XX – Rian Hughes

Part modern ‘hard SF’ novel, part homage to vintage SF, part intertextual blend of traditional narrative, epistolary sources, visual media, graphic design and much more, Rian Hughes’ debut novel XX is not for the faint-hearted, but rewards a brave reader with a genuinely unique, utterly mind-blowing experience. Take a mysterious signal from outer space, a bunch of senior scientists from assorted space agencies, and a cutting-edge tech startup staffed by a trio of fearless young innovators, and throw in the possibility of first contact with an alien species (in a very modern way). Filter this story through the lens of augmented reality, fold in a strong theme of modernism, lashings of mind-bending maths and science and even a story within a story, and what you get is out of this world in theme, style, intent, complexity and – ultimately – impact.

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AUTHOR INTERVIEW: Robbie MacNiven Talks The Doom of Fallowhearth

Welcome to this Track of Words Author Interview, in which I’m chatting with Robbie MacNiven about his first novel for Aconyte Books – The Doom of Fallowhearth. Well known for his Warhammer fiction, Robbie is now turning his attention to Descent: Journeys in the Dark, which is still pretty bleak but a little different to the usual grimdark. This book kicks of Aconyte’s range of Descent novels, and will be published as an ebook and US paperback on the 6th October – the UK paperback is due a little later in November.

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AUTHOR INTERVIEW: David Annandale Talks Curse of Honor

Welcome to this Track of Words Author Interview, my ongoing series of quick interviews with authors talking about their new releases. These are short and sweet interviews, with the idea being that each author will answer (more or less) the same questions – by the end of each interview I hope you will have a good idea of what the new book (or audio drama) is about, what inspired it and why you might want to read or listen to it.

For this interview I spoke to David Annandale, whose new novel Curse of Honor is his first from Aconyte Books, and kicks off their new range of Legends of the Five Rings fiction. It’s published in the US (in paperback) and as an ebook on the 6th October, while the UK paperback is due out in November. If you fancy a bit of fantasy horror, and whether or not you’re already familiar with this particular setting, I can strongly recommend this great novel!

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Writing Resources on Track of Words

While Track of Words was originally conceived as a site purely for book reviews, over the years it’s expanded to include author interviews, blog posts, and various (hopefully) useful resources for readers and fans of science fiction, fantasy and horror. In the last couple of years I’ve also published quite a few articles and interviews aimed at anyone interested in writing SFF and horror, and I’ve got plans for lots more in this vein. With that in mind, I thought it might be useful to have a single source for all these resources, where I can link out to everything that I’ve created so far and keep updated as and when new resources become available.

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RAPID FIRE: Guy Haley Talks Flesh and Steel

Welcome to this instalment of Rapid Fire, my ongoing series of quick interviews with authors talking about their new releases. These are short and sweet interviews, with the idea being that each author will answer (more or less) the same questions – by the end of each interview I hope you will have a good idea of what the new book (or audio drama) is about, what inspired it and why you might want to read or listen to it.

In this instalment I spoke to ever-prolific Black Library author Guy Haley about his new Warhammer Crime novel, Flesh and Steel, which is available to pre-order as of the 26th September. If you’re interested in a bit of ‘domestic 40k’, with a look at one of the most interesting factions in the setting, this looks like being the next book to check out!

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AUTHOR INTERVIEW: Nate Crowley Talks Notes From Small Planets

Welcome to this Track of Words Author Interview, my ongoing series of quick interviews with authors talking about their new releases. These are short and sweet interviews, with the idea being that each author will answer (more or less) the same questions – by the end of each interview I hope you will have a good idea of what the new book (or audio drama) is about, what inspired it and why you might want to read or listen to it.

This time I’m talking to the delightful Nate Crowley about his new book Notes From Small Planets, a travel guide to some of the most entertaining, sharply-observed science fiction and fantasy worlds imaginable. It’s published today by Harper Voyager, and if you have any interest in SFF – especially if you’re in need of a good laugh – then I really can’t recommend this enough!

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No Good Men – Warhammer Crime Anthology

Taking its place in the first wave of Black Library’s Warhammer Crime releases (alongside Chris Wraight’s Bloodlines and Alec Worley’s Dredge Runners), short story anthology No Good Men explores some of the different ways in which Imperial justice is loosely interpreted on the mean streets of Varangantua. Eschewing the usual battlefields and familiar tabletop characters in favour of ordinary citizens simply trying to survive the brutal realities of Imperial life, these stories all explore Varangantua’s atmospheric, cyberpunk-esque stylings and the towering inequalities corroding the heart of the Imperium. As the title suggests, there are no heroics here – just regular people doing what it takes to get by, whether that falls within the remit of the law or not.

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AUTHOR INTERVIEW: Tim Waggoner Talks Writing in the Dark

Welcome to this Track of Words Author Interview, my ongoing series of quick interviews with authors talking about their new releases. These are short and sweet interviews, with the idea being that each author will answer (more or less) the same questions – by the end of each interview I hope you will have a good idea of what the new book (or audio drama) is about, what inspired it and why you might want to read or listen to it.

This time around I spoke to veteran horror writer Tim Waggoner about his new book Writing in the Dark, a guide to writing horror stories which is packed full of advice, suggestions, exercises and inspiration from Tim’s decades of writing experience. It’s available to order now from Raw Dog Screaming Press, and if you have any interest in writing horror then this is the book for you!

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RAPID FIRE: Graham McNeill Talks Fury of Magnus

Welcome to this instalment of Rapid Fire, my ongoing series of quick interviews with authors talking about their new releases. These are short and sweet interviews, with the idea being that each author will answer (more or less) the same questions – by the end of each interview I hope you will have a good idea of what the new book (or audio drama) is about, what inspired it and why you might want to read or listen to it.

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Writing for Black Library – Pitching Warhammer Horror (Part Two)

Welcome to the second part of Writing for Black Library – Pitching Warhammer Horror, in which another seven fantastic authors talk about writing horror short stories and pitching Warhammer Horror stories in particular. If you haven’t already, I would recommend you first check out these two interviews: Alec Worley Talks Pitching Warhammer Horror and part one of Writing for Black Library – Pitching Warhammer Horror. Assuming you’ve read both of those, check this out for loads more great advice, ideas and suggestions that I hope will prove helpful whether you’re preparing a pitch for this year’s Black Library open submissions window or you’re just interested in writing horror stories in general.

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