Entries tagged with 2012

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Ditmars congrats!

So, as is being reported far and wide, the 2009 Ditmar nominations have been announced. Huge congrats to all the worthy nominees, especially those on my f-list, of which there are a heap. As for me (hey, it's my blog!), well, I've never really been able to crack the Ditmars, but at least this year I can take vicarious pleasure from being in three of the collections nominated for "Best Collected Work", plus being the ex-mentor of one of the "Best Fan Writer" nominees. Hey, you take what you can get! ;)

Full writeup here:

http://ozhorrorscope.blogspot.com/2009/05/news-2009-ditmar-award-finalists.html

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2012 Special Deal

From girliejones...

Leading up the release of New Ceres Nights, Twelfth Planet Press are offering the anthology 2012 at the special price of A$16 to anywhere in Australia including postage or A$20 to anywhere outside of Australia including postage for all of March!

We want to get the word out so we're also offering a free electronic copy of the Aurealis Award nominated "Fleshy" by Tansy Rayner Roberts for every blog entry spreading the word about our 2012 Special Deal for March.

The special deal is available here.

Each of the stories in 2012 presents an original take on the imminent future of humanity. Each has something to say about who we are and who we might want to be. 2012 is both a call to imagine the future of the world and a call to create it.

2012 collects stories written by: Deborah Biancotti, Martin Livings, Dirk Flinthart, David Conyers, Simon Brown, Lucy Sussex, Tansy Rayner Roberts, Kaaron Warren, Angela Slatter, Ben Peek and Sean McMullen

2012 received an Honorouble Mention in the Anthology Category at the Aurealis Awards 2009.

“Fleshy” by Tansy Rayner Roberts, was shortlisted for Best Science Fiction Short Story, Aurealis Awards 2009

Simply blog this media release and comment here with the link to your blog entry and an email address for your free copy of "Fleshy" to be sent to you.

-- offer ends March 31, 2009 --

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Another 2012 review!

Thanks to

benpayne for pointing me towards this one... 2012 gets a mixed, but overall positive review here:

http://thefix-online.com/reviews/2012/

I think the comments about the early stories are a little harsh, I've really enjoyed them so far (just finished David Conyers' "Soft Viscocity", and didn't mind the propoganda too much... well, it was a little heavy-handed at the end, yes, but the story was still strong!). But they do say, well, not un-nice things about "Skinsongs":

“Skinsongs” by Martin Livings is a sad story about the fleeting nature of stardom. Agatha is a rock star, creating music from the skin and bone patterns of her face. But once recorded, there are no other songs to be made. As her fame fades, she prepares to make the ultimate and extremest sacrifice to reinvent herself and regain her former status. How far will someone go for the sake of fame? Unlikely? Tune in on the early weeks of American Idol or any other reality show.

Neat. And, considering the concept was largely inspired by "Australian Idol" [1], very apt. :)

One and a half acceptances and a pleasant review... that makes for quite a nice Wednesday, really!

[1] and, to be more specific, Chanel Cole... though that side of things comes through more in the novel than the short story!

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Reading...

Finally finished Fantastic Wonder Stories, edited by

punkrocker1991, today. It was both fantastic and wonderful, as befitted its title. Good stuff, Russ, and all contributors!

Now I'm working on 2012, edited by

girliejones and

benpayne. Only part-way into the first story by

deborahb, and utterly loving it. It's a good excuse to avoid working on a story for

markdeniz which is due in a couple of days.

Uh... how did I end up with more editors than writers on my LJ F-list? :)

Entry tags:

2012,
review

And another...

Yet another great review of 2012 here!

Martin Livings’ “Skinsongs” - I don't think I've ever read a bad story by Martin. And this didn't change the trend. Loved it.

Thanks,

mondyboy! *giggles like a schoolgirl*

Jeez, I'm so glad I submitted to this and got accepted! When it comes to books which I sneak into, I think it's getting the most positive reviews I've seen since Daikaiju. And it's making Carnies look like a great big pile of crap by comparison. Thanks,

girliejones and

benpayne! :)

I'm going to read it soon, I promise... right after I finally finish Fantastic Wonder Stories, I'm just caught in the middle of Shane Jiraiya Cummings' novella in that. Once I slog through the rest of FWS, I'll get right onto 2012. It sounds awesome!

Entry tags:

2012,
review

Yet another positive review for 2012!

They just keep on coming, don't they?

chuckmck has reviewed 2012 HERE, and says lovely things about the antho in general:

Anthologies are a little like TV sketch-comedy shows, in that you generally end up with a couple of truly magnificent offerings, a bunch of fairly average pieces, and one or two clunkers. That said, 2012 seems to be the anthology that bucks the trend. It’s magnificent from beginning to end, with each and every story a gem in its own right. My prediction: we’ll be seeing a fair swag of specific awards for 2012 and its contents over the next year.

He also mentions my story, "Skinsongs", amongst his favourites of the antho, which makes me squee, just a little, quietly, because I'm at work:

‘Skin Songs’ by Martin Livings; a nasty little tale which taps into every generation’s distrust of new musical styles. And with car crashes, vomit-chokings and pill-poppings being ‘so yesterday’, how will the pop stars of tomorrow punch their tickets to Rock ‘n’ Roll immortality?

*squee*

So,

girliejones,

benpayne, you think you done good? :)

What are you all standing around here for? Get out and buy the damn thing!

Entry tags:

2012,
writing

2012

Where will the world be in four years’ time?

Eleven of Australia’s top authors take a guess in 2012. Each story imagines the world as it might be, presenting unique possibilities for the very near future. There are dark visions of water and oil shortages, terrorism, climate change, global and regional politics, the limiting of personal freedoms such as free speech, struggles with the ethics of genetic engineering and bioengineering, alien conspiracies, and the impact of technology on industry. There are personal stories here too – of the way these things might impact on families, and how we at an individual level might react to the catastrophes predicted to lie ahead.

Each of these stories presents an original take on the imminent future of humanity. Each has something to say about who we are and who we might want to be. 2012 is both a call to imagine the future of the world and a call to create it.

Deborah Biancotti Martin Livings Dirk Flinthart David Conyers
Simon Brown Lucy Sussex Tansy Rayner Roberts Kaaron Warren Angela Slatter
Ben Peek Sean McMullen

I gotta say, I'm proud as hell to be in this collection. I mean, geez louise, look at the author list! Ten of Australia's top authors, and then me! Pick the odd one out!

You can preorder it for twenty dollars off the Ticonderoga website, or buy it straight from the publisher here.