It was great to have two of our highly talented international Orbit authors, Karen Miller and N. K. Jemisin, over in the UK recently. At their joint signing at London’s Forbidden Planet store, we put a few questions to these two fantabulous femmes of fantasy fiction. Take a look below to hear their views on the role of the fantasy genre and to hear about some unusual fan reactions . . .
Mr Iain M. Banks is stopping by the Orbit London offices this week, so if you have any questions email them our way today at publisher@iainbanks.net, or tweet them at @orbitbooks with #askBanks.
We’ll be posting a video response to some of your questions later in the week.
So this is it . . . the final countdown. Witness how events came to a head. I think it’s safe to assume that Philip Palmer and Jeff Somers are no longer on speaking terms.
See what we have to work with here??!!
So it’s come to this . . . Jeff Somers and Philip Palmer arguing over whose character is better with the laaaaadies.
Again, Philip Palmer has resorted to getting a scientific expert involved – a certain Dr Paul Bostock (according to Phil, a ‘Professor in Protagonism and Genre Conflict at the Heinlein University, Colorado’ – this hasn’t yet been verified).
Ladies – judge for yourself.
(And mind the spoilers if you haven’t read Jeff’s previous 3 books yet!)
Since we began releasing the footage showing the incendiary events that occured during the filming of a joint promotional video, Jeff Somers has expressed his sheer outrage over the entire episode, and Philip Palmer has published an official ‘apology’ to Jeff here.
Though we are not proud of what has happened, we have decided to continue to release the footage so that the viewing public may come to their own conclusions about the events. In this video, Philip Palmer lists the many, many ways in which his character Version 43 is superior to Avery Cates. Orbit would like to make clear that it does not endorse the behaviour of either author involved in this incident . . .
The squaring off continues between Jeff Somers and Philip Palmer. This time they pitch the plots of The Terminal State and Version 43 against one another. Seriously guys – it’s not a competition . . .
Here on Planet Orbit we generally think there’s a pretty good community spirit – both in the office and amongst all our authors out there. But sometimes – just sometimes – those good times go bad.
Believing Jeff Somers and Philip Palmer to both be “team players” and decent, honourable gentlemen, we thought it might be a good idea to ask them to discuss and compare, in a series of videos, and in a sensible and controlled manner, their newest science fiction titles and their protagonists. But APPARENTLY that wasn’t possible. We’re still going to post the footage – if only to be an example to you all.
Here’s how it all began . . .
OK – we admit it. The UK and Australian readers have been getting a raw deal, having to wait for Nicole Peeler‘s sweet, sassy and sexy urban fantasy series to float their way, whilst the US readers have been bathing in its glory for a few months. But now the wait is over, and Tempest Rising (UK | US | ANZ) and Tracking the Tempest (UK | US | ANZ) have finally washed up on our shores all at once. Featuring the naughty scrumpet Jane True as our half-selkie heroine – think of it as Sookie Stackhouse meets Splash!
Nicole was over in the UK recently and, in what’s becoming a bit of an Orbit UK habit, we took her aside to cross-examine her about her series and the Urban Fantasy genre. She is an assistant professor of literature, so she should know her stuff after all! Take a look at the video below (and excuse my sniggering at points in the background – this lady cracks me up!)
You can read an extract of Tempest Rising here.
Calling all Kelley fans! It’s official: Waking the Witch (UK | ANZ) has arrived in a bookshop near you and it’s looking fantabulously gorgeous. It’s the brand new title in the Women of the Otherworld series from international bestseller Kelley Armstrong, and it’s the first hardback to be whipped out with Kelley’s striking new cover style.
During the author’s recent tour to the UK we managed to steal her away from her hectic schedule, corner her in a tiny, tiny room with a camera and throw some questions her way. We think she did exceptionally well considering the circumstances . . . Take a peek here for comments on her series and Urban Fantasy in general (after all, she was one of the ladies responsible for starting the whole genre off in the first place!):
And here’s a sneaky preview of Waking the Witch to tide you over until the book is safely in your hands . . .
To celebrate the release of A Wild Light (UK | ANZ) , the third of the Hunter Kiss novels, I’m taking readers into my home while I discuss Maxine Kiss and the troubles facing her in her latest adventure. Dark times are coming for my favorite heroine, but with stubbornness and love, will she find her way free of the shadows?
You can also read a free extract here.
