Mike Lancaster: 1.4

Hi folks,

The upcoming release of my latest Young Adult Science Fiction novel, 1.4, has kinda forced me out of 'lurk' mode, and onto the forum to jabber about it.

I launched the first book, 0.4 (Human.4 in the US), at the annual Christmas beano in London just over a year ago, and it's been getting good reviews (including a rave in SFX), has sold to a variety of overseas markets, and has been nominated for a few awards. It's taken me to the British Library for a site-specific event for the Pop-Up Festival of Stories; to the Edinburgh festival where I got to rub shoulders with Neil Gaiman in the author's yurt; and to schools and bookshops for talks and signings. I've judged school creative writing competitions based upon the book, and it even got me into a film producer's luxurious London office for a thrilling, but ultimately fruitless, meeting.

My goal, when I embarked upon 0.4, was to introduce younger readers to the wonderful world of sf, and deliver a novel that could satisfy adult readers as well. My manifesto for 1.4 is the same, but more so. It's a more complex, ambitious book that takes the concept established in the first book, but projects it a thousand years into the future. It works as both a sequel, and as a standalone book.

Anyway, I'll get to the point. 1.4 is due for release in May from Egmont Books (and in November in the US under the title The Future We Left Behind) and I'm trying to spread the word, and slap the title around everywhere in a shameless spurt of self-promotion. To create a buzz (and for a book that features robot bees I think that's pretty appropriate), and to point people to my website/blog which is gearing up for the release. Maybe to find a few reviewers who would be willing to take a read and then share their thoughts about it.

>Shameless plug ends.<