I've written about maps in fantasy fiction before. For every reader who enthuses and pores over a double-page spread of spidery waterways and jagged mountain ranges, there's another whose heart sinks at the OCD-level of detail, the neatness of it, the aura of omniscience. I'm currently reading "Passing Time" (l'emploi du temps) by Michel Butor. … Continue reading The mapping problem
We moved from Edinburgh to Peterborough in January 2000. At that point, my sole experience of the Soke had been a trip a few weeks before, to find a place to live, and as a stop on the East Coast railway line. The landscape around the town was a revelation, even when just viewed from … Continue reading The mutation of an idea
I have four writing priorities at the moment. They are, in no particular order (and that's the problem): this blog and my duty to you, dear reader unfinished fantasy novel, 185 MS pages after 3 years' work pro-cycling-themed gamebook, 1st draft completed, needs reworked Robin Hood novel, completed 3 years ago and redrafted, and submitted … Continue reading Priorities
Into the Gyre 