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God of War 3

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The following fact should be perfectly clear if you’ve ever read any interview I’ve ever done or even know anything about me in general, but I will reiterate it anyway: I love God of War.  It is basically my favorite game series of all times (yes, all times, plural; it’s my favorite in the Bronze Age, the Roman Empire and the Crusades in addition to today’s age).  Upon reading this, you might think me possessing unnatural feelings for this game and its bald, blood-soaked protagonist, Kratos.  Let me assure you that all feelings for Kratos are irrelevant, as he responds to all affection with MURDER.

I say this for the following reason: no matter what I feel, what I think or how I may dream of one day killing someone through a quick-time event minigame, this game kicks exactly seven different kinds of ass (Australian, American, European, Incan, Martian, Smithsonian and the ass of some dude named Dennis).

Keeping in mind these disturbing and awkward confessions, let us go kidney-deep into this game…

Some of you may not know the story of the game, since God of War I and II came out in that black era of JRPGs and one-testicled fighters known as the age of PS2, so let me enlighten you.

This is Kratos.

Kratos is not a happy man.

Kratos was never a happy man.

Kratos pretty much does what he’s doing to Helios there, except to everyone. He did it to the former deity of war: Ares.  He did it to the former deity of wisdom: Athena.  And now, having slaughtered close to a fourth of the Greek pantheon, he has returned, riding atop the backs of the formerly imprisoned Titans, to finish the rest of them off, climbing Mount Olympus to kill vengeful Zeus and eviscerate, decapitate, decimate, annihilate and sometimes masticate all of the mythical Chimeras, Minotaurs, Gorgons and Cerberi standing in his way.

The single word that would summarize this game is epic. There is absolutely nothing about this game that isn’t cranked up to 11, graphics or content-wise.  From the great, primordial Titans that carry Kratos to face the Gods, brimming with their own heavenly fury, everything about this game is completely balls-off-the-wall.

Recently, I’ve begun using my own style of scoring for any kind of book, video game or movie I see.  And that is how many times it manages to make me guffaw like an overstimulated buffoon, cackle like a hyena at a frat party or squeal like a little girl seeing a pale, pasty Briton.  Basically, the stupider I look playing a game, the better it is.

Approximately two minutes into God of War 3, I probably resembled a drooling, gibbering mandrill and it only got worse from there.

The combat is superb.  God of War has always been a pioneer of combat, striking a perfect balance between easy-to-use controls and the challenge of mastering the delicate ebb and flow of a fight.  You can’t simply go mashing a button and winning all your fights.  You need to feel the fight.  You have to keep an eye on the Centaur in front of you, wondering when he’s going to charge you, while simultaneously fending off the vicious blows of his undead soldiers.  Add into this watching the skies for a vengeful sun god and you basically have something that is gory, violent and oddly beautiful, like a clockwork ballerina: everything moving in gorgeous, utter harmony as she gingerly wraps the twisting gears of her thighs around peoples’ necks and watches the skin bunch up, fold and split in the mechanism.

The beauty of the fights are only compounded by the graphics.  God of War is known for pushing the limits of a system’s visuals and God of War 3 continues this trend, not so much pushing the limits as smashing off a piece and using it to shatter the rest into pulverized dust.  That is to say, it’s very, very beautiful and…lordy, it’s like lovemaking.  You can’t describe it.  You must experience it.

Gorgeous, vastly elaborate environments, and the puzzles so greatly worked into them, are also an object of renown in God of War games and the third installment continues its new tradition of smashing this old tradition into dust.  The puzzles are fantastic, delicately woven into the environment so that they don’t feel so much as there just to inconvenience you as they are a natural part of the area.  Admittedly, if I have one criticism about this game, it’s that the head-scratchers might have been toned down from the previous installments, as there weren’t any real moments that caused me more than a few minutes’ pause (compared to God of War 2’s almost conspiratorially frustrating Phoenix Chamber), but overall, I think this is the best choice, as it means the action never once slows down.

Basically, the message is that this game not only succeeds, but succeeds to a phenomenal degree, at nearly everything it does: gameplay, graphics, puzzles, combat, design, monsters, soundtrack (beautiful orchestra done by Gerard Marino, Ron Fish and Cris Velasco).  I mean, hell, the depiction of Kratos himself is almost a work of art with the level of detail put into him.

It’s one of those games where the biggest flaw you can think of is that it eventually ends.

This is a game that has has a few people lamenting the lack of a PS3.  Is it worth the price of one alone?  Eh, possibly not.  Though, if you have your eye on any other PS3-exclusives, like Uncharted 2, then this one should be on your list, as well.

And if you have a PS3 and don’t own this game?  You are automatically worse than Hitler.  Yes, I know I just violated Godwin’s Law.  It’s that good a game.

God of War 3 Read More »

Blake Charlton: The Kids Are All Wright

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Good morning and welcome to another edition of–

What’s that?  Yes, I know I haven’t updated in awhile!  Blogging is harder than it looks!  Hey, let me show you something that will shut you up and soothe my fragile ego.

Check out some cool new reviews from The Speculative Scotsman and Floor to Ceiling Books!  What’s that?  Still not satisfied?  How about a fancy giveaway that is probably still going on at the Speculative Scotsman?  If you always wanted an ARC of Tome of the Undergates but didn’t have the fortitude to defeat Simon Spanton in battle for one, this might be your chance to achieve!

I digress, however.  You came here to see more interviews, didn’t you?  Well, as a special treat, I have fought, bled and battled my way to achieving an interview with one of the finest authors around.  It began with a simple query email that eventually spiraled out of control and became something far worse.  For weeks, I fought the author to stalemate after stalemate, each knife was wrenched out, each arrow plucked from our flesh, each near-miss a little too near until I finally defeated him and flung his body from the highest peak of Greece, thus securing the interview.

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you…Joe Abercrombie.

What the…oh, God damn it!  We’ve been infiltrated!

Well, Joe Abercrombie probably would have just talked about himself.  Let’s let someone else talk about themselves!

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you…Blake Charlton, author of SPELLWRIGHT!

Welcome, Blake.  The world is eager to know more about you, a young upcoming author, and the most persistent question on everyone’s mind is: who let you in here?

Bouncers, man, they have trouble with me. They see the shiny head and the protruding jaw and they think I’m a bouncer too. Gets me into all kind of places. Seriously, if I sit near the door of a bar, people come by and show me their driver licenses. When feeling mean, I tell them there’s a two dollar cover. I’d name a higher price, but I don’t hang out in bars highfalutin enough to charge more than two dollars.

Somehow, the glossy dome and the lantern jaw worked on the bouncers of the publication world: literary agents.

I’m pulling your leg, of course. But not in the metaphorical sense. I’m like, actually pulling your leg, Sam. It’s a bouncer trick. You’ve had one too many and you’re scaring the other patrons.

No, no!  See, when anyone else gets drunk, it’s just loutish behavior.  When an author get drunk, it’s…searching for a Muse or something like that.  Yeah, you dig?  But my rampant drunkenness is not the touchy subject we should be addressing!

Let’s discuss a particular disability of yours that has made writing your book not just an accomplishment, but a triumph.  Let me say that I greatly admire you for handling it in the way you do.  Frankly, it sometimes gets a little depressing watching other authors who are obviously struggling with the same thing live so deep in denial.  So, if you’re comfortable, Mr. Charlton, tell us…how exactly did you lose your hair?

When pregnant with me, my mother was scared by a white man with a comb-over. It was such a fright that it actually changed my DNA, preventing me from ever growing enough hair that I could wrong the universe in such a fashion.

SPELLWRIGHT hit the shelves only a couple of days ago!  Are you out promoting the hell out of that thing?  Or are your thoughts more concerned with the patient you just abandoned to a slow, malaria-induced death while you respond to these questions?  He needs a catheter change, by the way.

Here’s a hospital joke for you: “What’s the difference between a third year medical student and a pile of dog feces?”

Answer: “No one goes out of their way to step on the dog feces.”

Yes, that’s right, I’m so low on the medical totem pole, I’m actually biodegrading to help supply the grass with much needed nitrogen to complete the circle of life. That is to say, I’m not actually responsible for patient care at the moment. What’s more, I’m on a research year so I’m not in the hospital more than for research meetings. I do volunteer at our Free Clinic as many Sundays as possible to a) keep my head in the game (as it were), b) to help our patients who are uninsured or under insured, and c) induce feelings of guilt and moral obligation to volunteer in fantasy authors who names may or may not rhyme with the phrase “man hikes.”

So, Blake, knowing what type of degenerate actually reads this blog, what would you say to them to convince them to give SPELLWRIGHT a go?

Oh, ye Sam Sykes faithful, imagine the fantasy Sam might write after completing a five week course of anti-depressants, drinking five cups of coffee and one shot of tequila. Wouldn’t you want to read a fantasy like that?

I wouldn’t either. Let’s just stick with regular, full-strength Sam.

However, perhaps you’re looking for a fantasy that spills a physiologically dubious amount of blood out of dying sympathetic characters, who live in a morally bankrupt society, inhabited by protagonists you kind of hate.

Then you should probably avoid my book, take a hot bat, drink a few beers, and call mom. For serious. She misses you, man. It’s time to let it go.

Buuut, if you’re looking for fantasy with an original, mega-watt magic-system and an unabashedly non-gritty ass-kicking quest, you might want to peek at SPELLWRIGHT.

So, the book is out now.  Speaking as a fellow author, I know that the weeks leading up to a book’s release can be exceptionally hair-raising…or…or skin-raising, in your case, I guess?  But anyway, a friend of mine who is totally not me who is never ever hair-raised about anything be it man or beast wanted to know if life after launch is any less stressful?

Kind of, but not really. Like at all. So, yes. But also no. Well actually more yes but not in the way you’re thinking of.

Basically it’s like this: You poor bastard, you thought you had an unhealthy relationship with your amazon.com sales rank now? You two are just gonna get more and more dysfunctional. Buy her flowers or something, man.

Oh, but you do come across a few gems that make it worth your while. My new favorite blogger finished book, wondered when book two was coming out and then delivered the Best Review EVER: “Write faster, bald man!”

Finally, you and I see a lot of people on Twitter relating their own experiences and trials with writing a novel.  Anything you’d like to impart to them?

Rent Jerry MaGuire. Watch it again but substitute the word “football” for the word “publishing.” And stop the movie ten minutes before the happy ending.

Write for the love of what you write. A lot of people are going to tell you no. Don’t blame them; it’s their job. When you do convince one to say yes, be thankful they’re taking a chance on you. And take a deep breath, because you are taking a chance. There’s much more love than money in this industry, and people are paying attention to which contracts earn out and which don’t. The passion of your life might end up being midlisted into obscurity. Chances for fame and fortune are slim. You might have to take a second job, give up a pastime, stay up later, restart your writing career under another name. But if you love what you write, if you can take pride and pleasure in knowing that you brought it into existence, you’ll know the destination was worth the long journey.

Well, thanks a heap, Blake!  Now get out and leave through the backdoor.  We can’t have people seeing you around here!  They’ll talk!

SPELLWRIGHT is out right now in the United States and September in the United Kingdom!  Check it out!  Check it out while you still can!

Blake Charlton: The Kids Are All Wright Read More »

“My New Favorite Review,” or “Google Translate is a Magical Thing.”

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Elbakin is a new discovery to me, apparently a notable French fantasy blog that has reviews of nearly every piece of fantasy literature out there, as well as interviews, overviews, author profiles and a lot of really interesting things to read about…if you’re French.

Or, if you have Google Translator!

The online translator is a rather new innovation to the internet.  Originally conceived as a means for college students to spend less time studying and more time playing computer games, translators have since evolved into something far more sinister, acting as a sort of verbal serial killer, cornering beautiful, innocent languages in corners and hacking them into something grisly and unrecognizable.  We, the viewing public, are the detectives who must bite back the urge to vomit and have a good, long, ugly look at the mutilated corpse and try desperately to identify what it might have originally been, while fighting back the despair that this horrific murderer will go free and likely kill again, making his way through Spain, Germany, Holland, China and Japan before he is brought to justice.

That metaphor may have gotten a little out of hand.

For the record, Gillossen, the fellow who wrote this fine review, enjoyed the book.  This fact thrills me to the point of froth, as there’s a very special feeling knowing that someone who speaks another language found your own to be pleasing to his eye.  So to you, Gillossen, I extend my utmost gratitude and thanks, as well as the fervent hope that you will not find the following too offensive.

As it stands, I was curious to know what the review said, so a good friend of mine ran it through Google Translator and…well, at the risk of murdering an already exhausted metaphor, the detectives are having a hard time making sense of it.  Here are some choice bits:

Gollancz has often hit the jackpot in recent years with these new authors.

Everyone did not luck, or talent, “out” a Scott Lynch or Joe Abercrombie, to name but two.  And Sam (uel) Sykes represents the beginning of this year’s new hope for the English publisher through the 2010 vintage, with its Tome of the Undergates already divided.

Well, well!  High praise, indeed.  I especially like the line about being a new hope…in fact, I like it a lot.

“Sykes Wars: Episode IV: A New Hope.”

Clearly, Google Translator is suggesting I re-make Star Wars with Gollancz authors.  I guess I’m saddled with being Luke Skywalker.  That makes Mr. Abercrombie Han Solo, I imagine, with Mr. Lynch perhaps being Obi Wan Kenobi (he’s not dead, though…not yet).

I guess that makes Patrick Rothfuss Chewbacca.

The young man just 25 years, has a beautiful spirit and do not rely solely on his sense of dialogue to bring it forward.  His characters, and they are numerous, relatively evenly share the reader’s attention.

A beautiful spirit!  Sense of dialogue!  Evenly shared!  Yes, yes, go on!

If the author knows how to use the verb and renew itself, some may get bored after a few hundred pages.  Fortunately, things are improving itself in this area once entered a full foot in the main plot and the author seems to opt for a more conventional but also more controlled.

Rest assured, dear readers and dear Google Translator, the author does know how to use the verb and renew itself.

And now for my favorite part…

But what is certain is that Sam Sykes is a talented brat who can apparently keep in reserve some nice rounds in reserve for later.

It’s true that I’m often praised for my ability to hold things in reserve, just as it is likely true that I will probably be forever known as a talented brat.  I can think of worse titles, at least.

So there you have it!  I hope you, readers, were entertained at least a little.  I hope you, Gillossen, don’t hate me too much after running your words through this meat-grinder of verbiage.  And I hope you, Google Translator…

You stay classy.

Now, take us home!

There is more hope than he can channel his imagination and his enthusiasm for the future.  This seems largely to its scope, especially since writing that first novel that was begun several years ago already.

No doubt a certain maturity is breaking the tip of her nose…even if the author is amused, too!

8/10

You can check out the full review here, and check out Elbakin’s entire site here!  Thanks a lot, Elbakin!

“My New Favorite Review,” or “Google Translate is a Magical Thing.” Read More »

A Dribble of Ink

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Today’s Blogger Round-Up victim participant is one close to my heart transplant.  Aidan Moher of A Dribble of Ink is one of my favorite bloggers for several reasons.  Chief among them being that he tends to have his finger on the throbbing, sweaty jugular of the fantasy industry, with more interviews, reviews, articles, opinions and hate crimes to his name than nearly any other blogger I ever heard of.  Secondarily, but no less important, is his work with the South Korean girls’ pop group, Tainted Soul in Tainted Seoul, whom he is both a founder and premiere member of.

Without further ado, please cram this interview down your ravenous gullets and permit me to introduce…

So, let’s talk about your blog for a bit.  You’re pretty connected to the news of the fantasy world, able to get interviews with such greats as Blake Charlton and even deign to speak with such no-names like Joe Abercrombie, your reviews tend to be viewed as honest and affable and you’re a writer yourself.  You’re officially one of the big names in blogging.  Do you think your success is undeserved?  And if not, don’t you think you should?  What’s next for A Dribble of Ink?

Okay, first I should clear some things up about Abercrombie. He came to me. Both times, on hands and knees, no less. I don’t know why he was so desperate, his books are pretty popular, but he hounded me excessively, begging me to allow him on the blog.

One night, at three in the morning, I got a phone call. On the other end, through the static of the trans-atlantic phonelines, I could hear heavy breath, like the person was breathing only through their mouth, and the gentle scrape of a comb running through a well-tended neck-beard.

He uttered a single phrase, which I will not appear here, that sent a chill down my spine and haunting my dreamscapes with visions of Logen, Friendly and Ferro having unending threesomes. Ever since then, he’s been allowed to come on my blog and rant, in hopes that the dreams may one day cease.

As for the success of my blog, well, I work hard on it and pour a very substantial part of myself into it, so in that respect, yeah, I think the success is deserved. That said, my official answer is: ‘I’m nothing more than a humble guy just doin’ his thing. I didn’t even know people read my blog, I guess that’s kinda neat!’. There, now I don’t sound like an asshole.

What’s next? Onwards and upwards. This year I hope to cover more short fiction and conduct more interviews. Hopefully there’s good news on my own writing, also. Then I can turn A Dribble of Ink into a platform to shill my own material. That would be good, no?

You’re considered something of a Grinch to the publishing world’s Whoville, as pertains to cover art.  A lot of people are outspoken on the subject, but you seem to lead the way in both sniffing out and criticizing cover art.  How much does cover art really affect your enjoyment of a book?  What are some covers you’re looking forward to?  What do you hold up as the worst cover, bar none?

A grinch, really?

Okay, yeah, I can be hard on covers sometimes, but I also sing to the heavens when I come across a cover I love. In the grand scheme of things, they’re not of ultimate importance. I’ve enjoyed plenty of books with shit covers, and been bored by books with fabulous covers. For that matter, the ugly US edition of Joe Abercrombie’s <strong>Best Served Cold</strong> is just as good as the beautiful UK edition.

What really gets me up in arms isn’t so much poor cover art, but rather derivative cover art. Listen, I know that Brent Weeks’ Night Angel Trilogy sold well, but that doesn’t mean that every book falling into every remotely similar sub-genre also need to have a menacing J-Crew model in a hood. To use Weeks’ novels again as an example, the reason they were successful (ignoring all the marketing based around the entire trilogy being released in paperback over the span of two-months, which couldn’t possibly be the reason the sold so well), those covers were so striking and successful at the time because the trend hadn’t yet been set and the stood out on store shelves. Now they blend in.

What I’m really pushing for is for the art and marketing departments at publishing houses to really embrace the novels they are trying to sell and creatively represent them with bold, creative covers that make the story within appear interesting, not because it looks like some other book I read. A few covers I feel accomplish this: The Steel Remains by Richard Morgan, The Other Lands by David Anthony Durham, The Price of Spring by Daniel Abraham. That said, none of these sold nearly as many copies as Brent Weeks’ The Black Prism will, so what do I know?

As for recent/upcoming cover art I like?  Vance Kovacs’ art on the re-issued Elric novels is great. Irene Gallo, and the artists she’s worked with) has been doing amazing things for the E-Book edition of The Wheel of Time. Similarly, N.K. Jemisin’s debut, The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms first caught my attention because of its tremendous cover.

All great bloggers earn a reputation for fearlessness and it appears criticizing authors like Goodkind and Newcomb is no particular problem for you.  Do you ever privately fear pissing someone off and being mugged and beaten with a copy of ATLAS SHRUGGED in an alley?

I suppose it’s often a concern, but I’ve been surprised by the respectable behaviour in the comments section of my website. I’ve made fun of Goodkind a few times (but, really, who hasn’t?) and not a sniff from Mystar. I’ve even managed to avoid most of the vitriol from George R.R. Martin’s ‘fans’. I don’t know how I manage it.

Still, it is a tricky line to tread as a blogger. You want to entertain your readers with brutal honesty, but you don’t want to burn bridges. I did once get a rather tart email from a rather popular author (who I respected greatly) about one of my blog posts. Had my head spinning for a couple of days.

Please share with us your most outrageous reader reaction/hatemail/lunatic adventure in blogging.

Like I mentioned earlier, my readers are a rather civil bunch, and I don’t often see the out of line reactions and commentary that some other blogs have to deal with. That said, I’ve had a couple of reactions that sure made me chuckle.

Most recently, I wrote about finishing my first novel, Through Bended Grass, and one fellow by the enigmatic name of ‘Simon’ posted this: “Hahahaha @ you ever being accepted as a writer..fuck it im laughing my nuts off here. TALK ABOUT DELUSIONS OF GRANDEUR.Just vomitted im laughing so much.Good luck is most certainly the order of the day. Oh pleaseeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!”

To which I had to shake my head and wonder. I suppose that’s at least one reader I won’t have, should my novel ever hit the shelves.

More interesting, and likely more important, was a sharp remark made by author Paul Kearney (The Ten Thousand) on my review of his novel, which I wrote after having finished only half the novel. My review admitted this and was an exploration of why I did not feel compelled to complete the novel. Kearney wrote: “If you don’t read a book to the end, you aren’t in a position to review it. Period.”

This sparked an interesting debate around the blogosphere about the nature of reviews, and negative reviews in particular.   And, for the record, Paul and I kissed and made up long ago.

But, well, that’s all rather tame, I expect, given the responses you were hoping for! Hell, even my articles in defense of George R.R. Martin stay more or less civil.

What can I say? My readers rock.

And there you have it!  It’s worth noting that some of you may wonder if this ‘Simon’ character has any relation to Simon Spanton, my glorious editor and erstwhile foe of Moher on all matters cover-art wise.  I can put all fears to rest by saying that Simon only vomits in disgust, never in joy, and while he has been known to occasionally rend peoples’ self-esteem to ribbons, he only does so when paid to.

Cheers, Aidan, for your visit!  I hope you’ll all check out more cover art discussions and terrifying glimpses into Moher’s mind at A Dribble of Ink.

A Dribble of Ink Read More »

I Should Have Been a Swineherd…

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Let me be perfectly clear about one thing: I am greatly enjoying Col Buchanan’s Farlander.

Above premise or cover art, the thing that most grabs me about a book is style.  Some books have it, some don’t.  Farlander does.  It’s got a lot of vigor to a prose that just flows with swift and easy procedure through the whole of the book.  Add to this the fact that the premise is actually very cool and some really neat characters and societies and it’s pretty easy to see why I regard Farlander as one of the complete packages.

I do have one gripe, though.

It indulges a little in common fantasy tropes: evil empires, .  That’s not the issue.  I’m guilty of that, myself, as are most of us writers, to some extent.  And, as the man Lynch said, cliches are only terrible if they’re used terribly.  Still, Farlander brings out some strange questions for me.  Specifically, that special relationship between a man and a boy known as “apprenticeship,” as it pertains to fantasy novels.

I’m very much a man of motives.  I like to know why people do what they do.  To that end, when Ash, skilled aging assassin, finds Nico, starving young man, and recruits him as an apprentice (knowing full well that the job will involve death, both certain and potential, of him and his targets) and Nico just sort of goes “hell yeah,” I find myself a little baffled as to exactly why.

I understand apprenticeship.  It’s handy to know a skill.  But surely, there have got to be better ways to go about it.  I mean, if you’re starving, why wouldn’t you try for a nice, steady job that doesn’t involve the omnipresent threat of contracting sudden knife-in-lung disease.

Understandably, no one really goes that far into questioning exactly why people choose to shack up under strange or ominous apprenticeships.  It would be awfully confusing, wouldn’t it?

“Congratulations, boy!  I have elected you to become my apprentice!”

“I’ll finally get to be a seamstress?  To hell with my father’s wishes!  I’m IN!”

“What?  Er…no, I’m an elite assassin, come to liberate you from a life of poverty and disease…”

“I’m with you so far.”

“…and train you in the arts of death and vengeance.”

“Oh…”

“What?”

“Nothing.”

“No, you said ‘oh.'”

“It’s just…I mean, isn’t that a little counterproductive?”

“How do you mean?”

“Well, you’re saving me from certain death and plunging me into 99%-certain death, aren’t you?  Those aren’t the best odds.”

“That’s a little arrogant to presume, isn’t it?  You might not even survive the apprenticeship!”

“Well, then why on earth would I go?”

“Adventure!  Romance!”

“Romance…”

“Yes.”

“With you?”

“No, not with me, you little weirdo!  You’ll probably meet a princess or…I don’t know, a particularly spunky milkmaid or something.”

“That doesn’t do a lot for your pitch.”

“Milkmaids are notoriously freaky, boy.”

“Well, yeah, everyone knows that.  But it’s a cost benefit analysis, really.  If I choose to go on with you, I may get all the freaky milkmaid sex I want, but I’m probably certainly going to die.”

“Nah.  You’re the main character.  You won’t die until at least the third book.”

“See, that’s not much help.  In the interim, all my friends, loved ones and probably my pet hamster will die in an effort to shock the reader.”

“Look, it’s not a shock technique.  If the story fits–“

“Not to mention all the weird apprentice stuff I’d have to do.”

“Oh, like what?”

“Well, come on, man.  It’s apprenticeship.  You’re probably going to put me into a deep hallucination to ‘free my mind’ or something, but it’ll end with me puking my guts out and with no guarantee you didn’t write on my face while I was out.”

“Oh, come on. One time that happened!  Just one!”

“And you’re going to make me do some kind of weird training montage that probably ends up with me trying to seduce fish in a river or something and you’ll be watching me, shirtless, from the river bank and telling me to do stuff in vague, cryptic terms like ‘tickle the chi’ or something.”

‘It’s a classic staple of apprenticeships!  Look, I don’t ask for much.  All I want you to do is come away for a lot of weird, freaky stuff in seedy, prostitute-filled towns and wildernesses filled with flesh-eating beasts.”

“…”

“Also, we might get drunk together.”

“…”

“Also, I want you to call me master.”

“Yeah, move along.”

You may or may not be relieved to know that Col Buchanan does none of these things.  It’s quite a good book.  You should check it out when it hits your bookshelves.

I Should Have Been a Swineherd… Read More »

Floor to Ceiling Books

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Apologies for the slow update schedule, my friends.  I’m currently entertaining various things, both guests and fantasies of murdering said guests.  That is no excuse, however, and I will promptly flog myself in penance and send the ensuing picture journals to you and your grandmothers so that they may say: “My word, that young man certainly has penance, and shoulders the size of Maori warriors!”

They will then swoon and offer up their daughters in marriage.  I shall marry your various mothers and you will be legally required to call me “daddy.”

That is the extent of my sorrow over this.

But I digress, it’s time to get balls-deep into our next interview:

Featuring Amanda Rutter, who I think is the owner of that tangerine-colored arm there, is a noted blogger for both Fantasy Literature and her very own solo album: Floor to Ceiling Books.  While she may not possess the charm of the Book Smugglers or the rugged handsomeness of Aidan Moher, let’s see just what qualities she offers us.

Let’s take stock of your blog here: it would probably be fair to say that you are a newcomer to the “scene,” as it were, despite reviewing on www.fantasyliterature.com.  Amongst powers such as the scathing smarm of A Dribble of Ink, the combative ire of Speculative Horizons, the Hobbit-like tenacity of the Wertzone (all of whom you read, I’m told), what does your blog bring to the table?  In short, why should we pay attention to you if you’re not going to give us candy?

Well, I am prepared to offer candy if it works! Yes, I will bribe people to visit my blog! Actually, I’m quite enjoying my blog being a little more under the radar. I’m quietly going about my reviewing and producing articles without the fierce interest and scrutiny that comes from being so high profile. Certainly the Speculative Scot, Mr. Niall Alexander (who came online around about the same time I decided to plunge properly into the world of blogging) , is receiving a great deal more hype – and is therefore under a great deal more pressure as a result. From the articles he has produced, I think he is more than up for living up to the hype, but I think I would crumble under said pressure!

Talking seriously about what my blog has to offer, though… I read across many other genres, as well as the whole field of speculative fiction, so you are able to find a mix of books on my site. I happen to think this gives my perspective on speculative fiction a freshness because it isn’t *all* I read. I will tackle classics, thriller, horror, women’s fiction, literary worthies – you name it, I’ll give it a go. Consequently, when I feel jaded with the world of fantasy, I am able to dip into another genre and then come back with clear eyes to review more speculative fiction. This makes me fairly resistant to “trends” and allows me to judge each book on its own merit. I hope that readers don’t feel I am saying the other reviewers you mention are *not* able to do this – I’m just trying to identify one of the bigger benefits I bring to the table.

I think the other real benefit is the tone of my blog. I am not (too) sarcastic. I do not suck up to anyone. I do not aim to make waves. I am providing a friendly and welcoming resource where, hopefully, you really get a sense of the love I have for reading. I am having fun with this – I can’t imagine a better situation than publishers sending me books for review, and people reading what I have to say about them. I am just giddy like a child in a candy store. If I ever lose this childlike wonder about books, that is the time to give it all up.

It is also probably fair to say that you are a girl, if my information is correct.  I posed this question to the Book Smugglers, as well, but I’d genuinely like to get more opinions on it, girl bloggers being in woefully short supply (if any of them want to come forward, though, keep in mind that you cannot legally curse at me without written consent).  But what is it that women want, do you think, at least in fantasy?  Do our tastes differ so much?  Will women naturally focus on romance or do they appreciate a good spleen-ripping as much as the next dude?

Hah, your information is correct: I am indeed a girl! Are girl book bloggers really in such short supply? Or is it that there aren’t many in the field of speculative fiction? Certainly I know that a number of my fellow reviewers on www.fantasyliterature.com happen to be girls! You’ve already mentioned the Book Smugglers (fab blog, you two!) and I know that Book Chick City is providing an excellent resource for readers of speculative fiction. There are a few of us around!

I can only speak for myself here – and I think that reveals the problem with this question you have posed. If you take one woman, for instance: she dabbles in urban fantasy, reading people like Kelley Armstrong and Laurell K Hamilton, and she reads them purely because of the sexual tension and romance going on within the pages. Take another woman who reads exactly the same, and she sneers at the romance, wanting there to be more zombie raising and witchy goings-on. The same can be said of those women who tackle straight up fantasy novels as well. It is very much personal taste as to what a reader wants from a book – I don’t think it is worth applying sweeping generalizations to the matter. I’m sure there are male readers who pick up a book and yearn for a decent love story – they might not admit it, but I reckon they’re around! I would definitely say men and women come together on wanting to read a decent story well-told.

Speaking for myself, I enjoy bodice-ripping romances. I also enjoy a good decapitation. I like zombie raising and conflicted mages. I even like young farm lads discovering their destiny! I don’t think my taste in fantasy would differ much from a guy’s – in fact, I know that my tastes run very similar to people like Aidan and Niall, having read reviews on their respective blogs.

Taking a look at your blog, your tastes seem pretty eclectic, with the only certainty being your utter hatred of moles, particularly those made of stone.  Tell us about your most loathed book of all.

Now, there is a controversial little question! *attempts to prevent foot-in-mouth syndrome* Maybe I can just concentrate on the authors who are dead and therefore NEVER ABLE TO READ me dissing their books!

I have read some truly terrible books – and it is quite easy to pick on the easy ones, like Terry Goodkind (man, I was not expecting that series to go so terribly wrong!) and Laurell K Hamilton (how is it possible to continuously write such *bad* sex scenes…?) but I thought I’d throw out a handful of books that I would say I’ve loathed.

As you point out, my strength of negative feeling for moles is not kept under wraps on my blog: I would put up Duncton Rising (by William Horwood) as the very worst book in the six book mole saga. I put up with issues through the first four books, but this one brought on actual physical nausea.

I’m going to be crucified for this one, but here goes: The Lord of the Rings *ducks flying missiles*. Just wait a minute and let me explain! I have read this one a few times – well, not read so much as struggled through it. I love the story; I loathe the execution. Slow dreamy passages about trees just don’t do it for me. I feel this book has to be read, and I know of many who would class it amongst their most favourite books, but I say “Thank God for the films” which have enabled me to take the decision to *never read the damn thing again!*

Lastly, there is only one book that I have actually torn up in disgust. I mean, physically ripped pages from it. Of course, that might have been to do with my general mood on the day…but still. This was the excruciatingly awful Wit’ch Star by James Clemens. Yes, just dwell on that erroneous apostrophe. Admire its uselessness. What really defies reason is the fact that this is the fifth book in the series and I labored through the other four – just to see how the story turned out. Derivative fantasy, poor two-dimensional characters (hell, they might have been bad enough to classify as one-dimensional), and a truly abysmal climax to the story. I am sure some might have enjoyed it, but this one just wasn’t for me.

Oh, and I don’t know another genre that produces such consistent rubbish as chick lit (how I hate that term). There are some glittering exceptions, but there are some real clangers as well. I would steer readers towards such luminaries as Marian Keyes and Jane Green for the good that can be found in this genre.

You’ve also gained quite a reputation for your US vs. UK cover quizzes.  Do you find that a lot of people are surprised by their results?  How much does cover art weigh on your radar, really?  And what do you feel about the big debuts coming out in terms of cover art?

*laughs* Those quizzes! *fake outrage* Isn’t it typical that they’ve picked up the majority page views since I started blogging?! I just did them for a laugh and to fill a gap between reviews, and never ever realized that they would prove to be so popular and controversial all at once. I even had some people on a very random forum commenting on the fact that I was such a cover art snob! That is the furthest from what I am, really. I rarely pick up a book based on the cover – I’m more interested in what is inside.

One thing I have noticed is that most people lean more heavily towards liking UK covers – I do think the US publishers are starting to up their game with covers coming out more recently, but certainly older fantasy covers from the US are dire (and would actually make me embarrassed to be seen with them on public transport!)Another thing I have noticed is that in the case of cover art familiarity certainly does NOT breed contempt: US readers of the quiz came out in favour of their own covers a great deal and vice versa with Brits, and I think this reflects that fact that we’re used to the comfort of certain styles.

Hmm, this year is certainly a year of hooded men, isn’t it? We’ve all seen the new trend – and I think it’s reached the point of complete parody now. I was half-tempted to run a series of mocked-up covers from older books showing the now-familiar hooded figure parading across them, but then I figured that I might gain a reputation for being a…umm.. cover art snob! Oh! It also amused me that the hooded figure on the book ‘The Left Hand of God’ is actually waving that bloody great sword in his right hand. Just me amused? Probably! I intend to read all the debuts this year, if I can – I’ve already completed *ahem* your book, and have The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms on my radar for sometime in Feb probably. I do not intend to read them in an order based on what is on the outside!

Well, that will just about do it, won’t it?

Amanda Rutter offers us a pretty diverse and varied lot of books, diving headlong into any kind of book with a wolverine-like aggression, chewing and later converting to high-fiber nutrient-rich feces, books of all kinds, genres and qualities!  Few people cover as many books as she does.

And they don’t offer you candy!  Check it out.

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Release Date? More like Release Wait!

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In two days, it’s February 18th.  This is a significant date for a few reasons.  It is the day when Pluto was discovered.  It marks the first publication of Mark Twain in the United States.  It is the day when the following people died: Johnny Paycheck, noted songwriter, Dale Earnhardt, noted race car driver and Martin Luther, noted religious leader/race car driver.

It is also the date when Amazon.co.uk claims that Tome of the Undergates is being released.

You’ll undoubtedly have both noticed the specific wording of that sentence and have undoubtedly come to the conclusion that I am not nearly as clever as I think I am for making that up, so I’ll just cut to the point.

Tome of the Undergates is coming out April 15th, 2010 and not February 18th, 2010.

You are likely irritated, I know.  And frankly, I’m just as pissed off as you are.  I would try to explain that Amazon tends to just throw out whatever date they feel is sexy, but you’re much too clever for that, knowing full well that there is no such thing as a world in which Amazon does not have your well-being as their foremost priority.  I could tell you that the publisher has the final word in the release date and that they’ve been telling me (and Amazon) this for ages now, but that’s hardly satisfactory.

So, like you, I went for the true culprit behind this.

Myself.

In an attempt to get to the bottom of this particular set of corporate shenanigans, I tracked down and cornered myself and drew me into a hard-hitting, take-no-prisoners interview.  The shocking results are below.

Hello, Sam Sykes, and welcome to this hard-hitting, buffalo-style interview.

Thanks, Sam, happy to be here.

You don’t mean that, but the dulcet tones of your rolling baritone have convinced me that you are telling the truth and want me to be safe, not unlike an old man whispering as he strokes a kitten.  Tell me, Sam Sykes, how do you manage to maintain such lurid vocals?

It’s true that I am often known for my melodic siren call that has driven women to hurl themselves off cliffs (in adoration for me, no doubt), and while I am loathe to share my secret, I will give you this one key phrase: dolphin menses.

That is both horrifying and arousing.  So, speaking frankly, Sam, what’s the real deal behind release dates?

Believe me, I’m just as angry as you.

Are you sure?  I just kicked my niece down a staircase to show her how cruel the world can be.

I’m almost as angry as you, then.  But the truth of the matter is that, while Amazon does throw out release dates like they’re no big thing, it ultimately fell to me to produce more information to the readers.  I could have done more, I know…I should have done more.

No, Sam!  There was nothing you could do!  That war was hell on all of us.  One man couldn’t be expected to pay Charon’s toll all by himself…the dead…they were too many.

I’m done living with excuses, Sykes.  I’m done living with the pain and the fear.  I’m done living with closing my eyes and seeing them all again, cut down by Amazon, waiting for the release and never getting it.  I’m done with…I’m just done.

Don’t do it, Sykes!  Sykes!  Sykes?

…

Sykes?

…

SYYYYYYYYYYYKES!

…and there you have it, ladies and gentlemen.  Samuel Sykes, that magnificent stallion, came and went into our lives with nary more than a thought and a release date that he so valiantly gave his life correcting for us.  Let us not remember him as the coward who stood by idly while corporations made release dates that no one confirmed, but rather, let us know him as he was in those last moments when he made right and gave his very essence to set the world alight with his passion.

For in those last moments…we saw him, the true Samuel Sykes.

That was beautiful.

Thank you…wait a moment, you’re supposed to be dead!

I was going to, but then I stopped off to get a milkshake.

I just told the audience you were dead!

That was sweet of you!

What am I supposed to tell them now?

Well, I did actually suffer for this milkshake.  It was cold.

…

REALLY cold.  I might have got a brain freeze.  So you weren’t in vain or anything.

…

Sykes!  Sykes?

SYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY–

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Speculative Horizons

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Welcome, welcome, to our next round of exciting interviews on the state of the genre.  Today, we catch a glimpse on one of my most favorite blogs: Speculative Horizons by James Long.

It’s not that I don’t love all blogs equally, of course.  Rather, it’s just that James and I have very similar tastes in terms of fantasy books.  We like our meat raw, our coffee black and our heroes composed of equal parts moral grayness and deep philosophical quandaries in regards to violence and how it’s used to relate to the world around them and the people they care about deeply.

What?  No, that is definitely a manly thing to talk about.  Shut up!  Go to the interview!

Let’s take a moment to consider the state of your blog.  You’re considered one of the more acerbic and violent bloggers, unafraid to get into the fray of every conflict imaginable (those doubting me need only see your input on the latest George R.R. Martin updates).  I also notice you like exceedingly violent stories like KELL’S LEGEND (by Andy Remic).  Do you think this is reflected in what books you prefer and should we consider you the go-to guy for all things furious?

Acerbic – at times. But violent?! Anyone who hasn’t previously heard of my blog is probably now entertaining the following episode in their heads: me, standing over a bloodied author, fist clenched as I scream a torrent of expletives in between punches: “Nope, clumsy use of exposition.” SMACK. “How dare you offend my eyes with such wooden prose!” SMACK. “And here’s one more for the BLOODY HOODED FIGURE ON THE COVER!” SMACK. And yes, I know it’s mostly not the author’s fault they’ve got a bloke-in-a-cloak on their cover, but by this stage of the interrogation I’ve lost all sense of reason.

In all seriousness though, I don’t set out to be controversial or confrontational at all. I just happen to be tremendously passionate about the genre, and am not afraid to be brutally honest about what I think. Sometimes this passion, mixed with a healthy dose of dry British wit, can come across quite strongly. But I think that’s good – it often provokes a response, it gets people talking. I’m not afraid to get involved in some of the furious debates – in fact, I think it’s necessary at times. If we want to promote and improve our genre, it’s important to analyse (and often criticise) the elements that drag it down – like all this anti-GRRM bullshit, and the marketing obsession with hooded figures (the former is simply ridiculous, while the latter might help sales but it also makes the epic fantasy genre look stale and predictable).
Anyway, to answer your question: I don’t think the books I prefer are really linked to my occasionally blunt, unflinching attitude. It just so happens that epic fantasy is my thing, and this particular genre (especially these days) involves a large degree of violence.  In truth it’s not the violence I really enjoy (although there are exceptions – the duel between the Red Viper of Dorne and the Mountain That Rides in A Storm of Swords is one of the greatest sequences ever written in epic fantasy – but more the sense of wonder you get from fantasy, the sense of adventure. I just like to lose myself for a while in a different world where I can watch people struggling with their own problems, rather than worrying about my own. And anyway, I’m a peaceful guy really. I like having a cup of coffee and some cake. I like fluffy bunny rabbits. Although I do have a replica of a medieval flail in my closet – just in case.
Let’s go ahead and assume you are a deeply disturbed sociopath with a love for gore, then.  How do you think it’s figured into the fantasy of 2009?  Do you suppose 2010 looks better for all things action-adventure-swords-up-the-butt?

There’s no doubt that epic fantasy has become grittier in recent years – there’s more of a sense of realism about many of the books, a warts-and-all approach. In part I think it reflects the change in western society – violence is everywhere these days, on the TV, in the newspapers, on the internet, and I think fantasy has altered to mirror this. While it’s not an aspect that bothers me (truth to tell, I prefer my fantasy hard-edged with greater realism) I do think at times we’re at risk of losing the sense of wonder that fantasy can give you. Sometimes I feel that this whole blood-and-guts approach is merely disguising the fact that some of these books aren’t that inventive. Still, it’s a trend that I don’t think will go away any time soon.
You avoided the accusation of sociopathy quite skillfully, sir.  Perhaps those bunnies affected you more deeply than one might think.  Let’s get balls-deep into a piece that strikes me pretty squarely.  How much does cover art really affect you?

I won’t ever dismiss a book purely on the basis of its cover, though a bad cover certainly won’t encourage me to pick the book up. But cover art is massively important – why do you think we’ve seen such a torrent of hooded figures gracing the covers of fantasy books? Because for some reason they appeal to the casual reader, and they’re the biggest market. We have to remember that – as brilliant and passionate as online fandom is – we represent a small slice of the potential market. So for each one of us who vomits up our breakfast over another hooded figure cover, there’s a hundred people who think “Oh cool, another book about a badass assassin – where’s my wallet?”
While I completely understand and accept the commercial reasons for these covers, I think they’re dangerous. As I said above, they make the genre look stale and unprogressive. Worse, some readers assume that because one book has a similar cover to another one they enjoyed, that it’s going to be as good. I saw a guy recently comment online that he knew an upcoming Orbit book was going to be great, because “it has a cover like the other ones, so I know I’m going to get a great read.” That worries me. To some degree it feels like publishers are not promoting individual books or authors, but a collective brand instead – hence the similar covers. And I don’t like that, since it feels too much like a conveyor belt. Come on, is too much to ask for a little bit of originality now and again?
As a man who is watching the debuts of 2010 roll in as though they were a pit fight (thankfully, they aren’t, since I’m pretty sure N.K. Jemisin can kick my ass), let me ask you about your hopes for the debuts of the new year.
Well, there’s a book called Tomb of the Undergarments, or something, which I hear has been written by a chap who recently escaped from a secure medical complex where he was undergoing intensive anger-management courses, so I might check that out (by the way, like a Lannister I always pay my debts – that ‘Tomb of the Undergarments’ gag was originally made by Adam from the Wertzone, though I’m sure he won’t mind me using it – free publicity 4tw!).
Seriously though, I expect there to be one or two solid debuts this year. In recent years, there’s always been one debut that has accrued more hype than the others, and became that year’s ‘big deal’, so it’ll be interesting to see which novel takes that title this year. Paul Hoffman’s The Left Hand of God has already caused quite a stir, with opinion split almost entirely down the middle. I expect Blake Charlton’s Spellwright to do pretty well, though I don’t think it’s for me. I liked the sound of Col Buchanan’s Farlander until I read a sample, and now my interest in that book has cooled somewhat. I’m hearing good things about The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N. K. Jemisin too – one to watch, the prose from what I’ve read seems good. But overall I’d have to say that Tome of the Undergates looks like the debut of 2010 – what else could I say when you’ve got a HUGE MACHETE pressed against my throat?
And thank you, sir, for guaranteeing I will never live that parodied title down!
Well, that was pretty good, wasn’t it?  For those of you concerned: don’t worry.  Despite a mild slip-up due to my eating chicken fingers before pressing the machete to his throat, he lost a minimal amount of blood and I’m at least 90% sure that the number I dialed was emergency services.  The guy was sort of mumbling into the phone and I asked him to send an ambulance and he asked me if I wanted that extra spicy, but I think that might just be code for something.
Anyway, once again, assuming James survived, please check him out at Speculative Horizons and stay tuned for our next guest!

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The Book Smugglers

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Alright, friends!  It’s time to kick off TALES FROM THE BLOG O’ SPHERE with my first interviewees…

Why The Book Smugglers? Well, it’s certainly not because they had me over for a guest blog themselves awhile back!  Goodness knows it’s not that.  Rather, it’s because Ana and Thea, the two ladies under suspicion of smuggling literature themselves, are some of the most diverse and busy bloggers in the industry today.

Reading everything from fantasy to paranormal romance to young adult to vampire-free romance at a blistering pace that makes lesser bloggers quiver in fear, these two ladies are some of the most attentive and active members of the community today.  Please join me as we discuss issues in these genres…with ladies.

Let’s survey your blog, at first: you ladies cover everything from YA to paranormal romance to romance without vampires to fantasy and beyond.  Would it be fair to say your tastes are eclectic, or do you think you simply know what you like and you tend to find it translates across genres?  Has it been a good year for those tastes?  Do you suppose the impending debuts of 2010 (there are a heap!) will also serve you well?

Thea: I think it’s a bit of both actually (eclecticism and we know what we like). One thing I think that is awesome about both Ana and myself is how willing we are to try different genres – because, ultimately, a good story is a good story regardless of the genre its filed under. We’re not snobs to say if something’s shelved as a “paranormal romance” or “literary fiction” that we won’t read it. Heck, you’d probably miss out on so many excellent stories out there if you discriminated based on genre! The thing that’s important to me is how entertaining, how thought-provoking, and how meaningful a book is. Strong characters, plotting, and writing will always be welcome on The Book Smugglers!

So far 2010 has been pretty good in terms of reading quality. Ana’s had more winners than I have so far, but I’ve already read a few very memorable books (dystopian SF thriller VERACITY by Laura Bynum, hard scifi TITAN by Stephen Baxter, delightful chick-lit paranormal NICE GIRLS DON’T HAVE FANGS by Molly Harper, to name a few). There are a TON of 2010 debuts that have me pretty giddy. The aforementioned VERACITY was a solid debut, and i’m also looking forward to BIRTH MARKED by Caragh O’Brien, GUARDIAN OF THE DEAD by Karen Healey, THE HUNDRED THOUSAND KINGDOMS by N.K. Jemisin, THE POISON THRONE by Celine Kiernan, SPELLWRIGHT by Blake Charlton…I’m forgetting a few, but there are many promising debuts out there this year. So far, I’ve only really been disappointed with MR. SHIVERS by Robert Jackson Bennett, but I’m hoping that’s the exception, not the rule.

Oh yeah and there’s also some joker who wrote TOMES OF…something. Or something like that. Might give him a try too….

ANA: Yes, I agree. It is both – being eclectic and knowing what I like. Although one is highly dependent on the other. Because I am eclectic I am open to trying new things, therefore what I like changes all the time. I am always discovering new genres, new subgenres whenever I dare to go outside comfort zones.    The bottom line is I simply cannot envision myself sticking to one genre, not only because I truly think I would be bored silly but because there are good stories everywhere.

So far, this year has been an awesome year for reading. YA BLEEDING VIOLET by Dia Reeves and Fantasy THE HUNDRED THOUSAND KINGDOMS by NK Jemisin were both amazing read, some of the best I have ever read. And Paranormal Romance ARCHANGEL’S KISS by Nalini Singh was pretty good too (see what I mean? Eclectic indeed) . As for debuts that I am looking forward to…..so many!

THE POISON THRONE by Celine Kiernan, WOLFSANGEL by M.D. Lachlan, basically the entire ANGRY ROBOT catalogue, plus several YA books. I don’t know about this one book called TOME OF THE UNDERGATES though. That much water on the cover….makes me nervous.

Did you know you are both girls?!  It’s baffling!  What’s more, you are girl BLOGGERS.  Let us take a moment for this to seep into the minds of people everywhere…okay, now let’s talk about “what women want.”  What are your thoughts on demographics?  Do you suppose female readers want different things from their fantasy and YA?  Or do we all pretty much want the same thing: love, hate, conflict and gore, just in different doses?  Do you find your views on certain books differ wildly from male bloggers or is a crappy book just crappy all around?

ANA: Weeeeeeeeeell, Sam.

Do female readers want different things from their fantasy and YA? Do male readers of fantasy live in their parents basements and have no social life?  How are we supposed to know what all “female readers” want? Thea and I are both female readers and we both want very different things from our books. We are not all the same you know, just because we share the same gender. I bet the same can be said about you guys.

This need to separate readers by gender is perhaps where the problem lies: a chromosome is not an imperative for whether a person wants gore or romance. To say that women don’t read Fantasy because we don’t like gore or conflict would be the same thing as to say that all men don’t like romance and emotions. Isn’t that a little of a gross generalisation? There’s gotta be room for personal preference and cultural background and a myriad of other factors.

Having said that: if we don’t think that genetics is not necessarily a determinant factor on what a person reads, perhaps cultural background  is. So, in a society like ours where female rights have only started to take hold a few decades ago, it doesn’t surprise us that people think that males read gore and female read romance and that people tend to navigate towards these genres accordingly. As time changes and opportunities open, more and more women read fantasy and more and more women are writing it too. YA for example, is replete with kickass female authors writing amazing speculative fiction.

An aside: We have to say that we were highly amused to see how people were surprised (and even furious in some cases) at the amount of women attending Comic Con. Because what? We can’t?

And to answer your other question: is a crappy book just crappy all around? As much as we would like to think so, if there is one thing we have learnt in these past two years of book reviewing is that there are no absolutes when it comes to reading. There are books we loved that other people hated and books we thought were absolute crap and other people hailed as the bestest ever. We do believe that certain things cannot be argued though: a shoddy plot, spelling mistakes, a poorly edited book but beyond that….reading and reviewing is really, a very subjective art. And this is why we think that yes, sometimes our opinions differ from other bloggers, but only because we are different PEOPLE not because they are male and we female. At least that’s how we see it, and we sure hope that’s how they see it too. Because otherwise you know: Thea is really, REALLY good with a chainsaw and I know how to get rid of the evidence.

We BET you did not know this question was a hornet’s nest did you, now? On second thought….maybe you did. Well played mister Sam.

THEA: Yeah, what Ana said! *revs chainsaw*

I find the whole stereotype thing (Only DUDES like horror! Only CHICKS like romance!) to be hilarious. I am probably the least romantic person you will ever meet, and I have an addiction to horror, gore, and an impressive collection of B-horror films and comic books.

My point is, these labels are silly. People, in general, like what they like. I don’t think you can generalize based on gender, because…well, not all women or men are the same. Some folks like romance. Some like zombies. Some like a weird combination of the two (hello, BREATHERS). Every reader has their own criteria, their own preferences of what they look for in a book. I think we all just want to be entertained, engrossed in the books we read.

And thank you for not drawing attention to the fact that I live in a basement!

There’s a lot of griping about cover art lately, but you’re one of the few that have an entirely different beef with covers.  We can agree that whitewashing covers (the practice of putting a lighter-skinned character on a cover when the actual character is darker) is a pretty reprehensible practice, misrepresenting the author and the reader alike.  How prevalent do you suppose this issue is?  Do you think more needs to be done to prevent it?  On a tougher note, do books actually suffer sales or see increased profits with whitewashing?  And what is your opinion of this?

THEA: Covers are a popular point of contention with bloggers all over the interwebs. We love fellow blogger Aidan Moher’s COVER SPOTLIGHT feature, and agree with a lot of his commentary concerning the general blandness of certain cover art. But yes, some issues are much more important than others – namely, whitewashing.

Whitewashing is a shockingly widespread practice, and it’s one that has been prevalent for a very long time. And it’s a problem in the speculative fiction genre, too. Anyone that’s read Ursula LeGuin knows that a majority of her characters are of darker skin tone, and yet early covers (and casting for that insipid EARTHSEA adapted miniseries from SciFi a few years back) depict white skinned characters.

This is to say nothing of the fact that in fantasy, science fiction and horror, or young adult literature, the overwhelming majority of protagonists are caucasian/European descent. Even in books with characters of color, they usually aren’t depicted on the cover (see for example Neil Gaiman’s AMERICAN GODS or Alison Goodman’s EON). But that’s besides the point. Whitewashing is a racist practice that has been around for a long time, and one that publishers continue to use. It’s infuriating. There is no justification for changing a character’s race on a cover. That’s an active choice on the part of the publisher, and that’s racism, plain and simple. So yeah, you could say that we think there ought to be more done to prevent it!

As to the second part of your question, the popular rationale for whitewashing of covers is this idea that books with POC (persons of color) on the cover “don’t sell.” Is that true? Does whitewashing mean higher sales for a book? I don’t think so. I don’t think there’s any solid conclusive data to back that statement up – and part of that is because there are so few covers out there with POC on them (check out one survey done by a blogger cited at Racebending.com, in which a paltry 2% of 775 YA books looked at had POC on the covers). In a sense, yeah, books with POC on the covers don’t sell – but that’s because there AREN’T any significant number of POC on covers to begin with.

And considering the recycled, horrible crap that many publishing houses put out as covers, justifying whitewashing with the rationale that POC covers don’t sell seems more than a little disingenuous.

ANA: Exactly. More than that, it is a freaking insulting rationale too.

Now, what can be done to prevent it? On the part of the publishers: a more decisive, careful approach to covers. There’s gotta be a better communication between cover artists and editors. A lot of the times we hear the excuse that people working on the cover don’t even know what the book is about, but that cover  must go through several stages of approval by people that HAVE. Plus, if you are going to publish a book with a POC protagonist in it, OWN it, put that person on the cover. As for readers, the only thing we can do is to buy those books who have POC to show by way of numbers, that we don’t care who is on the cover as long as it is accurate!

Before becoming bloggers, we had no idea about these issues and how prevalent it was. The outcry surrounding the cover of Liar by Justine Larbarlestier and more recently Magic Under Glass by Jaclyn Dolamore (and also, last year the whole RaceFail09) were huge eye openers. We are not leaders of any movement nor do we see ourselves as especially knowledgeable (it is a learning curve for us as well) but we like to think that we definitely part of the solution not part of the problem.

And thank you, Ana and Thea, for being our first guest!  I hope everyone found it just as insightful and perhaps less threatening than I did!  Tune in later in the week for more guests and more interviews!

Also: no, I don’t know what that thing on the MSPaint banner is supposed to be.

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Tales From the Blog O’ Sphere

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I know what you’re thinking: “What’s this?  TWO blog posts by Sam Sykes, notorious recluse and totally humble guy who has never once told anyone how much he can bench, in the span of a few days?!  I must be dreaming!”

Well, I wasn’t supposed to tell you, but you are dreaming!  This just the final conclusion to your years-long slumber.  As soon as you finish this sentence, you will wake up and discover that you are the person who invented the prostitute android model known as Sexbot 5000, after which you sold the patent and will awake to your own personal robotic harem and millions of dollars!

…

HAH!  No, I’m kidding.  You’re still just a geek reading a blog by a bigger geek.  But, if you set your dreams a little lower, you might just find that they’ll come true with this blog post…assuming your dream was to get in-depth interviews from a very powerful, handsome author.

No, I’m not talking about the recent interview I did with Floor to Ceiling Books (that one’s cool, though, you should probably check it out).  Rather, I’m talking about…

TALES FROM THE BLOG O’ SPHERE

For the past week, I’ve been keeping silently speaking with/blackmailing/harassing sexually various well-known fantasy bloggers.  My goal: to gather an in-depth, collective “state of the genre” address through various contributors on topics like New Releases, Cover Art, Gender-Specific Reading (these answers may shock and horrify you), Issues in the Genre, Most Anticipated and Blogger Tastes.

These have been going on for about a week now and I really couldn’t be more pleased with the outcome.  A lot of bloggers, rather than just spitting on me like they usually do, actually came out and offered unique insights into the genre and literary criticism as a whole.  I had a lot of fun with this project and I think you will, too.

Appearing on the List (in order of how handsome they find Sam Sykes):

Not appearing:

Pretty good line-up, right?  Lots of blooming minds and deep thoughts, keeps the riff-raff out…yeah, I think we’re going to enjoy this.

TALES FROM THE BLOG O’ SPHERE begins within the next two days and continues until we hit them all!  Keep your eyes on this space for great interviews and spectacular insight into the genre!

If you don’t watch, I’ll know.

And I’ll find you.

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