BSFA Announces 2016 Awards Long Lists

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Happy New Year, everyone!

I’m delighted to see that my second novel Sleeping Embers of an Ordinary Mind is included in two categories of the British Science Fiction Awards long lists: Novel and Art. What fabulous company I’m in!

If you are a member of BSFA you might keep my novel in mind when you complete your ballot form.

If you’re not a member of BSFA you’ll still find some great reading recommendations on the long lists. Take a look.

Screen Shot 2016-01-04 at 11.57.18Recent review

Over the holiday season, I was thrilled to read author Nina Allan’s review of Sleeping Embers of an Ordinary Mind on her excellent blog The Spider’s House. In her article “Two for the road—best of British,” Nina assesses both my book and Matthew de Abaitua’s novel If Then.

I’ll be adding Matthew’s book to my reading pile!

Here’s a brief excerpt from Nina Allan’s commentary on Sleeping Embers of an Ordinary Mind:

… this quiet, lovely and exquisitely crafted novel is itself a masterclass in composition … As in her debut novel A Calculated Life, the clarity and refined elegance of Charnock’s prose is a significant achievement.

Read the full review here.

Sleeping Embers of an Ordinary Mind makes The Guardian’s Best SF of 2015

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Screen Shot 2015-12-03 at 19.35.12It’s that time of year! And I’m delighted to let you know that The Guardian has included my recently released novel, Sleeping Embers of an Ordinary Mind, in “The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of 2015.”

Critic Adam Roberts begins his annual round-up: “As per that ancient Chinese curse, SF and fantasy have been living through interesting times.” What follows is a  balanced summary of this year’s debate about the future of the genre.

If you’re looking for some good reading for the holiday season take a look at Adam Roberts’ reading highlights of the past 12 months.

Elsewhere, I’m also very chuffed that Charlie Jane Anders at io9 has included my novel in “All the Science Fiction and Fantasy Books You Can’t Afford To Miss In December!”

Again, there’s plenty of books to choose from in io9’s recommended new releases.

Happy reading!

Launch Week! Bustle Best Books Review and Guest Posts

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It’s been a hectic week with the full release of Sleeping Embers of an Ordinary Mind, and I know some of you have followed events in my little book bubble via Twitter and Facebook. Thanks so much for chiming in with comments and replies—very exciting to get feedback!

I thought I’d summarize the media coverage so far. I’ve been busy writing original copy for several websites, which I’ve really enjoyed doing. So, here goes:

BUSTLE

This is a big surprise: I’m totally chuffed that Sleeping Embers of an Ordinary Mind is reviewed by Bustle, and included in Melissa Ragsdale’s 13 of December 2015’s Best Books to Go With Your Holiday Cheer. This is a US website with, I believe, 10 million monthly visitors. Crikey O’Reilly! According to the website, Bustle is written “for and by women who are moving forward as fast as you are.” Melissa has compiled a lovely list of books, some in translation, and I’m adding them all to my reading pile. Read more →

Heather Wilds on Narrating Sleeping Embers of an Ordinary Mind

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While camping on Anglesey in north Wales this summer I received an enthusiastic email from my publisher suggesting a narrator, Heather Wilds, for the audiobook for my second novel. The email included a link to a voicereel. So, I sat outside the campsite bar—close enough for good WiFi reception, but far enough away to hear the voicereel over the bar’s 1970s music selection. After listening to just five minutes of clips, I emailed my response: “Fantastic. Heather Wilds is perfect for this book!” Read more →

UPDATE: Novels with Fictional Art — Why I Don’t Count Words — Speculiction Review

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Screen Shot 2015-11-25 at 11.39.43It’s one week to the official release day for Sleeping Embers of an Ordinary Mind, and I’d like to thank Tor.com for inviting me to talk about novels with fictitious works of art at the heart of their plots. This is part of Tor.com’s popular ‘5 Novels About’ series. Take a look at my book selection here!

Despite all the distractions of my book release, I’ve taken part in November’s National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). I’ve written an article on Medium: NaNoWriMo: Why I Don’t Count Words, in which I lament our transition from the analogue Screen Shot 2015-11-25 at 11.55.01world of manual typewriters to the digital world of laptops and precise word counts. Read more →

47North Deal For Dreams Before The Start Of Time

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What a year this is turning out to be! I’m dizzy. Back in April, I delivered the manuscript for my second novel, Sleeping Embers Of An Ordinary Mind (imminent release date, 1 December) and this month I’ve signed a contract for my third novel with 47North. The title is Dreams Before The Start Of Time and the publication date is scheduled for early 2017. That sounds a long way off. But, believe me, it isn’t! 47North Logo

The premise for this novel has been in my thoughts for some time. I initially approached it as a novella project, but I’ve decided the ideas need more breathing space. So, a novel it will be! And, I’m looking forward to developing this manuscript with the guidance of my excellent editor, Jason Kirk.

Read more →

5 Authors On Their Short Story Inspirations

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Pre-order the Kindle eBook.

Pre-order the Kindle eBook.

Next week, my story “The Adoption” will be published in an anthology of speculative fiction—Phantasma—edited by J.D. Horn and Roberta Trahan. I decided to celebrate the anthology’s upcoming release by reflecting on a piece of short fiction that inspired my fiction writing. And this led me to wonder if my co-contributors could pinpoint short stories that influenced their own work.

So I’m delighted to share in this blogpost a few reflections on short form by J.D. Horn, Roberta Trahan, Jason Kirk and Kate Maruyama.

You can pre-order Phantasma Stories, a Kindle eBook, and it will be delivered to your Kindle device or Kindle app on 22 September!

So here goes, in alphabetical order… Read more →

My New Website and The Latest on Phantasma Stories

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I decided to pile on the stress this summer by rebuilding my website!

As the rebuild progressed, my second novel Sleeping Embers Of An Ordinary Mind moved steadily forward from its development edit, to copy edit and proofread. And, at the same time, I polished my short story ‘The Adoption” for the anthology, Phantasma Stories, which will include stories by J. D. Horn, Jason Kirk, Kate Maruyama, Jodi McIsaac and Roberta Trahan.

Over recent weeks I’ve solved a few glitches on the new website and blog. As for the trickiest problems, I’m fortunate to have an ace troubleshooter at hand, namely, my son Adam!

So here is the new website! Read more →