Four kids almost caught playing Dungeons n' Dragons "illegally" during lockdown

Blazing Reader,

When I finished writing the twelfth draft of Much Ado About Corona (back in 2021), I sent copies to about 35 beta readers. This was back when the novel was only about 100,000 words. One of the reasons the final draft ended up being so much longer (150,000 words) was that the beta readers said the novel didn't have enough kids in it.

That's one of the main reasons I added the "Dungeon Before COVID" chapters — where Vince discovers a bunch of kids (and a few adults) meeting to play Dungeons and Dragons in secret, in the basement of the local comicbook shop, during a province-wide ban on indoor gatherings.

Interestingly, these four chapters had the most mixed reviews. Some readers raved about them, others despised them.

For example, Dr. Éva Székely, a retired psychologist who grew up under a communist regime in Eastern Europe, loved the DnD chapters. She said it reminded her of her childhood, when she and her friends would escape into role-playing games.

In contrast, another woman who grew up in Germany (after World War II) said those silly dice-rolling chapters had no place in such an otherwise well-crafted novel.

Polarity is the price of art, I guess.

What about you? Did you love the "Dungeon Before COVID" chapters? Let's take a survey! On a scale of one to ten, how did you like them (1 = they should be burned in a livestream bonfire, 10 = they should be engraved in stone and displayed in the Louvre)? Let me know by sending me an email.

John C.A. Manley

P.S. If you are one of the 6+ billion people on Earth who haven't yet read Much Ado About Corona, purchase a copy, quickly read up to chapter 27 and cast your vote.

P.P.S Dr. Éva Székely calls Much Ado About Corona "a fascinating, entertaining, and sometimes very sad story, full of irony and subtle humour." Who are you to argue with a retired psychologist who survived a communist regime? Check out the free sample now.

John C. A. Manley is the author of Much Ado About Corona, All The Humans Are Sleeping and other works of philosophical fiction that are "so completely engaging that you find yourself alternately laughing, gasping, hanging on for dear life." Get free samples of his stories by becoming a Blazing Pine Cone email subscriber.