Loren L. Coleman

Revision as of 13:39, 10 April 2022 by Madness Divine (talk | contribs) (→‎Brief History: spelling)
Lorencoleman.jpg
Loren L. Coleman
Born 1968
Occupation Author,
IMR, CGL and BattleCorps founder
Homepage http://www.lorenlcoleman.com


Loren L. Coleman (the BattleTech writer) should not be confused with Loren Coleman, the cryptozoologist.

Brief History

Loren L. Coleman, born in Longview, Washington,[1] is a science-fiction writer, known for having written many books for series such as BattleTech & MechWarrior: Dark Age, Star Trek, Age of Conan, Crimson Skies, Magic: The Gathering, and others. A former member of the United States Navy, he has written gaming fiction and source material for such companies as FASA, TSR, Inc. and Wizards of the Coast. His first professional fiction novel contract was for the BattleTech novel Double Blind.

In 2003 he was one of the principal founders of InMediaRes, the parent company of BattleTech licensee Catalyst Game Labs (CGL) and also the company that owns BattleCorps, a website dedicated to BattleTech fiction. Beyond several print novels published for Classic BattleTech and its MechWarrior: Dark Age setting he authored numerous short stories published via BattleCorps, including the serial work Shadows of Faith, the continuation of the main BattleTech storyline from where it left off in Endgame.

The Frank Trollman case

On 16 March 2010 Frank Trollman, a former CGL freelancer who had worked on Shadowrun and left on bitter terms, posted an open letter[2] on the forum of Dumpshock.com, the (inofficial) main forum for the Shadowrun community. He claimed to possess inside information, and that, as an ex-freelancer, he was the whistleblower of choice for unnamed other insiders. In his posting he linked Loren Coleman to an amout of around $850,000 US that was allegedly "missing outright", implying that Coleman had embezzled money, and said Coleman was accused of failing to report convention sales of nearly $100,000 US, and of having hired people through his company as "freelance writers" to build an extension to his house. The allegations remained unproven, though CGL admitted in a press release[3] that a "co-mingling of funds" had been discovered. Several employees and freelancers quit working for CGL over the course of the affair (notably, CGL's bookkeeper and office manager Jennifer "Tiger Eyes" Harding publicly stated that she had left the company on 15 March 2010 "for ethical reasons" after Loren Coleman asked her to falsify royalty reports, though expressly without judging whether or not it was illegal[4]), and some third parties cut their ties with CGL and even filed (unsuccessfully) for Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceedings[5] against IMR. Others expressed doubts over Trollman's motives and the veracity of his claims, or suggested that he might have blown a minor issue out of proportions. Part of the public discussion revolved around CGL's practice of paying freelance authors very late, which however is no different from how FASA and FanPro previously operated, and is neither illegal nor uncommon in the industry.

As far as could be determined, Coleman was neither tried nor convicted of any wrongdoing and remains at the head of IMR; Topps, who owned the BattleTech and Shadowrun IPs, renewed IMR's license shortly afterwards.[6]

Bibliography

Novels

BattleTech

Classic BattleTech
MechWarrior
Dark Age

Other

Magic
the Gathering
  • 1999. Bloodlines
Vor- the Maelstrom
  • 1999. Into the Maelstrom
Crimson Skies
  • 2000. Rogue Flyer
  • 2001. Falcon's Prey
Star Trek
  • 2003. Star Trek: Starfleet Corps of Engineers #29: Aftermath (eBook, released as an anthology in 2006)
Age of Conan
  • 2005. Blood of Wolves
  • 2005. Cimmerian Rage
  • 2005. Songs of Victory

Sourcebooks

BattleTech

Other

Role Aids
  • 1993. Denizens of Diannor (Mayfair Games)
  • 1994. Underground Companion
Advanced Dungeons & Dragons
  • 1995. Chronomancer (TSR)
Earthdawn
  • 2001. Earthdawn Companion, Second Edition (Living Room Games)

Battletech Works

For a list of his stories, please follow this link.

External Links

References

  1. according to the biography section on his homepage
  2. "The Great CGL Rumors and Speculation Thread", Dumpshock.com forums
  3. CGL: "For Immediate Release" public statement
  4. Dumpshock forum posting
  5. Case 10-14343-TTG, Western Washington State
  6. Licensing announcement at battletech.com

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