How I wasted a month of my life on an ancient epic...

Ah, progress. It can sometimes creep up on you. Which is what happened to me earlier this year.

Maybe I got a bit carried away with app development, maybe I got a little overexcited.

'Wouldn't it be great' I thought, 'to publish my audio book Mabinogion, the Four Branches as an app?' Yes, of course it would, and a month later I had such an app, complete with artwork by legendary US artist Howard David Johnson. It was big. 5 audio CDs worth of music, plus generous album artwork. Still, it looked and sounded great.

Then I looked at Bandcamp, the company who handle the downloads of the original audiobook. Lo and behold, they now have an app - an app to let anyone stream music from their site (including my splendid audiobook) direct to their phone or tablet. Not only that, but direct to their Sonos system too. Streaming, so no long downloads, and the utter convenience of instant delivery. Take a listen here:

www.themabinogion.com

How did this even happen?

Slightly Magic has got to the point where it's being playtested within an inch of its life. What I've noticed is:

1. The touch controls on phones and tablets work pretty well, without taking up any screen estate. 

2. Allister's music is as fresh as ever, and has never sounded better. 

3. Joystick control on consoles is, erm... a joy. 

I think I've remained faithful to the original, although there are one or two extras included.

I'll be spending a few days next week recording the audio commentary, then it'll be a matter of negotiating the numerous app stores and finally plumping for a release date. I love a good plump.

www.slightlymagic.co.uk