September Book Trailers

Just a quick post today, because I somehow killed my wrists and am trying to minimize typing. Instead of words, how about I show you some videos instead?

First up: the book trailer for an upcoming YA science fiction novel, Earth and Sky, by Canadian author Megan Crewe.

I got to read an early version of this novel, and it was pretty neat. Time travel! Aliens! OCD female protagonist! Coming October 28.

Second, here’s a longer trailer for a historical non-fiction book, Prevail by Jeff Pearce, that covers a 20th-century war I’d never even heard of. Jeff’s trailer says it all:

Prevail will be out November 4.

Both books are already available for preorder at your book provider of choice.

Finally, happy 30th anniversary to the Fionavar Tapestry trilogy by Canadian fantasy author Guy Gavriel Kay! Most of Kay’s work is set in fantasy worlds closely modelled after historical places and times. The Fionavar Tapestry involves a clearly different (secondary) world…but one that echoes several mythologies in our own. Norse, Welsh, Celtic, and Arthurian myths are evoked.

Without giving too much away, I’ll tell you that some of the characters stand in for mythological figures — a trope that fascinates me. I enjoyed seeing it done in N.K. Jemisin’s The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, and much earlier, in Diane Duane’s Deep Wizardry. If you know of any others, I’d love to hear about them.

Your turn! What upcoming books are you looking forward to? And what are your best tips for saving a writer’s wrists?

 

A Fantasy Short Story Inspired by Rajasthan, India

Last month, Turtleduck Press released this anthology:

My contribution (besides editing the anthology) was a story about a maidservant and an inventor, set in a fantasy/clockpunk version of Mughal-era India. I spent six weeks in India last year and fell in love with…well, many things, but especially the historical architecture. So writing about it was a no-brainer. And as a bonus, that means I can put up related photos…

The story opens at Amber Fort (also called Amer Fort), a fortified palace in Rajasthan, which looks like this. Click to enlarge any of the photos (all copyright 2013 Siri Paulson).

Amber or Amer Fort

Gateway in Amber Fort

Convention Report: FanExpo 2014

Fair warning: I’ll start with some explanations, but I can’t explain every reference. This post will get geekier as it goes on…

What Is FanExpo?

Yes, that’s a person in the Stormtrooper suit. Photo by Louise Kiner.

Labo(u)r Day weekend saw Toronto’s biggest fan convention — FanExpo. It’s a comic-con for people who like comics, anime, gaming, anything to do with science fiction and fantasy and horror (mostly TV and movies), and related activities such as steampunk and LARPing. Actors show up and sign autographs and do photo ops. (This year’s celebrity guests included Elijah Wood, several actors from Doctor Who, William Shatner, and Patrick Stewart.) Hundreds of thousands of people flood the convention centre. It’s crazy and geeky and overwhelming and exciting all at once.

This year I didn’t go to any of the panels or Q&As. My geekery tends to revolve around books, and although I do watch genre movies and TV, I’m not terribly interested in seeing the actors involved. (I tend to be disappointed when they’re less articulate than their characters — probably the fault of the sharp dialogue that’s in vogue these days. Plus you have to pay extra for autographs and photo ops, and it’s not cheap.) However…

The Cosplay

Star Wars cosplayers. Photo by me.

One of the biggest parts of FanExpo is cosplay — people dressing up as their favourite characters. Part of the fun is watching the effort that people put into their costumes, either replicating the originals with as much attention to detail as they possibly can, or putting a twist on them (like genderswapping). For more on cosplay, see Kit Campbell’s Introductory Guide to Cosplay and my own post from last year’s FanExpo.

Many years ago, I used to cosplay as Lieutenant Commander Data from Star Trek: The Next Generation. I haven’t done it in a long time. But this year, my two partners in FanExpo crime decided to dress up as two of the Doctors from Doctor Who. So I pulled together a last-minute Amy Pond costume (based on this outfit).

Me (left) and my partners in crime, Ninth Doctor (kneeling) and Fifth Doctor. (Why yes, that is celery in his lapel.) Photo by a kind Doctor Who Society of Canada volunteer.

It wasn’t a total success — for one thing, my hair isn’t red enough to be noticeable anymore — but it was fun. I don’t think I’m going to be hooked into cosplaying again (I have too many hobbies already) but I did enjoy taking pictures with — and of — all the Doctor Who paraphernalia and the other Whovian cosplayers.

(And then I bought a T-shirt with some Game of Thrones snark, but I digress.)

Even more fun was drooling at all the other cosplay. I saw:

• lots and lots of Doctors (mostly Eleven since Matt Smith was there — saw an excellent Ten and several Nines, and one of my companions went as Five, but no Twelves), Amy Ponds, and River Songs
• also lots and lots of anime cosplay that went over my head (since that’s not my preferred style of geekery), and video game cosplay ditto
• a fair number of superheroes and other comics characters, though fewer than last year (I guess because it’s been a few years since the last really major superhero movie)
• lots of Stormtroopers (but not much else from Star Wars)
• several great steampunk outfits
• genderswapped Mal Reynolds and several Jayne hats (but not much else from Firefly)
• one Ms. Marvel / Kamala Khan in hijab — didn’t get a picture, but more power to you, lady!

(Warning: more large photos after the jump.)

We’re back!

First, an apology for the long blog silence! Nothing terrible has happened. I just had other things to do with my time over an all-too-short summer, so I went on an unscheduled hiatus. I’m back now and eager to get back into blogging on a regular basis. Look for a report on this year’s FanExpo (Toronto’s Comic-Con) on Monday!

Second, my fellow Turtleduck Press authors and I are doing a blog tour to promote our anthology Under Her Protection: Stories of Women to the Rescue:

• Aussie fantasy writer Ellen Gregory let me take over her blog with a Q&A about the making of the anthology
• Another fellow writer, Dianna Bell, featured us on her blog not once but twice — first with an introduction by Turtleduck Press author Erin Zarro and second with a review by Dianna.

Thank you to Ellen and Dianna for helping us spread the word! Stay tuned for more stops on the tour…

Third, I’m over at Turtleduck Press this week talking about gardening (*ahem* again).

And best wishes to all of you for the new year ahead! Okay, I know it’s not January. I haven’t been in school for ages, but I still think of September as the start of the year, and I bet a lot of you do too.

Your turn! How has your summer been? What are you looking forward to this fall? (Translate seasonal references as required…)