Cover Reveal: Simon Kewin's Hedge Witch

 

Fifteen year-old Cait Weerd has no idea she's being sought by the undain: sorcerous creatures that feed off the spirit of the living. She doesn't know they need her blood to survive. She doesn't even know she's a witch, descended from a long line of witches. Cait Weerd doesn't know a lot, really, but all that's about to change.

 

At Manchester Central Library she's caught up in sudden violence. In the chaos she's given an old book that's been hidden there. Given it and told to run. Hide the book or destroy it. The book contains all the secrets of the undains' existence. They and their human servants want to find it as much as they want to find her.

 

Cait learns the fates of two worlds are at stake. Just what she needs. Along with definitely-not-a-boyfriend Danny, she has to decide what the hell to do. Run, fight or hope it all goes away.

 

It's only then she learns who she really is, along with the terrible truth of what the undain have been doing in our world all this time...

 

 

Links:

 

Simon Kewin's blog.  Facebook Goodreads

Three Stories in Dark Expanse: Surviving the Collapse Anthology

I've got three stories in the Dark Expanse: Surviving the Collapse anthology: 'Jump', Clear as Kanazi Glass and my personal favourite: 'They Cannot Scare Me With Their Empty Places'

I'm pleased to be sharing the table of contents these writers:

1. “Castles in the Sky”” by Nancy Fulda
2. “Dominoes Falling” by Alex Shvartsman
3. “The Ten Suns” by Ken Liu
4. “Betrayal, Clear as Kanzai Glass” by Deborah Walker
5. “The Price of Escape” by David Walton
6. “Hellfire Unleashed” by Simon Kewin
7. “Breaking Down” by Michael Haynes
8. “They Cannot Scare Me With Their Empty Spaces” by Deborah Walker
9. “A Small and Secret Freedom” by Matt Mikalatos
10. “Lightspeed Back to You” by David Wayne
11. “Escape from Planet Error” by Michael Greenhut
12. “Jump” by Deborah Walker
13. “Loud for All the Stars to Hear” by Alex Kane
14. “To Soar on Winds of War” by David Wayne
15. “Fires of Night” by Alvaro Zinos-Amaro
16. “Gorlack the Destroyer’s All You Can Eat Adventure” by Robert L. Russell
17. “Ghost Ship” by Nancy Fulda
18. “The Shadow Conspiracy” by Nancy Fulda

The Dark Expanse is an online RPG game: 

Dark Expanse^© is a free-to-play, real-time, massive multi-player online strategy game of galactic conquest. Local commanders develop their resources, improve their planets, colonize new worlds, research new technologies and build space fleets while defending their territory and conquering enemy worlds. Choose your friends and allies carefully because mutual offensive, defensive and navigational capabilities can be achieved through combining forces with other commanders.

I and some other fine authors have been writing stories set in the shared world. This anthology collects some of those stories.

The anthology's not been released yet. But if you can't wait to read stories set in the Dark Expanse, you can sample it here for free. 

Story Sale to Penumbra: Isaac Asimov Tribute Issue

I'm pleased to announce that my flash fiction, 'Electric Hatsuyume' will be appearing in Penumbra in the April edition, a homage to Isaac Asimov. I grew up reading Asimov, so this is a real honour for me.

This story was first published in Kazka Press' At Year's End anthology. It's a story set in a future Japan. Traditionally Hatsuyume,the first dream of the New Year, is a harbinger of the year to come.

And my main character is a robot. So what do robots dream of?

(No, Not electronic sheep, this isn't a homage to Phlip K. Dick. But boy, I would love an anthology of Philip K. Dick inspired stories. Why is no one doing that?)

Robots dream of freedom.

Penumbra has a new theme for each issue. They're always have such interesting calls. You can check them out here. 

Call for Southeast Asian Steampunk Stories

This call for South East Asian steampunk stories looks great.  I'm definitely going to try to write something for it.

I seem to be encountering steampunk all the time this month. I have more steampunk news to tell you in a day or two. (hmmmmm, secretive).

Submission Guidelines 

THE SEA IS OURS is an anthology of Southeast Asian steampunk. We are looking for steampunk stories that are set in Southeast Asia (SEA), or secondary worlds that evoke Southeast Asia, with Southeast Asian protagonists, in any of the countries that make up the region: Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, East Timor, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. We are seeking historically and technologically-innovative stories.

Steampunk, for the purposes of this anthology, is defined as an aesthetic that combines technofantasy, anachronism, retro-futurism, an alternate history/world, and the evocation of an incipient industrial revolution. How does the steampunk aesthetic look, feel, sound, smell, or taste like in these regions? What kind of technologies would grow in resource-rich SEAsia? What do our historical figures, our Parameswaras, Trung sisters, Lapu-Lapus, do in such a world?

Submissions are encouraged to explore various levels and kinds of technologies, not just steam technology. Locals myths can also find their way into these stories; what does the mix of technology and fantasy look like in such worlds? We welcome exploration of all kinds of stories: from the extraordinary to the everyday. What changes does accelerated technology create for the local landscape and societies? If historical events are given a steampunk twist, how do their outcomes change, or stay the same? 

How to Live on Other Planets: A Handbook for Aspiring Aliens

One of the pleasures of the short story writing life is when you've been accepted for an anthology then seeing a Table of Contents for the first time. 

This is one of the reasons I submit my reprints to anthologies. There's nothing quite like being table of content buddies with writers you admire. Her's the TOC for a new anthology that I'm in. 

How to Live on Other Planets: A Handbook for Aspiring Aliens explores the immigrant experience in a science fiction setting, with exciting fiction and poetry from some of the genre’s best writers.

Table of Contents:

• Dean Francis Alfar, “Ohkti”
• Celia Lisset Alvarez, “Malibu Barbie Moves to Mars”
• R.J. Astruc, “A Believer’s Guide to Azagarth”
• Lisa Bao, “like father, like daughter”
• Pinckney Benedict, “Zog-19: A Scientific Romance”
• Lisa Bolekaja, “The Saltwater African”
• Mary Buchinger, “Transplanted”
• Zen Cho, “The Four Generations of Chang E”
• Abbey Mei Otis, “Blood, Blood”
• Tina Connolly, “Turning the Apples”
• Indrapramit Das, “muo-ka’s Child”
• Tom Doyle, “The Floating Otherworld”
• Peg Duthie, “With Light-Years Come Heaviness”
• Thomas Greene, “Zero Bar”
• Benjamin S. Grossberg, “The Space Traveler’s Husband,” “The Space Traveler and the Promised Planet” and “The Space Traveler and Boston”
• Minal Hajratwala, “The Unicorn at the Racetrack”
• Julie Bloss Kelsey, “tongue lashing” and “the itch of new skin”
• Rose Lemberg, “The Three Immigrations”
• Ken Liu, “Ghost Days”
• Alex Dally MacFarlane, “Found”
• Anil Menon, “Into The Night”
• Joanne Merriam, “Little Ambushes”
• Mary Anne Mohanraj, “Jump Space”
• Daniel José Older, “Phantom Overload”
• Sarah Pinsker, “The Low Hum of Her”
• Elyss G. Punsalan, “Ashland”
• Benjamin Rosenbaum, “The Guy Who Worked For Money”
• Erica L. Satifka, “Sea Changes”
• Nisi Shawl, “In Colors Everywhere”
• Marge Simon, “South”
• Sonya Taaffe, “Di Vayse Pave”
• Bogi Takács, “The Tiny English-Hungarian Phrasebook For Visiting Extraterrestrials”
• Bryan Thao Worra, “Dead End In December” and “The Deep Ones”
• Deborah Walker, “Speed of Love”
• Nick Wood, “Azania”

Fancy Being Steam Punkerised? $50 nzd Kickstarter Reward

I'm one of the writers for the steampunk Angels and Automatons anthology, which is currently seeking funding through kickstarter. 

Steam Punkerisation 

At the 50 New Zealand Dollars reward level of the Angels and Automatons kickstarter, you can get artist Jarad Adams to create a steam punkerisation of yourself (or a friend) from a photograph. As well as a copy of  the the Angels and Automatons steam punk anthology. You'll be granted full rights to the image to use as you will online or in print.

Other reward levels are available, including a story doctoring from yours truly.

Kickstarter is here (helpful tip, you'll need a credit card if you want to support the kickstarter, as it doesn't go through amazon.com)