Empire for the Legend!

As I may have mentioned in my last post...Empire has been shortlisted for the David Gemmell Legend Award... Well, the Shortlist polls are now open, so I need YOU to click here and vote for Empire. If we rally enough support, we could do something pretty special for the world of tie-in fiction, so get on over to the DGLA website and vote for Empire! Remember that Empire also appears in the Ravenheart Best Fantasy Cover category, so be sure to give Jon Sullivan your vote too!

Eastercon

I went to Eastercon at the beginning of May, and it was a bit of an odd day. For starters, it wasn’t a signing event and I wasn’t particularly down to do anything, so it was an excuse to go as a fan and see what sort of stuff was out there. I got to the Heathrow hotel and met up with BL’s Alex Davis, where we did what most folk do at conventions. We went straight to the bar. Beveraged up, we bumped into Ian Watson and (a few other writerly types that Alex knew) before we met up with Jenni – an editor from Solaris, and Catherine – Alex’s former partner in crime from organising the Altfiction convention (which I’ll be attending later this year…). We had a great natter – including one with a random guy who came up to talk to us about geoengineering and how we could solve the climate change problem by breeding white seals to reflect energy back into the sky…

 

I attended a panel discussion Writers and the web – blogs, Facebook, Twitter Amazon etc. Another BL stalwart, Mark Charan Newton, was on this panel, along with Joe Abercrombie, Maura McHugh and John Meany. I felt a lot of this panel was taken up by John Meany’s painfully unfunny grandstanding and fans using their opportunity to ask questions as a way to talk about how great they were. Despite that, Mark and Joe made some good points about how a writer needs to utilise these new tools at their disposal to achieve real longevity, but how that needs to be tempered by the reality that a writer needs to actually, you know, write… And that the number of folk you’re reaching and being lauded/hated by is – relative to the number of people who read your books – actually very small. Joe’s point about picking your level of involvement and sticking to it was a point that struck home, as was Mark’s that it’s a medium that isn’t going away any time soon and needs to be embraced.

 

I embrace it in a cautious way, using my blog to chat to my readers and let them know where I’ll be, what I’m up to or any other random bits and pieces I fancy writing down. I loathe Facebook, though will probably have to create a fan page at some point, as too many people have told me ways in which I can make that work for me, as opposed to having it dictate to me how often I do things with it. I had a Facebook page when I first went freelance, but found it quickly came to dominate my inbox, prompting me to be back checking it so often that days went by without any work of real substance getting done. That got deleted sharpish.

 

Later I buckled and got a Twitter account, which lasted all of a couple of weeks, as I realised I wasn’t writing anything I thought was even vaguely interesting. I mean, why would folk care about this tiny snippet of ephemera I’m posting about what sandwich I had for lunch? I know it’s a useful tool, but I always feel like I’m skiving if I write a blog entry/tweet/Facebook update. I sweat and think that I should be creating, propelling the latest novel to its thrilling climax instead of wittering on about something else (or, in this case, wittering on about wittering on…). I’m gradually coming round to the idea that this is part of my job too, but that my main job, the one that pays the bills, and buys travel cots etc is writing novels. I’m an author and that’s what I do. It’s what I need to do if I want to stay an author without feeling like a fraud.

 

Like all things, I think there’s a happy middle ground where 90% of my time is writing books, and the rest is divided up between doing signings, blogging and other bits and bobs connected to my work. The little and often pattern of blogging seems to work for me (this post excepted) so I’ll keep that up more. Anyway, back to Eastercon…

 

So, with that panel over, I went to Swordplay for Writers, hosted by the magnificently named, Mr Killbane. To my mind, this was an over-earnest discussion where someone who knew a lot about swords tried to tell us the history of swords, rather than anything to do with how to make the people who use them in our books more realistic. I imagine him sitting in front of the tv shouting that you’d never use a hand and a half sword like that, or that it’s completely unrealistic to show a five foot man with a two handed sword in one hand and a magic wand in the other. Still, there were some cool swords to touch and swing around, so it was fun in that regard.

 

With those panels done (the only two I really had time for) I wandered to the Dealers’ Room, where – after Alex told me he’d spent £200 the weekend before at World Horror Con – I had high hopes of acquiring something cool. By accident I’d taken £300 from a cash machine at Heathrow, so was worried I might blow the lot. It turned out that my money was quite safe, as this room was a massive disappointment. It looked like the various dealers had just emptied their basements and attics of all the second/third/fourth hand books they could find and tried to flog them on from soggy cardboard boxes. Absolutely nothing tempted me, so I left with my wad of money unbroken and went back to the bar. I bumped into Alex briefly, but didn’t stay too long after that, as there wasn’t a lot else to see or do that appealed to me, and I had a three hour journey back home.

 

So, was Eastercon worth it? As a one day visit, I’d say not for me, but I think that’s a function of my level of involvement more than any failing of the con. Being there for a few hours is no way to get the best out of a convention; you need to be there for the weekend (at least) and probably go with some pals, or know folk there. I got the impression that plenty of people there were regulars at these conventions and that by attending lots of them regularly, you’d get an exponential amount of enjoyment back out it. Sadly, I can’t make that kind of commitment, so will have to look at events like this as fun things to do if I can, but not as anything I think I’ll get to regularly. Though, having said that, Eastercon is in Birmingham next year, so perhaps I could be there for longer and make more of a day/weekend of it.

Stuff

In other news, Iron Warrior is selling well and, as I write this, there are thirteen copies left, so if you want to get one for the very reasonable price of £30 instead of the no doubt astronomical prices you’ll be charged on ebay once they’re all gone, get on over to Black Library to pick up a copy.

 

In short, loving the new Doctor Who. David Tennant left some big shoes to fill, but Matt Smith is doing a bang up job of making the role his own. And Karen Gillan is just cute. And Scottish, so it’s Win Win.

 

In Guilty Pleasure Corner, we’ve been watching Pineapple Dance Studios, where the runaway star is Louie Spence and his outrageously camp performance. I say performance, but I suspect (and hope) that’s who he really is, as it’s tremendous fun to watch. The whole studio looks like it’d be a fun place to work, though you’d have to be okay with days where you got absolutely nothing done. On this week’s show there was a guy from Nottingham who wanted to run a sword fighting course at the studio, and the moment I heard where he was from I cringed, just knowing that the show was going to take great relish in showing that he liked to play toy soldiers and read lots of fantasy books. Sure enough, the camera pans along a line of Death Guard Terminators, an unpainted Fire Warrior and a shelf stocked with fantasy novels, vampire books and so on. Hell, those could have been my shelves! The trouble was, he appeared to take himself far too seriously, and when Louie started taking the mick out of his proposed class, you could see he wasn’t happy about it. I’ve long since made peace with my geekiness and wear it as a badge of honour, though this guy, as much as I’m sure he’s a lovely guy in person, came across like the worst stereotype of fantasy fan imaginable. Still, we got to see some 40K miniatures on tv, so it’s not all bad.

 

Right, that’s enough for one morning. As I mentioned earlier, a writer’s job is to write, so I best get doing some of that then. I’ve a tribe of the Empire to destroy. Speaking of which, did I mention that Empire needs YOUR vote in the Gemmell Awards? Click here to go and vote for it!

Today I just found out that Empire, the second Sigmar novel in Black Library's Time of Legends series, has made it into the shortlisted top 5 of the David Gemmell Legend Award! Bizarrely, I found out when an Australian friend of mine e-mailed me from Timor to tell me (talk about a roundabout way for information to travel...). Here's the video from the DGLA website.

So if you're one of the erudite, fashionable, debonair and imaginative people who voted for it, thank you very much for your support. But remember that the votes don't carry through, so I'll be asking to vote again so we can beat those Johnny-come-latelys like Robert Jordan... And remember that Jon Sullivan, the handsome, talented fellow that did the cover for Empire is also nominated (twice!) in the Ravenheart Best Fantasy Cover Art category, so be sure to give him your vote too.

I was at Eastercon on Saturday, and I'll talk about that (as well as a subject that'll get a few folks simmering) in the next few days.

Thanks again,

Graham.

Just a quick one today to let you know that I’ll be attending the Odyssey 2010 convention (also kown as Eastercon 2010) tomorrow (3rd April) so if you’re going to be there, hopefully we’ll run into each other and you can buy me a pint. Oh, and we can have a chat too and talk all things fantasy, sf and horror, given that’s, you know, kind of the theme of the weekend… I don’t think I have a table or any set time or place to be, but I’ll have a badge on, so if you see me, feel free to nab me for a chat or to sign a book if you’ve brought one.

 

It’s being held at the Radisson Edwardian Hotel, Heathrow, London. If you click here you can learn more about the event and how to get to it. Hope to see you there.

 

And here’s a link to Christos Reid’s website, where you can find the answers to a few questions he recently posed me about the nature of tie-in/fanfic…

 

Cheers, and have a great Easter weekend.

This weekend, I went to Warhammer World to join thegreatcrusade.co.uk at their Path of the Traitor campaign weekend. While I only got to spend a few hours there, it looked like a lot of people were having a lot of fun, and it got me itching to get my toy soldiers out on the tabletop. It’s been a long time since I rolled a ‘to hit’ dice or made an armour save, so I may just open the cupboard under the stairs to haul out my Necrons and Ultramarines soon. I met some very nice folk there (hello, Ben, Pete, Ed, Laurie, Demetrius, Hugh…) and chatted to them about the Heresy, gaming, string theory and the existence of higher powers. All in a day’s work really. At the end of the day, the guys presented me with this T-shirt, which made me absurdly happy. Thanks for that, and see you again soon

In Bugman's Bar with my new t-shirt, courtesy of the greatcrusade.co.uk

 

On Monday I met with the lovely Gemma Noon of the Literary Project for an interview, which turned into a two and a half hour natter on books, writing, sci-fi, crap tv, great tv, a mutual love of early Buffy, pet hates and all manner of strange tangents that veered alarmingly off course, but which always seemed to come back in time to rescue the chat. It was a long, rambling conversation that I don’t envy her having to transcribe, but when that Herculean task is complete, I’ll pass on where you can find the result of our chinwag.

 

God King continues apace, and I’m about a quarter to a third of the way through it. Looking at the Black Library site, I see that Iron Warrior is now available to buy, so if you fancy one of these special, limited edition, hardback, art-filled, signed copies, head on over to snag yourself a copy. Once this thousand are gone, that’s it…finito.

 

Currently listening to Year Zero by Nine Inch Nails.

 

Currently reading Ghosts of Manhattan by George Mann.

 

It’s my birthday this Thursday, so I may be generous and take the day off work, though I’m looking forward to a whole weekend off this Saturday. Though we are driving to Wales to show off the little man to his Welsh grandparents, so it’s not all rest and recuperation.

 

To quote from the David Gemmell Legend Award website, the DGLA aims to raise public awareness of the Fantasy genre, celebrate the history and cultural importance of Fantasy literature, appreciate & reward excellence in the field and commemorate the legacy of David Andrew Gemmell and his contribution to the Fantasy genre.

 

To that end, I’m again over the moon that Empire, my second book in Black Library’s Time of Legends series has been nominated for this award. Last year, Heldenhammer did very well in the final list, so I’m hoping that Empire will do even better. You can help with that by clicking here and voting for Empire. It’d be much appreciated and if we get a good placing, I’ll make sure and do something special for you all on the website! Bribery? Moi…?

 

Remember, you’ve got until the end of March to get your vote registered, so what are you waiting for, go vote!

New York Times…

It’s been hollered from the Black Library website (which is nice) but I thought I’d better mention on my own site that A Thousand Sons was on the New York Times best sellers list for mass market paperbacks. After hitting the number one spot in the UK, I’m incredibly pleased with this and am already thinking of how I can top that with my next Horus Heresy novel (or any other novel for that matter…). So thanks again to everyone who bought a copy and spread the good word of mouth online or in the stores.

 

The day I was in BL to receive the news (and a surprise cake and party) I also got a copy of The Chapter’s Due, which looks rather funky I think you’ll agree. This is the finale of this arc, though not the last we’ll see of the Ultramarines, and I’m really pleased how this one turned out, full of action, mayhem and nice character moments that have progressed nicely since The Killing Ground.

 

Iron Warrior

But before The Chapter’s Due comes out, you’ve got Iron Warrior to look forward to. It’s now appeared on the BL site, so you can look forward to a full novella based on the further exploits of the Warsmith Honsou in a hardcover, illustrated, signed, colour plate including slice of goodness. Though it’s strictly limited to 1000 copies, so you’ll need to get your skates on if you want one when the release comes…

 

Mum’s the word

It was mother’s day on Sunday, so I hope you all treated your mums to a nice meal and flowers. I had my folks visiting at the weekend to see our little boy, and the five of us went out for a lovely Sunday lunch, though I think Evan was less than impressed that he couldn’t yet have sliced beef, roast potatoes and Yorkshire puddings.

 

SFX dinner

Prior to that, myself, Gav Thorpe, Nick Kyme, Mark Newton and George Mann went out for dinner with some of the guys from SFX magazine, which was great fun, and good to put names to faces. T’was an enjoyable evening, though I left around ten as I knew I was going to get woken up a few times in the night by the little man. It’s always good to meet the folk who work in the same industry, but upon different paths, as it gives you a good insight to how the market works from other perspectives.

 

God King

I’m working on God King just now, though the progress took a little hit with my mum and dad being down. As much as they said I should keep working, it would have felt a little odd to be up here in my shiny new office while they were downstairs. My dad helped my move my behemoth desk and bookshelves from the tiny office to the spare room so that Evan could have his own room. Anyway, when we showed Evan his new room, he seemed to like it...

Anyway, my desk is great to work at, and I love having all my reference material close at hand, but it’s a complete pain to try and move anywhere. Its dimensions exist outside the normal three and the gestalt consciousness of its parts seems designed to bend the laws of physics in a gravity well around its mass. In any case, I’m writing this with a new view out my window (what little I can see through the mass of desk…) and will see how this new space affects my writing.

 

Signing this weekend!

I’ll be at Warhammer World this weekend (20th March) between 11:30 and 2pm. I’ll be there as a guest of The Great Crusade’s Path of the Traitor event, so if you’re playing in that event or are in the area, pop by and say hello.

Right, back to work… 

I went to Cardiff this weekend, though it took a long time to get there... Thanks to some spectacular signal failage, it took me six and a half hours to get from Nottingham to Cardiff (and three hours of that was getting to Derby - via Chesterfield...). Eventually I got there, and a great time was had by all, so if you were one of the supremely patient folk who waited for me to get there, thank you very much. And thanks to Steve and his guys for keeping the baying mob placated while I was horribly delayed...

Despite the long journey, I had a great time in Cardiff, with some real good chats, lots of signing and a proper long day of back and forth with fans.

I heard a lot of positive feedback on A Thousand Sons, and there's a rather nice review of the book at MyBattalion.com, which you can read here.

And another at Civilian Reader, which you can read here.

And if these reviews fire you up for reading the book, you can potentially win a copy of A Thousand Sons by visiting Pat's Fantasy Hotlist. Click here for your chance to win.

Cheers and speak to you soon.

I've hijacked the blog over at Graeme's Fantasy Book Review...

Check it out by clicking here.