Black Static 34: Out Now!

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Aliette de Bodard, Andrew Hook, Artwork, Ben Baldwin, Black Static, Fantasy, Georgina Bruce, Horror, Interzone, Jess Hyslop, Joel Lane, Lavie Tidhar, Lynda E Rucker, Nigel Brown, Nina Allan, Priya Sharma, Sci-fi, Sean Logan, Shannon Fay, Short Stories, speculative fiction, Stephen Volk, Steven J Dines, The King Of Love My Shepherd Is, TTA Press, Writing

Out now to order or subscribe, from TTA Press, is issue 34 of Black Static, which contains stories by Nina Allan, Joel Lane, Andrew Hook, Sean Logan and (in case you hadn’t already heard all of my shouting and bawling about it) one from me. Includes the usual column by Stephen Volk and a new column by Lynda E. Rucker.

The artwork this issue is simply brilliant, with gorgeously unsettling black and white illustrations for each story, and Ben Baldwin’s delicious and nightmare-inducing colour art for the front and back cover.

And this month’s Interzone looks to be a fabulous issue as well – with stories by my buddies Priya Sharma and Georgina Bruce (whose TTA debut, Cat World, makes its appearance here – and a wonderful story it is) alongside tales by Steven J. Dines, Jess Hyslop, Nigel Brown, Aliette de Bodard, Lavie Tidhar and Shannon Fay.

Black Static 32 out soon

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Black Static, British Fantasy Awards, Drew Rhys White, Horror, Interzone, Lavie Tidhar, Love as Deep as Bones, Priya Sharma, Ray Cluley, Short Stories, Steve Rasnic Tem, Tara Bush, Tim Casson, TTA Press, Writing

TTA press have just released details of the upcoming issue of their British Fantasy Award-winning magazine Black Static, which includes my story, Love As Deep As Bones.

Detail are here on their website. The details include previews of all the stories by Tim Casson, Ray Cluley, Priya Sharma, Drew Rhys White, Lavie Tidhar and Steve Rasnic Tem. One hell of a line-up and I’m very pleased to be on the same TOC as Priya Sharma, a good friend and member of my secret little writing group.

There are also previews of the artwork and I’m blown away by the illustration for my story, by Tara Bush. Here’s a peek.

The issue is out in about a week. You should also check out their sister magazine Interzone.

The oldest contender wins the fight

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Creativity, Inspiration, Interzone, Novels, speculative fiction, The Death and Life of Harrison Brodie, Writing

Ultimately, posting a word count progress for that novel idea I had was a little too bold. The idea was barely two days old, and it has a great deal of competition.

There are four ideas for novels that I have, all at differing stages of progress; all fighting for attention like the unruly brats that they are, but the one that has truly grabbed me by the face is the oldest one of the lot, and it’s not just the unnatural heatwave melting my brains.

Current working title is ‘The Death and Life of Harrison Brodie‘. I conceived the original idea about twenty-two years ago, right about the time I decided to sit down at my Olivetti typewriter and have a go at writing a novel, with little preparation. First novel I ever tried to write was a dreadful piece of comedy Science Fiction, blagged from a 2000AD ‘Future Shock’ comic story about customs officers working in a spaceport. I thought the concept of a xenophobic customs officer to be quite funny, but my execution of the story in the style of Terry Pratchett meets Douglas Adams was at best ill-advised.

At the time, I also scribbled down several ideas, all of which were for novels at the time. I hadn’t even considered the concept of short stories yet. Out of those ideas I have written one short story, which is currently on its 12th submission and has received encouraging personal rejections from places such as Asimovs and Interzone. And then I also came up with an idea for a novel involving a ghost (of sorts…), the walking dead (well, kind of…) and a butcher’s shop. After all this time it has jumped to the fore and begged to be written. I have my two main characters fully sketched out, and two nights ago I wrote a full plot synopsis in three acts. So that means, beginning, middle, end. That and many pages of notes mean this is now top contender for being written. Heck, I even have the first 200 words.

Lack of a fully fleshed out plot has been the sticking point for the other contenders so far, or characters that haven’t gone from being a name with an idea attached to becoming a real individual that I can visualise and hear and actually imagine having a life beyond the confines of the story.

I will be writing a novel before the end of the year!

Dreaming of a routine

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Books, Creativity, Critique, Iain Banks, Interzone, Novels, Reading, Sci-fi, Short Stories, speculative fiction, TTA Press, Writing

In an effort to regenerate the atrophied writing muscles, I’ve been attempting to instigate a routine. Evenings are when I write. I do attempt it at the weekends, but it doesn’t always work – my brain is often on standby and only clicks on the night before the work week recommences.

Amongst various things, I’ve started recording my dreams again (well, actually recording them would be awesome if a little scary… okay, very scary and I’d be locked up in dark, dark place…). Trying to access that area of the subconscious which has been such a rich mine of imagery and ideas. And with a dream journal of about 200 dreams going back to 1989, it would seem a good project to continue. And the process of continually accessing the dream memory makes the ensuing dreams more vivid, and increases the occurrence of lucid dreaming – all of which leads towards a potentially BIG writing project I’ve been scheming over for years now – codenamed The Circles. some *actual words* exist for it, and a slowly developing plot and pool of characters. Heck, I even nailed a decent structure for it. Just need to sort the role of the elusive Piano Jim and things will fall into place.

Other aspects of the evening routine involve at least one review/crit of a fellow writer’s work (and I’m never short of contenders with a review list that grows and grows…) and some revision of the box of un-submitted shorts. I’ve decided to work backwards on that one – beginning with my most recently written piece “Unpicking the Stitches” and end up back at the oldest ones. Should have a working middle draft for ‘Stitches’ in a couple of days.

No room for new fiction yet, but the ideas are rising up like the tips of the snowdrops I saw on the way to work this morning. One SF idea without a solid title, but with extensive notes; “Blank Canvas”, the living artwork story inspired by Tommy McHugh; “Circles” and the bones of another novel idea.

Reading “Transition” by Iain Banks at the moment, with Interzone 232 waiting in the wings, afterarriving on my doormat today.

When the embers glow their brightest

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Autumn, Creativity, Fiction markets, Interzone, Margaret Atwood, Novels, Short Stories, speculative fiction, Tim Lees, TTA Press, Writing

The time of the season dictates that I make a blog post, and I opt for a more poetic title this time than ‘September Update’.

September is one of the most beautiful times of the year – the brightest of the ’embers’. A succession of blinding, dramatic sunsets – apocalyptic winds – sudden, unexpected summer sunshine and the beginnings of the ‘golden gown’ of Autumn wrapping around the trees and plants.

I’m still navigating a writing limbo at the moment, although I have some goals mapped out now to make the dance pattern easier. I’ve always had two left feet. My current work in progress is, well, a number of things. I have nothing new at the actual writing-of-words stage, but I do have three or four projects clamouring for my attention – some louder than others. Mostly I’m trying to continue the revision and rewriting of my un-submitted short stories, which is becoming a variably joyful and depressing task. Some are reading very well after all this time, and I’m hopeful about their chances, but others covered in dust and scabs and crap that I’m going to have to peel off, which is likely to leave them in a state requiring serious repair.

I also finally intend to relaunch an attack on ‘The Gardener’ after all this time, and finally sort it into something that I can feasibly submit to agents. It has to be done. All that writing can’t go to waste just yet – not until it’s been given as much of a chance in the world as it deserves. I just need to limber up for the task first.

I have out in the wild at the moment, four stories. One as a reprint, and two out of the other three, I have been informed by kind editors, are under serious further consideration. So there is a pot of excitement simmering away, but I can’t allow myself to be caught in the act of pot-watching.

Currently reading – ‘The Year of the Flood‘ by Margaret Atwood, which I am enjoying immensely. Also in progress is the latest Interzone – #230, which is as enjoyable as always. Not finished the magazine yet, but I particularly enjoyed Tim Lees‘ ‘Love and War‘.

July Update

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Andy Murray, Black Static, Chess, Horror, Interzone, John Shirley, Liz Jensen, Novellas, procrastination, speculative fiction, The Rapture, TTA Press, Wimbledon, World Cup 2010, Writing

Distractions have proved manifold on the way into July. Yep, another monthly update, as I mark the time out of some need to calibrate my existence.

Still watching the World Cup. Still. Only two games left. Wimbledon also been a major distraction, with the travails of Andy Murray occupying my hours. Sport providing excitement, a vicarious thrill, but ultimately gorging on my time like the slavering beast of procrastination it is.

This is not to say that I haven’t been writing – up to 19,160 words on ‘The Lempkin Variation’ – and I’m still unsure about its merit as a piece of writing. Sure, some of it I’m happy with, but it’s not really a profound piece of literature. Despite devouring Saul Bellow, Joseph Heller, Philip Roth, Bernard Malamud etc… as a youth, I seem to get more of a kick out of writing about demonic possession, chess playing ghosts and murder. There’s plenty of time for profundity.

Current reading includes Black Static 17, with John Shirley’s ‘Faces in Walls’ being a standout story. Also just finished Interzone 228. Novel in progress at the moment is ‘The Rapture’ by Liz Jensen – which I am thoroughly enjoying.