Tim Jones's Blog, page 48

Welcome To My Blog

Welcome! If you're visiting for the first time, here are some of my books, and how to get hold of them.



My short story collection Transported, which was longlisted for the 2008 Frank O'Connor International Short Story Award, has just become available for the Kindle.
My fantasy novel Anarya's Secret is available in hardback, paperback or ebook format.
Voyagers: Science Fiction Poetry from New Zealand, an anthology I co-edited with Mark Pirie, won the 2010 Sir Julius Vogel Award for Best Collected Work. You can buy Voyagers from Amazon.com as a paperback or Kindle e-book, or buy it directly from the publisher at the Voyagers mini-site.
For a great sampler of NZ science fiction and fantasy, try A Foreign Country: New Zealand Speculative Fiction, which includes my story "The Last Good Place".

You should also check out Helen Lowe's Australia/New Zealand F&SF Author Series, which she's organised to celebrate the release of her novel The Heir of Night.You can buy books by Tim Jones online! Voyagers: SF Poetry from NZ from Amazon.Transported (short story collection) from Fishpond or New Zealand Books Abroad.

Getting Science Fiction And Fantasy Published In New Zealand. Part 2: Novels

This was going to be a post for NZ Speculative Fiction Blogging Week 2010, but Real Life intervened, and I don't have Sandeep Parikh's Bollywood-style fight moves (from 1:50) to drive it away.



So, where were we? In Part 1, I talked about the options for getting short speculative fiction published in New Zealand. In Part 2, it's time to take on the longer stuff: novels.



New Zealand publishers have a track record of publishing speculative fiction novels for children and young adults - indeed, some of our most popular and successful writers in the field, such as Margaret Mahy, write speculative fiction.



But, rightly or wrongly, most New Zealand publishers believe that New Zealanders will not buy adult speculative fiction novels written by New Zealanders. I heard this at first hand from Larain Day, then of HarperCollinsNZ, while taking part in a discussion on RadioNZ (which also featured Helen Lowe) about New Zealand SF and fantasy.



We ran out of time before I could ask the obvious question: if publishers don't publish NZ speculative fiction, how do they know New Zealanders won't buy it?



Part of the issue, I think, is that, because New Zealand publishers don't usually have speculative fiction specialists on their staff, they don't really know the range that modern science fiction, fantasy and horror encompasses. Ironically, this also means that works that I would classify as science fiction are sometimes published in New Zealand as general/literary fiction. This is especially true of near-future SF, social SF, and satirical SF.



On the other hand, your galaxy-spanning space opera or your continent-spanning fantasy would be doing very well to find a home with a mainstream New Zealand publisher; then again, those are the novels that you have the best chance of selling to an overseas publisher.



But all is not lost! The estimable Random Static Ltd, far from resting on their laurels after publishing NZ short speculative fiction collection A Foreign Country, are now about to publish sf novel Barking Death Squirrels, by Wellington author Douglas A. Van Belle. (What a great title - I wish I'd thought of it! Give it to Smeagol - I wants it! It's mine, I tells you, my precious!)



I hope Barking Death Squirrels sells lots of copies, both for the sake of publisher and author, and to show that yes, it can be done: SF written here and published here can be sold successfully here. I'm going to interview Doug Van Belle for this blog... just as soon as I get round to sending him the questions.



Incidentally, Random Static has also put out a call for novella submissions. Can they do no wrong?



On The Other Hand: A Defence Of New Zealand Publishers



I've been critical above about NZ publishers' reluctance to publish adult SF. But, when you look at the economics of the publishing business, a certain level of risk-aversion is understandable. It costs publishers a lot of money to publish a book: it has to be bought (i.e. the author has to be paid, which in NZ usually entails a modest advance plus a royalty of around 10% of retail); it has to be edited, and a good editor can make all the difference; it has to be designed; it has to be printed, which involves making a difficult guess about the size of the print run; and it has to be sent to reviewers so they can review it by the release date, and to bookshops so that the eye-catching displays of the book greet the eager buyer's eye at the time when publicity for the book is at its maximum. (I can tell you from experience that a good review won't do you much good if your book doesn't reach the bookshop until a fortnight after the review was published.)



Most books won't be hits. A few will, and they subsidise the rest. And, in my experience, distribution - the physical process of getting the printed books out of the warehouse and into the bookshops at the right time - is the part of the process that is most likely to break down.



The current model of publishing, distribution and sales has been around since the Great Depression. It still makes surprisingly little use of new technology. NZ publishers are beginning to take steps into print on demand technology and ebooks, but at least until these methods are more established, the big publishers have little option other than to be cautious about the books they choose to publish. There's a reason so many books are published here about All Blacks, kitchens, and gardens.



If you are interested in these issues from a publishing industry point of view, check out the Weekend Web Reading posts on Helen Heath's blog. Helen is a poet who works as a publicist for Victoria University Press, so she sees both sides of the story. She also has some very good advice on the use of social media.You can buy books by Tim Jones online! Voyagers: SF Poetry from NZ from Amazon.Transported (short story collection) from Fishpond or New Zealand Books Abroad.

Tuesday Poem: Stones

Stones



Here, standing on the beach, is Dad.

Beach? It's Riverton, rocks and gravel

from the tarmac to the grey sea's edge.



Black and white. He holds an oblate stone

scoured out from the distant Alps

milled and rolled by frigid water.



He holds it poised for skimming. Out

it will arc, skip, skip, to fall

and sink for half a fathom.



I snapped him with my old Box Brownie. His eyes

look far beyond the frame I gave him.

Shadowed from the sun, impassive,

they are skipping over the years,

walking the waves to England.



Tim says:



"Stones" was published in my first poetry collection, Boat People (HeadworX, 2002).



It's one of the poems I'm planning to read at the Ballroom Cafe, Newtown, Wellington, on this coming Sunday, the 17th - the session runs from 4-6pm. I'm going to read a mixture of oldies and newies. If you're in the appropriate hemisphere, I hope you'll be able to make it along!



Check out all the details here, and check out all the Tuesday Poems at the Tuesday Poem blog.You can buy books by Tim Jones online! Voyagers: SF Poetry from NZ from Amazon.Transported (short story collection) from Fishpond or New Zealand Books Abroad.

Guest Post: Book Publicist Helen Heath Answers Questions From Twitter's South Pacific Book Chat (#spbkchat)

Hello, for those of you that don't know me my name is Helen Heath. I'm a book blogger, Facebook user and Tweeter. I also work for a small New Zealand publishing house as a publicist.



I came late (i.e. the next morning) to the recent Twitter conversation about book bloggers promoting their blogs and working with booksellers and publishers but I thought I could provide you with some feedback. I pulled out some questions and statements from the thread to form a kind of interview between you, me and the South Pacific Book Chat participants.



timjonesbooks:

Here's a question: do publishers put too much weight on newspaper/magazine reviews, and not enough on book bloggers' reviews?



Helen:

I think that old school print media are good at providing publishers with statistics about readership, whereas we have no idea about what the readership of most blogs are. Some book bloggers are taken very seriously in New Zealand such as Bookman Beattie and Quote Unquote.



Having worked many years in bookshops I can tell you that there are a few traditional media reviews/interviews that really make sales for your average New Zealand book. Kim Hill, the New Zealand Listener, the weekend papers, North & South magazine and Metro magazine are the ones that immediately come to mind.



However we are watching the blogosphere carefully and are interested in working with bloggers, especially with "Long Tail" publications.



Amanda467:

Would like to see publishers taking us more seriously. I buy most of my books on the recommendations of other bloggers.



Helen:

I think you will find this will start to happen, it already is to a small extent. Part of the problem is bloggers need to unify and make it easier for publishers to find them and provide readership statistics for them. Often we just don't know who you are or how to find you.



hennaotoko:

More than that, I think perhaps we need an Asia-Pacific bloggers mailing list/directory (runs and hides too).



Helen:

Totally! I know it's a big ask for someone to set one up but a professionally put together directory with links, specialist areas and readership statistics would do you all a lot of good and show a united front. Strength in numbers...



timjonesbooks:

What counts as your blog's profile? Visits? Links? Followers? Link retweets? Comments? Is there one metric that sums it all up?



Helen:

I think all of those things together along with the kudos you hold in your blogging community. There is no one tidy metric.



timjonesbooks:

I imagine publishers (booksellers/consultants) find it hard to measure the ROI (Return On Investment) on social media use. Is that an issue for you?



Helen:

Yes it is. We look at click through rates, website stats and the general level of interactivity. We do want to primarily be part of a community though and that is hard to measure, it's more of a feeling.



MargReads:

Twitter is definitely very good. I have met people on here when I wouldn't have found their blogs easily.



Helen:

Yes, I agree. I've met a lot of book people and journalists through Twitter and it only seems to be growing. What I'd really like to do is meet more Tweeps who are purely readers.



justaddbooks:

I also find that linking blog posts here helps. Well, a little bit …



Helen:

Yes, for sure. I check my RSS feeds less frequently these days as more people link to their updates. You don't want that to be your only tweets but some of the best reading I find on the web comes from tweeted and Re-Tweeted links now.



BethFishReads:

Following non-USA publishers and interacting with them on Twitter is definitely good.



Helen:

Yes, please! It's hard for publishers to know you exist if you don't say hello. I know some are more responsive than others but smaller publishers seem to be more so.



BethFishReads:

I know there was an Aukland Writers and Readers festival last May -- is it yearly? Can bloggers hook up with that?



Helen:

That's a good idea, the more you do things like that, especially as a group, the better. Just make sure you let the publishers know so they can be suitably impressed! :-)



hennaotoko:

An Asia-Pacific event, properly marketed, may also help publishers take bloggers in our region seriously.



Helen:

Anything like that is great. Even a blog carnival is start.



MargReads:

So do you have authors local to you? Maybe start a feature on NZ authors.



Helen:

That's another great idea. Also what about getting in touch with the New Zealand Book Council? They have a very well visited independent website promoting authors and a regular newsletter with a large readership.



BethFishReads:

Don't forget your local bookstores. If they have author event, attend and blog about it; send link to publisher.



Helen:

More and more independent bookshops have their own websites, use social media and want to make contact with bloggers and tweeters. So yes, make contact and let everyone know what you've written. Maybe they might even want to host a tweet-up?



Well, thanks Tim for the opportunity to belatedly partake in the discussion. I hope these answers shed some light on the mystery of the publisher's brain! Feel free to ask me more questions or contradict me on Twitter. I always follow back booky tweeps and I don't bite :-)



Tim adds: The South Pacific Book Chat book discussion takes place on Twitter each Thursday evening at 6pm Japanese time/8pm Eastern Australian time/10 pm New Zealand time. If you join Twitter, you can then join the chat by adding the hashtag #spbkchat to your tweets at that time, and searching for other tweets with the #spbkchat hashtag. You can also see recent #spbkchat tweets online.You can buy books by Tim Jones online! Voyagers: SF Poetry from NZ from Amazon.Transported (short story collection) from Fishpond or New Zealand Books Abroad.

Helen Lowe's "The Heir of Night" is Launched in Aus/NZ Today

... and Helen is celebrating this auspicious day with a great range of giveaways! Head over to Helen's blog to find out more and enter - but make sure to do it today.



Another aspect of the celebration is Helen's Aus/NZ F&SF Author Guest Series. I'm honoured to be asked to take part in this lineup of guest bloggers!You can buy books by Tim Jones online! Voyagers: SF Poetry from NZ from Amazon.Transported (short story collection) from Fishpond or New Zealand Books Abroad.

Tuesday Poetry Question: Does James K. Baxter Still Influence New Zealand Poets?

A couple of weeks ago, I received an email that I wasn't sure how to answer. It came from an American called Scott Baxter, and he asked:



"I came across your blog while looking for information on Ithaca Island Bay Leaves ... I am interested in New Zealand poetry and a big fan of James K Baxter; is he still widely read in NZ amongst younger poets?"



Scott went on to say:



"I first came across him as we shared the same last name and upon reading his poetry I became a huge fan. I like his use of classical/Christian and later Maori imagery. I wonder how he's read today; as a Catholic poet, an advocate for the Maori or something else entirely.



I see there is a symposium in November in Dunedin exploring the relationship between Robert Burns (another favorite poet of mine) and Baxter."



I think that Scott has asked some excellent questions there. Is James K. Baxter still widely read by New Zealand poets? If so, how is he read, and what if any influence do his poetry and his example still have?



What do you think? Has James K. Baxter influenced your poetry, or how you read poetry? Is he still an influence? How about other poets famous in the 1960s and 1970s?You can buy books by Tim Jones online! Voyagers: SF Poetry from NZ from Amazon.Transported (short story collection) from Fishpond or New Zealand Books Abroad.

"Transported" Is Now Available For The Kindle

Not long after my short story collection Transported was published by Vintage (Random House New Zealand) in 2008, I received word that there were plans to make it available as an ebook. At long last, I am very pleased to say that Transported is now available for Amazon's Kindle ebook reader (and for computers that run the Kindle reader program). Thank you, Random House!



You can buy Transported as an ebook for the Kindle from Amazon US and from Amazon UK.



If you need more Kindle-y goodness, then you can also buy Voyagers: Science Fiction Poetry from New Zealand for the Kindle from Amazon US.



Transported should also become available in other ebook formats soon: in particular, it should soon be available for Sony's Kobo reader, which is sold by Whitcoulls in New Zealand.



More about Transported



There are 27 stories in Transported, including stories which were selected for Best New Zealand Fiction and for the Penguin Book Of Contemporary New Zealand Short Stories. Here's a couple of extracts from reviews of the book:



(1) From Isa Moynihan's review in New Zealand Books:



There are satire and surrealism; dystopias and parables; 19th century pastiches and contemporary vernacular – sometimes juxtaposed, as in "The Visit of M. Foucault to His Brother Wayne". And all spangled with literary references and other, sometimes arcane, allusions ….



Other targets for Jones's skewering wit are politics, corporations, advertising, xenophobia, pretentious lit crit and (my favourite) the invasion of the local arts scene by bureaucracy and commercial jargon. In "Said Sheree", poets are ranked in tiers "for funding purposes" and are reassessed and reclassified every autumn. Both "Win a Day with Mikhail Gorbachev" and "Best Practice" give us caricatures of the worst excesses of corporate values in the best traditions of brilliant cartoonists.



(2) From Rosemarie Smith's review in the Southland Times:



The originality, gentle humour and sheer variety in this collection makes it clear why former Southlander Tim Jones was long-listed for the 2008 Frank O'Connor International Short Story Award alongside established New Zealand writers Elizabeth Smither and Witi Ihimaera and Sue Orr.



The easy blending of genres and assured writing means stories like The New Neighbour[s], with its satirical take on an insular kiwi community's reaction to new immigrants, has appeal beyond its science fiction origins.



There is an amused and kindly glow to the telling, making the commentary all the more pointed.



In other news...



I was honoured that "Books In The Trees" was nominated for a Versatile Blogger Award by Helen Lowe - thank you, Helen! I'm not taking part in this myself, at least not right away, because of how excessively busy I am - but it is still very nice to be recognised in this way.You can buy books by Tim Jones online! Voyagers: SF Poetry from NZ from Amazon.Transported (short story collection) from Fishpond or New Zealand Books Abroad.

I'm The Guest Poet At The Ballroom Cafe On Sunday 17 October

I'm very pleased to announce that I will be the guest poet at the Ballroom Cafe in Newtown in October.



The details are:



Date and time: Sunday 17 October 2010, 4pm–6pm



Venue: The Ballroom Café, Newtown

(corner of Riddiford Street & Adelaide Road - see map)



Contacts: Neil Furby, ballroompoetrycafe (at) gmail.com

L. E. Scott, (04) 801-7773 (daytime)



Running Order:



Open Mike Poets
Musicians - The Gracious Deviants
Guest Poet - Tim Jones

About The Performers



Gracious Deviants Pete Edge and Darrel Greaney are an acoustic duo. Their sound is heavy with harmony and steeped in the traditions of the NZ singer/songwriter.



Tim Jones is a Wellington poet and author of both literary fiction and science fiction. His work has been published in NZ, USA, UK, Australia, Canada and Vietnam. He has just completed the manuscript for his third poetry collection, Men Briefly Explained.



Tim says:



The Ballroom Cafe poetry readings in Newtown, Wellington on the third Sunday of each month have rapidly become a staple of the Wellington poetry scene. That has a lot to do with the excellent hospitality of the venue, and even more to do with the great job Lewis Scott and Neil Furby have done in organising the events and bringing in an excellent, multicultural mix of poets, performers and audience members.



I am really pleased to have been invited to be the guest poet at October's session. If you're in the neighbourhood, I hope you'll be able to come along, listen, and take part.You can buy books by Tim Jones online! Voyagers: SF Poetry from NZ from Amazon.Transported (short story collection) from Fishpond or New Zealand Books Abroad.

I'm Reading At The Ballroom Cafe On Sunday 17 October

I'm very pleased to announce that I will be the guest poet at the Ballroom Cafe in Newtown in October.



The details are:



Date and time: Sunday 17 October 2010, 4pm–6pm



Venue: The Ballroom Café, Newtown

(corner of Riddiford Street & Adelaide Road - see map)



Contacts: Neil Furby, ballroompoetrycafe (at) gmail.com

L. E. Scott, (04) 801-7773 (daytime)



Running Order:



Open Mike Poets
Musicians - The Gracious Deviants
Guest Poet - Tim Jones

About The Performers



Gracious Deviants Pete Edge and Darrel Greaney are an acoustic duo. Their sound is heavy with harmony and steeped in the traditions of the NZ singer/songwriter.



Tim Jones is a Wellington poet and author of both literary fiction and science fiction. His work has been published in NZ, USA, UK, Australia, Canada and Vietnam. He has just completed the manuscript for his third poetry collection, Men Briefly Explained.



Tim says:



The Ballroom Cafe poetry readings in Newtown, Wellington on the third Sunday of each month have rapidly become a staple of the Wellington poetry scene. That has a lot to do with the excellent hospitality of the venue, and even more to do with the great job Lewis Scott and Neil Furby have done in organising the events and bringing in an excellent, multicultural mix of poets, performers and audience members.



I am really pleased to have been invited to be the guest poet at October's session. If you're in the neighbourhood, I hope you'll be able to come along, listen, and take part.You can buy books by Tim Jones online! Voyagers: SF Poetry from NZ from Amazon.Transported (short story collection) from Fishpond or New Zealand Books Abroad.

Tuesday Poem: Swing

Swing



I'm left arm over

I'm the new red ball

I'm the prodding by the batsman

at the green and sweating pitch.



I'm two slips and a gully

I'm a short square leg

I'm the keeper standing back

and the umpire's call of "Play".



I'm the short strides then the long

the rock back and the gather

I'm the front foot thudding down

as the ball departs my hand.



I'm the seam proudly upright

I'm the late movement in

I'm the bat that is nowhere

as the ball hits the pad.



I'm the turn to the umpire

the...