I like to wrap up each year with a few reflections before Christmas, then take a break from social media until the New Year when I look forward. This year, looking back, my overriding thought is ‘Really? Seriously​?’ Because these past twelve months saw us hit with one disruptive (and often expensive) thing after another… That’s all I’m going to say about that, partly because I choose not to live my life online, and partly because I’m choosing to focus on the positive aspects of the year. Not burying my head in the sand, but making sure to balance the scales.

2024 saw the publication of my novel, The Green Man’s War, from Wizard’s Tower Press, a short story collection, Different Times and Other Places, from Newcon Press, a novelette, Unseen Hands, from ZNB, and three original short stories, A Civil War, in the anthology Fight Like a Girl Volume 2, from Wizard’s Tower Press, along with The Green Man’s Guest, and A Stitch in Time Saves One, both in Different Times and Other Places. I think there are possibly years where I’ve seen more words in print, but I think that’s a new high water mark as far as range and variety of writing in a single year is concerned.

August saw me attend the Worldcon in Glasgow, then there was Fantasycon in Chester, Bristolcon in Bristol (where else?) and lastly but by no means least, Fantastika, where I was a Guest of Honour this year’s Swecon in Stockholm on the first weekend of November. That was an excellent convention which I thoroughly enjoyed. All these events offered me opportunities for friendly and supportive conversations with fellow writers and readers, on panels, over meals and drinks. Some of these were planned, plenty more were unforeseen good fortune.

Since the disruptions mentioned above meant we hadn’t managed any sort of holiday to that point in the year, my husband and I stayed on in Stockholm for a week’s break. We had a splendid time. The weather was decent, we found some good restaurants, the city’s museums are excellent, and at that time of year, not too busy. The Vasa is as astounding as everyone says, and the Wreck Museum offers an up-to-date perspective on underwater archaeology which is very well worth seeing. The Viking exhibit at the History museum was fascinating, and the Army museum gave us a very interesting and different view of historical events. The ABBA museum is extremely well done, though we still find it hard to accept Waterloo won Eurovision 50 years ago!

As an added bonus, we spent time with local friends, including Jonathan, SF fan and historical guide, who showed us rune stones and painted churches on the outskirts of the city, and intriguing corners of Stockholm’s old town which we would never have found on our own. If you’re planning a visit to Sweden, do check out the tours and walks on offer at the Sweden History Tours website. You may then be able to see details and ideas which I picked up through the week appearing in my writing in the year to come.

And since Jonathan is a SF & Fantasy fan, we made sure to visit the deservedly renowned SF Bokhandeln bookstore in Stockholm. One of life’s great pleasures is strolling around a well-stocked bookshop comparing notes with a like-minded friend, finding out what you both have read, what they recommend that’s new to you, and introducing them to books you have really enjoyed. Finding your own books on the shelves is a bonus thrill.

Which brings me to my conclusion for the year. There’s a lot that’s wrong in the world at the moment, and far too many people are having far too hard a time of it, near and far. So alongside doing what I can to help out, I have realised that taking respite as well as pleasure on a personal level, when and where that’s possible, is more important than ever. Friendships are invaluable for doing these things. Those are the thoughts I’ll be taking with me to the end of this year and into the next.

With all good wishes to you and yours, as you celebrate this season as you choose.

Today sees Different Times and Other Places, my retrospective short fiction collection, published by Newcon Press. This is the latest in their Polestars series showcasing writers working across speculative fiction – who happen to be women. Selecting these stories has offered me insights into my development as a writer, as well as highlighting inspirations which I realise go back to my earliest reading. It has also given me the opportunity to share two completely new, previously unpublished stories. The Green Man’s Guest sees an unexpected encounter for Dan Mackmain in an arboretum, while A Stitch in Time Saves One explores an epic fantasy possibility that occurred to me and was simply too good not to use somewhere.

The only downside of putting this collection together – if I can even call it that – is I find I want to write more and longer stories about the people and places I have revisited. My natural writing length is the novel. Writing short stories is a skill I have consciously learned. It’s a distinctly different narrative form which I have come to appreciate, not least by reading the work of other authors who do this supremely well. Writing really good, effective short fiction absolutely isn’t simply a case of fitting a story into the required word count.

My first novel, The Thief’s Gamble, was an epic fantasy, a genre I still read and enjoy. I often come across potential inspirations for fresh ways of looking at magic, and of reflecting on our own lives using the magic mirror of a previously unimagined secondary world. These days, short stories allow me to explore these ideas in between writing my ongoing Green Man series of contemporary fantasy novels. And since a short story asks far less of a reader’s time, they are an excellent way to offer an introduction to my style and perspective as an author.

I don’t ever want to become complacent as a writer, so I continually strive to hone my skills. The best way to improve your abilities in any craft is to tackle new tests. That’s something else I get from short fiction. Writing for a themed anthology is an intriguing creative challenge as I look for an angle that no one else has seen. Then I get to read everyone else’s stories, and see the other possibilities they found. In Fight Like A Girl Volume 2, from Wizard’s Tower Press, it’s great to see so many authors from the first volume returning, as well as the contributions from other writers joining us. It’s very rewarding to see readers enjoying the breadth of perspectives this anthology offers.

Shared-world writing asks similar and also different questions of an author, as a group of writers work together to find the balance between individuality and collaboration that creates a coherent setting which becomes more than the sum of its parts. I contributed the story ‘Unseen Hands’ to the Ampyrium anthology from ZNB in the summer, working with and alongside a great roster of writers to build this new and original milieu.

February 2025 will see the publication of the Lincolnshire Folk Tales Reimagined anthology. This was a different writing challenge yet again. The team behind the ‘Lincolnshire Folk Tales: Origins, Legacies, Connections, Futures’ project at Nottingham Trent University are putting together a programme of launch events, which will include readings, Q&A and more, to promote interest and awareness of the origins and influences of this storytelling heritage. Check this page for the dates and places for events – you’ll need to scroll down for the newest additions.

And now? I’ll get back to working on a new, full-length project that I’m developing, alongside Dan’s next adventure…

I’m delighted to share the news that my female-centred Arthurian retelling, The Cleaving, is now available as an audiobook, courtesy of Watkins Media, narrated by Joanna Carpenter.

You can find it here

I’ve felt for years that the legendary epics of King Arthur and Camelot don’t tell the whole story. In particular the women are badly underserved, as they are denied the right to control their own destinies amid the wars and rivalries that determine ‘the matter of Britain’. As far as Arthur and Merlin are concerned, they serve Camelot by doing as they are told and nothing more.

So we’re supposed to accept Arthur’s mother Ygraine marrying the man who’s just killed her husband? Arthur’s half-sister Morgana turns to dark magic to defy him and Merlin just because she’s ‘bad’? The enchantress Nimue challenges Merlin and uses her magic to outwit him – but why does she do it? Come to that, exactly why does Arthur’s marriage to the dutiful, biddable, beautiful Guinevere end in adultery, rebellion and death.

When I focused on the women I saw a different picture. Men forget that women talk. Ygraine, Nimue, Morgana and Guinevere have opportunities to become friends and allies as the decisions that shape their lives are taken out of their hands. Now these women have a voice.

The seventh instalment of Dan Mackmain’s adventures makes this the longest continuous sequence of novels that I’ve written. Okay, I actually reached that point with the last book, The Green Man’s Quarry but I’ve only just thought about this. The Tales of Einarinn came to a natural pause after five volumes. The subsequent books in the World of Einarinn timeline were a series of four novels, followed by two trilogies. With each of those sequences, I was determined not to rewrite a story I’d already told. Shifting focus to a different part of that fantasy world with a new cast of characters was a key part of ensuring that.

So how can I keep writing the Green Man books without repeating myself? It turns out elements embedded in these stories from the start are very helpful. I decided Dan’s life would be grounded in everyday reality. Writing epic fantasy novels showed me how a solid foundation makes the magical far more believable. With these books, that means a year or so between each story sees a year or so pass in Dan’s life. His relationships develop and his priorities change. That makes new demands on him and I can find new ways to threaten him.

These books are rooted in British folklore. This is a vast and varied resource. The more I read, the more I find to spur my imagination. I don’t necessarily find complete stories. Most local legends are single incidents, often tied a particular landscape feature or an old building. A lot of these stories are very similar, even when they’re set hundreds of miles apart. None of this is a problem. As I read these variations, I can use common threads to weave stories into the underlying mythology that’s evolving through this series. Where I find contradictions and exceptions, those can remind the reader not to take anything for granted. Where mentions of a monster are little more than fragments, I can devise something that’s both familiar and wholly new.

Then there’s the catalyst. The creative process that has emerged for these books is very different to my approach to writing an epic fantasy novel or a historical murder mystery. I plan those in detail from the start, and I tailor my research to the needs of the plot I’ve already worked out. Each Green Man book starts with me gathering assorted, apparently unrelated ideas from my folklore reading, from places I visit, from conversations with like-minded friends. I make note of news stories about rural life and concerns which will affect Dan and his friends. At that stage, I genuinely have no idea what the next book will be about.

Then I will come across something that suggests a way to tie these ideas together. Once I have that catalyst, the story starts to take shape. Its internal momentum shows me where and when to draw the next element in. Now my research is about finding the people and resources to tell me things I had no idea I would need to know. I will be well into writing the novel before I see the ending come into focus ahead. I would never have imagined I would be working this way, but the experience is as exciting as it has been unexpected.

So what was the catalyst for The Green Man’s War? When we were visiting Burford one day last winter, my husband saw a small bronze statue of three dancing hares in a jeweller’s shop window. Regular readers will understand why that caught his eye. We went in to buy it, only to discover the shop door should have been locked and the ‘Closed’ sign put up. A distracted member of staff had followed the usual routine on auto-pilot. The manager and staff were actually in the shop that morning to compile an insurance claim after being robbed the week before. A gang of men armed with hammers and knives had ambushed the keyholder outside, forced their way in, and stripped the shelves and display cases bare. The nice people in the shop were happy to sell us the little statue, once they had told us all about it.

That got me thinking. What would Dan do, faced with that situation? Why might something like that happen to him? I’d read a few myths that mentioned jewellery. Ideas started coming together…

I’ve shared in thoughtful panel discussions with Andrew Knighton at conventions, as well as more informal conversations. I am very pleased to share his article on the relationships between a character’s job of work and various aspects of a story.

Work is a fundamental part of life. It can provide purpose, frustrations, and a roof over your head. In a capitalist society, it’s the thing that most clearly defines your place in society.

Because of that, jobs can bring fictional characters to life in novel and fascinating ways. Not so much the common protagonist jobs, the warriors and police officers who power so many stories, but the unexpected choices, the jobs that are unusual for fictional protagonists even if they’re common in the real world.

Working the Story

Work as Character

A character’s job can tell you a lot about who they are at heart.

Take Ten Low, Stark Holborn’s frontier combat medic. She’s a wounded character in a wounded world, trying to patch people together as they get shot and stabbed and flung around. She’s clearly chosen this role to put some distance between her and who she was before, for reasons that become clear as the story unfolds. No one’s paying her to heal, but it’s definitely her job.

Charlie Mason, the protagonist of Neil Williamson’s Charlie Says, is a standup comic whose performances express his own insecurities, his fears, and the changes he’s gone through over the years. His profession becomes a hook the whole character hangs off, and with it the themes of the story. The standup comic as stand-in for modern Britain, defensive and abrasive, caught between the instincts to mock himself or to cruelly attack others.

That can extend to a group of characters. In N. K. Jemisin’s The City We Became, the avatar of the Bronx works at an arts centre, an outsider and creative; Brooklyn is a rapper turned politician, furiously battling the system; while Padmini, the avatar of Queens, is a logically-minded graduate student working in mathematics. Their professional roles reflect their personalities which in turn reflect the places they embody. Their jobs root them in geography and society, highlighting the connections of modern urban life and specifically of New York.

Work as Story

While any job can provide a window into a character’s heart, others more directly affect the story.

Dan Mackmain, the protagonist of Juliet E. McKenna’s Green Man series, is a man whose career reflects his character. He’s a carpenter and handyman who makes carved wooden objects, someone who’s practical and connected to the land, creative yet down-to-earth. His connection to the wood and world is what draws him into supernatural danger, but it also provides the pragmatic, worldly skills that let him survive otherworldly threats. It’s a hook for adventure and a tool to survive it.

That path from a character’s job to the challenges they’re going to face can be more direct. Ned Beauman’s Venomous Lumpsucker features a pair of protagonists who work in different specialist fields, one an animal scientist and the other an investment executive. Their perspectives let the story explore economic and environmental systems without drowning readers in textbook explanations or political diatribes, while the investor’s deals in a fictional commodity called “extinction credits” embodies economic structures gone wrong. Their shared knowledge gives the characters both the tools and the motive to go crack the systems of the world open, angles from which to see society and to shape it.

Work as Inspiration

Sometimes the job is the whole reason a story exists.

That category is where my new novel, The Executioner’s Blade, fits in. Inspired by Joel F. Harrington’s history book The Faithful Executioner, I started thinking about what the life of an executioner would be like and who would take on a job like that. It’s a job that’s been central to the functioning of many justice systems, but that’s viewed with fear and suspicion. A killer of killers, wielding violence to deter violent acts, living in tension with societies that want them to do the work but don’t want to know them afterwards.

I became fascinated with what sort of person would do that. Someone interested in justice. Someone who was happy to be shunned. Someone comfortable shedding blood. Preferably someone with the skills and experience to kill quickly and cleanly. Maybe someone living in tension with herself.

Inevitably, I thought about problems with capital punishment, not least the fact that miscarriages of justice happen. Sometimes the wrong person gets punished, and when the punishment is execution there’s no coming back from that. How would it feel for an executioner to learn that she’d killed an innocent person, that she’d been used to perpetrate a further injustice and cover the murderers trail? It felt like a good motive for a story, a character wanting to put right a wrong she’d unwittingly done, a murder mystery in which the killer is also the investigator.

The job became the story.

Collected Work

If there’s one book that shows how much you can do with a single profession, it’s Steve Toase’s Under My Skin, a collection of archaeological horror.

Through ten different stories, Toase shows how the same job can take a person, and an author, in very different directions. Characters range from the obsessive to the world-weary, the idealistic to the cynical. Their work includes digging holes, plotting maps, identifying finds, and theorising on what they’ve found. We see the giddy excitement of discovery and the repetitive tedium of paperwork. We meet characters fascinated by the work and others worn down by it.

The stories also find different ways to make the archaeological fantastical and unnerving. It could be something uncanny found in the ground, a colleague becoming increasingly strange thanks to his discoveries, or a survey of a town where the houses themselves become horrifying. In one case, archaeology becomes a profession for travelling to and interacting with another realm.

The same job, presented in ten very different ways.

And All the Rest…

Toase’s book left me thinking there should be more stories about archaeologists, because there’s so much potential in what they do. But maybe that’s true of any profession if you dig into it deeply enough or even sprinkle it with the twisting magic of genre fiction. We could be reading about Medusa’s hairdresser, about a takeout chef on an intergalactic highway, about stable hands cleaning out the manticore pens. There are books out there about magical bakers and the fire fighters in a world of dragons, but we could have so much more, a chance to see the fascinating characters that different careers can create.

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Andrew Knighton’s new novel, The Executioner’s Blade, is out from Northodox Press on 28 November. You can find him at andrewknighton.com.

I had an excellent time at Fantasycon in Chester, and an excellent time at Bristolcon, which is where you would expect it to be held. Having spent the last two days clearing the decks of work stuff, today will be getting everything ready for our trip to Sweden tomorrow. I’ll be one of the Guests of Honour at Fantastika 2024, this year’s Swecon, over the weekend. After that, husband and I are having a week’s holiday in Stockholm. (Burglars please note, Resident Son is taking vacation days while we are away to have his own holiday at home.) This will be our first break in what has been a challenging year for a range of reasons. I’m looking forward to coming home refreshed to work on a couple of things at a more relaxed pace than the past six months have allowed.

I’m also encouraged by what’s been a recurring theme in panel discussions, namely the importance of writers examining and discussing the origins of themes and archetypes they’re using. An important reason for this is to avoid perpetuating outdated and even harmful subtexts and ideas. More than that, writers are seeing the wide range of opportunities to be found in identifying the stories not being told, by looking at variations on legends, old and new, which don’t centre the most frequently-used characters and story structures. I feel this is excellent for the SF&F genre.

Enthusiasm at these conventions for the forthcoming new anthology Fight Like A Girl Volume 2 (Amazon pre-orders here) is very rewarding, as is people’s eagerness to read The Green Man’s War (Amazon pre-orders here), which will be published on 15th November,. For comprehensive lists of non-Amazon buying links check out the Wizard’s Tower Press pages for Fight Like A Girl Vol.2 and for The Green Man’s War.

Something I’ve found very entertaining is seeing readers (who tagged me in) discussing their responses to the Green Man series protagonist Dan Mackmain, as a character and as a ‘real person’. The consensus seems to be affection blended with intermittent exasperation, as expressed in splendid fashion here.

“Daniel. Sweetie. That’s gonna bite you in the ass later. Daniel. No. Please think this through.”

I’ve had some intriguing conversations about Dan in person as well. All of this encourages me to continue writing his story. It’ll be interesting to see where delving into my folklore To Be Read stack takes him next.

The way Dan’s occupation is interwoven with his personality, and influences his actions ,leads me very nicely into the guest post following this. Andrew Knighton has been reflecting on ways in which a fictional character’s work can colour and shape a story. I am very much looking forward to reading Andrew’s new novel, The Executioner’s Blade, when I get home from our travels.

I will be at Bristolcon this coming weekend, where Cheryl and I will be celebrating the forthcoming publication of The Green Man’s War. For this convention, ebooks will be available for purchase direct from Wizard’s Tower Press. Click here for the Wizard’s Tower page of purchase links for pre-orders.

As ever, Ben Baldwin has given us an absolutely stunning cover.

What’s the story this time? Well, for a few years now, the Green Man has sent Daniel Mackmain to resolve clashes between ordinary people and the supernatural world. Dan has found allies among folk from myth and met other humans who can see the uncanny. He has also made dangerous enemies. Someone has decided to put a stop to this interference once and for all. Dan and his friends are about to find themselves in the firing line.

The actual publication date will be 15th November for hardback, paperback and ebook editions through the usual retailers. This year has been a challenging one for me personally, and unforeseeable events threw my writing schedule into chaos. This landed the rest of the team, publisher Cheryl, editor Toby and artist Dan, with the knock-on effects which had to be managed alongside their other commitments. Believe me, everyone has done their utmost to bring Dan’s latest adventure to eager readers as soon as humanly possible, and I am hugely grateful.

Bristolcon will also see us celebrating Fight Like a Girl Volume 2, and similarly ebooks will be available for direct purchase. This is a second anthology of excellent short stories looking at different interpretations of this phrase, and offering sound reasons why it’s a big mistake to think that particular comment is a remotely valid put-down. My story is titled Civil War.

Oisin McGann has done us proud with this gorgeous cover art, and the publication date is 21st November. My fellow authors are Danie Ware, Gaie Sebold, Dolly Garland, Cheryl Morgan, Anna Smith Spark, K R Green, Julia Hawkes-Reed, K T Davies, S. Naomi Scott and Lou Morgan.

In December, Newcon Press will publish Different Times and Other Places, the tenth collection in the Polestars series where editor Ian Whates has invited writers to offer a selection of their short fiction. Since the other authors are Jaine Fenn, Teika Marija Smits, Emma Coleman, Justina Robson, Cécile Cristofari, Aliya Whiteley, Liz Williams, Fiona Moore and Patrice Sarath, you will understand how honoured I am to be asked.

Reading through stories I’ve written over the past twenty-plus years was an illuminating experience, and choosing which ones to include was a fascinating challenge. The process showed me aspects of my own writing which I haven’t noticed before. That was as unexpected as it was intriguing. I also had the opportunity to write a brand new Green Man short story, prompted by a comment my husband made as we walked around an ornamental National Trust garden. Reading a book about tapestries had also given me an idea for a story some while ago, and now this collection will give you the chance to read that. Click here for pre-orders.

So while 2024 has included a lot that I’ll be happy to see the back of, October, November and December are putting plenty into the plus column!

This coming weekend, I’ll be at the Queen in Chester hotel for the British Fantasy Society’s Fantasycon. For full details, click here.

As well as enjoying seeing friends and colleagues, I will be discussing reinventing Arthurian myth, considering underused fantastical creatures, and deciding how muppets can make everything better. I will also be doing a reading, and there’s a good chance that will be readers’ first chance to learn a bit about the forthcoming new Green Man book…

Then I get a weekend off, before Bristolcon on 26-27th October. The Guests of Honour are Peter F Hamilton and Joanne Harris who are lovely people as well as terrific writers – and this is a wonderfully friendly convention, so that will be another great couple of days. More details TBA.

The weekend after that, I’ll be in Sweden, where I am one of the Guests of Honour at Fantastika, the 2024 Swecon. As well as reflecting on my own work in an interview and various conversations, I’ll be discussing the challenges of writing across different genres, and blending aspects of different genres in a piece of writing, with the other guests. I’ll also be considering the role of forests in fantasy fiction, and the challenges that old supernatural forces face in the modern world.

After that I’m having a week’s holiday in Stockholm with my husband, since for various reasons, we haven’t had any sort of break so far this year!

That’s a lot of conventions! Especially in a year that’s had the Worldcon in Glasgow as well – which was excellent, by the way. So what do I get out of these events that makes committing the time, effort and expense worthwhile? The BFS is currently asking various members to remember their first Fantasycon across social media, and that reminded me I’d written up my recollections back in 2006, for a BFS publication back then. I dug that out of the archive here, and yes, it still holds good.

My First FantasyCon in 2000 – looking back in 2006

I won’t say I was apprehensive travelling to my first FantasyCon in 2000 but I had come prepared with a good book, in case I found myself with time on my hands, or eating alone. After all, I didn’t know anyone else who was going to be there. As it turned out, the organisers had anticipated people like me. There was a designated table where ‘virgins’ could meet each other, and be warmly welcomed by David Howe. All relieved not to be the only newbie, we consulted our programmes and agreed to meet up at various panels.

The next thing to make me feel welcome was several people recognising my name on my badge as the author of The Thief’s Gamble. Even better, they said they’d enjoyed it! That was thrilling but there are more important things I remember from the weekend. I made good friends whom I look forward to meeting each year now. All the established authors extended a generous welcome to a rookie, together with helpful advice and useful, cautionary tales. Notably Stan Nicholls and Anne Gay made sure I certainly wasn’t left eating dinner alone with my book.

Doug Bradley’s illustrated talk on movie makeup and masks was utterly fascinating and as well as doing my bit on panels, I went to others and to the GoH interviews. I came away from every session with intriguing questions to ponder and inspiration for developing my own writing. I also went home with a list of books to find that I might never have considered reading. The book I’d brought with me went home unopened, by the way.

I mentioned my Ampyrium short story a while ago. I’m thrilled to say I’ll be returning to this fascinating shared world with one of this year’s ZNB anthology projects.

As regular readers will know, each year for over a decade now, this splendid US small press produces collections of original (no reprint) short stories (around 6,000 words), funded by Kickstarter. You’ll find great reading from a mix of established SF&F authors and new voices found through their open submissions call, announced once the Kickstarter is funded. Editorial standards are rigorous, and ZNB is a SFWA-qualifying market, paying professional rates.

This year’s projects are as follows:

WERE-2

It’s the night of the full moon, and in the back alleys in the dead of night, were-creatures might see you as prey. A were-raven? Were-squirrel? Were-octopus? You won’t know until you hear that rustle of feathers next to your ear or smell the brine of the sea. Editors S.C. Butler & Joshua Palmatier are looking for creative were-creature tales with only one rule: No werewolves allowed!

Anchor authors include: Randee Dawn, Auston Habershaw, Gini Koch, Gail Z. Martin & Larry N. Martin, Harry Turtledove, Tim Waggoner, and Jean Marie Ward.

SKULL X BONES

Pirates have enchanted and haunted readers for generations, from Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island to the ill-fated Firefly to Black Sails and Our Flag Means Death! From swashbucklers to scruffy-looking nerfherders, David B. Coe & Joshua Palmatier want writers to come up with their best science fiction or fantasy pirates, whether they’re plundering the golden age of sail on this or some other world, or leaving the blue behind on a spaceship heading into the black.

Anchor authors include: R.S. Belcher, Alex Bledsoe, Jennifer Brozek, C.C. Finlay, Violette Malan, Misty Massey, and Alan Smale.

AMPYRIUM: MERCHANT WAR

The city of Ampyrium is bustling with trade…in the midst of a Merchant War! It is the hub for eight portals to other worlds, where goods and more change hands both above and beneath the table. Does any business escape the Eyes of the enigmatic Magnum who first created this city of magic and mayhem, saintliness and sin? What nefarious plans are now afoot?

I’ll be writing alongside my fellow anchor authors Patricia Bray, S.C. Butler, David B. Coe, Esther M. Friesner, Juliet E. McKenna, Jason Palmatier, and Joshua Palmatier – who is also our highly esteemed editor.

The Kickstarter runs until 15^th September 2024 and offers bonus rewards and incentives at all levels.

Click here to take a look!

A quick note to say that I had an excellent time at Worldcon, and I plan to write more fully about that soon. Just at the moment, I am head down, working flat out, and resolutely maintaining my focus on the work in progress.

That focus was interrupted yesterday by an unexpected and rather startling ‘first’ in my 25+ years as an author. So unexpected that I’m pausing briefly to share it.

In the months between first drafting the outline of this book, and finalising the end of the draft [REDACTED] has become a tightly controlled substance in the UK. Previously widely available [REDACTED] is now so tightly controlled that online references I had bookmarked have disappeared without any explanation. I only found out what was going on when considerable lateral thinking on search terms brought me to a model railway club’s website. The model railway club secretary highlighted the relevant new law, along with the substantial penalties which now apply for possessing [REDACTED] without the relevant government licence which requires an application and payment, and expires after three years.

Yes, I know you are now eager to know what [REDACTED] is, and I will cover all this in the book, but having read the reasons for this new law, I’m not going to discuss it online on social media. Seriously.

This writing life offers endless surprises.