What do you have to do to get mentioned in someone’s book?

In my case, it’s play D&D with them. And maybe share a love for metal music as well.

I recently found myself mentioned in Arthur Slade’s latest novel, Metaloria: Highway to Hades, about a group of heavy metal concert-goers who find themselves transported mid-concert to the realm of Metaloria. Think D&D’s Forgotten Realms mixed with metal songs and bands in a LitRPG style and you’ll have the idea. It’s a death trap ruled over by an evil wizard, and our stalwart metal fans must level up their metal health and metal skills to survive. I’m pretty sure I had this fantasy multiple times in my teen years….

I was granted this VIP status thanks to having played D&D online with Slade and a few others writers a number of years ago. Apparently Slade never forgave me for the kobold incident, so I’ve been immortalized as a “Metal Ball minstrel” in the court of the “Mullet King McCann.” (That’s our DM, James McCann!)

I got a chuckle out of the whole thing because it’s a clever way to publicize your new book and get people talking about it. And of course I bought Metaloria!

But it also got me thinking about writing and publishing in the 21st century. How do you make your work stand out in a world where there are more books than ever, and AI is flooding every category like some tsunami of madness? How do you create a genuine literary community without drowning in all the slop?

Maybe community is in fact the answer. Perhaps readers should more actively “shop local” and support the community they know, much like many of us are starting to do in other areas of our lives. I know I’m certainly trying to read and support more Canadian writers — and not just those who mention me in their books! We all know there is far too much to read — or watch, or listen to, etc. — in our lifetimes. We have reached a point where we must actively decide where we are going to place our attention and limited time.

Seen in this light, Metaloria’s name dropping isn’t so much a marketing gimmick as it is an embrace of Slade’s cultural community. What better way to acknowledge your local writers than to put them in a book? Sure, it’s quirky and funny — but it’s also somehow charmingly authentic and meaningful in an increasingly unreal time.

Anyway, now I’ve got an idea for a new tale about killer kobolds who follow the evil Count Slade….