On the Paul Harland Day last Saturday, one of the topics tackled in the panel was that of originality. Should a writer always strive to be original? Should the story always reinvent the genre it belongs to? Is a newly invented subgenre more valuable than the next Tolkien or Gibson imitation? The answer was—and is: […]
Read MoreTime to give some attention to the awkwardly titled story 51° 30′ 17.6″ N, 3° 28′ 59.2″ O 51° 30′ 20.7″ N, 0° 04′ 32.3″ W by Hein van der Schoot. This story is a good example both of what a writer can achieve through echoing content in form, and of how much a writer can […]
Read MoreNext up: Trollen vangen met Max en Leendert (“Catching Trolls with Max and Leendert”) by Kees van Houte. Now some would argue that TvmMeL is not a good story. Technically, they would even be right. Does it have literary sensibilities? Not in the least. Are its characters three-dimensional and well-developed? Not at all. Does it […]
Read MoreThe Paul Harland Prize 2012 culminated yesterday in the Paul Harland Day, an excellent afternoon of immersion in–and celebration of–all things genre. Contest and Day were organized again by the tireless and excellent Martijn Lindeboom, who deserves to be covered in praise, showered with gifts, and followed by groupies. Highlight of the afternoon, of course, […]
Read MoreWhen I promised myself years ago that a book with my name on it would be published before I turned forty, I didn’t expect it to be a book by someone else*. Or in this case, ten someonelses. Nevertheless, I’m very proud that the Millennium anthology was officially launched last Saturday at the Elf Fantasy […]
Read MoreAnother book presentation, another free copy to win! With 5 days to go before the launch of the Paul Harland Prize anthology, I can finally go ahead and reveal both the title and the cover art. (Due to unforeseen circumstances, my hand is kinda forced here: last Sunday evening a review* of the anthology appeared […]
Read MoreThe Paul Harland Prize anthology I announced earlier will be launched at the Elf Fantasy Fair 2010, and its title and cover art unveiled. Details are as follows: Location: Elf Fantasy Fair 2010 De Haar Castle and estate Meet In lecture tent Programme: 16:00 – Presentation and unveiling 16:25 – Mass signing at the […]
Read MoreSomehow I forgot to post about the manuscript I turned in to Mynx four weeks ago of the Paul Harland Prize anthology I edited for them. It will appear in two months, at the Elf Fantasy Fair 2010, and I’m fairly proud of the result. (Publisher Jürgen sent me a sneak preview of the cover artwork […]
Read MoreIt’s great to be on the other side. Winning the Writers of the Future a few years back lead, by a convoluted path through the space-time-continuum, to me being invited to judge the Paul Harland Prize this year. Which in turn has lead to a feeling of embarassment at having ignored the Dutch speculative fiction […]
Read MoreThat was fun! Invited to give a lecture on my writing and my Writers of the Future experience, I decided there wasn’t much need to talk about myself. Instead, I opened with the first four paragraphs of ‘Meeting the Sculptor’ (the first words out of my mouth), gave the briefest of introductions about who I […]
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