I’m between blog-entries right now. Odd I know, but I have a long-ish blog entry in the offering that I’m trying to squeeze in between being a dad, work and writing fiction, yet I reckon the following was worth a little blog entry on its own...
I’m delighted to announce that the Spanish translation rights to The Secret War have been sold to La Factoria de Ideas for an undisclosed sum plus royalties. I’m quite excited about this, as La Factoria de Ideas contacted me direct through the MFWCurran.com website (and I pointed them in the direction of Pan Macmillan who handle the rights sales); so I feel more than just a cog this time in the selling of the rights - it shows that having a website can pay off in more ways than just the obvious publicity. Other reasons for being excited is that La Factoria de Ideas publish the Spanish translations of Clive Barker amongst others (as someone said to me, it’s one step away from God) and sells not only to Spain, but the US and the South Americas, so there’s the potential for a very large readership.
It’s expected the Spanish edition of The Secret War will publish sometime in 2010, not far off the German edition of the Hoard of Mhorrer. If “La Guerra Secreta” sells well, then The Hoard of Mhorrer may well be snapped up too – so here’s hoping Spanish speakers everywhere enjoy my brand of vampire/demon slaying!
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
(…A long pause, and then…stuff)
I’m still alive. I know I am because I’m breathing and these are my fingers typing out these words.
Just thought I’d let you know that.
For the past two weeks I’ve been doing stuff. Stuff to do with writing, stuff to do with work, stuff to do with admin/paperwork/promotional work, and obviously family stuff too. The family stuff forms most of the stuff I’ve been up to and Baby Daniel has been a big part of that stuff. He’s been doing stuff like keeping Sarah and I awake, but he’s been doing cute stuff as well, like gurgling, smiling and generally being adorable, so I can’t complain.
On the writing stuff, I’ve knocked out two more short stories; one has gone to a reader, while the other is being refined before submission. A third story is being redrafted, and in the little time remaining, I’ve been looking over the Black Hours again. But it’s all good stuff, and it’s keeping my imagination ticking over nicely before I start writing the third Secret War novel in August.
I’ve also been reading stuff too. A lot as it happens. That’s the thing when you have a baby and you don’t get much time to write stuff; you read more stuff instead. Such as China Mieville’s Un Lun Dun, Stephen King’s Everything’s Eventual and now I'm reading John Christopher’s Death of Grass (which is more unrelenting than Cormac McCarthy’s The Road). I seem to spend more time reading than watching telly, just to relax; though the Death of Grass is hardly a relaxing read, it’s better than watching the mind-numbing and dispiriting banality of terrestrial telly, something sleep deprivation makes you more aware of (or perhaps less tolerant of).
Anyway, that’s about it: stuff. As Aliya mentioned on my Facebook, I’ve made a few sentences so my brain is still intact, even if physically I’m a bit below par and time is running for the hills. I’ve been doing plenty of stuff, but very little blog stuff. I just don’t have the time. And blog entries will become fewer and fewer as soon as I start The Fortress of Black Glass. So there’s plenty of stuff I’ll not be able to do in the near future, including promotional work, school visits, internet based endeavours etc.
But I will post here on occasion, if only to tell you about the stuff I am doing…
Just thought I’d let you know that.
For the past two weeks I’ve been doing stuff. Stuff to do with writing, stuff to do with work, stuff to do with admin/paperwork/promotional work, and obviously family stuff too. The family stuff forms most of the stuff I’ve been up to and Baby Daniel has been a big part of that stuff. He’s been doing stuff like keeping Sarah and I awake, but he’s been doing cute stuff as well, like gurgling, smiling and generally being adorable, so I can’t complain.
On the writing stuff, I’ve knocked out two more short stories; one has gone to a reader, while the other is being refined before submission. A third story is being redrafted, and in the little time remaining, I’ve been looking over the Black Hours again. But it’s all good stuff, and it’s keeping my imagination ticking over nicely before I start writing the third Secret War novel in August.
I’ve also been reading stuff too. A lot as it happens. That’s the thing when you have a baby and you don’t get much time to write stuff; you read more stuff instead. Such as China Mieville’s Un Lun Dun, Stephen King’s Everything’s Eventual and now I'm reading John Christopher’s Death of Grass (which is more unrelenting than Cormac McCarthy’s The Road). I seem to spend more time reading than watching telly, just to relax; though the Death of Grass is hardly a relaxing read, it’s better than watching the mind-numbing and dispiriting banality of terrestrial telly, something sleep deprivation makes you more aware of (or perhaps less tolerant of).
Anyway, that’s about it: stuff. As Aliya mentioned on my Facebook, I’ve made a few sentences so my brain is still intact, even if physically I’m a bit below par and time is running for the hills. I’ve been doing plenty of stuff, but very little blog stuff. I just don’t have the time. And blog entries will become fewer and fewer as soon as I start The Fortress of Black Glass. So there’s plenty of stuff I’ll not be able to do in the near future, including promotional work, school visits, internet based endeavours etc.
But I will post here on occasion, if only to tell you about the stuff I am doing…
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
War of the Words
At the moment with so much taking up my time, I’ve been unable to dedicate enough of it to blog entries – but I thought this bit of news was worthy of note, especially among aspiring writers.Sci-Fi Now Magazine, in conjunction with my publishers, Tor, have just announced a novel writing competition called “War of the Words”, where any aspiring science fiction or fantasy novelist can submit three chapters and a synopsis in order to win a publishing deal with Tor, an imprint of Pan Macmillan.
All the details, including terms and conditions can be found at the Sci-Fi Now website, but just before you go there or dismiss the idea of entering, I’d like to throw in my ‘two penneth’ worth of thought…
This isn’t just a competition where the winner gets published in a one-off annual anthology, nor is it a cash prize, it’s something much, much better. You see, just because there is only one overall winner in this competition, this is also the opportunity to get your work seen by one of the major players in the genre publishing world without the need of an agent. Believe me when I say this, but that’s a big deal, and even though you might not win the main prize, Pan Macmillan are not daft. If they believe that your book has merit, they may well take further interest in what you’ve submitted even if you’re not the overall winner. The publishers are likely to take more than one punt on entrants in the competition if the quality is there.
I can say this from experience.
This competition is not too dissimilar to the novel writing competition held on Channel 4, judged by Pan Macmillan in 2004, where one overall prize was mooted, but the standard of submissions were so high, that a further five books were published under Pan, and then a further dozen entries were picked for the Macmillan New Writing imprint, mine included. So no, I didn’t win the Channel 4 writing competition, but what do you know? I’m now one of Pan Macmillan’s authors, as a direct result of entering that writing competition.
So, is it worth entering?
If you’re not published yet, then bloody hell yes!
The only catch is that you have until the 20th August to enter. So what are you doing wasting time reading this blog? Get writing!
Monday, May 04, 2009
Midnight oil and monsters
It’s the witching hour, and I’m trying to give Sarah a couple of hours rest while Curran Jnr sleeps in his Moses basket in the lounge - while barely a couple of feet away, I do a bit of “work” to see what is going on in the world of writing, and all things “secret war”-y .
Well first up, we have a rather nice cover for the German edition of The Hoard of Mhorrer, which hits the shelves in paperback in February 2010:
Well first up, we have a rather nice cover for the German edition of The Hoard of Mhorrer, which hits the shelves in paperback in February 2010:
Translated, the German title is “The Demons of the Fire” or something along those lines, so no issues around the pronunciation of “Mhorrer”. It’s not a bad cover as covers go, though I still prefer the UK cover (especially for The Secret War). Random House are continuing with that whole ‘brand’ thing by using the same style for the “MFW Curran” icon as they have with the first book, though slightly smaller as the title of book 2 is a little longer and bigger. It looks like a damn fine book and it’s being translated by Joachim Korber, and it’ll be interesting to see how it goes down in Germany as I’ve noticed a few copies of Mhorrer (English edition) have shifted over there on Amazon.de.
And second, but not last by any means, there’s another review posted for both Hoard of Mhorrer and The Secret War on the Falcata Times lit-review blog, which I’m pleased about – check it out by clicking here.
And that’s about it for now. Daniel is sleeping soundly, for once, and I’m flagging. It has to be said, there’s nothing like having a baby to focus your mind, but I can’t wait to get back to the writing in a month or two; I’ve already started thinking about the Moby Dick/Lovecraft short story – it even has an opening line.
I just need the time and the energy to sit down and write it.
Maybe in a few weeks.
After I get some sleep…
Night all.
And second, but not last by any means, there’s another review posted for both Hoard of Mhorrer and The Secret War on the Falcata Times lit-review blog, which I’m pleased about – check it out by clicking here.
And that’s about it for now. Daniel is sleeping soundly, for once, and I’m flagging. It has to be said, there’s nothing like having a baby to focus your mind, but I can’t wait to get back to the writing in a month or two; I’ve already started thinking about the Moby Dick/Lovecraft short story – it even has an opening line.
I just need the time and the energy to sit down and write it.
Maybe in a few weeks.
After I get some sleep…
Night all.
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Announcement: A New Edition
Message from Matt & Sarah:“Baby Daniel was born last night, weighing in at 6.4lbs. Both baby and mother are a little tired but doing fine. Thanks to everyone who has wished us well.
Love Matt, Sarah and Baby Daniel.”
Friday, April 24, 2009
A First Edition Favourite
Nope, I’m not referring to “No.1 son” or “No.1 daughter” – that still hasn’t happened yet (true to form, our first child is a late one), I’m referring to the recent bit of writing news that has come my way. The Favourite – a short story I penned earlier this year – is to be published in the newsstand magazine, First Edition.
For those not in the know, First Edition was born in January this year, appearing on the shelves of WHSmiths seemingly out of nowhere. I’ve been buying the magazine from issue one, and it’s seen some changes over the first three issues already as the editorial staff get used to format, advertising and content. No doubt there’ll be more changes over the first year of its life, but this is one publication I think new writers should get behind as it is, let’s face it, one of the few newsstand publications left that publishes short fiction. Other than Borders and sometimes Waterstones, you’ll be hard pressed to find many newsagents or booksellers that sell copies of say Interzone or the Magazine of Fantasy or Science Fiction. And I’ve never seen an issue of Granta anywhere other than Borders. Writing Magazine and Writer’s Forum hold regular competitions, but they’re devoted to writing rather than being a showcase for fiction.
To publish a new magazine focused purely on short fiction – and not just for a specific genre but all kinds of beasts – is a big gamble in this financial climate and takes a lot of courage. Even if I wasn’t being published within their pages, I would still be buying every issue as it hits the stands – they’re more deserving of support than perhaps other newsstand magazines I could speak of.
As for my story, well this is a big deal for me. It’s the first short story of mine to be published, and while it won’t have as much impact as say The Secret War or The Hoard of Mhorrer, it’s a red-letter moment. After all, it was the short form that attracted me to writing in the first place, with anthologies such as Stephen King’s Nightshift, the tales of HP Lovecraft and Barker’s The Books of Blood. I’ve tinkered on occasion with writing short stories, but other than a short-lived foray into the small presses while I was at university, I haven’t seriously submitted anything for publication before.
The Favourite is a small slice of menace – which is perhaps the best description on what is a slow-burning narrative crammed into a few thousand words. It leans on the apocalypse genre a little, but it’s more a character piece and it’s quite different to either Secret War or Hoard.
I’m certain that once I see The Favourite in print, I’ll be eager to polish off the other three or four short pieces I’ve been writing this year, submitting them to various publications around the UK, and perhaps abroad too, though probably under the pseudonym of Frank Wallace, so The Favourite might be the first and last MFW Curran headed short story to see print. We’ll see.
Until then, check out First Edition now. The Favourite will appear in issue 4, out 7th May…
For those not in the know, First Edition was born in January this year, appearing on the shelves of WHSmiths seemingly out of nowhere. I’ve been buying the magazine from issue one, and it’s seen some changes over the first three issues already as the editorial staff get used to format, advertising and content. No doubt there’ll be more changes over the first year of its life, but this is one publication I think new writers should get behind as it is, let’s face it, one of the few newsstand publications left that publishes short fiction. Other than Borders and sometimes Waterstones, you’ll be hard pressed to find many newsagents or booksellers that sell copies of say Interzone or the Magazine of Fantasy or Science Fiction. And I’ve never seen an issue of Granta anywhere other than Borders. Writing Magazine and Writer’s Forum hold regular competitions, but they’re devoted to writing rather than being a showcase for fiction.To publish a new magazine focused purely on short fiction – and not just for a specific genre but all kinds of beasts – is a big gamble in this financial climate and takes a lot of courage. Even if I wasn’t being published within their pages, I would still be buying every issue as it hits the stands – they’re more deserving of support than perhaps other newsstand magazines I could speak of.
As for my story, well this is a big deal for me. It’s the first short story of mine to be published, and while it won’t have as much impact as say The Secret War or The Hoard of Mhorrer, it’s a red-letter moment. After all, it was the short form that attracted me to writing in the first place, with anthologies such as Stephen King’s Nightshift, the tales of HP Lovecraft and Barker’s The Books of Blood. I’ve tinkered on occasion with writing short stories, but other than a short-lived foray into the small presses while I was at university, I haven’t seriously submitted anything for publication before.
The Favourite is a small slice of menace – which is perhaps the best description on what is a slow-burning narrative crammed into a few thousand words. It leans on the apocalypse genre a little, but it’s more a character piece and it’s quite different to either Secret War or Hoard.
I’m certain that once I see The Favourite in print, I’ll be eager to polish off the other three or four short pieces I’ve been writing this year, submitting them to various publications around the UK, and perhaps abroad too, though probably under the pseudonym of Frank Wallace, so The Favourite might be the first and last MFW Curran headed short story to see print. We’ll see.
Until then, check out First Edition now. The Favourite will appear in issue 4, out 7th May…
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Baby Steps
Curran Jnr hasn’t arrived yet, but he/she is in the post (or “in transit” if you believe in that whole stork/baby thing), so I’m posting a pre-fatherhood blog entry on where I am with the writing.
This week I started Chapter One of The Fortress of Black Glass. I’m glad to report that the first two thousand words were a dream to write and I’ve suffered no ill-effects of writing a non-Secret War novel in between, nor has pre-baby stress affected the prose. As it stands, it’s been the easiest start to a Secret War novel yet, and is certainly the most gothic start to any of the books. It opens in the city of Arhus, Denmark, following a funeral cortège no less, and pretty much goes down hill from there – with my usual pyrotechnics and angelic intervention. It’s an explosive opening to the book – or will be once I’ve completed the chapter… because I’ve halted mid paragraph until September, regardless of how long it takes for the baby to arrive.
“Why would you do that?” I hear you ask. After all, shouldn’t I be making the most of the time I have without dirty nappies and midnight feeds, to write down as much of the novel as I can? Well, yes, I suppose.
And no.
You see, it’s all about baby steps. That and not losing my head. At the end of September, Macmillan will be expecting the first chapter, the synopsis to the book, and a synopsis to a new trilogy I have planned called “The Last”. The synopses to both Fortress and The Last are done, and they’re not bad at all. However, based on what I send them, Macmillan may offer me a substantial long term contract. Which is great news, right?
But what if I can’t deliver what I’ve promised? What if personal circumstances mean that whatever advance I get I can’t fulfil?
What if the quality of my writing weakens through mental and physical weariness once the baby arrives?
Despite Brian McGilloway and Aliya Whiteley’s assurances that having a baby isn’t the end of writing, it certainly will be disruptive. Every baby experience is different, and I am not counting on having a dream baby who sleeps all night and hardly wants attention. Nor am I counting on just Sarah to bring up our child – I need to be there too. I want to be heavily involved.
I also have a day-job that has become increasingly pressured and something, somewhere, must give – the flesh and the spirit can be battered. (I wouldn’t be the first writer to stop writing because of a baby, nor would I be the last.)
So in September I’ll begin writing again and I’ll begin writing with four months of sleepless nights behind me. I’ll be conditioned. I’ll know then whether or not I can carry off this challenge – whether or not I can write four drafts of a 140,000 word novel in 18 months, with a baby to look after and a day-job to go to. If I can complete the first chapter in September (that has had the best of starts) then – for me – that will be proof enough that I can deliver what Macmillan wants from me. I’ll know if –mentally - I’m up for it, and I can send Macmillan the first chapter and two synopses with confidence.
And who knows, maybe if everything goes well, I’ll be writing before then.
So for now it’s baby steps – tentative ones to get the book going, and in the right direction. That and perhaps a blog entry.
Or two.
This week I started Chapter One of The Fortress of Black Glass. I’m glad to report that the first two thousand words were a dream to write and I’ve suffered no ill-effects of writing a non-Secret War novel in between, nor has pre-baby stress affected the prose. As it stands, it’s been the easiest start to a Secret War novel yet, and is certainly the most gothic start to any of the books. It opens in the city of Arhus, Denmark, following a funeral cortège no less, and pretty much goes down hill from there – with my usual pyrotechnics and angelic intervention. It’s an explosive opening to the book – or will be once I’ve completed the chapter… because I’ve halted mid paragraph until September, regardless of how long it takes for the baby to arrive.
“Why would you do that?” I hear you ask. After all, shouldn’t I be making the most of the time I have without dirty nappies and midnight feeds, to write down as much of the novel as I can? Well, yes, I suppose.
And no.
You see, it’s all about baby steps. That and not losing my head. At the end of September, Macmillan will be expecting the first chapter, the synopsis to the book, and a synopsis to a new trilogy I have planned called “The Last”. The synopses to both Fortress and The Last are done, and they’re not bad at all. However, based on what I send them, Macmillan may offer me a substantial long term contract. Which is great news, right?
But what if I can’t deliver what I’ve promised? What if personal circumstances mean that whatever advance I get I can’t fulfil?
What if the quality of my writing weakens through mental and physical weariness once the baby arrives?
Despite Brian McGilloway and Aliya Whiteley’s assurances that having a baby isn’t the end of writing, it certainly will be disruptive. Every baby experience is different, and I am not counting on having a dream baby who sleeps all night and hardly wants attention. Nor am I counting on just Sarah to bring up our child – I need to be there too. I want to be heavily involved.
I also have a day-job that has become increasingly pressured and something, somewhere, must give – the flesh and the spirit can be battered. (I wouldn’t be the first writer to stop writing because of a baby, nor would I be the last.)
So in September I’ll begin writing again and I’ll begin writing with four months of sleepless nights behind me. I’ll be conditioned. I’ll know then whether or not I can carry off this challenge – whether or not I can write four drafts of a 140,000 word novel in 18 months, with a baby to look after and a day-job to go to. If I can complete the first chapter in September (that has had the best of starts) then – for me – that will be proof enough that I can deliver what Macmillan wants from me. I’ll know if –mentally - I’m up for it, and I can send Macmillan the first chapter and two synopses with confidence.
And who knows, maybe if everything goes well, I’ll be writing before then.
So for now it’s baby steps – tentative ones to get the book going, and in the right direction. That and perhaps a blog entry.
Or two.
Thursday, April 09, 2009
Thrice for twice
I’m a bit miffed about missing out on Sci-Fi London; it looks like a fantastic event, and being invited personally to something of this calibre (and with a host of pretty cool films on show) having to make my apologies was one of the hardest decisions of the last 12 months. But it was the prudent decision to take in case either the baby was late or I was reduced to a brain-dead civil servant from sleep deprivation after the baby arrived.
Still, despite not attending, I’m all too eager to pimp the event, so click here to have a look at the line-up (I promise I won’t be too envious if you go along).
And while we’re on all things Sci-Fi London, Tor has kindly arranged discounts on a selection of their Sci-Fi/Fantasy releases to celebrate their presence at the weekend’s event. For a limited time only, you can get a number of great books direct from the Macmillan on a 3 for 2 promotion, including hardback and e-books, as well as the paperback releases. Without too much shameless promotion, the paperback of The Secret War and the hardback of The Hoard of Mhorrer are amongst the discounted titles so there’s no better place to go for a copy of either. Or both!
(Personally, I would go for Mieville’s Perdido Street Station or The Scar, along with Charles Stross' The Clan Corporate, and perhaps the paperback of The Secret War; or if you want hardback titles, how about Mieville’s The City and the City, The Hoard of Mhorrer and Neal Asher's The Gabble and Other Stories?
Anyway, I’ll leave that up to you...)
Still, despite not attending, I’m all too eager to pimp the event, so click here to have a look at the line-up (I promise I won’t be too envious if you go along).
And while we’re on all things Sci-Fi London, Tor has kindly arranged discounts on a selection of their Sci-Fi/Fantasy releases to celebrate their presence at the weekend’s event. For a limited time only, you can get a number of great books direct from the Macmillan on a 3 for 2 promotion, including hardback and e-books, as well as the paperback releases. Without too much shameless promotion, the paperback of The Secret War and the hardback of The Hoard of Mhorrer are amongst the discounted titles so there’s no better place to go for a copy of either. Or both!(Personally, I would go for Mieville’s Perdido Street Station or The Scar, along with Charles Stross' The Clan Corporate, and perhaps the paperback of The Secret War; or if you want hardback titles, how about Mieville’s The City and the City, The Hoard of Mhorrer and Neal Asher's The Gabble and Other Stories?
Anyway, I’ll leave that up to you...)
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