Without Really Trying » Novels

Nicholas Ozment’s Knight Terrors

jordan — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 06:32:39 +0000

I’m very happy to report that a writing buddy of mine, Nicholas Ozment, has had a collection picked up by Cyberwizard Productions.

Says Nick:

The stories of Smoke the Dragon, which I have been working on (off and on) for the past nine years, have found a publisher and a home. This summer the collected stories will be published by Cyberwizard Productions in book form, under the title Knight Terrors: The (Mis)adventures of Smoke the Dragon.

In the meantime, starting February 1 each chapter will appear online at Abandoned Towers Magazine.

I have a brief introduction up now, sharing a bit about where the idea for Smoke came from. If you have a chance, please pop over there, check out the intro, and leave a comment, would you? The publisher really wants to generate some buzz for the book online before it comes out in print, so more comments shows more interest!

Here is the link: http://knighterrors.blogspot.com

Nick is the author of “The Only Difference Between Men and Boys“, which if you remember, got an astonishing 32,000 reads. He’s also one of the editors over at EDF’s sister publication Every Day Poets, a rising magazine in poetry circles.

I, for one cannot wait for this collection. Nick has a unique and humourous voice. You can read the fiction he’s published at EDF here. Believe me, you won’t regret it.

The Big Rip proven false

jordan — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 15:10:15 +0000

I just read Stephen Baxter‘s “Last Contact” in Jonathan Strahan’s Year’s Best Science Fiction and Fantasy. Last Contact is an apocalyptic story about what would happen if Dark Energy pulled the universe apart down to the atomic scale (and beyond). The scenario is called “The Big Rip” and was thought might happen in 10 trillion years or so, but Baxter’s premise is that it happens in the next 10 years, which causes the death of every human on Earth.

The story itself is very well written with compelling characters, but didn’t really do that much for me because the plot is linear (by design), and the protagonists passive. It’s merely an execution story on a grand scale, which we get TONS of in the slush at EDF.

The Big Rip, the driving force of Baxter’s tale, has now been proven false, in the same year Baxter wrote his story. How’s that for bad luck?

Universe Today reports:

Previously, it wasn’t known for sure if dark energy was a constant across space, with a strength that never changes with distance or time, or if it is a function of space itself and as space expands dark energy would expand and get stronger. In other words, it wasn’t known if Einstein’s theory of general relativity and his cosmological constant was correct or if the theory would have to be modified for large scales.

But the Chandra study strengthens the evidence that dark energy is the cosmological constant, and is not growing in strength with time, which would cause the Universe to eventually rip itself apart.

That’s why I’m leery about writing near-term science fiction. Sometimes the science just works against you.

Looking for books by Clarion West instructors – 2009

jordan — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 20:13:10 +0000

So I’ve been perusing the bookstores for books by Clarion West instructors. I’m applying for the class of 2009, and I figure it would be good to at least have a passing familiarity with the writing of the people who are going to teach.

First store I went to didn’t have work by any of them. So I went to a Chapters (the Canadian Borders) and found work by Elizabeth Bear, and of course, Karen Joy Fowler, but that’s it. So I guess I’m going to have to resort to Amazon. This makes me unhappy.

The slate of instructors can be found here. I’d like to read at least a book by each of them. Does anyone have a recommendations?

The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed.

jordan — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 02:36:59 +0000

Yes, gentle readers, I’m reading that book.

Return of the Sword released

jordan — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 07:01:38 +0000

Just a note to say that the Return of the Sword anthology from CyberWizard Productions has been released. In my capacity as Managing Editor at Every Day Fiction, I’ve run across the fiction of many of these authors before, and even shared a ToC with Angeline Hawkes in Sails & Sorcery.If you’re a fan of Sword & Sorcery, this antho includes some of the top writers in the field. If you’re interested in a sample of the quality of their writing, you can read their stories at EDF (whenever possible, I’ve tried to link each to a S&S piece that they’ve published at EDF). This is their blurb:

Return of the Sword is a brand new anthology of blood-pounding, spine-tingling stories by some of fantasy’s most critically acclaimed Sword and Sorcery authors.

Stacey Berg, Bill Ward, Phil Emery, Jeff Draper, Nicholas Ian Hawkins, David Pitchford, Ty Johnston, Jeff Stewart, Angeline Hawkes, Robert Rhodes, E.E. Knight, James Enge, Michael Ehart, Thomas M. MacKay, Christopher Heath, Nathan Meyer, S.C. Bryce, Allen B. Lloyd, William Clunie, Steve Goble, Bruce Durham, and Harold Lamb present you with enough fast paced adventure to keep you reading for hours.

A hand painted, wrap around cover by fantasy artist Johnney Perkins ensures that Return of the Sword will not only be enjoyable to read, but also look good on your coffee table or bookshelf.

Too long have the halls of fantasy been dominated by packs of weak-kneed elves hunting goblins and doughty dwarves mining for gold. Return now to the days of true adventure. Unsheath your sword and enter if you dare!

For purchase info click here:

Servant of the Manthycore by Michael Ehart–Released

jordan — Thu, 22 Nov 2007 19:39:43 +0000

My friend Michael Ehart, who I met through SFReader and at NorWesCon, has recently released a collection from DEP Publications called “Servant of the Mathycore“, and I’d urge you all to buy it. I, for one, have cleared my reading schedule for it.Michael recently published a flash fiction story called “Who Comes for Mother’s Fruit” at EDF which is set in the same world as the collection, so check it out if you’d like a taste of what the book is like.

In addition to some truly stellar fiction from one of the best Sword & Sorcery men in the business, Servant includes a foreword by Michael Moorcock, author of the Elric novels (novels I read and enjoyed as a kid). All in all, this collection looks to be one of the best of the year, so don’t miss out!

Below, I’ve included the official press release, which contains more information than I could throw at you. Enjoy!

New novel, The Servant of the Manthycore, evokes classic heroic fantasy

In the tradition of the larger-than life fantasy stories of the golden age, comes a new novel of swordplay, sorcery, betrayal and death, The Servant of the Manthycore, by Michael Ehart. Released November 17th, 2007 by Double-Edged Publishing, it includes the five previously published stories in the bronze-age adventure saga, reworked with a wealth of new tales into an episodic novel of rare power and excitement. “I am thrilled by the look and feel of this new book,” says Michael Ehart. “Both the existing fans of the stories and new readers will enjoy what they find.” Ehart has made over a dozen appearances this year with short stories in fantasy, science fiction and horror magazines and anthologies, but The Servant of the Manthycore is his first solo book.

The Servant of the Manthycore takes place over an 800 year period in a fantasy bronze-age Mesopotamia. Seeking treasure, a young couple become enslaved by a mythical beast, the Manthycore. In order to preserve her captive lover’s life, the young woman must lure the Manthycore’s human victims into the desert to be slain. Preserved by the power of the foul beast, centuries pass, and she becomes a nearly undefeatable warrior. Always she seeks for a warrior greater than herself, who can defeat her and so free her lover, and always her skill and ferocity prove her hopes to be vain.

In his foreword legendary fantasy author Michael Moorcock, creator of Elric, says this about The Servant of the Manthycore: “Michael Ehart has given us an outstanding story of the ancient world… It resonates with the authenticity of genuine myth, bringing a deep, true sense of the past; a conviction which does not borrow from genre but mines our profoundest dreams and memories; the kind which give birth to myths.” And Vera Nazarian, author of Dreams of the Compass Rose and Lords of the Rainbow says “From Michael Ehart’s fierce imagination comes an unforgettable gritty heroine, both human and goddess, and yet something much more…. Gilgamesh, Elric, and Conan have finally met their female match!”

The Servant of the Manthycore is enhanced by seven stunning interior illustrations by artist Rachel Marks. “Rachel has captured the essence of both the characters and the times,” says Ehart. “She has that rare ability to capture in pen and ink the visual sense of the words on the page.” Marks also did the cover art.

Double-Edged Publishing is the publisher of magazines like Dragons, Knights and Angels, Ray Gun Revival, The Sword Review, Fear and Trembling, Teen Age and Haruah, as well as books in the fantasy, science-fiction and inspirational genres. The Servant of the Manthycore joins their fantasy line, and is available for pre-order at http://www.doubleedgedpublishing.com and at amazon.com