Stephen Aryan's Blog, page 25

An evening with local author…

Later this month the first of the launches for my first book, Battlemage, kicks off on Tuesday 22nd September at 7pm, at Leeds Waterstones. Details of times and dates of the launch in London will follow shortly.

More details below and while the event is free, they ask that you give them a ring to reserve a space so they have a better idea of numbers for the refreshments.

Local author and debut fantasy novelist STEPHEN ARYAN will be in-store discussing the road to publication and his action-packed, magic-fuelled debut, BATTLEMAGE. The book sees mages fighting an empire-spanning war for a homeland that fears them, and promises to be one of the biggest fantasy debuts of 2015. The book is utterly original, and wonderfully written.Complimentary refreshments will be served at the event, which will consist of a talk, Q&A and signing session.

This is a free event, but places must be reserved in advance.

Call us on 01132444588 for more information to reserve a space.

Source: An evening with lcoal author STEPHEN ARYAN | Events at Waterstones Bookshops

My Experience at Nine Worlds 2015

This was the second year I’ve attended the Nine Worlds Geekfest in London. The event is only in its third year so it is still a relatively new event compared to some. Even so I think it is leaps and bounds ahead of others in terms of it being the most inclusive and open event I’ve attended. The organisers work incredibly hard to make sure everyone feels safe and they have very clear policies around acceptable behaviour.

There were a few issues at the event, but I want to make it clear that it was not the fault of the organisers but the venue itself. Others have detailed it elsewhere but briefly, the staff and service at the hotel was a very mixed bag. I encountered excellent service and very helpful and friendly staff on reception and at breakfast, and yet terrible service in the restaurant (twice) and at the bar. As a result of many similar complaints by attendees next year’s event will not be held at the same hotel.

Once again this year I was involved in organising the podcasting track. Without blowing my own trumpet I think it all went very well. Big thanks to my fellow track organisers, Scott Grandison and Barry Nugent, of Geek Syndicate fame. All of the panels were very well attended and I think it is worth highlighting our keynote talk by Allen Stroud which was fascinating and insightful. It was on “The State of the Playground: the modern experience of fantasy and science fiction across media” and at the end of his talk he sat down, turned his chair around and it moved into discussion between everyone in the room. The 2nd Annual Podcaster Games was so much fun and Alasdair Stuart, Anne Louise and Marguerite Kenner went home with the coveted Golden Microphone trophies. If you ask them really nicely they might show you, but you can’t touch it!

The rest of my convention seemed to go by in a blur. I spent a lot of time hanging out with fellow members of TeamMushens, as well as attending panels on the book track and popping along to the SRFC brunch on Sunday morning which was sponsored by Orbit books who supplied all the goodies. This included some Battlemage cupcakes which tasted delicious! I also did a reading at the New Voices panel on Saturday night alongside all around good egg, Pete Newman. On Saturday we even managed to squeeze in a Warhammer 40K roleplay for a few hours which was so much fun.

There were a lot of late nights. Conversations about books, films and geek TV shows. There was also plenty of beer.  Sadly the event inevitably came to a close and I left feeling exhausted, bereft after being around so many cool and interesting people, but happier for having spent time with them. Roll on the next convention which for me will be Fantasycon in October and then SLEDGE LIT in November. But before then I’ll be doing a northern and southern book signing and launch for Battlemage. Details are coming very soon.

Battlemage – Goodreads Giveaway

If you live in the UK or Ireland and would like to get hold of an advanced reading copy of Battlemage, a month ahead of release (24th September in UK and USA), then nip over to here on Goodreads.

Battlemage is epic fantasy, and the first in a trilogy called The Age of Darkness. Books 2 and 3 come out next year, 6 months apart.

We’re giving away 10 copies of Battlemage. The giveaway runs from today to August 24th.

Podcasting Legends

I’m giving that title to someone else, not me, namely Scott Grandison, my partner in crime on our podcast of eight years last week, Comic Book Outsiders.

When we started podcasting we had a sign at comic book conventions on our table that said – Ask us about podcasting! Several times an hour, people came up to the table and asked, so what’s a podcast? Eight years on, there are thousands of podcasts being produced all around the world, they’re on iTunes to download, celebrities even produce their own podcasts.

A year before we started, there were a few other podcasts I listened to, one being Geek Syndicate, from two more worthy of the  title Podcasting Legends, namely Barry Nugent and David Monteith. They’re one of the reasons we started in the first place and they’re also still going to this day, nine years on. So hats off to you both, gentleman.

To celebrate CBO’s 175th episode last week, we asked Barry to join us for a completely unplanned hour of geekery. We talked about anything and everything, we had a few mini rants, got some stuff off our chest and we celebrated some awesome stuff. It reminded me again why I like podcasting and how brilliant it is as a medium for connecting people with common interests. It’s also takes me a lot less time to explain why I like something than write the equivalent. Long-term discussion and analysis on the internet is not that common, and it would take a long time to read, but I can have the same discussion with six people in 30 minutes on a podcast. Good luck transcribing that!

Other stuff, I’m busy with all sorts of book stuff, so I’ve taken a step back from my other podcast, Bags of Action. So in July Pete Rogers, my other co-host, discussed Kury Fury and Predator: Dark Ages with Gavin Jones from the Sidekickcast. Next month Pete and Scott will crossover in some kind of weird summer blockbuster event with Arnie and Stallone in the same film, and discuss Aliens, so watch out for that.

Nine Worlds Geekfest

Next week, Scott, Barry and I are once again co-running the Podcasting track for Nine Worlds. We’ve got all sorts of interesting and thought provoking panels, educational ones, a guest speaker and the legendary, Annual Podcaster Games, which is the ultimate geek quiz. The winning team each gets to take home the coveted golden microphone trophy, so do not miss that if you’re going, it’s at 11.45am on Saturday.

I’m also appearing on a couple of panels at Nine Worlds on the Book Track, so keep an eye out and if you’re going I’ll see you there on a panel, at my reading, or most likely, in the bar.

Forthcoming Events

I’m hoping to have some news in the next couple of weeks about events closer to the time of publication for Battlemage. However, I’m going to be appearing in a few places in the meantime in the run up to the end of September and publication date. So I’ve added details as I have them below and dates on the Events page of my website.

First off I’ll be at the Goldboro Books Fantasy in the Court Event on Thursday 6th August in London. This event is run in association with Hodderscape.

I’m also attending the Nine Worlds Geekfest on Friday 7th August to Sunday 9th August in Heathrow. As well as co-running the Podcasting track, I’ll be appearing in a couple of places.

I’m on the New Voices Panel on the All the Books track on Saturday night from 10.15pm to 11.30pm. Last year this involved a short reading so I’d expect more of the same.

I’m also on the Writing the Other panel on Sunday 9th from 3.15pm to 4.30pm. More information about the event is available here, and you can access the full programme here and start planning your panels. With so many tracking running in parallel you really need to plan what you want to see in advance.

Updated Appearances

I’m hoping to have some news in the next couple of weeks about events closer to the time of publication for Battlemage. However, I’m going to be appearing in a few places in the meantime in the run up to the end of September and publication date. So I’ve added details as I have them below and dates on the Events page.

First off I’ll be at the Goldboro Books Fantasy in the Court Event on Thursday 6th August. This event is run in association with Hodderscape. More information is available about the event here.

I’m also attending the Nine Worlds Geekfest on Friday 7th August to Sunday 9th August in Heathrow. As well as co-running the Podcasting track, I’ll be appearing in a couple of places.

I’m on the New Voices Panel on the All the Books track on Saturday night from 10.15pm to 11.30pm. Last year this involved a short reading so I’d expect more of the same.

I’m also on the Writing the Other panel on Sunday 9th from 3.15pm to 4.30pm. More information about the event is available here, and you can access the full programme here and start planning your panels. With so many tracking running in parallel you really need to plan what you want to see in advance.

 

Holiday Reads 2015

I’m off on my annual holiday soon. As ever, my to read pile is massive and I’m always behind on most things, TV, films, comics and especially books because I’m not a fast reader. Partly I’m also behind because there is so much stuff out there, so some things have completed bypassed me and I’ll catch up at some point (Hannibal, Penny Dreadful, Justified). Partly I’m behind because I’m using the time to write instead of watch or read stuff. However, every year when I go on holiday I save up several books that I know are going to be great reads, and I take them with me. I am then able to read them without any interruptions, and I mean any. I could read for 8 hours straight if I wanted to, but I’d fry in the sun. So I take a few small breaks, to eat and maybe swim in the pool, but apart from that there’s no TV, no phonecalls, no internet, and it is bliss.

My holiday reads this year are:-

Royal Assassin by Robin Hobb – This is my first time reading these books. As I mentioned, sometimes things slip past me. I knew about Hobb, but it was one of my gaps that I wanted to sort out. Last year I read Assassin’s Apprentice and thoroughly enjoyed it, so this should be a real treat.

The Ghost Brigades by John Scalzi – I read Old Man’s War as part of a book club last year I think it was and I was aware there were several sequels. I picked this one up and have kept shuffling it off the top of my pile. I know it is going to be a fast read, very entertaining and a lot of fun, so I wanted to read it in big chunks of time.

Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel – I heard a few podcasts talking about this and thought it sounded really good so I picked up a copy a few months ago. Then the Clarke award finalists were announced and it was on the list. Then it went on to win the Arthur C. Clarke award for 2015. I wish I could pick the winners like that every year!

Half The World by Joe Abercrombie – This is his second YA book set in the same world, which is totally new and different from his First Law trilogy world. I’ve seen a couple of people who were put off by the YA label and I reminded them who the author was. They’ve subsequently gone out and bought the books. The line between YA and adult fiction is wafer thin at times and this new series is full of the trademarks of Abercrombie which I really enjoy. Bold, well defined characters, great action, interesting scenes and lots of surprises. The books in the trilogy are coming out every six months so I’m behind as book 3 is already out, but I will get to it soon.

I’m currently reading 11/22/63 by Stephen King, so it will be my sixth book that I take in hand on the plane. In theory I’ll get through at least 5 books on holiday, but we’ll see. I also have a wildcard 6th book in there, but I’m keeping that one a secret for now.

June Podcasts

It’s not quite July just yet, so I thought I’d do a quick post on this month’s podcasts.

Bags of Action Episode 23 is out. Pete and I talk about Salt, starring Angelina Jolie. This espionage, action thriller was originally going to have Tom Cruise in the lead, but it was later rewritten for a female lead. We talk about that, what happens in the film and there’s been news about where the film might be going next. In the current era of remakes (Point Break, Robocop, Total Recall, Big Trouble in Little China, the list goes on and on) there might be a sequel to this film, which only came out in 2010, so it’s not that old.

Click here for more information or search for Bags of Action on iTunes where we talk about a different action film every month.

In Comic Book Outsiders we have a comic book heavy month, after last month where we focused a lot more on TV. This episode I do one of our favourite sections, Challenge Scott. This is where I pitch three comics to my co-host and try to get him interested in at least one of them to pick it up. So far he’s always picked up and read one or more, so 100% success rate so far. For our main feature we discuss Gateway Comics. These are comic you can pick up and read if you’ve never read any comics before.

If you want to get into comics, but don’t know where to start, this episode is for you. We talk about a broad range of comics across many genres and throw out a lot of different titles. And we barely scratch the surface. We could easily have talked for hours on this subject. So if you want a few ideas of where to start beyond what we talk about in this episode, get in touch.

Click here for more information on CBO episode 174, or download the podcast from iTunes.

As the book stuff ramps up I’m taking a break for a few months on Bags of Action, so Pete will continue the monthly schedule with a number of guest co-hosts and I’ll be back in either September or October. I’m hoping to be able to continue doing CBO once a month though.

I suspect there will be more book news in the coming months but I’m sure I’ll be posting about other stuff as well.

Battlemage Cover

SciFi Now had the exclusive cover reveal for Battlemage. You can see the giant version here on their website, or there’s a smaller version below.

 

Storytelling on TV

I’ve been thinking about this for a while, but most recently it’s because of new TV series appearing from new places like Netflix and Amazon Prime. These series are shorter, in terms of the number of episodes, compared with the traditional network shows, which can vary from 22 to 26 episodes. This isn’t a new thing of course. Shorter TV series have been around for years with the likes of HBO and for the last 8 years one of my favourite shows ever, Dexter, had seasons that were only 12 episodes every year. More recently some American TV channels have moved away from their traditional content, creating fresh new stuff which starts out small and if successful grows to longer series. AMC did it with The Walking Dead which was only 6 episodes long in the first season. By season 4 it had swelled to 16 episodes and it seems to be holding at that number for now and I hope it stays there. All of which brings me back to my original thought.

There is so much more content out there now than ever before across all media. Hundreds of TV channels filled with content, some good and a lot of it quite poor. Then you’ve got all of the stuff on the internet and the free content that people create, plus books, comics, video games and so on. Maybe our attention spans are shorter, or maybe we’ve just become more demanding, but I’m steadily falling out of favour with the longer TV series that are still in that traditional 22+ episode mould. There are a couple of exceptions, but even then I have a few issues.

Very recently season 2 of Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD concluded and I won’t spoil it, but in general terms, I feel that it was all over the map. There was a lot of bloat, lots of sub-plots that were started and then skipped over, then picked up a few episodes later which I think leads to uneven storytelling. I appreciate with more episodes there needs to be more content to fill the screen, but it’s very rare that a show keeps a very tight focus over 22 episodes. Even some of my favourite shows that are longer, like Arrow and The Flash, have wobbled in places. Although to be fair, Flash season 1 has to be one of the strongest I’ve seen in a long time. It came flying right out of the gate, it knew what it was and where it was going and never stopped. The cast did start to bloat after a while, which created some problems, but now that DC has spun out a new 3rd show, Legends of Tomorrow, several characters from both Flash and Arrow will emigrate over there. Both shows will have a stripped down cast, back to basics really, and I think both will be better for it. It allows them to explore the characters they have in more detail. It allows the stories to breathe and have room for quiet moments. It doesn’t always have to be pace, pace, pace in every single scene.

There is also the problem of scheduling. In the UK we sometimes have breaks, but I believe it’s fairly common in America to air a few episodes in a row, then break off, then come back later and this can occur several times in one season. Even if that didn’t happen, keeping someone entertained for 22 consistent weeks is not easy as there is so much more noise to pull them away and make them forget.

This won’t happen but I wonder what would happen if the network went to the people running Flash and Arrow and said, ok this season we’ve only got 16 episodes, so you need to cut out some stuff.  There would be fewer monster of the week episodes. They would strip out certain plot-lines and push them to next season or just dump them altogether.It would be a fascinating experiment.

There are some shows that I absolutely love, and I always want more episodes, like Person of Interest, Castle or Blue Bloods, but these are more episodic and not really constructed around a seasonal arc like a lot of genre TV, for lack of a better term. You can go away, miss 6 episodes and come back and pretty much catch up. So I’m going to put them to one side for now, shows like CSI and NCIS etc.

Looking at some of the shows I’ve been watching in about the last ten years, some of the most memorable have been those with shorter series. Even BSG, for all of it’s problems at the end, started on 13 a season and then went to 20. But looking at other shows that stick out in my mind they are things like Dexter, Six Feet Under, Longmire, Sherlock, Haven, Game of Thrones, The Shield, The Wire and Deadwood. There are some shows I’ve not mentioned that are critically acclaimed with shorter series, but either I’ve not seen them or was not a fan.

Do we have shorter attention spans than we used to in the past? Is the old 22+ episode model just too long these days? Do prefer more episodic TV or shows with more of a seasonal arc?