Welcome to our second author interview! I’ve recently been reading some stories that combine brilliant invention with skillful pacing, deftly-drawn characters, and the most beautifully-evoked worlds of wonder I’ve encountered in some time. I remember when I was eight or nine years old and saw The Golden Voyage of Sinbad at a matinee one summer day — and loved it so much I saw it again within a week — and read the novelization — and then went on to seek out and read Arabian Nights, which was where, my parents explained, Sinbad came from. These stories I’ve been reading this week have taken me back to those times. The visceral wonder we feel when immersed in stories tends to diminish as we go through life. But these tales have allowed me to be nine years old again — what higher praise can there be for a fantasy story? But don’t let my talk of childhood fancy-flights mislead you: there are depths to these stories as well: thrills to satisfy a reader’s inner child, richness to satisfy a reader’s inner adult — there’s plenty there for both.

The author is John R. Fultz. He writes fiction for Weird Tales and Black Gate, and has written for comic books such as Zombie Tales and Cthulhu Tales; and his graphic novel of epic fantasy, Primordia,  will be released in hardcover sometime during the next several months. A much-shortened form of his bibliography is as follows:

“The Persecution of Artifice the Quill” — Weird Tales #340

“When the Glimmer Faire Came to the City of the Lonely Eye” — forthcoming in Black Gate

“Return of the Quill” — Black Gate #13

“The Vintages of Dream” — forthcoming in Black Gate

“Oblivion Is the Sweetest Wine” — Black Gate #12

Unquestionably, this is a long interview. I looked carefully for things I might cut, but in the end, I”m offering the whole thing because it’s all worthwhile. If it’s too much to read in one sitting, by all means, come back to it — make a week-long excursion of it — but do read the whole thing sooner or later: you’ll be glad you did.

Instead of tagging each question with the traditional “FSD,” I’m leaving them numbered so that you can easily find your place again if you take a break. Without further ado, then, I give you John R. Fultz, sorcerer of the pen. . . .

1. Readers of this blog always seem eager for lists of books they should be reading. I know “fantasy” is a broad and diverse field, but are there a few books/authors that you think anyone interested in fantasy absolutely should read?

Man, I love giving recommendations for fantasy readers. As you can imagine, I have my own list of All-Time Greats. Everybody has read Tolkien, so I’ll skip that (but SILMARILLION is my favorite). I think any person who loves fantasy should definitely seek out and read:

 - Tanith Lee’s TALES OF THE FLAT EARTH series  (One of the most beautiful and lyrical series of books ever written. Lee is the Queen of Fantasy and her books are sheer fantasy perfection.) I also recommend her VENUS series, and her latest epic THE LIONWOLF trilogy.

- Lord Dunsany’s THE KING OF ELFLAND’S DAUGHTER, and any of his short stories (Dunsany really was a wizard with a quill pen…his writing is breathtakingly gorgeous.)

- Clark Ashton Smith’s ZOTHIQUE, HYPERBOREA, and POSIEDONIS tales (CAS was the master of Dark Fantasy before that term was even invented—such a combination of wild imagination, dark/weird sensibilities, and sheer poetic brilliance of style.)

- Darrell Schweitzer’s MASK OF THE SORCERER and its sequel THE BOOK OF SEKENRE (Darrell is one of fantasy’s best kept secrets…true geniuses are often overlooked and this is the case with Schweitzer…his writing IS sorcery…he weaves a spell about his readers that you’ll never want to break.) I also recommend any of his collections such as WE ARE ALL LEGENDS, NIGHTSCAPES, and REFUGEES FROM AN IMAGINARY COUNTRY, etc.

- A. A. Attanasio’s THE DRAGON AND THE UNICORN, and its many sequels (A retelling of the Merlin/Arthur mythos that is unlike anything ever written about these characters. A.A.A. has a way of opening the universe and making you understand how magic really DOES work, all while mesmerizing you with the mythic power of his narrative.)

- Brian McNaughton’s THRONE OF BONES (McNaughton was a genius of weird fiction—this book is to ghouls what DRACULA was to vampires. The strange, ghoul-haunted word of Seelura he created will linger in your mind long after you finish this one.)

- R. Scott Bakker’s PRINCE OF NOTHING trilogy…including THE DARKNESS THAT COMES BEFORE, THE WARRIOR-PROPHET, and  THE THOUSAND-FOLD THOUGHT. (Bakker has reinvented the Epic Fantasy and done it in a way that isn’t a thinly veiled version of Tolkien’s work. He is a philosopher by trade, and the metaphysical aspects of his fiction are woven with a blood-and-guts earthiness that creates a fantasy epic somewhere between David Carradine’s KUNG FU and Frank Herbert’s DUNE, as filtered through ARABIAN NIGHTS. These books are exactly what you’re looking for if you’re tired of business-as-usual fantasy series.)

- Robert Silverberg’s NIGHTWINGS is one of the greatest fantasies ever written as well, even though you might call it science-fantasy. Full of brilliant imagination, wild spectacle, and transformational wisdom, it is the kind of book you never get tired of re-reading.

- I recommend any of Thomas Ligotti’s books (the greatest living horror writer in the world), and most of William Gibson’s books (Yeah, he’s sci-fi, but he’s just such a damn good writer it doesn’t matter.)

- A year or so ago, I finally gave in and discovered the genius of George R.R. Martin’s A SONG OF ICE AND FIRE series. I couldn’t believe it was as good as all the hype! But it is. He is a master of character, and he makes you fall in love when he wants, makes you hate when he wants, and always makes you want to see what happens next with his cast of all-too-human heroes and villains. Very realistic take on medieval fantasy that uses a less-is-more approach with magic.

- Jeff VanderMeer’s AMBERGRIS series is one of  the best things to come along in the last five years or so. CITY OF SAINTS AND MADMEN, SHRIEK: AND AFTERWORD, and the just-released FINCH offer a fresh new take on the weird-fantasy genre that straddles the line between fantasy and horror (and a few other genres as well). Brilliant stuff.

 I’ll stop here or else I’ll never finish…

2. Your work that I’ve read is fantasy in the grand tradition of such writers as Clark Ashton Smith, the pre-Tolkien mode that calls to mind the exotic flavor of Arabian Nights. What is it about such settings (deserts and opulent, decadent walled cities — and the moldering crypts beneath them) that appeals to you?
 

Good question, Fred! There are a few influences that led me back to that pre-Tolkien mode of fantasy, as you call it. One was of course Robert E. Howard’s CONAN and KULL tales (I prefer the KULL tales, but love them both.) I grew up reading this stuff in both novel and comic book formats. Another was Edgar Rice Burroughs’ MARTIAN TALES series…the John Carter of Mars books.  I grew up in the 1970s, which was a Golden Age for fantasy, and particularly for “sword-and-sorcery” fiction. Later I discovered Clark Ashton Smith’s tales of lost kingdoms such as Zothique, Hyperborea, and Posiedonis, and I couldn’t get enough of his writing.

There’s just something so intriguing about the “lost world” concept. Think about the ages of pre-history that are now lost to us. How many empires, kingdoms, and nations existed in the dim eons of earth that we will NEVER know about? I also buy into the concept of inherited racial memories, to a point, as well as the concept of Reincarnation. I believe I was an inhabitant of Atlantis, possibly during the time it sank beneath the waves. I’ve always had dreams and lurking fears of colossal tidal waves, and I’m very mistrustful of the ocean and its wrath. I also believe I was at one time (or many times) a citizen of the Roman Empire. I’m simply fascinated by the Ancient World…the parts of it we know about, and even moreso the parts we will never know about.

When I discovered Tanith Lee’s TALES FROM THE FLAT EARTH, it opened an amazing doorway for my imagination. She set her tales in a “time when the earth was still flat.” The laws of the universe were very different…the gods were ethereal beings who cared nothing for man, and the demons were more like beautiful demigods who went around seducing mortals and causing strife. Her characters in this series are so mythic and primordial—they tap into the archetypal consciousness. I think all really good fantasy taps that ancient wisdom that lies inside our consciousness, often buried so deep it is never consciously acknowledged.

Reading Tanith Lee (which began with a dog-eared copy of DEATH’S MASTER I stumbled across in a used bookstore in Lexington, Kentucky) made me want to focus on a broader and more ancient scope than your typical “medieval England” type of story. Also, I came to the realization that nobody can ever be Tolkien, so why should anyone try? I’d rather go back into the murky haze of primordial existence and create my own kingdoms from ancient models and myths. And do something new with them, of course. Always try to do something new with them.

All fantasy writers create new worlds, so in the end you are drawing from various sources real and unreal. Why look at the whole of history and pre-history and stop at the medieval ages? Keep looking back and you’ll find way more bizarre epochs to explore and utilize as you craft your own fantasy milieu. Sometimes you can look forward, too…but that’s another question.

3. Have you ever set a story in the popular medieval British Isles-type milieu? If not, or not many, did you make a conscious decision to avoid that sort of setting?
 

As mentioned in the previous answer, I’m much more drawn to the Greco-Roman inspired settting, or the Ancient World type of environment. Not to say I won’t ever write something set on the British Isles, or my version of it. But I feel that has been done so much, and so well, that there’s really no need for me to do it. I’ll read Tolkien and Attanasio instead.

4. For me, stories almost always grow out of place — a cave, an overgrown garden, a huge vehicle of some sort, a rural community, a barn — and the story reveals itself from there. How does it work for you? Where does a story idea usually begin?
 

It varies from story to story. That’s the mystical, exciting part of writing—when the idea first blossoms in your mind…a little sprig taking root in the fertile soil of IdeaSpace. Sometimes I’m inspired by a piece of art, or a setting, or a stray line I’ve read somewhere. I’ll take inspiration wherever I can get it. But I can tell you when I have a story, and where I always look when I’m moving forward: Characters. For me, stories begin and end with Characters. Alan Moore said something that really struck a chord with me, so I’ll paraphrase his wisdom: When you drop well-defined characters into a well-defined setting and let them run like rats in a maze, doing whatever they would naturally do…you have a plot. Especially when you have very different characters with contrasting goals and interests.

I think a LOT about my setting…as most fantasy writers have to. But I think a lot about my characters as well. The characters are going to be my readers’ link to this fictional world, and so they become my link as well. I never worry about “What will happen next?” because I just ask my character. The rule I follow is: Characters always behave according to their inherent natures. Just like real people. You can usually predict what your friends or family members will do in any given situation—because you know them so well. That’s how you have to know your characters.

One of my joys in writing is when my characters come into conflict with each other. Maybe it’s because conflict is the very heart of all Drama. Or maybe it’s me working out subconscious/emotional conflicts that I can’t handle on a conscious level. Whatever…it doesn’t really matter, but all characters are extensions of the writer’s psyche. Put them in a box and let them play. But make sure it’s a fascinatingly designed box! So I always come back to character. Keep in mind that your setting in itself can be a character as well…some settings make demands on characters that they cannot ignore.

When I have the basic idea for a story—which can come from anywhere—it “floats” there until I come up with a character (or characters).Once I have them, the idea starts to really grow and blossom, and before you know it I have a story ready to be written.

5. You’re an amazingly productive writer. Can you tell us something about your process? How does writing fit in around your full-time day job? When and where do you get it done? Do you write first drafts by hand or on a keyboard? Do you seek any input before you send things out?
 

Well, I go through productive periods and non-productive like everyone else. One thing I like to tell people (including my students) is that “Not Writing is a very important part of Writing.” I mean, the first thing you have to do before you write something is THINK about it. Thinking isn’t actually writing…but then again it IS. I think, therefore I write.

I teach English for a living, and right now I’m teaching 8^th grade level in the Bay Area. During the regular teaching year there is precious little time for writing. However, that doesn’t stop me from thinking! I try to keep my mind open for good ideas. They never spoil. Some writers carry ideas around for years before they turn them into stories or novels. The great thing about being a teacher, though, is that I get summers off to focus on my writing. Not to mention extended vacations over the winter holidays, and a Spring Break. There are assorted 3- and 4-day weekends during the year as well. These are the times when you’ll find me hitting the keyboard and getting my writing done.

Sometimes, though, I get inspired and nothing can stop me. For example, after attending this year’s WORLD FANTASY CONVENTION (my first ever), I came home so inspired that I’ve hammered out three new stories this month. While teaching! I’ve never done that before, so either I’m getting better or I’m just hella-inspired. Now, when the holidays hit I usually go back to Kentucky and visit relatives and friends—that’s a time when I won’t get any writing done either because it’s all about airports, highways, and the usual Yuletide celebrations. Which are great—it’s nice to have a couple weeks at the end of every year to “unplug” and just enjoy life for a little while. Again, those times can birth a bunch of new ideas, though, so I’m always ready.

Sometimes an idea will come to me and I’ll pull out my cell-phone, which has a recorder function, and speak the “nugget” of my idea right into my phone recorder. I’m like Dale Cooper on TWIN PEAKS speaking his thoughts to Diane. I might make two or three more “Messages to Self” before I put something on paper.

I think of ideas as “seeds”—let them grow in the mind until I just can’t stand it anymore. Then I’ve got to get it out of me. That’s when I sit down and hit the keyboard. Sometimes I’ll write longhand notes first—but whenever I can I prefer to just go right to the keyboard. I may write a page or several pages of notes—the Prewriting Process—before I actually write the first line of a story. I see the First Line as a gateway. Once I decide on what I think the “perfect” first line will be, I can “enter” the story-world completely. But I can’t start typing the story itself until I’ve figured out what the opening sentence will be in my head. A good opening sentence always leads you on to more good sentences.

Sometimes I finish the story in a single sitting. Those are great blasts of inspiration, but also the results of much mental planning beforehand. Once I know what the END is going to be, I can start the story. Sometimes I have only a general idea of the end, and other times I know EXACTLY what the ending will be. Sometimes I write out a bullet-list of events (i.e. Plot Points), and other times I keep it all in my head…a “general direction” rather than a plan, to use Bradbury’s terminology.

For longer stories, I’ll write them in shifts. But I usually can’t concentrate on much else until my current “project” is done. I always stop at natural breaks in the story…I’ll keep typing until I’m physically exhausted because I have to reach a good “resting place” before I can stop. Then I’ll come back the next day and finish it.

Writing novels is a whole different challenge from writing short stories. If you have a few weeks or months to build up momentum, you can really dive into it. That was the case with me last summer when I wrote SEVEN PRINCES. I had a general direction, but I wanted the characters to determine what actually happened from chapter to chapter. This was a new approach for me—with previous long-form works I always outlined them. This time, I wanted to let the characters and their world “breathe.” I knew where it was all heading, but not how I would get there. But the characters led the way, and often surprised me on the journey. Part of novel writing is being able to TRUST your writer’s instinct, your subconscious creator, if you will, to not lead you astray. My point of view is that if you follow the characters first and foremost, you’ll never write yourself into a corner. Realize that the characters are living these stories, you’re just chronicling.

I know that sounds like madness, but all writers are mad to a degree. But it’s a wonderful, joyous madness! Hahahahahahahah!

Someone said writing a short story is like walking a tightrope from beginning to end. Whereas writing a novel is like balancing SEVERAL things on tightropes and guiding them all toward the same ending. That’s a valid analogy. Writing short stories gives you a short-term thrill of completion, and you can really explore big, madcap ideas…just let your imagination soar. With a novel, you have to create a set of parameters, or story rules, and stick to them. That’s the thing about building momentum–the faster you go the harder it is to change course. So make sure you’re heading in the right direction. The way I do that is by following my characters, wherever they lead me.

There is always some kind of plan. Even if it’s all in mind (for shorter pieces), or a few lines of plot points, or a complete loose outline. Outlines inevitably change once you start to write, and often they become irrelevant when you’re in the middle of the story…but that’s okay because they give you what you need: a direction in which to travel.

With my SEVEN PRINCES novel, I had a general idea of where things were headed, but I consciously planned out only one chapter at a time. It was like strolling through fog, only able to see the next step or two ahead of me. My characters calling to me from somewhere in the mist, and me trusting they would lead me where we all needed to be. They did.

6. Descriptions, dialogue, action sequences, exposition of background. . . . Do you have a favorite part of a story to write? How about a least favorite?

My favorite part of a story to write is usually one of two things: Dialogue or  Mystical/Magical/Surreal moments. In long-form works (longer stories or a novel) I relish exchanges of dialogue. It’s where my characters come to life and express themselves, and I really enjoy letting them interact and seeing where a scene takes me. It’s great when they surprise you, or when you write some dialogue and go back later and say “Damn, I don’t remember writing that at all!” The character was in charge; you were just transcribing.

My other favorite part of writing a story probably explains why I like fantastic fiction so much. I love writing pieces/scenes/sequences where “normal” reality is abandoned and the characters are caught in a mystical experience such as a dream-state, a spell of sorcery, an invasion of the “other,” or visions of surreal enlightenment. In short, I love to warp reality. I can’t really do that too well in my terrestrial life—but in my fiction I can twist the fabric of existence. My goal is always to create a unique experience for the reader. When I read Darrell Schweitzer’s sorcery sequences, they often take me to a trance-state, something like transcendental meditation. He literally boggles my mind! This is why I tell people that Darrell’s writing IS sorcery. A. A. Attanasio can do that as well, but he makes the most fantastical magic event seem as natural as a summer rain. Tanith Lee can transport me with the sheer beauty of her prose imagery, as can Clark Ashton Smith and Lord Dunsany. On the darker side, nobody warps readers’ consciousness like the Master, Thomas Ligotti. Once again, it’s like a spell has been cast, and you’re experiencing something that goes beyond simple eye-to-brain cognition. It’s like LSD without taking drugs. I love writing scenes that transcend mundane reality. I may not be as effective at it as those authors I mentioned, but they are my role models for doing this in my own fiction. Of course, there are many other authors who weave such spells on their readers, but these are just a few of my favorites. In short—I want to mess with your mind, dude!
 

7. Can you tell us about your revision process? How much editing do you do?
 

When I’m involved with crafting a story I’m constantly editing it. Write, edit, write, edit. I’ll “spot-edit” continuously, in between extended bouts of writing the actual prose. I “live with” the story for a day or a few days, and things “pop out” at me—things I have to fix, or things I forgot to put in, or things that need to be changed for consistency. Later, after the story is finished and I’ve taken some time away (usually less than 24 hours), I’ll go back and do a Complete Edit. That’s where I read the entire story onscreen and cut/add anything that needs to be fixed, smoothed out, or altered. I always try to cut myself mercilessly. Any word, phrase, or sentence is expendable in order to achieve the overall effect of The Story.

For me, the most difficult part of stories is perfecting the opening. I detest a boring or “blah”opening. I usually don’t read stories unless they grab me in the first paragraph. Who’s got the time for that anyway? I’ve got a lot of stuff to read! So I usually go over and over and over my opening paragraph (s), trying to make it absolutely perfect. The opening sequence of a story should be as precise and effective as a well-written poem. Every word counts. And since editors usually judge your stories by their openings, you have to show them you’ve “got it” right there in the first one to two paragraphs. I’m the same with songs on the radio—I can tell from the opening, or the first few bars, if I’m going to sit through that song. The “lead” of a story should be a grabber; that’s my philosophy. So I obsess over my opening paragraphs to excess. It seems to work!

8. Your roots are rural Midwestern, like mine, but most recently you’re a Californian. How has region affected your writing? How about geography?

Yeah, I grew up in Kentucky, lived in Chicago for a little while, and I’ve been a Californian since 1998. The first nine years out here was in Southern California—Orange County. This month marks my two-year anniversary of moving north to the Bay Area. California on the whole has been incredibly inspiring to me. It has definitely affected my writing in many ways. California has elements of all climates and peoples here. It has amazing history. Most of all it has an appreciation for the creative arts that the Midwestern environment seems to have in short supply. For example, if you say “Hey, I want to be a writer” in Kentucky, people will generally tell you to “Get a real job—you can’t make a living as a writer.” They’re more practical. The same goes for music, and other creative endeavors. On the other hand, if you tell someone in California you want to be a writer, they will automatically take you seriously and ask what you’re working on (or what you’ve written). Out here the business of entertainment and creativity is a real, economic power. People take writers and artists seriously the way they never did when I was a boy growing up in Kentucky. And there’s a reason for that: There simply aren’t that many opportunities for artists in that part of the country. If you want to be a writer, you really need to go to California or New York. Of course there are exceptions, but Cali is motion pictures and New York is publishing. And those two worlds are inseparably intertwined. The creative climate of California is what I enjoy most. People here are very impractical—in a good way!

9. Has there been a proudest moment in your writing career so far?
 

I think it was when I sold my first short story to WEIRD TALES, back in early 2004. The story was “The Persecution of Artifice the Quill,” and it ran in WT #340, which came out in ’05. I had literally been trying to sell stories to WT for fifteen years! Back in college, when I took creative writing courses, I used to read the Schweitzer/Scithers version of WEIRD TALES and I sent off stories to them. Darrell always wrote me the most insightful rejections. Every few years I’d try again, and I got better by little increments. It’s funny—when I was writing “The Persecution of Artifice the Quill” I just knew somehow that this was the story that would finally get me into WEIRD TALES. And it was. I had always said “If I can sell a story to Darrell, I will have figured out how to write.” Because we’re talking about an editor who won a World Fantasy Award for his editing—not to mention one of the leading scholars/reviewers in the fantasy/horror genre.

Selling that first story inspired me to keep writing short stories, and I ended up selling two more Artifice stories to WT, then I started selling to BLACK GATE. Along the way, I got my graphic novel PRIMORDIA published as well, then sold some other comics scripts. Earlier this year I sold my first non-fantasy story to SPACE & TIME Magazine. It was a contemporary weird-horror story called “Behind the Eyes.” It was another milestone because I’ve never wanted to write ONLY fantasy. Fantasy will always be my first love, but I do write other things as the inspiration strikes.

10. Can you remember your earliest attempt at writing, perhaps when you were very young? What, if anything, was the common link with what you’re writing now, as an adult?
 

When I was in 7^th grade I wrote a story about a knight who refuses to listen to everyone at court when they tell him NOT to go fight a dragon that is terrorizing the land. The young knight, full of arrogance and hungry for glory, goes out and assaults the dragon in its cave. The last line of the story reveals that the knight was promptly killed and devoured by the dragon. The point being that he should have listened to his elders and let the damn dragon alone. My English teacher liked the story so much that she read it to the entire class one day. That must have been a turning point in my life. It gave me something to be proud of when I really needed it. It validated my interest in writing, as well as in fantasy fiction. It might be the first time I ever thought of myself as a “writer.” In my own career as a teacher I love recognizing and encouraging young writers. I guess I’m paying it forward. Thank you, Mrs. Kimberlaine!

11. Is there a particular element or aspect that you think the best fantasy stories have? As a reader, what do you read for?
 

A sense of wonder. That’s it for me. I’m stealing the words of the great Robert Silverberg, but it’s so true. Whether I’m reading fantasy, sci-fi, or horror, I want a sense of wonder, something strange, beyond the mundane, something incredible and impossible coming to life inside my imagination. In college I read Silverberg’s WORLDS OF WONDER, which was a guide to writing science fiction and fantasy, but also included amazing stories from classic writers like Damon Knight, Henry Kuttner, Jack Vance, and Brian Aldiss. It was huge influence on me, and responsible for my writing a post-apocalyptic sci-fi novel in longhand during the course of my last two years of college. It wasn’t particularly good, but terrific fun, and I proved to myself that I could do it. One of the things Silverberg talks about in that book is the “sense of wonder” that sci-fi and fantasy stories should have. I couldn’t say it any better.

The other element that is so important is good characters. If you can’t relate to the characters, you’re not going to enjoy the story. Silverberg is a master at infusing a sense of wonder with believable characters who seem real, even in the depths of impossible realities.

Thirdly, a writer’s style means a lot to me. Tanith Lee’s fiction reads like sex feels. It’s superb. Lyrical, poetic, full of images that stun the mind and thrill the soul. Clark Ashton Smith and Thomas Ligotti do the same thing, but with a much darker mood. It’s all about creating fantastic imagery that evokes that crucial sense of wonder.

12. Is there a map of the world in which your Zang Cycle is set? Do you write with a map spread out beside you, or is a map even necessary?
 

The map of the Zang Continent exists only in my mind, but it’s pretty well formed there. I took a cue from Brian McNaughton, who believed that if he drew a map for his Seelura Cycle (in THRONE OF BONES), it might rob his creation of all its mystery and wonder. So there is no physical Zang map.

However, I DID create a map for my novel SEVEN PRINCES. The characters therein are lords and ladies of several lands, some of which are a thousand miles apart. There are also the movements of armies and travelling individuals to consider. So I created a map and constantly continued to revise it as I wrote the novel. I’ve learned from this that maps are WAY more important to fantasy novels than to cycles of loosely-related short stories that share the same world.

13. The use of magic is a central aspect of your stories, much moreso than the use of swords. Is that a fair statement? What are the challenges of writing about magic and characters who are sorcerers?
 

Yes. Some people call some of my stories “sword and sorcery,” but I came up with the term “pen and sorcery” because Artifice the Quill, main character of the Zang stories, isn’t a warrior—he’s a writer! He starts out as a novelist and evolves into a traveling playwright. The conceit is that he is learning a form of sorcery that reveals itself through his performances…a great metaphor for how Art can change the world. The series of Artifice tales explores the concept of Sorcery as Art, and Art as Sorcery.

I’ve always thought wizards/sorcerers/magicians were way more interesting than sword-swinging warriors. I’d rather see two sorcerers have a duel than two swordsmen. The possibilities are endless with magic and sorcery…Moorcock’s Elric of Melnibone is so exciting and enduring because he combines the best attributes of the warrior/swordsman archetype with the best of the sorcerer/magician figure.

However, any kind of character can be compelling if it is well written. Some of George R. R. Martin’s characters are practically powerless, but yet they are ultimately fascinating. Maybe my preference for magical characters goes back to my quest for the “sense of wonder” I spoke about. At the same time, Jeffrey Ford pointed out at the WFC how you can find magic in the real world; it exists all around you in the winds and movements of birds among the clouds, etc. The world of nature is the ultimate magic. He has a good point. Attanasio is the only fantasy writer I’ve read who manages to combine Nature and Sorcery to the point that the mundane world and supernatural world are ONE AND THE SAME. That’s why everyone should seek out and read THE DRAGON AND THE UNICORN, to see how he pulls this off.

I don’t really like the term “sword-and-sorcery” when it’s applied to my fiction. I don’t like limits. There are other authors whose work gets labeled like this, and for most of them it’s not fair because they have way more going on than S&S would imply.

We had a great panel about writing sorcerer/magician characters at the WFC. One thing we all agreed on: You have to give your sorcerers limits of some kind. But that’s not hard to do because as I pointed out, simply HAVING sorcerous/magical power is going to cause a whole host of problems. It’s also interesting to note that most of literature’s sorcerer/magician characters end up as tragic figures…all their cosmic power does them no good in the end. Elric, Merlin, Drusas Achamian (from the PRINCE OF NOTHING series)…even Gandalf doesn’t live a particularly happy existence in LotR.

I think Sorcerers and Magicians and Wizards have an immortal mystique about them, and that’s what makes them such great characters to write and read. They know things…sometimes terrible things…they are the keepers of the universe’s darkest mysteries.

14. Imagine that, about 170 years from now, you’re being discussed by a panel at the World Fantasy Convention. “John Fultz was a writer who ______.” What would you like to be remembered for?

Oh, wow, I can’t think of how to answer this without sounding like a jerk.  It’s a nice image though. I certainly hope my works survive me…

15. Is there anything we haven’t covered that you’d like to add?

Let’s see: Right now I’ve got two stories coming up in future issues of BLACK GATE, and a post-apocalyptic horror tale in the forthcoming DAW anthology CTHULHU’S REIGN. You can also pre-order the PRIMORDIA hardcover at Amazon.com, but I’m not sure exactly when it will be released.

Thanks, Fred!

Thank you, John!

Finally, I have some time to write up a review!

Piratica II opens with Art and Felix married. Art is not entirely happy with her new life as a celebrity, living in a grand cliff-top mansion, but she feels if Felix is happy, then she is…

When she is requested to join the Navy of Free England, to fight against the French and the Franco-Spanish, she agrees, much to Felix’s distaste. Thus is the beginning of many arguments, and the eventual leve of Felix Phoenix.

This is the second time Felix has abandoned the ship, and Art is confident he will return. However, she sends out a search party when she realises she does not want to be without him. Meanwhile, Felix comes to the same conclusion, and sets off to return to Art and the newly refurbished Unwelcome Stranger, provided by the Navy. However, he is attacked by Little Goldie girl in the tavern he is about to leave, and she accuses him of betraying her, and lying to her about being his sweetheart: all accusations somehow concocted from the conversations they had when they last met. Goldie drags him to her ship, where she informs her crew he will be tortured and killed.

When Art arrives at the Tavern, the bar tender tells them that she saw Felix and a beautiful woman leave the tavern together. She informs them that her English is not good, but she picked up the words “Sweetheart,” and “love,” and presumes the fair lady was Felix’s sweetheart.

Art leaves the tavern feeling betrayed, and she believes the woman the bar tender described to be a female sailor, Belladora Fan, who had just left the ship, and seemed to interest Phoenix. She sails away, disillusioned and hurt.

After much chaos, Phoenix is led to believe that Art is dead…

Brilliant book! It really lived up to the first. I’m currently waiting on the third to come into our library…

Snow White, Blood Red is an anthology of fairy tale retellings for adults, editted by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling. It’s the first of a series of anthologies.

Overall, the anthology is very good. Of course, as in any anthology, there were stories I liked better than others but the quality of all of them was very high. Datlow as well as Windling provide introductions and there’s an appendix of recommended reading, which is pretty awesome. If you like fairy tale retellings, fantasy/SciFi and a little bit of horror, you will love this book.

As usual, I’ll go through the stories one by one.

White as Snow: Fairy Tales and Fantasy (Terri Windling)

Terri Windling gives us an overview about the history of fairy tales, some changes that were made to them over time and how they relate to fantasy.
Some people skip forewords when reading books and in this case they really shouldn’t. Terri Windling gives us a concise and fascinating look at fairy tales and their evolution.

Red as Blood: Fairy Tales and Horror (Ellen Datlow)

Ellen Datlow relates fairy tales to horror and her own experience of them.
Datlow’s foreword is much more personal than Windling’s but no less interesting. Taking a look at how un-childish fairy tales are and how they shape the horror culture around us, this foreword is another essential part of the book.

Like a Red, Red Rose (Susan Wade)

A woman and her daughter live alone in a beautiful garden where they produce potions for the villagers but are generally regarded as outcasts.
Like a Red, Red Rose is actually not a retelling of a specific fairy tale but rahter a reiteration of known motifs in fairy tales. As a hommage to several fairy tales, it works very well.

The Moon Is Drowning While I Sleep (Charles de Lint)

The Moon Is Drowning While I Sleep is a retelling of the fairy tale The Dead Moon. It is set in de Lint’s town of Newford.
I loved this story. It’s poetic, it’s beautiful and very well written. Here’s the first part which tells you everything you need to know:

Once upon a time there was what there was, and if nothing had happened there would be nothing to tell.

The Frog Prince (Gahan Wilson)

The Frog Prince is a retelling of, surprisingly, The Frog Prince. It’s a very modern take: It depicts a therapy session of Frog.
There were some details I liked in this story, but mostly I found it none too memorable.

Stalking Beans (Nancy Kress)

Stalking Beans is a retelling of Jack and the Beanstalk. In this version, Jack is bitter and is exposed as the asshole he is.
There was nothing qualitatively wrong with this story but I really didn’t like it. Probably because Jack was that exposed… the story only works if you kinda care for Jack, imo.

Snow-Drop (Tanith Lee)

Snow-Drop is a futuristic take on Snow White as seen from the stepmother’s perspective.
This story was fascinating. To retell the story from the stepmother’s view was a stroke of genius and the futuristic setting was awesome. It really put Tanith Lee high up on my to-read list.

Little Red (Wendy Wheeler)

Little Red transplants Little Red Riding Hood into a modern, urban setting with all its chilling consequences.
Wendy Wheeler’s story was probably the most terrifying of them all. Taking a Lolita approach to the whole thing and letting the story be told by the perpetrator was outright chilling.

I Shall Do Thee Mischief in the Wood (Kathe Koja)

This story is another take on Little Red Riding Hood, but this one historical.
In this version, as in the one before, there’s no traipsing around the images used in the original: Little Red Riding Hood is a story about a young girl getting raped by a guy who thinks it’s his right to do just that. But in this case, the girl gets the better of the guy.

The Root of the Matter (Gregory Frost)

The Root of the Matter is a retelling of Rapunzel. It is told from the three point of views of Rapunzel, her “mother” and the prince.
I liked the three different views but I didn’t like the morale of the story: that the cruelty of the “mother” was necessary so that the characters of Rapunzel and the prince were formed in a way that they could be together.

The Princess in the Tower (Elizabeth A. Lynn)

Another take on Rapunzel, The Princess in the Tower is more of a funny story than the dark “The Root of the Matter”. But I also thought it rather annoying. The joke is that it’s set in Italy somewhere in a town, where it’s considered beautiful to be fat and poor Rapunzel unfortunately isn’t. And I don’t see much humour in that and it gets old pretty fast.

Persimmon (Harvey Jacobs)

Persimmon is a retelling of Thumbelina.
In the description of the story in the book, the editors say that Harvey Jacobs’ stuff is “peculiar”, and peculiar it is. I don’t think that I can give an in any way more qualified comment than that.

Little Poucet (Steve Rasnic Tem)

Little Poucet is a retelling of Little Poucet or Hop o’ My Thumb.
It’s a pretty disgusting story and Tem doesn’t manage to make it scary – it remains disgusting. I really didn’t like it.

The Changelings (Melanie Tem)

The Changelings is based on scandinavic stories of changelings and forest trolls. It’s about a mother who believes her daughter and her daughter’s best friend have been swapped and subsequently suffers a mental breakdown.
I liked the story. It’s an intelligent examination of a mother-daughter relationship and looks at something that’s usually not discussed: That a mother could possibly not like her own child.

The Springfield Swans (Caroline Stevermer and Ryan Edmonds)

The Springfield Swans is a retelling of The Wild Swans, set on a baseball diamond, basically.
This story is sweet, if a little inconsequential.

Troll Bridge (Neil Gaiman) [which I've also reviewed here]

The Troll Bridge is a retelling of the story Three Billy Goats Gruff, even if rather far from the original.
I think, on re-reading I actually liked this story even better. It has a sweet sense of humour, a good ending and is well written.

A Sound, Like Angels Singing (Leonard Rysdyk)

I won’t tell you what story this is a retelling of. Should you read this story, it would be completely spoiled otherwise.
It’s an interesting story. Not one I liked a whole lot, but I loved reading it.

Puss (Esther M. Friesner)

Puss is a very dark take on Puss in Boots, with a tormented main character.
I really loved this story. It’s dark, chilling and uncomfortable but it’s really good.

The Glass Casket (Jack Dann)

The Glass Casket is based on The Glass Coffin, but set in Renaissance Italy and a kind of fantastic alternate history story about Pico della Mirandola.
I don’t know anything about Pico della Mirandola, so I’m not really sure why Dann chose him as his main character. Neither do I know much about Renaissance Italy, nor do I care a whole lot. Maybe that’s why this story left me pretty cold.

Knives (Jane Yolen)

Knives is a take on Cinderella. It’s a poem, not a short story.
I liked it. It has a good rhythm and a nice flow. It’s deep, but it also has sense of humour. Very enjoyable.

The Snow Queen (Patricia A. McKillip)

To everyone’s surprise, this story is a retelling of The Snow Queen.
The original Snow Queen might be my most favouritest fairy tale ever, so McKillip does not have an easy task to make me like her story as every change made makes it less like the original and the original is pretty much perfect. So it’s no surprise that I didn’t like this story. But nevertheless I have to say that it’s a well written, good story.

Breadcrumbs and Stones (Lisa Goldstein)

Breadcrumbs and Stones is a kind of retelling of Hansel and Gretel. Two sisters examine their relationships with their mother as she’s dying, and also take a look at the history of their family during WW II.
It was a sad and thoughtful story and one I really liked. It’s hard to capture in a few short sentences, so I’ll just recommend that you read it.

UPDATE: Câştigătorul este Ghiultu Sabina! Felicitări!

Astăzi este ultima zi în care mai puteţi participa la concursul Piratica I.

Vă reamintesc, tot ceea ce trebuie să faceţi este să trimiteţi un e-mail la vladbookspot@yahoo.com cu numele complet al personajului principal din serie.

Aveţi şansa să câştigaţi un exemplar din Piratica I, de Tanith Lee.

Piratica – o încântătoare poveste despre Aventurile unei Fete Unice în Largul Mării. Personajul principal este o fată de 16 ani, o elevă amnezică captivă în mohorâta Academie a Îngerior pentru Tinere Domnişoare. Într-o după-amiază de Crăciun, în urma unui accident în care se loveşte la cap, fetei îi revine memoria de la şase ani, când îşi petrecea viaţa pe un vas de piraţi “condus” de mama sa, Moly Faith – actriţă, cunoscută drept Piratica. Fata fuge din şcoală şi pleacă în căutarea “echipajului” pe care mama ei îl condusese până la moartea ei accidentală. Când iî găseşte pe actorii care formau “echipajul”, fata reuşeşte să le insufle credinţa că de fapt ei sunt piraţi adevărati, convingându-i să-şi ia în serios rolul şi făcându-i să creadă că aceasta era realitatea pură. Echipajul condus de tânără pleacă într-o aventură extraordinară, spre Largul Mării, către Indiile Albastre ale Caraibilor şi spre o fabuloasă comoară.

Felix Phoenix, with ice-blonde hair and blue eyes, vows to pay revenge on Goldie Girl, the Golden Goliaths daughter, due to his secretive history.

Throughout the book, he displays secrecy and does not let anyone know his reason for being aboard the ship until quite late in the story.

I think Art’s jealousy of Goldie Girl worked well, when she thought Felix was in love with her. Little did Art know that the only reason he wished to board Goldie’s ship was to collect information about her to bring her on trial for piracy. This is also the reason Felix stays on Art’s ship at the begining- he simply wants information and proof of her piracy. However, as time goes on, Felix begins to admire her and many of the crew, but he keeps this all secret. Up to the minute before Art is hanged, she does not know how Felix truly feels about her.

I think Felix’s “Piratica- Pirate Queen” speech should definitely make it into archives of best public speeches ever made- it ends up saving her life!

Please comment and say what you think!

P.S. If you’re wondering why this isn’t on the character discussions page, I think this way is better and easier. Bye-bye, discussion page! You can find all discussions under the category ‘character discussons’.

UPDATE: Câştigătorul este GHIULTU SABINA! Felicitări!

Acum aveţi şansa să citiţi o încântătoare poveste despre aventurile unei tinere extraordinare în Largul Mări: PIRATICA I, povestită în cel mai frumos mod de celebra TANITH LEE. Bookspot şi editura Corint Junior vă învită la concurs!

Tot ceea ce trebuie să faceţi este să trimiteţi un e-mail la vladbookspot@yahoo.com, în care să precizaţi care este numele complet al personajului principal din această serie.

Concursul se va termina sâmbătă , 17 octombrie 2009. Câştigătorul va fi anunţat ulterior.

Piratica – o încântătoare poveste despre Aventurile unei Fete Unice în Largul Mării. Personajul principal este o fată de 16 ani, o elevă amnezică captivă în mohorâta Academie a Îngerior pentru Tinere Domnişoare. Într-o după-amiază de Crăciun, în urma unui accident în care se loveşte la cap, fetei îi revine memoria de la şase ani, când îşi petrecea viaţa pe un vas de piraţi “condus” de mama sa, Moly Faith – actriţă, cunoscută drept Piratica. Fata fuge din şcoală şi pleacă în căutarea “echipajului” pe care mama ei îl condusese până la moartea ei accidentală. Când iî găseşte pe actorii care formau “echipajul”, fata reuşeşte să le insufle credinţa că de fapt ei sunt piraţi adevărati, convingându-i să-şi ia în serios rolul şi făcându-i să creadă că aceasta era realitatea pură. Echipajul condus de tânără pleacă într-o aventură extraordinară, spre Largul Mării, către Indiile Albastre ale Caraibilor şi spre o fabuloasă comoară.

•

În curând la Corint Junior, Piratica II- Întoarcerea Pe Insula Papagalilor!

Question What do Peter Straub, Caitlin R. Kiernan, Brian Evenson, Henry Kaiser, Gene Wolfe, Hal Duncan, Jeffrey Ford, Rikki Ducornet, Holly Phillips, Stephen R. Donaldson, K.J. Bishop, Michael Swanwick, Ellen Kushner, Daniel Abraham, Jay Lake, Liz Williams, Tanith Lee, Sarah Monette, Conrad Williams,  Marly Youmans and sixty odd other contributors have in common?

Answer They were all asked the following question: What is Last Drink Bird Head?

Each of these writers considered this question in mandatory seclusion and, after literally many minutes of  thought, wrote down their answer in 500 words or less.

If you’re thinking: this sounds like the sort of crackpot scheme that Jeff and Ann Vandermeer would cook up, you’d be spot on. And you’d also be right in supposing that they’d enlist the talents of their regular artistic comrades – Scott Eagle, Eric Schaller and John Coulthart – to turn their crackpot scheme into a stunning looking artefact (that also functions as a flip book!). And while you’re riding the Supposition Express, let’s take it to the terminus of logical conlusion. Given only the tiny germ of those four words to work with, every single writer has come up with something unique. These stories are surprising and powerful and entertaining and funny and…well, yes, short. And best of all – it’s all been done in support of an excellent literacy charity.

Last Drink Bird Head is being launched at the World Fantasy Convention on October 29th, and I’ll be picking up my own copy of what is certain to become a hugely collectible item there. If you’re going, I’ll no doubt see you there, but if you can’t make it you can pre-order the book direct from the publishers at a $5 discount.

You want a sneaky peak to see what I’m talking about? Check out this Last Drink Bird Head action, right here for Astounding! Images! and Tantalising! Excerpts!

What’s that? What was my answer to the question? Well, I’m flattered you should ask, but all I can say is it surprised me as much as anyone. Here’s a taster, but you gotta buy the book to find out what it means.

Margueritte reties her cloak, clutches the flask, and climbs. The steps are slick, but the tread is deadened by gravel and ash, supplemented by ropes of wrack, screes of shells and delicate bird bones.

Her steps crunch only softly. Buoyed, she runs, reckless of the wind, but as she ascends she gains gravity. Wrack pops, shells crack, bones snap. A gust billows the cloak into a sail, but she’s still too heavy. Margueritte’s instinct is split: to control the cloak or to let it flap and drink from the flask. Safety wins, and only once she is secure does she heft the flask.

Just a drop and save what remains.

A very good book for a very good cause: promoting literacy.

Team VanderMeer have put together this anthology for ProLiteracy. So, you get to help out (thus increasing your karma-credits) and you get a fantastic read – look at those writers, look at those names! Nothing wrong with any of this.

What Is Last Drink Bird Head?

That’s the catalyst editors Ann and Jeff VanderMeer provided to over 80 writers in creating this unique anthology. The result? Last Drink Bird Head is a blues musician, a performance artist, a type of alcohol, a town in Texas, and even a song sung by girl scouts in Antarctica. Contributors include Peter Straub, Caitlin R. Kiernan, Brian Evenson, Henry Kaiser, Gene Wolfe, Hal Duncan, Jeffrey Ford, Rikki Ducornet, Holly Phillips, Stephen R. Donaldson, K.J. Bishop, Michael Swanwick, Ellen Kushner, Daniel Abraham, Jay Lake, Liz Williams, Tanith Lee, Sarah Monette, Conrad Williams, and Marly Youmans. (See the ordering page for a full list of contributors.)

Available for pre-order here http://www.jeffvandermeer.com/2009/09/24/last-drink-bird-head-for-charity-party-pre-orders-awards-and-more/

Title: Graceling

Author: Kristin Cashore

Genre: fantasy

Pages: 471

Days to read it: 5

Synopsis: Working for the power-hungry King Randa, Katsa is graced with agility and endurance, qualities that make her a veritable killing machine under her greedy uncle’s rule. From young, she knew to be disgusted with her own image as a bringer of pain and death, yet in her heart, she thrived and thrilled in the pure joy of motion, in her awareness of each kicking spin or precise step,  of her boundless energy and skill of weapon-wielding. On secret missions unknown to her King, Katsa and her companions travel across the lands, helping victims of greedy kings, doing her best to atone, through covert actions, for the crimes she had committed under the King’s orders. As Katsa and her companions discover more about a deep-rooted corruption among the Kings of the lands, Katsa slowly redefines herself and her Grace using the instincts of her own heart.

Impressions: First off, one thing that has been bugging me. A person with a Grace has very heightened talents, whether it’s storytelling, archery, cooking or mind-reading. Along with the Grace, Gracelings have two different coloured eyes. Now, here come a whole slew of questions from me: Why are people gifted with Graces? Is it random? A gift from the gods? Is it a direct heritage from a bloodline? Why does it come with two different coloured eyes? Has there ever been a Graceling vs. Normal People war (wouldn’t the Gracelings have a higher chance of winning since they’re pretty much superhuman?)? One thing that I so wanted to know about but never got enough satisfactory answers for was information about Graces in general. I felt that there wasn’t enough background about the idea of Graces in the story. I know that I’ve definitely been satisfied with stories with less information about things like this, but in this case, I really really wanted to know more! I was just so curious about Graces and Gracelings – My thoughts kept straying to thinking about them in general and all the potential stories about them (why do some people have stronger/more heightened graces than others?) instead of focussing on the actual storyline.

One other thing (I’m being crusty so go ahead and throw e-stones at me) that has been bothering me about the story: I love my headstrong, intelligent, beautiful, skilled yet insecure and lonely heroines, I know I do. But something about Katsa didn’t make me like her as much as some of the other heroines I’ve read. Maybe it’s because her strength and beauty are so obviously stated that I wanted to do a little eye rolling thing (Wildcat as a nickname? Wildcat?). It’s not to say I didn’t like her at all. I was just surprised I wouldn’t like her more. After all, isn’t she the girl we all want to read about? That we all want to connect with? Why is it that I wasn’t able to connect with her as much as say, Garth Nix’s Lirael, or Juliet Marillier’s Fainne? I think I may know why. I’m tired of reading the same sort of descriptions. The ol’ chin lifted up in defiance equals “I am tough”. Or the “Why the heck does this person like me? Surely it can’t be because of my haunting beauty – who would like a person with two different coloured eyes? (Nevermind that they’re stunning)”.   Maybe it’s just part of where I stand in the reader’s spectrum. After all, I was never crazy about the Tamora Pierce books, and wasn’t she a similarly tough, kick-butt heroine?

I think halfway through the book, I started to like her a little more, probably because her relationship with Po (does anyone else associate this name with a certain children’s television program?) is so touching and sweet, and a moment where we see her opening up to another. And her growing relationship with Bitterblue (why was she named that? She’s bitter and blue? I guess that makes sense…) was very poignant.  During these scenes, the description of Katsa was less clichéd and more natural.  I usually don’t mind clichés. I’ve seen authors use clichés in such a unique way that they reinvent that cliché. I’m thinking of Neil Gaiman in particular, who likes to poke fun at chichés by using them and turning them around.

Another scene that I enjoyed was the scene where she finds out another possible interpretation of her Grace, and then has to put it to the test so soon afterwards. The writing there was riveting. I guess I like my survival stories. I like how the focus of the story seems so narrowed down to Katsa and her will to survive, and her need to believe in her Grace.

I think Kristin Cashore has a unique writing style. Kind of like how Megan Whalen Turner has that distinct way of describing things that’s subtle and low-key (almost) and yet compacts tons of emotion. Like a painting or a poem can be. The only thing was the plotline…well, aside from inventing the idea of Graces as a gimmick to attract readers, the fantasy world wasn’t anything out of the ordinary. I pretty much figured out what was going to happen in terms of the storyline. But, I don’t think Kristin Cashore meant to focus on the storyline so much as the character development? But then again, there was so much left unsaid about King Leck. Why the heck was he so evil?

A question for you: Has there ever been a time when you want to read about a tough, intelligent, beautiful heroine, yet you find that instead of totally connecting with her, you are irritated and annoyed by her? I’m thinking of some other books that I read a while ago, where I had that feeling. I think the heroines I remember and like, tend to be slightly eccentric. They aren’t necessarily admirable in the usual way. Instead, there’s something quirky about them that makes me feel like the author really knows how to make you like a character despite their apparent ditsy-ness (Claidi from Claidi Journals) or remoteness (Lirael from Lirael) or plain grumpiness (Sophie from Howl’s Moving Castle).

Excerpt: I keep coming across and noticing allusions to Shakespeare’s “green-eyed monster”. I like this passage.  All that angsty emotion and confusion about how she sees herself. You really feel it.

“Katsa picked up her knife and fork, cut into her mutton, and thought about that. She knew her nature. She would recognize it if she came face-to-face with it. It would be a blue-eyed, green-eyed monster, wolflike and snarling. A vicious beast that struck out at friends in uncontrollable anger, a killer that offered itself as the vessel of the king’s fury.

But then, it was a strange monster, for beneath its exterior it was frightened and sickened by its own violence. It chastised itself for its savagery. And sometimes it had no heart for violence and rebelled against it utterly.

A monster that refused, sometimes, to behave like a monster. When a monster stopped behaving like a monster, did it stop being a monster? Did it become something else?

Perhaps she wouldn’t recognize her own nature after all.”

Other reviews:

* I got this idea (add little excerpts from other people’s reviews) from Darla D. at Books & Other thoughts *

- Darla D. from Books & Other thoughts: “The fantasy world is a fairly generic one, but the intriguing magic, well-developed characters and the taut pacing combine in a skillfully told story that turned out to be one of my favorite books of 2008.”

- Angie from Angieville: “If you are a fan of Tamora Pierce or Robin McKinley, this one is pretty much a guaranteed home run”

- Graeme from Graeme’s Fantasy: “‘Graceling’ is a strange mixture of things that I just cannot stand about fantasy whilst, at the same time, being another one of those books where (despite myself) I seem to find myself turning the pages and genuinely wanting to know how it ends…”

- Kailana from The Written World: “The best way to sum everything up is to simply say that I loved this book! I essentially read it in one day, so you know that it caught my attention!”

- Lu from Regular Rumination: “96% – Well-crafted and meaningful, a fully engaging fantasy novel. Highly recommended.”

- Michelle from See Michelle Read: “Graceling is an adventure story, a fantasy, a mystery, a political suspense, a romance — it has it all and doesn’t stop for a second”

- Enna Isilee from Squeaky Books: “This book was a delightful fantasy. I found it completely original and fascinating.”

- Thea from The Book Smugglers: “I truly enjoyed reading Graceling for its intriguing premise, its strong characters, and its highly engaging plot. Highly recommended for readers of all ages”

- NotNessie from Today’s Adventure: “A fast paced adventure with a sweet romantic core. Fantastic if you like romance, adventure, fantasy, or just a generally good story. Don’t start this book unless you have several free hours, because you won’t want to put it down.”

Rating: 4/5 days of survival in the wildlands

Extras:

I guess it’s kind of late to put this up, but I do enjoy watching Book Trailers (now that I’ve discovered they actually exist!) Here’s a fan trailer.

I didn’t like the other trailer. Click and you might see why…

A sosit toamna iar editurile se pregătesc cum trebuie pentru acest anotimp. Una din editurile care aduce pe piaţă destul fantasy pentru tineret este Corint Junior, care a lansat deja câteva titluri şi pregăteşte şi altele, deosebit de interesante.
Printre titlurile deja lansate se găsesc:
CARTOGRAFI ÎN ŢINUTUL MONŞTRILOR, cartea întâi: FERIŢI-VĂ DE BIVOLOTRICERI de Rob Stevens
ALCATRAZ, cartea întâi: ALCATRAZ ŞI BIBLIOTECARII MALEFICI de Brandon Sanderson
PORŢI DE CRISTAL, cartea întâi: INSULA de Rebecca Moesta şi Kevin J. Anderson
CHARLIE BONE, cartea a doua: CHARLIE BONE ŞI CĂLĂTORUL ÎN TIMP de Jenny Nimmo
FABLEHAVEN, cartea întâi: ŢINUTUL MAGIC de Brandon Mull
CHERUB, cartea întâi: RECRUTUL de Robert Muchamore

Au mai fost relansate două dintre titlurile anului 2007:
REVELAŢIA LUI PETER SCHOCK, cartea întâi: GIDEON, HOŢ DE BUZUNARE de Linda Buckley-Archer şi SEBASTIAN DARKE, cartea întâi: PRINŢUL BUFONILOR de Philip Caveney, ambele cu noi coperte.

Iar ce urmează găsiţi mai jos:

DOSARELE JOSHUA, cartea întâi: ORAŞUL INVIZIBIL de M. G. Harris

Un băiat. O profeţie mortală. O aventură ameţitoare.
Viaţa lui Joshua era cât de cât OK – până când tatăl său a fost declarat mort într-un accident de avion în Mexic.
A fost vorba doar de o întâmplare tragică? De ce avionul deviase kilometri întregi de la curs? Chiar s-au văzut OZN-uri pe cer la momentul prăbuşirii?
În adâncul junglei mexicane, cu un ucigaş plătit de talie internaţională pe urmele sale, Josh trebuie să afle adevărul despre un secret incredibil şi periculos – şi să încerce să rămână în viaţă.
Cea mai palpitantă aventură pe care o vei citi anul acesta!

ACADEMIA COŞMARURILOR, cartea întâi, de Dean Lorey

CÂND CHARLIE BENJAMIN DOARME, MONŞTRII SE TREZESC LA VIAŢĂ.
Este greu să te adaptezi când coşmarurile tale deschid portaluri în Adâncuri, unde locuiesc creaturi oribile – cum ar fi Arahnida de Adâncuri care a dat buzna la o petrecere în pijama şi a făcut urât.
Dinfericire, există un loc pentru Charlie – Academia Coşmarurilor. Construită din nave naufragiate plasate între crengile celei mai incredibile fortăreţe-copac din lume, Academia îi instruieşte pe copii pentru ca aceştia să îşi poată folosi harurile unice ca să se lupte cu monştrii.
Dar Charlie este mult mai puternic decât şi-a imaginat cineva vreodată, iar examenul lui de admitere deschide un portal drept în inima Adâncurilor, unde răul suprem pune la cale distrugerea Pământului.
Charlie va avea nevoie de toată isteţimea lui – şi de ajutorul noilor săi prieteni – ca să îşi salveze familia şi pe sine şi ca să îi ducă pe băieţii ăştia răi la culcare odată pentru totdeauna.

Ce-aţi spune dacă monştrii celor mai tenebroase coşmaruri ale voastre ar fi reali?
Dar nu vă îngrijoraţi – academia coşmarurilor îi va instrui pe adancomanţii şi expulzatorii ca voi, pentru a-i putea distruge!

SKULDUGGERY PLEASANT, cartea întâi: ENIGMATICUL DETECTIV-SCHELET de Derek Landy

UN DETECTIV-SCHELET MISTERIOS ŞI, TOTODATAĂ, UN MAGICIAN REDUTABIL, DUŞMAN DE MOARTE AL FORŢELOR RĂULUI. AH, DA… ŞI ESTE DE FAPT MORT.
Gordon, unchiul lui Stephanie, a fost scriitor de poveşti fantastice de groază. Cel puţin asta credea Stephanie — până în ziua în care Gordon a murit şi i-a lăsat fetei cea mai mare parte a averii sale. Atunci a descoperit Stephanie că, deşi romanele unchiului său erau într-adevăr de groază, acestea nu erau câtuşi de puţin fantastice şi nici pe departe ficţiuni.
Nimerind într-o lume înspăimântătoare, plină de vampiri, ticăloşi malefici şi luptători străvezii, Stephanie găseşte un ajutor dintre cele mai neobişnuite: Skulduggery Pleasant, scheletul unui magician mort. Când în jurul lor se dezlănţuie iadul, Stephanie are marele noroc că nu este o fetiţă oarecare, în vârstă de doispre zece ani — aşa cum şi Skulduggery este cu adevărat norocos că e de fapt mort.
Vor învinge oare forţele răului în această bătălie? Vor reuşi Skulduggery şi Stephanie să înceteze ciorovăiala şi să salveze omenirea? Indiferent cum se va termina, un lucru este cert: tipii cei răi nici nu vor şti ce i-a lovit.

TUNELE, cartea a treia: ÎN CĂDERE LIBERĂ de Roderick Gordon şi Brian Williams

După Tunele 2. În Adâncuri, este posibil ca aventura din Tunele să devină şi mai primejdioasă? Şi unde oare se va termina?
Will Burrows şi gasca sa n-au ajuns nici pe departe la sfârşit, ci sunt în cădere liberă printr-un por subteran. Simţind efectele gravitaţiei reduse, misterele întunecate ale adâncului li se dezvăluie şi ei descoperă un ciudat recif de ciuperci. Acesta nu doar că dă la iveală vestigii ale unei civilizaţii străvechi, ci le oferă şi indicii despre un tărâm pierdut de la capătul Pământului.
Din 15 noiembrie în librării!

AVENTURILE LUI MIERCURI, cartea a doua: OUL TIGRULUI de Jon Berkeley

Când Circul Bolsillo poposeşte în Larde, orfanul Miles Miercuri şi prietena sa Micuţa se alătură minunatului spectacol.
Curând, se întâlnesc cu doctorul Tau-Tau, un misterios clarvăzător care, cândva, i-a cunoscut pe părinţii lui Miles şi care susţine că tatăl acestuia încă trăieşte. Împreună cu doctorul Tau-Tau, Miles pleacă în căutarea tatălui său, dar, spre marea lui surpriză, această aventură se transformă într-o călătorie ce are drept scop găsirea unei multrâvnite pietre fabuloase, plină de puteri, care conţine sufletul unui tigru, numită Oul Tigrului. Nimeni nu ştie unde se află acesta, iar Miles şi Micuţa trebuie să pună cap la cap indiciile pe care le au şi care, se pare, au o neaşteptată legătură cu părinţii băiatului. Este oare Oul Tigrului cheia secretelor din trecutul lui Miles?

PIRATICA, cartea a doua: ÎNTORCEREA PE INSULA PAPAGALILOR de Tanith Lee

Art a dobândit titlul mamei sale, acela de PIRATICA, devenind cel mai admirat pirat din Anglia. Iar Anglia este fascinată de piraţi.
Dar comoara care i-a fost smulsă din mâini încă-i face cu ochiul dinspre Insula Papagalilor… şi, astfel, vine vremea să reînceapă aventura în Largul Mării, şi să încerce să revendice ceea ce aproape că-i aparţinuse. Alături de ea stă minunatul Felix Phoenix; în cale, însă, dincolo de mările sfâşiate de război, i se va ivi din nou ticăloasa şi monstruoasa Micuţă Aurie.
Alăturaţi-vă lui Art Blastside în cea de-a doua cutezătoare aventură din Largul Mării, în căutarea unei comori dispărute… şi în cea mai mare bătălie navală din toate timpurile!

ACADEMIA PRINȚESELOR de Shannon Hale

DISTINSĂ CU NEWBERY HONOR

Miri şi familia ei au trăit dintotdeauna sus, pe povârnişurile Muntelui Eskel, câştigându-şi un trai sărăcăcios din însăşi piatra muntelui. Miri visează să muncească alături de ceilalţi în cariera de piatră, însă ei nu i s-a dat niciodată voie să lucreze acolo – deoarece, crede ea, este prea mică.

Într-o bună zi din ţinuturile de jos soseşte vestea că preoţii regelui au prorocit că mireasa prinţului – viitoarea prinţesă – va să vină chiar de pe Muntele Eskel. Prinţul însuşi va călători până în satul cu pricina pentru a-şi alege mireasa, dar mai întâi, toate fetele de măritat trebuie să urmeze o academie improvizată pentru a se pregăti pentru viaţa regală din ţinuturile de jos.

La şcoală, Miri ajunge să se confrunte cu o înverşunată competiţie între fete, fiind în acelaşi timp nesigură că doreşte să fie aleasă. Şi totuşi, când pericolul se abate asupra academiei, Miri, astfel numită după o mică floare de munte, este cea care trebuie să găsească o cale de a-şi salva colegele de clasă – şi şansa la un viitor pe care fiecare dintre ele se străduieşte să şi-l construiască.

Apreciata autoare Shannon Hale ne oferă un roman plin de imaginaţie despre o prinţesă în devenire şi despre destinul unei fete mici, dar hotărâte.

Miri ştia că oamenii din ţinuturile de jos nu ar îngădui niciodată ca o fată de la munte să poarte coroana de prinţesă. Dar dacă va fi ea cea aleasă? Ar putea duce un trai mai bun împreună cu familia ei, în văile bogate şi verzi din ţinuturile de jos. Acesta este visul oricărei fete – nu-i aşa?

Cărţile lui Shannon Hale m-au fascinat. Poveştile ei sunt extraordinare! – Stephenie Meyer, autoarea seriei Twilight

FRAGMENTE:

Pentru a testa puţin unele titluri, puteţi citi câte un fragment din următoarele:

ALCATRAZ ŞI BIBLIOTECARII MALEFICI

PORŢI DE CRISTAL: INSULA

SEBASTIAN DARKE: PRINŢUL BUFONILOR

GIDEON, HOŢ DE BUZUNARE

PIRATICA II

FABLEHAVEN: ŢINUTUL MAGIC

All rights reserved.
Toate drepturile asupra acestor capitole sunt rezervate Editurii CORINT JUNIOR, parte componentă a GRUPULUI EDITORIAL CORINT.

The Original Crew (From Piratica)

• Ebadiah “Ebad” Vooms is a former slave who was freed when England became a republic. He was brought to England from Africay when he was nine; during that voyage he learned how to man a ship. He and Molly Faith became lovers after she left Art’s father, and they sailed together until their ship was attacked by the Golden Goliath. They began acting out their former adventures on the stage. Served in Molly’s fictional crew as second officer. When Art becomes Captain of the Unwelcome Stranger he serves as first officer.
• Eerie O’Shea is an Irish actor who was in the Piratica plays with Molly Faith. Served in Molly’s fictional crew as third officer. When Art becomes Captain of the Unwelcome Stranger he serves as second officer.
• Dirk is an actor who was in the Piratica plays with Molly Faith. Has a tendency to be preoccupied with his clothes and looks and calls others by terms of endearment.
• Whuskery is an actor who was in the Piratica plays with Molly Faith. His most distinguishing feature is his blue-black moustache. Fans have suggested he may be in a relationship with Dirk.
• Salt “Pete” Peter is an actor who was in the Piratica plays with Molly Faith. He was 20 years old at the time. He is Salt Walter’s older brother.
• Salt “Walt” Walter is an actor who was in the Piratica plays with Molly Faith. He is Salt Peter’s younger brother and is two years older than Art. He has red hair and is very sensitive.
• Honest Liar is an actor who was in the Piratica plays with Molly Faith. He has a round moon face and wears a red handkerchief around his head and brass earrings. He is the youngest crew member. He is illiterate, having never received formal education; however he possesses a keen intuition and picks up skills easily.
• Black Knack is an actor who was in the Piratica plays with Molly Faith. A bad-tempered man with black stubble, a black eye patch, and blackened nails. He worked as a double agent for Little Goldie Girl. She shot him in the back at the end of Piratica.
• Glad Cuthbert is a former sailor on an English vessel, who chose to join Art’s crew when she attacked the Royal. He changed his first name to Glad after his wife, Gladys. He serves as a gunner. He is skilled in playing the hurdy gurdy and teaches some of the crew to play.

Piratica begins with Art, a sixteen year old girl trapped in the Angel’s Academy for Youg Maidens, falling down a stairs and remembering her lost past.

She is the daughter of Molly Faith, High Queen of The Seas, the honourable pirate that never kills. Otherwise known as Piratica.

Art escapes the Academy and runs into the dashing, yet depressed Felix Phoenix. She robs him of his fine clothes, leaving him hers that are sooty from escaping up the Academy chimney. Art continues on her way to find her lost crew members, whil Felix wanders the contryside being repeatedly mistaken for the notorious highwayman, Cuckoo Jack.

When Art finds her crew members, she discovers her whole past was false: she was a young actress in a production called Piratica, in which her mother, Molly, starred. Instead of going down with her ship, as Art remembered, Molly was killed by a misfiring cannon being used as a prop on stage. Art finds out the memory of the ship sinking was just the heart-breaking end of the play.

Art is upset at this finding, and swears she can remember docking in dirrerent ports, in different continents. She is upset with her crew, who now act on a tiny vessle, promoting Pirate Coffee. They are sorry sailors, and most of them get extremely sea-sick.

Art board The Pirate Coffee, and sets sail towards the sea with her unhappy actor friends. On the way, she passes Felix, being chased by Police Men, due to the fact he looks like a highwayman. Art grudgingly allows him to board, on the condition that they leave him off at the next port.

Art discovers more of her past is true, and more of her memories are real, then she was told. Fighting against evil and bloodthirsty pirates, she maintains her mothers rule of no killing. As they battle with the notorious Goldie, they struggle to find tresure hidden on a mythycal island.

Everything seems to be going right- they’ve found the tresure, and disarmed Goldie’s crew- when they are caught by the navy. Felix is pardonned as a prisoner (Art never did manage to get him off her ship), but Art and her crew are sentanced to hanging.

On the Navy ship back to England, Art (Now known as Piratica) discovers she had lost more than her treasure- she has also lost Felix. She knows he has a fixation with Goldie, the beautiful pirate who would love to run Art through with her cutlass. She would have like to try to win him back, but now he is aboard a seperate Navy vessle, alongside Art’s.

When they reach England, Goldie pleads and wails, saying she was forced to piracy, and gets pardoned unfairly, while Art, who never killed anyone, is due to hang in three days time.

Tricking her jailor into letting her see her crew, who are in a different cell, she tells them to escape up the chimney like she did, over a year before.

Art does not escape, however.

On the morning of her hanging, Felix, along with the rest of her crew who are disguised, each plan individually that they must save her…

Art realises his fixation with Goldie is only through want of revenge- her father, The Golden Goliath, sunk Felix’s fathers ship, thus placing Felix in a workhouse where he was stuck until recently. Felix tells her he loves her during a speech to save her life, but will it be enough?

Coming in October 2009!

Stephen Jones (ed.) – Mammoth Book Of Best New Horrror #20 (Robinson, October, 2009)

Cover design: JoeRoberts.co.uk Cover artwork: Vincent Chong

Stephen Jones – Introduction:  Horror in 2008

Peter Crowther – Front Page McGuffin And The Greater Story Never Told
Simon Strantzas – It Runs Beneath The Surface
Lynda E. Rucker – These Things We Have Always Known
Neil Gaiman – Feminine Endings
Gary McMahon – Through The Cracks
Tim Lebbon – Falling Off The World
Paul Finch – The Old Traditions Are Best
Ramsey Campbell – The Long Way
Michael Bishop – The Pile
Tanith Lee – Under Fog
Christopher Fowler – Arkangel
Ian R. MacLeod – The Camping Wainwrights
Reggie Oliver – A Donkey At The Mysteries
Steve Duffy – The Oram County Whoosit
Stephen King – The New York Times At Special Bargain Rates
Sarah Pinborough – Our Man In The Sudan
Mark Samuels – Destination Nihil by Edmund Bertrand
Albert E. Cowdrey – The Overseer
Pinckney Benedict – The Beginnings Of Sorrow
Brian Lumley – The Place Of Waiting
Steve Rasnic Tem – 2:PM The Real Estate Agent Arrives

Stephen Jones & Kim Newman – Necrology: 2008
Useful Addresses
Blurb:

The Twentieth Anniversary Edition of the World’s Premier Annual Showcase of Horror and Dark Fantasy fiction.

The year’s best – and darkest – tales of terror, showcasing the most outstanding new short stories and novellas by both contemporary masters of the macabre and exciting newcomers, including lain R. MacLeod, Sarah Pinborough, Mark Samuels, Albert E. Cowdrey, Peter Crowther, Paul Finch, Gary McMahon, Reggie Oliver, Simon Strantzas, Tim Lebbon and Steve Rasnic Tem.

As ever, this acclaimed anthology also offers the most comprehensive annual overview of horror around the world in all -its incarnations, a comprehensive necrology of famous names, and a list of indispensable contact addresses for the dedicated horror fan and writer alike.
The Mammoth Book of Best New Horror remains the world’s leading annual anthology dedicated solely to presenting the best in contemporary horror fiction.

`The Best New Horror series continues to break from the herd, consistently raising the bar of quality and ingenuity.’ Rue Morgue Magazine
`If you want to see who’s up and coming in the genre, then this is your book.’ Publishing News

www.constablerobinson.com

Thanks to Sam and Georgie for their continued kindness and support!

Questions for Fantasy Lovers out there:

Answer these as fast as you can. You’re only allowed to scan your bookshelves to gain inspiration but the purpose is to see which is most memorable to you at this point in your reading!

What are your….

…most memorable heroes?

This one’s easy. I just finished reading, Scott Lynch’s The Lies of Locke Lamora. Locke’s the antihero of the story, and he’s always got tricks up his sleeve.

Speaking of thieves, I’ve got to say Eugenides from Megan Whalen Turner’s King of Attolia. I especially liked him in that one because he really irritates the heck out of everyone at the castle, and in the end, surprises them all!

…most memorable heroines?

Don’t make me decide! I have so many… (and they’re each memorable to me!)

Fainne from Child of the Prophecy by Juliet Marillier. She’s unreadable, remote and awkward to those around her, but, we the readers know better. She’s so in need of someone she can truly trust and be herself with (enter Darragh).

Lirael from Lirael by Garth Nix. She’s intelligent and clever and brave, and kind of a loner (being awkward with other people), but she’s got guts and the necromancer’s instinct. She’s not afraid to try things on her own and creep about in the darkest, creepiest, sketchiest corners of the Clayr fortress for curiosity’s sake.

Claidi from Claidi Collection by Tanith Lee. I can never forget Claidi for her spunkyness and her awkwardness (and sometimes, complete cluelessness). She’s quick to remark and wonder at the insanity of her world and poke fun at it.

…most memorable villains?

Right now, I can think of a few:

Lord Voldemort. The history of his childhood is amazing. Also, how J.K. Rowling paralleled it with Harry’s own story. They both went through similar circumstances and struggles as children, and they’re both so similar in talent, yet their lives turned out so differently.

Mr. Croup and Mr. Vandemar. I keep thinking they’ll appear behind me with some witty verbage and finish me off before I can question them about it.

…memorable romantic interests (from a fantasy novel)?

Selendrile from Dragon’s Bait by Vivian Vande Velde. I always picture his smoky velvet eyes, his amused smiles, and his lack of propriety (he’s a dragon too, after all, why should he care?).

Prince Char from Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine. Uh, what can I say? He’s just so charming! He isn’t ashamed of doing the silliest things for a good laugh (ie. sliding down bannisters with Ella) and he’s got a good heart! What more can you ask for?

…most memorable magic-crafters (being very loose with this term)?

Howl form Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones. I thought of him immediately. I just remember him howling with rage from having his hair gone a slight tinge of pink or red because Sophie moved the hair-dye bottles around. It was hilarious and appalling. He’s a particular one he is.

…most memorable lands and cultures?

The Old Kingdom from Garth Nix’s Abhorsen trilogy. I know, the place is rampant with Mordicant, Dead Hands and Stilken creatures. But, that library…oh that library is wonderful! And all those secret, hidden nooks and crannies, tunnels and catacombs in the Clayr’s fortress and the Abhorsen’s castle. It’s worth battling the undead everyday for.

Also, I LOVE Shannon Hale’s Eight Realms, mentioned in Book of a Thousand Days. I like Dashti’s singing magic and the culture surrounding that. I think it’s time for a re-read…

…most memorable magical creatures?

The Blammor from The Forgotten Beasts of Eld by Patricia A. McKillip. Watch out for that surprise ending/epiphany that Sybel has! That’s part of the reason why I’m intrigued by the Blammor (I won’t reveal anymore for those of you planning to read it).

…most memorable pets/animal side-kicks?

Mogget and the Disreputable Dog both from Garth Nix’s Abhorsen trilogy. I love Mogget because he’s the wild card of the story, you can’t ever figure out who’s side he’s on. In the end, I don’t think he really cares, as long as he’s fed and comfortable with no one to boss him around. And I love the Disreputable Dog because she’s just the perfect intelligent, speaking, shapeshifting magical pet one would want to watch one’s butt while one’s battling the undead.

…most memorable magical objects?

The Cloak of Invisibility from Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling. That’s just a pretty convenient thing to have stuffed in one’s pocket. So many private conversations to eavesdrop and snitch on.

…favorite kind of magic/magical quotes?

Hmm… I normally don’t look out for those.  Lots of great stuff in Neil Gaiman’s works though.

…favorite race of peoples?

Tuatha Dé Danann from Child of the Prophecy by Juliet Marillier. I also like the Old ones, who are more ancient than the Tuatha Dé Danann (they’re the mossy rocks, the creaking trees, the gurgling streams).

…favorite cover art?

The cover of Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier. I love love Kinuko Y. Craft’s work.

these are tough to answer…i almost couldn’t even find responses to some my own questions! When I was coming up with these questions, I was envisioning that I would have lots to say, but turns out, it’s harder than I thought. If you read lots of fantasy, answer these questions too (or post them on your own fantastic blogs)! I’m going to post similar questions and answers every so often, I love compiling  ‘lists’ like this, and I’m really curious to know of your favorites or your most memorable reads in this genre so far in terms of certain categories!

***

And going off topic, got two new bookcases!! Yay! One that has six shelves, and one that has four shelves (nothing elaborate, just some functional shelves). Let’s see, I can fit thirty regular sized paperbacks per shelf so….that makes room for around *gulp* 300 books. I think I already have about 300 books in my other room. Though, I guess I’ll have to take into account shelf room for my hulkin’ textbooks.

In 1980 I went to the USA for the first time, to attend one of the big conventions. I was just 33, and in the middle of writing a large novel concerning a parallel Romeo and Juliet in a parallel Renaissance Italy. Somehow the combination of America – which I loved on sight – and the Shakespearian dream of young lovers, subsequently resolved into the idea of another novel, which arrived first as a title.

Back in England then, I was sitting in the BBC TV Centre in London, talking with some of the people from Blake’s 7, an SF series I had already written an episode for. We were discussing that old question, so ably brought into the light by such brilliant writers as Arthur C. Clarke and Isaac Asimov – the true relation between Man and Machine. Were they ultimately destined to be enemies – or friends. Something in the conversation stayed with me. If enemies, then was it really a war to the death? And if not enemies – then just how far would tolerance stretch. Romeo and Juliet must then also have intervened. What about a man of metal, a man who was a machine, and therefore … perfect … What about a lover made of silver?

The title wrote itself across my inner eye. Pretty soon I started to write the book. (The original Romeo and Juliet had to wait a while to be resumed and finished. That book is called Sung in Shadow. But I actually wrote The Silver Metal Lover in much less than a month. In fact I think it was nearer two weeks. I sometimes did, and still do, write the occasional book extremely fast. )

I had no notion, which is usual with me, what direction the novel would take itself. But it did know; there it went. One event I do recall – completing the very harrowing section near the end around 1 a.m. – and then noticing a strong scent of burning. I had left the oven grill on after a late piece of toast made around 11.30. The grill pan was duly ruined. But the novel was fine.

One curiosity too. My own much-loved, beautiful, talented and clever mother died in 1980. For some reason, perhaps mere contrariness, I seemed to react to that by creating, in TSML, Demeta, the Mom from Hell. I wonder why? Maybe just my way of saying no one could match my mother?

‘Silver’ has always been popular, by which I feel very honoured and touched. It moved me. If it can move others, that is a very great extra reward for me. I’d never considered a sequel. But then, 23 years later, interest flared among fans and publishers. The book had been optioned for a movie in 1997. (Sadly they didn’t follow through, though the wonderful director, Randall Kleiser, still maintains a firm commitment to ‘Silver’, and recently there is a possibility things may happen.) However, back then, it occurred to me TSML might after all produce an inevitable second act. The main problem – not for me but for a devotee of the book – was that the second act wouldn’t primarily be about Silver, or Jane – except, as it were, off stage.

Metallic Love isn’t The Silver Metal Lover. It isn’t meant to be. Though it may be a Truth that most writers tend to write the same story, or group of stories, over and over in different forms, I certainly didn’t want to, or could have, written a carbon copy of Jane and Silver’s love story. Instead, Loren and Verlis took centre stage. Of course I understand this may have disappointed readers, but I didn’t do it to be perverse. It simply was, for me, the next thing that needed to be said, looked at, explored. Despite being a love story, TSML is still very much about that question I mentioned earlier: the antagonism/attraction/comparison of Man and Machine. And ML is about this, too. While both address that other issue – Do machines have souls? The exact same thing so much of mankind has asked itself through the centuries. But ML is a love story as well. And anyone who reads all the way through, sees where the third book – if ever there is a third one, (it does have a title: The Tin Man) will be going. Which is straight back to Silver, and so too straight back to Silver-and-Jane.

Tanith Lee, UK 2009

Tanith Lee is the author of a huge number of books, and you can find a full bibliography here. She lives in the UK and besides her many novels she has also published 9 collections of novellas and short stories. She has twice won the World Fanatsy Award for short fiction and was awarded the August Derleth Award in 1980 for her novel Death’s Master.  And if it is not already obvious, the Captain of this blog is possibly Tanith’s biggest fan in the world (although I suspect most of her fans feel that passionate about her work). Voyager author Kim Falconer is another fan… click to see her review.

And please do post a reply and tell us: What was the first Tanith Lee book you read, and how did you find your way to it?

When discussing Sentience, our captain mentioned her favourite book, The Silver Metal Lover, by Tanith Lee. She encouraged me to read it and the experience opened my eyes. For those who aren’t familiar, here is a review by Victoria Strauss.

One of the things I love about TSML is how Tanith explores the hard problems of consciousness without intruding on the story. It was only during times ‘away from the book,’ that I pondered her insights—how the erotic nature of love can grow souls.

When I say erotic, I don’t me pornographic. I’m referring to Eros, the god of love—the original meaning is something that brings two people together in such a way that it creates a lasting transformation. In this sense, sex is rarely erotic, but it can be, as can the non-sexual relationship between an artist and their craft or a teacher and student. In TSML not only is the sex erotic but so is the art, music and intimacy shared between Jane and Silver.

To begin with, Jane is far from individuated. She says, ‘My mother has a lot of opinions, which is restful, as that way I don’t have to have many of my own.’ Jane is sentient but has little self awareness. Then she falls in love.

Mother, I am in love with a robot.
No. She isn’t going to like that.
Mother, I am in love.
Are you, darling?
Oh, yes, Mother, yes I am. His hair is auburn, and his eyes are very large. Like amber. And his skin is silver.
Silence.
Mother. I’m in love.
With whom, dear?
His name is Silver.
How metallic.
Yes. It stands for Silver Ionized Locomotive Verisimulated Electronic Robot.
Silence. Silence. Silence.
Mother….

Silver has a sense of self from the start. I’m a robot, he says, but is he sentient? He’s like a toaster making lovely golden toast but then he explains a ‘cruel look’, showing he is more than the sum of his circuitry. ‘When something occurs that is sufficiently unlike what I’m programmed to expect, my thought process switch over. I may then, for a moment, appear blank, or distant.’ How ‘human’ is that?

By the middle of TSML I realised Tanith wasn’t writing about romance, or coming of age, or social inequality or advanced technology or environmental disasters—even though these themes are present. She was writing about the nature of being. In her beautifully woven story is a Cartesian thesis on mid-body dualism. Are we the product of our physicality—a result of biochemical reactions in the brain? Or is consciousness spirit, reflected in our capacity to transform through love?

When I reached page 232 I wanted to stop. Jane . . . Jain says, ‘I love him. He loves me. It isn’t a boast. I can hardly believe it myself. But he does. Oh God, he does. And, I am happy.‘

This moment reflects the perfect lightness of being, the epiphany before the fall—I longed to stay in this Eden of consciousness—the brilliance before expulsion from the garden. But Tanith holds us to our mythologies that say the ‘fall’ is necessary—separation is necessary for soul growth.

TSML is an extraordinary tale of erotic love and the lasting transformation it brings. Highly recommended. Who else has read it? Please share your thoughts!

Kim Falconer is the author of The Spell of Rosette, Quantum Enchantment Book 1. She lives in Byron Bay in Australia with two black cats. As well as writing, she runs Falcon Astrology, and I am sure wishes you all Happy Solstice for yesterday and Happy New Moon today! Her next book, Arrows in Time, Quantum Enchantment Book 2, is due out in August 2009. Look out for a post from Tanith Lee herself, coming this week, all about The Silver Metal Lover.

Stephen Jones (ed.) – The Mammoth Book of Vampires:  New Edition (Robinson, 2004)

Les Edwards

Introduction: The Children of the Night – Stephen Jones

Clive Barker – Human Remains -
Brian Lumley – Necros
Brian M. Stableford – The Man Who Loved the Vampire Lady
Michael Marshall Smith – A Place To Stay
Ramsey Campbell – The Brood
Nancy Kilpatrick – Root Cause
Robert Bloch – Hungarian Rhapsody
Christopher Fowler – The Legend Of Dracula Reconsidered As A Prime-Time TV Special
Richard Christian Matheson – Vampire
Hugh B. Cave – Stragella
David J. Schow – A Week in the Unlife
Frances Garfield – The House at Evening
Simon Clark – Vampyrrhic Outcast
R. Chetwynd-Hayes – The Labyrinth
Karl Edward Wagner – Beyond Any Measure
Basil Copper – Doctor Porthos
Paul McAuley – Straight To Hell
Dennis Etchison – It Only Comes Out at Night
Chelsea Quinn Yarbro – Investigating Jericho
Peter Tremayne – Dracula’s Chair
Sydney J. Bounds – A Taste For Blood
Melanie Tem – The Better Half
John Burke – The Devil’s Tritone
Manly Wade Wellman – Chastel
Howard Waldrop – Der Untergang des Abendlandesmenschen
Tanith Lee – Red As Blood
Tina Rath – A Trick Of The Dark
Graham Masterton – Laird of Dunain
F. Paul Wilson – Midnight Mass
Nancy Holder – Blood Gothic
Les Daniels – Yellow Fog
Steve Rasnic Tem – Vintage Domestic
Neil Gaiman – Fifteen Cards From A Vampire Tarot
Harlan Ellison – Try A Dull Knife
Kim Newman – Andy Warhol’s Dracula

The replaced stories are:
F. Marion Crawford – For the Blood Is the Life
Edgar Allan Poe – Ligeia
Bram Stoker – Dracula’s Guest
M. R. James – An Episode of Cathedral History
E. F. Benson – The Room in the Tower
Kim Newman – Red Reign
Neil Gaiman – Vampire Sestina [Verse]

See also: Mammoth Book Of Vampires (original edition)

La lune... comme c'est mystérieux!

Coeurs de Lune est une compilation sur un même thème – celui de la lune- de trois courts romans: La magie de la lune de Mercedes Lackey, La nuit des sept lunes de Tanith Lee et La lune rouge de C.E. Murphy. Cette compilation a été éditée en 2008 par Luna, un label des éditions Harlequin. Ah, je vous vois pousser des cris d’orfraies à la lecture de ce nom. Oui, vous avez bien lu, Harlequin alias les éditions des bouquins à l’eau-de-rose et des romans de gare kleenex qui ont un intérêt littéraire très mitigé. Alors pourquoi? Explicationnage.

Premièrement, à cause de la thématique. La lune est un corps astral qui m’a toujours fasciné et depuis l’aube des temps, liée au mystique voire au fantastique. Deuxièmement, à cause de Tanith Lee, autre prêtresse des romans vampiriques à l’instar de la non-moins célèbre Anne Rice, dont j’avais depuis longtemps entendu parler et dont je n’avais rien lu. En dépit de ma réticence envers la maison d’édition sus-nommée, j’ai finalement craqué. Même si je le reconnais entièrement, le titre de ce recueil, ainsi que sa couverture, sont quand même assez cucul-la-praline.

Vu qu’il s’agit de trois romans, il serait trop fastidieux de vous proposer une critique des trois dans un seul billet. J’y consacrerais donc un billet pour chacun. En attendant, je vous donne quand même mon sentiment général sur cette compilation (de 408 pages au total) et sa pertinence. Je vous préviens, cela ne va pas être triste.

J’ai donc abordé ce recueil avec méfiance mais aussi avec une certaine curiosité puisque je n’avais lu aucun de ces trois auteurs. L’éditeur nous fait grâce d’une préface qui expliquerait le choix de la réunion de ces trois textes en un seul ouvrage, le directeur de collection ne doit pas être très loquace. Et donc sans préambule, on commence directement par le premier roman, La magie de la lune de Mercedes Lackey puis suivent les deux derniers récits. Il n’y a pas plus d’épilogue ou de postface. C’est de la compilation pure et dure, comme on faisait tout seul, du temps des radio-cassette, ses propres compilations musicales.

Une fois l’ouvrage refermé, je me suis rendue compte de mon erreur, ou plutôt de mon inattention. Si j’avais été enchantée par l’attrait lunaire du recueil, j’avais complètement fait abstraction du premier mot du titre de l’ouvrage. Hé oui, Coeurs de lune. Qui dit coeur, dit sentiment et souvent dans le romanesque, on réserve ces questions ultra essentielles aux femmes. Pour résumer le concept de recueil, ces trois textes parlent de femmes, de leur sentiments et la lune joue un rôle un peu mystérieux dans tout ça. Bon, je vous rassure, cela ne parle PAS QUE de ça bien que ce soit le lien principal entre ces trois romans. Autre point pour vous rassurer, si le texte de Lackey est bien dans la mouvance fantasy, celui de Tanith Lee est à mi-chemin entre fantasy et fantastique et enfin celui de Murphy a quelques pointes de fantastique.

Globalement, je n’ai donc pas aimé ce recueil. Ce n’était pas ce à quoi je m’attendais. Ceci dit, comme vous le verrez dans mes prochains billets, il y a des qualités dans certains de ces romans même certains que je n’ai pas détesté. Mais si je devais analyser objectivement cette compilation, elle n’est pas pour le pur fan de fantasy ou de fantastique. Car malgré tout, on sent un peu le côté Harlequin marketing nunuche [le destiiiiiiiiin de ces "pauvres petites femmes frêles et fragiles qui ont bobo dans leur petit coeur"] et cela m’a gênée.

This is the best collection of fantasy short stories I’ve ever read. The book contains six well chosen stories by authors Tanith Lee, Megan Lindholm, Kim Newman, Patricia McKillip, Craig Shaw Gardner, and Jane Yolen with Midori Snyder. Only one story went unread, but humour is such a personal thing, maybe I just didn’t get the jokes. Of the other stories, they were all strikingly original in tone and theme even while treading the familiar territory of folk fairy mythology.

All the tales had such style and rhythm in the writing that sentences themselves were pure reading pleasure. None of the stories had pat endings, or jarring ‘twists’ and some of them even dared end on ambiguous notes, breaking genre in a way I’d always hoped for.

Half of these tales (I won’t tell you which ones, you decide), I would easilly place in the category of literary fantasy, a category as rare and precious as the unicorn.

Now I hope I can find some more.

In no particular order, here they are:

1. Lirael by Garth Nix. I liked all three of his Old Kingdom series, but this one was my favorite. I love the library that he describes and I love how Lirael finds the Dog.

2. The Bonesetter’s Daughter by Amy Tan. I don’t care if people think this is a stereotyping of chinese culture or whatnot. I like Amy Tan’s dreamlike style of writing. This one is my favorite out of all of her other novels.

3. Claidi Collection by Tanith Lee. I wish she’d write more stories like this one. I don’t enjoy the work she directs to more mature readers.  This was just the right mix of spontaneity, creativity and spunk.

4. The Scarlett Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy. The first time I read this, I teared up a bit.

5. The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. I read this book every year when it’s a rainy, dreary day. I love the big old house and gardens that Mary first stumbles through and later, transforms.

6. Child of the Prophecy by Juliet Marilier. Do not disturb me when I am reading this book. I get angry. I wish I could write such a perfect mix of fantasy and folklore as Juliet Marilier does in her work.

7. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë. I never get tired of this gothic romance.

8. Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones. She’s such a crazy, great author. I love her.

9. Emily’s Quest by L.M. Montgomery. I also love the Anne of Green Gables books, but I particularly love Emily. When I was younger, I used to give names to places in my neighborhood just because I loved how Emily named things at New Moon.

10. Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine. This better-than-Cinderella story is perfect. Back when I was innocent but influential, I forced my brother to listen to me while I read bits of it aloud to him as a bedtime story. He still remembers all the characters.

I literally, have had some pretty ridiculous nightmares. Once, I dreamt that there was a huge tsunami coming and everyone had to evacuate. I absolutely WOULD NOT leave until I made sure all my favorite books were with me. I remember everyone throwing up their hands in exasperation and leaving without me while I was still digging through a pile of books and ripping my hair out because my backpack could only fit so many. I exist on books.

Anyway, these are just old-time favorites of mine. They’re not necessarily deep, some of them are only children’s books, but I love these books just like they’re old friends of mine. I wonder, does my choice of books reveal anything about the kind of person I am?

I read this book a while back and really enjoyed it.  I just found it on my shelf again, and on rereading decided it is not only enjoyable, but has some deeper social commentary as well.  It has some nifty technology in it, too.

The story is set in a far distant future where all of society is contained in four very large domes run by robots, and the outside world, though habitable, is ignored.  Individuals living in the domes have no real responsibilities as everything is run by robots whose sole purpose is to care for humans.  They also have the technology to put anyone in any body they wish, and even to recover their minds/spirits/personalities when they die, so that no one is ever lost.  Sounds great, right?  Wrong.  The people living there are mind-numbingly bored.  They do crazy stunts, have 5 minute long relationships, even kill themselves for something new to do or experience.  They lack any purpose or meaningful task, and it gradually drives them crazy.  It is a quintessential dystopian society disguised in a pretty package.

Eventually one of the characters rebels against this meaningless existence, and in a rash act manages to kill another person.  The other is of course saved by the technology present in all the domes and is just reborn, but such violence is unheard of in that society.  The killer gets exiled and discovers a real purpose outside the domes, threatening the status quo.

There is a sequel as well, Drinking Sapphire Wine.  I’ll let you know when I get around to reading it.

Editura Corint Junior pregăteşte o mulţime de noutăţi pentru lunile august, septembrie şi octombrie. De unele cărţi aţi auzit, unele sunt continuări pe care cu siguranţă la aşteptaţi, dar mai sunt şi altele – noutăţi.
Aşadar, iată ce ne aşteaptă în luna august:

Alcatraz, vol. I: ALCATRAZ ŞI LIBRARII MALEFICI de Brandon Sanderson
Cherub, vol. I: RECRUTUL de Robert Muchamore
Cartografi în Ţinutul Monştrilor, vol. I: FERIŢI-VĂ DE BIVOLOTRICERI de Rob Stevens
Skulduggery Pleasant, vol. I: SKULDUGGERY PLEASANT de Derek Landy
Porţi de Cristal, vol. I: INSULA de Rebecca Moesta şi Kevin J. Anderson
Fablehaven, vol. I: FABLEHAVEN de Brandon Mull
Aventurile lui Miercuri, vol. II: OUL TIGRULUI de Jon Berkeley
Piratica, vol. II: ÎNTOARCEREA LA INSULA PAPAGALILOR de Tanith Lee

Alcatraz, vol. I: ALCATRAZ ŞI LIBRARII MALEFICI de Brandon Sanderson
Un erou cu un talent incredibil de a… strica toate lucrurile.
O misiune pe viaţă şi pe moarte… pentru recuperarea unei punguliţe cu nisip.
O teribilă ameninţare ivită din partea temutei reţele secrete a… librarilor ce conduc lumea.
ALCATRAZ SMEDRY e un băiat ce pare predestinat să producă numai stricăciuni. Când primeşte o punguliţă cu nisip, la cea de-a treisprezecea aniversare, întreaga sa viaţă ia o întorsătură stranie. Cum nu conţine un nisip oarecare, punguliţa este… şterpelită de cultul librarilor malefici care urmăresc să cucerească întreaga lume, prin răspândirea dezinformărilor şi suprimarea adevărului. Nisipul le oferă librarilor malefici avantajul necesar do¬minaţiei planetare. Alcatraz trebuie să-i oprească… infiltrându-se în biblioteca locală, înarmat doar cu nişte ochelari şi cu o stângăcie nemaiîntâlnită.

Cherub, vol. I: RECRUTUL de Robert Muchamore
O anumită teroristă nu lasă să intre străini în apartamentul ei, deoarece aceştia ar putea fi poliţişti sub acoperire sau agenţi inteligenţi, însă copiii ei aduc acasă prieteni şi aceştia aleargă prin toată casă.
Terorista nu ştie că un copil a pus în toate camerele microfoane ascunse, a clonat hard drive-ul calculatorului ei şi a copiat toate numerele de telefon din agenda ei.
Copilul lucrează pentru CHERUB.
CHERUB nu e James Bond. Nu există ucigaşi pricepuţi sau gadget-uri de înaltă tehnologie.
Copiii CHERUB trăiesc în lumea reală. Ei se strecoară de sub atenţia părinţilor şi adună informaţii care trimit criminalii şi teroriştii în închisoare.
Din cauza unor scopuri oficiale, aceşti copii nu există.

Cartografi în Ţinutul Monştrilor, vol. I: FERIŢI-VĂ DE BIVOLOTRICERI de Rob Stevens
HĂRŢI, MONŞTRI, PERIPEŢII!
Proaspăt numit cartograf al amiralului Rupert Lilywhite, Hugo Baley este gata să pornească într-o călătorie la capătul lumii. Dar nici în cele mai urâte vise ale sale (sau poate chiar acesta este cel mai negru coşmar posibil?), Hugo nu şi-a imaginat că poate ajunge să rătăcească pe o insulă pe care porcii zboară, şoriceii fac glume, iar BIVOLOTRICERII însetaţi de sânge încearcă să te mănânce!
O nouă serie de aventuri despre cum se fac hărţile, cum se leagă noi prietenii şi despre cum se scapă în ultima clipă din primejdii . . .

Skulduggery Pleasant, vol. I: SKULDUGGERY PLEASANT de Derek Landy
Unchiul lui Stephanie, Gordon, este un scriitor de ficţiune horror. Dar când acesta moare şi îi lasă ei toată averea sa, Stephanie află că în timp ce el ar fi scris horror, cu siguranţă nu a fost ficţiune. Urmărită de forţe diabolice care intenţionează să recupereze o misterioasă cheie, Stephanie găseşte ajutor într-o sursă neobişnuită – scheletul însufleţit al unui vrăjitor mort. Când iadul se eliberează, norocul este de partea lui Skulduggery, pentru că el e deja mort. Cu toate că e pe cale să descopere că fiind schelet nu înseamnă că nu poţi fi torturat, asta dacă cel care te torturează este suficient de determinat să o facă. Şi dacă există ceva ce Skulduggery urăşte, aceea e tortura! Va învinge răul? Vor reuşi Stephanie şi Skulduggery să îl oprească?

GRIFFITH, NICOLA:AMMONITE 133 kr
BUTLER, OCTAVIA E.:WILD SEED 73 kr
MAUGHAM, W. SOMERSET:OF HUMAN BONDAGE 65 kr
MANSFIELD, KATHERIN:COLLECTED STORIES OF 45 kr
CLARKE, SUSANNA:JONATHAN STRANGE & MR NO 39 kr
LEE, TANITH:PIRATIKA : EN DJÄRV BERÄTTELSE 39 kr
NICHOLSON, JOY:KLANERNA I PALOS VERDES 29 kr

Summa 423 kronor, det var väl bra. Särskilt jämfört med den här. Ett par av böckerna på den ursprungliga listan har jag fått fatt i via antikvariat, andra struntar jag i för nu.
Sen ryckte det rejält i knapptryckarfingret efter att ha läst denna fina artikel om fantasylitteratur , jag vill ju fortsätta med GRRM och vem är förresten den där Megan Lindholm/Robin Hobb, är hon läsvärd? Men nu blev det så här. Butler, Clarke och Nicholson är efter tips från bokbloggar. Griffith är mitt eget tips, läs henne! Maugham är en kärlek, och Mansfield och Lee vill jag återstifta bekantskapen med.
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