FantasyCon 2011 – hot, hot hot

I’m suffering jet lag. Okay, the distance between Brighton and Chester is only a handful of hundreds of miles and four hours by train, but the distance in terms of literary milieu I am on the other side of the planet. A day ago I was shaking hands with Brian Aldiss. Brian Aldiss! And Christopher Priest, Ramsey Campbell, and other writer friends such as Jonathan Pinnock, Ian Whates, Robert Harkess, Raven Dane and Sam Stone. My experience became enhanced with the artists too – Steve Upham, Vincent Chong and Andy Bigwood. Then the publishers – most of whom are also fine writers but are these days mostly producing exquisite publications – Terry Martin, Lee Harris, Christopher Teague, Simon Marshal-Jones and others. My hand hasn’t been so excited for years. Loved the hugs too… thanks Sam.

Copies of my Exit, Pursued by a Bee and the Escape Velocity anthology were among other items in the FantasyCon raffle. My SF mystery might have gone unnoticed but the Mistress of Ceremonies, Sarah Pinborough was ‘tired’ by the time she had to read the title and so fumbled it. Luckily, a helper said. “Exit, Pursued by a Bee, and it is a good book!”. Yeay, Sarah can be a Mistress again!

Link to FantasyCon 2011 >>> here

Speaking of the Escape Velocity anthology, I met several of the contributors during the weekend – besides Bec Zugor (I travelled up the railtrack to Chichesterto have lunch with her and her family – excellent day). EV contributors at FantasyCon included Jonathan Pinnock, Robert Harkess, Roy Gray, Mark Lewis and Ian Whates. I also met the charming Carmelo Rafala of Immersion Press, who wrote the Mother Tongue story in Escape Velocity issue one. Jonathan Pinnock was there to launch his amazing Mrs Darcy Versus the Aliens – see the link here. I’ve known Jonathan for years on various forums and admired his writing style but I had no idea he was soooo tall. I had to stand on a box of his books to shake his hand.

I attended several literary panels including one in which graphic artists discussed cover art issues and I learned why you rarely see turquoise in digital-art covers. Thanks, Vincent, who explained it to me in detail in the bar later. Also, in a panel on the future of SF Brian Aldiss said how single-word titles work best for promotion, then quoted his own Hot House as an example. Ian Whates pointed out to him that it was two words… ha ha. But in fact it really is one word – Hothouse as it was published in 1962. Ian could have quoted his No Time Like Tomorrow title back at him. Nevertheless, a one word title does have appeal. I tend to go for two or more.

Xaghra’s Revenge is a case in point. I managed to have a quick word with the Angry Robot publisher, Lee Harris, who have had the synopsis and samples in his inbox since May. They’ve been very busy this year including having an unagented submission window with the resulting flood of novels to consider. I bought Peter Crowther’s latest book, Darkness Falling, from them. A fantasy thriller with people disappearing – unnerving when that includes the pilot of a plane you are in. Hopefully, there will be good news about XR in due course.

Besides the exuberance I went through meeting all these folk – all good people in spite of their chosen genre of unspeakable horror! – there were other moments of excitement. A burlesque show was laid on: all based on fantasy themes we were treated to playlets and delightful striptease. Of course being based inBrightonin the British heatwave (28 C shade temp in October), there was plenty of bare flesh of all sexes on display on the beach and even bikinis in the town. I thought I was inAmsterdamin some of the narrow lanes with their windows wide open and an interesting sweet aroma wafting along. I was distinctly light-headed by the time I reached the end of the lane. With that, the hot sun, the ocean, the marvellously friendly gay communities, the cosmopolitan eateries (many many veggie cafes) and the runners along the promenades, Brighton was a combo ofAmsterdam and Sliema in Malta. I hope to go back soon.

Free three stories

We are offering samples of the Escape Velocity anthology stories. See here for the Adventure Books of Seattle website or to get the UK Kindle version too it is on this page in progress.

If you are a SF reviewer please drop me a line.

Launch day

Today we launched Escape Velocity: the Anthology. At least it was for the e-book version. The print comes out later in the month. Strange and unique day. I spent most of the morning sending PayPal payments to authors who’d contributed to the EV antho – not done that before! It felt soooooo good adding the paypal message to thank them for their stories.
I was frustrated at not finding the paypal emails or addresses (for cheques) for some contributors – I’d sent emails requesting such weeks ago but no response. Tonight, I was still working on tracking missing authors and responding to facebook and email requests when my wife pulled at my elbow. “We’re going to the pub.” I tried to say no but remembered we’d arranged a retirement evening for a colleague. Damn. But it was great in the end to chat with not-wriitng friends. I’ve given up mentioning my writing to them and talk about our kids, holidays etc. One is an English teacher but although he enjoys our chats about Chekhov, he seems to switch off if I talk about science fiction or fantasy. Oh well, we are an esoteric lot, aren’t we?

For British readers who’d like to see the Kindle version of the Escape Velocity anthology, the link is here, while for Amazon.com users it is here.

Science Fiction reviewers please get in touch with me at geoffnelder(AT)yahoo.com

Writing updates

Escape Velocity: the anthology is nearing completion. We’ve had the stories, poem, cartoon and editorials done and proofread for a while but two things held things up. 1) a few admin / finance issues but they’re sorted now. 2) the extraordinary success of Into The Blast – the story of DB Cooper, the skyjacker in the 1970s, who was never caught. WordPress won’t let me put a direct link to the Amazon (the dot com as only the first edition is on the UK version at the moment) selling for print or ebook.If you go to Amazon yourself and find Into the Blast revised edition you’ll a very low star rating by one person. Apparently, he is upset that our research came to a different conclusion to him, he’s brought out his own book and probably jealous of ours being the subject of a History Channel decoders programme. Healthy competition is fine in the publishing industry, though in the main I’ve only seen cooperation and friendship. Mean to diss your competition by putting low ratings for their products. Anyway, perhaps that reviewer will like our anthology, and it is due out in March.

I received a lovely rejection letter via my US agent this week. We didn’t realise that the science fiction branch of New Deer Press was headed up by none other than Robert J Sawyer. My agent had sent them a query letter for my Left Luggage science fiction trilogy a long time ago and hadn’t chased them. So she received this from the great man: “Please accept my profound apologies for being so long in replying — 13 months is unconscionable!. I don’t work in the Red Deer Press offices, and they only just forwarded your query to me.  Your project is fascinating, but, alas, my little line of books only publishes Canadian authors, sad to say.  I do wish you the very best of luck elsewhere.
Rob Sawyer”

Wow, that’s a rejection I didn’t mind. Of course it seems odd for that publisher to only want Canadian writers and there’s nothing on their submission guidelines to say so. Perhaps they receive a grant from their government. Anyhow, I mentioned this to some friends. One is Canadian and offered to help. We briefly discussed me marrying her, but that is problematical with both of us being already married. She is the charming Isabelle Prevost. Like me she won an award at Wuacademia. Her’s is for a collection of short stories called L’Objectif – in French as you see. Here at Wuacemia. My Hot Air is there too.

A flash short story of mine is in a charity anthology, The Write to Fight. Supporting young olympic hopefuls it is available here. The story is written from the point of view of a sparrow. It is rare for me to write from an animal viewpoint but it was a way to imbue a lot of irony into how humans live.

I heard that another short story, The Examination, has been picked for the Queensland 100 anthology. All proceeds are going to victims of the floods in Australia this winter. No link yet.

2010 – could do better

Of course I immensely enjoyed this year’s family events – a new granddaughter over in Nottingham and delightful playtimes with grandon in Urmston. Also family hols in the Lake District, and Mallorca. But this blog entry is about scribbling.
2010 – A writer’s mixed fortunes
My initial reactions to this year is that as far as my writing is concerned nothing much has happened. I was paid for editing one person’s novel, and have had a small number of short stories published but my biggies – the SF Left Luggage trilogy and Fantasy Xaghra’s Revenge remain with Rebecca Pratt, my agent in the USA, being sent to publishers, who often take up to a year to respond. Nevertheless, I travelled to two conventions, spent a week at a UK Away writers’ week in Carmarthenshire and enjoyed supporting other writers in various forums and groups. Principle among the latter are the fabulous writerly friends at Café Doom and in the BSFA Orbiters. I thought I’d list the writing related activity I’ve achieved this year. I am surprised how much one can do with so little monetary yet great personal feedback. Above all I am indebted to my diet and writing buddy, Bec Zugor. Bec has a great blog here.

Although Left Luggage is yet to be published, the opening scene won an honourable mention in Gary Ponzo’s Strong Scenes competition, May 2010. More kudos came from the magazine, Fright Site, when it decided my horror story, In Absentia, deserved a best story award in Twice The Terror anthology, edited by Horrorzine’s Jeani Rector.

Fiction publications:
Screaming Dreams’ Christmas special – anthology to publish humour alt history tale, Patent NonScience in Dec 2009 crept into 2010
Horrorzine – Jan 2010 – short story, In Absentia – it’s the Editor’s Pick. Jan 2010 – print antho in 2010
The Write to Fight – anthology to support Kent Karate – Reflective Sparrow – flash story 2010
The Monster Alphabet Book – Ed by John Prescott. Short story Goliath 2010
The Sixty – Fine SFF Art book by Andy Bigwood has accepted my flash story matching one of his pictures – Winter Hunt.
A Monk Punk story, Don’t Bite My Finger, has been accepted for an anthology.
Hot Air – my thriller novel was published by Wuacademia in August 2010.
Auditory Crescendo to be published in Escape Velocity: The Anthology in January 2011
UK Away Chapbook 2010 – a surreal SF story.
Escaping Reality, my humorous thriller, was published in 2005 and is still available. In 2010 it became downloadable at Smashwords for $1.99 – bargain!
Exit, Pursued by a Bee my science fiction novel was published by DDP in 2008 and still available there and as a Kindle download. In 2010 it was serialized for free monthly reads at Kalkion.com

Non-fiction publications:
Article: Hiding the Truth on UFOs published in Kalkion February 2010
Article: Illusions, Coincidences, and the Moon, Kalkion Spring 2010
Article: The Lure of Bridges published in Kalkion June 2010
Article: When Not To Write Science Fiction – in Kalkion July 2010

Reviews published in 2010
By Professor D. Harlan-Wilson: Collection of amusing bizarre stories entitled: They Had Goat Heads, a novel: Codenamed Prague.
M, John Harrison: Climbers, and The City & The City
Liz Williams: Banner of Souls
Margaret Atwood: The Handmaid’s Tale.
Ira Nayman: Alternate Reality books: Alternate Reality Ain’t What It Used To Be and What Were Once Miracles Are Now Children’s Toys
Martin Amis, Time’s Arrow
Christopher Priest: Inverted Worlds
Mark Haddon: A Spot of Bother
William Gibson: Virtual Light
John Farris: The Ransome Women
Derek Muk: The Occult Files of Albert Taylor
Casting Shadows Joleen Kuyper, E.J. Tett and Jo Robertson: A collection of dark tales and poems
Jeani Rector: And Now The Nightmare Begins
Mitzi Szereto: In Sleeping Beauty’s Bed

Short stories completed looking for publication: Dopplegangster, The Future and Up One, Indefinite Article (revised), several others in progress.
Works I have professionally edited that have been published in 2010 include
Into The Blast: written by Skipp Porteous and Robert Blevins (that was the first edition, the second edition, taking into account the involvement of filming by the History Channel Decoders series is to be published in January 2011)
The Last Olympian by John Goodwin
The Zargothian Tales by Aiden Lucid

In addition to those I have kept up my blog, updated my website and wrote numerous responses in forums, letters and emails. Phew!

My biggest literary let down of the year has been the mixed blessing of having my horror story, Goliath, published in the Monster Alphabet Book published by John Prescott as M is for Monster. Although he loved my story – Goliath’s story from his point of view as a misunderstood youth – John had sent it to Serenity Banks for editing. Without consulting me she changed many British words for inappropriate Americanisms eg jerk instead of jolt and completely changed the ending by deleting a significant few sentences. I feel like disowning it. If anyone wants the original story please contact me.

An exciting writing event was the UKAway week in Carmarthenshire, especially the fun of cycling there and back and meeting such inspiring writers.

All in all a busy even if pecuniary year. As it ends I continue to contribute to new works and today edited with Robert Blevins, the final touches to Escape Velocity: The Anthology due out in January 2011.

Don’t bite…

Don’t bite my finger, see where it is pointing. This is known as a chbap, a Cambodian gnomic poem meant to be inspirational in Zen Buddhism to evoke enlightenment. When I found that chbap I fell in love with it because I immediately formed an image of a helpful stranger pointing to a faraway place – giving directions – when his listener misinterprets and goes for the finger. Haha – it appealed to my warped sense of humour. I planted it on my status on facebook but it seems the poem doesn’t resonate so well with others. Ho hum. I am considering using it as the title of a short story on Monk Punk. I’ve never considered writing a story about this sub-genre of fantasy. The idea is that a lovable monk, of any religion and place, has adversity to overcome – as in any story – only set with a fantasy element.

I’m inspired to write it as a result of my Goliath short story being accepted in John Prescot’s adult fiction – Monster Alphabet Book. One of the other contributors, Aaron French, is an editor for Static Movement, who are publishing a Monk Punk anthology. Hence my story. See the great cover art.

Almost simultaneously I have encountered news of anthologies from The Dead Robot’s Society and Solaris. And of course, Adventure Books of Seattle are publishing an Escape Velocity anthology in the next few weeks based on contributors we accepted before the magazine folded, along with a few best from early issues. It seems there is a resurgence of publishers going for short stories. Reminds me to ask Wayne Goodchild what has happened to my submission to his Library of the Living Dead antho – Library of Science Fiction.

I’m helping son to move his family including my new granddaughter, to a new home in Nottingham this weekend. I’m spending nights in a Travelodge. Yes, I could have had a mattress on a floor but I find I can knock out a few thousand words on my own in a hotel room – rather like an office – whereas nothing comes my way on floors.

Entertainment meets Astronomy

You have to watch this. Rapper Milky J is a HUGE fan of the Hubble telescope (‘cos it’s silver and everyone loves silver) and worries over its demise with the coming of the James Webb telescope. So Milky goes along to the Goddard Institute with a film crew and grills them in the most hilarious way.

Thanks Maria Ayres, who works at the Hubble Telescope (so to speak) for this link. Maria is a contributor to Escape Velocity, our magazine at Adventure Books of Seattle.

Link to Milky J’s defence of Hubble http://bit.ly/cLYp8c

Astronomy will never be the same.

Escape Velocity needed

Good to hear that an American university in South Carolina has ordered 20 print copies of each of our Escape Velocity magazines. No one has a bad word to say for it – an eclectic mix of science fact and fiction. The latest web page for it is here. Kindle sales of Escape Velocity are picking up.

Early ebook versions are free to download if you go along to that link. Issue 5 will be out in Spring. Thanks to all those excellent authors who contributed for their patience. The delay is because of the time Adventure Books is putting into bringing out a non-fiction true story book on DB Cooper – the man who hijacked a plane in 1971, parachuted off with the loot and never seen again… or has he?  Watch this space.

A runaway success of Adventure Books of Seattle recently is the sales of a science fiction / fantasy novel by A J Desmond called Big Bang. It’s a kind of big brother reality situation where a group believe a nuclear holocaust has occurred and they have to get along – or not – in their shelter. Brilliantly funny. Ant is a Welsh writer and comedy film maker and a friend. The Kindle version of his book is here  But UK and rest of the world readers can find it somewhere here.

The Moon

Sadly, I have yet to see the new 2009 release film entitled, Moon, but it is on my Amazon wish list. Meanwhile Kalkion ezine have reprinted my factual article on the moon at

http://kalkion.com/column/illusions-coincidences-and-moon/734

I combine a fascination for quirky facts and coincidences and my urge to debunk ‘common sense’. It was originally published in our Escape Velocity magazine, issue 3.

In the above kalkion edition is chapter 6 of my Exit, Pursued by a Bee science fiction mystery. The previous chapters can be accessed there too.

Mondo Cult

I was sent a cool link today. It is a review of Escaping Reality and sublinks to it and Exit, Pursued by a Bee and Escape Velocity in neat widgets. Push the link and see for yourself at

http://www.mondocult.com/articles/escape.html

Jessie Lilley is the creative genius behind the ezine and paper magazine, Mondo Cult, based in California.