Postcards from the hinterland

Angelglass still slaying 'em

2009-08-14T13:56:02Z

Great review of Angelglass gone up today at Fantasy Book Critic blog.

You say "hack" like it's a bad thing

2009-08-13T17:43:37Z

Latest Guardian blog: here.

Hope it doesn't prove too soporific

2009-08-06T10:56:22Z

Latest Guardian Blog on Beatrix Potter here.

popCULT!

2009-07-07T09:58:07Z

PRESS RELEASE – DAVID BARNETT NOVEL SOLD TO PENDRAGON

John Jarrold has sold limited-edition rights in popCULT!, a novel by UK author David Barnett, to Chris Teague at Welsh publisher Pendragon Press. David is the Assistant Editor of the Bradford Telegraph and Argus newspaper, and has had two earlier novels published by Immanion Press, Hinterland and Angelglass. He also writes regular blogs for the Guardian books website.

popCULT! is a contemporary SF caper in which a struggling writer is drawn into the machinations of a motley group of underground art prankster rebels who harbour a strange and terrible secret beneath the streets of London.

David said, 'popCULT! is one of my favourite works and I'm delighted that a press with the reputation of Pendragon has taken it on.'

'David is both prolific and incredibly inventive,' said John Jarrold. 'I'm expecting great things of him as his career progresses!'

Contact John Jarrold by e-mail: j.jarrold@btinternet.com or phone: 01522 510544 for further details.

davidbarnett @ 2009-07-07T10:58:00

2009-07-07T09:57:26Z

Fantasy Book Critic blog announcement of my new novel, popCULT!, which is to be published in 2010 by Pendragon Press.

New Guardian blog - dating sites for bibliophiles

2009-07-07T09:55:36Z

Why Borders' new dating site for book lovers is a bad, bad idea.

Follow me and I will show you, erm, not a lot

2009-05-28T16:56:18Z

As most of my LJ posts seem to be soundbites signifying very little, I'm all about the Twitter these days: This is me here

Anyone know how to import Tweets into LJ?

Me at work

2009-05-12T11:29:19Z

Can you guess which one is me?

Maps in books

2009-05-06T09:41:20Z

Do you like maps at the front of books? And I'm looking at you, epic fantasy reader.

Latest Guardian blog on that very topic just gone up.

Twitter

2009-05-06T09:18:11Z

Presuming everyone on my friends list isn't now on Dreamwidth, whatever the heck that might be, I'm gamely bringing up the technological rear with a Twitter account:

http://twitter.com/davidmbarnett

Question is, what the hell do I do with it?

davidbarnett @ 2009-04-23T15:36:00

2009-04-23T14:35:28Z

View Poll: Quiz for Writers

Eastercon

2009-04-20T11:48:46Z

Possibly the tardiest con entry ever, but I've not been near a computer since Eastercon, which has been quite liberating.

Anyway. Great event. Only really went on Saturday, during which time I moderated a panel on SF as Protest Literature. Thanks to David Lloyd, John Clute, Gareth L Powell and Jon Courtenay Grimwood for making it a good experience. I had intended to just introduce them and sit back, but I've a niggling feeling I talked too much. Ah well, chalk it up to experience.

Met some top people, in no particular order: Nick Harkaway and his wunnerful wife (Barbelith in-joke alert) Clare; Chaz Brenchley; me agent John Jarrold; Tom Hunter and his Incredibly Tall SF Pals; my Immanion editor Donna Scott and her beau Neil; Eric Brown; Philip Palmer; Chris Beckett; Roy Gray; Tony Ballantyne; Ian Whates; Ramsey Campbell and his wife; Pete Crowther and his wife; all those on my panel; Ken McLeod; Juliet McKenna; Darren Nash; Mike Carey; Deborah J Miller; Charlie Stross; Mike Cobley and his Amazing Hotel Lint Sandwich... there were undoubtedly more but they probably came after the Black Sheep on draught had got the better of me, so apologies if I've missed anyone I spoke to/blethered at.

Onan the Barbarian

2009-04-08T09:18:02Z

Current Guardian blog has gone bonkers. A bit of time-wasting frippery if you are so inclined.

Draaaaaaaft!

2009-03-28T09:16:44Z

I have written 111,746 of 100,000 words.
I am now 100% done!

no frills wordmeter

Lucky Number Seven. Run through initial edits, cut and teased and chopped and coifed. Sleeping on it and having another look over the weekend, then off to Esteemed Agent Monday morning!

Guardian blog

2009-03-27T11:11:12Z

Latest Guardian book blog: When fictional writers get book deals.

Yeastercon

2009-03-12T10:03:47Z

It appears I will be moderating a panel on the afternoon of Saturday April 11 at Eastercon in Bradford.

More to the point, is anyone going who would like to sink a few ales on the Saturday?

Writers: How much is too much?

2009-03-11T13:37:14Z

On a normal day, what with working and spending time with the family and eating and breathing an' shit, I reckon I can comfortably write around 2,000 words of fiction (bearing in mind that my day job involves staring at a computer monitor for about nine hours and being creative with it).

Today, on a day off with no-one in the house, I managed to turn in 5,000 words by 1pm. And they were pretty good words, if I say so meself. Thing is, I could write more (notwithstanding the front door that needs fixing up and the back window that needs seeing to and that thing that's been hanging off the ceiling for about six years that needs looking and and and) but I'm not sure if I should. True, my gander's up, but I wonder if I'd benefit from sleeping on the next chapter rather than rushing in.

Writers: What do you do? Write until you drop or give yourself a strict-ish target and stick to it?

This year's Joanna Newsom

2009-03-11T09:51:19Z

I am absolutely adoring Polly Scattergood right now. A bit like if some-one de-arched some of Lilly Allen's cleverer lyrics and forced a clone of Kate Bush who had been raised since birth in a darkened room and fed on raw meat to sing them in the disarming Joanna Newsom style. With a name and hair to make indie boys weep, to boot.

Let the wild rumpus start!

2009-03-06T11:27:05Z

So, yesterday was World Book Day here on Earth and Charlie's school, for today, asked the kids to dress up as a character from a book, with the accent on exloring and travel.

Last weekend we went through a few options from our existing dressing up box... Spider-Man (not actually a "book" character, claims Mum. I begged to differ. But that's an old argument for another time). Indiana Jones was another favoured option, but we didn't have the kit. Pirate. Scooby-Doo...

Then Charlie decided he wanted to be Max from Where the Wild Things Are. A cursory internet check determined that, despite the upcoming movie version, no such costume exists for sale. This is Max:

So I rashly pledged that I would make one. Now, I don't think I've so much as sewn a button on anything before, so this was a pretty big promise. But not one I felt I could renege on. So, every night from Monday, when I had secured some material, cotton, needles and stuff, I was there, on the sofa, until midnight most evenings.

This is the result.

It doesn't exactly fit in all the right places, but, y'know, for a first attempt, I'm not that disappointed.

And the boy Charlie loves it. Be interesting to see how long it actually lasts during the rough and tumble of the school day.

Fairy nuff

2009-03-04T14:48:36Z

So I'm writing this new book, 50k words in, going great guns, just having the usual slight plot collywobbles but that's to be expected. It's nominally involved with the Cottingley Fairies, and I've been reading a bit of fairy-related literature alongside the writing. A couple of weeks ago I picked up John Crowley's Little, Big, which I haven't read for ages, and got engrossed in it again.

Googling the book I found that there's a 25th anniversary edition of it coming out. I thought this might make something for the Guardian and, lo, here it is today.

Funny thing is, they illustrated it with a picture of the Cottingley Fairies, prominently featuring Elsie Wright, who looms large in the new novel.

Solaris

2009-03-03T14:15:46Z

Unfortunate news doing the rounds via Mark Chadbourn's blog: Games Workshop appears to have put up its dedicated SF/Fantasy/Horror imprint Solaris for sale. Unfortunate news because if it doesn't find a buyer... well, who knows what will happen. It's put out some great books, and has proved to be a good home for Eric Brown among others. Its existence also gives hope to an aspiring mid-list author like myself...

Imposter!

2009-03-01T16:21:34Z

Further to previous posts about those other David Barnetts I notice that Gareth L Powell's website mentions a David Barnett moderating the Eastercon panel SF As Protest Literature. Which actually sounds quite interesting. I wonder which David Barnett that is?

Funny if it was actually me and I just didn't know about it.

Writer's Block: AKA

2009-02-28T08:39:54Z

What's the story behind your username?

View 503 Answers

It's, y'know, my name.

More Watchmen gubbins

2009-02-27T17:22:52Z

I'm liking, but shouldn't Nite Owl be a bit... fatter?

To your scattered bodies go

2009-02-26T13:28:17Z

Philip Jose Farmer has gone up-river