One of my stories – ‘Best Case Scenario’ – is on the list for this quarter’s vote. The list is packed full of great stories. Have a look and vote!!
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The Martian Wave – 2024
I’m very happy to announce that my short story, ‘Finders Keepers’ has been published in this year’s edition of The Martian Wave by Hiraeth Publishing. This is a story of exploitation and the bravery of the few who stand up for what is right. It is set in the same universe as my SF books and explores the pivotal moment in history when the planet Ghyllach and its valuable crystal resources are first discovered by the Calestis Coalition of planets. The profiteering mining consortium soon discover they have bitten off more than they can chew!
Launching Eclectic Dreams at Eastercon – Friday 7th April 2023 at 4.30 p.m.
Worth getting your hands on this!
All you good people who are going to Eastercon should head to the launch of Eclectic Dreams, the new fundraising Milford anthology. This features some excellent stories by Tiffani Angus, Ben Jeapes, David Langford, Jacey Bedford, Val Nolan,Cherith Baldry, Nick Moulton,Victor Ocampo, Guy T Martland, Al Robertson and JW Anderson PLUS a previously unpublished story by Neil Gaiman. All the stories have been workshopped at a Milford Conference
The books have arrived and they’ll be conveyed to Eastercon on Good Friday ready for the launch at 4.30 the same day. The anthology is to raise funds so that we can continue Milford’s bursary to fund writers of colour to attend Milford free.
The special launch event price is £10, and it would be helpful if you had cash on the day.
Some of the authors will be there and you can get your copy signed.
If you’re at Eastercon…
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ChatGPT and the Short Fiction Markets by David Gullen
A worrying turn of events!
I’ve been following the news about ChatGPT generated short story submissions with some dismay. If you’re not aware, some markets, for example the excellent Clarkesworld, have been so swamped they have been forced to temporarily close to submissions.
The problems with dealing with this kind of spamming seem to be those of scale, granularity, and cost. Small magazines don’t have the staff resources to effectively filter out all the bogus submissions, automated checks cost money they don’t have, and are not 100% effective – they generate both false positives and negatives.
It’s a problem.
I decided to ask my two sons, Ashley and Tom, if they had any ideas. As co-founders of Scirra, and authors of the Construct3 game creation software, they have a lifetime of experience dealing with cutting edge internet technology, coding, and transaction validation.
Ashley had several interesting ideas.
Ask for additional information that is…
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Winter Warmer Review
Our thanks to everyone who joined us for our first, successful Speculative Ficion Open Mic.
A unique open mic designed to bring a different side of the genre communities together. It was an enjoyable experience which we heard from writers who have completed novels or reading from work in progress.
The range on offer covered paranormal, fantasy, science fiction, the funny and the serious. From novels and short pieces.
Science Fiction and Fantasy author, Shellie Horst started things by reading an extract from the science fiction anthology Distaff. She read from her short story My Little Mecha.
Linda Acaster, a multi-genre novelist and short-story writer chose to read from her horror thriller, The Paintings
Carol Ann Kerry, author of Paranormal and Urban Fantasy fictionread from her urban fantasy Of Blood and Shadows.
Sue Oke who previously joined us to discuss about her role at BSFA REVIEW and her experience…
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HUMBER SPECULATIVE FICTION NIGHT
I was back at the King’s Head in Beverly for the latest Humber SF event. The evening featured two wonderful authors: Sunyi Dean and Daniel Godfrey, who provided entertaining readings from their latest novels, talked about their writing practice and answered lots of questions from the audience.
Sunyi’s said she wanted to celebrate the north of England and so set her book, The Book Eaters, in Yorkshire. Promoted as ‘gothic fantasy horror’ this is a story of ‘escape, a mother’s savage devotion and a queer love.’ This book contains two timelines, one in the present day and the other having a definite Victorian feel to it—inspired by Sunyi’s love of the work of the Bronte sisters. With a smile, Sunyi told the audience that her editor said her book was ‘fantasy for people who hate fantasy’—those in the audience who had read the book were keen to disagree—they loved it! This is Sunyi’s debut novel and it’s clearly a winner. When asked about the process of finding a publisher, she did comment that there is an industry shift away from ‘series’ and towards stand-alone books or duologies.
Daniel’s book, The Calculations of Rational Men, is set in the 1960’s, following an alternate history where the UK is subjected to a nuclear attack. Five hundred prisoners are trapped underground awaiting the ‘all clear’. Those that had read the book were impressed by the clear 1960’s level of awareness of medical knowledge (the protagonist is a medical doctor imprisoned for murder) and the then understanding of nuclear weapons and the effects of radiation. Daniel used a 1960’s medical book as a reference and said he was lucky to find information on how nuclear shelters would have operated. He even went to have a look around a nuclear bunker in York. One audience member commented: it was amazing how much happened (in the book) given the limited space the men were trapped in.
A very entertaining evening with two more books added to my reading list!
Humber SFF – Stephen Aryan and RJ Barker
King’s Head, Beverly was the venue for another great event from Humber SFF, organised by the redoubtable Shellie Horst. The guests were a very entertaining double act: Stephen Aryan and RJ Barker. Both are established authors with multiple books to their names, and both offered the gathered audience useful insights into the publishing industry and the life of a writer.
Stephen Aryan’s latest novels are a duology: The Coward and The Warrior. The Coward looks at the reality of post-traumatic stress and what happens when the hero is recalled to save the world a second time.
RJ Barker regaled the audience with his journey from failed musician to successful writer. His Tide Child trilogy is set in a remarkable world where Bone Ships sail the seas. He asked himself what would a world look like without a resource which we take for granted? In this case: wood or material to build boats/ships. He was inspired by whalebone carvings and created a massive ocean-going leviathan that was pursued to extinction in order to use its bones to build ships. A fascinating world and a fascinating read.
Both authors treated the audience to readings from their current novels. A real pleasure to listen to. Questions from the audience were taken panel-style with both Stephen and RJ pitching in. It was a relaxed and enjoyable evening with several members of the audience being put on RJ’s ‘naughty list’ for asking particularly challenging questions that made both authors dig deep.
I’m looking forward to the next event on 27th November, with Sunyi Dean and Daniel Godfrey as guest speakers. Get your tickets early!
Loving Life in the Rain 