Congratulations, Sir Terry!

I was delighted to learn (via @Colleen_Lindsay), that Terry Pratchett is to receive a Knighthood in the New Years honours list in recognition of his services to literature and, surely, his charity work on behalf of Alzheimer's research.

The Independent has the details of (soon-to-be Sir) Terry's reaction ("I'm having difficulty fitting it into my head. I'm very pleased indeed. It cheers me up no end.") and their op-ed piece on the subject sums up why this is a Very Good Thing Indeed.

Terry Pratchett is one of my all-time favourite authors. I picked up a copy of The Colour of Magic on the day of its paperback publication and have read pretty much everything he's written since (although that reminds me, I'm actually one or two books behind. I'd best get a copy of Nation when I spend my Xmas vouchers...)

December 31, 2008 | Filed Under Online Finds | Leave a Comment

New Genre Webzine: Three Crow Press

Stumbled across a new webzine the other day that looks rather interesting. It's called Three Crow Press and it's produced by relatively new independent genre publisher Morrigan Books.

Issue one of the 'zine is online now and features seven pieces of short fiction - by Francesca Forrest, Mark Rossmore, F.R.R. Mallory, Klaudia Bara, Alice Godwin, George Rizen and Catherine J. Gardner - as well as an interview with author Elaine Cunningham, a feature on the work of fantasy artist Ursula Vernon and a few book reviews and articles.

You can also follow their updates on Twitter, if you're that way inclined.

December 24, 2008 | Filed Under Online Finds | 1 Comment

A penny for the droid?

The credit crunch. It's not just about people anymore. This Christmas, spare a thought for poor, sad, lonely, AHD-168...

December 22, 2008 | Filed Under Fantastic Art | Leave a Comment

On Monarchy in Fantasy Fiction

Monarcy Marie Brennan took a look at the fantasy genre's enduring fascination with monarchy over at sfnovelists.com last week.

Marie made some very good points about just why it is that rule by kings, queens, princesses, princes et al seems to be such an ingrained trope of the genre (mythic resonance, focus of dramatic attention on key individuals) and there's nothing wrong with that sort of thing at all. But I also agree that it would be great to see some variety in the governmental power-structures from time to time.

Admittedly, we do see the occasional imperial (monarchic militocracy) or rule by a shadowy cabal of thieves and / or assassins (anarchic feudalism) or a council of wise mages (oligarchic noocracy) or knife-and-pyre-wielding high-priests (totalitarian theocracy) but there are other options out there that would be equally interesting to read about. Something based on the dynastic plutocracies that held sway in the mediaeval Italian City States, perhaps? Or how about a genuine meritocracy, in which the rulers are selected from amongst those best-suited for the job as a result of their skills and abilities (or would that be pushing the willing suspension of disbelief just a little too far?)

Of course, some of those systems (or others) may have been explored already and I just haven't come across them yet - any suggestions or recommendations for further reading?

December 22, 2008 | Filed Under Books and Reading | 4 Comments

Very Special Offer from PS Publishing

My very good friend Pete Crowther, head honcho of the legendary PS Publishing, has just announced a set of very special offers to mark PS's tenth anniversary in 2009.

From now until the end of next year, you'll be able to buy an anniversary box-set of PS novellas (trade or jacketed editions) or novels / collections (trade or slipcased editions) at a very special price. Each box will contain 10 pre-2008 titles (all different, randomly selected by PS, no requests for specific titles). It's a great way to dip into some of truly fantastic genre fiction from the UK's leading specialist independent genre publisher and - who knows? - maybe discover a new favourite author or two in the process.

Visit the PS Publishing News Room for full details.

December 18, 2008 | Filed Under Books and Reading | Leave a Comment

Anatomy of a Todd Lockwood book cover

Via Suvudu, a link to a highly interesting couple of posts by multi award-winning fantasy artist Todd Lockwood that explains the creative process behind of the cover for the latest R. A. Salvatore Drizzt Do'Urden novel, The Pirate King.

From this:

All the way through to this:

The series includes a third post which focuses on the detail of the main character, with a short video demonstrating how the layers of detail were built up. Fascinating stuff if, like me, you have a keen interest in fantasy art but very little in the way of artistic talent and know-how.

Both images obviously copyright (c) Todd Lockwood. Click on them for the relevant blog posts explaining the earlier and later stages of the process.

December 17, 2008 | Filed Under Fantastic Art | 2 Comments

Season's Greetings from Vincent Chong

I've been lucky enough to receive another seasonal card from a top fantasy artist. This time it's an e-card: a rather lovely surreal fantasy piece from double British Fantasy Award-winning artist Vincent Chong.

Cheers, Vinny!

December 16, 2008 | Filed Under Fantastic Art | 2 Comments

Zombie Haiku

I'm sure I'm late to the party on this one, but in case you managed to miss it as well, there's some highly entertaining Poetry of the Living Dead online at www.zombiehaiku.com, including a selection written by some of the site owners' favourite poets and authors.

Thanks to Sam @ Orbit for the heads-up!

December 15, 2008 | Filed Under Online Finds | Leave a Comment

New TwitterFiction feed @thaumatrope

Via @Danacea (Danie Ware) this morning, a link to a new twitter fiction feed: @thaumatrope, edited by Nathan E. Lilly of GreenTentacles.com.

I'm hugely intrigued by the concept of TwitterFiction; flash-fiction taken to an imposed extreme. Is it really possible, within Twitter's 140 character limit, to effectively convey a sense of story, or portray anything more than a vague sketch of a character, or present a descriptive vignette in anything other than the sketchiest outline?

If you're likewise interested in finding out, then there are probably plenty more TwitFic feeds out there, but @thaumatrope might be a good place to start.

December 15, 2008 | Filed Under Online Finds | 2 Comments

Star-struck by Stardust

Jo and I finally got around to watching the movie adaptation of Neil Gaiman's Stardust last night via Sky Anytime.

I've always had a soft-spot for fairytale movies - two of my favourites being Labyrinth and The Princess Bride (of course). I think it's the über-story-telling element that attracts me to this sort of fantastical tale more than any love of the aesthetic elements or desire for a simple story with a happy ending.

Perhaps Stardust won't be quite as memorable as the other two, which both have more one-liners and out-and-out comedy moments or stand-out performances (although Robert de Niro as Captain Shakespeare was a definite highlight). But still, it was a good adaptation of the Gaiman original - I think, it's been a while since I read it - which Jo and I thoroughly enjoyed watching and would recommend to anyone looking for a good, entertaining family movie (with just a soupçon of adult humour thrown in) this holiday season. Or, indeed, at any time.

December 13, 2008 | Filed Under TV and Movies | 2 Comments

Xmas Greetings from Rocket Santa

I always know it's getting close to Xmas when a card arrives from one of my very favourite fantasy artists: Les Edwards. Or in this case, his alter-ego, Edward Miller.