Black Mirrors is the debut collection from Paul Edwards. Originally published as a paperback by Rainfall Books, this title is now available as a Kindle edition from Screaming Dreams. Featuring fourteen stories of dark fiction to satisfy your twisted souls!

Available on Kindle from http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00CXACN5U and in ePub format from https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/318898

Screaming Dreams also have two other books now available on Smashwords:

Now That I’ve Lost You by Paul Edwards
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/318923

In these nineteen tales of love and loss, sex and death, you will brave witches, warlocks and the living dead; traverse uncharted, hypnotic highways; and you will meet up with green-eyed losers who inhabit small spaces: whether it’s graveyards, old churches, or their own echoing heads.

Songs from Spider Street by Mark Howard Jones
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/318614

Ambitious killers, haunted clowns, energetic layabouts, tender murderers, discontented lovers, honest thieves and the occassional mislaid hero all jostle for their place in a finely-spun web of desire and death, pleading to be heard. A collection of short story dark fiction.

Blood Kin by Steve Rasnic Tem will be published in March 2014 and follows last year’s critically-acclaimed novel for Solaris, Deadfall Hotel.

Set in the southern Appalachians of the US, alternating between the 1930s and the present day, Blood Kin is a dark Southern Gothic vision of ghosts, witchcraft, secret powers, snake-handling, Kudzu, Melungeons, and the Great Depression. Michael Gibson returns home following a suicide attempt and now takes care of his sickly grandmother. In a field not far from the Gibson family home lies an iron-bound crate within a small shack buried four feet deep under kudzu vine. Michael somehow understands that hidden inside that crate is potentially his own death, his grandmother’s death, and perhaps the deaths of everyone in the valley if he does not understand her story well enough.

Editor-in-chief of Solaris, Jonathan Oliver, said: “Steve’s Deadfall Hotel was one the highlights of 2012 for Solaris: a moving, powerful and haunting horror novel. Blood Kin, likewise, promises to be something extraordinary. Steve walks in the traditions of such great writers as Ray Bradbury, Theodore Sturgeon and Flannery O’Connor, while enriching the field with his own unique take on genre.”

Talus and the Frozen King by Graham Edwards will be published in April next year and tells the story of Talus – the world’s first detective.

A dead warrior king frozen in winter ice. Six grieving sons, each with his own reason to kill. Two weary travellers caught up in a web of suspicion and deceit. In a distant time long before our own, wandering bard Talus and his companion Bran journey to the island realm of Creyak, where the king has been murdered. From clues scattered among the island’s mysterious barrows and stone circles, they begin their search for his killer. Creyak is place of secrets and spirits, mystery and myth. It will take a clever man indeed to unravel the truth. The kind of man this ancient world has not seen before.

Jon said: “Graham’s novel is a murder mystery like no other. A richly evoked past draws you into this unusual thriller and the characters of Talus and Bran have to be one of the most entertaining crime-fighting duos ever. A startlingly innovative book and a corking good read!”

David will oversee Abaddon Books’ new commissions as well as creating more new original shared worlds – joining series such as the zombie-themed novels of Tomes of the Dead, the post-apocalyptic Afterblight Chronicles, and the Steampunk adventure pulp of Pax Britannia.

This year Abaddon Books will launch two new series – Chuck Wendig’s Gods and Monsters (named as one of the ‘Essential Science Fiction and Fantasy books of 2013’ by io9) and Toby Venables’ Guy of Gisburne, as well as more in the Weird Space series by SF legend Eric Brown.

Editor-in-chief of Abaddon Books and Solaris, Jonathan Oliver, said: “Ever since David started with Rebellion Publishing, it’s been clear that he has an incisive eye for what makes a story work and an editorial hand that gets the best out of a book, while maintaining a great relationship with the author. I’m really excited to be handing over the Abaddon reins to David and can’t wait to see what he plans for the imprint.”

David said: “I’ve loved every minute of my time with Abaddon Books so far: we punch above our weight, take risks, produce the books we want to and have fun doing it. Getting a chance to take the helm on the imprint Jon put so much of his love and energy into, to steer it through the next few years and stamp my own mark on it, is incredibly exciting. Also scary. Very scary. I’ve already changed trousers twice today.”

Born and raised in Australia, David has lived in three different countries, but as of last year has spent more than half his life in the UK. A life-long geek, passionate reader and aspiring writer (he began the first of, to date, five unfinished novels, Eight-legged Aliens, on a Commodore 64), David has been writing for magazines and websites for 15 years, working in the publishing industry for three, and picking on people’s grammar and spelling since he could walk. His past career has been mixed, to say the least, including bar and theatre work, providing technology support in the banking sector and filling tea and coffee pots in an architectural firm. He lives in Reading with his wife, Tamsin.

‘We have always loved publishing fiction,’ explained Telos’ Publishing Director David J Howe, ‘and with technology now at a point where this can be achieved at a good enough quality, we’re delighted to be able to put the Telos name and standards behind a variety of new titles and projects, all of which we are excited and thrilled to be publishing. Expect some superb fiction from both new and established names in the range, which nicely complements Telos’ main stream of non-fiction publishing.’

Consultant and editor for the imprint is Sam Stone, herself an acclaimed and award-winning author, and she will be commissioning and looking for titles for the range. ‘I’m thrilled to be working with Telos on this,’ she said. ‘It’s very satisfying to be able to bring into print some evocative and enjoyable work from some excellent authors.’

The ranges covered by Telos Moonrise are:

• Steampunk Visions’: Explore alternate worlds, past, present and future in our exciting new Steampunk range. There will be action, adventure and, of course, superb gadgets.
• ‘Criminal Pursuits’: Look into the darkest depths of the criminal mind and explore the darker side of humanity with our Crime and Thriller titles.
• ‘Dark Endeavours’: Delve into the supernatural, urban and dark fantasy, or the darkest horror imaginable. Or simply explore fantasy realms and alternate worlds where anything can happen from myth and magic to sword-wielding warriors.
• ‘Sinful Pleasures’: Brings sexual fantasies, love or simply unbridled lust, with good strong stories, believable characters and a large helping of erotica in all its forms.

Telos Moonrise launches with a ‘Dark Endeavours’ title in September 2013: Absinthe and Arsenic, a collection of dark, mysterious and comedic tales by award winning dark fantasy and steampunk author Raven Dane.

For more information about Telos Moonrise: www.telosmoonrise.com

Angry Robot

Lee started working for Angry Robot in January 2009 – six months before the launch of the list – as Assistant Editor to publisher Marc Gascoigne. He was promoted to Editor in 2010 and is now a regular speaker and panellist at genre and publishing events.

Angry Robot Senior Editor Lee Harris said: “I’m absolutely delighted with the new role, which is very similar to the old role, but with added pressure and expectations. Angry Robot is the best place to work, and I’m blessed because every day I look forward to coming to the office. Long may it continue.”

Angry Robot Managing Director Marc Gascoigne said: “Lee’s been with Angry Robot from its earliest days four years ago and as the line has grown, so have his talents. As the development of our new imprints, Strange Chemistry and Exhibit A, has become more demanding, he’s taken the new editors under his wing and mentored them to within an inch of their lives. This promotion is timely and very well deserved.”

You can follow Lee on Twitter @LeeAHarris, where he dispenses pearls of publishing wisdom and cringe-inducing puns with equal aplomb and abandon.

The Alchemy Press Book of the Astrologica is looking for stories about the signs of the Zodiac, the characteristics associated with those signs and/or people born under them. They will also consider stories involving the mythical characters and creatures of the astrological signs, perhaps their history and origin, perhaps their present and future state. Note: Alchemy PRess are not saying that one has to believe in the paraphernalia associated with modern astrology; but authors should seek to use some of this as inspiration and underpinning of their narratives. http://alchemypress.blogspot.co.uk/p/astrologica.html

The Alchemy Press Book of Urban Mythic is seeking contemporary tales with all the magic and wonder of myth and legend, blending modern life with the traditions of folklore from around the world. Whether lurking in dark alleys or brash shopping malls; from shanty towns to the floating cities of Venice, Bangkok or Dubai; swanky riverside penthouse lofts or humble suburban semis, they want to see how the mythic is woven into the everyday. Think Charles de Lint, Terri Windling, Robert Holdstock, Seanan McGuire, Jim Butcher, Kate Griffin, Simon R. Green, Holly Black, Neil Gaiman… http://alchemypress.blogspot.co.uk/p/urban-mythic_2.html

The Alchemy Press Book of Pulp Heroes 2 is after tales from the arid plains of Mars to the canyons of Manhattan; the foetid jungle to the naked jungle. Demented criminals versus dark heroes with sinister powers. The flash of steel in the palaces of long-forgotten civilizations or along the sterile corridors of impossible spacecraft. Swords against sorcery or sword and planet. http://alchemypress.blogspot.co.uk/p/pulp-heroes-2_1.html

This year also sees the launch of Alchemy Novellas: these will cover almost all areas of Fantasy – that’s heroic fantasy, alternate world fantasy, urban fantasy, supernatural, dark crime and horror. Comic fantasy will be considered but not if it’s a parade of puns or bad gags. Alchemy Press are not fans of zombies or heroic vampires and will not publish hard science fiction. Essentially, acceptance will be based on how well the novella works for them. http://alchemypress02.blogspot.co.uk/p/blog-page.html

Visit the above links for full details.

Tim Parker Russell

Tim would like to receive previously unpublished ghost stories suitable for a general audience. Although stories should offer more than a “pleasing terror”, they should not contain anything too graphic or gratuitous. Stories should be between 2,000 and 7,000 words. Closing date for submissions is 31 December 2012. Authors will receive two copies of the published book. Copyright remains with the author.

For submission information see HERE

In a major coup for a brand new imprint, the launch title will be the beautiful debut novel Lupus Rex, by the high-profile musician and writer John Carter Cash, son of legendary singer Johnny Cash. To be published in June 2013, Lupus Rex will have enormous appeal to children and older readers alike. This astonishing new tale is in the tradition of Watership Down, The Rats of Nimh, the Redwall series and Duncton Wood.

Editor-in-chief Jonathan Oliver said: “The Young Adult market is a vibrant and exciting melting pot of genres and ideas and I’m delighted to lead us into this territory with our new imprint.”

For the first time in over a decade, Harper Voyager is offering writers the chance to submit full, unagented manuscripts for a limited two-week period. The publisher is seeking new authors with fresh voices, strong storytelling abilities, original ideas and compelling storylines. Harper Voyager is home to some of the biggest names in science fiction and fantasy, including George R. R. Martin, Kim Harrison, Raymond E. Feist, Robin Hobb, Richard Kadrey, Sara Douglass, Peter V. Brett and Kylie Chan, among others.

The submission portal, www.harpervoyagersubmissions.com, will be open from the 1st to the 14th of October 2012. The manuscripts will then be read and those most suited to the global Harper Voyager list will be selected jointly by editors in the USA, UK and Australia. Accepted submissions will benefit from the full publishing process: accepted manuscripts will be edited; and the finished titles will receive online marketing and sales support in World English markets.

Voyager will be seeking an array of adult and young adult speculative fiction for digital publication, but particularly novels written in the epic fantasy, science fiction, urban fantasy, horror, dystopia and supernatural genres. Submission guidelines and key information can be found at www.harpervoyagersubmissions.com.

The submissions and digital publications are a joint, global effort by Harper Voyager, spearheaded by Deputy Publisher Director Emma Coode in the United Kingdom, Associate Publisher Deonie Fiford in Australia, and Executive Editor Diana Gill in the United States.  The three editors note that: “No other publishing company has done a coordinated submission period for unagented authors across three continents, and all of us at Harper Voyager and at HarperCollins Publishers are absolutely thrilled to be launching this huge opportunity. We look forward to discovering and digitally publishing many new exciting voices globally at HarperVoyager.”

AudioGO have also signed up to create audio versions of titles from two of Osprey Group’s fiction division imprints: YA specialist Strange Chemistry and next year’s upcoming crime imprint, Exhibit A. The audiobooks will be produced in AudioGO’s specialist UK studios and will have worldwide digital distribution. The first Osprey Group titles will be the debuts from the Strange Chemistry line: Blackwood and Shift, which will launch in the first week in September 2012. Further titles will appear simultaneously with the release of physical editions from Strange Chemistry and, starting May 2013, Exhibit A.

Along with Doctor Who, AudioGO’s catalogue includes books by P.D. James, J.K. Rowling, Ruth Rendell and Bernard Cornwall. Their horror catalogue includes work by Bram Stoker, Rachel Caine, M.R. James, Stephanie Meyer, James Herbert and Fangoria’s Dreadtime Stories. For more information see the AudioGO website HERE

Pandemonium will be publishing a luxury re-issue of Thy Kingdom Come, the debut novel by Philip K. Dick Award-winning author Simon Morden. Featuring twenty interconnected tales of a nuclear apocalypse, this limited edition features a new introduction and afterword by the author, an introduction by Edgar-winning Robert Jackson Bennett and art by the amazing Joey HiFi. Thy Kingdom Come will be released as a signed and numbered limited edition. All profits from the sales of this book (due in November) will go to the Red Cross.

A Town Called Pandemonium is a shared world Western featuring some of the top authors in genre fiction. The tales all take place in a burned out mining town in the New Mexico territory. Scott Andrews, Will Hill, Archie Black, Jonathan Oliver, Joseph D’Lacey and Den Patrick are joined by US authors Sam Sykes, Chrysanthy Balis and Osgood Vance and South Africa’s Sam Wilson. The anthology is llustrated by Adam Hill. As with previous Pandemonium anthologies, A Town Called Pandemonium will be released as a numbered limited edition and a Kindle ebook (for one year only!). Release date is November.

Jonathan Green is joined by debut authors Marc Aplin and Laura Graham in 1853, the chapbook companion to Town. The authors explore the rest of the shared world with stories set in the same fateful year. 1853 collects three short tales of monsters human and inhuman. This ebook will also be released in November.

The Pandemonium Novelettes series of lettered-edition paperbacks continues with Archie Black‘s Uncle Smoke. Originally published in Stories of the Smoke, Black has extended her whirlwind tour of London’s secret history with several new neighbourhoods. To be released in December in print only, limited to 26 signed and lettered copies.

Finally, the tradition of Stocking Stuffers continues, with a new collection of darkly fantastic tales for the holiday season. Cover by Sarah Anne Langton. Ebook only to be released in December.

About the book:
“The shop mannequins that appear to have a life of their own . . .the monstrous insect that consumes men’s thoughts . . . the shadowy organisation that wreaks terror to the public . . . the overgrown garden blighted by a centuries-old curse . . . These tales map the darkest recesses of our minds. They document the madness and cruelty that exists in the places we do not wish to visit.”

To order a copy visit the website HERE

The following few months will also see the release of the second entry in the New Blood series, Thana Niveau‘s From Hell to Eternity. There’s also the new entry in Gray Friar’s Terror Tales series – this time, Terror Tales of East Anglia – as well as a bumper new collection from its editor Paul Finch. There will also be a collection of novellas from Simon Bestwick, number 6 in the Gray Matter series.

For more information visit the Gray Friar website HERE

“This is a very exciting opportunity,” said Sarah Newton, owner of Mindjammer Press and author of the ENnie Award-winning setting and fiction line. “We’ve taken the decision to bring all the Mindjammer fiction and RPG projects under a single umbrella, to allow us to concentrate on producing the new second edition and its supplements, as well as future novels in the Mindjammer series. We’re looking forward to a regular release of products to support the Mindjammer setting and community, beginning this week with a re-launch of Mindjammer, the first novel in the series.”

Mindjammer Press’ plans for the setting include the immediate release of the Mindjammer novel, and the publication of Mindjammer: The Expansionary Era, the second edition Mindjammer core book, in spring 2013. The new edition will see vastly expanded content, new and detailed background material, and all new artwork, and will be fully compatible with the FATE 3 Core rules. It will be followed later in 2013 by the Solenine campaign pack, based on the setting for the first novel, a new and revamped Black Zone campaign, and Transcendence, the second novel in the Mindjammer series. Mindjammer Press plans 3-4 releases per year thereafter.

Sarah, who will be lead writer and production manager on the Mindjammer lines, concluded: “We’ve had a lot of material waiting in the wings for several years and, with the imminent launch of the FATE 3 Core rules, I can’t think of a better time to produce the second edition. We’re looking forward to providing the Mindjammer fans with an expanding line of transhuman space opera adventures, supplements, and fiction.”

Dark Regions Press are currently having a summer sale with up to 50% off a wide range of publications. For information go HERE

Columbia University’s Rare Book & Manuscript Library

The gift includes a nearly complete run of Penguin titles in pristine condition, along with a full set of Ballantine and Bantam paperbacks, in equally fine condition, as well as an archive of the Ballantines’ work as an independent publishing team after the sale of their company to Random House.

Ballantine Books revolutionized the paperback industry, sparking a new mass market in publishing. They were one of the earliest publishers of science fiction paperbacks; they published the first authorized paperback editions of J.R.R. Tolkien‘s books in the ’60s.

The Ballantines sold their business to Random House in 1973 but continued as independent agents, editors, and publishers for another twenty years.

The gift of books and archives strengthens the Rare Book & Manuscript Library’s considerable resource collection in the areas of publishing and book history.

Read the full news item HERE

British Fantasy Award- and HWA Bram Stoker Award-winning author Allyson Bird will have her BFA award-winning first fiction collection, Bull Running For Girls (originally publised in the UK by Screaming Dreams), released in the States by JournalStone in January 2013.

Four-time HWA Bram Stoker Award-winning author, Lisa Morton, has been signed by JournalStone to release her original Halloween-themed horror novella, Summer’s End, fittingly just in time for Halloween in October 2013.

Finally, JournalStone is proud to announce that it has signed international bestselling author Joseph Nassise, and will be releasing his new novel, The Fall of Night, in the US on or about March 2013.

JournalStone Publishing is a small press publishing company, focusing in the science fiction/fantasy/horror genres in both the adult and young adult markets.  They publish in multiple book formats and market on a global level. In addition to showcasing new authors, JournalStone publishes a yearly anthology of collected short stories, and host an annual contest for horror novels. The company’s main goal is to publish quality novels that will showcase and promote an author’s work.

Starting later this year, Abaddon will publish a series of brand new e-novellas – and authors can either play in one of our ten shared worlds or create their own! Whether you’ve an agent or are going solo, whether you’re an established writer or trying to get your first project, we’re interested. Our books are pacy and action-filled, but smart and sharp, with characters that pull you in and challenge you. And our stories are dark, whatever the genre.

Since 2006, we have published almost eighty original novels in ten shared-world series, and have given the world the talented and irascible Chuck Wendig his fiction debut, not to mention the wildly imaginative Al Ewing. It has uncovered Kitschie-nominee Scott K. Andrews, and gave the brilliant Gary McMahon, Pat Kelleher and Toby Venables their mainstream fiction debuts.

If you know Abaddon’s work, you’ll also know what we like. Choose a genre, make it fast, make it tense, make it dark. And make us care about your characters. Make it original! Make us want to come back and see what happens next.

Submissions will be open for the month of September 2012, from midnight BST on 31 August 2012 to midnight on 30 September 2012.

For full details on the submissions process, go to www.abaddonbooks.com

For Lost Souls, the Pandemonium editors have been quietly scouring the archives, searching for the best, lost stories that meet their theme: tales of damnation and redemption.

The result is a collection that ranges from the haunting to the humorous, with stories from Latrobe Carroll, Robert W. Chambers, William Atwell Cheney, Mary Coleridge, Stephen Crane, Benjamin Disraeli, Amelia B. Edwards, Mary Wilkins Freeman, John Galsworthy, Richard Garnett, George Gissing, Bret Harte, Anne Sedgwick, May Wentworth and several others.

They’ve found tales about war and cowboys, popes and prisoners, poverty and ghosts – even stories about the nature of stories. There’s also a story about a chicken. Something for everyone.

Lost Souls is illustrated – magnificently – by Vincent Sammy (cover image shown above). The stories are introduced by the editors, Anne C. Perry and Jared Shurin.

The hardcover edition of Lost Souls is limited to 100 numbered copies at £14.99 each. The pre-orders are on sale now. Both the print and ebook edition will be available in August.

Crossroads is the latest digital chapbook from Pandemonium. It contains four different deals with the Devil: stories of hope, loss, sex, rats and maths. The contributors are Christian Fox, Jenni Hill, Robert Sharp and Ian Whates, with a cover by Vincent Sammy (depicting the legendary Robert Johnson).

Crossroads is also released in August 2012, in ebook format only, for a mere 99p.

Full details at the Pandemonium website HERE

• The Darkest Part of the Woods
• Secret Story
• The Overnight
• Told by the Dead
• Creatures of the Pool
• The Seven Days of Cain
• The Inhabitant of the Lake
• Just Behind You

They will be priced at £6.99 each plus postage (£2.99 in the UK, £4.99 in the US and £7.99 everywhere else). Alternatively, you can buy four titles for £27.96 and just one postage charge or all eight titles for £49.99 plus just one postage charge.

For further information and ordering details see the forthcoming titles section of the PS website HERE

“This is an amazing time to be a writer or editor,” says Palmer.  ”I really wanted to hit the ground running with something that can use these new technologies in new and unique ways.”

Giant Robot Books will not only publish New Pulp, but weird western, steampunk, and sci-fi, and has several anthologies planned.

“I will be rolling out some theme anthologies as well as individual novels and short stories,” says Palmer.  ”Stick around. It’s going to be a wild ride.”

Giant Robot Books will be a way for Palmer to bring his love for classic sci-fi and pulp into the twenty-first century world of indie publishing. Palmer plans on rolling out ebooks featuring new pulp characters, but they also have plans for several anthologies.

The Tales of Einarinn comprises five novels: The Thief’s Gamble, The Swordsman’s Oath, The Gambler’s Fortune, The Warrior’s Bond and The Assassin’s Edge. They were originally published by Orbit in the UK and Eos (a division of HarperCollins) in the USA. They have been translated into many languages including Russian, German, Japanese, Dutch, Polish, Hungarian and Czech.

In a series of posts on her blog, McKenna has talked about the challenges facing an author wishing to make her backlist available as ebooks. This includes converting a paper book to digital format, ensuring that she does indeed own the ebook rights when there is no mention of them in the original publishing contract, and considering issues such as whether to impose Digital Rights Management (DRM).

McKenna noted: “Seeing online dissatisfaction with some of the early ebook backlists rushed out by publishers who didn’t pay sufficient attention to such detail makes it very clear that readers expect – and make no mistake, they deserve – the same quality of text in an ebook as they would get in a paper edition.”

The ebook editions will be prepared by Antimatter ePress and Wizard’s Tower, bringing with them the same attention detail that has already been applied to McKenna’s short fiction works: A Few Further Tales of Einarinn and Turns and Chances. The books will have the same high-quality covers by Geoff Taylor that graced the original UK editions.

Securing worldwide English language rights to the ebook editions involves complex legal issues which McKenna has explained in her blog posts. Wizard’s Tower and Ms McKenna thank Orbit UK and HarperCollins USA for their cooperation in these matters.

For Wizard’s Tower Cheryl Morgan said, “Our objective is to help authors with backlists put out a quality product by taking care of the technical and business issues, leaving them free to concentrate on what they do best: writing new books.”

For Antimatter ePress Elizabeth Campbell added: “Preparing a scanned copy for e-publication is a labour-intensive process. This couldn’t happen without invaluable assistance from two proofreaders who have donated their time to make McKenna’s  ebooks the best that they can be. It is an honour and our delight to be able to do this for her, bringing to a new electronic-based audience some of our very most favourite books.

The Tales of Einarinn will be available through the Wizard’s Tower bookstore, on the Kindle, Nook, Kobo, and through other online venues.

More information and submission guidelines can be downloaded from the website HERE

Ten Terrors Volume 1 will contain short stories by Graham Joyce and Mark Morris. The other eight authors in Volume 1 will be confirmed soon. Volume 2 (2013) will feature Tim Lebbon and nine other authors.

The competition to win both Volumes 1 and 2 is open to anyone who has purchased a copy of the Derby Scribes Anthology which features short stories from Simon Clark, Conrad Williams, Neal James, Richard Farren Barber, Stuart Hughes, Christopher Barker and other members of the Derby Scribes writing group. If you haven’t purchased the Derby Scribes Anthology yet you still have time to buy it, read it, and enter the competition. Visit the website HERE to purchase

To enter the competition, all you have to do is answer three simple questions (see the competition entry requirements HERE). The competition closes on 31 August 2012.

In other news, Stumar Press will be launching Soul Screams – a collection of thirteen horror stories by horror and crime novelist Sara Jayne Townsend – at the BFS London Open Day on Saturday 16 June 2012. Sara will be attending and signing copies on the day. More information about Soul Screams can be found HERE

Angry Robot Books

Strange Chemistry has signed talented fantasy author, Martha Wells. Martha has been signed in a two-book deal, for World English Rights, negotiated between Strange Chemistry’s Amanda Rutter and Jennifer Jackson of the Donald Maass Literary Agency. The first of these books, a novel called Emilie and the Hollow World, will be published in Summer 2013.

Martha is the author of thirteen novels as well as a number of short stories and nonfiction articles. Her books include The Element of Fire (Tor, 1993), The Death of the Necromancer (Avon Eos, 1998), City of Bones (Tor, 1995), Wheel of the Infinite (HarperCollins Eos, 2000), and The Fall of Ile-Rien trilogy, published by HarperCollins Eos – The Wizard Hunters (2003), The Ships of Air (2004), and The Gate of Gods (2005) – set in the same world as The Element of Fire and The Death of the Necromancer.

Her newest fantasy novels are The Cloud Roads (Night Shade Books, March 2011), and the sequels, The Serpent Sea (Night Shade Books, January 2012) and The Siren Depths (forthcoming from Night Shade Books in December 2012).

Angry Robot has also announced a new two-book deal with rising star Chuck Wendig. Chuck’s first Angry Robot novel, Blackbirds, only hit the bookshelves for the first time a few weeks ago, but the response has already been so strong that Angry Robot moved quickly to sign him up for another two books.

The World English Rights deal, negotiated between Angry Robot editor Lee Harris and Stacia Decker of the Donald Maas Literary Agency, is for:

The Blue Blazes – the first in a new urban fantasy series in which lovable thug Mookie Pearl must contend with the criminal underworld, the supernatural underworld, a new drug that makes the invisible visible, and a rebellious teen daughter who opposes him at every turn.

Cormorant – a new tale of Miriam Black, the third book in a series that begins with Blackbirds and continues with Mockingbird (September 2012).

Both of Chuck’s new titles are scheduled for publication in 2013.

Dadaoism

Dadaoism is Chomu’s first title of 2012. In June and July, they publish the novel Celebrant by Michael Cisco and a debut collection of short fiction, I Am a Magical Teenage Princess, by Luke Geddes. September sees the paperback reprint of Quentin S. Crisp’s collection All God’s Angels, Beware! (previously an Ex Occidente limited edition). October, November and December willl bring work from John Elliott, Anna Tambour and Brendan Connell.

For more information on Chomu’s planned releases in 2012 see the website HERE

The first three Kindle books are now available to purchase from Amazon, for only $2.99 each… The Midnight Hour by Neil Davies, Songs from Spider Street by Mark Howard Jones and Yuppieville by Tony Richards. You can find them on Amazon at the following locations…

Yuppieville: Amazon US and Amazon UK

Spider Street:  Amazon US and Amazon UK

The Midnight Hour: Amazon US and Amazon UK

HarperCollins

“Inspired by the two films based on The Hobbit, the HarperCollins companion books are a fantastic way for fans of the world of Middle-earth to immerse themselves in the film experience,” said Karen McTier, Executive Vice President of Domestic Licensing and Worldwide Marketing for Warner Bros Consumer Products. “HarperCollins has a strong history with the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, and we know that the detailed tie-in books will bring The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and The Hobbit: There and Back Again to life in an in-depth and imaginative way.”

The Hobbit, first published by George Allen & Unwin in 1937, has been a perennial bestseller since starting life with a very modest 1,500-copy print run. Since then, it has gone on to sell many millions of copies in more than 50 languages, and in this 75th anniversary year of its publication, is set to captivate another generation of readers. HarperCollins acquired the publishing rights to The Hobbit and its sequel The Lord of the Rings when it bought Unwin Hyman publishers in 1990, revitalizing the books’ sales and steering their publishing and book licensing through the unprecedented heights of The Lord of the Rings film trilogy in 2001-2003.

Author, biographer and broadcaster Brian Sibley, who recently won the BBC Audio Drama Award for his dramatization of The History of Titus Groan, has returned to New Zealand to write the behind-the-scenes Official Movie Guides, while novelist and former Tolkien editor Jane Johnson is writing essential Visual Companions to introduce filmgoers to the remarkable world of the two films, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and The Hobbit: There and Back Again. Bestselling New Zealand author and photographer Ian Brodie is writing the Location Guide which highlights the spectacular locations in New Zealand that have provided the settings for the films. In addition, HarperCollins will be breaking new ground with a range of children’s books in the form of annuals, movie storybooks and feature titles, as well as a new series of lavish hardbacks written and designed by the award-winning team at Weta, who are working closely with the production team to guarantee that these books will be bursting with insider information and stunning visual imagery.

The imprint will launch in late Spring 2013, with two titles appearing in each of the first two months, before settling down to one book each month. Exhibit A will follow Angry Robot’s strategy of co-publishing its books simultaneously in the UK and US, in both paperback and ebook formats, backed up by strong online marketing and community activity.

Exhibit A’s ambition is to become a new home for addictive crime fiction. It will be looking for authors with original, gripping voices. Exhibit A books – whether they’re procedurals, mysteries, thrillers, or something entirely new – will aim to divert readers from their everyday lives into an exhilarating world of drama, fear and suspense.

Joining the company to run the imprint is Emlyn Rees. He published his first crime novel aged twenty-five, his second a year later, and then co-wrote seven comedies with Josie Lloyd, including the Sunday Times bestseller Come Together. In his time, Emlyn has also worked for the Curtis Brown Literary Agency and run a manuscript editing service.

The launch of Exhibit A is the latest in a wave of expansion by parent company, Osprey Group, following investment by Alcuin Capital Partners in 2011. Osprey recently won the IPG Award for Specialist Consumer Publisher of the Year 2012.

Whilst working at Pan, Webb commissioned Douglas Adams to adapt his radio play The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy into a novel, resulting in the bestselling book. He also wrote Adams’ official biography, Wish You Were Here, following Adams’ death in 2001.

Read the full BBC story HERE

Julianna Scott has been signed for a two-book deal – negotiated by Strange Chemistry’s Amanda Rutter and Carly Watters of the P.S. Literary Agency – starting with The Holders. Laura Lam has also signed a two-book deal – negotiated by Amanda Rutter and Juliet Mushens of Peters Fraser and Dunlop – starting with Pantomime. Both titles will be published in the Spring of 2013.

About The Holders by Julianna Scott:
“17-year-old Becca has spent her whole life protecting her brother – from their father leaving and from the people who say the voices in his head are unnatural. When two strangers appear with apparent answers to Ryland’s “problem” and details about a school in Ireland where Ryland will not only fit in, but prosper, Becca is up in arms.

She reluctantly agrees to join Ryland on his journey and what they find at St. Brigid’s is a world beyond their imagination. Little by little they piece together information about their family’s heritage and the legend of the Holder race that decrees Ryland is the one they’ve been waiting for.

But they are all, especially Becca, in for a surprise that will change what they thought they knew about themselves and their kind.”

About Pantomime by Laura Lam:
“R.H. Ragona’s Circus of Magic is the greatest circus of Ellada. Nestled among the glowing blue Penglass – remnants of a mysterious civilisation long gone – are wonders beyond the wildest imagination. It’s a place where anything seems possible, where if you close your eyes you can believe that the magic and knowledge of the vanished Chimeras is still there. It’s a place where anyone can hide.

Iphigenia Laurus, or Gene, the daughter of a noble family, is uncomfortable in corsets and crinoline, and prefers climbing trees to debutante balls. Micah Grey, a runaway living on the streets, joins the circus as an aerialist’s apprentice and soon becomes the circus’s rising star.

But Gene and Micah have balancing acts of their own to perform, and a secret in their blood that could unlock the mysteries of Ellada.”

The novel is set in a near-future where a secretive organisation has developed technology to transfer the regenerative power of a body’s cells from one person to another, conferring extended or even indefinite life expectancy.  As a means of controlling who benefits from the technology, access is obtained by winning a tournament of chess or bridge to which only a select few are invited.  At its core, the game is a test of a person’s integrity, ability and resilience.  The fantastic nature of the game’s technology is made all the more credible by the familiarity of the contemporary setting, giving the story a definite slipstream feel.

Elsewhen Press adopts a digital-first policy, initially publishing new titles in ebook format and subsequently in print editions, the reverse of most long-established publishing houses. “This approach allows us to be more innovative and exciting,” explained Al Murray, Managing Publisher of Elsewhen Press, “and to publish titles that would otherwise be beyond the resources of a small independent publisher”.

Sanem Ozdural’s debut novel will be published in a digital edition in summer 2012 and in a print edition in the autumn.

Mark C. Scioneaux

Their first planned title is World’s Collider, an apocalyptic anthology edited by Richard Salter.

“The Collision is the worst disaster in human history. So far…

In the near future, an experiment at the Large Hadron Collider causes an enormous explosion, known as the Collision. The blast flattens a huge chunk of central Europe and punches a massive hole in the Earth’s surface. Over the next decade, unspeakable horrors pour from the rift: vicious creatures with a taste for human flesh, a terrible scream that drives all who hear it insane, a phantom entity that feeds on fear and paranoia, and a nightmare train from the pits of hell, to name but a few. This onslaught of terror causes the collapse of civilization and threatens to wipe humanity from the planet.

World’s Collider is a unique concept in short fiction, where all eighteen original stories are part of a common narrative, recounting the disaster and its aftermath. A novel by many voices, including Steven Savile, James Moran, Aaron Rosenberg, Trent Zelazny, Jonathan Green, Simon Kurt Unsworth, Kelly Hale, Richard Wright, and a host of new talent.

Fifty million people died in the Collision. They were the lucky ones…”

PS Publishing

To start this venture off, they are offering Centipede’s Knowing Darkness, a sumptuous volume full of artwork inspired by the writing of Stephen King. This 448-page art book includes colour and black and white paintings and drawings that have directly or indirectly illustrated King’s writings over the last thirty-five years.

Artists include Michael Whelan, Ned Dameron, J.K. Potter, John Jude Pelancar, Stephen Gervais, and many others. The book features an introduction by Frank Darabont and text (written by King critic George Beahm) that looks back at 34 years of King in print providing a detailed look at the writer and his life, and supplemented with interviews with Michael Whelan, Bernie Wrightson, Drew Struzan, John Cayea, Dave Christiansen, and many others.

The book was originally published at £180 ($295) but PS are offering it for £95 (around $150) plus post & packing (£8.95 in the UK or £12.95 everywhere else). There are only 100 copies available.

Full details HERE

Morning Star Press was founded in 2008 by the genre publisher, Roberts. Morning Star has published many genre greats including Joe R. Lansdale, Brian Keene, James A. Moore, Edward Lee, Weston Ochse and many others.

Full details of the acquisition HERE

The four launch titles are “an Ira Levin-style mystery (House of Quiet Madness by Mikita Brottman), an ultra-violent 80s-style Italian cannibal horror (Tribesmen by Adam Cesare), a Hitchcockian take on a modern suicide cult (The Devoted by Eric Shapiro), and a sexual abuse/revenge story (Die, You Bastard! Die! By Jan Kozlowski).

The aim is to publish 30-40 titles per year. Other titles soon to be published include The Dark, a metaphysical thriller by Scott Bradley and Peter Giglio, and Unwanted, a supernatural story set in both pre- and post-Katrina New Orleans by R.J. Sevin.”

Read the full story HERE

Atomic Fez Publishing

The Designated Coconut (Benji Spriteman #2), by John Travis, coming Autumn 2012

“As the first in the series was an homage to the noire thrillers, so we have the second Benji Spriteman tale similar to the classic English Mystery of roughly the same era.

During the visit of the two famous mystery-writing sisters, a death occurs, leading to a complicated series of events. How did the safe in the locked room get stolen? Who was behind the poisoning? Is someone at the resort’s hotel involved, and is it the beer-guzzling band-leader? What do the mole-men have to do with it?”

The House of a Thousand Screams (working title), by John Llewellyn Probert, coming Autumn 2012

“Starring Mr Massene Henderson and Miss Samantha Jephcott; the most un‑likely team of paranormal investigators you’ve somehow lived your life without … until now!

Henderson and Jephcott head to the wilderness of Northern Wales to investigate a house constructed from the bits of haunted buildings and filled with devices of death, all constructed on a foundation of a ‘stone circle’. Designed to be the most haunted house in Britain, the original owner hasn’t been heard from since the mid-1950s, and the new one wants to know if he’s got the real thing or not. What lies in wait for the two detectives and the four people who are there to help in the research, and will anyone survive to claim the fees for their labours?”

I, Death by Mark Leslie Lefebvre, coming Winter 2012

“The terrifying story of a young man coming to terms with a death curse.

By writing an on-line journal, Peter O’Mallick hopes to deal with his emotional turmoil at being dumped by his former girlfriend. While the blog helps, it also attracts cyber stalker Bryan Brecht, who coerces Peter into doing things which should never be done …

Hilarity ensues.”

Sleepless Knights by Mark H. Williams, coming Spring 2013

“It’s not easy being the man behind the myth.

Sir Lucas is butler to King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table; the person who managed every epic legend behind the scenes. He’s the one who made sure each quest happened in the right place at the right time, and that everyone involved had comfortable accommodation for the weekend. The man whose average working day involved fighting dragons, defeating witches, banishing demons, and ensuring the Royal pot of tea never crossed the thin line separating ‘brewed’ from ‘stewed’. What’s more, 1,500 years after that golden age, he’s still doing it: here in modern Britain, right under our noses …”

Read more HERE

Strange Chemistry have also announced an Open Door period, where the usual submission guidelines are relaxed to allow authors who are unagented to send in a manuscript. Full details HERE

Angry Robot have also announced its second Open Door submissions window. For two weeks in April, they will be accepting un-agented manuscripts from epic fantasy writers.

More information can be found HERE

They are now branching out further, with books including: Jeanette Winterson’s original novel based on the true story of the Pendle Witches trial of 1612 which will be published in February; a new novelisation of Hammer’s cult classic Vampire Circus by Mark Morris due in March; Tim Lebbon‘s new novel Coldbrook also due in March; and Helen Dunmore’s original ghost story The Greatcoat, about “the power of the past to imprint itself on the present, until the present is possessed by the past”, to be published in April. Further books will be announced soon.

Full details HERE

At the same time many of their films are set to be restored for release onto Blu-Ray. More than 30 films are involved, with several to include new or extended scenes that were cut from the original. One of these is Terence Fisher‘s Dracula, which will incorporate a recently-discovered extended death scene considered too gruesome for cinema release in 1958. Other titles involved include Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter, The Mummy, and Frankenstein Created Woman.

See the full BBC story HERE

“The world balances upon the edge of a knife. A meteor known as Lucifer’s Hammer is about to wreak a terrible destruction on the earth and terrorists have annihilated the City of London, covering it in a blanket of nuclear poison.

Rumours of war abound in every continent, but if the end of the world is imminent, there is only one safe place to be.

American-Korean bio-engineer Dr Kim Da Mi thinks she has found the perfect solution in the mountains above Seoul, but her methods are strange and her business partner, Johnny Sandman, is not exactly the type of person anyone would want to mix with. Sydney, a Canadian model trying to escape an unhappy past, is drawn in by their smiles and pretty promises – until she realises that the quest for perfection, comes at an impossible price …”

A second untitled novel has also been acquired as part of the deal. Seoul Survivor is currently scheduled for release in February 2013, with the untitled second novel following in 2014.

Spectral Press

More information can be found HERE

Cemetery Dance

They state:
“In the six months since we launched our ebook store, we’ve published books by William Peter Blatty, Peter Straub, Jay Bonansinga, Norman Partridge, Glen Hirshberg, Brian Hodge, Brian Keene, Mick Garris, Rick Hautala, Ronald Kelly, Simon Clark, Ed Gorman, Geoff Cooper, Brian James Freeman, James A. Moore, Rocky Wood, Kirby McCauley, and many others.

There are nearly 40 ebooks you can download right away with a combined retail value of more than $130, plus we have dozens of new ebooks in the works for 2012, including some exciting originals and also reprints of classic out of print horror novels you haven’t read in years.

Our ebooks range in price from $0.99 to $9.99, but the cost of this membership is just a one-time fee of $49, which breaks down to $4.08 per month. If you think you’d want to download even a couple of ebooks each month, this is a great deal!

Because we hope you still love print editions as much as we do, members will also receive a FREE signed Limited Edition hardcover later this year. All you’ll have to pay is any applicable shipping. Considering the retail value of $30 to $40 for the free book, the low purchase price of this membership is an EVEN BETTER deal with this special bonus!”

Full details of the membership plan can be found HERE

Angry Robot Books

The imprint will be a standalone line, with its own name and presence, but will employ the same fresh and distinctly modern approach that Angry Robot has in the SF/F world. The editor will play a key role in building the personality of the imprint, and telling the world about its books, especially online. The key skills this role demands, therefore, are an up-to-date knowledge of US and UK crime fiction publishing, eBooks, editing, project management, negotiation – and the ability to act as the mouthpiece of the coolest new crime imprint on the block.

This role could be based in either the US or UK. The Osprey Group, of which Angry Robot is a part, has offices in Oxford and Nottingham in the UK, and New York in the US, but also has employees who telecommute and work from home offices. For the right candidate, therefore, they can be flexible.

Anyone who is interested in this role should apply with their CV and salary expectations to incoming [at] angryrobotbooks [dot] com or via the contact page HERE. The closing date is noon GMT on 24 January 2012.

Lord received the World Fantasy Convention Award in 1978 and the Lifetime Achievement Award of the professional fanzine, The Cimmerian, in 2005. The following year, he was Guest of Honor at the Centennial Robert E. Howard Days festival in Howard’s hometown of Cross Plains, Texas. In his final years he was Director Emeritus of the Robert E. Howard Foundation.

Read the full Locus story HERE

A Stark and Wormy Knight is a new collection by best-selling fantasy author Tad Williams, due next summer. Tad Williams is an acknowledged master of the multi-volume epic. A Stark and Wormy Knight, though, offers readers something both special and surprising: a virtuoso demonstration of Williams’ mastery of a variety of shorter forms.

Secondly, Subterranean announce the largest collection of Jonathan Carroll‘s short fiction yet published. The Woman Who Married a Cloud will feature 37 stories-including his limited edition novella, “The Heidelberg Cylinder”. Always better known as a novelist, Carroll has also created a compelling and deeply moving body of short fiction. Perhaps more eclectic and slant-wise than some of his novels, stories like World Fantasy Award winning “Friend’s Best Man” and Pushcart Prize and Grand Prix de l’Imaginaire honouree “Home on the Rain” stand amongst his very best work.

The Woman Who Married a Cloud: Collected Stories will be the best and most complete collection of Jonathan Carroll’s fiction ever published. It collects 35 stories written across a thirty year long career, a number appearing in print for the first time, in a single landmark volume that stands as the perfect introduction to this unique and wonderful writer.

With its READ ANYTHING campaign and commitment to producing first rate genre fiction, the Abaddon Books team are firm believers in new forms of publishing. The Twilight of Kerberos series is a perfect fit for experimenting with an ebook only release. And with the success of the recent series omnibuses – including the The Best of Tomes of the Dead and Afterblight: America – and capitalising on the growing US readership who are finding our shared-worlds through them, Abaddon Books has decided to focus the Twilight range on this format.

The long-awaited third book of the Lucius Kane Trilogy by Matthew Sprange, Legacy’s Price, will see print in March 2012 as part of the first Twilight of Kerberos Omnibus, with two more omnibuses in the series to collect the titles by Mike Wild and Jonathan Oliver.

Their first e-book titles are:
Three volumes of ghost/horror stories by Frederick Cowles – The Horror of Abbot’s Grange, The Night Wind Howls and Fear Walks the Night
They Return at Evening by H. R. Wakefield – his landmark collection first published in 1928 – along with Old Man’s Beard, his second collection
No 472 Cheyne Walk: Carnacki, The Untold Stories by A. F. Kidd & Rick Kennett
Randalls Round, Eleanor Scott‘s only collection of supernatural stories – one of the most rare and sought-after titles in the genre
The Fellow Travellers by Sheila Hodgson
Divinations of the Deep by Matt Cardin
Rope Trick by Mark P. Henderson
The Thames Horror and Other Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Barbara Roden

Their first publication now available in digital format (print edition due March 2012)  is an anthology [Re]Awakenings:

“[Re]Awakenings are the starting points for life-changing experiences; a new plane of existence, an alternate reality or cyber-reality. This genre-spanning anthology of new speculative fiction explores that theme with a spectrum of tales, from science fiction to fantasy to paranormal; in styles from clinically serious to joyfully silly. As you read them you will discover along the way that stereo-typical distinctions between the genres within speculative fiction are often arbitrary and unhelpful. You will be taken on an emotional journey through a galaxy of sparkling fiction; you will laugh, you will cry; you will consider timeless truths and contemplate eternal questions. All of life is within these pages, from birth to death (and in some cases beyond). In all of these stories, most of them specifically written for this anthology, the short story format has been used to great effect. If you haven’t already heard of some of these authors, you soon will as they are undoubtedly destined to become future stars in the speculative fiction firmament. Remember, you read them here first!

[Re]Awakenings is a collection of short stories from exciting new voices in UK speculative fiction, compiled by guest editor P.R. Pope. It contains the following stories: Alison Buck: Dreamers; Intervention; Mirror mirror; Podcast. Neil Faarid: The Adventures of Kit Brennan: Kidnapped! Gingerlily: The Dragon and the Rose. Robin Moran: The Merry Maiden Wails. PR Pope: Afterlife; Courtesy Bodies; On the Game. Alexander Skye: BlueWinter; Dreaming Mars; Exploring the Heavens; Worth it. Peter Wolfe: If you go into the woods today…“

In the highly imaginative The Corpse-Rat King, readers are introduced to Marius Helles as he plunders the bodies of the dead after a major battle – a crime punishable by death. The dead tell Marius that they need a King – the King is God’s representative, and they need someone to speak to God and remind him where they are, thank you very much! He doesn’t actually want the job, but when the alternative is to deny a legion of angry corpses, it’s that or find a suitable compromise – and quickly: the dead aren’t known for their patience…

The deal was negotiated by Angry Robot editor Lee Harris, and Battersby’s agent Richard Henshaw of the Richard Henshaw Group, after The Corpse-Rat King came to Angry Robot’s attention during their first Open Door Month open submission period, earlier this year.

It’s one of a number of lots up for bidding on eBay to raise money for Orion’s chosen charity, The Samaritans, with 100% of the proceeds going to the cause. The winning bidder gets 10,000 words of their novel or story reviewed and edited by Gollancz Editorial Director Gillian Redfearn, editor for bestselling authors such as Joe Abercrombie. You can also bid to have new Gollancz editor Marcus Gipps review 15,000 words of your story.

If you or a loved one is a fantasy fan, there’s a unique and exciting chance to name a character in a future novel by Brandon Sanderson, the bestselling author of The Way of Kings and The Alloy of Law. There’s also an exclusive bundle of signed and limited edition promotional materials from Brandon.

Advice on how to promote your book from Gollancz Senior Marketing Executive Jennifer McMenemy, who has masterminded campaigns for many of Gollancz’s biggest names including Alastair Reynolds and Charlaine Harris, is also up for bidding, along with lunch in London with members of the Gollancz publishing team, with the opportunity to seek some advice.

Other auctions include signed books, lunch with an author and the chance to get a copy of every single arc proof produced by Gollancz in 2012. Gollancz proof editions, usually reserved for booksellers and media, are often hotly sought after by fans and collectors.

For the full list of items to bid on to help this worthy cause, please go HERE or search for seller id orionbooksforcharity on eBay.