M.G. Harris's Blog, page 2

Gemini Force One Q+A: MG and Jamie Anderson

When it comes to details of the plot, vehicles and characters in Gemini Force One, we’re trying to keep our powder dry. If you’ve backed the Kickstarter project (thank you!) or if you’ve liked the GF1 Facebook page, you can also see updates including excerpts (read by me!) and character biographies (including head-and-shoulder sketch portraits).

This is a fully-planned book project that is ready to go into production. And although there’s a detailed plan for the entire first novel, if I get any even better ideas, they can still make it in. Last night, for example, after a two-hour plot workshop I led with the Group 2012 writers at Blackwell’s, Oxford, I came up with an additional plot twist. Oooh. Me like twisty plots.

Here’s a video of Jamie Anderson and I answering GEMINI FORCE ONE questions from backers and from Anderfans.

Over 75% funded now. WE STILL NEED MORE! Please visit our Kickstarter page, have a browse and maybe give us a few bob? Thanks!

Gemini Force One Kickstarter progress – 17 days to go!

Have you been watching my tweets and Facebook updates? If so, you may have seen some of the AMAZING progress made in the campaign to complete and launch an unfinished project by one of my heroes from childhood – Gerry Anderson. At the time of writing this, the wonderful Anderson fans have pledged £15,659 towards our target of £24,350.

In preparing to write GEMINI FORCE ONE, I had to do a lot of thinking. Not just about the plot but about how I, as a completely new writer to the project, would find my way into it. I’m not Gerry Anderson, after all. Even with the notes, audio fragments and chapters he’d left while working on the project in the last years of his life, it’s not the same as being able to talk to Gerry in person.

Before I could agree to take on the project, I had to know two things: something about Gerry’s inner reason for writing these stories. And to understand how they worked from the inside.

With the first thing: a writer doesn’t always know WHY they write about something. But talking to Gerry’s son Jamie, we were able to find reasons, from things that Gerry has said, and from things that have happened in his life, which may well be behind his particular fascination with the ‘formula’ behind so many of his TV shows.

(No I’m not going to tell you what we decided! That’s all part of the mysterious process by which we create!)

On the second issue, understanding how these stories work from the inside, I started to think about the parallels with my own work. A question I’m often asked is about my own influences. I make some guesses, but the truth is that a lifetime of influences go into a story. So with Joshua Files I may be conscious of trying to channel INDIANA JONES, JAMES BOND, THE BOURNE IDENTITY. But that’s not all that goes into the pot. You probably need to go earlier and younger into my set of influences.

When I sat down to think about it, there were many eerie similarities with THUNDERBIRDS and THE JOSHUA FILES. Things that no-one – including me – had spotted until now.

And I’m not the only one who owes a debt to Gerry Anderson…

Please BACK THE KICKSTARTER CAMPAIGN NOW!

Thrilling New Project revealed: Kickstarter, meet Gemini Force One!

Helloooo Kickstarter!

The countdown . . . and the waiting . . .  is over!

The project I’ve referred to as Thrilling New Project is a collaboration – between the late, great, AMAZING Gerry Anderson, creator of classic sci-fi adventure shows as Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlett, Space 1999, UFO and many more – and little ol’ me!

In the last few years of Gerry’s life he’d started working on something new – a series of books about a new rescue agency – GEMINI FORCE. He’d imagined a massive semi-submersible platform that would rise majestically out of the sea, beaming powerful blue lights into the sky – the secret base, GEMINI FORCE ONE. However, although he was able to draft story lines, chapters, character descriptions and an outline plot for the first adventure, Alzheimer’s disease soon made it extremely difficult for him to make any more progress.

It was one of Gerry’s last wishes to see GERRY ANDERSON’S GEMINI FORCE ONE find its audience among new young readers as well as older fans of the TV shows.

Gerry’s family wanted to fulfill this wish, so they began looking around for a writer who might be able to complete the first book and to continue the series with the same philosophy that imbued all of Gerry’s work – a blend of action, adventure, hi-technology, tension and ultimate human drama.

When the Anderson Estate asked me if I’d be interested in the project, I was thrilled beyond belief! Gerry was still alive back then (last year) and I was so excited at the prospect of meeting and maybe even working with such a master of entertainment. Not only that but I recognized just what a debt I and many authors like me owe to Gerry Anderson.

I can remember exactly what it felt like to watch his shows – my personal favourites were THUNDERBIRDS, SPACE 1999 and later, TERRAHAWKS. The spirit of adventure that imbued them, the production values and loving attention to detail, especially engineering and science, impressed me deeply. And inspired me!

SO – to have a chance to take over the work of such a tremendous, personal influence on my own work – can you imagine?!

I’ve been keeping this project under wraps for months now. Gerry’s passing was obviously a huge blow to the family. GERRY ANDERSON’S GEMINI FORCE ONE, however, already had enough Anderson DNA to have a life of its own.

That’s why today at 9.30am, Anderson Entertainment launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise money from Anderson fans, my readers, and adventure readers all over the world, to get GERRY ANDERSON’S GEMINI FORCE ONE published just the way Gerry wanted – a contemporary sci-fi adventure series for the young AND the young-at-heart (meaning, people like me!)

For you or your Build-A-Bear – a GF1 mission patch.

Please follow our Kickstarter campaign to find out more about:

GEMINI FORCE ONE - regular video updates about the project, background and its future (all in your hands!)
Amazing rewards for our beloved backersAlso to give us feedback, please! We might be able to dig out more items for the rewards – just let us know what you might like. (within reason, please! We’re not going to be able to take you to Disneyland or anything like that…GEMINI FORCE ONE can only happen with YOUR help! IT’S YOUR DECISION. You can also help by letting all your friends know about GERRY ANDERSON’S GEMINI FORCE ONE. Tweet with the hashtag #gf1Follow @GerryAndersonTV, @RealMGHarris and #gf1 Tweet it, everyone! Tweet like the wind!

Apocalypse Moon at Riveting Reads

Last week I emerged from the self-imposed semi-hermitage of finishing a manuscript, to drive up north to Wakefield and the Riveting Reads Awards. The lovely kids of Wakefield had picked APOCALYPSE MOON to be on the shortlist, and presentations of each author’s books were promised, so I was keen to go.

With South Parade pupils at Riveting Reads 2013

The Yr5s of South Parade School had made artwork around the  APOCALYPSE MOON jacket, with different textures and using materials including papier mache, chalk, oil pastels and paint. Lovely! They very kindly gave it to me at the end, so when I can find some wall-space (on a non-rainy day!) I’ll take a photo for the blog. My first time seeing artwork based on the final dark book – before it’s usually been Invisible City.

A group of Yr7s from Ossett Academy did something else I’ve never seen – they acted out a scene from the book! The scene was set in the ‘Muwan’ – the advanced aircraft flown by the Sky Guardians of Ek Naab. The kids had made a control panel from a keyboard and some painted cups, and of course – tin foil. Four kids held the Muwan scenery in place around the actors, who played Josh and Tyler. Two boys did Josh’s inner voice (nice! I hadn’t ever really thought about the dramatic possibilities of that!). I wish I’d videoed them, they were all so great!

Ossett Academy Yr7s and their Muwan control panel stage scenery.

The chose to dramatize the section where Josh shows alt-Tyler (from the parallel future) the Muwan. This Tyler hasn’t ever seen it, is only just now beginning to accept that maybe Josh is telling the truth about time travelling from June 2012. He gives a speech (inspired by Kurtz’s famous speech from Apocalypse Now). I really enjoyed watching it and talking to the students afterwards about why they picked that particular piece. I’ll admit, I’m happy that a scene that I hoped would resonate, had an effect on these readers. Tyler, in a very toned down way, of course, is the Colonel Kurtz character of this story. The one who’s had his innocence ripped away by living through the horrors.

Often the difference in making a story work for young people lies simply in which end of the story you choose to tell. Tyler’s story would be a lot darker and grittier than Josh’s. Josh leads a charmed life, by comparison. But hopefully, that makes him easier to relate to.

I was delighted to thank all the kids who made artwork or presented the drama, a package of Joshua Files goodies, the gym bag, enamel badge and wristband. Lots of happy faces!

Ah but – the book didn’t win the award! That honour went to the impossibly youthful-looking Ciaran Murtagh with GENIE IN TRAINING. Congrats!

 

Jimmy’s Back

A rare return to the blog – I’ve not retired, simply retired to Twitter and Facebook, like so many bloggers. But once in a while, I may have a thought or experience that’s worthy of more than a fleeting comment on the world’s filter-free news-ticker.

(Actually, a few weeks ago I went to LA to research Secret New American Thing, a new book project about which I’m keeping quiet until various things are sorted out, but which IS DEFINITELY HAPPENING. 2014, sometime, probably summer. But more on that when I finally blog about SNAT.)

So last night I went off to That London to meet up with some of me lovely author pals, at the launch of the latest Jimmy Coates adventure by Mr Joe Craig - BLACKOUT. Live action trailer is below – looks amazing!

JIMMY COATES  is a brilliant series of hi-tech action thrillers about a boy who learns he’s part of an experimental government program to ‘grow’ soldier-assassins using cyborgs that are also part-human. The killer cyborgs will activate when they reach eighteen. But Jimmy activates when he is just eleven. And that just ain’t right, boys and girls. So THEY are after him. Why did he activate young? (strokes fingers) A mystery. Who did this to Jimmy? (strokes chin) An enigma. Can he learn to master his cybernetic powers and control his urge to violence? (strokes cheeks) You’ll just have to buy the books!

Anyway, here are some party photos from the lovely children’s bookshop. Victoria Parks Books.

Clockwise: Robert Muchamore (CHERUB, Henderson’s Boys), Joe Craig (Jimmy Coates), Mark Robson (Devil’s Traingle, Imperial Spy). And MG!

Finally, if you’re still reading this far, I’ll just say that Joe Craig, the multi-talented author of the JIMMY COATES books (he sings! he plays cricket! he interviews himself!), is a New Friend and that we have been Talking about a little project I used to call Quite Secret New Thing. Turns out that Joe too had a QSNT. Hmm. ‘I wonder’, we wondered, ‘what might happen if the two QSNTs were to meet?’

A small treat for Blake’s 7 fans – The Screenwriter

HELLOOOOO and a Happy New Year! We made it to 2013. Thanks to Josh Garcia, as well all know, on this blog. As I now officially enter my post-Joshua Files writing life, I’m going to be featuring some different kind of stuff on the blog for a while. It might get biographical. There could be recipes. We’re going off-piste for a bit. And I’m working on four, count ‘em – FOUR projects. Two – JAGUAR’S REALM and THE PRINCE are manuscripts I’ve been cooking for years. And two are Brand New and Very Super Top Secret.

Like all Blake’s 7 fans I’m brimming with excitement at the prospect of the Syfy channel’s reboot of the classic seventies BBC TV series, Blake’s 7. I loved that show so much, words can barely express it. All my early stories were Blake’s 7 stories.  My latest one is too - Big Finish have commissioned new Blake’s 7 novellas from three authors, to be published in November in an anthology. To celebrate my finishing the story – COLD REVOLUTION – and in honour of the upcoming new Blake’s 7 series, I thought readers might enjoy an excerpt from a novel (BETWEEN LIFE AND DEATH) I wrote in 1996.

In this chapter, Jemima, a Blake’s 7 fan (ardent would be too mild an adjective), travels to Sausalito, California, to meet Greville Davis, the British-born Hollywood screenwriter who’s been commissioned to write the blockbuster Blake’s 7 movie. She’s none too pleased with the idea that this new writer might go off-piste and decides to confront him.

Here’s an excerpt:

******************************************************************************************************

From the diary of Greville Davis

Tuesday 18th

Without any doubt, the ideal way to begin the morning is with a cup of black espresso, charred plum tomatoes with eggs over easy; at least two Marlboro Lights. I followed my own advice this morning as on others. Reading material: Variety. Music: Schubert symphony number 5, first movement only. I read that Gabriel Byrne has just finished shooting another picture; I make a note to tell Sonja to call him to read for Travis. Or Blake. Or, just possibly, Avon. On second thoughts, score that; he’s perfect for Travis; remember him as the Nazi in “The Keep”, or the Irish gangster in “Miller’s Crossing”. He could bring a real subtlety to the role; I’d have to write him closer to the original but with the disturbing self-containment of the second Travis. I wonder if the Coens would be interested in being involved? No; they’d want a hand in the writing, which no-one is going to have but me. Put down same for Quentin Tarantino; don’t be tempted!

Second cup of coffee, third cigarette; music change: three minutes and twenty seconds only, J.J Cale.

Standing on my balcony I look right across the marina; I can’t quite see my own boat from here; it’s too small. After the picture, I’ll buy a bigger one. I’m convinced, at last, that the opening scene is right. I’m not out to shock but then again I don’t want anyone to sit there thinking that they’ve walked into yet another spaceship blockbuster. Its strength always was the interior lives of the characters; let’s stick to that, dialogue and psychological thriller.

I’m still unsure that we made the right decision to do this as a post-Gauda Prime. There are so many constraints; Blake’s 7 in a fundamentally Blake-less universe. Alternative Universe Seven might be easier but it would never be accepted as canonical. Never-before-told stories are just a waste of time; we need a cash cow. Something to continue the adventures. We could bring Blake back as the original Blake and say that Avon shot the clone…but would that be stretching credibility? Perhaps I’ve too much respect for Chris to do that; no, the impact of the final episode must not be compromised. Ideally.

Another minor victory; Terry finally came around about not using his story outline. For a while there, I thought he’d never speak to me again, which would have been a shame because even though I resent some of his comments about my landing this deal, he’s still a great man and one of my all-time heroes. Plus, he has a great wine cellar.

Fourth Marlboro; reading; ‘Vanity Fair’ music; Simon and Garfunkel – ‘Mrs Robinson’.

Sailors are early risers; I can see them spilling out onto the wharf as I write, all decked out in Gortex and Reeboks. There’s a girl on the deck of one of the nearer boats. She’s been there for an hour at least; just reading; not wearing sailing clothes; doesn’t seem to have plans to go anywhere today. I wonder what she’s reading?

If only I knew whom they were going to cast as Avon, it would make my job a good deal easier. It’s a role that has to be defined in a large part by the actor. If we want him played like first or second season Avon then we have to get someone who can bring out that heroic element whilst still retaining the cynical wit. Or maybe we want the angst-ridden Avon of the third series? He could never vocalize those feelings so we’d have to get someone who can say it all with The Look. David Duchovny is interested, I know, but are we interested in him? Is there anyone out there who doesn’t see him as Mulder? Certainly our audience does. In any event, he’s too young; too whiny; doesn’t have the gravitas to pull it off. I still like Alan Rickman for the part. Like David, he’ll appeal to all the right impulses in the Avon-groupie brigade. Even now he still has that expression, that voice that just says: sex. But then…if Alan could do it then why not Paul? They’re of an age, for sure. Sometimes I just want to get on the phone to Fox and tell that producer what I think of his casting plans!

Memo to the producer; Rick; let’s get David Duchovny in to read. He has just the right deadpan wit; let’s see if he can do the temper and the angst.

******************************************************************************************************

If you’d like to read this whole chapter, you can download it here: THE SCREENWRITER excerpt from Between Life And Death

A small treat for Blake’s Seven fans – The Screenwriter

HELLOOOOO and a Happy New Year! We made it to 2013. Thanks to Josh Garcia, as well all know, on this blog. As I now officially enter my post-Joshua Files writing life, I’m going to be featuring some different kind of stuff on the blog for a while. It might get biographical. There could be recipes. We’re going off-piste for a bit. And I’m working on four, count ‘em – FOUR projects. Two – JAGUAR’S REALM and THE PRINCE are manuscripts I’ve been cooking for years. And two are Brand New and Very Super Top Secret.

Like all Blake’s Seven fans I’m brimming with excitement at the prospect of the Syfy channels reboot of the classic seventies BBC TV series, Blake’s Seven. I loved that show so much, words can barely express it. All my early stories were Blake’s Seven stories.  My latest one is too - Big Finish have commissioned new Blake’s Seven novellas from three authors, to be published in November in an anthology. To celebrate my finishing the story – COLD REVOLUTION – and in honour of the upcoming new Blake’s Seven series, I thought readers might enjoy an excerpt from a novel (BETWEEN LIFE AND DEATH) I wrote in 1996.

In this chapter, Jemima, a Blake’s Seven fan (ardent would be too mild an adjective), travels to Sausalito, California, to meet Greville Davis, the British-born Hollywood screenwriter who’s been commissioned to write the blockbuster Blake’s Seven movie. She’s none too pleased with the idea that this new writer might go off-piste and decides to confront him.

Here’s an excerpt:

******************************************************************************************************

From the diary of Greville Davis

Tuesday 18th

Without any doubt, the ideal way to begin the morning is with a cup of black espresso, charred plum tomatoes with eggs over easy; at least two Marlboro Lights. I followed my own advice this morning as on others. Reading material: Variety. Music: Schubert symphony number 5, first movement only. I read that Gabriel Byrne has just finished shooting another picture; I make a note to tell Sonja to call him to read for Travis. Or Blake. Or, just possibly, Avon. On second thoughts, score that; he’s perfect for Travis; remember him as the Nazi in “The Keep”, or the Irish gangster in “Miller’s Crossing”. He could bring a real subtlety to the role; I’d have to write him closer to the original but with the disturbing self-containment of the second Travis. I wonder if the Coens would be interested in being involved? No; they’d want a hand in the writing, which no-one is going to have but me. Put down same for Quentin Tarantino; don’t be tempted!

Second cup of coffee, third cigarette; music change: three minutes and twenty seconds only, J.J Cale.

Standing on my balcony I look right across the marina; I can’t quite see my own boat from here; it’s too small. After the picture, I’ll buy a bigger one. I’m convinced, at last, that the opening scene is right. I’m not out to shock but then again I don’t want anyone to sit there thinking that they’ve walked into yet another spaceship blockbuster. Its strength always was the interior lives of the characters; let’s stick to that, dialogue and psychological thriller.

I’m still unsure that we made the right decision to do this as a post-Gauda Prime. There are so many constraints; Blake’s Seven in a fundamentally Blake-less universe. Alternative Universe Seven might be easier but it would never be accepted as canonical. Never-before-told stories are just a waste of time; we need a cash cow. Something to continue the adventures. We could bring Blake back as the original Blake and say that Avon shot the clone…but would that be stretching credibility? Perhaps I’ve too much respect for Chris to do that; no, the impact of the final episode must not be compromised. Ideally.

Another minor victory; Terry finally came around about not using his story outline. For a while there, I thought he’d never speak to me again, which would have been a shame because even though I resent some of his comments about my landing this deal, he’s still a great man and one of my all-time heroes. Plus, he has a great wine cellar.

Fourth Marlboro; reading; ‘Vanity Fair’ music; Simon and Garfunkel – ‘Mrs Robinson’.

Sailors are early risers; I can see them spilling out onto the wharf as I write, all decked out in Gortex and Reeboks. There’s a girl on the deck of one of the nearer boats. She’s been there for an hour at least; just reading; not wearing sailing clothes; doesn’t seem to have plans to go anywhere today. I wonder what she’s reading?

If only I knew whom they were going to cast as Avon, it would make my job a good deal easier. It’s a role that has to be defined in a large part by the actor. If we want him played like first or second season Avon then we have to get someone who can bring out that heroic element whilst still retaining the cynical wit. Or maybe we want the angst-ridden Avon of the third series? He could never vocalize those feelings so we’d have to get someone who can say it all with The Look. David Duchovny is interested, I know, but are we interested in him? Is there anyone out there who doesn’t see him as Mulder? Certainly our audience does. In any event, he’s too young; too whiny; doesn’t have the gravitas to pull it off. I still like Alan Rickman for the part. Like David, he’ll appeal to all the right impulses in the Avon-groupie brigade. Even now he still has that expression, that voice that just says: sex. But then…if Alan could do it then why not Paul? They’re of an age, for sure. Sometimes I just want to get on the phone to Fox and tell that producer what I think of his casting plans!

Memo to the producer; Rick; let’s get David Duchovny in to read. He has just the right deadpan wit; let’s see if he can do the temper and the angst.

******************************************************************************************************

If you’d like to read this whole chapter, you can download it here: THE SCREENWRITER excerpt from Between Life And Death

Five to Doomsday – Day 5: Josh Garcia’s Ek Naab Diary

Guesting today on the blog it’s none other than Josh Garcia.  Delivered this late, after staying up all night at some crazy party in Ek Naab. But I’ll let Josh tell you in his own words.

Best. Night. Ever.

I woke late on the day that was supposed to be the end of the world. I had a little smile to myself looking at Twitter at all the Mayan Doomsday posts, laughing it up. Well, sure, why not? The way we know we succeeded is that no-one outside of Ek Naab knew much about what was going on. The space scientists knew, but you have to expect that…

The preparations for the party were already under way. Benicio and some of the Sky Guardians were going to let people onto their training machine, the virtual reality simulator. It’s a piece of kit that took Carlos Montoyo into negotiations with one of NASA’s major suppliers to get hold of. This was back when the NRO had only the vaguest idea that in the skies of southern Mexico, something strange might just be going on. He pretended that the owners of the plantation above Ek Naab were planning to open a multi-billion dollar theme park and that the simulator was going to be like, our Mission Orange. But that’s another story.

Anyway, Benicio was in the main plaza, setting up the simulator. I grabbed a breakfast burrito and helped out with the guys who were setting up the rolling stage. There was going to be a concert there until two am. There aren’t many musicians in EK Naab so the twenty of us had to take turns playing different sets, each playing two sets, three hours apart. My band’s been together for only three months so we’re not that great, firstly. But worse – we don’t have more than 25 minutes of music we can play! I wanted us to play originals but Leonora, our lead singer, refused. I don’t know why because it’s not as though people in Ek Naab really listen to music but ever since Mum and I arrived, I have to admit, the interest in rock music has increased A LOT.

Ixchel rolled up at around 2 in the afternoon. She had a twinkly look in her eye that I took the wrong way completely. I was all set to finish up, get some lunch and head over to her place until I realised that she had something else in mind. Mum or Montoyo must have tipped her off because it turned out that they’d cooked up a plan to fly out to Tlacotalpan. Now that is also another BIG story but I have been instructed not to write about what happened in Tlacotalpan because of SPOILERS.

So we went off to Tlacotalpan, Mum, Montoyo, Ixchel and me. And amazing, wonderful stuff happened and it was very cool and also kind of romantic, in more than one way, but I’m getting into spoilerish territory there.

When we got back to Ek Naab it was one in the morning. I’d promised Leonora that I’d join in with the band if they waited until the end for me, and amazingly, without hardly any fuss at all, they did.

We played that Gotye  song that everyone is mad about (even here) and also a couple of Green Day classics (Holiday and Good Riddance) and Muse (Supermassive Black Hole) and then specially for Leonora, Fast Car (which she sings really well) and Poker Face (less impressive but then I think that song is less difficult to sing, I mean, even I can do an OK job of that. ). It’s kind of a weird set, but that’s because we’re mashing up all the different band members’ musical tastes. I guess mainly we’re just going to have to be happy as a cover band.

And then we got off the stage and all the kids in Ek Naab all got on stage and did Ek Naab Style. Which is exactly what it sounds like. Yes I videoed it but no, I’m not allowed to put in on Youtube.

Gangnam Style – one crazy end to 2012. Believe me, back when I first found the Ix Codex, I did NOT see that coming.

Well, I was too tired to join in, just exhausted from the long day. I put my arms around Ixchel and finally, headed home with her.

Five to Doomsday – Day 4: What 3 books would you save from the apocalypse? Featuring Anthony Horowitz and Michael Grant

For today’s special Mayan apocalypse-themed post, I’ll be posing a dilemma faced by one of the characters in APOCALYPSE MOON.

(I won’t say which character, in case you haven’t read the book yet because it’s very spoiler-ish.)

When making a dash from their home to a doomsday-prepped retreat in the hills, this character brings certain books. But along the way they are robbed, have to bargain their way out of trouble etc. Sometimes books are traded for their burn value. In the end , only THREE books can be saved. In APOCALYPSE MOON, those three books turn out to be highly significant to the story.

I put that question to Anthony Horowitz, Michael Grant and Junot Diaz, three authors whose books I admire, and who’ve written (or are writing) novels featuring  post-apocalyptic mayhem.

Junot Diaz replied with a charmingly mis-typed message from the Dominican Republic: Pita. In dr. No email. Typing tid on cel phone. Have to skip. Please forgive. 

Duly forgiven!

So I’m stepping in as the third author to add my selections to Anthony’s and Michael’s. The only rule was this – the books you choose to save must be in your house right now.

Michael Grant

In case you’ve been living on another planet for the past few years, Michael’s fantastic GONE series features a thrilling, paranoid world in which everyone over the age of 15 has simply GONE. The kids of Perdido Beach, CA are left to duke it out amongst themselves. But the phenomenon that spirits away everyone over their 15th birthday has made its impact elsewhere too. Mayhem, action, politics and romance are only part of the result. Think Lord of the Flies meets X-Men.

Hmmm.  Okay.  Has to be a book currently in my house.  I have a lot of my own books, but I’d burn them — they’re available digitally, plus I’ve already them.  There are also a lot of my wife’s books, and I would want to be very careful about saying I’d burn any of them.  Very careful.  My choices are mostly about books that have taught me something and whose particular strengths I cannot match in my own writing.  But the three I would absolutely not burn.

Terribly cliche answer, but The Lord Of The Rings.  It’s not that the prose is particularly wonderful, it’s not.  It’s pretty bad in parts.  It’s the world-building.  No one before, and very few after, touched Tolkien’s deep, erudite, devoted world-building.

Post Captain - Patrick O’Brian.  As with Tolkien, I admire the erudition, the level of knowledge.  But O’Brian is a much better writer of prose than Tolkien.  This is the second in what became a 21 book series, and I learned from O’Brian that there were different ways to bring a satisfying ending to a particular series book.  His characters are absolutely indelible.

The City and the City - China Miéville.  I have a pretty good imagination, if I may be immodest.  But Miéville made me take a step back and say, “Whoa.”  He’s not much for character development, but he’s a good writer with a really first class imagination.

Of course on any given week I’d have a different list.

Thank you Michael! We’re looking forward to the finale of the GONE series: LIGHT, out March 2013.
Anthony Horowitz

Again, for those currently living in the International Space Station, Anthony’s POWER OF FIVE series is a modern-day epic fantasy in which an ancient threat that once dominated the Earth now looms on our horizon. Only five teenagers – the reincarnation of ancient guardians who once banished the evil Old Ones – stand between us and oblivion. But what’s this? – the final book is titled OBLIVION. Which I guess tells us that the Power of Five needs that extra final push. I’ve been saving this one to read over the Christmas/New Year break.

The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich – William Schirer. This is the best history of the rise and fall of Hitler and the Nazis that I’ve ever read and a vital lesson to future generations. It’s an extraordinary examination of the nature of evil and one we all have to understand if we’re not going to repeat it.

The Oxford Book of Poetry (2008). I suppose this is a bit obvious but I love reading poetry and this one book contains so much genius, so many great poets. If you want to read what humans were like – what they loved, what they thought –  before the apocalypse, read their poetry.

Great Expectations - Charles Dickens. I’d save the complete Dickens if I could but if you’re only going to allow me a measly three books, I’ll keep this one, the greatest novel ever written (in my opinion).

Thanks Anthony! 

Finally – my own choices.

One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Would be my own candidate for the best novel ever written except for the fact that it doesn’t tell the story of one main character but rather of a whole village. I usually admit that this is my favourite book when asked and have written more about it here.

Labyrinths - Jorge Luis Borges. A collection of amazing short stories that has influenced authors including Thomas Pynchon, Umberto Eco and me. There’s more plot in many of these than in many novels, which is one reason I’d save them. Each story or essay takes the reader into a world of erudition, imagination and wonder.

The Arabian Nights – translated by Sir Richard Burton, Easton Press edition. One of several books my father let me choose from his library of leather-bound Easton Press books. (Oh the woe of not being able to save them all!) The tale of Scheherazade and her incredibly story-telling skills has always been one of my favourites. Surely the best short story collection ever?!

HOWEVER! If I also owned my father’s leather-bound collection of Carl Barks Uncle Scrooge stories, however, one of the three books above would not be coming along for the apocalypse. My sister Adriana is going to have to save that one for posterity.

In another Mayan apocalypse themed post, I’m interviewed over at The Kooky Bookworm‘s blog.

Five To Doomsday – Day 3: Your choice – deleted scene from Invisible City

Mexican-style ice-lollies

Since 3pm today on The Joshua Files facebook page (see results) and via the MG Harris mailing list (see results), readers have been voting for which deleted scene from The Joshua Files they’d like to see on the blog as part of the Five To Doomsday blog post series.

I can now announce that this winner (mainly via votes from the mailing list) is:

Deleted scene from Invisible City in which Josh meets and makes out with a Bus Stop Girl on the cross-country bus in Mexico.

Excerpt:

I’m just in time to see the cross-state bus leaving – early. I could erupt with curses, for the anger I feel, but there’s a very pretty Mexican girl in front of me who does it so much more effectively, in Spanish too, that I simply watch her explosion.

When she’s through, I say in Spanish, “Hey, couldn’t have expressed it better myself.”

“I catch that bus every week,” she complains, “And it’s always late. Every time, for two months. What’s so special about today that he has to go early?”

“Maybe his wife promised him something special if he finished early?” I suggest.

“What, a loser like him with a wife?” she laughs. “A girlfriend maybe, but a wife?”

“So when’s the next Campeche bus?”

Not for two hours, she tells me. And even then it’s the Veracruz bus. Fewer stops and more expensive. She’s headed for a hacienda hotel on the outskirts of Campeche City. “A vacation?” I ask innocently, to which she replies with scorn, “You don’t look much like a strawberry but I guess you are one after all,” “Strawberry?” I ask. “Si, fresa,” she replies. “One of those stuck-up preppy types.” I close up my mouth with a simple “Oh.”

She walks off in something of a huff, disappearing into an ice-cream parlour. After a second’s hesitation, I follow her. “Did I say something wrong?”

“Are you thick or something?” she says. “Do I look like a tourist? What do you think a girl like me will be doing in a place like Hacienda Los Reyes?”

The girl, who looks to be around my age, is dressed in a sleeveless white cotton dress with just a thin pink shawl. She’s slim but sturdy-looking, with toned arms and shoulders. Her clothes and shoes look very simple now that I look more closely, the kind of thing you find in any supermarket. She wears them so stylishly, with such a coquettish air that I’d taken her for a something other than what she evidently is: a hotel chambermaid.

“Okay, so I made a mistake,” I say. “So what? It’s not the end of the world is it?”

“Oh, what do people like you know about the end of the world? I bet you’ve never worked a day in your life.”

“More’s the pity,” I say, smiling. “Think people like me enjoy having to study Latin and maths? I’d rather be cleaning house with a girl like you.”

“Don’t go trying to seduce me with your preppy charms,” she says. “Just shut up and buy me an ice-lolly. Then maybe I’ll forgive you.”

Her tone may be cross but by now she’s grinning, showing perfectly even, white teeth. I open the door of the shop’s chest freezer, brush aside the clouds of icy mist above the stacked slabs of frozen juice and ice-cream. They’re arranged by colour, starting from the milky whites of coconut cream, rice milk, lemonade, through the entire rainbow ending with the red spectrum: strawberry in both water-ice and milk, and the geranium red of redcurrant. I buy us each a stick of frozen redcurrant juice (her choice) and we return to watch the buses. The flavour is unexpectedly strong; sharp, tart, sweet and quite unusual.

“Mmm,” I say, doing a Homer Simpson impression. “Curranty…”

She replies with a laugh that actually makes my stomach do a little flip.

To read the rest, download the entire deleted Bus-Stop Girl section

Trivia points:

Ollie was originally named Vanessa
In the original draft, Josh was 15 years old at the start of his adventures.