Genre News

Once again I've got a backlog of interesting things that I don't have time to give individual blog posts to, so here's some genre news:

PYR has entered the YA fiction field with three novels: debut author K. D. McEntire with Lightbringer (urban fantasy/paranormal romance), Ian McDonald with Planesrunner (SF) and Ari Marmell with Thief's Covenant (fantasy).  Why publish books specific to the 12+ market?

[Lou] Anders says, “We believe there is a real hunger in the growing YA readership for narratives that explore the full, imaginative breadth of what science fiction and fantasy has to offer. Of our first three Pyr titles for the YA reader, two are from authors who primarily write for the adult book market, an acquisitions approach we decided best served this need. Also, it's long been said that 'the Golden Age of science fiction is twelve,' and while this is somewhat tongue-in-cheek, it speaks to the common interests of those who read speculative fiction, whether teen or adult. With many adult readers turning to Young Adult fiction to recapture the sense of wonder and fun that the best stories in any category have always embodied, it made sense for us to bring our expertise, and that of our authors, to this new arena.”

The Nebula Awards Showcase, an all fiction anthology edited by Kevin J. Anderson will be published May 24th, to coincide with the Nebula Awards happening this weekend.

...the anthology includes May 2010’s short fiction award nominees—a “spiffy bunch” (Kirkus) of the year’s best science fiction and fantasy from some of the most recognizable names in the field, including Paolo Bacigalupi, Kage Baker, Eugie Foster, and Kij Johnson as well as classic reprints from Joe W. Haldeman (Grand Master Award for life achievement) and Neal Barrett, Jr (Author Emeritus).

Becca Fitzpatrick's upcoming Hush, Hush Graphic Novel got new artwork for the character of Patch based on reader comments.

Finally, ABC has announced 2 new shows, a remake of Charlie's Angels and Once Upon a Time.  Looks like fairy tales are the new vampires.  Here's the Once Upon a Time trailer:



NBC has its own fairy tale show coming this fall, Grimm.  Looks like it might be comparable to Supernatural.

Publisher Spotlight: PYR

In an attempt to introduce readers to newer/smaller publishers, I've started an endcap series at the store called Publisher Spotlight.  For three months the publisher's books are displayed.  This is the second month for the PYR display (which has changed as things sell down).  Enjoy!

And if you don't know PYR, check out their website and read some of their awesome books.

New Author Spotlight: Mark Hodder

Author Spotlight is a series designed to introduce authors with 3 books or less in the different SF/F subgenres.

Today's spotlight shines on Mark Hodder.

Mark Hodder's books include:

• The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack by Mark Hodder (Pyr)

Here's the cover copy for The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack:

London, 1861.

Sir Richard Francis Burton—explorer, linguist, scholar, and swordsman; his reputation tarnished; his career in tatters; his former partner missing and probably dead.

Algernon Charles Swinburne—unsuccessful poet and follower of de Sade; for whom pain is pleasure, and brandy is ruin!

They stand at a crossroads in their lives and are caught in the epicenter of an empire torn by conflicting forces: Engineers transform the landscape with bigger, faster, noisier, and dirtier technological wonders; Eugenicists develop specialist animals to provide unpaid labor; Libertines oppose repressive laws and demand a society based on beauty and creativity; while the Rakes push the boundaries of human behavior to the limits with magic, drugs, and anarchy. The two men are sucked into the perilous depths of this moral and ethical vacuum when Lord Palmerston commissions Burton to investigate assaults on young women committed by a weird apparition known as Spring Heeled Jack, and to find out why werewolves are terrorizing London's East End.

Their investigations lead them to one of the defining events of the age, and the terrifying possibility that the world they inhabit shouldn't exist at all!

If you like this title, you might also like:

• Boneshaker by Cherie Priest (Tor Books)
• The Horns of Ruin by Tim Akers (Pyr)
• Whitechapel Gods by S.M. Peters (Roc)

PYR Starts Author Round Tables

Starting today, PYR books will be doing periodic author round tables.

In what we intend as a regular Pyr-o-mania feature, we will be asking our authors a few questions about writing and their books.

For their first one, they welcome authors: Mark Chadbourn, Jasper Kent and James Barclay.

Book Expo Cont'd - SF Publisher Booths

This post is to showcase some of the amazing booths that were set up. I didn't photograph the major players (Random House, Penguin, etc.) as they didn't have their genre imprints in evidence. Instead you'll see some of the smaller presses that specialize in Sci-Fi and Fantasy. If you've never heard of them, then check out the links at the side of this blog and pay them a visit.


BL Publishing - publishes mostly War Hammer and other gaming related books. They're currently selling their Solaris imprint so they can focus on thier other lines. Let's hope the new owner of Solaris does as good a job as BL has done with it. (Solaris publishes such authors as Gail Z. Martin, Emily Gee and Eric Brown.)

Orbit is the 2 year old SF imprint of Hachette Book Group. They've come out of the gates with a truly remarkable line-up, which just keeps getting better. (Some of their authors: Brent Weeks, Brian Ruckley and Jeff Somers.)

Paizo books has been publishing a lot of pulp SF classics under their Planet Stories imprint. They've decided to put a more pulp look on their covers for future releases.

PYR, an imprint of Promethius Books, was showing off their first mass market: Joel Shepherd's Crossover. They've consistently published high quality books in the SF & F field.

A few publishers that were not represented this year: Dorchester books (C.L. Wilson); Abaddon Books (a UK publisher that does series fiction: Afterblight Chronicles, Pax Britannia, Tomes of the Dead); Juno; Prime; Chaosium...

It's been a difficult year for publishing. Let's hope these smaller presses weather the times to bring us good reads in the future.