Babel Clash

Steve, thank you once again for all of the great posts and for spending time with us on Babel Clash.  Good luck with Elegy Beach and other books to come.  I’m looking forward to seeing what you try next.

Our next guest is John Joseph Adams, highly regarded editor and critic.  He has edited several highly successful anthologies, include Wastelands, Federations, By Blood We Live and the brand new Improbable Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.

Tune in tomorrow to learn our next topic.

Steve,

Thank you for taking the time to join us on Babel Clash these past two weeks.  I’ve enjoyed the posts, and I’ve spoken to others who’ve really liked them, too.

Sometime before you go, in the next couple of days, is there anything more that you’d like to say about Ariel and Elegy Beach?  This is good stuff, and I’m hopeful that Babel Clash’s readers will give them a chance.  Both are available online and in all Borders stores.

What’s your choice for a potential 8th sign of the apocalypse, referring to sci-fi and fantasy?

My pick:  George R. R. Martin releases A Dance With Dragons and then surprises us with the next volume one year later.

Don’t worry, I’m just kidding around here.  I love that series.   I miss it, but it will be worth the wait.  Can’t wait to see the TV show come to HBO.

"Something is coming"

Keep your eyes peeled for  an impressive new novel about a vampire apocalypse.  It’s not officially on-sale until Summer 2010, but after getting a sneak peek, I can say that it calls to minds greats like I Am Legend and the Stand.

I don’t think that this is the final cover, but I like it.

Speaking of things upcoming… Steven, are you willing to give us any tidbits about what you’re working on next?  Will we see another novel of the Change?  Following events of Elegy Beach, will you continue to play in this post-apocalyptic world?

World War Z - best zombie novel ever!

When zombies are so prevalent that they’ve even invaded Pride & Prejudice, you know that the Zombie Apocalypse has come.  One publisher, Permuted Press, specializes almost exclusively in zombie fiction, and I’m even hearing truly frightening rumors about zombies in the romance section.  That’s just plain creepy.  So, when picking a favorite tale of the zombie conquest, you have options.

My # 1 favorite zombie story is World War Z by Max Brooks.  With a sweeping and epic vision of a worldwide war, it focuses on the wildness and adventure of the situation without delving too deeply into the blood and gore.  Not to say that there isn’t a little blood and gore here and there.  WWZ cranks along at a rocket ship pace, and it’s one read that is pure fun.  If zombies do conquer the planet, then we can only hope that they do so with this much style.

Ariel

I”m very pleased to welcome Steven R. Boyett, author of Ariel and the brand new Elegy Beach.   Steven will be joining us to debate our “Favorite ways for the world to end.”

The Apocalypse is getting a lot of attention thanks to 2012 and the upcoming release of Cormac McCarthy’s the Road as a feature film.  So tell us how you really want to go out.  Zombie invasion?  Mass alien abduction?  Massive explosion induced by time paradox?

If you have not yet read Ariel, give it a try.  I could say it’s the timeless story of a boy and his unicorn, but that doesn’t even begin to do it justice.  This quest story is set in what is left of our world after the electricity goes out, the guns stop firing and magic comes back.  The story is great, but it’s the exceptional characterization that will really get your attention.