Fantasycon Photos

Two editors, one PR guy and lots of Solaris authors walk into a convention...

Just a quick post to share with you some of the photos that we took of the Big Solaris Book Event, and to say thank you to all the fans and readers who came to the signing and who told us how much they're enjoying our books.

A big thank you also to the British Fantasy Society, for organising such a fabulous convention, and to all the hardworking volunteers who made it happen.

Gary McMahon, Nicholas Royle, Richard Ford, James Lovegrove, Juliet E. McKenna and Conard Williams at the signing.

The view from the hotel.

Juliet chats with a fan.

Flight Z - Now Boarding at Waterstones, Altrincham

Ladies and Gentlemen, this is your Captain speaking. Flight Z will be ready for boarding at Waterstones, Altrincham, this Saturday from 11am. Full details of your departure itinerary can be found at this website.

Passengers, are advised to buckle-up as the ride could well get bumpy.

Conrad Williams will be signing copies of his brilliant horror novel, Loss of Separation, at Waterstones, Altrincham, this Saturday at 11am.

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Flight Z - Now Boarding at Waterstones, Wigan

Ladies and Gentlemen, this is your Captain speaking. Flight Z will be ready for boarding at Waterstones, Wigan, this Saturday from 11am. Full details of your departure itinerary can be found at the website.

Passengers, are advised to buckle-up as the ride could well get bumpy.

Which is a very roundabout way of saying that Conrad Williams will be signing copies of his brilliant horror novel, Loss of Separation, at Waterstones, Wigan, this Saturday at 11am.

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Manchester Signing This Saturday

MANCHESTER DEANSGATE

A Super SF/Fantasy Weekender
Gary McMahon, Ian Whates, Conrad Williams, Mike Wild and Pat Kelleher
Saturday, 21 May 2011, 2PM - 5PM

Waterstones asks "Can Manchester contain this amount of SF and Fantasy talent?" It's an SFF and horror invasion as authors Conrad Williams, Gary McMahon, Ian Whates, Mike Wild and Pat Kelleher take over Manchester's Deangate Waterstones for an afternoon of signings and discussion.


Arrive early, at 1pm, and you'll get to see another great SF signing, the 'Deansgate Doctor Who Forum'. Waterstones says 'Join Terry Nation expert Alywn Turner, Doctor Who Big Finish audio play and Dead Ringers maestro Nev Fountain and that walking encyclopaedia of all things Gallifrey, David J. Howe, for a discussion-filled odyssey into all things Doctor Who.'

Further details can be found at the Waterstones Manchester Deansgate website, or at this number: 0161 839 1248.

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Also, check out this interview with Conrad Williams and this interview with Gary MacMahon at horror and dark fiction site The Black Abyss.
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Conrad Williams Interviews a-go-go!

Hi all,

Well, you've been seeing a lot of Decay Inevitable and Loss of Separation author Conrad Williams, what with his blogging about writing his most recent book and competition, and his interview with Editor-in-Chief Jon Oliver, but he has been altogether indefatigable recently, and I thought I'd draw your attention to some of his other internet shenanigans recently.

It seems that Graeme Flory of Graeme's Fantasy Book Review (we've already told you about his glowing review of Loss of Separation last week) succeeded in pinning him down for an interview yesterday (you can read it here).

And he also generously consented to giving David McWilliam of the University of Sterling's The Gothic Imagination an interview (and you can read that one here).

So lots of opportunity to hear his thoughts. Go and check 'em out.

David

Recent Reviews: Strahan, Williams and Brown

Let’s not mince words here. Engineering Infinity is one of the best science-fiction collections to hit bookshelves in years, marrying hard sci-fi and big ideas with a whirlwind of talent and innovation. From time travel to world-building to body modification, each story is a universe unto itself, as complete as it is fascinating.
The San Francisco Book Review, on Engineering Infinity

Yet again, I couldn’t stop reading and (yet again) I’m recommending a Conrad Williams book to you all...
Graeme's Fantasy Book Review, on Loss of Separation by Conrad Williams

Powered by imagination and executed with a loving eye for language, ‘Engineman’ is more than worthy of a place on your bookshelf. But that’s not all – this reprint includes the original novel plus eight extra short stories set in the same universe... all of which makes for a great bargain when the quality is as good as this.
Mass Movement Magazine reviews Eric Brown's Engineman

Survivors battling the odds - and cannibals - is as relentless as the sun beating down on its protagonists. ... devoid of Mad Max-esque cliches and features a didn't-see-it-coming ending that is wholly to Brown's credit.
Focus Magazine on Eric Brown's Guardians of the Phoenix

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Conrad Williams on Loss of Sep and COMPETITION!

Wotcher all,

Mr. Conrad Williams, whose remarkable book Loss of Separation is even now being printed, has been on his blog, blogging.

Check it out here.

Scroll back a bit - assuming you don't already regularly read, which I daresay you do - to see posts on draft revisions, chapter breakdowns and his thoughts about the book and the life of a writer, along with little sample snippets from the book, other short bits of prose (including a deeply unsettling description of some kind of air disaster), and links to interviews about his work.

And then read his thrilling announcement of an impending competition, to win a signed copy of Loss and a signed picture of Flight Z. Full details of the comp will go up on release date, the 3rd March.

While you're at it, read Jon Oliver's interview with Conrad here on the Solaris blog.

Whee!

David

End of the Line launch party!

On Tuesday night we launched The End of the Line at Foyles on Charing Cross Road, London. Anthology editor Jonathan Oliver, and London-resident authors Pat Cadigan, Christopher Fowler and Adam Nevill spoke on a panel on horror fiction, and then held a signing. The panel was a success, with over one hundred and fifty people on the guestlist, the Foyles events manager said told us he'd never seen the events room so full!

Sounds like people had a great time, there have already been two write-ups of the event, one from writer Lou Morgan and one from the Dark Fiction Review.



Afterwards we held the launch party at the Phoenix Artist's Club, Soho, and the writers did what writers do best... make friends! (Did you think I was going to say drink? Well, to be honest, they did that too.)

Chris Fowler, Sarah Pinborough, Adam Nevill and End of the Line author Conrad Williams

David Bradley, editor-in-chief of SFX, and End of the Line author Al Ewing

Editor David Moore, Charles Rudkin, End of the Line author Gary MacMahon and Abaddon Books author Scott Andrews

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Post the Fourth: Solaris authors at the World Horror Con!

Brian Lumley signing for all his many, many fans at the con!

Vincent Chong, cover artist for Shine, poses with his shiny, shiny creation. Shine is being launched at Eastercon next weekend!

Ian Whates, author of The Noise Within (coming out from Solaris in May) with his writing-group pal Ian Watson, author of the Spielberg movie AI: Artificial Intelligence

Some scary looking chap and, no, wait, the scary-looking one is Andy Remic

Conrad William in 'The Reading Cafe,' reading from the novel he'll be writing for Solaris next year...

Jon Oliver and Ellen Datlow, editor of the Poe anthology, out for lunch

Ellen on the Women in Horror panel moderated by Maura McHugh

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See previous posts and photos from the World Horror Con over here. Now comes with added Neil Gaiman!

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Work-In-Progress Blogging

Hey guys,

(Three posts in one day! Will the joy never cease?)

Conrad Williams, author of the excellent Decay Inevitable, has decided to write one of the confounded new "Work in Progress" blogs about his upcoming Solaris book, Loss of Separation.

He'll be keeping us up to date on progress, posting word counts, and generally talking about the book as he writes it.

The blog is here, and the first post is here.

So won't you go and follow him, and give him some love.

David

Review of Decay Inevitable

Hi all,

Graeme Flory of Graeme's Fantasy Book Review has offered these words on Conrad Williams' Decay Inevitable. Eight and three quarters out of ten.

Cheers,

David