I’m heading to America

This February I will be attending my first American SFF convention as a traditionally published author. I will be appearing at….

Capricon43 – 2-5th February, Chicago


https://capricon.org/

I will be appearing on panels and signing books in the USA for the first time since I’ve been published. This is a 4 day convention and my first trip to Chicago as well. It’s been a few years since I visited America, so I am really looking forward to it.

Once the schedule is finished, I will be able to provide more information on which panels I’ll be on. Also, I believe they have author signing sessions, so hopefully I will be able to do one of those during the convention. I expect there will be a dealer room, but obviously you can bring your own books to get signed.

Are you a local? Or have you visited the city a lot? What are your top 3 places to eat? Remember, it’s going to the middle of winter, and the convention is being held at the Sheraton Grand Chicago Riverwalk. So, what’s really good that’s not too much of a hike?

Hopefully I will see some of you there!

Authors’ Cat Calendar 2023

I’m delighted to say the Authors’ Cat Calendar is now live. All profits go to a cat rescue charity, based in the UK.

The calendar for 2023 features cats that belong to a number of wonderful SFF authors including James Brogden, Andrea Stewart, RJ Barker, Tasha Suri, David Wragg, Cat Rambo, Nicholas Eames, Stephanie Burgis and Patrick Samphire, John Hornor Jacobs, Gabriela Houston, Stephen Deas and myself.

Follow the link below to buy your copy.

PLEASE NOTE – There are 2 identical calendars on the page. One is marked USA & Canada for people on that side of the Atlantic. The other covers the rest of the world.

This is just so that the calendar will be printed, and shipped locally, so pick the one nearest to you.

https://authorscatcalendars.myshopify.com/

September Events Report

Fantasycon is done and dusted but since then I’ve done another one day event. Below is a quick round-up of both.

At Fantasycon in a Heathrow hotel, I had a chance to hang out with lots of authors I normally only speak to online which was a lot of fun. There are far too many to name so I won’t for embarrassment of forgetting someone. This included a gaggle of Angry Robot authors, as shown below with Gabriela Houston, Dan Hanks and Caroline Hardaker. Also in the photo are Amy and Des from Angry Robot who were there with tonnes of merchandise and proofs which they gave away. I was on two panels, one alongside Guest of Honour Liz Williams, Juliet McKenna and young gun Ryan Cahill, as shown on the right below.

I had an excellent time catching up with old friends and making a few new ones, some of who I will try to get on my YouTube channel for interviews and livestreams in the future.

On Sunday I attended an event organised by the Humber SFF people, alongside the incomparable RJ Barker. First of all we did a book signing at the Beverley Bookshop so they have signed copies of The Coward and The Warrior, plus all 3 of The Tide Child trilogy RJ. Please support your local bookshop and order direct from them, or via Hive if you are in the UK, as you can nominate a local bookshop and they receive a percentage of the sale. (Please Note this is AFTER you check out so don’t immediately click away)

The owner in Beverley was lovely, and she supplied us with tea and cakes. I ended up buying Fairy Tale by Stephen King while I was in there, as I’m keen to read it soon.

In the evening we were at the King’s Head where we both spoke about our journey to getting published, our approach to writing, editing and developing stories. We both did a short reading and then there was a Q and A session. They have more sessions coming up with other authors so you can find them on social media for more info.

More Events

There are no more events for a few weeks for me, so it’s head down on the writing. At the end of October I’ll be at Bristolcon for one day and then that’s probably it for the rest of the year as we slide into autumn and then winter.

Next year there’s Eastercon 2023, in Birmingham 7-10 April, and guests of honour have already been announced. Next October Fantasycon will also be in Birmingham, UK, so if you can attend I highly recommend it. Keep an eye on the BFS website here for more info.

Books and Reviews

As ever, if you have any read any of my books and have enjoyed them, consider leaving a review as it can really help others discover them. The Warrior is available now from all good bookshops, links below.

USA and Canada – Amazon.com, Amazon.ca, Barnes and Noble, IndieBound, Bookshop.org

In the UK – Amazon.co.uk, Waterstones, WH Smith, From the publisher (Angry Robot Books), from a local bookshop via Hive

September Stuff

Hello, we’re on our way into September and before you know it, Christmas will be here! Ugh. Too soon. Too much to do before then. Books to write and so on. So here’s a bunch of stuff that has happened, or will happen very soon involving me.

I recently appeared on Page Chewing with Steve from Steve Talks Books and PL Stuart. We talked a fair bit about publishing, myths that I spend time debunking, my YouTube channel, getting published, my books, inspiration for The Coward and all sorts of stuff.

Fantasycon 2022 – The British Fantasy Society

This coming weekend I will be appearing at Fantasycon in Heathrow, London, at the Radisson Red Hotel and Conference Centre, on 17th and 18th September for two days. The convention is full of panels, workshops, readings and book launches. You can still buy tickets here I believe. I have a panel on Saturday and one on Sunday, but otherwise I will be around, probably lurking in the bar or communal areas, talking with authors.

The full schedule is available to view here, but my panels are as follows

3pm on Saturday – Beyond the Debut: Building a Career as a Writer  (David Cartwright (moderator), Liz Williams, Juliet E McKenna, Ryan Cahill and me.

2pm on Sunday – Mashing up genres in Fantasy (Juliet Mushens (moderator), Zen Cho, Peter Newman, Susan York and me.

Interview with Stacey McEwan

I recently did an interview with romantic fantasy author, Stacey McEwan. She is a TikTok superstar with over 300K followers, and 44K on Instagram. We talked about her social media stuff, but also how she was all set to self publish her first fantasy novel when she was contacted by a literary agent.

Events

I’m going to be at a couple of other events coming up in the UK. One in Yorkshire on 25th September and I will also be at Bristolcon in October, so don’t forget to check out the Events page here for all the info.

If you are not in the UK, I’m also taking part in a day of online fantasy workshops, Realms of Fantasy, alongside RJ Barker and Anna Smith-Spark. So check out the info here.

The Warrior Online Tour

The Warrior is published August 9th, wrapping up The Quest for Heroes duology. For now, this in the last adventure in the Five Kingdoms. I may come back to this world one day, but for now, that’s it. Two books and done. I’m already busy with something else….

The url below has pre-order links to all of your favourite bookshops. It is available in ebook, paperback and audiobook. Pre-orders are really important, so if you are thinking of getting it, now is the time.

https://t.co/PuPTEidaKe

There is also an online tour, which has already started, on Instagram, YouTube and websites. I am also going to be doing a book launch in person next week on Tuesday in Birmingham at Forbidden Planet. I hope to see some of you there!

July Roundup

I’m back from my summer holiday and, as I knew would happen, there’s a lot coming up for in the next few months.

First of all, the special limited edition hardback versions of The Coward and The Warrior. These have been printed and recently I spent most of a day at the fulfilment centre signing the 500 copies of each. Here’s the great wall of each and a signed palette of The Coward. There is a limited number still available. As of writing there are about 40 left. The sets are available to purchase now from The Broken Binding website.

The link also shows you what the books look like without the dust jackets. The books are super fancy, sprayed edges with artwork on the pages, ribbon bookmark, foils, the whole nine yards. (Click to embiggin the photos)

The Warrior – Paperback Launch Event

The launch of paperback edition of The Warrior is happening on Tuesday 9th August at 5.30pm in Birmingham at Forbidden Planet.

Thereafter, signed copies will be available from Forbidden Planet and The Broken Binding, with the latter shipping books worldwide.

So if you are not able to attend the event in person, you can still get a signed copy.

Upcoming Events and Conventions

Fantasycon – 17-18 September – the annual fantasy and science fiction event organised by the British Fantasy Society is taking place in London on 17th and 18th September at the Radisson Red Hotel and Conference Centre, Heathrow. Tickets are available here. I will be at the event and have put my name forward to be on panels, otherwise I’m sure you’ll see me about at the hotel.

Realms of Fantasy – 22 October ONLINE – On Saturday 22nd October, I will be taking part in a day of online writing workshops alongside the fantastic RJ Barker and Anna Smith-Sparks. It runs from 10am to 4pm UK time and the event is described as “Realms of Fantasy presents an online day of fantasy writing workshops, ideal for anyone exploring or looking to develop their writing skills and technique within the genre.” Tickets are available here

Bristolcon – 29 October – a one day fantasy and SF event is taking place on Saturday 29th October in Bristol at Hilton DoubleTree Hotel, Bristol. Tickets are available here for this event.

Manchester Event Photos

I had an excellent time the other week in Manchester. First, a number of Angry Robot authors and I, signed copies of our books at Waterstones in the Trafford Centre. Thank you to Brian, the bookseller there, for being so supportive of our SFF books. The signed copies are selling fast, so if you wanted a signed copy, you’d better get a move on!

Then we went over to Blackwell’s bookshop in the evening where Guy Haley, Dan Hanks, Micah Yongo, Chris Panatier and myself were interviewed by Gemma Creffield, from Angry Robot books. We had a lot of fun talking about story, craft and worldbuilding. And if you’re wondering about the matching tracksuits, they all say I’m with Patton, which is a reference to something from Chris’s book, Stringers! I suggested we all dress in matching outfits like The Beastie Boys and come out to Intergalactic blasting from the speakers, but I was outvoted. Nevertheless, we had a great evening!

Special Editions

I am delighted to announce that The Broken Binding, in connection with Angry Robot books are going to be producing some special edition hardbacks of The Coward and The Warrior.

These special editions go on general sale on the 29/5/2022 at 12pm BST, from The Broken Binding website if you are interested.

These special edition sets will consist of 500 signed & numbered editions as shown below. They will have alternative cover art foils on board, four coloured end papers. They will also have stencilled edges, block sprayed top and bottom, and include a ribbon.

They will also be producing 52 special edition hardback sets, in a slipcase, with different artwork, foil on boards, gilded edges, alternative end pages, a slipcase and ribbon as well. There will only be 52 sets.

These special editions go on general sale on the 29/5/2022 at 12pm BST, from The Broken Binding website if you are interested.