Steph Swainston's Blog, page 3

The Wheel of Fortune - Castle short story

The anthology Best British Fantasy 2013 has just been published, and I have a Castle short story in it called 'The Wheel of Fortune'. It tells how Jant got his Wheel scar in gangland Hacilith.

Thanks to Steve Haynes (@SteveH1492) at Salt Publishing for editing the volume.

 
Here's the anthology on sale at amazon and from Salt Publishing's website.

 

I'm now working on a new Castle novel.

Picocon 30 Feb 16 and 17

There is just over a week to go till Picocon, at the Imperial College Union, London.

I will be a Guest of Honour, along with Richard Morgan, Peter Hamilton (who's there on Saturday only), and Kate Griffin.

I'll be giving a reading at 10.30 on Saturday from my novel-in-progress, so it's a chance to hear some new material, and I'll be talking on Where it all comes from: Childhood and ongoing influences on writing.
 

The panel discussions are on hot topics too, including:

It is common for genre authors to maintain blogs. How do you think this more immediate level of contact with readers affects both the creative process and the marketing of novels?

 

If you want to come along, there's a registration form at the Imperial College Science Fiction Society site. The tickets themselves can be purchased on a separate page, at the Imperial Union Store.

You can also buy tickets on the day, at the front desk. You don't have to be a member of the society or union to join in: all are welcome!

Picocon 30 Feb 16 and 17 Now Booking

There is just over a week to go till Picocon, at the Imperial College Union, London.

I will be a Guest of Honour, along with Richard Morgan, Peter Hamilton (who's there on Saturday only), and Kate Griffin.

I'll be giving a reading at 10.30 on Saturday from my novel-in-progress, so it's a chance to hear some new material, and I'll be talking on Where it all comes from: Childhood and ongoing influences on writing.
 

The panel discussions are on hot topics too, including:

It is common for genre authors to maintain blogs. How do you think this more immediate level of contact with readers affects both the creative process and the marketing of novels?

 

If you want to come along, there's a registration form at the Imperial College Science Fiction Society site. The tickets themselves can be purchased on a separate page, at the Imperial Union Store. Convention T-Shirts are also available for purchase (to be collected during the convention).

You can also buy tickets on the day, at the front desk. You don't have to be a member of the society or union to join in: all are welcome!

Picocon 2013

I will be a Guest of Honour at Picocon 30, Imperial College, on the 16th and 17th February 2013.  The other GoH's are Peter F. Hamilton, Richard Morgan and Kate Griffin. It will be great to see you all.

 

Anniversary

Today is the 10th anniversary of my car crash.

Life changing event. Life-buggering-up event.

 

09:45  At exactly this time 10 years ago I was calling Brian to say I'd come over to view a house we wanted to buy.

10:00  At this time I was turning onto the M3 and blasting towards London at 70 or 80 miles per hour.

10.20  I joined the M25 clockwise, heading towards the M4 junction, doing 60 in a 50, in heavy traffic.

10.30  Almost at the Heathrow junction, J14, I realised I couldn't possibly make our appointment, no matter how fast I rushed. Pet Shop Boys was on the radio, it was a bright, hot day. There were stop waves in the traffic, but I could avoid them by changing lane.

10.35  I decided to call Brian to tell him I'd be late and we had to cancel the appointment.

10.35  And 30 seconds. Trying to dial on a Nokia 660, the back of my mind is screaming at me to look up.

10.35, 31:  I saw the back of a car, standing traffic in the middle lane. Swerved into the fast lane.

10.35 31.07: Standing queue in the fast lane, the back of the last one way too close.

The reaction time before hitting the brake is 0.7 seconds. The stopping distance at 60mph on a dry road is 60 feet. I probably had about 20 feet.

Knew I couldn't stop. Hit the brake. Wheels locked; the speedo fell to zero.

10.35 32.09: Still in a flat skid.

Nothing I can do but wait.

Travelling at approximately 50 mph, I hit the back of a white VW Polo carrying a man, a wife, and his 5 month old baby.

10.36: A force of about 9 tons launches me out of my seat, arse off the seat six inches and the seatbelt catches me but twists me. Everything in the car hits the dashboard. I blank out, then realise I am still holding my phone. I throw it on the floor, then glance at my mirror. The black Range Rover behind me has stopped inches from my boot and is still bobbing. He had ABS. I had no ABS, no air bag, and the impact crumpled my car 2 feet shorter.

10.36-10.40: The motorway is at a standstill and traffic is beginning to slow on the other side. My car grates on the road as I bring it to the hard shoulder leaving a trail of coolant. The Polo I thumped into and bounced off, does the same. We meet there.

The family are all right. The baby is all right. I am not, and my car is destroyed.

 

In 2002, 36,000 people were seriously injured on the roads. I was one of them. Last year the number thankfully fell to 23,122.

Please don't be one of them. Please drive safely.

Don't speed.

Independence Day

In today's Independent on Sunday I have an article describing why I am taking a break from writing.

'I need to return to reality': http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/steph-swainston-i-need-to-return-to-reality-2309804.html

 

Thank you to David Barnett for the interview and Jason Alden for the photo.

 

 'If I write another book, I'll do it on my terms.'

Kuolemattomien kaarti shortlisted for the Tahtifantasia Award

The Finnish edition of The Year of Our War has been shortlisted for the Tähtifantasia award, for best translated fantasy book published in Finnish last year.

The award is given by the Helsinki Science Fiction Society and decided by a panel of experts. This is what they had to say about Kuolemattomien Kaarti: 'An original, genre blending novel that doesn't shy away from the brutal'.

Kuolemattomien Kaarti is published by Like.

It was reviewed in the Helsingin Sanomat newspaper, available online here and in translation below. Thank you very much to Sini Neuvonen for translating it for us:

Conflicts tear a wonderland to shreds

Steph Swainston writes fantasy directed at adult readers.

Fantasy series translated into Finnish have long been dominated by Harry Potter-oriented children's books and YA adventures based on JRR Tolkien. Despite some starting points, Steph Swainston's first novel is in a completely different league. The Year of Our War is an ambitious book, meant for adults.

An unconventionally built book deals with human weakness, brutality of power games and cruelty of war. The viewpoint character, winged Jant Shira, is an egoistic freak who is addicted to scolopendium drug. Descendant of two humanoid races, he is the only one in the world able to fly. Due to this skill, he has made it as the messenger of the emperor ruling the Fourlands.

Jant, who is heavily indebted and constantly thinking about the next shot, is not the most reliable messenger. On the other hand, he is ready to do heroic sacrifices for his friends and his homeland. There is a need for heroic deeds, as the Fourlands is at war against Insects. These Insects, who look like a pony-sized cross between crabs and beetles, trickle in swarms of thousands to the Fourlands' populated areas, destroying everything in their path. Insects represent something absolutely alien. They are an instinctively-behaving force of nature, which cannot be connected to concepts such as good or evil.

In this complicated situation, the characters of the book fall into mutual disputes, which are fueled by sexual lust, addictions, pursuit of immortality and lust for power. These weaknesses and character faults - which make us human - offer Insects an opportunity to win the battle for habitat. And Swainston does not spare details when she describes armies who are crushed in the jointed and barbed claws and saw-toothed jaws.

Swainston's creation examines the laws of this peculiar society in an edged way. The Emperor has ruled the Fourlands like a substitute for god for two thousand years. With his immortal elite he has maintained an atmosphere of stagnation. Fencing and archery skills are honed to the maximum, but firearms have not been invented. Arts have developed freely, as from the emperor's narrow perspective, they are nothing more than trivial amusement. A medieval world is mixed subtly with jeans, printed t-shirts and newspapers' page three photographs. The impression this creates is intriguing, at the same time both familiar and confusing.

Besides the different humanoid races, the most unusual feature of the Year of Our War is the Shift. It is up to the reader to decide whether it is a genuine parallel reality or merely delirium caused by the drug Jant has taken. When Jant overdoses with scolopendium he ends up in the world of the Shift. It is reminiscent of Lewis Carroll's classic Wonderland - spiced up with Dante's Hell. Square-spotted jeopards wander in the bustle of Epsilon's market square. Ebony skinned fruiting bodies, problemmings rising to the skies from ledges of cliffs and market analysts of the Triskele company celebrate in Sliverkey palace. Swainston has written a rich and an engaging novel.

The Year of Our War also shows a different way of looking at history. Even the most demanding ordeal finally becomes no more than a memory among others to a man living for hundreds of years.

by Toni Jerrman

Eastercon 2012 Guest of Honour

I'll be one of the Guests of Honour at next year's Eastercon, Olympus 2012. It is at the Radisson Edwardian Hotel, Heathrow, and runs from 6 - 9 April. Here's the Eastercon website, more details will be added as organisation progresses. And I'll keep you posted here, too!

Once were hunters

There is a opinion piece in this month's Sci Fi Now magazine, on how I was brought up hunting, rebelled against it, and how this experience influenced Above the Snowline.

Above the Snowline

Above the Snowline is out today and here is the cover:
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This is what you'll get if you order the book, regardless of the pictures showing on Amazon and everywhere else on the net. This is the final cover, it's a very beautiful production indeed. Order yours now! Order more for your friends, family and pet wolves.