The dream lives regardless

When you finish writing a novel (or before) you start thinking about the possibilities, the next stages to reaching your goal; publication.

Obviously, everyone would like to go down the traditional route.  You get an agent and then you get offered a publishing contract from a publisher and bam!  Your book is sitting proudly in Waterstones.

That’s the dream.

However there are so many barricades to stop you reaching that goal.  The recession has made agents and publishers wary of taking risks with new writers.  Not to mention that fashions change quickly.  While I was writing Silver, fantasy was, and still is, very much in the forefront of fashion (Twilight, Harry Potter, True Blood) which means that the market has become saturated.

It was even recently pointed out to me that love triangles in fantasy have been overdone and is, quite possibly, even boring!  Now, Silver is my baby.  I’ve put a lot of hard work into it so of course I instantly told myself that my love triangle was different, but it might be something I will have to look at for the sequel, or if I ever do get an agent who wants a rewrite.  (I dread rewriting that part out of the story though!)

So it’s more difficult to get an agent, the market is saturated and, to top it all off, things are changing in the world of publishing.

There has been a sharp decline in the sales of paper books.  This makes me weep.  I love my paper books, I love the feel of them, I love taking them places to read at work or on the train or the doctors surgery, I love being able to pass them on if need be.  

One comfort is that there has been no decline in the sale of children’s books.  Our children are still reading, and long may they do so!  But adult fiction and non-fiction are being hit hard.  Part of this is to do with the recession but also new technologies.

I’m speaking about these new fangled e-readers.  Suddenly Kindles and iPads are all the rage.  This is something that every writer, whether aspiring or established, must think about.  I’m assuming that if I were to get published the traditional way that my publisher would organise this for me.  If, however, I go down the self publishing route, this is something I will have to organise.  I’ve already started my research, looking into my options, what is required and the costs.

Don’t fret!  The internet and writing magazines are filled with advice when it comes to e-publishing. 

So despite paper book sales declining, e-book sales are rising.  People haven’t stopped reading!  They’ve just changed how they do it.  Evidenced by the fact that e-book prices are rising, something that is currently being investigated and a pricing model is being drawn up.  So hopefully that shouldn’t negatively affect a writers royalties or the public’s desire to read.  Although one consequence might be that e-books become overpriced and trends may return to the paper book and e-readers will be confined to the fad-bin.

There is a lot more to this than meets the eye but it seems to all be in the beginning stages.  E-books are a new phenomenon that have only recently exploded into everyone’s lives and I know many people, including myself, who are yet to convert.

While the rise of e-books will do wonders for the planet, no doubt, saving all of those trees, it doesn’t change the dream of being published in paper and seeing your name on a physical book sat in the bookshop.  E-books even feel a little bit like cheating.

Publishers warned on e-book prices - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-17300074

Print book sales fall - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-17286981

Top 10 Science Fiction/Fantasy/Horror Books

In response to Zed’s comment to my last post about Science Fiction, here are my top 10 Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror books.  I tried to put them in some sort of order but that proved too difficult, so in no particular order;

      1.       The Body – Stephen King

Sentimentally speaking, The Body is my favourite story.  The Body is one novella of four in the book Different Seasons by Stephen King.  Four boys lie to their parents and follow the train tracks to find the dead body of a kid their age.

I first saw the film based in this story, Stand By Me, when I was 12 and I fell in love with it.  I found the book when I was 18 and it sits proudly on my shelf, yellowing and bent from the number of times it’s been read.

The book is beautifully written and dark.  As much as I love Stand By Me, the book spoke to me so much more.  This is a story from my childhood and adolescence, this story got me through teenage depression, GCSEs, exams and my first year of University when I felt down or homesick.

2.       The Blade Itself: The First Law Book One – Joe Abercrombie

This book, and the subsequent sequels, have some incredibly vibrant characters written on its pages.  Beware, there are a lot of characters but a couple really stand out and even now, years after reading this book, I still remember Logan Ninefingers and Glokta vividly.

The Blade Itself is gritty, violent and full of action.  I never doubted buying it after reading the blurb in the bookshop and I accidently read the first sentence when I got home. I had to put whatever I was reading at the time on hold until I had finished this fantastic book. 

A summary/blurb can be found on Joe Abercombie’s website.

3.       Guards Guards – Terry Pratchett

I love all of the Discworld novels to a certain degree.  Guards Guards is one of my favourites for two reasons; Sam Vimes and dragons.

This is the first Discworld novel for Vimes, we are introduced to an alcoholic guard and his men.  You instantly find yourself drawn to Vimes, you empathise with him and trust in him which is what makes him one of most anticipated and heart warming characters in the Discworld.

I love this book so much that I have an artists impression of Errol on the wall of my living room.

4.       Small Gods – Terry Pratchett

Another Discworld novel.  This novel explores the perception of belief and that is why I love it.  I admit that I have a fascination with mythology and belief and I found this book a joy to read with fascinating concepts.

Small Gods follows Brutha, a novice priest who lacks what is necessary in the thinking department and yet he is the one that the great god Om, in the form of a tortoise, appears before.

5.       Good Omens – Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman

Yes, another Terry Pratchett, but this time co-written with Neil Gaiman.   I told you that I have a fascination with belief and gods and you probably know by now that the Armageddon holds some interest to me too.  This book is about just that and a mix up with the coming of the Antichrist.

I picked up this book because of the angels and Terry Pratchett’s name on the front and was introduced me to the world of Neil Gaiman.

6.        The Graveyard Book – Neil Gaiman

This is supposedly a children’s book but that shouldn’t put adults off.  A toddler house is broken into and his parents murdered.  The ghosts living in the graveyard across the road take him in and raise him.

This book is dark, humorous and beautiful written with a story that has never left me.

7.       Wee Free Men – Terry Pratchett

Yes, yes, I know.  Another Terry Pratchett book.  But come on, the Wee Free Men!  How could this not be on the list?  Again, another supposed children’s book.  Wee Free Men is the first in the Tiffany Aching series.  Tiffany is unlike other girls, she has a fantastic way of thinking, taking after Granny Aching.  She is a cheese maker and a witch.  On her family’s land live the Wee Free Men; small, blue little people who speak the most wonderful Scottish. 

This book is a must read introduction to the Wee Free Men and the lovely Tiffany.  I cannot actually put into words how amazing the Wee Free Men are, which is a frustrating thing for a writer.  They are so much fun to read and they quickly became some of my favourite all-time characters.

8.       World War Z – Max Brooks

Now, I haven’t actually quite finished reading this yet.  I bought it in preparation for the film which is due out in this country at the beginning of 2013.

This book is a collection of interviews with all different types of people around the world, telling the story of World War Z, the war with zombies.

Despite not having finished it yet, this book has already made the list purely based on the dedication and research that has obviously gone into it.  It is very well written and basically every interview is a short story, reading them gives you the full story of the war from every angle possible; economic, political, military and civilian, from so many different countries across the world.  It is an awe-inspiring novel just for this but the story is also painfully real, violent and wonderful all at the same time.

9.       The Midwich Cuckoos – John Wyndham

This is possibly the only Science Fiction novel on my list.  Is this Science Fiction?  The classic story of an English village.  One night every occupant blacks out, when they come round they soon realise that every woman of child bearing age is pregnant.

This book is fascinating, fast paced and I found it very difficult to put it down.

10.   The Shawshank Redemption – Stephen King

A true classic.  The Shawshank Redemption is another novel hidden inside Different Seasons by Stephen King.  As with all books-turned-into-films, the book is a lot better than the film and surely you know how good the film is?  The book is more personable and heartfelt, it is dark with a twisted human beauty that seems to be Stephen King’s forte (I haven’t read much Stephen King-yet).

Watch the film; read the book.

A small selection of books on my to-read pile are;

•  Everything Neil Gaiman (he is a new discovery of mine – Neverwhere and Stardust)
• The Hunger Games – Suzanne Collins
• Retribution Falls: Tales of the Ketty Jay – Chris Wooding
• Heroes – Joe Abercrombie
• Snuff – Terry Pratchett

What does this tell you about me?  That I’m not too keen on Science Fiction but I am a big Terry Pratchett fan. 

So come on then, share.  What are your ten favourite Science Fiction/Fantasy/Horror books?