No time for a catchy post title I’m afraid but I’ve got a few bit of news about myself and my friend Rik Hoskin.
Rik first! His latest short story has been published in Cosmic Horror Magazine, entitled The Invincible. It is available in print or digital format. Cosmic Horror, stories in which humans encounter vast, terrifying and often uncaring creatures or forces is intrinsically linked with the works of HP Lovecraft and his alien elder gods. These beings often act through unknowable motives, have dimensions which the protagonists find hard to comprehend and there is often a theme that we mortals almost without the monsters being aware of them. Aside from Lovecraft, another favourite of mine from this genre is The House on the Borderland by William Hope Hodgson. More recently, it has been interestingly suggested that the award-winning television series of Chernobyl had horror overtones and could be an example of a new kind of cosmic horror, with radiation as the uncaring, unstoppable monster.
Rik has also given a excellent video interview to a Spanish website dedicated to Brandon Sanderson’s Cosmere universe. Talking to Tamara of cosmere.es Rik talks about adapting Sanderson’s manuscript White Sand into a series of successful graphic novels, working on other Brandon Sanderson properties, and his working process. He also talks about his career, including Deathlands, Disney comics, Game of Khans and his own original novel Bystander 27.
Plenty of activity this month. First up, the latest episode of The Official Talking Pictures TV Podcast is out and amongst it marvellous cotirie of reviewers, you’ll hear me outlining the merits of two very different comedy thrillers – Green for Danger and The Horror of Frankenstein. Which one most alarmed the British censor? You might be surprised. Compliments to Adam Roche for another excellent installment.
Still on podcasting, BERGcast the series all about Quatermass, has now reached Hammer’s first adaptation The Quatermass Xperiment, and it’s an entertaining hour looking at the pros and cons of the 1955 movie. As usual it also has background information I have never heard before. Personally I have disagree over Brian Donlevy though. Often criticised as hopelessly miscast, for me I like his driven, almost monstrous version of the scientist. It may have come about more be accident than intention, but Donlevy’s Quatermass as tough private eye portrayal is memorable and distinctive compared to many other academics of Fifties SF. This is a movie where the hero is actually adding to danger as much as combating it, and for me that is part of its strength.
Rik Hoskin has two exciting projects to talk about. Out now is an audio drama adaptation of his bestselling White Sands graphic novel set in Brandon Sanderson’s shared Cosmere universe. You can listen to the trailer and buy it from Graphic Audio right now. I have not heard it yet but intend to obtain it soon. Coming in November is a follow-up to his excellent comic series Red Rising: Sons of Ares. A prequel to the bestselling space opera adventure series Red Rising by Pierce Brown, Wrath carries on the early career of terrorist/freedom fighter Fitchner and his fight against the tyranical caste-based empire which rules the Solar System in the future. I loved the first six issue run and I’m looking forward to more of Rik’s storytelling and Eli Powell’s intricate but fluid art. Follow the link to read an interview at Bleeding Cool.
Finally Bolton Little Theatre are presenting A Bunch of Amateurs between 16th and 21st September. As well as assembling the sound effects and music, I’m helping with the marketing. Part of that is creating a quick video advert and I had the idea of coming up with some fake posters for faded US star Jefferson Steel’s recent movies, which you can see above. It should be an excellent comedy and having seen rehearsals I can recommend it.
There’s two new books set in exciting fantasy worlds coming out soon and the link between them is that they’re written by friends of mine. Talented comrades who have been rather more productive than me on the fiction front of late.
First up is the third and final volume of Brandon Sanderson’s White Sand graphic series, as adapted by the multi-gifted Rik Hoskin. The first two volumes have been a big hit for Dynamite Comics and Mr Sanderson himself has been delighted with Rik’s revision of his unpublished manuscript, set in what would become his Cosmere Universe. Rik was recently interviewed about the third volume, its new artist Fritz Casas, and what it has been like collaborating on a huge project like this. There’s also a bit of news for fans of Death Lands too. You can read the interview right here. I am biased but I thought it was a fascinating read.
White Sand 3 is released in hardback on 25th June and is available for pre-order at all good bookshops now.
Meanwhile Michael Langley and my erstwhile BBV collaborator Paul Ebbs are launching a new trilogy of fantasy/SF novels under the moniker Quantum Assassin , starting with Chain World. To quote Paul:
“It’s a rollicking SF\Fantasy adventure with big swords, big spaceships, big guns and a load of big dumb objects which meet at the intersection of Science and Magic.”
Looking at the blurb on Amazon we learn more: “Between two impossible worlds, three heroes must rise. Shryke the warrior, Galdar the curate and Barl the trainee Assassin. Each on a mission that will bring them into collision, not only with each other, but also with an enemy of immense power, the God-Queen. Chainworld: sixteen planet-sized links with terraformed inner surfaces. Sixteen wholly different environments where science holds sway, or magic, or an uneasy equilibrium of both. Sixteen worlds of warriors, mages, and scientists, plasma-soldiers, steam-pirates, airship captains, and the ravaging forces of the God-Queen. Shryke is a killer who wields secret magic – on the run but searching for clues to reveal a threat to all reality. Barl has been kidnapped from the endless vistas of God’s Heart, a mysterious sphere that completely encloses its host star. He is taken on a journey through the vast magical-technological training spaces of the Guild of Assassins. Here he will be trained not only to kill but also to travel through the spaces between atoms. When Galdar’s people are massacred by the forces pursuing Shryke, they must find a way up through the atmosphere to the hidden city controlling all life bringing forces at the centre of Chainworld. Shryke, Galdar and Barl alone must stand to the Sun Machine and the world beyond the quantum. “
So that is Chain World, coming soon to paperback and Audible on 18th June.
I’m delighted to report that Brandon Sanderson’s White Sand, written by my good friend Rik Hoskin, has won Best Graphic Novel at the Dragon Awards 2018, announced at DragonCon on Saturday night 1st September 2018.
I’ve mentioned this New York Times bestseller before and it is great to see Rik’s talent being recognised by fans of fantasy from around the world.
White Sand is based on Sanderson’s first ever completed novel, although he never submitted to publishers because he knew it need polishing. In later years the author had always had an ambition to go back and revise the book to improve it, and fit it into his later Cosmere saga. Eventually Dynamite Comics came to him, asking if he had any titles which he would like to be adapted into a comic. Sanderson saw this as an ideal opportunity to revisit White Sand and develop it into a graphic novel trilogy, which is now the canonical version of the story.
On the planet Taldain, the legendary Sand Masters harness magical powers to manipulate sand in spectacular ways. But when they are slaughtered in a sinister conspiracy, the weakest of their number, Kenton, believes himself to be the only survivor. With enemies closing in on all sides, Kenton forges an unlikely partnership with a mysterious Darksider, with secrets of her own.
Available from all good bookshops! Rik and I produced a fantasy audio series called Agents of Psyence which you can listen to and download from this very blog.
About Dragon Con
Dragon Con is the internationally known pop culture convention held each Labor Day in Atlanta. Organized for fans, Dragon Con features more than about 3,000 hours of comics, film, television programming, costuming, art, music, and gaming over four days. For more information, please visit www.dragoncon.org.
For a complete list of this year’s winners, please look at their blog here
Easter has just passed by and I seem to have reached critical mass with a number of little bits of news about what is happening in my world. So here is one of those occasional news round-up type posts of mine.
I’ve been pretty busy down at Bolton Little Theatre in the last few months. We had an extremely successful screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show with plenty of the audience in costume and some wild behaviour in the aisles! I must admit I was pretty nervous how this night was going to play, so it was a big relief to hear our guests leaving in high spirits and some lovely feedback on the night. We’ll be showing Dirty Dancing on Saturday evening 9th June 2018. Visit the BLT website for tickets and more details.
But my main job in the last few months has been as sound designer and operator for various productions on both of our stages. Absurd Person Singular by Alan Ayckbourn was a particular challenge, requiring party sounds every time the kitchen door was opened, and that door gets used an awful lot. Another tricky part was that each act opened with a Seventies Christmas pop song, which faded from normal to mimicking the tinny sound coming from an onset radio. But I pulled that off and this brilliant play about materialism and self-delusion was brilliantly acted by an excellent cast. I thought it was one of our best productions in a while. Although The Pitmen Painters by Lee Hall, which I was only tangentially involved with, was every bit as good in every department.
Currently I am rehearsing The Cemetery Club by Ivan Menchell, a witty comedy about love in New York’s senior citizen community. the sound requirements for this are relatively modest, probably the most challenging of which is a whistling kettle and getting the volume of it right. But its still quite a time commitment and will take up most of this and next week’s evenings. I’ve also put together a promotional trailer, which you can watch below:
Overlapping with that production is Agnes of God by John Pielmeier, an intense interrogation drama set in a New York convent. I’ve already recorded some voiceovers for it and will shortly be assembling the choral musical cues with the director. Earlier last year I recorded the three woman cast at a readthrough, and so was able to create a particularly effective trailer, my favourite in a while:
With all this tech work, and editing a monthly BLT newsletter, there has been a knock on effect on my writing but I’m becoming more productive now with a couple of projects. One I can’t discuss yet but hopefully might turn into my biggest theatrical script yet. The other is a short video about my love for Michael Mann’s 1983 horror movie The Keep. I am currently writing the script. This will be the second in a new series Westlake Films is producing. The first episode, in which Carl Bowler rhapsodies about Scott Pilgrim vs The World, has just been released online. Carl does an excellent job in praising what makes the cult comic strip adaptation tick and how it links with his own life. You can find it on Westlake Films’ Youtube channel. Or indeed, right here!
My fellow writer Rik Hoskin has had several exciting projects published lately. His marvellous six-part SF comic Red Rising: Sons of Ares has been collected into a handsome graphic novel. Based on the hit YA series Red Rising by Pierce Brown, the comic tells of the origins of resistance leader Fitchner Au Barca. Born as a Gold, one of the ruling class of a brutal future human solar empire, the misfit Fitchner soon recognises the cruelty of the system. To protect his secret wife and son, who come from the lowest caste, Fitchner’s fight against the Empire leads to tragedy and the seeds of a rebellion. The artwork is engrossing and Rik’s storytelling skills are well in evidence.
Speaking of graphic novels, the sequel to the New York Times bestseller White Sands, which was also written by Brandon Sanderson and Rik Hoskin, is out now. White Sands Volume Two continues the adventures of a young magician on an alien world where sand can be magically wielded to create and destroy. It is adapted from an unpublished manuscript of Sanderson’s and is a part of his Cosmere universe. Both this and Red Rising: Sons of Ares are published by Dynamite Comics.
Outlanders may have concluded but Rik is now involved with a new series of action novels – SEAL Team Six, alongside Max Kent. It depicts the all action secret missions of a group of Navy SEALS – the proverbial best of the best of the best. Executive Order sees them dispatched to track down a ruthless ISIS group which has got its hands on US drone technology. I’m currently reading it and it’s great entertainment.
Finally you can learn more about Rik by reading this recent interview, carried out by fellow comic and magazine writer John Freeman for his blog downthetubes.org. Click here for 10 Questions
The Phantom Frame 