Seller list,[59] and #4 on USA Today's best seller list.[60][61]

Wendig was a finalist for the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer in 2013.

Year Award Category Work Result Ref.
2011 International Digital Emmy Award Best Digital Fiction Project Collapsus Nominated [62]
2012 Goodreads Choice Awards Best Horror Blackbirds [63]
2013 John W. Campbell Award Best New Writer --
2015 Goodreads Choice Awards Best Science Fiction Star Wars: Aftermath [64]
gollark: [CLASSIFICATION CLASSIFIED]
gollark: I know* about that.
gollark: Ah yes.
gollark: What movie?
gollark: The dilemma payoff matrix is different.

References
  1. Wendig, Chuck. "Chuck Wendig: Evolution or Ruination". Locus Online. Locus. Retrieved 17 February 2016.
  2. wendig, chuck. "Who Is Chuck Wendig?". terribleminds: chuck wendig. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  3. "Storium". storium.com. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  4. "Storium — The Online Storytelling Game". Kickstarter. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  5. wendig, chuck. "Holy Crap! Press Release!". terribleminds: chuck wendig. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  6. Weiler, Lance. "Lance Weiler » About". www.lanceweiler.com. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  7. "2011 Sundance Film Festival Announces Short Film Program". www.sundance.org. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  8. wendig, chuck. "2011 In The Rearview, 2012 In The Mirror Of My Shades". terribleminds: chuck wendig. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  9. "Credits". Body Mind Change. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  10. wendig, chuck. "Irregular Creatures". terribleminds: chuck wendig. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  11. "Double Dead". www.abaddonbooks.com. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  12. "Abaddon Books: Revealing the astonishing sequel to Chuck Wendig's Double Dead!". abaddonbooks.blogspot.mx. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  13. "Tomes of the Dead: The Complete Double Dead". www.abaddonbooks.com. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  14. "Dinocalypse Now". Evil Hat Productions. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  15. "Spirit of the Century Presents: The Dinocalypse Trilogy". Kickstarter. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  16. "Update 34: Dinocalypse Update: Progress Report and Author Juggling · Spirit of the Century Presents: The Dinocalypse Trilogy". Kickstarter. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  17. "Gods and Monsters: Unclean Spirits". www.abaddonbooks.com. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  18. "Fiction Book Review: Blackbirds by Chuck Wendig". PublishersWeekly.com. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  19. "A Rumbling Groan Down Below: The Blue Blazes by Chuck Wendig". Tor.com. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  20. Andreeva, Nellie. "Starz Renews David S. Goyer's 'Da Vinci's Demons' For Season 3 With John Shiban As Showrunner, Sets 'Blackbirds' From Shiban". Deadline. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  21. "'Da Vinci's Demons' Renewed for Third Season With New Showrunner". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  22. wendig, chuck. "In Which Miriam Black Delivers Some Bad News". terribleminds: chuck wendig. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  23. "Book Deals: Week of October 20, 2014". PublishersWeekly.com. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  24. wendig, chuck. "Hellsblood Bride (And Other Updates)". terribleminds: chuck wendig. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  25. wendig, chuck. "The Blue Blazes and The Hellsblood Bride Are Now Available". terribleminds: chuck wendig. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  26. wendig, chuck. "Shotgun Gravy (AB#1)". terribleminds: chuck wendig. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  27. wendig, chuck. "The Bait Dog Kickstarter Is A-Go". terribleminds: chuck wendig. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  28. wendig, chuck. "New Release: Atlanta Burns". terribleminds: chuck wendig. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  29. wendig, chuck. "Out Now -- Atlanta Burns: The Hunt". terribleminds: chuck wendig. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  30. wendig, chuck. "Under the Empyrean Sky (Heartland #1)". terribleminds: chuck wendig. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  31. wendig, chuck. "Blightborn (Heartland #2)". terribleminds: chuck wendig. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  32. wendig, chuck. "The Harvest (Heartland #3)". terribleminds: chuck wendig. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  33. "What Happened After Endor? Find Out in Star Wars: Aftermath | StarWars.com". StarWars.com. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  34. "Chuck Wendig's Star Wars book Aftermath gets the trilogy treatment". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  35. Osborn, By Alex. "NYCC 2015: Star Wars Aftermath: Life Debt, Empire's End Revealed". IGN. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  36. "Chuck Wendig on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  37. "Imperial sexuality, murder droids, and fan rage: 'Star Wars Aftermath' with Chuck Wendig". HitFix. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  38. "'Star Wars: Aftermath' introduces a new gay hero to the galaxy". Entertainment Weekly's EW.com. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  39. Polo, Susana (2015-09-08). "'Stop being the Empire,' Star Wars author tells homophobic readers". Polygon. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  40. "Star Wars: Aftermath Author Offers Scathing Response to Criticism of Gay Characters". The Escapist. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  41. "NYCC 2018: ALPHABET SQUADRON REVEALED AND MORE FROM THE LUCASFILM PUBLISHING PANEL". Star Wars.com. Lucasfilm. Retrieved 13 October 2018.
  42. @&ChuckWendig (12 October 2018). "So, here's a thing that has happened – I just got fired from Marvel. Taken off issues 4 and 5 of SHADOW OF VADER, and taken off an as-yet-unannounced SW book. This might be a long thread, so apologies in advance" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  43. McMillan, Graeme (12 October 2018). "'Star Wars' Comic Writer Says Marvel Fired Him for Social Media Behavior". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 13 October 2018.
  44. Whitbrook, James. "Star Wars Writer Chuck Wendig Claims Marvel Fired Him for 'Vulgarity' and 'Too Much Politics' On His Social Media". Gizmodo. Retrieved 13 October 2018.
  45. Riesman, Abraham. "Why Did Marvel Fire Comics Writer Chuck Wendig?". Vulture. New York. Retrieved 13 October 2018.
  46. "Chuck Wendig's 'Shadow of Vader' Star Wars Series Has Been Pulled From Marvel's Schedule". ComicBook.com. Retrieved 2018-10-17.
  47. "Fiction Book Review: Zer0es by Chuck Wendig". PublishersWeekly.com. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  48. wendig, chuck. "Invasive: Cover Reveal!". terribleminds: chuck wendig. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  49. "Dark Circle Comics Editor Alex Segura Unveils THE SHIELD Artist, New Artwork".
  50. Burlingame, Russ. "Adam Christopher and Chuck Wendig on Dark Circle's The Shield, Coming September 16". Comicbook.com.
  51. "Marvel Announces New "Punisher" Series, "International Iron Man" and More". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  52. "MARVEL's HYPERION Gets Ongoing With STAR WARS Author". Newsarama.com. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  53. "EXCLUSIVE: Marvel Announces "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" Adaptation". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  54. Wendig, Chuck. "Who Is Chuck Wendig?". terribleminds. Retrieved 17 February 2016.
  55. wendig, chuck. "Miriam Black Knows How You're Going To Die". terribleminds: chuck wendig. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  56. Breznican, Anthony (September 4, 2015). "How Chuck Wendig's Star Wars: Aftermath novel sets the stage for The Force Awakens". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  57. "Dark Circle Comics Editor Alex Segura Unveils THE SHIELD Artist, New Artwork – Archie Comics". archiecomics.com. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  58. "Adam Christopher and Chuck Wendig on Dark Circle's The Shield, Coming September 16". Comicbook.com. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  59. "Best Sellers: Hardcover Fiction". The New York Times. September 20, 2015. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  60. "Aftermath: Star Wars: Journey to Star Wars: The Force Awakens". USA Today. September 2015. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  61. "Aftermath Debuts At #4 On NY Times & USA Today Bestseller Lists - The Star Wars Underworld".
  62. "Collapsus: The Energy Risk Conspiracy | The Creators Project". The Creators Project. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  63. "Best Horror 2012 — Goodreads Choice Awards". Goodreads. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
  64. "Best Science Fiction 2015 — Goodreads Choice Awards". Goodreads. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
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