Posts Tagged ‘fantasy’

Stealing from the fantastic past

The fantasy novel A Blight of Mages by Karen MillerDid you know that Henry VIII, famously infamous Tudor king of England, was the first English monarch to build a public toilet block? Well, he was. And if you’re wondering why he built it, that’s because he couldn’t stop his male courtiers from pissing inside his palace.

Hard to believe, isn’t it? Henry was the most magnificent, the most awe-inspiring, the most kingly king England had seen in a very long time. He was charismatic, athletic, intellectual . . . and ruthless. Everyone remembers him for the six wives and the two beheadings. What a lot of people don’t know is that he also had executed – or judicially murdered – more people than any monarch before him, or after. Over two hundred people killed: men, women, young, old, guilty – or simply inconvenient. They died because Henry wanted them dead.

And yet . . . despite his indisputable, terrifying power . . . he couldn’t stop his male courtiers from pissing inside his palace. On the floor, up the walls, in the corners – they were incorrigible, those male courtiers. And Henry couldn’t stop them. He couldn’t stop the massive thieving by his servants, either. His household budget was always ridiculously in the red because he couldn’t stop his underlings from pinching things, double-dipping, fudging accounts, eating more than their fair share, selling food out of the kitchens.

More power than any man or woman in his kingdom . . . and still, Henry was powerless. An extraordinary paradox, isn’t it? Surprising. Intriguing. (more…)

N. K. Jemisin’s new fantasy novel, THE KILLING MOON, is out now!

The Killing Moon by N.K. JemisinAt the end of 2010, a manuscript dropped into my inbox. It was from Lucienne Diver, who said that it “knocked her socks off.”

I was curious as I do love Lucienne’s taste (being the agent for Carol Berg, Lynn Flewelling, & Rachel Caine to name a few). I was slow to realize that this Nora’s next novel that she’d been working on!

Nora , whom some of you might know better as N.K. Jemisin, is the Locus Award-winning and World-Fantasy, Hugo & Nebula nominated author of The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, The Broken Kingdoms & The Kingdom of Gods.

The novel that was then newly submitted eventually came to be called THE KILLING MOON (US/UK/AUS) and it was everything Lucienne said and more. Exotic, thrilling and thoroughly mesmerizing, it will, even more than her first three novels, establish her as a writer to watch. But don’t trust me – just check out the early praise below!

“The Killing Moon is a great tale of magic, religion and war but it’s also a story of all the hard lessons and choices growing up entails, no matter how old you are in terms of years. Beautifully written and brought to life The Dreamblood duology is sure to cement Jemisin’s place as one of the most exciting and innovative new fantasy authors of recent years.”

—io9

“Jemisin’s gripping series launch immerses readers in an unfamiliar but enthralling world as well as a rousing political and supernatural adventure.”

—Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)

“Absolutely fascinating.”

—RT BookReviews

If you’d like a bit more about the novel:

In the ancient city-state of Gujaareh, peace is the only law. Upon its rooftops and amongst the shadows of its cobbled streets wait the Gatherers – the keepers of this peace. Priests of the dream-goddess, their duty is to harvest the magic of the sleeping mind and use it to heal, soothe . . . and kill those judged corrupt.

But when a conspiracy blooms within Gujaareh’s great temple, Ehiru – the most famous of the city’s Gatherers – must question everything he knows. Someone, or something, is stalking its prey both in Gujaareh’s alleys and the realm of dreams. Ehiru must now protect the woman he was sent to kill – or watch the city be devoured by war and forbidden magic.

And read the first chapter here!

What I’ve Learned

I wish I knew everything I know now, because when I began writing fantasy, I didn’t have a clue about the art of storytelling.

How I began

I devoured books from the age of four, I was good at English, and I wrote all the time in my work (I’m a marine scientist). Yet when I started writing my first book 25 years ago (A Shadow on the Glass), I discovered that I didn’t truly understand how fiction worked, and the books I read on writing, worthy though they were, weren’t much help. I understood their messages but couldn’t see how to apply them to my story.

My first novel had a long gestation, because I’d been world-building for ten years before I started writing. I’d created maps the size of doors (small versions can be seen here) designed a whole world of nations and ecosystems, and worked out 10,000 years of history, as one does. I’d also spent a lot of time planning the book. At least, trying to.

But the story plan didn’t seem real. I had no idea where it was going and every idea seemed dumb and derivative. In despair, and sure the book wasn’t going to work, I started to write ‘organically’ – that’s the technical term for ‘making it up as you go along’.

(more…)

THE HEIR OF NIGHT on Gemmell Awards Shortlist – Vote Now!

The cover for Helen Lowe's Gemmell Awards shortlisted Heir of NightWe’re all so pleased to announce that Helen Lowe’s THE HEIR OF NIGHT has been shortlisted for a David Gemmell Award! Our biggest congratulations to Helen, and we’re keeping everything crossed for the final awards announcement on 15th June, even though it’s pretty hard to type on the blog with crossed fingers!

If you liked THE HEIR OF NIGHT then please do go and vote for Helen at the Gemmell Awards website. It’s as easy as just one click! There’s no need to sign up, although if you’d like to be a Gemmell Awards member then you can get a free account and become part of the discussion.

There are five books on the shortlist, and voting closes on 31st May 2012, 12 Noon GMT. 

Epic Fantasy Interview Swap – Ian Irvine interviews Helen Lowe

Last week we showed you the first part of this interview, in which Helen Lowe interviewed Ian Irvine about the publication of his brand new epic fantasy series, The Tainted Realm. This week the tables have turned! Click through to the interview to read more . . .

Ian: I haven’t done an interview swap with another author before, and it’s been a challenging experience to be put on the spot by Helen Lowe, who also writes epic fantasy and loves it as much as I do. But now I get to ask her the hard questions!

Covers of the two published books in Helen Lowe's epic fantasy series The Wall of Night

(more…)

Having a Blast in the 15th Century–Arizona Renaissance Fest Update

Gail Martin joins us on the blog today to share her recent experiences from the Arizona Renaissance Festival and tons of great photos from the event. If you’ve never been to a Renaissance Festival it’s a pilgrimage every fantasy fan should make at least once. So check out what Arizona has to offer or let us know which festivals you frequent.

***

This was my fifth year as a guest author at the Arizona Renaissance Festival, and from having been a guest author equally long at the Carolina festival, I’ve gotten to know many of the vendors, performers and artists.  So going is always like an extended book signing plus old home week.

Ann Chamberlain hosted me at her marvelous bookshop near the joust, where I greeted passers-by, offered them a free bookmark, and managed to fry my cleavage (ouch!) despite what I thought had been good application of SPF 70 sunscreen.  It’s fun to see readers whom I’ve met from previous years and chat about the books, life, and in many cases, their writing projects which are still works in process (keep on writing!).

(more…)

Picturing the Orcs

If I was castaway on that mythical desert island with a single palm tree beloved of cartoonists I’d want to be washed ashore with a crate of books.  But that shouldn’t be taken as an admission that I regard other mediums, such as movies, and in particular comicbooks, as any less legitimate.  Which is why I was so thrilled at the prospect of an Orcs graphic novel.

I owe artist and film director Joann Sfar my thanks for kicking it off.  Joann, a leading light in the new wave of French comicbook creators, recommended my Orcs novels to Mark Siegel, Editorial Director of First Second Books, an imprint dedicated to publishing high-quality graphic novels.  I loved the idea of moving my concept and characters into a different medium, and Mark suggested that rather than adapt any of the existing novels I might like to come up with a new story.

While I was putting it together, Mark was busy auditioning artists, and eventually choose Joe Flood, best known for his HELLCITY strip.

I’d worked on two graphic novels before, back in the ’90s, when I adapted David Gemmell’s LEGEND AND WOLF IN SHADOW into graphic novel form.  I also wrote a handful of short strips for comicbooks.  What I did then was write scripts in the traditional way.  I described what a panel should show and what should go in dialogue balloons and captions of exposition.  But this wasn’t an adaptation like the Gemmell books; it was an original story.  I had to assume that at least a portion of the graphic novel’s readership would be coming to my orcs universe for the first time.  I felt I needed to introduce new readers to the set-up and the point of view I was adopting.  I also had to convey to Joe the feeling I wanted to put over – the texture of the story, if you like.  So I decided to write the thing as a short story, a fully rendered piece of fiction, as I might if it was intended to be published in an anthology.  It ended up running to over 20,000 words, and was called FIT FOR PURPOSE at that stage.  Later, it became ORCS: FORGED FOR WAR.

(more…)

Epic Fantasy Interview Swap – Helen Lowe interviews Ian Irvine

April’s such a great month for epic fantasy fans, with the release of both Ian Irvine’s VENGEANCE and Helen Lowe’s THE GATHERING OF THE LOST! We wanted to celebrate by doing something a bit different on the blog –  and we thought: ‘Who better to interview a fantasy author than another fantasy author?’

This is the first part of that interview, in which Helen interviews Ian about his new series The Tainted Realm. Look out for the second part, when Ian interviews Helen, this time next week!

Click through to hear all about Ian’s pet hates in fantasy, how his background as a marine scientist affects his writing, and also just what’s wrong with magic in Harry Potter…

This image shows both the cover of Vengeance and the cover of The Gathering of the Lost (more…)

VENGEANCE is ours!

Vengeance by Ian IrvineInternationally bestselling author Ian Irvine kicked off a new series this April with VENGEANCE (US | UK | AUS), a gritty adventure for the discerning epic fantasy reader. Tali is a slave in a subterranean world governed by fear and violence. She has never seen the light of day. Rix is a young Lord of Hightspall who lives in the light but is tormented by dark, apocalyptic visions. A shocking act of violence from the past connects this unlikely pair, who must unite to stand against a powerful foe.

This is epic fantasy at its best: Irvine’s world is lovingly built, and full of action, intrigue, and depth. And deadly shapeshifting beasts! We hope you’ll share our enthusiasm for a writer “comfortably ranked next to … Robert Jordan and David Eddings and, more appropriately, the mighty Anne McCaffrey” (SFX).

Read an excerpt from VENGEANCE

Orbit acquires towering new fantasy FADE TO BLACK by Francis Knight

I’m delighted to say we’ve acquired World Rights in a fabulous new fantasy series from British author Francis Knight (@Knight_Francis). Orbit will be publishing the 3-book series internationally, with book 1, Fade To Black, being released in February 2013.

This highly original fantasy novel really captured our imagination. It’s set in the ‘vertical’ fantasy city of Mahala – a city built up in layers, not across, where streets are built upon streets and buildings balance precariously upon buildings. A city that the Ministry rules from its lofty perch at the sunlit summit, and where the forsaken lurk in the shadowy depths of the Pit.

Thrown into the middle of this entrancingly dark and atmospheric setting is the bounty hunter Rojan. Everyone knows he’s a rogue, a womaniser, a shirker of all responsibility. But what they don’t know is that he’s also a pain-mage: someone able to draw magic from his own and other people’s pain. Rojan’s not keen on using this magic (not least because it’s outlawed), but when his niece is abducted, Rojan may be forced to unleash his powers . . .

Look out for more info on this exciting new series soon – and if you’re attending Eastercon this weekend, keep an eye out for Francis! She’ll be appearing on the following panels on Sunday 8th April:

You got your robot elf sex in my SF – 3pm, Commonwealth

The Future of Ebooks – 5pm, Royal A + C