Here’s a great article in today’s Guardian Books Blog by Lee Rourke. I couldn’t agree more and I love novels with fractured narratives.
Here’s one point that Lee makes that I particularly like:
Life isn’t like the narratives that make up the majority of novels in circulation today, or like the well-rehearsed scenes we enjoy at the theatre, or in the movies. It’s more complicated than that: steeped in confusion, dead ends, blank spaces and broken fragments. It’s baffling at times, annoying and perpetually open-ended. We have no real way of predicting our future. So why do our novels have to tie all this stuff together, into a neatly packaged bundle of ready-made answers? Something doesn’t ring true.
https://annecharnock.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Screen-Shot-2015-07-30-at-13.11.07.png273340annehttp://annecharnock.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/AC-name-banner2.jpganne2012-11-23 15:23:002015-07-30 13:11:42In praise of novels without neat conclusions
I clicked the ‘Save and Publish’ button yesterday morning and just seven hours later A Calculated Life went live on Amazon’s websites as an eBook. To be precise, at 18:28:12 GMT on Monday 12 November. Read more
https://annecharnock.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/kindle-cover-vsm.jpg453283annehttp://annecharnock.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/AC-name-banner2.jpganne2012-11-13 10:37:002015-07-30 13:05:20‘A Calculated Life’ is now available on Amazon
So why did I chose Manchester and the North West of England as the main setting for A Calculated Life? It’s not simply because I know this city and region (I could have chosen London, which I know well enough).
The fact is that Manchester shouted out as being totally appropriate. I couldn’t resist. You see, A Calculated Life is set later in the 21st Century. It’s Science Fiction or, as others might classify the novel, Speculative Fiction. It presents a dystopian view of the future – one in which humans have adopted many advances in neural implant technology and genetic engineering. As Ray Kurzweil argues in The Age of Spiritual Machines, once we discovered computation we reset our future evolutionary path.
So where better to locate this futuristic novel, than the city where the first commercial computer was developed. Read more
https://annecharnock.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/mark1.jpg564709annehttp://annecharnock.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/AC-name-banner2.jpganne2012-11-07 11:35:002015-08-26 16:28:22Manchester: the perfect setting for Science Fiction
It all began . . . at the turn of the millennium when, after I’d recovered from the celebrations, I read a long review in The Guardian‘s New Year edition of Ray Kurzweil’s book The Age of Spiritual Machines. His predictions were a wake-up call. He imagined a future when humans start to merge with technology, that is, when wealthier humans boost their brainpower by way of neural implants (welI, I can see the upside, who wouldn’t? Imagine being fluent in seven languages…).
Kurzweil argues that it’s absolutely inevitable that the next step in our evolution will involve cognitive implants. By the year 2099, he says humans with neural implants will be unable to hold a meaningful conversation with humans who do not have them; the divide will be too great.
This was seriously scary stuff, or I thought so at least. I was already looking at the dividing line between humans and machines in my art practice, but Kurzweil’s predictions really unnerved me. Read more
https://annecharnock.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/kurzweil-warwick.jpg213425annehttp://annecharnock.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/AC-name-banner2.jpganne2012-11-01 12:22:002015-08-26 16:30:02Why did I even begin to write this novel?
Along with most authors I’ve opted to go, initially, with Kindle Direct Publishing because, quite simply, this reaches the highest number of potential readers. Indeed, many indie-authors don’t bother with any other eBook or any Print-on-Demand (POD) provider. I can see the logic: readers can access Kindle books without even owning a Kindle device. There are free Kindle Reading Apps for smartphones including the iPhone, computers and tablets, including the iPad and Android devices. So, it’s a pretty rational decision to stick with publishing Kindle eBooks.
After weeks of tortuous research, I’ve now finalized my indie-author strategy for publishing my first novel. I’m mightily relieved that I’m releasing A Calculated Life this month rather than six months ago because at least one major problem facing non-US authors has been addressed. But before I get into any detail, here’s the broad-brush plan. I’m not saying this will suit all indie-authors but I reckon it’s the best for my circumstances:
Six pages into my manuscript, for the final (absolutely final) read-through before e-publication, I decided to check whether em-dashes require character spaces.
Here’s the two lines of dialogue that prompted this check:
https://annecharnock.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/comma-photo.jpg480640annehttp://annecharnock.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/AC-name-banner2.jpganne2012-10-01 17:58:002015-08-26 16:36:19Rethinking Em-Dashes and Other Punctuation Malarky
In praise of novels without neat conclusions
/in Writing FictionHere’s a great article in today’s Guardian Books Blog by Lee Rourke. I couldn’t agree more and I love novels with fractured narratives.
Here’s one point that Lee makes that I particularly like:
Read more
What? Launch-day bestseller on Kindle?
/in EBOOK PUBLISHING, Science Fiction, Self-PublishingThis was a surprise: A Calculated Life reached the Kindle Bestseller List for Science Fiction on Amazon’s UK store, on launch day.
So was it Flukey-Tuesday, or what? I’ve been mulling this over and . . . I suspect I’ll never know the reason. Read more
‘A Calculated Life’ is now available on Amazon
/in EBOOK PUBLISHING, Self-PublishingI clicked the ‘Save and Publish’ button yesterday morning and just seven hours later A Calculated Life went live on Amazon’s websites as an eBook. To be precise, at 18:28:12 GMT on Monday 12 November. Read more
Manchester: the perfect setting for Science Fiction
/in Manchester, Science FictionBaby at Manchester University
So why did I chose Manchester and the North West of England as the main setting for A Calculated Life? It’s not simply because I know this city and region (I could have chosen London, which I know well enough).
The fact is that Manchester shouted out as being totally appropriate. I couldn’t resist. You see, A Calculated Life is set later in the 21st Century. It’s Science Fiction or, as others might classify the novel, Speculative Fiction. It presents a dystopian view of the future – one in which humans have adopted many advances in neural implant technology and genetic engineering. As Ray Kurzweil argues in The Age of Spiritual Machines, once we discovered computation we reset our future evolutionary path.
So where better to locate this futuristic novel, than the city where the first commercial computer was developed. Read more
Why did I even begin to write this novel?
/in Science Fiction, Writing FictionIt all began . . . at the turn of the millennium when, after I’d recovered from the celebrations, I read a long review in The Guardian‘s New Year edition of Ray Kurzweil’s book The Age of Spiritual Machines. His predictions were a wake-up call. He imagined a future when humans start to merge with technology, that is, when wealthier humans boost their brainpower by way of neural implants (welI, I can see the upside, who wouldn’t? Imagine being fluent in seven languages…).
Kurzweil argues that it’s absolutely inevitable that the next step in our evolution will involve cognitive implants. By the year 2099, he says humans with neural implants will be unable to hold a meaningful conversation with humans who do not have them; the divide will be too great.
This was seriously scary stuff, or I thought so at least. I was already looking at the dividing line between humans and machines in my art practice, but Kurzweil’s predictions really unnerved me. Read more
Decisions for Indie-Authors going Kindle
/in EBOOK PUBLISHING, PRINT-ON-DEMAND, Self-PublishingAlong with most authors I’ve opted to go, initially, with Kindle Direct Publishing because, quite simply, this reaches the highest number of potential readers. Indeed, many indie-authors don’t bother with any other eBook or any Print-on-Demand (POD) provider. I can see the logic: readers can access Kindle books without even owning a Kindle device. There are free Kindle Reading Apps for smartphones including the iPhone, computers and tablets, including the iPad and Android devices. So, it’s a pretty rational decision to stick with publishing Kindle eBooks.
However, Read more
My Indie-Author Strategy
/in EBOOK PUBLISHING, PRINT-ON-DEMAND, Self-PublishingAfter weeks of tortuous research, I’ve now finalized my indie-author strategy for publishing my first novel. I’m mightily relieved that I’m releasing A Calculated Life this month rather than six months ago because at least one major problem facing non-US authors has been addressed. But before I get into any detail, here’s the broad-brush plan. I’m not saying this will suit all indie-authors but I reckon it’s the best for my circumstances:
Read more
Rethinking Em-Dashes and Other Punctuation Malarky
/in Self-PublishingSix pages into my manuscript, for the final (absolutely final) read-through before e-publication, I decided to check whether em-dashes require character spaces.
Here’s the two lines of dialogue that prompted this check:
‘You were worried. I wasn’t —’
‘I over-reacted. I didn’t mean it.’
but maybe it should be this:
‘You were worried. I wasn’t—’
‘I over-reacted. I didn’t mean it.’
Read more