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Archive for September, 2008
First couple of acceptances for Catastrophia anthology
Posted by Paul Raven on September 30th, 2008 at 8:16
Allen Ashley dropped us a line here at PS Headquarters to let us know he’s already bought two stories for the Catastrophia anthology – and from two very significant writers on the genre landscape, no less! Take it away, Allen:
“I’ve so far accepted two stories for the forthcoming PS Publishing anthology Catastrophia. The stories are by Brian W. Aldiss and Adam Roberts respectively. I’m looking for approximately fifteen stories in total and am still actively seeking submissions as detailed previously. If you have already submitted, be assured that your work is receiving due consideration and that you will hear back from me within three months. Lastly, to answer a query posed by one correspondent – please only send one story at a time. Thanks.”
Have you got a good catastrophe story tucked away in a drawer or hard drive somewhere? Then why not try your luck – but be sure to read the submission details first!
Joshua Reynolds reviews James Barclay’s Vault Of Deeds
Posted by Paul Raven on September 27th, 2008 at 9:00
Yet more reviews of PS Publishing titles at The Fix Online! This time it’s the turn of James Barclay‘s new novella, Vault of Deeds, which seemed to go down pretty well with reviewer Joshua Reynolds:
There’s a hint of Terry Pratchett in places, a particularly sharp sense of wit, but for the most part, Barclay sticks to the comedy basics. This is by no means a bad thing. Vault of Deeds is consistently amusing and consistently entertaining without becoming tiresome, and the slightly off-kilter pacing gives the whole thing an engaging cinematic style that goes well with the genre. More fantasy novels should be like this.
So, if you’re tired of oh-so-serious fantasy doorstops, maybe Vault Of Deeds will act as a fine palate cleanser – or, as Reynolds says, “a good story to kill an afternoon with”. Whatever your reason, click through below to order your copy of the latest James Barclay title before they all disappear!
- Vault Of Deeds – hardcover [£10 / $20 approx; 500 copies only]
- Vault Of Deeds – jacketed hardcover [£25 / $50 approx; 300 copies only]
Cover art for Christopher Golden’s The Hiss of Escaping Air
Posted by Paul Raven on September 24th, 2008 at 9:58
Christopher Golden was a Guest of Honour at the just-gone FantasyCon, and PS Publishing made up a special super-limited chapbook of Chris’s story “The Hiss Of Escaping Air” to mark the event. Here’s the cover art, as produced by black’n'white maestro by Wayne Blackhurst:
I’m reliably informed that there are still a few of these available… and at just £6 ($11 or so), that’s a collectible bargain right there, so click on through to the PS Webstore and get your copy ordered!
Shopping carts with wonky wheels – PS Webstore announcement
Posted by Paul Raven on September 23rd, 2008 at 17:55
Hi folks;
Just a quick note. We’ve been experiencing a few problems with our shopping cart in the PS Store over the weekend (which, if you’re into the geek stuff, were caused by a problematic server upgrade that meant our hosting provider’s server was no longer talking to our e-commerce software provider’s Secure server).
The problem seems to have been resolved now, so we should be able to take orders again normally. But if you do encounter any difficulties, please send an email to service [at] pspublishing [dot] co [dot] uk and we’ll check to see if the issue has re-surfaced.
Cheers!
PS Publishing triumphant at British Fantasy Awards!
Posted by Paul Raven on September 21st, 2008 at 11:47
I may be many miles away from FantasyCon, but thanks to the magic powers of the internet news has arrived at my publicist’s garret that PS Publishing made a very strong showing in this year’s British Fantasy Awards!
The full results can be seen over on the BFS blog, but I’m sure you’ll forgive me for cherrypicking our moments of glory from the set:
- Best Novella: Conrad Williams for The Scalding Rooms [last few hardcover editions left in stock!]
- Best Novel: ‘The August Derleth Fantasy Award’: Ramsey Campbell for The Grin of The Dark [last few slipcased editions left in stock!]
But the jewel in the crown – from where I’m sitting, at least – is this one:
- Best Small Press: Peter Crowther, PS Publishing
I’m positive Pete must be over the moon at being recognised for his hard work, and as someone with an inkling of just how much hard work goes into running PS, I can assure you it’s well deserved.
But it’s not all about us! It’s great to see that small presses and independent operators have made their presence felt in the final results, and on behalf of the whole PS Publishing team I’d like to congratulate everyone, winners and nominees in all categories alike.
After all, we’re all working toward the same goal in the end: producing great books for people to enjoy. And – at the risk of sounding a little schmaltzy – that’s it’s own reward, in and of itself.
The Fix reviews Mark Samuels’ Glyphotech
Posted by Paul Raven on September 19th, 2008 at 11:50
The Fix Online has gotten to grips with yet another PS Publishing title in recent days. This time out, Joshua Reynolds takes on the latest Showcase collection – Glyphotech by Mark Samuels, which is to be launched this weekend at FantasyCon.
As is traditional at The Fix, it’s a long and in-depth review that examines each story in some detail, so if you want a blow-by-blow account you should pop over and read the whole thing. But in the interests of praising our authors publically whenever we get the chance, I’ll quote Reynolds’ closing paragraph:
All in all, I can’t recommend this collection highly enough for the discerning reader. If you like your horror with a dash of cosmic nihilism and rampant urban decay, PS Showcase 4: Glyphotech and Other Macabre Processes is worth a second look. Possibly even a third.
You can’t get a straighter recommendation than that. So why not give Mark Samuels a try? Click through below to order a copy of Glyphotech and have it despatched to you (as soon as the PS postal goblins have recovered from FantasyCon):
- Glyphotech – hardcover [£10 / $20 approx.]
- Glyphotech – jacketed hardcover [£25 / $50 approx.]
Slipcased edition of Joe Hill’s Gunpowder sold out already!
Posted by Peter Crowther on September 17th, 2008 at 20:23
Wow, we know he’s good . . . and clearly so do you.
Due to an unprecedented demand for Joe Hill’s new novella GUNPOWDER, we’ve sold out of the slipcased hardcover edition already. Thus all future orders for that edition will be returned. We still have — as of this moment (so who knows what it’ll be like in say another ten minutes) — copies left of the regular signed edition but please note that, in order to be fair, we are restricting these to one copy per customer.
Best wishes
Pete Crowther
Latest news: new Joe Hill novella, Postscripts changes and more!
Posted by Peter Crowther on September 17th, 2008 at 19:00
Hi everyone! Here’s the latest news from PS Publishing headquarters:
GUNPOWDER by Joe Hill
Because he didn’t have The Talent — because of his random, pointless, terrible, irrevocable difference — Charley’s brothers could be brutal to him, if they could get him alone. Even Jake could be cruel, could be talked into cruelty, if it was presented properly. Or no, that wasn’t right. No one could talk Jake into anything. He was serenely above the persuasive force of social pressure. And yet it was Jake’s weakness, that he could talk himself into doing terrible things, if he felt some greater, probably illusory, good might be served.
So it happened one day when she went with Jake and Niles and Charley to service the core, which wasn’t its good old self these days. Every few months it would get stuck, just when it was shifting into an automated maintenance cycle, so that it couldn’t restore software or optimize the system… or shut down the rods to dump heat. Which meant the cycle had to be completed manually.
“What happens if the rods overheat?” Jake asked Elaine once.
“About a third of the planet would go up in a flash of light bright enough to blind God,” she told him.
Welcome to Gunpowder, a 22,600-word novella from Joe Hill… set in the far reaches of space on a small planet that serves as a home for a very special band of children.
Open now for pre-order, Gunpowder will be available in three formats:
- slipcased edition, signed by Joe and cover artist Vincent Chong — 200 copies (£50/$100) – 978-1-84863-016-1
- jacketed edition, signed by Joe — 300 copies (£25/$50) – 978-1-84863-015-4
- unsigned and unjacketed edition — 500 copies (£12/$25) – 978-1-84863-014-7
We’re aiming to have finished copies available in time for Christmas. Start saving now!
Postscripts changes afoot!
Also, many thanks for a huge response to our request for comments on the future and further development of Postscripts. The unanimous verdict was we should scrap its magazine strapline and convert to a quarterly anthology — and that’s exactly what will happen with effect from #18, due out in spring 2009. The changes will be thus:
- more words — instead of our hitherto usual 55-60,000 words, we’ll be going for between 70-80,000 [our novella titles generally run 20-40,000 words]
- the two-column format will change to a full-width format
- the current unlimited paperback edition costing £6/$12 will change to an unlimited hardcover costing £12/$25 [to be more in keeping with our novella line... which may well have to increase from its current £10/$20 price which it's had for the past seven or eight years]. The 200-copy signed hardcover costing £25/$50 will remain as is.
Subscription rates for the unsigned hardcover edition will be:
- four issues: £40 post-free (instead of £48 plus postage if you buy the issues individually — the paperback edition is currently £26 in the UK and £30 outside the UK)
- eight issues: £72 post-free (instead of £96 plus postage — not currently available)
- twelve issues: £96 post-free (instead of £144 plus postage — not currently available)
Subscription rates for the signed hardcover edition will be:
- four issues: £100 post-free (instead of £120 plus postage — no change)
- eight issues — £190 post-free (instead of £240 plus postage — not currently available)
- twelve issues: £270 post-free (instead of £360 plus postage — not currently available)
Subscribers will still receive a special chapbook each December, completely free of charge. These chapbooks will not be available to buy even direct from PS.
PLEASE NOTE THAT ALL CURRENT SUBSCRIPTIONS WILL BE HONOURED WITHOUT ANY ADDITIONAL PAYMENT BEING REQUIRED. PLEASE ALSO NOTE THAT THE CHANGES WILL NOT BE POSTED ONTO THE WEBSITE UNTIL DECEMBER, WHEN WE ADVERTISE SUBSCRIPTIONS STARTING WITH POSTSCRIPTS #18. THUS ANY SUBSCRIPTIONS PLACED COMMENCING WITH AN ISSUE PRIOR TO #18 MAY BE PAID FOR AT THE CURRENT ADVERTISED PRICE, EVEN THOUGH THAT SUBSCRIPTION WILL INCLUDE ISSUES INCLUDING #18 AND LATER NUMBERS.
Latest acquisitions
Just to update you on the latest titles that have opened the PS chequebook in recent days:
- a new novella from Richard Parks — THE HEAVENLY FOX
Plus, new Postscripts stories from
- Jack Ketcham
- Norman Prentiss
- Robert Reed
- Ron Savage
- David Wilbanks
And just this very day, we’ve finalised details on the purchase of Ramsey Campbell‘s new novel CREATURES OF THE POOL for a mid-2009 release. As Ramsey’s agent quipped in his covering letter, “I never thought I would draw comparison between Liverpool and Innsmouth… !” And he’s absolutely right. A gem!
PS Publishing at FantasyCon
If you’re going to be at FantasyCon this coming weekend (19-21 September 2008) do be sure to stop me (preferably in the bar area… with money in your hand) and say hi. We’ll be launching the following PS Publishing titles on Saturday afternoon:
- VAULT OF DEEDS by James Barclay
- REVOLVO by Steven Erikson
- THE HISS OF ESCAPING AIR by Christopher Golden
- CAGE OF NIGHT by Ed Gorman
- THE SONG OF TIME by Ian MacLeod
- POSTSCRIPTS #15
- THE ENIGMA OF DEPARTURE by Nicholas Royle
- GLYPHOTECH by Mark Samuels
And that’s about it. Short and sweet this time – so I’ll try to remember to ramble a little more the next time we chat. Look after each other… and happy reading!
Pete
Postscripts #15 reviewed at The Fix Online
Posted by Paul Raven on September 16th, 2008 at 8:54
Postscripts #15 is a bit of a monster – so much so that The Fix had to split the reviewing of it between two reviewers! The resulting review is pretty comprehensive, with a couple of paragraphs about each story, and sometimes more. But in summary, Alliette de Bodard says:
… Postscripts #15 showcases an impressive variety of SF, from humorous pieces to horror crossovers—many of them of very good quality. This issue is definitely worth checking out.
Well, we tend to agree! If you’re going to FantasyCon this coming weekend, you can pick up Postscripts #15 from a friendly member of the PS Publishing team. Otherwise, click through below to request that the PS postal goblins despatch you a copy forthwith:
- Postscripts #15 – multi-autograph slipcased hardcover [£75 ]
- Postscripts #15 – signed hardcover [£30 ]
- Postscripts #15 – hardcover [£15 ]
Latest PS Publishing fiction acquisitions
Posted by Paul Raven on September 12th, 2008 at 10:21
It may not look like it from out there, but it’s all go behind the scenes here at PS Publishing – there’s always something new to do. Naturally, a big part of the business is finding and buying new stories and novels to publish for you to read, and we thought you’d be interested to see which titles and authors have encouraged Pete and Nicky Crowther to deploy the PS chequebook in recent weeks.
So, the following stories will be appearing in future issues of Postscripts:
- “Int. Morgue. Night” by Rjurik Davidson
- “The Summer of Love” by Rio Youers
- “Horses” by Livia Llewellyn
- “Hand-Scratched Note” by Catherine Gardner
- “The Famous Cave Paintings on Isolus 9″ by Chris Beckett
- “O King of Pain and Splendor” by Darrell Schweitzer
- “Parting Shots” by Chaz Brenchley
- “The Human Element” by Eric Brown
- “Denny” by Kit Reed
Then there’s three newly-bought novellas:
- OLD MAN SCRATCH by Rio Youers
- THE BROKEN MAN by Michael Byers
- PRINCE OF NOWHERE by Parke Godwin
And one full novel:
- END TIMES by Rio Youers
In his email to me, Pete wrote “As you can see, we reckon Rio Youers is a name to watch.” It certainly looks that way!
PS classics reviewed by the BFS
Posted by Paul Raven on September 10th, 2008 at 10:43
The British Fantasy Society publishes a quarterly magazine for its members in which it runs book reviews, and a few PS Publishing titles took a run through the critical gauntlet in the most recent edition.
Reviewer Steve Dean makes no bones about being a fan of the classic stuff. Here’s what he had to say about Tales From the White Hart by the late Sir Arthur C Clarke [hardcover £20, slipcased hardcover £50]:
The short stories themselves are all gems from the golden age of SF. [...] Although showing their age, these stories are living examples of how to write a short story. They have beginnings, middles and even (gasp!) endings, real characters and a plot of some kind. I thoroughly recommend it.
Keeping on the old-school tip, Dean also took a look at the 50th Anniversary edition of Ray Bradbury‘s Dandelion Wine [hardcover £20, slipcased hardcover £50]:
… a welcome tonic to all the sex and violence and mild peril of today’s genre media. [... Originally] published in 1957, this book is obviously showing its age. But good writing never ages, and the writing here is superlative. I would recommend this book, particularly to those who would like a comparison with today’s fiction. Just don’t expect action, blood or sex.
Heaven forfend! Readers in search of action, blood and sex should probably browse through the rest of the PS Publishing catalogue. ;)
Catastrophia anthology – call for submissions
Posted by Paul Raven on September 9th, 2008 at 11:08
Allen Ashley is in the process of putting together a new anthology for PS Publishing. Entitled Catastrophia, it will be “a collection of stories loosely themed around the theme of catastrophes, disasters and post-apocalyptic fiction.”
Submissions have been open for a little while, but we thought we’d put up the whole set of guidelines here to make sure everyone knows what’s happening. Mr Ashley, take it away…
CATASTROPHIA
Edited by Allen Ashley
Guidelines
Catastrophia will be a collection of stories loosely themed around the theme of catastrophes, disasters and post-apocalyptic fiction. I will be looking for original, unpublished stories which deal in a modern manner with these classic SF- and Horror-based tropes.
Rights and other technical details
I’m looking only for original material – no reprints. I will be buying First British and First North American Rights for your story with a one-year moratorium subsequent to publication. I can offer 3p/6c a word up to a maximum payment of £100 / $200 per story. The book will be published by PS Publishing and the current expected pub date is summer 2010.
Submissions
The submission period will open on 1st August 2008 and will last until 31st May 2009 or whenever the book is full. Unless specified otherwise, all submissions should be sent as disposable hard copies to:
Allen Ashley
Editor: Catastrophia
110d Marlborough Road
Bounds Green
London, N22 8NN
England
Please include an email address for reply or a stamped and addressed envelope. Response time will be three months or less.
Stories should ideally be in the range of 2000 to 6000 words although both longer and shorter tales will be considered.
Catastrophe? What catastrophe?
In short, some event that rapidly changes the world social order, threatens the survival of humankind or the Earth, reduces people to a state of mere hand-to-mouth existence, puts the clock of progress back a couple of thousand years almost overnight, takes our attention off the exploits of celebrities, footballers and politicians and instead focuses it on keeping ourselves and our loved ones alive until sundown . . . and so on. As I said in my own story ‘The Overwhelm’ (in which the world was engulfed by fog): “Truly it didn’t take much for the veneer of civilisation to be stripped away.”
I will be taking a broad view of what constitutes a catastrophe/disaster / apocalypse but authors should note that I am not seeking gratuitous rape and violence fantasies.
A brief history of catastrophes
These tales have a long and prominent history within the genre and are among the first titles that spring to mind when listing SF classics. Discounting Biblical, mythical and similar precedents, this sub-genre probably started with:
The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells (invading Martians destroy Britain) and M. P. Shiel’s The Purple Cloud (Polar toxins kill everybody bar the protagonist).
Brian Aldiss famously labelled many of these stories as “cosy catastrophes” but that certainly hasn’t got in the way of our enjoyment. Your editor grew up on these stories and with Catastrophia expects to reinvigorate the genre for the twenty-first century. Indeed, recent films such as The Day After Tomorrow (environmental disaster), Deep Impact (comet strikes Earth) and the re-make of The War of the Worlds suggests the desire is there to be faced with the apocalyptic all over again.
Further reading
- Brian Aldiss – Greybeard (no children are born);
- Brian Aldiss – Barefoot in the Head (LSD contamination causes social breakdown);
- J. G. Ballard – The Drowned World, The Drought, The Crystal World, The Wind From Nowhere – early quartet of psychological /environmental disaster novels from the master;
- Edmund Cooper – All Fool’s Day and Richard Matheson – I Am Legend (benchmark post-apocalyptic last man on Earth tales);
- Edmund Cooper – Kronk and Charles Platt – The Gas (rampant venereal disease / sex plagues);
- John Christopher – The World in Winter (new ice age);
- John Christopher – Death of Grass (aka No Blade of Grass) (All grass / wheat / rice crops fail);
- Keith Roberts – The Furies (giant wasps);
- John Wyndham – The Day of the Triffids (blindness and killer plants);
- John Wyndham – The Kraken Wakes (marauding sea monsters);
- Roger Zelazny – Damnation Alley (Mad Max started here).
For a really modern catastrophe story in the short form, I recommend that you track down ‘Approaching Zero’ by John Lucas (contemporary lifestyles as catastrophe!), most recently available in my anthology from Elastic Press, The Elastic Book Of Numbers (2005).
Catastrophes for the new millennium
With the current prominence of ‘Green’ issues, you may well decide to try your hand at environmental disaster, biological agents running amuck, responses to the future fuel and water shortages or similar themes . . .
I’ve always quite liked the idea of the animal and plant kingdoms getting their own back on Humankind (See The Furies, Day of the Triffids, the film Them, etc) – so I would be quite receptive to an idea along those lines. No zombies or vampires, though, which have been done to death.
Similarly, I’m open to something based on our dependence on technology in the so-called Information Age. But no cyberspeak gobbledegook, please, and no rehash of Transformers.
I’m sure there’s plenty of material to extrapolate from. Better still, come up with a fresh catastrophe idea, something that has not been explored before but is still close enough to the real world to convince as an extrapolation or a possibility.
Good luck!
Allen
editorcatastrophia [at] hotmail [dot] co [dot] uk
Fábio Fernandes reviews Template
Posted by Paul Raven on September 8th, 2008 at 10:24
Well, what nicer a thing for a humble PR geek to find on return from holiday than a strong review of a book from the catalogue he represents, eh? Over at Fantasy Book Critic, Fábio Fernandes takes an extended look at Matthew Hughes‘ Template, and in addition to comparing it to both Jorge Luis Borges and Iain M Banks, he has the following to say:
All in all, Template is good reading. Because there is another requisite it fulfils very well: it is fun to read—and what good is a game to the player if he/she can’t enjoy it? Or, as Conn Labro himself would ask: “what’s the tangible gain?” The tangible gain here is a well-spent time.
Strong worldbuilding, a pacey plot and some snarky social commentary – what more could you ask for from a novel? Click through below to grab yourself a copy of Template and explore the Archonate in the company of Matthew Hughes:
- Template (slipcased hardcover) – £50.00 ($100.00 approx.)
- Template (hardcover) - £20.00 ($40.00 approx.)
Cover art for The Enigma Of Departure by Nicholas Royle
Posted by Paul Raven on September 2nd, 2008 at 9:00
More cover art goodness for you, this time in the form of Nicholas Royle‘s imminent PS Publishing novella, The Enigma Of Departure. Barry Burman is the man behind the suitably enigmatic image:
Here’s a teaser from the jacket copy:
“I followed Henry James’s advice and approached Venice from the sea, taking the Alilaguna boat from Marco Polo Airport to the Piazza San Marco. There were quicker ways to get to the hotel, but I was travelling light and preferred to walk. I wanted to feel in control again, having had to surrender that privilege on the flight. As I walked, though, I soon remembered that Venice is a city that constantly surprises you. Once you leave the main routes, the map is almost impossible to follow and you have to trust to instinct and your sense of direction, both of which are compromised the moment you cross a bridge and start following the line of the canal. WC Fields was right about water. It is not to be trusted.
“Disoriented, you hunt for clues in the city’s myriad smells – salt, fish, damp, frying onions, rotting algae – but each one is a false scent. Your head spins at every sudden new sound, but the acoustics are a cacophony of random deceptions. The Rite of Spring reinterpreted by Steve Reich.
“Control, in Venice, was an illusion. It was the ideal location, I realised, for one of Mike Nelson’s architectural installations, in which nothing was what it seemed and everything was in question.”
Sounds good – I like books that introduce me to real places that I’ve never visited, and Venice has always intrigued me with its long and colourful history. I’m looking forward to this one! You can get your name down for one of the first copies by clicking through below to make a pre-order:
- The Enigma Of Departure (jacketed hardcover) – £25.00 ($50.00 approx.)
- The Enigma Of Departure (hardcover) - £10.00 ($20.00 approx.)