Christopher Fowler's Blog, page 307

Twitter: The Good, The Bad & The Blind

I love using Twitter – I follow people who post all sorts of interesting articles, and learn a lot. Like everyoneelse, I laughed when the Waitrose hashtag campaign backfired, resulting in some very witty tweets. But there’s long been a side of the system that bothers me.

My problem was highlighted this week. I’ve been following [...]

Go Ahead, Make My Day

Own-Trumpet-Blowing Dept:

A couple more nice reviews for ‘Film Freak’ in the national press…

‘Film Freak is a homage to pre-digital cinema, an elegy for the vanishing London of almost half a century ago, and a tribute to friendship, gonzo-style. Two thumbs up for this triple-billing.’ – Financial Times

***** This is the sort of book that should [...]

The Wonder of Wilton’s

Wilton’s Music Hall is a hidden London gem, a unique building and a bugger to find when you’re in a hurry and the show’s about to start.It comprises a mid-19th Century grand music hall attached to an 18th Century terrace of three houses and a pub, originally an alehouse dating from 1743 or earlier. It’s [...]

Enter New Worlds

I very rarely write SF because I don’t think I’ve good enough to compete with the likes of the brilliant hard SF writers I admire, like Iain Banks and Paul McCauley, but once in a while I come up with a nice idea that I think will make a good story. This is the case [...]

When Bigger Really Isn’t Better

Following our recent discussion about book formats, I took a quick trawl through my bookshelves to confirm my suspicions; that over the past few decades books have become ever longer and ever more bloated.

I’m afraid to say this at the risk of upsetting fans, but it would seem the rot set in with Stephen King’s [...]

Do Publishers Use Too Many Formats?

Left to right: Mass market, trade paperback, hardback and ebook – why do we need all four?

A new report in from the US indicates that e-books made up a fifth of overall book sales there last year, and the figure is climbing fast, mainly in the area of adult fiction but also in YA and [...]

Let’s Have A London Quiz Question

Where in Central London is this and what does it have to do with a state in America?

The City Of The Krays Is No More

The London of the Kray twins has pretty much gone now. I was reminded of this while watching Peter Medak’s excellent film again last night.

It’s official; in terms of property, London is the most expensive city in the world. (Not for the cost of living – that’s Tokyo.)

The problem is that it’s pulling away from [...]

Hot ‘Wire’ In The Old Town

Just a reminder that on Thursday May 16th, Michael Moorcock, Peter Milligan, Mike Carey, Roger Langridge and I will be helping to launch TRIPWIRE 21 and an exhibition atFoylesin Charing Cross Road, London at 6.30pm, price £5 / £3. I shall be attempting to avoid geekiness and hide my awe at the illustrious company and [...]

Why I Won’t Dumb Down

I have a confession to make.

While I was working on this year’s seemingly prolific output, I was also quietly writing another novel.

One thing I’ve noticed about the review copies that come through my door is how many claim to have sold 3 or 4 or even 10 million copies.It’s pretty depressing when you know you’ve [...]