Mark Cantrell's Blog, page 52
March 29, 2013
CITIZEN ZERO: Living The Prequel
The future is what we make it Every novel has a 'backstory', an idea of what came before the opening page; the dystopian science fiction thriller Citizen Zero is no different, only we appear to be living through its history right now. That's why, explains Mark Cantrell, he's taken to tweeting links to news and current affairs stories - they show the 'real life prequel' unfolding all around us
SOME years ago, when I was touting my novel, Citizen Zero, around publishers, one of them dismi...
March 13, 2013
POEM: Among The Outcasts Dream Literati
Find us in the Outlands,
Where we scribble amongst the cast-off debris
Of a world beyond our reach.
We live in the shadows of its Citadel,
Beneath the chill indifference of walls
Raised long ago to keep us at bay
From the dreams of those within.
We dwell here in a fool's undying hope
That someday, we shall return.
Exiled in the Outlands,
We yearn for the land we lost,
We hope, we despair, we even raise our fists in anger
At the walls, those mighty indifferent walls,...
POEM: Future Passing
The future has already happened,
All our tomorrows are yesterday,
Our lives we've lived,
And gone.
These moments now
Are nothing but echoes,
Fading towards the silence
Of the never was.
Enjoy...
Mark Cantrell,
Manchester,
31 July 2012
Copyright (c) July 2012. All Rights Reserved.
March 1, 2013
CITIZEN ZERO: Creating a Divided Britain
Austerity sets the scene for a disturbing vision of the future Taken from the old CITIZEN ZERO site, Mark Cantrell delves into the world depicted in the novel, and the seeds of its origins in the here and now...
THE Coalition Government’s austerity programme of spending cuts and welfare reform is inadvertently setting the scene to a hard-hitting political thriller just published as an ebook.
Citizen Zero, by author and journalist Mark Cantrell, is a dystopian social satire set in a Brit...
February 23, 2013
NEWS: Evolution To Save Actors From Dole
Grand theory stars in students' thespian campaign TWO acting students from Newcastle are looking to save out-of-work thespians by re-enacting the story of evolution.
No, this isn't the story of Charles Darwin, and his ventures aboard the HMS Beagle; the duo will condense evolution itself into a 30-minute play, starting out as 'single celled organisms'.
From those 'humble' beginnings Daniel Middlewood and Conor Lowson (pictured), both 20, will evolve into a variety of animals, before...
February 18, 2013
FEATURE: The Real Face Of FTL Travel
Science fiction films have got it all wrong, according to a group of physics students - hyperspace just doesn't look like that...
By Mark Cantrell
WE might not be able to breach the light fantastic and truly leap into hyperspace, but that hasn't stopped a group of physics students from suggesting Hollywood be a little more realistic in its depiction of super-luminal travel.
The students are all in the fourth year of their Master of Physics...
February 6, 2013
ARTICLE: Mayakovsky's Pants
IN a morbid and sepulchral kind of way, the Russian poet Vladimir Mayakovsky got his wishes fulfilled at the end. It took a lot of effort to achieve, but he bit the bullet and got on with what needed to be done.
History has nev...
January 31, 2013
ARTICLE: Digital Innovation Or Marketing Gimmick?
Shuffle this, it's got bells on A digital novel has won an award for innovation in fiction, but what if it's really nothing more than the triumph of gimmick over content? We've been here before, writes Mark Cantrell TO the judges of an international competition for innovation in publishing, the digital novel 'Shuffle' represented a prize-worthy demonstration of creativity and state-of-the-art technology.
Nonetheless, its award-winning feature smacks more of gimmick, than any true innovat...
January 26, 2013
FEATURE: Birmingham's Own Tower Of Orthanc
It has stood empty and abandoned for over 30 years, but one of the landmarks that inspired The Lord of the Rings might soon find itself reborn as a community arts centre - whatever would Saruman say? By Mark Cantrell
THE man who built Perrett's Folly in Edgbaston, Birmingham, was a far cry from the dastardly wizard Saruman, but without him The Lord of the Rings might never have come to pass.
Okay, so that's probably putting it a little stron...
January 21, 2013
MEDIA: Vampire Vengeance In Deadly Night Shade
RELEASE NOTES
STOKE-ON-TRENT, 21-Jan-13: A vampire tale with a chilling twist, Deadly Night Shade is the first of a series of digital shorts selected from the anthology ISOLATION SPACE for standalone publication.
The atmospheric and action-packed short story is now available from Amazon and Smashwords for the Kindle, Sony, Kobo, Apple, and a host of popular ereading devices, f...
