Guest Author April - Nik Vincent

Since both last year's novels were co-writes, I’m going to sneak in a little something extra. Smiles.

Fiefdom from Abaddon Books was a spin-off from Dan’s Kingdom strip for 2000AD, and I’d wanted to get my hands on it for long form fiction since its inception. It's always a pleasure to work with the husband, but I think this particular novel played to my strengths, and he rather let me run with it. Fear not, the novel stands alone.

http://www.starburstmagazine.com/reviews/book-reviews-latest-literary-releases/8853-book-review-fiefdom-a-kingdom-novel

I also had my first independent short story The Stranger Cards published in the Dangerous Games anthology, edited by Jonathan Oliver for Solaris. I was thrilled to find myself in some great company.

https://thebookbeard.wordpress.com/tag/nik-vincent/

Solaris has since bought my first independent novel, Savant, to be published in 2016, so watch this space.

Jonathan Green appearing at World FantasyCon 2013

Two weeks today* I will be one of the many guests attending World FantasyCon 2013 in Brighton, beside the seaside. In case you're also popping along, and you fancy stopping by and saying hello, you'll find me at the following places at the following times.

Thursday 31 October 2013

4.30-5.00pm - Pax Britannia Signing
Signing at the Abaddon/Solaris table in the dealers' room at the Hilton Brighton Metropole.

8.00-9.30pm - David Gemmell Legend Awards
Legends: Stories in Honour of David Gemmell - an anthology of stories in honour of David Gemmell**edited by Ian Whates, and featuring a story by Yours Truly - is being launched at the reception immediately following the awards ceremony.

Saturday 2 November 2013

11.00am - Newcon Press Party
Newcon will be hosting a Legends signing, as well as launching new titles from Tanith Lee, Stan Nicholls, and Steve Rasnic Tem.

There is also a panel taking place at 3.00pm on the Saturday called Steam Punk'd, but at this time I can neither confirm nor deny whether I will be taking part or not. I suspect not.

* Are there really only fourteen days left to go?

** Funnily enough.

Steampunk Thursday: The Good, the Bad and the Infernal

Things are a bit busy right now, in the lives of Family Green, so over the next few days I'll be handing over the blog to wiser minds than mine and sending you to read their blogs instead.

Today, it's the turn of Guy Adams and the guest post he wrote for Fantastical Imaginations in which he attempets to answer the question, 'What’s My Book About Again?'

Short Story Saturday: The Solaris Rising 2 launch

On Wednesday evening I was fortunate enough to attend the book launch of Solaris Rising 2, edited and compiled by Ian Whates and published by Solaris Books, at the Gower Street Waterstone's in London.

The line of up guest authors included James Lovegrove, Paul Cornell and Adrian Tchaikovsky. Proceedings began with Ian briefly discussing with each of the authors present their particular stories and motivations behind writing them. Then it was down to the serious business of signing books.

The line up of authors in attendance.

Ian Whates waxing lyrical with glass of wine in hand.

The serious business of signing books, overseen by Ben Smith of Solaris Books.

Of course the evening didn't get going until we all retired to a local hostelry where I talked about Clemency Slaughter and Pax Britannia (and everything in between) with the likes of the members of the Abaddon/Solaris team in attendance (publishing manager Ben Smith, newly-promoted Abaddon commissioning editor David Moore, and PR guru Mike Molcher), as well as old friends and new.

All in all a most pleasant evening, and congratulations to Ian for putting together such an excellent anthology.

You can pick up your copy of Solaris Rising 2 here.

FantasyCon 2012 - The Aftermath

This morning I find myself feeling a little tired, with aching legs and a strange sense of displacement... Ah, yes, it was FantasyCon this past weekend. That'll explain it...

I arrived at Friday lunchtime in time to have a pint* practically put straight into my hand and then it was off to the 'How Important Are Blogs?' panel, which due to the vagaries of people's travel plans meant it became dubbed the 'Angry Robot How Important Are Blogs?' panel. The general consensus of opinion was that blogs are important**, although Emelyn Rees isn't a fan of author blogs****.

Straight after the Angry Robot panel it was time for 'Blurring Genre Boundaries' which was the first FantasyCon panel I've sat on. It was moderated my m'editor Jonathan Oliver and was a really fun panel, with a great atmosphere****. It is always pleasing when other well-known writers and editors attend panels and on this occasion is was Joe Abercrombie who came up with a great question from the floor.

The rest of the day became a blurring of catching up with old friends and making more new ones. (Just don't search for #JonCon on Twitter, whatever you do!) But the main event was yet to happen.

Saturday was, to use the vernacular, 'full on'. The day began with a very necessary hearty breakfast and then it was straight off to 'What Makes A Good Short Story?' with m'colleagues Cavan Scott and Mr Kit Cox. During the course of the panel I'm pleased to say that my one-time roomie Simon Bestwick was recommended as a master of the horror short.

The rest of the day involved various book launches - Angry Robot as well as the already legendary Solaris/Abaddon Give-Away, the launch of the new Solaris anthology Magic - not meeting James Herbert in the bar, not meeting Mark Gatiss in the bar, and making plans for a new anthology...

At the Solaris/Abaddon Give-Away.

Now that's Magic!

The Angry Robot's less angry meat-slaves.

Then it was time for 'Is Steampunk Here To Stay?' my second panel of the con, moderated by Jared Shurin, and with Yours Truly as the only author on the panel who seemed happy to have his work described as steampunk. To sum up the panel Kim Newman thinks steampunk has had its day and is on its way out, I think it's here to stay, and Eastern literature may be the source of its salvation.

Can you feel the tension in the room? I could!

After going for dinner with friends, there's not really very much to say about Saturday evening other than...

DISCO!

Gollancz challenged the FantasyCon attendees (which included writers, editors and publishers, as well as book-bloggers and other fans of the genre) to drink their free bar dry. After about half an hour that challenge had been met.

Pimms, you say? Why thank you, sir! That's my five-a-day sorted anyway.

I have to say there's nothing quite like a room full of authors and the like dancing (and shouting along to) The Beatles' Paperback Writer.

Need I say more?

There's also nothing quite like doing a reading at 10.30am on the Sunday morning after the disco with very little voice but I'm delighted to say that despite being up against the BFS AGM and the Sunday Morning Hangover, including myself my reading's attendance made double figures. Thanks again for those who came to listen (including David Tallerman) and for the kind comments afterwards.

Yes, that is a throne I'm sitting upon.

Congratulations to all involved in the organisation of the event and a big thank you to Marie O'Regan, Paul Kane, Alex and Emma Davis in particular. Here's to World FantasyCon 2013!


* The first of many.

** Which was a relief, otherwise what's the point in me typing this first thing on a Monday morning?

*** I would have liked to have caught up with him later to discuss his comments and set out an argument for the defence but there just wasn't the time - it really was that busy.

**** At least I thought so.

FantasyCon 2012 - Day 2

So... Saturday... Day 2 of FantasyCon 2012.

Today you'll find me on the 'Is Steampunk Here To Stay?' panel (5.00-6.00pm in the Russell Room) alongside such genre luminaries as Mr Kim Newman and Ms Kim Lakin-Smith. The panel is being moderated by Jared Shurin (of Pornokitsch fame) so it should be a lot of fun all round.

Other highlights of the busiest day of the Con, as far I'm concerned, include the James Herbert signing, the Abaddon/Solaris Giveaway, the Mark Gatiss interview (with Mark Morris), the Media Tie-ins panel, and the Disco (of course).

Also hoping to catch up with a few friends throughout the course of the day, so if you see me in the bar (or wherever) do pop over and say hello.

JG at the SFX Weekender 3

In case you've been snowed in or were without the Internet for the past few days, like me*, then you may not know that this past weekend somewhere in the region of 6,000 SF and Fantasy fans invaded Prestatyn Sands holiday camp** to celebrate their love of all things genre - from movie screenings and celebrity appearances, to author panels and young ladies wearing stilts (and not much else).

A packed pub for the Abaddon/Solaris Fun (or should that be 'Pun'?) Hour

If I had to sum up my 67 hours in Prestatyn in one word it would have to be 'Awesome'***. Alternatively I could write screeds about all the wonderful people I met, new fans and old friends, all the bizarre and totally unreal things I witnessed****, and all the debates embarked upon. But the next Pax Britannia book won't write itself and, having spoken to a number of fans over the course of the weekend, I know that there are a lot of people already desperate to get their hands on Time's Arrow Part 2*****.

The 'How do you put the punk into steampunk?' panel

So instead I'll just say a massive thank you to Dave Bradley, Rich Edwards, Jordan Farley, Dave Golder, Nick Setchfield and the rest of the SFX team for a fantastic event; to Jon Oliver, David Moore, Keith Richardson, Pye Parr and James Newton for doing such a good job of selling my Pax Britannia books; to my fellow steampunk panelists; and to everyone who stopped me to say hello over the course of the weekend. Hopefully we can do it all again next year.

Yours Truly signing with Guy 'I never thought I'd be Craig Charles's back dancer' Haley on the Abaddon/Solaris stand

In the mean time, here's my Top Ten list of things I didn't know before the SFX Weekender 3, but which I do know now.

1) If you're a big name you don't have to queue in the freezing cold. (My name was big enough to qualify. Which was nice.)

2) Darth Vader won't serve Rose Tyler alcohol without photo ID.

3) Some of the recently refurbished chalets at Pontin's come with interesting internal water features.

4) When the Zombiepocalypse****** comes, lock yourself in the loo.

5) Lavie Tidhar is so steampunk he [blank] cogs.*******

6) Designers address people as 'Dude'.

7) Being Human appeals to BBC 3's Twilight crowd, allegedly.

8) Craig Charles finished filming the new series of Red Dwarf at 7.00pm on Saturday evening.

9) Brian Blessed is a fully trained cosmonaut.

10) Apparently, I am the King of Steampunk.

* Nightmare!

** Or, as author Simon Bestwick put it, "the housing estate from Mordor."

*** Although 'Flooded' came a close second.

**** Which are totally normal for the SFX Weekender, of course.

***** A.k.a Black Swan.

****** Copyright and Trademark Jonathan Green, 2012!

******* You can work this one out for yourself. After all children read this blog, you know.

How do you put the punk into Steampunk?

That is the very question that I shall be attempting to answer on Friday at the SFX Weekender, ably assisted by a number of other luminaries of the UK Steampunk scene. Joining me on the panel will be:

Ms Raven Dane - author of the Cyrus Darian books, Ms Dane is a more recent convert to the cult of Steampunk. As well as writing Steampunk stories she has also published vampire books and comedy fantasy novels.

Ms Karen Grover - also (well-)known as Lady Elise within Steampunk circles, Ms Grover is a Steampunk enabler and a leading light of the Victorian Steampunk Society. She possesses an expert knowledge of historical costumes, a knowledge that she has lent to countless TV shows including Channel 4's 1066: The Battle For Middle Earth.

Mr Stephen Hunt - is a fantasy, science fiction and thriller/crime author, probably best known as the creator of the Jackelian series of books. 2012 sees the publication of Mr Hunt's sixth book in the series, From the Deep of the Dark.

Mr Robert Rankin - The nearest thing we have in this country to Steampunk royalty. Mr Rankin was writing Steampunk before it gained the mass market mainstream appeal it is teetering on the verge of today. Mr Rankin also does a splendid turn as your compere for Saturday night's SFX Awards.

Ms Sam Stone - Author of the Vampire Gene series, Ms Stone will no doubt be wowing the audience with one of her very fine corsets as well. She is also on a host of other panels and signing for a plethora of publishers over the weekend, so we're very lucky to have her join our Steampunk shenanigans.

Mr Lavie Tidhar - Mr Tidhar is a prolific writer, keeping up a steady stream of highly-regarded novels, novellas and short stories, and has even been described as an “emerging master” by Locus Magazine. He is the author of the Bookman Histories - the third title The Great Game is launching at the Weekender - while his novel Osama is up for not only the coveted Red Tentacle award at the 2011 Kitschies, but has also been shortlisted for the BSFA Award.

Remember, 5.00pm Friday in the Screening Zone.

My signing slot has been moved to 10.00am on the Saturday (crikey!) and I'll also be taking part in the Abaddon/Solaris Fun Hour in the Victoria Bar at 2.00pm on the Friday.

Remember, if you see me, do stop and say hello. Maybe I'll see you there...

The SFX Weekender - The Schedule!

It's been some time coming but yes, the schedule for the SFX Weekender 3 is finally here!

I'm getting quite excited/nervous about this now, partly because of how much work I still need to finish between now and then but mainly because I'm going to be hosting the 'How do you put the punk into steampunk?' panel on the Friday.

It's the first time the SFX Weekender has had a dedicated steampunk panel (last year the steampunk element was amalgamated into the 'Duel Britannia' panel) and I feel a certain responsibility now rests upon my shoulders not to let the side down, an onus to... basically, to not cock it up!

So although you'll see that the bar opens at midday on Friday, I'm going to be taking it easy before 5.00pm and letting my hair down (which may or may not be coloured green for the occasion) at the Kitschies Awards ceremony later the same evening.

I won't be going too mad there either though, because come 10.00am the next morning I'll be signing in Bartertown alongside Guy Haley (he of SFX/White Dwarf/Angry Robot/Solaris fame). I promised I'd catch up with Guy at some point over the weekend, but at the time didn't realise I would be sharing a table with him, so job done!

I should also give a shout out to the Abaddon/Solaris Fun Hour which is taking place at 2.00pm on the Friday... in the bar! Last year it was the Abaddon Pub Hour, which probably tells you all you really need to know. But to truly experience its wonders you have to be there, so do come along. It'll be a lot of fun and, failing that, it's in the bar.

There's loads going on all weekend, with panels, Q&As, signings, competitions and screening from dawn (well 10.00am) until dusk (actually, well past midnight), so if you are coming along, check out the schedule and maybe I'll see you there.

Hell Train launch

So, on Thursday evening I popped along to Foyles for the launch of Christoper Fowler's Hell Train (published by Solaris Books). The event kicked off with Chris in conversation with Jon Oliver (Editor-in-chief of both Abaddon and Solaris Books), with the audience then being invited to ask questions afterwards, and finally there was a chance for Mr Fowler to sign some books.

Jonathan Oliver and Christopher Fowler in conversation.

My copy of Hell Train, signed by Chris.

Chris is a fascinating man with an amazing past - he was the guy who came up with the tag line 'In space, no one can hear you scream' - and I could have sat an listened to him talk all night. Fortunately I got to go for a drink with him afterwards and got to hear a few more of his, no doubt many, anecdotes. Chris was celebrating, having literally just finished his tenth Bryant and May book that afternoon, and Jon and David were celebrating because Abaddon/Solaris won Publisher of the Year in the This is Horror 2011 awards.

Was it something I said?

At the local alehouse I also got the chance to catch up with champion of geek culture Anne Perry (of Pornokitsch and The Kitschies fame), fellow Abaddon scribe Bex Levene and David Moore of Abaddon/Solaris. I tell you, any fans of the Pax Britannia series out there would have loved to have been able to eavesdrop on the conversation we were having.

I also got to chat to Will Hill properly for the first time (he of Department 19 fame) having only met in passing a couple of times before that - and online, of course. And last, but by no means least, I chatted with Clifford Beal, Solaris Books' latest signing. His Civil War novel Gideon's Angel sounds simply awesome; you can find out more about it here.

Before the evening was through Jon, David, Will and myself made a pact, involving the first night of the SFX Weekender. As to what that is, I'll leave you guessing for now, but if David and I stick to our other pact you may find out during the course of the Weekender itself.

David Moore, Will Hill and Jon Oliver (again).

And talking of the SFX Weekender, check in again tomorrow for some big news (well it's big as far as I'm concerned).

Vote House of Fear Anthology of the Year

House of Fear (edited by Jonathan Oliver and published by Solaris Books) is up for Anthology of the Year over at the This is Horror Awards 2011.

Voting closes at 12:01am GMT on Friday 30 December 2011, so you've still got a few hours in which to vote. And while you're there, why not vote for Dead Air by Jasper Bark, for best Short Story Collection of the Year, and The Caretakers by Adrian Chamberlin, for Novel of the Year?

Steampunk by the coal scuttle-ful

Abaddon Books and its sister imprint Solaris Books are no strangers to steampunk. As you can see for yourself here.

Thought for the Day - The Goblins of Self-Doubt

'Writing is a joy. When it works. When you're in the zone. When you're not and those goblins of self-doubt are sitting on your shoulder, let's face it, it's pretty bloody horrible.'

~ Jonathan Oliver, author of the novels The Call of Kerberos and The Wrath of Kerberos.

Judge not lest ye be judged

Tin Man Games have announced a deal with Rebellion (who own Abaddon and Solaris Books) to create the first-ever interactive digital gamebook based on the popular 2000 AD character, Judge Dredd.

Utilizing their successful and well-established Gamebook Adventures technology (with seven titles already under their belt, including Temple of the Spider God), Tin Man Games will be working closely with members of the same Rebellion team responsible for the most recent Judge Dredd tabletop role-playing game to develop the title.

“We’re privileged to be working with a great group of writers and artists that really understand the Judge Dredd universe”, said Creative Director, Neil Rennison.

You can read more about this exciting news here.

House of Love

Jonathan Oliver's House of Fear anthology of haunted house stories has been receiving a lot of love on book blogs and genre websites lately.

Here's what Spooky Reads had to say about the book:

In a classic twist from his editing last year’s strong horror anthology The End of the Line with its focus upon the Underground, Solaris’ editor Jon Oliver has continued to pull out the stops with House of Fear to deliver a top-notch collection of short stories themed around the haunted house. And he really has created a quite sublime selection here, and some dark delights are afoot for the horror fiction massive.

The contributors to this tome of terror include some of the genres finest writers, and as with the previous anthology, the selection is far from staid in its nature. Each story is lovingly crafted, with a different focus, some classic, others contemporary, some retrospective; all of them are worthy however, and I can’t emphasise how enjoyable making my way through this book was...

Jon Oliver has weaved together a strong selection of dread literary vignettes, and created a worthy collection in House of Fear. It’s exciting stuff indeed, and as with last years The End of the Line, is proof of Oliver’s eye for detail in the sea of horror fiction and ability to bring together a strong body of written works, cementing together a terrible construct that’s greater than the sum of its parts.
8/10

And those Keepers of the Keys to the Kingdom of Geekdom over at the Geek Syndicate said this:

In House of Fear, Jonathan Oliver has gathered nineteen short horror stories by both horror and science fiction authors who have all excelled in creating believable tales with well fleshed inhabitants and worlds that could well be our own. Each and every story will give you that delightful frisson of fear, and yet all are without a single vampire within them...

Jonathan Green, perhaps better know for his steampunk, creates a gruesome story of happy families...

All in all this is and excellent book for those who truly love horror, but I would suggest that you don’t read it just before you go to sleep.

GS Rating 5/5

You can what Jon himself had to say about putting together the collection when he was interviewed by the guys at Read Horror both here and here. But to end on, here's a piece from the interview which struck a happy chord with me:

Read Horror: How closely do the stories we see in House of Fear resemble the original submissions pre-editing?

Jon Oliver: Ninety-nine per cent of the time they are the final product. I don’t think I’ve asked anybody to re-write anything. There may have been the odd typo here and there, but on the whole the stories were submitted as you see them on the page. There was no editorial interference on a massive scale – these people know what they’re doing.

H is for Halloween

There's just over a week to go until Halloween, and if you're looking for some scares for 31 October you could do a lot worse than look at these two...

M is for Monster - a collection of 26 stories by 26 authors bringing 26 unique monsters to life - is available now in its Kindle edition for only 86p. '86p?' I hear you cry.

That's right, 86p. You can't even buy a bottle of what for 86p.

And while you're over at Amazon's Kindle store, why not check out

Jonathan Oliver's haunted house anthology House of Fear.

And of course both the collections include stories by Yours Truly.

Happy reading and... don't have nightmares!