Thursday, May 24, 2012 at 12:09 PM This was a classy and lovely event put on by the Australian Society of Authors to celebrate the fifth annual Barbara Jefferis Award. Anna Funder won for her novel All That I Am. Congratulations Anna.
Saturday, May 19, 2012 at 1:51 PM I have a Russian publishing deal!
Appropriately enough, I found out just before attending the SWF screening of Stalker, the Tarkovsky film, introduced by the witty and lovely Geoff Dyer. Of course I bought his book about Stalker, Zona.
That brings my overseas publishing deals for When We Have Wings to four: The Netherlands, Spain, Portugal and now Russia.
My Russian publisher is called A-Team. How cool is that? The imprint is called Lenizdat, which is one of the oldest names in Russian publishing. As the name implies, it was "the publishing house of the Leningrad oblast committee of the CPSU, one of the oldest Soviet publishing houses. It was established Nov. 29 (Dec. 12), 1917, as the Publishing House of the Petrograd Soviet; it became Lengiz in 1924 and Lenizdat in 1938". (info from The Free Dictionary)
Saturday, May 19, 2012 at 1:27 PM I'm booked! I'll be on the following panels:
Storyworlds
Backyard speculation
Taking Wing: From Daedalus to Deus Ex - solo presentation
Splicing Genres
plus a reading and signing session.
I look forward to seeing you there.
More details when I have the schedule.
Saturday, May 12, 2012 at 6:58 PM This panel, with Rob Riel, me, Michael Pryor and Meg Mundell, was so much fun, as you can see from the photo. Judging by appreciative comments from the audience afterwards, they enjoyed it as much as we did. Thanks to Lindy Dupree for organising such a lovely and intimate festival. I felt as if Rob and Michael and Meg were instantly friends and loved meeting Lisa Heidke and Lisa Walker too. Jesse Blackadder's talk and slideshow on Antarctica was also a highlight. Thanks everyone and especially again to Lindy and James for putting us up and looking after us.
Friday, May 11, 2012 at 10:53 AM 'The ABC top 100 list of 100 Aussie books to read before you die is about to be shortlisted to a top 10 by popular vote.
NO SFF BOOKS ARE ON THIS LIST.' - Dark Matter Fanzine
So they created their own. The website is here.
You'll have to find the post from the home page as I couldn't find an URL that will take you directly to the list.
I'm thrilled to be on the list and want to find a copy of George Turner's The Sea and Summer. Love that title.
Friday, May 11, 2012 at 7:53 AM Paul Anderson asks: ‘Top ten emerging authors? (I know, contentious)’
Tuesday, April 10, 2012 at 2:38 PM The audio version of When We Have Wings is coming! Available April 28, 2012.
Friday, March 30, 2012 at 1:53 PM Once again I'll be back at the beautiful Carrington Hotel in Katoomba, this time to discuss Speculating Futures and Bending Genres with Steven Amsterdam and Kim Westwood as part of the Sydney Writers Festival. I think it will be a very interesting discussion as I feel, and from what I've read of Amsterdam's and Westwood's work, I doubt they'd disagree, that speculative fiction speaks very strongly to the present, to the concerns that we all feel right now. As William Burroughs said, 'when you cut into the present the future leaks out.'
Thursday, March 29, 2012 at 10:06 AM I will be part of a panel at Gloucester Writers Festival on 5 May titled Creating Alternative Worlds. I think it will be a fascinating panel, as it also includes Meg Mundell, Kim Falconer and Michael Pryor.
Tuesday, March 27, 2012 at 8:34 PM “I think they’ve been quite bold in listing my book, especially as I’m the only debut writer on the list. I have no idea why a book with ideas and imagination should not also be recognised as possessing literary craft but I can only hope that prejudice is beginning to fade”.