AMAZING NEWS: 9/20/15

PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT: The SMOF group (a private email list with a heavy contingent of con/Worldcon workers) is trying to get a handle on how many POC con-workers there are. You can request membership on the list here. The goal, as we understand it, is to work towards greater inclusion and determining the current status is a necessary first step.

PRESS RELEASES & NEWSLETTERS (Full text below)

Harper Collins (GRRM); Abbadon Books – Nate Crowley’s Debut Novella; Harper Collins (Demon Road, books for kids)

SOCIAL

Ahmed gets arrested at school because:  science.  Because: name.  Because:  Idiocy  (That should read – Because: idiots don’t know science and are afraid of certain names)

We’re STILL going on the Hugo Awards:  Jay Maynard proposed a “new award” on BlackGate that left a bit to be desired.  Cat Valente had a few things to say about his characterizations.  via K. Tempest Bradford

ENTERTAINMENT

Nichelle Nichols takes a ride to the edge of space

More Trek:  David Gerrold pays a video trip to the sets of Axanar

Alt. Hist Review: Stirling’s the Desert and the Blade

Speaking of Robot Love….

INDUSTRY

Cameron Hurley Hits Another Home Run: Publishing Numbers

Ursula Le Guin Interviewed

Ember A Journal of Luminous Things (submission guidelines)

New “Help You Find Stuff to Nominate” Site

Pro Se Announces Open Submissions for Hollow Earth Series

SCIENCE

Nichelle NIchlols takes a ride to the edge of space

Beyond Apollo:  1972 video with Asimov, Sagan & more

Don’t Look Now – more Invisibility Cloak Tech

Wild Elephants Seek Out Human Help

PRESS RELEASES & NEWSLETTERS

The Secret War MAX HASTINGS Spies, codes and guerrillas played critical roles in the Second World War, exploited by every nation in the struggle to gain secret knowledge of its foes. The Secret War gives a new perspective on the greatest conflict in history. ‘As gripping as any spy thriller, Max Hasting’s account of the critical role of intelligence in the Second World War is the best yet.’ Sunday Times
Solomon Creed SIMON TOYNE A plane crashes in the Arizona desert. One lone figure emerges alive from the wreckage. He has no memory of his past, and no idea of his future. He only knows he must save a man. But how do you save someone who is already dead? Who is Solomon Creed? ‘Compelling, vivid and profound. It stays with you long after you’ve finished the final page.’ Peter James
Will and Tom MATTHEW PLAMPIN 1797, West Yorkshire. Rising artist Will Turner arrives at Harewood House intending to sketch the house and grounds, receive his commission and return to London. But things at the grand house are not quite as he expects and Will witnesses something that will threaten both his commission and friendship. ‘Witty and engaging… A convincing portrait of a difficult, yet vulnerable genius.’ SUNDAY TIMES
Want to win a Nutribullet? To celebrate the publication of Lorraine Pascale’s new cookbook, Eating Well Made Easy, we’re offering you the chance to win a Nutribullet to whip up some delicious smoothies. Head to our Facebook page to enter.
HarperVoyager publishes some of the world’s best names in science fiction and fantasy, and this year marks their 20th birthday. Watch this fabulous documentary, Voyagers of the Imagination, to discover the 20-year journey of the team behind George R. R. Martin’s A Game of Thrones.

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Debut novella from Nate ‘@FrogCroakley’ Crowley coming soon from Abaddon

Infamous author of Daniel Barker’s Birthday to release The Sea Hates A Coward in October 2015

The Sea Hates A Coward, the debut novella by the terror of Twitter, Nate ‘Frog Croakley’ Crowley, is to be published by Abaddon this October.

Abaddon signed Nate after being sucked in to the hilarious, twisted world of his Twitter fiction (via @FrogCroakley), particularly the epic saga of Daniel Barker’s birthday, which was featured in a Buzzfeed article earlier this year.

Since Abaddon announced Nate’s debut, it has garnered further coverage on Buzzfeed and The Daily Dot, not to mention an endorsement (well, sort of) from confirmed Nate Crowley fan Dara Ó Briain.

Nate Crowley said:

“Well, this escalated quickly. Being offered a publishing deal on the back of tweeting about your mate’s birthday for 75 days feels a bit like being made defence minister because someone saw you throw a crisp really hard at a dog. Even so, I’m massively pumped to be working with Abaddon, and can’t wait to tell more stories with them. My first book is about zombie POWs being forced to crew a whaling ship on an alien world. It is of course dedicated to Daniel Barker, as a birthday gift.”

Abaddon Commissioning Editor David Thomas Moore said:

“My first encounter with Nate was the now-infamous Twitter birthday, which remains one of my personal internet highlights for 2015. I really wasn’t sure what he’d say when we reached out to him, but I’m thrilled to be working with him to launch his prose career; he’s a witty, talented writer and a pleasure to work with.”

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The Sea Hates a Coward

Schneider Wrack was never a dissident. But since he’s serving the sentence anyway, he may as well become one.

Because in the city, the sentence for sedition is death. Death, and then reanimation, before being shipped out to Ocean to work until you fall apart – or something gets you. There’s always a need for fresh bodies in Ocean. In the 70 years the city has been under siege, it’s been the only place to get food, and so the whaling barges work night and day to haul in enough meat to keep three million people from the edge of starvation. Human labour isn’t an option – Ocean’s too big, too cruel, too full of monsters – so it’s the dead that man the whaleboats. They’re meant to be mindless, empty vessels, but the procedure isn’t perfect. Schneider has woken up months into his sentence, trapped in a living hell of meat and brine, and he’s not happy.

It’s going to take a lot to stir the workforce into revolt; few of them have all their original limbs, and fewer still can remember their own names. But you’ve got to do what you can with what you’ve got.

It’s time to bring hell back to the city.

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The Sea Hates A Coward will be an e-first publication.

Publisher: Abaddon
Release date: 9 October 2015
Price: £2.99/$3.49

Pre-order now available:

Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B013I681P8?tag=rebelliintera-20

Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B013I681P8?tag=rebelliintera-21

About the author

Nate Crowley lives in South East London, and​ knows too much about the history of public aquaria​. Once, he ​accidentally punched a wrasse while wearing a diving suit from the 1800s. He keeps a List of Animals. He is the author of Daniel Barker’s Birthday, and can be found on twitter as @frogcroakley. The Sea Hates A Coward is his first wossname.

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OUT NOW – DEREK LANDY’S EPIC NEW THRILLER DEMON ROAD is a fast-paced and epic road-trip across the supernatural landscape of America. Killer cars, vampires, undead serial killers: they’re all here. And the demons? Well, that’s where Amber comes in…Sixteen years old, smart and spirited, she’s just a normal American teenager until the lies are torn away and the demons reveal themselves. Forced to go on the run, she hurtles from one threat to another, revealing a tapestry of terror woven into the very fabric of her life. Her only chance rests with her fellow travellers, who are not at all what they appear to be… If you know a book-loving 12-15 year old, then grab them a copy today. BUY DIRECT BUY FROM AMAZON

GREAT BOOKS FOR KIDS   Grandpa’s Great Escape by David Walliams Hardback LEARN MORE Mister Cleghorn’s Seal by Judith Kerr Hardback LEARN MORE Imaginary Fred by Eoin Colfer & Oliver Jeffers Hardback LEARN MORE Bing: Paint Day by Ted DewanPaperback LEARN MORE

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