Guilty Pleasure

I need to confess to a guilty pleasure. A book sat on my TBR shelf for many months. Years in fact. More than half the time it was in the back row an never go tot see the light of day. I bought it, hardback, for a pound at a charity shop. I’m not sure I ever expected to actually read it. You see, it was by William Shatner.

Couple of things. I love Bill. He was the closest thing I had to a father figure in my childhood (which would explain much) and I have a lot of time for the old sod. But lets be honest, unless you had previous knowledge, who amongst us would not look at a book by Bill and expect cheesy kitsch of he highest order. Also, there were two other names in much smaller print under his (Judith & Garfield Reeves-Stevens), and I’ll leave it to you to figure out which names did most work.

And yet I loved it. In fact, I devoured it, and it cost me many a late night and a groggy morning in work the next day. The story covers a time before Kirk and Spock entered StarFleet, and so the book could even be called Young Adult.

Kirk and Spock, pursuing two different lines of enquiry, end up connected by the very things they are investigating. The story deals with many subjects that are alluded to but never fully explored in the ‘original series’ universe – Spock’s dispute with his father and the ubiquitous ‘Finnegan’ to mention only two – and manages to do so in a way that does not require time travel or an alternate reality. They even manage to squeeze in a passing nod to Jonathan Archer.

And I think that may be one of the things that appealed to me. Rather than bending and existing reality to fit the new and exciting model (whisper softly the names of all the films that have done just that), this is carefully constructed to fit with an existing and well loved universe. Without going back through to check – and why would I want to spoil things by doing that – I cannot remember anything that jarred me as being out of context.

The book was well-paced, humorous, and the characters were in the main believable. In truth, Jim did not ‘bed in’ quite as well as Spock, but again it was not enough to distract from the story.

Do I recommend it? Not sure. It very much suited me, but on this topic I may be a niche market. If you were to see it in a charity shop, though, for a pound...

Retrospection free zone

Personally, I don't get this obsession people have to summarise their year in January. Seems a little to close to oanistic for me. If the events you are bragging about were sufficiently bragworthy, they would have been mentioned at the time. If your followers are interested, there is a diary on your blog to let them scan back through the high spots.

Face it, the majority of people who see your 'that was last year, post already know what's in it.

Rather than sitting in a dark corner of the pub mumbling into a half-finished pint over past glories, I am more of a standing alertly at the bar with a nice glass of Chateauneuf du Pape, enthusing about how much I have to look forward to this year.

My short story "Change of Address" will be out in the Fox Spirit anthology 'Girl at the End of the World' early in the new year.

"Warrior Stone: Underland", a YA urban fantasy novel, is scheduled for publication in February, again through Fox Spirit.

"Maverick", a SF/Fantasy mash is due for publication through Metaphoric in May.

Plus, Amunet is now edited and ready to find a new home. Anybody who knows an agent looking for a brilliant new talent with a Steampunk/Urban Fantasy YA/NA novel ready to go, drop me a line.

Hmm: busy, busy, busy - but never boring :)

Be successful, be happy, and be splendid

Tales of the Fox and the Fae

Sorry to start the new year with an advert. There's a more personal post coming an a few days I promise. I did just have to tell everybody about this: Tales of the Fox and the Fae, from Fox Spirit (my publisher) is out soon and it looks so good I wanted to let you all know. Available soon on Amazon, or take a look at the link here

Cyber-fest

No, nothing to do with the stompy silver fellows. I'm talking CyberPUNK.

I don't normally read two book of the same theme close to each other. It can give rise to unfair comparisons. In fairness, I did separate these two with a blast of Clive Barker, so any comparisons I think are reasonably fair.

So, on the menu we have 'Synners', recently relaunched by Pat Cadigan, and 'Artificial Evil' by Colin F Barnes, first volume in the Techxorcist trilogy.

Superficially, there is much in common between these books; runaway evil virus, urban breakdown, individuals with unexpected abilities, and lots and lots of data processing. But that's about as far as any similarity goes.

'Synners' was like a cool shower on a baking hot August afternoon. OK, not very helpful, but as soon as I started reading I sort of felt like I had come home in a literary sense. Synners was first published in 1991, and as a writer it burns deep inside me that this was only her second book. Also, it feels somehow older then 1991; more like ten years before. It took me back to the time when I was reading a book a day because there was so much to read and I just didn't have time to get to all of it.

The style is the most glorious fusion of William Gibson's 'Neuromancer', John Brunner's 'The Shockwave Rider' (both essential reads) and a just the zest from a 'Clockwork Orange'. Everything is edgy, counter-culture, with LA still hanging on the edge of meltdown and the big corporations sticking it to the public at every opportunity. It sparkles in your mind, with terms you've never heard that still make perfect sense, alien enough to be different and yet close enough to be uncomfortably feasible.

Cleverly, by design or accident, the technology Cadigan uses hasn't really aged, partly by not being too specific about what it is or its capabilities. Sort of hinting at what stuff can do without trying to tell you how. The result is that the story hasn't dated, even if the style is a perhaps a little retro. Having only recently discovered Cadigan through 'Tea from an Empty Cup', I am now a convert and consider Pat living contradiction of the current bull going around that women cant write good SF. I'll have satisfaction from anybody who says otherwise, rapier or pistol, lightsabre or blaster, at dawn.

Barnes offering is cheese to Cadigan's chalk, or perhaps Port to her Brie - nah, stretched that too far. Artificial Evil shares, as I said, some common threads, but the setting is much more Mad Max or Judge Dredd (Stallone version). The characters are very different, too, though no less engaging. Barnes is also a compulsive tale-spinner, and uses the confusion and disorientation of the lead character as he is thrown from a safe and comfortable existence into total confusion compulsively. The like all good writers, as soon as you think you know what's going on, he twists it again. I'm reliably informed all three books in the trilogy are complete and either they are all available or the third is due out momentarily.

Barnes style is much lighter than Cadigan's. Synners was a very dense read, without much space for humour longer than one-liners. Colin scatters little easter eggs through his books, even managing to slip in a 'once does not simply walk into...(Mordor)' line that made me chuckle so hard I woke the wife and got grumbled at.

The second and third Techxorcist novels are on my Christmas list [as are the 2nd thru 5th volumes of Abarat, and anything else by Pat Cadigan, if anybody was looking to buy me... no?... well, can fault me for trying :) ]

Cover Reveal - Aphrodite's Dawn

Relaunching soon.

Blog Neglect: Stamp it out - TODAY!

Blog, Oh Blog, how have I neglected thee?

I plead the usual defence - stuff happened. Hardly an excuse, because surely I should have been blogging about it. Shouldn't I?

Anyhow, a big part of the stuff has been working with Fox Spirit to get 'Warrior Stone:Underland' ready to launch in the new year. Edits are nearing completion, and we have confirmed the talented Linzi Goldstone as cover artist.

The other BIG THING is that Aphrodite's Dawn is going to be relaunched over Christmas; new cover art, new edit, and available as a paperback. All though Metaphoric Media. Should be available from the week before Christmas.

And the last element of the excuse (apart from a new day job) is that I am currently editing or rewriting THREE books; 'Amunet' (Steampunk Urban Fantasy), 'Maverick' (SF), and 'Warrior Stone: White Magic'. I am hoping 'Maverick' will be published some time around May/June, and 'Amunet' has yet to find a home.

I have a feeling 2014 is going to be a very busy year!

BristolCon another resounding sucess

I am home, footsore and liver battered, trying to find the will to sort through my suitcase and goodie-bag.

Knackered doesn't cover it.

But what a time. There was great pre-con conviviality with friend Dom Dulley, plus Kathrine and Lawrence from Crafty Miss Kitty, and great post-con conviviality with the incomparable Ian Whates.

I was lucky enough to be a panelist discussing world building, and I got to moderate a lively discussion on artificial intelligence between Ian Whates, Jaine Fenn and Nick Walters



Actually, who am I kidding. I was terrified. The panel went in completely the opposite direction than I had expected and threw all bar my first question out of the window. Still, with the help of some very good questions from the floor, and three very generous and experienced panelists, the noob mod managed not to make a fool of himself. And thank you to everybody who did turn up, given that we were the last panel of a very long day, and that the other thread was hosting a retrospective of Iain M Banks!

Couple of other people to mention that I met for the first time in this BristolCon. First, Chrissie of Great Escape Publishing who took time out to have a long chat with me about small press publishing and printing, and artist Jim Burns. Jim brought along an original piece of his work that had such luminosity and depth it took my my breath away. Also up for an art mention is Dave Powell, who did me an off-the-cuff sketch based on a description of one of my characters. Great work.

And as always, a massive thanks to the BristolCon team, who work far harder than we mere attendees will ever know, and deserve for more recognition than they get. You Are Magnificent :)