Ray Gun Revival

It’s always good when a new magazine/webzine comes along. Even better when a good friend is heavily involved. So I’m pleased to be able to give a plug to Ray Gun Revival, appearing soon, on a computer screen near you. It’s weekly and it’s fun and it sounds like just the tonic for these dark and economically depressed times. I’m very much looking forward to seeing what they have on offer in the first issue. Enough from me, here’s what they have to say for themselves:

www.raygunrevival.com

Ray Gun Revival (RGR) is an online magazine dedicated to fun stories, grand escapism, and good old sensawunda. RGRl provides just that, a throwback publication that revisitsspace opera and golden age sci-fi. Their stories focus more on character development than hard science and sail all the wide-open waters between science fantasy and harder SF. Think of the original Star Wars stories, Doc Smith's Lensman series, the Warlord of Mars tales from Edgar Rice Burroughs. Think of everything from John Carter and Gully Foyle to Kimball Kinnison and Han Solo. They are bringing out the deepest elements of what has traditionally been rather superficial fiction and updating them for a new generation of fiction enthusiasts.

Moving On

Photo credit: Stephen Whalley and LA Productions/BBC.

This week I've been on the telly as an extra in the BBC series called Moving On. (I'm the one with the arm up in the air.) My role lasted about seven seconds. It took us an entire day on set to do our part, so I see now why films have such large budgets. We ate a lot of doughnuts, too. It was a good plug for the Merseyside Big Band, though, and I'm hoping that, as a result, we get a few more music fans coming along to our regular gig at Maghull Town Hall on the 25th. November.

Here's some more photo's:

 Photo credit: Stephen Whalley and LA Productions/BBC.

This one shows off my ex-Writers-of-the-Future Tux, recycled and put to good use whilst helping to keep down the cost of the BBC licence fee. 

Photo credit: Stephen Whalley and LA Productions/BBC.

And here's the whole band. What a fine collection of manhood.

Moving on was produced by LA Productions for the BBC and starred Hannah Gordon and the late Corin Redgrave.

Bristolcon

Ah, Sunday morning, and Bristolcon is over. It's been a brilliant con and I'm sad that it has come to an end so quickly. Highlights: watching fantasy writer Juliet E McKenna chucking fantasy writer Joe Abercrombie all around the room in a Martial arts display, filling the notebook with ideas during the Future Science panel, and of course meeting lots of friendly people who love SciFi. It was especially good to meet up with Adam Colston again, one of this year's WOTF winners. He kindly passed me a copy of his WOTF 26, and although I've already read it on my kindle (a terrific read it is too) I was chuffed to bits to get a hard copy, and signed by Adam.

Well done to all the organisers, a slick and friendly event – can't wait for next year. I will certainly be coming.

And now for breakfast (I love hotel breakfasts) then off up the M5 to Birmingham for the 'Simply the Best' art show at the NEC, where Sarah has a painting on display. (It's the one that was recently in 'International Artist' Magazine - available at WH Smiths and all good magazine sellers throughout the world).

On the benefits of Crappy Jobs for Writers

A little while ago a writer friend of mine stressed the importance, for a writer, of having a crap job. Boring and routine are particularly helpful traits, so that one's mind can be stifled and imprisoned and bursting to break free at the least provocation. I didn't really believe this view, but then I was fortunate to be trapped in exactly the right kind of job. No, I thought he was being foolish – that a job with demands on the intellect must be... rewarding.

Since the time my sage friend passed on this advice things have changed in my circumstances, and it was tempting to hope that they had changed for the better. First I was told that my services would no longer be required, and this was a blow, because even a crap job is better than no job. Then my employers did an about-turn and realised they couldn't manage without me, so they bribed me with toys – they gave me a Blackberry, a laptop and then a fancy car. So yes, I can be bribed with such trappings. But then they slipped another part of the deal into the equation, something dark and unwelcome: They expected me to do some work. Not only work, but cerebral work, hard stuff, stuff that demands the need to think. And they sent me away to places like Luton and London and Leicester to do it.

So that's my excuse for not having filled these pages for nearly two months. It has become hard to write. Time has been stolen away from me. My brain is being overclocked leaving nothing in reserve for quality prose. I need to reboot. I need to get back to writing.

I need a plan. I need to do this systematically. Here's my plan:

Tomorrow I'm off to Bristol, for Bristolcon on Saturday. Surely here I can find inspiration and ideas and people who have more interesting things to talk about than balance sheets and financial instruments.

And then I will restart work on my CERN story, which, I promise, here in public, I PROMISE, will be completed to at least first draft stage before the end of the month.

So there.

Now – lunch over. Back to balance sheet reconciliations.

An E-Reader-Sceptic Reviews his Position

I hate the concept of e-readers. This is something I have felt strongly about for some time. I mean, what's wrong with a book? You don't need batteries, you can read it in the rain, or the bath. It is portable. It is an age old design that does not need any modification. If it aint broke don't fix it – this is a valid rule.

But, I suppose, when something is out there you should try it before you can really rip into it with gusto. And it's geeky tech, and I suppose I am a bit of a sucker for geeky tech. Up to now, though, nothing has really fired my imagination. The Sony looks okay, but okay is just not good enough when it comes to parting with two-hundred quid. But when the new Kindle was launched in the UK I thought about it for about ten seconds, then pre-ordered on the first day. Because it looked kind of cool.

I've been driving the Kindle for about two weeks now. I had a raft of imaginative and colourful metaphors ready for a sizzling blog-attack on all the things it did badly... and I can't use any of them.

Because I like it. No, that's a bit tame. Oh dear, the truth is I LOVE my Kindle. There, I've said it. After just two weeks I don't know what I'd do without it. I have books for research. I have samples of books I may buy, probably will buy. I have some of my own stories on it, because, hey, it is wonderful for reviewing post-edited drafts that need a final read-through. If I'm writing a story that needs a specific area of research (and UK libraries are generally about 15 years out of date on its cutting-edge research material) well then I just buy the book. There and then. Within 15 seconds I'm reading it. Technology is a wonderful thing. (Mind you, I shudder to think what my Amazon account is going to look like next month.)

But there's another thing.

When Borders went bust my sole source of US SF mags like Analog and Asimov's went with it. Yes, I could subscribe for a year, but I don't want to subscribe, because I don't want the stress that comes from being buried by the things popping through the letter box after I've just gone and bought Interzone, or when I'm three weeks behind on my New Scientist reading and there's three second-hand novels that I just bought while on holiday. It can be overwhelming. With Kindle I can pick and choose. I can make notes on which stories I liked and why. And they don't pile up in dusty corners of the house.

So there. Damn it all, I've switched camps. I'm a convert.

 

StarshipSofa Wins a Hugo!

There we go. It is official. StarShipSofa has become the first podcast, ever, to win a Hugo.  It was announced today, at the award ceremony at the Worldcon in Melbourne. I've been a huge fan of this podcast for a while now and I am so pleased for Tony C Smith.  --And of course one of my stories was on the Starship earlier this year, so does that mean I played a small part in it? A 1/104th part? (two stories that week). It would be nice to think so. (A 104th part of a Hugo, woo-hoo, that's probably the closest I'm ever likely to get to one.)
It's worth seeing Tony's reaction when the awards are announced. I've put in this link to the live video feed. I've watched it a few times and I'm still smiling.
Tony C Smith, Way to go, squire!

http://www.starshipsofa.com/20100905/aural-delights-no-152-hugo-special/

Jupiter

Nice to see Jupiter Magazine dropping onto the mat this morning. (Issue XXIX: Thyone) Once more I'm very proud to be a part of it. It includes my story, 'The Bottle Garden.'

And it's a good source of some summer reading, with stories like Rosie Oliver's 'Agents of Repair' (I read that one on the bus coming in to work this morning, it's a real cracker) and tasty offerings from Emma Knight, Nigel Fisher and James Lecky. I'm clock-watching the day away, tied to the day-job desk just looking forward to five o'clock when I can escape and get back to reading them.

http://www.jupitersf.co.uk/