Archive

On Editors

Been a bit of back-and-forth about these strange and elusive creatures, recently, so let’s start out with the core and unavoidable fact: You need one. No-one can edit their own work. We’re too emotionally close to it, and when we finally hand that MS in,

On Portals

My love of portal fantasy is no secret; I’ve had it from little girl, when I was (apparently) obsessed with Alice in Wonderland. It took me through the wardrobe, it dropped me on the top of Kevin’s Watch, it travelled me through that timegate to the Pliocene. It

On Writing It Wrong, To Know How To Write It Right

First up, apologies for a very long silence. Sometimes, life has a way of ganging right the fuck up on you, and over the last six to eight weeks, it’s been having a huge amount of fun, letting me just get back to my feet and then kicking them

Lugan: Now in Paperback!

Because you asked. Yes, you! As of this morning, Lugan: Vision Quest is available in paperback, from Amazon. It’s a very weird feeling, holding a physical book that’s been a mental/creative one for so long (tho’ that doesn’t ever change, in fairness, however that book may

Authors and Book Events

So, all this discourse about authors and book events. After running hundreds of book events, more, and attending whole lists, as author, as publicist, and as fan, I’m going to push the boat (book) out here, and say one thing: book events are <hard>. From an author

Prologues: Yes, You Need To Read Them

Been a lot of talk about prologues, recently, and how readers often skip them because they ‘don’t add anything.’ Prologues matter. As a big believer in their ability to foreshadow, I’m wading in, boots on, to throw my weight behind their defence. A prologue, we all know, is

Speaking at the London Book Fair

Somehow, I’ve managed to get myself inveigled onto a panel at the London Book Fair, next week. I’m no stranger to panels, having talked on subjects ranging from the correct uses of Social Media (that was a few years ago!) to fandoms and sales and marketing, all the

On Crashing and Burning, and What To Do About It

With the public unveiling of certain Files, a couple of weeks ago, I (yes) crashed and burned. We know everything’s vile, and we know we’ve been the slowly boiling frog for ten years and more, but that crossed a threshold, and I just couldn’t deal with it.

New Book Day!

Delighted to announce that my character novel Aestred Thurga: Pyre of Faith is up for pre-order, and I’m really looking forward to seeing it loosed upon the world! It’s a very special book, not only because of Aestred herself and the Auto-Tapestry, a character and a

What the Techbros Can’t Understand

Lots of talk about the AI bubble finally bursting, and about the desperation of its supporters to ram their failing product down our necks. ‘Consumers don’t understand it’, they cry, like we’re too dim, or too traditional, or too scared of new technology or horizons. I’m not

The Magic of Spaced

In early 2004, when I was four months pregnant, I ran an FP event for Pegg and Frost, who spent much of their time trying to name my unborn child ‘Simon Nick’ or ‘Nick Simon’. Twenty-plus years later, with Isaac now working for FP himself (and turning into Tim

Ubiquitous End of Year Round-Up

This year, my son turned twenty-one. I know I should list the books here, the things I’ve achieved and read and written and learned and seen, but this year, my son turned twenty-one. He’s not had an easy time of it, but this was the year

Comics, Manga and Reading

Many years ago, I had someone tell me I’d never be published because ‘everything I read was crap’. Every time they saw me with a fantasy book, or with something happy and simple, they’d tell me that it wasn’t good enough, and that I should read something

Farewell Pixie

Farewell, Pixie Farewell, little tuxedo friend, with your mad white whiskers that caught our attention on Facebook, and that brought you to your new home. We were kitty-less and there you were, you and Coco, in need of a new family. How could we resist? Farewell to your willful

World Fantasy Con

Absolutely fantastic time at World Fantasy Con on Saturday, set against the backdrop of a perfect, sunlit Brighton (always glorious in the Winter, and we lucked out, as it was a particularly fabulous day). Since Covid, my Con-going has been pretty sparse, partly because of the change in job

Attack On Titan - The Big Rewatch

Ten years ago, prompted by random images online (not like that, smutty) I blundered across a strange phenomenon called Attack on Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin, lit. 'The Advancing Giant'). I’d never watched Anime (other than Akira and GITS, back in our CyberPunk days), and was absolutely gob-

On Writing and Originality

Years ago, when I watched Doctor Strange for the first time, it gave me a case of the grumps. Not because of Marvel exhaustion  – we hadn’t got that far, at the time – but because the ‘broken hands’ narrative was exactly the same as that of my protag in Artifice.

New Anthology Goodness

Not one but two forthcoming anthologies, both with fantastic line-ups and that I’m very proud to be included within! Darkness Eternal from the Black Library, with a choice selection of the very best WarHammer stories:   One Million Years by Nate Crowley Altar of Maws by Peter Fehevari The

A Very Unhappy Cat

Recently, I bought an item of clothing from an Instagram ad (was an impulse, and before anyone says anything, I knew it was a mistake even as I did it). The site mary-jane.co.uk looked smart and legit, clearly stated that it was UK based, had lots of

Paul Cornell and Rachael Smith at Waterstones Piccadilly

It's all about the murder mystery at Waterstones Piccadilly, next Saturday 20th September, from 1 - 2pm. Come and chat to Paul Cornell and Rachael Smith, and grab your signed copy of Who Killed Nessie? That way, you can solve the biggest Whodunnit, right there on the shop floor.