My new Star Trek original series novel The Latter Fire earned an Amazon UK #1 Best Seller banner this week; thanks to everyone who has bought a copy!
Number #1 with a Photon Torpedo
Adventures in No Man’s Sky
It was the end of 2013 when I, like the rest of the planet, saw the first sign of No Man’s Sky, a science-fiction exploratory adventure game being developed by Hello Games. I was caught by the strong visuals and aesthetic that seemed torn from the covers of the classic SF novels I’d read as kid. It recalled for me the artwork of Chris Foss, Angus McKie, Peter Elson, Jim Burns and David Hardy, all of it gateways to distant frontiers and strange alien worlds. I immediately knew I wanted to play it.
Fast-forward a year or so. I’m in Guildford visiting another games studio and I happen to pass by the office of Hello Games; I can’t resist popping my head around the door (to be greeted by a life-size cutout of the hero of their first game, Joe Danger) just to tell them how cool No Man’s Sky looks, and how much I’m looking forward to it.
Fast-forward another few months, and out of the blue I get a call, which goes something like this: “Hey, would you like to write some fiction for the No Man’s Sky universe? Would you like to work with Angus McKie, the artist who drew the Terran Trade Authority books that influenced you so much as a kid? And also with Dave Gibbons, that guy who did Watchman and most of your favourite 2000AD comics? Would you like the opportunity to write a Heinlein-esque adventure story calling back to the golden age of 70’s SF?”
Oh. Yeah.
So No Man’s Sky is coming out in the summer (June 21 in North America, June 22nd in the Europe, and June 24th in the UK) and as well as regular-like edition for PC and Playstation 4, there’s a Special Edition slipcase pack of the PS4 that includes a steelbook case, in-game extras, a book of concept art and Adventures in No Man’s Sky, co-created by Gibbons, McKie and me!
Sometimes a project comes along that’s like a Perfect Storm Of Awesome, and for me this is one of them. Not only am I getting to work with some of my artistic heroes, but I’m also helping shape the lore of a very cool gameworld and team up with an incredibly talented group of people at Hello Games.
Check out the news page Here over at the official No Man’s Sky site for more info; the No Man’s Sky PS4 Special Edition is available now for pre-order.
BAFTA Guru Live
Over the end of April – start of May Bank Holiday weekend this year, the folks at the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) in London are running a live event for anyone interested in a career in movies, TV or videogames. BAFTA Guru Live is an extension of their BAFTA Guru program (which you can learn about Here), which features masterclasses and programs centered around jobs in the entertainment industry, and I’m pleased to be taking part on April 30th’s Games-focused day.
You can see the full Games Guru program by clicking Here, along with panel notes and so on. I’ll be taking part in a discussion/Q&A called “The Storytellers” along with my fellow BAFTA-nominated games scriptwriters Meg Jayanth (80 Days, Sunless Sea) and Rob Yescombe (Rime, Haze), where we’ll consider the craft of writing for interactive realms, and what the opportunities are for those with stories to tell in digital form.
NOMAD is coming…
Star Trek: The Latter Fire is out now!
Turn your eyes to the skies (or at least to your nearest bookstore) because my newest novel The Latter Fire is on sale this week; the official release date is the 23rd but it’s already been sneaking out in the UK, USA and Australia, so you should be able to find it on sale very soon – and eBook editions will quickly follow.
The five-year mission of the Starship Enterprise has brought the vessel and her crew to the forefront of an important first contact operation.
Under the command of Captain James T. Kirk, the ship is heading to the planet Syhaar Prime in the Beta Quadrant—the homeworld of an alien civilization preparing to take its first steps onto the galactic stage.
One year earlier, the Enterprise came across a badly damaged Syhaari explorer vessel drifting in deep space. In collaboration with the explorer’s captain, Kirk and his crew were able to restore the ship to full function and send it on its way.
And now, as the Syhaari display rapid technological progress in the past year, hard questions must be asked. Is it possible that the Enterprise crew leaked advanced technology or information to the Syhaari during their first encounter, in violation of the Prime Directive?
Star Trek: The Latter Fire is my first novel set in the “classic” era of Star Trek: The Original Series and it’s an era I’ve been wanting to write a tale for since I first started working on Trek stories; it’s also the first novel release this year to feature the 50th Anniversary logo, as part of the celebration of the original show’s half-century.
I had a great time writing The Latter Fire – it’s a novel in the tradition of some of my favourite ST:TOS episodes (with some nods to the animated series too!), a big and brassy epic with a 60’s SF tone – and I hope readers will enjoy it…
First Contact Day 2016 postponed
A quick update: the organizers of the First Contact Day 2016 convention in Telford I was scheduled to attend with fellow Star Trek writers Una McCormack and Larry Nemecek have announced that the event has been postponed – more details are here at the FCD website.
I’m sorry to hear this – Una and I had a great time at last year’s First Contact Day – and I hope the FCD team can return for another event in the future.
