A while back, Black Fox Literary Magazine got in touch to invite me for an interview. I was, of course, delighted that they had sought me out and asked such interesting questions. I especially enjoyed the one about whether any monkeys were involved.
You will find the interview on the Black Fox. I hope you will consider giving feedback, asking questions and generally supporting this excellent publication.
If, like me, you enjoy creative arts that fall between the cracks of conventions and genres, I’d like to recommend the Interstitial Arts Foundation, and their latest anthology, Interfictions 2.
The anthology showcases twenty-one writers from six countries.
From the Amazon book description: “Newcomers such as Alaya Dawn Johnson, Theodora Goss, and Alan DeNiro rub shoulders with established visionaries such as Jeffrey Ford (The Drowned Life), Brian Francis Slattery (Liberation), Nin Andrews (The Book of Orgasms), and M. Rickert (Map of Dreams). Also featured are works by Will Ludwigsen, Cecil Castellucci, Ray Vukcevich, Carlos Hernandez, Lavie Tidhar, Elizabeth Ziemska, Peter M. Ball, Camilla Bruce, Amelia Beamer, William Alexander, Shira Lipkin, Lionel Davoust, Stephanie Shaw, and David J. Schwartz. Colleen Mondor, of the well-known blog Chasing Ray, interviews the editors for the afterword. Henry Jenkins, ex-director of MIT’s Comparative Media Studies program and now a member of USC’s Annenberg School for Communication and School of Cinematic Arts, provides a fantastic introduction sure to set readers’ imaginations alight.”
A double whammy (as we say in the UK): a review I did of Mike Resnick’s book, The Doctor and the Dinosaurs, and a podcast interview with me, both on Adventures in SciFi Publishing.
The podcast mentions that the audiobook download version of Bone Machines is $1.99 – sorry, but that offer has now been closed. However, the new price, still discounted, is $14.96.
In the interview, show host, Timothy C. Ward, and I talk about the craft of writing. We cover a range of topics, including:
A big thanks to Tim for the interview. Though, to be fair, I thought I was online to interview Kay Kenyon, but Tim snagged some of our informal chat beforehand to put into the podcast. You’re so sneaky, Tim!
One of my fellow bloggers on Amazing Stories, Samantha Henry, has had her terrific blog, SciFi Drama Queen, nominated for a UK Blog award. Congrats, Sam! I hope you will share the love by voting for her blog at: http://www.blogawardsuk.co.uk/blog-entries/sci-fi-drama-queen/. Samantha covers a wide range of material in her blog, from film, to books and even social media. Most recently she reviewed one of my own favourite films this past year, The Impossible, starring the winning combination of Naomi Watts and a fellow Scot, Ewan McGregor. There’s also some stuff about 50 Shades of Grey, mentioning that the film version will star Matt Bomer – I swear, for a second I misread that, and that the actor was called Matt Boner! Just my warped mind, probably. I repeat: vote for SciFi Drama Queen.
I’ve been neglecting my blog lately, principally because I’ve been so busy with other matters – a new gig teaching creative writing, writing my latest novel, and blogging and book reviewing. In all of this I forgot to mention that I am now blogging for Amazing Stories. Which brings out my inner geek. I was a fan of the magazine as a teenager, alongside Analog, Galaxy and Fantasy & Science Fiction. So, my first blog posting is, understandably, all about how my love for science fiction developed. I hope you will check it out, comment on the magazine’s page, and maybe give Amazing Stories your support – register with the site, and think about subscribing!
I’ve just starting running creative writing classes for Bulgarian teenagers who are learning English. The young people at the American College Arcus in Veliko Turnovo, Bulgara, range in age from 15 to 17. They are great students, and the reading aloud segment in the first week uncovered a few kids who are born actors. Keeping their enthusiasm levels going, though, will involve not just creative approaches to sparking their interest in creative writing, but finding things besides their set texts which will feed their imaginations.
At the end of each of my six classes in week one, I read aloud the opening passages of Neil Gaiman’s Coraline and Brandon Sanderson’s Alcatraz Versus The Evil Librarians. The class loved them. One
of my colleagues has asked for recommendations for other YA books her students might enjoy, so I’m looking for recommendations. They could be e-books, or books that are low priced (budget is a consideration). Free ebooks are fine – so long as they are good. I will, of course, recommend the school pick up copies of these two great books also.
Please give me your thoughts and ideas in the response to this post. Everyone who posts gets a free copy of the ebook version of my short story collection, Dr. North’s Wound and Other Stories.
Tim Ward, host of the Adventures in SciFi Publishing podcast, kindly invited me to co-interview science fiction and fantasy writer, Kay Kenyon. Kay was a fascinating guest, and I am sure you will enjoy what she had to say, about her novel, A Thousand Perfect Things, and other topics which the book touches upon. You’ll also find my review of the novel on the podcast’s website.
Not really…this is simply to announce that I am delighted to have been chosen to be a book reviewer for one of my favourite podcast’s website, Adventures in Scifi Publishing. Shortly I will be reviewing some forthcoming titles from Tor, but for now, here’s my first review, of Connie Willis’s wonderful Blackout/All Clear. Hope you will support the podcast, and the site. Please consider leaving comments on the various articles on the website, too.
My tale, “The Anatomy of Seahorses” is out now in audio format in episode 69 of the excellent Tales to Terrify podcast.
As for the narration, I think it’s brilliant. Jedidiah Kalanu Shepler recounts the story in a performance not unlike Ray Winstone or even a young Michael Caine – the English bad boy character is perfectly crafted by Jed.
When the story first appeared in The Horror Express magazine a few years back, it attracted this review by Peter Tennant (of Black Static magazine) on the Whispers of Wickedness website:
“With the possible exception of the [Dear R] Koontz, The Anatomy of Seahorses by John Dodds is the finest story THE has to offer, the tale of professional tough guy and contract killer Wilbur, who is in the Far East to retrieve a valuable package for his employer. Dodds does everything right here, succeeding in the difficult task of creating a credible killer and then making him sympathetic by invoking terrors even more fundamental to the human condition. His evocation of the foreign setting is perfect too, with the spirit life woven seamlessly into the physical world, and the people given attitudes and traits convincingly at odds with our own Western world view. And Dodds’ writing grips from the very start, bringing an intriguing plot to life, providing the essential colour and sound and fury, with phrases that ring in the mind, such as the simply wonderful, ‘The corpse looked like four gallons of snot spread on a log,’ which I so wish I’d come up with myself.”
On the podcast, too, you’ll find a really nasty story called “It’s Just Tearing Me All Apart” by O.D. Hegre, narrated by Stephen Kilpatrick, a fact article, “Horror 101” with Kevin Lucia and a poem, “The Taemor” by Alexei Collier.
Tales would value your comments on their website, and star ratings on itunes. The podcast is always free, though donations are welcomed to keep the podcast alive. I do hope you will consider giving Tales to Terrify your support.
My wife, a very talented and creative woman, has finally taken the plunge and started blogging about her own artistic endeavours. Carole works in three dimensions: fabric, paper, jewellery and so on. In her blog she writes about her projects, but also about the process.
I particularly liked her posting about De-Cluttering the Brain (God knows, I need the advice, but I’m sure it’s something we can all learn from). If you’re interested in arts and crafts, I hope you will drop by her blog, and support it with “likes”, linking, sharing…you know, all that good social networking stuff.
Bone Machines 