The wonderful Tehani (correct me if I am wrong) has put together an index list for future reference, and to enable you to read interviews from your favourite authors.
You can find that index here.
I decided to let Amanda and Kylie introduce themselves. Humble thanks to the both of them for their time:
A.K. Wrox is variously known as Kylie Fox, Amanda Wrangles, Mum, Hey You or – most commonly – That Evil Wench.
Both halves of A.K. reside on a beautiful peninsula in southern Australia with their partners, gaggles of children and a dog or three.
Neither of them own bunnies.
It is, above all else, a fairy tale, very much for adults. There is, naturally, a quest, a warrior heroine, a beast master, a fairy, a wizard and every other creature one would expect to find in fantasy – and then some. The book was described by one person as the love-child of Terry Pratchett and Monty Python. Obviously, we’d never assume to put ourselves in the same category as either one but the sentiment behind it holds true.
Arrabella was a lot of fun to write and (hopefully) as much fun to read.
And we’re pretty sure it’s the first – and maybe only – book to be written entirely on a private Facebook page!
Amanda: Two short stories spring immediately to mind. One, of course, is Persia Bloom, winner of the Scarlet Stiletto short story comp. I was very much a newbie; Persia was the first story I’d entered or submitted anywhere and winning the award was the moment the made me realise I could (maybe) actually ‘do this’ writing thing.
A hairdresser with wicked ways and special gifts, Persia is a character that arrived fully formed and has never left me. I’m looking forward to hanging out with Persia some more and giving her some novel-length adventures in the near future. The story is published in The Second Cut.
The other story is ‘Annie at the Beach’. It was written for the same competition, a year later, in the fortnight after my father died and managed a shortlisting. Although it didn’t meet with the same success as Persia (special commendation), and since been reworked from being straight crime into spec fic; it’s the story I’m most proud of. It was an extremely emotional time, which plays out in a pretty graphic manner in the story. Hopefully, I’ll find a home for Annie soon.
Kylie: For me, every time I get to type those magic words “the end” it’s my new proudest moment. Starting stories is always the easy part, there never seems to be any end to new ideas, but the sense of achievement to see a story to its conclusion is amazing.
My short story in verse “Poppies” is something I’m immensely proud of, not just because it earned me some recognition in winning the Dorothy Porter award but, more importantly, because it was a story I tried to write several times but couldn’t quite get right. I finally gave into myself and wrote it in verse, not entirely sure that I was capable of doing that, and it worked.
I’ve also completed a full-length solo novel which still astounds me. So many times I nearly gave up and killed off all my characters but I persevered and got there. And I still like my assassin, Kat Delaney, we managed to stay friends to the end! I’m hoping the sense of pride will still be there when I’ve finished reworking and editing her story.
Amanda: Yes, there is most definitely another Arrabella in the works to be released later this year. In fact, we’re contracted for at least another two in the series, with talk of a fourth.
In my own, separate world from Kylie (is there really one of those? An alternate universe maybe?) I’ve been working on the same novel for a couple of years now, along with numerous shorts, one of which will be published in a crime anthology this year. My novel – Morgan’s Dust - is aimed at the older end of the YA market, and the story of a girl who lives in a funeral home with a (big) difference. This one is definitely following my first love of pure Spec Fic, filled with all kinds of new beasties; a full world and mythology build. Luckily, I’ve recently had the amazing Alison Goodman mentoring me through the process as the end finally looms near.
Kylie: As Amanda said, we’re most definitely working on the continuing saga of Arrabella and her friends and yes, we’re always working on something new of our own too.
My novel, currently titled Kataclysmic but to be renamed, starring Kat Delaney that I mentioned above, is in the redraft stage. I’m also working on a not-quite-zombie novella, a couple of short stories and a YA urban fantasy.
Amanda: Ahh, do I really have to choose?
Well, of course Marianne de Pierres is big on my list of favourites. Her Night Creatures series is rich, dark and graphic – all the things I love in YA spec fic. Kirstyn McDermott’s Madigan Mine blew me away with serious word envy, the same with Alison Goodman’s EON and EONA. I’ve been a bit slow and only recently discovered Margo Lanagan; Sea Hearts is to die for. Jo Anderton, Kim Westwood, A.K. Bedford, L.L. Hannett and Karen Brooks have also left me wanting more of their work – now.
Kylie: Amazingly enough (or not!) I totally agree with everything Amanda just said. Madigan Mine was one of the most exquisitely written books I’ve ever read – the mood that Kirstyn McDermott managed to create and maintain throughout to the book was incredible.
Alison Goodman’s Eon and Eona are absolute perfection. Marianne’s Night Creatures are deep and rich and the epitome of world building.
KA Bedford’s Time Machines Repaired While You Wait, is one of very few time-travel books that have really hit the mark for me – brilliant!
Also, Jason Nahrung, Angela Slatter, Tracie McBride, Felicity Dowker and Andrew McKiernan have really impressed me.
The anthologies, Macabre and Dead Red Heart were choc-full of wordy-goodness – not just enough to sit up and take notice but jump up from my seat cheering!
Amanda: Well, quite honestly, at the time of Aussiecon 4, we were absolute newbies to the scene, and attended the con purely as fans. For me, it was an experience of a lifetime, not having attended a big con before. I loved the feeling of finding so many like-minded people, and so much information to the craft in one place.
I guess so far as changes go – the Australian Spec Fic scene just gets bigger and better; it’s very exciting. We have such an amazing pool of talent in this country, and so many friendly people willing to help out and give advice to new writers. As a reviewer, I’ve read almost exclusively Australian authors over the last couple of years, and I’m constantly blown-away by the standard of our authors.
Kylie: Once again, Amanda has beaten me to it but she’s absolutely right. Everything about the scene seems new to me since Aussiecon, in large part because I feel like I’m far more in touch with it now than I was then.
One of the things I’ve noticed is how much more accessible work is now – there seems to be a lot more opportunities available for Aussie SpecFic writers with anthologies and several new small presses readily publishing. Hopefully that will only continue to grow and the works of these talented people can keep finding new readerships.
Amanda Wrangles writes Speculative Fiction and Crime – usually in the same story. She grew up on a steady diet of fantasy and horror and encouraged to read under the blankets by torchlight well after the time most good children were fast asleep. These days, she tries to pretend not to notice when one of her three sons does the same thing.
Amanda was the winner of the 2009 Scarlet Stiletto short story competition with a spec fic story disguised as crime. She shortlisted in the same competition in 2010 and 2011. This year, she’s given up entering, becoming a judge instead. She reviews YA Spec Fic, paranormal crime and SciFi for author Marianne de Pierres’ various websites.
Kylie spends her days caring for her four younger children (and growing a fifth!) and her nights plotting murder, revenge and espionage; and creating worlds far away from her own.
Kylie always knew that she wanted to be a writer but thought that “real” authors were mythical creatures living in far-away crystalline towers. Once she discovered that authors were real people, she set to work doing the only thing she could – writing.
Kylie was the winner of the Dorothy Porter award at the 2010 Scarlet Stiletto Awards for her short story in verse, “Poppies” which is now published in the anthology, The Second Cut.
Her first novel, written with Amanda Wrangles, under the pseudonym, A.K. Wrox, is Arrabella Candellarbra and the Questy Thing to End All Questy Things, published by Clan Destine Press.
Kylie is currently rewriting a crime thriller starring Melbourne-based, kick-arse heroine and government-sanctioned assassin, Kat Delaney. She is also working on a YA paranormal novel; an apocalyptic horror novel and several short stories across genres.
In her spare time, (ha!) she manages Marianne Delacourt’s (aka Marianne de Pierres) Tara Sharp site and reviews across her other websites, along with several other online publications and sites.
This interview was conducted as part of the 2012 Snapshot of Australian Speculative Fiction. We’ll be blogging interviews from 1st June to 8th June and archiving them at ASif!: Australian SpecFic in Focus. You can read interviews at:
http://thebooknut.wordpress.com/tag/2012snapshot/ http://kathrynlinge.livejournal.com/tag/2012snapshot/ http://helenm.posterous.com/tag/2012snapshot http://bookonaut.blogspot.com.au/search/label/2012Snapshot http://www.davidmcdonaldspage.com/tag/2012snapshot/ tansyrr.com/tansywp/tag/2012snapshot/ www.champagneandsocks.com/tag/2012snapshot/ http://randomalex.net/tag/2012snapshot/ http://jasonnahrung.com/tag/2012snapshot/ http://mondyboy.com/?tag=2012snapshot
Trent kindly managed to crawl half dead from his sick bed to bring you this interview. Thanks Trent and get well soon.
You have delivered 5 books in two years, a pretty amazing feat. What are you currently working that you can tell us about?
Thanks, 5 in two years isn't too bad, but I don't think I could keep working at that pace for much longer. That said, I've about five or six different books competing for attention. Which one ends up on top is matter for my back brain - though one is starting to edge the others out, and it's a BIG book.
I'm not contracted for anything new at the moment, which is at once delightful and scary. I think I might actually write a couple of short stories in the next few months. Four years of teaching short story writing kind of bled the joy out of it for me (and made me too self conscious) but I'm getting it back at the moment.
Selling my first story, Threnody to Eidolon - that was such an important moment for me. Editing Redsine, and getting a chance to edit Kirsten Bishop's The Etched City - I love that book - I still think it's one of the best fantasy novels ever published in Australia - and while I don't think I did much to make it better, I learnt so much.
Selling my books, and discovering that I could actually write novels, you know, actually finish them. The Death Works books were so much fun to write, and finally seeing Roil in print was a highlight, too, as was getting to finish the story. I'm still amazed that people have published these stories. You don't often get a chance to live a dream, and I've been lucky enough to do so five times now.
Honestly, if I finish a couple of things I'm working on now and they come out even half as well as I want, I'll be happy.
I'd love to write comics, I've gotten back into the habit of reading them lately, Joe Hill's Locke and Key is amazing, and I love Scott Snyder's American Vampire series.
Whatever I do, I'd like to think I'd still be writing. And, hopefully, getting better at it.
I'd like to think my best work is ahead of me: and that it will surprise me.
That's just a cruel question!
I'm still behind in my reading, and if I start mentioning names I'm going to forget someone, and most of my peers are my friends.
I honestly believe that the small press is the heart of our scene, if it's healthy then writers can grow and develop, and write the brave wonderful things that make good stories. It's an awesome time to be a writer because you know if you sell a story you're going to get some serious editorial input - and that's important. Beyond that it's an awesome time to be a reader of Australian Spec Fic - all tastes are catered for, and catered for so well.
I don't know if there have been big changes to the scene so much. The market has in some ways contracted - there's less bookstores selling Spec Fic - and expanded, there's so many more avenues for publication. I really feel that the e-book exploded last year and we're still dealing with the shrapnel. There's definitely been a couple of years of consolidation in the scene, I don't feel that there was a flagging of energy with publishers after Aussiecon, that instead they've built and continue to build. There's also a sense that we seem to be much more part of the international scene, a lot of writers are making their careers selling internationally rather than locally.
And Paul Haines is gone, I don't know if we have anyone quite like him, and I don't know if we ever will. We should have had decades more of Paul's stories.
His Death Works Trilogy is available from Orbit books. Roil, and Night's Engines the two books of the Nightbound Land Duology are available from Angry Robot.
His webpage is at www.trentjamieson.com
Lisa Hannett burst onto the scene with Bluegrass Symphony, a debut collection that had only one previous published story. SA Arts have recognised her talent and given her a grant that will allow her to bring us more dark tales of the weird.
I’ve got a couple of projects on the go at the moment. Last December, I received a grant from the wonderful folks at Arts SA, which has allowed me to take a big chunk of time off this year to focus on writing my first novel, The Familiar.
At the same time, I’ve also been completing Midnight and Moonshine, a collection of interconnected short stories that I’m co-writing with Angela Slatter, which will be published by Ticonderoga in November 2012.
It’s been great working on two major projects at once: when one book is giving me trouble, I can swap to the other one, which gives the back-brain some time to nut out whatever problems I’m having with the narrative. It’s also fantastic working with Angela on the collection — we’ve been having a great time putting these stories together, which relieves the ‘second album’ syndrome a bit.
So, to be honest, any pressure I feel to produce “a stunner” is all self-inflicted; I never feel like people are waiting with bated breath for my next piece, or that they want me to live up to some unknown/unquantifiable expectation. It’s more that I want every story I write to be better than the last — and it’s when I think I’m not quite reaching that goal that I feel pressure. The best way I’ve found to overcome that sort of anxiety is to just keep writing (here’s hoping it never stops working!)
This question is so hard to answer! Bluegrass Symphony is my first book, a series of stories that are all set in the same weird world — and only one of the pieces had previously been published elsewhere. So I didn’t have the comfort of knowing they’d been published before and that they’d already been successful in other anthologies or magazines. The book was all new, so I had no real way of knowing how it would be received. It could’ve been a huge hit or a huge miss. But I really enjoyed writing the stories, and I definitely hoped readers would like the pseudo-Southern setting and the characters as much as I did.
As for fondest memories: I was so excited that Bluegrass was featured on ‘The Writer and the Critic’ podcast alongside Rob Shearman’s Everyone’s Just So So Special — I adore Rob’s short stories, so I thought that was totally cool. And winning two Aurealis Awards (for Best Collection and Best Horror Short Story) was just mind-blowing. The whole night felt like a dream.
Thanks! I love reading weird stories, so I’m naturally drawn to writing weird things as well. And as I said, I’m now working on my first novel, The Familiar, which is a dark fantasy story about witches that is more fantasy than weird — but having said that, I’m apparently really bad at judging how dark and/or weird my stories are, so it might be more weird than fantasy. Who knows? There are a few stories in Bluegrass that I think of as quite “happy” tales, but I’ve had several people tell me that they find these ones the creepiest in the collection… At any rate, yes, I am branching out into longer narratives but I’ll never stop writing short.
I adore short stories — when done right, they can be perfect narrative entities. They carry so much power, so much impact in so few words. I also love that you can push the boundaries with short stories; you can offer readers intense, unsettling, subtle, chilling, horrific bursts that you might not be able to sustain for a novella or novel length story. In my “spare” time, I’m working on a mosaic novel called Lament for the Afterlife, which I hope will find a medium between both forms: the short ‘chapters’ will carry the impact of weird short stories, but the overarching narrative will rely on having all of the pieces working together to make a longer whole.
I’m so glad you’re enjoying the blog! Even though we’ve got such a thriving speculative fiction community here in Australia, when it comes to actually sitting in front of your computer and putting words on the page, you can sometimes wind up feeling isolated and a bit lonely. Enter: the internet! Although the web can be really distracting when I’m trying to write, it can also be a great way to share writing advice, to give each other a boost when it’s needed, etc. I am having such fun with the ‘Tuesday Therapy’ series — and I sometimes feel like the advice we get every week is designed specifically to kick me back into action on my novel. Hopefully it has the same effect on other people!
As for Australian must-reads: ooooh, there are so many! Definitely Debris by Jo Anderton — I gobbled it up and cannot wait for the next book to come out! Madigan Mine by Kirstyn McDermott — awesome, awesome Australian gothic/horror. The Arrival by Shaun Tan (not a novel, but I don’t care! It’s incredible.) Sourdough and Other Stories by Angela Slatter — beautiful fairy tale-ish world, unbelievable writing. Kim Westwood’s The Courier’s New Bicycle. The ‘Old Kingdom’ trilogy by Garth Nix (Sabriel, Lirael, Abhorsen). Kaaron Warren’s Dead Sea Fruit collection. The Memory Cathedral by Jack Dann. Tender Morsels by Margo Lanagan. All of Peter M Ball’s short stories (go to his website for the links). I could go on — I have barely even touched on the awesome Australian writing that I’ve enjoyed recently — but I’ll leave it at that for now.
Podcasts. They’ve been around since Aussiecon4, of course, but seem to have really boomed in the past two years. ‘The Writer and the Critic’, ‘Galactic Suburbia’, ‘Coode Street’, ‘Pangalactic Interwebs’ — I am hooked on all of them. I love that these podcasts are getting so much attention, both at home and overseas, and that they are such great ambassadors for the Australian speculative fiction community. And the megapodcasts at cons are so much fun!
Her short stories have been published in Clarkesworld Magazine, Fantasy Magazine, Weird Tales, ChiZine, Shimmer, Steampunk II: Steampunk Reloaded and the Year's Best Australian Fantasy and Horror 2010, among other places.
Her first collection, Bluegrass Symphony (Ticonderoga) won the Aurealis Award for Best Collection 2011. Midnight and Moonshine, co-authored with Angela Slatter, will be published in 2012. Lisa is a graduate of Clarion South. You can find her online at http://lisahannett.com and on Twitter @LisaLHannett.
http://thebooknut.wordpress.com/tag/2012snapshot/ http://kathrynlinge.livejournal.com/tag/2012snapshot/ http://helenm.posterous.com/tag/2012snapshot http://bookonaut.blogspot.com.au/search/label/2012Snapshot http://www.davidmcdonaldspage.com/tag/2012snapshot/ tansyrr.com/tansywp/tag/2012snapshot/ www.champagneandsocks.com/tag/2012snapshot/ http://randomalex.net/tag/2012snapshot/ http://jasonnahrung.com/tag/2012snapshot/ http://mondyboy.com/?tag=2012snapshot
You have been heavily involved with Specusphere for some time. Most recently though, the zine has published its first book, Mythic Resonance. What can you tell us about that?
Mythic Resonance was a project we’d been considering for some months before we finally decided to take the plunge and actually call for submissions! It was quite a challenge, as none of us except Stephen Thompson, our editor in chief, had ever been closely involved with an anthology before. However, we each had our own strengths – Amanda Greenslade is a fine graphic designer and layout person. The rest of us had a variety of experiences in structural editing and Sue Hammond is one of the best copyeditors around.
Choosing the stories was a challenge, but in the end we found a collection of tales we all liked and that blended well with each other as representative of the theme. We were looking for new takes on old tropes, and we certainly got them! Sue Burzstynski’s ‘Brothers’, for example, delivers a fun rewrite of Snow White, while Tom Williams’s re-telling of the tragic tale of Gelert, the faithful hound, is sad enough to bring a tear to the eye.
I think we ended up with an enjoyable bunch of stories, and so far, reaction from readers and critics has been positive. You can find Mythic Resonance in various formats, both print and electronic, on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iTunes
Ten years ago, I was a free-lance editor specialising in academic papers, but due to my online presence within the SF community and my deepening interest in the speculative genres, that has gradually shifted. These days my editing commissions are nearly all SF.
The boom in self-publishing has also played a part in the shift of emphasis, of course, and I’m pleased to see that many self-publishing authors are now not rushing to put their first drafts up on Smashwords, but are seeking professional editing services first. I now specialise in doing ‘mini-assessments’ for less experienced writers, so my work involves not just editing but a fair bit of mentoring as well, which I enjoy very much.
The nice thing about being a reviewer is that the publishing houses send me lots of lovely freebies, so I do get a good overview of what’s being written and what is selling. Furthermore, I was on the Fantasy Short Story Panel for the 2011 Aurealis Awards, so I read more short stories last year than ever before – some 170-odd! Of that number, there were at least thirty that deserved to be shortlisted, but sadly, the rules stipulate that the final list can only contain five stories.
Two were by Margo Lanagan, an Aussie author whose work I love because of her ability to get into the hearts and minds of some very interesting characters. Other faves of mine, on the novel front, are Glenda Larke, Juliet Marillier, Karen Miller and Marianne de Pierres, but of course there are many others and the list could easily go into double figures!
Well, vampires still seem to reign supreme, but I think there is starting to be a swing away from them. We are seeing some highly original stories in other sub-genres, especially steampunk, from overseas as well as from Aussie authors. The biggest change is, as I’ve touched on earlier, the tendency toward self-publishing.
The standard of self-published work is, on average, storming ever upward, with the result that the practice now carries far less stigma than it did even two years ago. What’s more, it means that cross-genre stories, and outright eccentric ones that conventional publishers wouldn’t dare take on, can all find their own niche. This has got to be a good thing because it means readers have more choice. And we must never forget that the story begins and ends with readers. No readers, no industry – and no fandom! ‘Nuff said!
From a background in the performing arts, principally dance and music, Satima switched to writing in these areas a couple of decades ago.
A regular contributor to magazines such as Dance Australia and Music Maker, she was dance critic for The Australian in Perth for several years.
She is now Reviews Editor for The Specusphere, a webzine for the speculative fiction community, and she also undertakes freelance editing commission.
A life-long love of fantasy eventually led her start writing it, and she is now working on the obligatory trilogy. Apart from reading, writing, editing and reviewing fantasy, Satima’s interests include astrology and family history. She also enjoys participating in Shakespearean readings and writing the odd bad sonnet.
Russell B Farr is a name that keeps popping up for anyone with a cursory interest in the Australian scene, and going by the answers to the questions below you can see what a solid and silent achiever he is.
Thanks Russell for your time, I can see it’s precious.
Ticonderoga has put out some wonderful work of late, Bluegrass Symphony and Damnation and Dames to name just two. What are you working on at the moment?We published 5 books in 2010, 7 last year, and are on target to publish 9 this year with 8 titles for 2013 already contracted. It’s been a long time since I only worked on one title at any time.
What am I working on at this very point in time?
Finalising the covers for The Bride Price (Cat Sparks, April 2013), Blood Stones (ed Amanda Pillar, October 2012), The Scarlet Rider (Lucy Sussex, mid-2012), The Year of Ancient Ghosts (Kim Wilkins, June 2013), The 400-Million-Year Itch (Steven Utley, August 2012) and Invisible Kingdoms (Steven Utley, February 2013).
Also doing the final edits on Bread and Circuses (Felicity Dowker, June 2012), finalising material for The Year’s Best Australian Fantasy and Horror 2011 (eds Liz Grzyb and Talie Helene, June 2012).
There are edits waiting for the two Utley collections, Greg Mellor’s collection (Wild Chrome, October 2012),
Then there’s promoting Damnation and Dames, and Bread and Circuses...
I’m also pondering what sort of special celebration our 50th title will be, as it’s due for publication mid-2014.
So what I should say is that what I’m working on right now is making sure I spend time with my wonderful fiancé, Liz Grzyb.
Ticonderoga has been a solid presence in the Australian Speculative Fiction community since the late 90s, looking back what swells your heart with pride?I guess I do feel a bit of pride just for still being here, as I doubt this is what I imagined when I started TP way back in 1996.
I’m proud to have been able to deliver books that really needed to be published, such as Troy (Simon Brown, 2006), Steven Utley’s Silurian Tales (The 400-Million-Year Itch, August 2012, Invisible Kingdoms, February 2013), and Sara Douglass’ The Hall of Lost Footsteps (November 2011).
I’m proud to have been able to work with so many fantastic writers over the years, too many to name but open every TP book to the contents page and there they are.
I’m proud to have put together the Belong anthology, dedicate it to my parents, and give my mother a copy before she passed away last year.
I’m probably proudest whenever someone comes up to me and tells me that they bought, read, and loved a book we’ve published.
As I said above, we’ve got 9 books coming out this year, and should be settling into an 8 or 9 book per year schedule. I think I’ve said before that barely a day goes by without me thinking of stopping the press, but there’s never a week that goes by where I don’t think I’m doing the most worthwhile thing I can. While that continues I guess I’m here for the duration, though I do expect to review things in a couple of years as we approach 20 years in this biz.
We’re contracted into 2014, with a bunch of fabulous titles coming up. This year will see us publishing (in addition to those mentioned above) awesome collections by Lezli Robyn (Bittersuite, August), Greg Mellor (Wild Chrome, October) and Angela Slatter and Lisa L Hannett (Midnight and Moonshine, November). Next year we’ve also got fabulous collections by Juliet Marillier (March 2013), Jason Fischer (October 2013), and a fantastic original sf novel by Patty Jansen (November 2013).
As a publisher of Australian works what particular work by Aussie authors or editors has impressed you recently?Obviously all of the writers Ticonderoga are publishing are producing impressive work—if they didn’t impress me we wouldn’t be working together and I’m humbled that these amazing talents are willing to work with TP. Similarly I think all of our editors are top notch.
Top of the list of editors in Australia right now has to be Jonathan Strahan, he’s truly deserving of all the accolades and success, having worked hard for a long time. He’s pretty much without peer. Also peerless is Stephanie Smith, the powerhouse behind HarperCollins/Voyager, and I’d hate to be the one taking over from her.
There’s a bunch of excitement in the indie scene, but I guess the press that seems most impressive would have to be Fablecroft. They’re still finding their feet, but I feel have a lot of potential.
As for writers, where do I start? I don’t want to miss any out but probably will. There’s great work coming from Jo Anderton, Alan Baxter, Marianne de Pierres, Rjurik Davidson, Thoraiya Dyer, Margo Lanagan, Ian McHugh, Nicole Murphy, Trent Jamieson.
I probably should also do a shout out to Penelope Love, as I think she’s perhaps one of the most creative and under-rated story writers around. Also Kaaron Warren, who gets better with every story (almost putting her 2010 Ticonderoga collection, Dead Sea Fruit, to shame).
Two years on from Aussiecon 4, what do you think are some of the biggest changes to the Australian Spec Fic scene?I’ve been pondering this recently, and I think the biggest change has been a lack of change. In 1999, Aussiecon 3, a lot of independent presses geared up for a big show, produced some fabulous work, and either aimed for this to be their swan song or burnt out in the aftermath. There was a definite trough in the couple of years following.
There was certainly a big push for Aussiecon 4, a lot of awesome titles on display, and while it represented a winding down for a couple of presses overall the genre is showing a lot more resilience than a decade ago. It’s a good thing that there’s a lot going on right now.
Russell B. Farr is the founding editor of Ticonderoga Publications and has published almost thirty titles since 1996. His recent anthology, Belong, explores the concepts of home and migration. In 1999 he established ticon4, now Australia’s longest running semi-professional science fiction webzine. Previous works as editor include the award-winning anthology Fantastic Wonder Stories, award-winning collections Magic Dirt: the Best of Sean Williams, and Angela Slatter’s The Girl With No Hands and other tales, and Australia’s first work-themed anthology The Workers’ Paradise.
As editor of Ticonderoga Publications, Russell has overseen the publication of landmark story collections by Simon Brown, Stephen Dedman, Terry Dowling, Angela Slatter, Stephen Utley, Lucy Sussex, Lisa L Hannett, Justina Robson, and Kaaron Warren.
Russell lives in Greenwood, Western Australia, with his wonderful fiance Liz Grzyb, a sociopathic cat and a somewhat neurotic dog. [Source: Russell B. Farr]
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Deborah Kalin is the sixth interviewee in my Snapshot Interviews, and a survivor graduate of Clarion South. Thanks for taking the time to answer the questions Deborah.
After finishing Shadow Bound, I've mostly been working on an urban fantasy/detective novel, which I've finally dragged kicking and screaming into a zero-draft state and now I've hidden it in a dark drawer for a while. I fear there's something fundamental that's lacking still, but possibly a few months away from it will help with my perspective.
I've completed one story so far, called "The Wages of Honey", which explores the cost of truth but also relies on an atmosphere of the reader knowing very little, so I can't tell you too much more than that.
The story I'm working on at the moment is called "The Briskwater Mare", which so far as I can tell seems to explore the cost of empathy. I don't tend to plan my stories in advance to any great detail, but I think the other two stories in the collection will similarly explore themes of the costs of social constructs, and the idea of personality as fate. Or at least, that's the plan. I'm very much looking forward to seeing what I can pull out of my head for this collection.
Thank you! My fondest memory of writing those books was delving into Matilde's voice. She's such a headstrong, determined and yet outmatched girl, particularly in Shadow Queen, but she thinks on her feet and she always kept things interesting.
It was in the writing of The Binding books that I realised my deep-seated fascination for interpersonal politics, and the way people communicate and manipulate and manoeuvre each other. Shadow Bound I found more difficult to write, because I'd sold the book and committed to its publication before having written even so much as a word on it. I ended up putting a lot of pressure on myself that it be quality, which ultimately I think made me work slower than I normally would.
It's the age-old cry of the writer, as always: too many ideas, too little time! Honestly I don't think I'll ever stray too far out of the fantasy umbrella, in one form or another -- but then fantasy is such a broad genre, that's not really saying much. I do have another high fantasy storyline that might fill two or three books lurking in the back of my brain, but it's sharing space with a near-future apocalypse novel and a YA novel that explores the concept of sanity, to name but two.
The other book I'm keeping an eye out for is Penni Russon's "Only Ever Always". I'm very interested, lately, in the topic of mental health, and the myriad ways we've structured our society around simultaneously supporting and destroying it.
Two years already? I think one of the biggest changes is the rise of independent press. Australia has always had a very healthy small press scene, I think, but certainly in the last two years they've been rising to the forefront in terms of winning awards and gaining recognition and prominence etc.
I think the small press scene is now more visible, and I for one really appreciate the diversity it brings to the works available to me and my reading addiction.
Her two most recent novels are Shadow Queen and Shadow Bound from Allen & Unwin.
Jason Fischer is the fourth interviewee in my Snapshot Interviews, and for those that are familiar with him, I can vouch that they are no puns contained in the answers below. Thanks for taking the time to answer the questions Jason.
You seem to have ramped up your workload especially after getting some time to write full time. What of your current projects can you tell us about?It's been a crazy year at Fisch Enterprises! Since July 2011 I've written just over 200,000 words of new fiction, and only now am I coming up to breathe. At the moment I'm editing the novel I wrote during my arts grant sabbatical (Papa Lucy and the Boneman) and working on a couple of shorter projects that are currently embargoed.
In recent times I've found myself branching away from short fiction and working on novellas and tie-in works (such as the Black House Comics "After the World" line) and a collaborative project with author Steven Savile. I'm starting work on new short stories for my upcoming Ticonderoga collection "Everything is a Graveyard", and it's nice to return to the short form after taking most of this year away from it.
My three favourite moments are as follows: Jack Dann leading a crowd into a sing-a-long of "Undead Camels Ate Their Flesh"; accepting my award at Writers of the Future; but above all my favourite moment was when I heard about the sale of my first story (flash fiction) to Antipodean SF. I hope to never forget that feeling, and no matter what my successes have been since then, that was the beginning of this whole crazy journey.
Surprisingly, outside of bombarding my peers with puns, I'm not actually a comedy writer! There's the occasional moment of black humour in my stories, but many well-intentioned folks have trained me out of punning in my fiction.
As for what's in the pipeline, I have a novel appearing soon from Black House Comics, titled "Quiver". This is a fix-up novel, a reworking of my serial zombie novellas from the "After the World" project. Promotion hasn't begun in earnest, but it's an official thing and I'm quite excited! It will hopefully appeal to readers of YA dystopias such as "The Hunger Games", and it's the fruit of about 2-3 year's work.
To my shame, I haven't been reading as much of the local stuff as I once did. I really loved "Anywhere but Earth" and Talie and Liz get my vote for their compilation of and introduction to the "Year's Best Australian Fantasy and Horror".
Massive fan of Lisa Hannett's "Bluegrass Symphony", and I've enjoyed the other stories in the "After the World" magazine series. I've got "Ishtar" sitting on the Kindle, ready to go, and Sean William's "Cenotaxis" is on the top of the molecular TBR pile.
If there is a local renaissance, it seems to be different in flavour to the fallout from the last Aussiecon. There aren't a million small presses sprouting underfoot, and the handful of small-presses that are still around seem to be lifting their sights somewhat.
We're no longer an antipodean silo of writing and publishing, given the wonders of e-books, and the boutique genre press has arrived in force. Instead of trying to do lots of books, they seem to produce small print runs of beautiful books.
The Aussies are still rating well in overseas awards and short-lists, and many of the authors who were prolific in small-press a few years ago are now selling novels to the big publishers. It certainly bodes well.
Jason Fischer lives near Adelaide, South Australia, with his wife and son. He tries to unleash the weird every time he gets behind the keyboard, and his fiction has been described by reviewers as “strikingly original” and “weirdly imaginative”, while noted for containing “greasier genre elements”.
Jason attended the Clarion South writers workshop in 2007, and has been shortlisted in the Aurealis Awards, the Ditmar Awards, and the Australian Shadows Awards. He won the 2009 AHWA Short Story and the 2010 AHWA Flash Fiction Competitions, and is a winner of the Writers of the Future contest.
He is the author of over thirty short stories, with his first collection appearing soon from Ticonderoga Publications. His “After The World” series of zombie-apocalypse novellas are available from Black House Comics, and his fantasy novel “Tusk” is being serialised in Terra Magazine.[source: Fisch International Enterprises]
Dear readers,
By now you should have received the beginning posts of the Australian Speculative Fiction Snapshot 2012. There will be well over 100 interviews of authors and commentators from the Australian community by the start of Continuum.
Therefore I have been asked some questions by the very talented Alex Pierce over her at her blog.
If you want a quick link to my interviews for the snapshot click here(this is a search like that will give you those posted.)
There will be an index post by the end of the project, but I encourage you to check the other interviewees below.
I’d like to welcome Cat Sparks as the third interviewee in my 2012 Snapshot series of interviews. As you can see below Cat is insanely busy and I thank her for taking the time out of her day to answer my questions.
You were recently able to participate in Margaret Atwood's Time Machine Doorway Workshop, and Ishtar by Gilgamesh Press has featured prominently in Awards. What's on the boil for Cat Sparks at the moment?Boil is definitely the correct term. Currently I feel like I’m living in of those nightmares where you’re desperately trying to run forward but moving in slow motion. Or a bug trapped in amber -- take your pick. I’m finishing up the graphic design/photography for the Aurealis Awards. I have a grant-funded novel due in November, a Twelve Planet Press story suite due in October, a collection coming out through Ticonderoga next year which requires two new stories.
The novel I have been working on in one form or another across the past seven years has just bounced back from my agent AGAIN with a long and comprehensive list of rewrite requirements. Plus, you know, my Cosmos job and I’m tutoring at a writing retreat in June and I’ve just begun a Doctorate. Lucky I quit my graphic design job cos I definitely don’t have time for that stuff anymore.
Editing & publishing the Agog! anthologies was a definite highlight, although I probably didn’t feel that way at the time. A couple of authors have since credited me with kick starting their careers. The press made a difference & made its mark, but it definitely hobbled my own writing output, both in terms of quality and quantity.
My own favourite stories are probably ‘Hollywood Roadkill’ from On Spec, 2007; ‘All the Love in the World’ from Sprawl, 2010 and ‘The Sleeping and the Dead’ from Ishtar, 2011.
You have just embarked on a Doctorate, what does the near future hold for you in terms of your writing?
The near future holds nothing but writing, rewriting, reading and data mining bibliographies. (see answer to Q 1 for details). I have definitely bitten off more than I can chew but I’m going to keep chewing anyway. My one true superpower is persistence. Never give up, never surrender, as they say…
Kim Westwood’s The Courier’s New Bicycle. I’ve been a big fan since buying a story of hers for Agog! Smashing Stories back in 2004. Kim’s work is that winning combination: style and substance struggling for equal space.
Also noteworthy are the complexities displayed in Tansy Rayner Roberts’ Creature Court series. Tansy’s work impresses me because I always swear I’m not interested in reading ‘that kind of stuff’, yet I end up reading and enjoying it anyway. Mind you, right now anyone who can produce a novel that doesn’t suck impresses me (again, see answer to Q1).
Kathleen Jennings is another one, definitely a quiet achiever, the absolute antithesis of the human spambot set. I remember Kathleen from cons of yore, shyly sidling up to collect local authors’ signatures. Her art is popping up in all sorts of prestigious international places these days. Good stuff and utterly unique.
And finally, Amanda Rainey’s graphic design. Her work is simply stunning.
Two years on from Aussiecon 4, what do you think are some of the biggest changes to the Australian Spec Fic scene?
Everything is now online and super fast. Hoary old arguments that used to fester over months now boil, brew and spew in the space of a single afternoon, mostly on Twitter and Facebook, Live Journal having fallen by the wayside. The community has ascended from the corporeal world like a plague of malcontented ghosts. I can’t help but feel many of us may have lost something valuable in our media-savvy quest for what is widely being misunderstood as ‘professionalism’. The tsunami of writers’ self-promotional spam is aggravatingly mind numbing, like a giant plasma telly notched up to eleven blasting all adds, no program content.
Why do you want to be a writer if all you ever have to say is LOOK AT ME LOOK AT ME LOOK AT ME!!! Writing is first and foremost about content. Without content, you’re just sucking up pixels and my time.
More books are being produced now than ever before, a direct result of improved digital printing technology. There are good sides to this -- and bad. There was a time when an author needed to make a reasonable number of pro sales before scoring a collection.
Newer writers used to read mags and anthologies with the intention of learning the score and improving their own chances of being included in the next one. No need to read anything anymore, just upload your stories straight to Smashwords or wherever. Does the elimination of gatekeepers make you a better writer? I doubt it.
The 2012 aether overfloweth with podcasts! This is an excellent development, especially for busy types like me as they are the perfect accompaniment to one’s exercise routine. My two favourites are Jonathan and Gary’s Coode Street and Galactic Suburbia.
Cat Sparks is fiction editor of Cosmos Magazine. She managed Agog! Press, an Australian independent press that produced ten anthologies of new speculative fiction from 2002-2008. She’s known for her award-winning editing, writing, graphic design and photography.
A graduate of the inaugural Clarion South Writers’ Workshop, she was a Writers of the Future prize winner in 2004. She has edited five anthologies of speculative fiction and more than fifty of her short stories have been published since the turn of the millennium.
Cat has received a total of seventeen Aurealis and Ditmar awards for writing, editing and art including the Peter McNamara Conveners Award 2004, for services to Australia’s speculative fiction industry. She was the convenor of the Aurealis Awards horror division in 2006 and a judge in the anthologies and collected work category in 2009.
She is currently working on a biopunk trilogy and a suite of post-apocalypse tales set on the New South Wales south coast.
Her story ‘All the Love in the World’ is reprinted in Hartwell and Kramer’s Years Best Science Fiction, Volume 16.
In January 2012 she was one of 12 students chosen to participate in Margaret Atwood’sThe Time Machine Doorway workshop as part of the Key West Literary Seminar Yet Another World: literature of the future. Her participation was funded by an Australia Council emerging writers grant.
[Photo: Selena Quintrell]
