The Spring issue of Focus, the British Science Fiction Association magazine for writers, arrived in the post this morning. As well as many other items of interest, it also contains an updated version of my article How To Write A Novel Synsopsis.

If you are a BSFA member, you probably already know that the BSFA Award nominations for 2010 are now open.

If you’re wondering who and what to vote for, I’d like to remind you that my novel Silversands is eligible for the Best Novel category, as it was published by Pendragon Press in April 2010.

I also have five pieces eligible for the Best Short Story category, including:

1. The Church of Accelerated Redemption by Gareth L. Powell and Aliette de Bodard, published in the Shine anthology from Solaris Books, April 2010.
2. Entropic Angel by Gareth L. Powell, published in the Dark Spires anthology from Wizard’s Tower, November 2010.
3. The Bigger The Star, The Faster It Burns by Gareth L. Powell, published in the 2020 Visions anthology from M-Brane Press, November 2010.
4. Fallout by Gareth L. Powell, published in the Conflicts anthology from NewCon Press, April 2010.
5. Gonzo Laptop by Gareth L. Powell, published in Hub Magazine, January 2010.

All nominations will be gratefully appreciated. If you are a BSFA member, you can make your nominations via the website here.

Twenty years ago, Paul Kincaid carried out a survey of British science fiction and fantasy writers, in an attempt to get a handle on the state of British SF at the time.

In June 2009, I received an email from Niall Harrison, the editor of Vector, asking me to take part in a repeat of that survey, on behalf of the Bristish Science Fiction Association. These were ten questions from the original survey, plus an additional question on changes over the past two decades.

Now, an analysis of the results of both surveys is being released. BSFA members will shortly receive a copy of the results in book form. I have seen an advance PDF of the book, and I think I can safely say that it will be of interest to anyone with a stake in the state of modern British science fiction.

Find out more here.

The following article appears in the new issue of Focus, the BSFA‘s magazine for writers:

How To Write A Press Release
By Gareth L Powell

If you’re serious about selling the books you write, then sooner or later you’re going to have to get some press coverage. Maybe you need to attract people to a book signing you’re holding in Waterstones; maybe you’ve just signed a big publishing deal; or maybe you’re releasing your self-published novel. Whatever your reason, the humble press release is still one of the best ways of attracting an editor’s attention.

Continue reading “How To Write A Press Release”

On the Innsmouth Free Press website, Paula R Stiles reviews the Future Bristol anthology:

“If you’re familiar with the style of Hub Magazine or Irish ‘zine Albedo One, you’ll have a pretty good idea what to expect. Lots of snark, off-the-wall weirdness you won’t normally see in North American specfic (the publisher is from Texas), and considerable attention to world-building… The stories themselves are lovely (being an editor of a ‘zine, I am one picky bitch, so that’s saying a lot); the editing is nice and clean; I love the cover (okay, I really love the cover); the whole thing is as professionally-done as any big publisher puts out; and it’s great to see so many female writers and protags. When Silvia and I say that we wish we could see X type of specfic more often, we mean this type of stuff.”

While in the latest issue of Vector, the critical journal of the British Science Fiction Association, Ben Jeapes writes:

“Future Bristol is a collection of love stories for the city of Bristol… The whole collection is a good read by a good set of authors.

My BristolCon review is now live on the BSFA website, with accompanying photographs by Gemma Morgan.

I’ve been invited by the BSFA to take part in a survey of British science fiction and fantasy authors, the aim of which is to build up a picture of the current state of SF&F in the United Kingdom and discover how it has changed in the twenty years since the last survey. The results will be distributed to BSFA members later in the year.

I’m thinking about the topics of the three panel discussions I’m going to be involved with at Eastercon. They are:

1) Dr Horrible’s Internet Phenomenon – Fri, 20:00
Does the success of Dr Horrible herald a new era in television, of independent internet-distributed productions, or do you need to be Joss Whedon and have his money and fanbase to succeed?
Participants: Jane Killick (moderator), Dave Mansfield, David Devereux, Uri Aviv, Gareth L Powell

2) The author and their work  - Sat, 10:00
Can you still enjoy books by an author whose views you disagree with? Is this harder to manage in the age of blogs and increasing contact with authors?
Participants: Gareth L Powell (moderator), Anton Marx, Maura McHugh, Stephen Deas, Cory Doctorow

3) SF as protest literature - Sat, 17:00
Science fiction has a long tradition of  stories written as a reaction to current events, such as V for Vendetta, Czech and Russian SF, and the reaction to terrorist legislation. Can SF have any impact?
Participants: David Barnett (moderator), Ken MacLeod, David Lloyd, Gareth L Powell, Jon Courtenay Grimwood

What’s your view? Do you agree or disagree with any of these questions? Are there points you’d like me to make or questions you’d like me to ask the other panelists? Let me know by leaving a comment ...

The British Science Fiction Association seeks nominations from its members for its annual awards. As my short story collection was published in 2008, three of the stories in it are eligible for the Short Fiction category, as their appearance in the book marked their first time in print:

• Flotsam
• Hot Rain
• Arches

If you’re a member of the BSFA and you enjoyed the book, you might consider nominating one of the stories. If you haven’t read it yet, you can buy it as a printed copy on Amazon or as an ebook via Fictionwise.

(Those of you who enjoyed the book’s title story The Last Reef when it appeared in Interzone, may be interested to learn that Flotsam and Hot Rain are both sequels to that story.)

Word comes from Andrew Hook that one of the short stories from my collection, The Last Reef, will appear in a short Elastic Press booklet which is going to be produced by the British Science Fiction Association as a freebie for their members.