FROZEN STORIES

My Visit to Brisbane

2017-02-02T17:33:49Z

It's true, it's really, really true.

Brisbane Bookshop Where the Wild Things Are will be doing an event with me on 28 February at 6:30pm. If you live in the area and want to get your book signed, tickets are available here. I would love to see you. The Call is getting a sequel and by then I'll be allowed to talk about it.

I also have the honour of visiting St. Rita's school, where I'll be taking part in their Read Like a Girl initiative. I can't wait!

There'll be other events in Australia -- most notably The Perth Writers Festival, without whose invitation and generosity, I'd never have been able to cross half the world. I am hugely grateful to them.

I'll be putting up more details about the festival and other author visits as they come in.

READING, WATCHING, GOOD NEWS

2016-12-02T17:29:42Z

READING

Ah, my dear little friends. It is not my intention to program you -- to flick through the many crevices of your brains with my grease-spotted fingers. But let me subtly suggest that you buy The Call for your loved ones this Christmas?

There are other fine books out there, of course, and I have been reading some of them. Right now, waiting patiently for me to finish this post, is Cathy O'Neil's Weapons of Math Destruction. The author investigates how our blind trust of mathematical formulae has created a self-sustaining vortex of stupidity that wreaks havoc on our society. It's not as mind-altering as Nassim Taleb's Black Swan so far, but I'm really enjoying it all the same.

WATCHING

Westworld continues to entertain, but I have a bad feeling that it's about to spit a great big gob of stupid into my face. Let's see...

In the meantime, Netflix bought The Expanse, so I finally had a chance to watch the first season. I enjoyed it a lot, although I seem to remember the first book of the series ending with more of a bang. Perhaps not. It's been a while.

GOOD NEWS

Good things continue to happen to The Call. New York Public Libraries have chosen it as one of their recommended books for teens for 2016. Another fantastic list from the other end of the US, Texas Tayshas, has put it down as one of their 2017 books to look out for. So, all excellent news!

Meanwhile, in the UK, the Literary Review said I was a "powerful writer" and that The Call was "riveting". Can't complain about that!

YOU

How are you?

I thank you for the States

2016-11-24T16:58:55Z

Yes, I've been to the States. Some of them anyway -- New Jersey, Pennsylvania, The Disctrict of Columbia (I know, I know), Georgia. That kind of thing. I posted no schedule of where I would be going; made no fuss on the internet and saw no non-publishing friends. I'm sorry about that -- the timetable, quite properly, wasn't in my control.

On the other hand, it was the most amazing and delightful of trips with the best of all companions, as well as brilliant, witty, and kind organisers.

I signed stock in bookshops in Philadelphia, Washington DC and Decatur. I had astonishing vegan food and can highly recommend the following restaurants: "Charlie was a Sinner" in Philly, "Busboys and Poets" in DC, "Herban Fix" in Atlanta.

Almost every night included an opportunity to meet with booksellers, librarians and media. They smiled, they were open to chatting about pretty much anything at all and I felt... cherished.

I took part in a panel of writers in The Little Shop of Stories in Decatur. It was packed to the rafters with fans of the other authors -- Maggie Steifvater, Rachel Cohen, David Levithan and Bill Konigsberg. I was hugely, hugely lucky to hang out with such superstars, even if it was only a way to throw their genius into relief.

But the aim of the trip, indeed the whole point of it, was to attend a double whammy of English teacher conferences taking place in Atlanta, Georgia. I loved it and was a little jealous of the Scholastic folks working in the exhibition hall. We mingled with teachers and librarians. We writers performed scenes from our novels. I watched Maggie Stiefvater give a brilliant, elegant, personal address, and signed at least 50 books for enthusiastic educators.

I could write a dozen blog-posts on all the things that happened. Or a book, maybe. But instead, I will bore you with the details next time we meet at a convention and there's nowhere for you to run...

Hope you all had a great few weeks!

The Call has been nominated for The Leeds Book Awards

2016-11-21T17:05:52Z

Well, this is a fabulous day! I've spent the week meeting amazing booksellers and librarians and teachers from the United States, but while my back was turned, their UK colleagues added The Call to their shortlist for The Leeds Book Awards. I'm so happy, I might even abandon my authorial dignity to dance around in a public place (Venue TBD).

Also on the list, is my friend, Liz Flanagan, author of the wonderful Eden Summer, and the great Sarah Pinborough, who wrote one of my favourite reads of last year, The Death House.

Here's the full list for the 14-16 age category:
Eden Summer by Liz Flanagan
The Trap by Alan Gibbons
Orangeboy by Patrice Lawrence
The Call by some guy
13 Minutes by Sarah Pinborough
Broken Sky by L.A. Weatherly

Enjoy! I need to add a few of these to my own reading list...

Perth Writers Festival -- I'm going to Australia!

2016-11-05T14:25:53Z

The delightful people at The Perth Writers Festival have invited me to be one of their guests this year. They probably did so because I'm about the only Irishman left in the world who has yet to visit Australia. They figure I need to get out and about more. And they're right! I've never come close to crossing the equator, but from 23-26 February, I'll be strutting around Perth with a big smile on my face...

And after? Straight home again for young Peadar?

Well, no. I'll be staying down under at least another week and plan to make visits to a few cities in the East. Sydney and Brisbane for sure. Maybe one other. I want to sign some books and do a reading or two if the chance presents itself. But nothing has been organized just yet...

So, there you have it. As so many have before me, I'm off to see the wizard. It would be great to meet a few non-fictional Australians while I'm at it :)

Reading, Watching, Writing, Waiting

2016-11-03T18:07:47Z

How much do I love you, dear internet?
Clearly not enough, for it's been quite some time since I bothered to tell you anything of my amusements. Oh, I have excuses. I have personal things going on. I have rewrites coming out my ears and painfully emerging from parts of my anatomy whose very mention would get me banned from most of the social media sites you can think of. But still, entertainment has never been lacking and I want to mention just a few bits and pieces...

READING

I haven't been able to read as much as I would like. The TBR pile has grown and many of its longest suffering members were written by people I admire or care for. It's just not right to let them suffer like that. It's not.

But I have managed to read Stieg Larsson's The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. I enjoyed getting a glimpse into Swedish society and the character of Lisbeth is a fantastic creation. I was also lucky enough to score a copy of Dave Rudden's MG fantasy, Knights of the Borrowed Dark. That was tremendous fun and recommended if you have anybody aged over 10 in your household...

WATCHING

I came late to The Night Of, the story of a young man brought to trial for a murder he probably didn't commit, despite the mountain of evidence pointing to his guilt. My brief description makes it sound like every other courtroom drama you've ever heard of, and it is. Except... except it's brilliant. Do yourself a favour and watch it.

I'm also four episodes into Westworld and really enjoying it. It's the story of a futuristic Wild West theme park populated with uncannily human robots. Let's see if the plot and characters can keep my attention for the rest of the run.

Other than that, I'm looking forward to the new series of Black Mirror, and, now that Netflix have bought it, I'll finally get to see The Expanse.

YOU

How about you? Anything good in your eyeballs lately?

Drive-by Deliciously Reviewy Goodness

2016-10-17T15:13:54Z

I'm itching to do some bragging, so, let's just get it over with.

1) Lovely little review of The Call in British newspaper "i". They said, among other things that it was "a fabulous book". Hurray!

2) For the first time in my life, one of my works has over a 1000 reviews on Goodreads -- 70% are 4 or 5 stars. Although, 20 people out there gave me the 1 star treatment. So, you may be taking a bit of a risk...

3) Scholastic sent me a copy of the US Entertainment Weekly magazine that has a full-page ad for The Call in it. Wow. When this is all over, I won't be able to complain that my publishers never did anything for me.

CONVENTIONS

This weekend, I got to take part in both Octocon aaaand, DeptCon2. Both were incredible. I'll pipe in with more details on these next week, but for now, I want the organisers to know that they bask in my praise like great sharks in the ocean of awesome...

YOU

I hope everybody is well! I'll write about my current reading soon. Just trying to catch up a bit.

You and Me in London, plus Reading and Watching and News

2016-09-20T12:44:05Z

If you're reading this, the chances are you already know me and the last thing you want is to run into me in London. Well, if you live in the UK's capital, it's time to find an excuse to get out of it, because I will be visiting the Piccadilly branch of Waterstones on the last evening of September.

Here's the blurb:

"Join us for an evening of fascinating tales and fantastical worlds, as authors Peadar O’Guilin and Laure Eve discuss how traditional myths and folklore create hypnotic and engaging worlds in YA fiction. The event will be chaired by Waterstones Piccadilly favourite Katherine Webber."

Tickets are £3 -- that's you paying us, not the other way around!

READING

My reading has crawled almost to a halt lately, mostly for reasons I can't discuss here. But a few stories have sneaked their way into my eyeballs.

First up, is The Graces by Laure Eve, who, you may have noticed will be appearing with me at the London event above. It's a beautifully written tale of subtle witchcraft and obsession. Looking forward to the sequel.

And speaking of sequels, I've started The Obelisk Gate, N.K. Jemisin's follow-up to last year's brilliant The Fifth Season. I'm crawling through it, due to... stuff, but it's great so far.

Finally, for my future reading pleasure, I have scored an ARC of Vic James's The Gilded Cage, which has people over on Goodreads raving about it. I look forward to raving a bit myself.

WATCHING

Nope. Not a thing. Just... too... busy...

NEWS

Lots of great reviews continue to pour in about The Call. Here's a new one on the femminist website Etym. Looks good to me!

YOU?

How're you?

Back to Life, Back to Normality -- Reading, Watching

2016-09-05T14:05:51Z

Well, it had to happen eventually. The launch of The Call came and went. There I was, all full of myself, trips to New York and Blog Tours and famous authors returning my tweets...

And then, it just ends. Why, this morning, I had to queue up for coffee -- me! Like a normal person. The humiliations have only continued since then, I can tell you. I'm expected to pay my own tab and nobody has washed socks in this house for days and days.

So, I guess, I'd better return to my usual blog posts.

READING

I always like collecting books by people I've met and I'm building up quite a stack of them! Probably time to play jenga with it.

First up was Jo Zebedees, engaging and swiftly-moving Inish Carraig. It's great fun and why wouldn't it be, with alien invasions and a mysterious new prison for those who get on the wrong side of our new masters? Poor John Dray! He gets a rather closer look at what's going on inside than anyone would want... You can find it here.

I've also started the BwB's very own J.R. Johansson's Cut Me Free. I'm really only at the start of it, but even here, to tell you anything of the plot would be to shower you with spoilers. But basically, a girl fleeing horrific abuse, needs to overcome her own PTSD in order to save somebody else. So far, it's very intriguing.

WATCHING

I know I saw something incredible recently, but I'm too shell-shocked by my return to normality to say what it is. What I do know, is that Narcos has returned to Netflix and I welcome it with great joy. Only two episodes in, it still makes for great TV. Let's see what happens next!

INTERVIEW

Well, I will give you one more piece of news related to The Call. In case you didn't already see it, I have an interview up today on Sci-Fi Bulletin. If you want the answer to such questions as why I wrote the book in the present tense, well, here you go!

Meet Me on #SundayYA -- Sunday 3rd September -- Tomorrow at 6pm BST!

2016-09-03T14:48:34Z

I have the honour of being a guest on #SundayYA tomorrow, 3 September, 6pm BST (Ireland/UK). Tune in your twitter machines and join the discussion!

Bígí linn!

A Very Brief Launch Retrospective

2016-09-02T14:27:57Z

A quick post here just to say thanks to everybody who came to the launch of The Call, especially, of course, Oisín McGann, Bella Pearson, Declan from Gill Hess and the fantastic crew of Department 51 in Eason.

But just as especially to everyone else! You made it a wonderful night whose memory I cherish to this very day ;)

Some of you travelled far. Some braved parking at rush hour in Dublin. Others brought chocolates and children to entertain and delight.

I apologise for the names I fluffed. Anybody who has known me long is aware how terrible I am with names and faces. I'd like to say I'll do better in future, but over time, it's the opposite that happens.

Take care, one and all!

Launch of The Call for Ireland, UK, Australia and Empire of Elsewhere

2016-09-01T08:32:50Z

Today is the big day!

The Call is now officially available everywhere. Whoever you are, I hope you'll consider buying a copy and that you'll love it more than anyone or anything else in your life. Soon you'll be buying more and more copies until the whole world is denuded of trees and...

Well, I've been known to exaggerate, but I am very happy with how things have gone so far and hugely grateful for the support of friends and family all over the world.

If you're around Dublin this evening, you're welcome to attend the official launch in Eason, O'Connell Street at 6:30pm. Please take some pictures :)

My Ask Me Anything on Reddit is Today!

2016-08-31T05:49:59Z

This is just a quick reminder that I'll be answering questions on https://www.reddit.com/r/books today from 1pm EDT (that's 6pm in Dublin/London, 7pm Paris, Berlin etc.). I'll hang around for 2 hours if the questions keep coming.

Ask me anything!

You will need a reddit account, but it's the quickest sign-up I've ever seen. Less than a minute! Hope to see some of you there.

The Call goes on Sale TODAY in North America -- plus miscellaneous

2016-08-30T11:56:38Z

Holy Moly! Today is the day that friends from Alaska to Florida, from Newfoundland to California to Hawaii can finally purchase my new book, The Call. I am utterly grateful to anybody who does so. I can keep going at this game only because of the support of so many fine people in all parts of the world.

I'm also thankful to the army of reviewers and bloggers who took the time to do write-ups. There's a definite buzz in the air as a result of their hard work...

And, of course, we can't forget the staff at my publishers -- DFB in the UK, and Scholastic in the US. I blow kisses in all your many general directions and make absolutely no obscene gestures, not even behind my back or under the table!

The launch for the rest of the English-speaking world comes in two days...

SAMPLES

A sample of the audio book can be listened to here.

NEW REVIEWS

A few new reviews came in today. Bart's Bookshelf gave The Call 5/5. Hurray for that!
The Blonde Bookworm says "I picked up the book one time and I never put it down again. It. Was. Awesome! Seriously, everyone needs to give this book a try."

On the other hand, I got my first 1* review on Amazon.com today. Not for issues of quality, but because the woman was appalled by it and didn't want her grandchildren reading it. Some you win and some you lose...

NEW ARTICLE

As part of my continuing blog tour for the release of the book, Howling Reviews allowed me to post a little article about Irish folklore and legends and how they relate to my novel. I really enjoyed doing that one!

THE OFFICIAL DUBLIN LAUNCH

It's happening on Thursday 1 September at 6:30pm in Eason on O'Connell Street, Dublin. Nibbles will be provided. Speeches will be short. Books will be plentiful with several authors on hand happy to provide signatures. ALL are welcome.

The Blog Tour Continues

2016-08-28T16:27:45Z

The Blog Tour for The Call continues today with an interview I did for Bart's Bookshelf. You can read it here.

Hope you're all well. I'm growing increasingly nervous over publication date, but this is par for the course. Two days until it's on sale in North America and four until the rest of the world can buy it.

Mind you, there have been some fantastic reviews lately. Three of my favourites among the recent ones are StarBurst Magazine, Pretty Purple Polkadots and Other Worlds Than These. And there are many, many more! I've been very lucky, but only the public can decide if a book is to be successful or not. So, until then, my nails will take the brunt of my worry.

take care...

Ask Me Anything -- Reddit and Me on August 31

2016-08-26T13:36:07Z

Barack Obama has done it, so, even though I'm only the second most powerful person in the world, I feel entitled to do one too. I'm talking about Reddit and its famous AMAs -- ask me anything.

The session starts on August 31 at 1pm EST/6pm Irish Time (BST), and add on another hour if you live in Western Europe. You know how it works.

Do your worst!

The Call will have been out for a single day in the US by then, and surely, surely the rest of the world will be quivering in anticipation of buying its own copies on 1st September?

Only time will tell!

My US Visit -- Fun Without the Mess

2016-08-24T16:40:28Z

As my consciousness crawls back up from the jetlag abyss, it's time to lay down an imperishible digital track of memories. Will this little posting intrigue you? Will it stimulate your imagination, inspiring heights of creativity or lurid dreams? That... is doubtful. You may want to skip this and marvel instead at the myriad properties displayed by paint as it expels the last hints of moisture. I will carry on, nevertheless, for the enjoyment of my future self, waxing nostalgic for this wasted youth.

Note: I'll mostly be leaving out names here to protect the innocent and the shy. Any names that I do include are there because I'm confident nobody will mind. If you do, let me know and I'll remove you ASAP. Or the opposite is cool too :)

PART 1: FLIGHT

I crossed the Atlantic in the company of Adrian Tchaikovsky's Spiderlight. It's a fun book that grows increasingly dark towards the end. Adrian is a great author who can handle everything from Science Fiction, to humour, to manners, to kick-ass high-concept fantasy. Spiderlight is the story of a typical D&D type adventure where certainty and escapism are slowly poisoned by moral quandries.

I also watched the Irish movie, Sing Street. It entertained me mightily apart from one particular moment that made me despise the protagonist. Nevertheless, very well done.

PART 2: VERMONT

My friends T&C drove several hours to pick me up from Boston airport and several hours in the other direction just so they could have the privilege of waiting on me hand and foot. They have a stunningly beautiful, cat-crowded house, and a preposterously friendly dog by the name of Jake.

The first night, when my eyes started to droop, they fed me a gorgeous green curry where the vegetables came straight from the garden. Wow! The sweet corn lived up to its name. I couldn't get enough of it.

Vermont is lovely and green and quiet. The bears grow fat on careless hikers. Know, dear reader, I was not careless this time.

PART 3: NEW YORK

I travelled there by train -- business class, no less! -- moving from Albany, all the way down the languid Hudson river with fine views and hilarious shouted conversations between the crew members.

After that, New York was just one hightlight after another. The Soho Grand Hotel? Like something out of a movie. Quirky, lovely, friendly. Scholastic Books HQ? A nest of creativity, humour and joy.

My publicist JA had a mountain of vegan snacks piled up before a stack of books for me to sign. I smudged one with the other so that each reader can have the pleasure of peeling apart the pages to discover a unique, fragrant surprise.

I met many, many other people there. I clinked glasses with them while they were ridiculously friendly to me.

That night, my US editor, NT, took me to a Yankee's Game. Yes, you heard me right. Yankees.

The subway shimmered at a temperature close to the boiling point of titanium. It wouldn't surprise me if New Yorkers brought raw pizza to work to be cooked on the foreheads of their fellow passengers. Although, with everybody sweating so much, steamed dumplings might be the better option...

But I digress! We got to watch one of the world's most famous sports teams from a private box with all its own snacks and with a pack of cheerful people open to chatting to a baseball-innocent like myself. Fantastic experience!

The next day, there were interviews with Bustle and Sci-Fi Bulletin. Both interviewers really knew their stuff.

And then, came lunch... I should really play some kind of musical intro here, because Blossom provided me with the best meal I've had since I turned vegan four years ago. Everything was beyond delicious and the great company I had only enhanced the dining experience.

That evening I had another great meal with an absolutely wonderful crew of booksellers and librarians from in or near NY. Everybody -- absolutely every one of them -- wanted nothing more than to talk books all night long. It's been years since I've seen sports, politics and weather so thoroughly ignored throughout such a large crowd!

PART 3: KANSAS CITY

Although this was the longest part of my trip, I don't have a whole lot to say about it. Not because WorldCon, the usual highlight of my year, wasn't filled with joy and fantastic meetings with the best of friends, but because most of what occurred fell within the bounds of a typical Con experience.

At La Guardia airport, I had the good fortune to run into Xray and McBigski from the BwB. Company and hugs were evenly distributed. When the airport ejected us at the other end, having extracted our nutritional content, Mr. X collected us and whizzed us all the way to our hotel. I would be sharing a room with McBigski and Ser Scott -- two manly men who mostly left me alone when darkness fell.

Some highlights:
A panel, including legend Tamora Pierce. (The MidAmericon Program, was in general, superb, by the way.)
Dinner with the BwB. Met a few new ones to add to what was already an august company. Best part of the menu? A salad marked "V" for vegetarian that contained prosciutto ham! Luckily, they were happy to do one without the meat for me.
More panels. Wonderful greetings from old friends. A tremendous parade of fascinating topics.
Irishers and diplomats at the Dublin 2019 desk.
A vegan restaurant called Fud that I found only with D's help and guidance.
A free dinner in the same restaurant, foolishly paid for by Black Gate editor, John O'Neill. I bet he's cursing now as the moths fly out of his wallet.
A meeting with the academic and podcaster, Amy Sturgis.
A visit to Program Ops to sign a book for EU's friend.
More BwBers, always more of them, like a horde of ants, remorselessly bearing hugs and humour. We threw a party, of course, at which I was permitted to give prizes to people. Best of all was a talking George R.R. Martin doll. Apparently, a mere squeeze of its hand is enough to make it say "I'm still working on it". Alas, it would not speak to me...

And yet, despite the indifference of the GRRM doll, the following evening, I had the good fortune to attend the Hugo Loser's Party thrown by the real GRRM. Even better, two groups of my friends won Alfie awards -- Black Gate, whose editor is the same John O'Neill (see above), and Journey Planet, whose staff include James Bacon, Chris Garcia and Esther. How cool was that?

Finally, came the last hurrah of a barbecue meal with the BwB. A vegan option, fought for by LG, kept me happy, 'though I was surrounded by vicious carnivores at every turn...

PART 5: HOME AGAIN

And that's it, really. Other than the fact that I made it home to find my house all the better for my absence. I spent more time than is healthy at O'Hare, and made the mistake of counting how much money I had spent. But what a brilliant ten days it was! Roll on FinnCon!

The Blog of Blogs

2016-08-23T16:47:38Z

Tomorrow I will try to write a post about my adventures in the lands that lie far west of Connemara. But more important matters are afoot for now.

One week from today, The Call, will be available for purchase in the US. Two days later, the rest of the universe will have its chance to turn precious, precious money into something with my name on the cover and with my words (and hangups) inside. I'm shocked by how close it is. And just as blackberries, ripening in concert, cause Autumn to arrive, so too does my blog tour bring forth from the abyss, the fruit of my nightmares. My book, that is.

First off is an article I wrote for the web site of the Irish Times, called "Of fiction, fission and fairies".

But the actual, real, official tour began yesterday when Words from a Reader conducted an interview with me. Want to know some of my favourite books? Who inspires me? Then, click on the link.

Today the tour continues with a post I wrote for Tales of Yesterday about unlikely heroes. I make a few mentions in there of dragons and St. George, the tiny, but aggressive piglet.

Details for the rest of the week are in the image below...

My Program for MidAmeriCon -- WorldCon

2016-08-12T12:46:43Z

I'll be appearing at WorldCon in Kansas, like a beautiful vision from which none shall e'er look away...

Or... or maybe not. Anyway, my schedule is below. I'm delighted with it and happy that I'll be doing a reading from The Call on the Friday, only a fortnight before the book hits shelves in the US. I'd love to see some of you there!

Young Voices: Protest and Rebellion in YA Fiction

Wednesday 16:00 - 17:00, 2209 (Kansas City Convention Center)

The Harvard Gazette defines protest literature: "literature meant to spur action; to convey anger and shock; or to prompt empathy, based on a discontent with the status quo." Young adult fiction often features these concepts, which resonate strongly for readers. But can it be considered "protest literature" in the traditional sense? Our panelists discuss YA protest themes and characters, what drives them forward, and how they differ from the rebellious teen. Join the rebellion!

Mr. Peadar O Guilin, Mr. Jeffrey Cook (M), Mark Oshiro, Miriam Weinberg
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Great Characters in Young Adult Fiction

Thursday 11:00 - 12:00, 2207 (Kansas City Convention Center)

There are groundbreaking characters in YA fiction: Katniss Everdeen, Percy Jackson, Clary Fairchild, Andrew "Ender" Wiggin, and more. Why do these teen characters ring true? Creating a believable teen vs adult characters -- is the process and are the elements the same? Who are some of the other great, and overlooked, characters within YA fiction today?

Mr. Peadar O Guilin, Mark Oshiro, Sunil Patel, Fonda Lee, Chelsea Mueller (M)
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Utopia, Dystopia and the Default?

Thursday 14:00 - 15:00, 2502A (Kansas City Convention Center)

Certain kinds of imagined futures currently dominate the SF field.. For example, we usually find settings in either grand interstellar deep space futures or trapped-on-Earth dystopias with the rare exception. What about the futures that land somewhere in-between, that may be more likely for us? Is the "middle future" too reminiscent of the Golden Age of SF? Let's discuss the "middle future" in SF, how it compares to earlier eras in SF, and where it falls on the Utopia/Dystopia spectrum.

Jack Campbell Jr. (M), Thomas K. Carpenter, Sarah Frost, Mr. Peadar O Guilin, Tamara Jones, John Joseph Adams
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The Re-emergence of Environmental Speculative Fiction

Thursday 18:00 - 19:00, 2503A (Kansas City Convention Center)

This used to be a booming field but has only recently re-emerged. Why is this and how do today's tropes differ from the ecological dystopias of the 1970s?

Mr. Peadar O Guilin (M), Brenda Cooper, Alyx Dellamonica
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Privilege of Beauty in Film & Television

Friday 11:00 - 12:00, 2206 (Kansas City Convention Center)

While characters in novels aren't always attractive, the same cannot be said for those whose faces grace the big and small screens. There are few unattractive characters and most are outright stunning. When confronted by a steady stream of actors such as Hayley Atwell, Idris Elba, Jensen Ackles, Elizabeth Taylor, Lucy Liu, or Paul Newman, what effect does this lack of "beauty" diversity have on audiences? How does beauty differ from page to screen to real life? Do we crave the illusion of beauty in television and film or is it just part of a storytelling toolkit for the digital medium? Does beauty matter or is it another form of bias that we need to stamp out?

Mr. Peadar O Guilin, Nicki Lynch (M), Craig Miller, Christine Taylor-Butler, John Chu
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Notes

This panel deals with some sensitive topics. Therefore, we ask that participants remember to give everyone a chance to speak and to remain open to topics with which they may or may not agree.
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Reading: Peadar O Guilin

Friday 14:30 - 14:58, 2202 (Readings) (Kansas City Convention Center)
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The "One True Love" Narrative Trap in Young Adult Fiction...and How to Smash It!

Saturday 10:00 - 11:00, 2503A (Kansas City Convention Center)

True love in YA fiction has been a mainstay of the genre, but life is rarely that simple, especially for teens...even fictional teens! Why do we fall into this trap? Authors share their tips and tricks for writing love, romance, and the teen dating scene.

Darlene Marshall (M), Sarah Beth Durst, Tessa Gratton, Mr. Peadar O Guilin, Denise Grover Swank
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Inspiring the Creativity

Saturday 12:00 - 13:00, 2204 (Kansas City Convention Center)

In recent years, many creators have made public the music playlists they used for inspiration while creating a work. But what else do creators surround themselves with when preparing to Make Art/Write Fiction? Is it art on the walls? TV Shows? Podcasts? Or is the greatest inspiration of all just switching off the internet?

Dr. Amy H. Sturgis (M), Cynthia Ward, L. E. Modesitt Jr., Chelsea Mueller, Mr. Peadar O Guilin
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YA Fiction Beyond Borders

Saturday 17:00 - 18:00, 3501F (Kansas City Convention Center)

Young adult fiction is a strong and thriving market in the U.S., but how is it doing internationally? We discuss the books and authors beyond mainstream "America's literary borders" that deserve recognition. Is there a difference in approach, content, characters, and diversity of topics and themes? How do we continue to break down these borders and barriers for YA readers and authors alike?

Mr. Peadar O Guilin, Keith Yatsuhashi, Shanna Swendson, Edward Willett, Christopher Kastensmidt (M)

Reading, Watching with lots and lots of love from Australia

2016-08-09T10:48:23Z

Oh, yes, it's been a while. You're right to sneer at me as I get down on my knees and swear that this time it will be better, that I'll blog more often and never fail you again. But we both know different, don't we? Still, this is just who I am and you knew that when you first befriended me, even though everybody said I was no good.

But despite all rumours to the contrary, I have taken time out of my busy schedule to entertain myself.

READING

What I'm reading right now, is portentious and endless and dull. So, I won't talk about that here today. However, I do have a few books by friends of mine on my TBR that I plan to get around to in August or September, and I'm pretty excited about them.

First up, is a book I'm saving for my next plane trip. It's Spiderlight by Adrian Tchaikovsky. The last few novels of his that I read were real page-turning, world-shattering stunners. Exactly the sort of thing to pass a dull journey with.

Following that, I have Gabrielle Harbowy's Hellmaw: Of the Essence. Gabrielle has been an excellent editor to me in the past, so I have faith that this will be great.

Finally, my TitanCon buddy Jo Zebedee is invading, blowing up and generally, smashing Belfast in her novel, Inish Carraig. It'll make a great change from seeing the Statue of Liberty getting knocked over for the 100th time :) The book is apparently doing really well, so, late to this party as always, I'm going to grab a piece of the action for myself.

WATCHING

In brief:
1) Versailles was terrible. Made it halfway through episode 5 before the writing threw me out for the last time. Yes, yes, the warnings were there in episode 1, but I kept glimpsing what I thought were hidden depths. They were depths, all right.

2) Third Season of Bojack Horseman was fun, but well short of an incredible Season 2, IMHO.

3) I enjoyed the Netflix documentary series, Last Chance U about a school that takes in hugely talented American Football players who have so far failed to make a splash in the big leagues. Their talent is amazing, but so is their total lack of self-esteem. Interesting, sad and hopeful, with some spectacular goings-on during the season.

LOVE FROM AUSTRALIA

READINGS -- which seems to be an association of Australian independent Booksellers, has put up an entire page containing nothing but absolutely gorgeous reviews of my forthcoming novel, The Call. I'm definitely bookmarking it to read again and again for when I'm having bad days in the future. I really, really appreciate it.

Dublin Launch of The Call -- Plus! Plus! iBooks Names The Call one of its 25 Best Books of August

2016-08-03T16:57:00Z

DUBLIN LAUNCH OF THE CALL

September 1 (In the evening -- precise time TBD)
Eason, O'Connell Street.
EVERYBODY WELCOME
Don't dress in a penguin suit unless you want to be hugged.
More details when I get them!

In the meantime, holy moly! The Call got selected as one of iBooks 25 Best Books of August. I'm pasting in their review below... After this, I'll try to go at least a week without posting any more propaganda. I know people don't come here to be bombarded.

iBooks Review

It’s hard to exaggerate the impact of The Hunger Games on teen fiction—the series has spawned a generation of young characters trained to survive harsh, horrific circumstances. The Call breaks the mold by weaving in Celtic mythology, pitting its willful heroine Nessa against the Sidhe, the malevolent fairies who wage battle on the Irish by whisking their teenagers away and hunting them down. It’s fresh and exciting, one of the most riveting adventures we’ve read in a while. Author Peadar O’Guilin has created a world that feels both intensely real and thrillingly spooky.

I'm Author of the Week over on YA Books Central

2016-08-02T14:29:54Z

I have been up to my tonsils the last few weeks in edits for the next book -- the one *after* The Call. Also, I've been covering for all and sundry on the day job, so I haven't had so much as a second to spare for blogging. But I'll be getting back to that in a few days.

In the meantime, I'm author of the week up on the rather spiffy YA Books Central blog. If you haven't seen my new "author" photo yet, well, God help you, now's your chance. Why, there's even a book giveaway if you happen to live in the US. Us Europeans must continue to gnash our teeth...

Hope you're all well! Personally, I'm dying to go on holidays...

Brexit Maths

2016-07-08T14:34:27Z

Apologies I haven't posted much recently, but the sad truth is, in a moment of madness I threw caution to the wind and came out the other side with a fractured collarbone. Typing... hurts. Except on my phone, which is why I'm spending a long, frustrating time following that route to post this.

The alternative? Shouting at the TV. I'll be doing some of that too.

You see, the thing is, Brexiteers keep popping up on my screen. Now that they have condemned the UK to a horrible recession, they have to say that "everything is fine" and "nothing could possibly go wrong".

Good for them. But one of their main arguments has got such a HUGE hole in it, that I can't understand why interviewers fail to point it out... Maybe to do so would make them appear "unpatriotic"? To be "talking down" the economy?

Anyway, not being British, that's not a charge that can be levelled at me, so here it is.

FIFTH BIGGEST ECONOMY

Here's what the Brexiteers say:
"The UK, by itself, is the fifth biggest economy in the world. This means, when we negotiate with the rest of the EU (rEU), they will have to give us what we want."

Sound familiar? It cropped up a lot before the vote and is showing up constantly now. For the sake of the UK, I hope this claim is nonsense, because if it's not, then the following is also true...

"The EU is the largest economy in the world. Not the fifth largest. Not the sixth. The largest. Its nominal GDP is about 14.6 trillion euros. Without the UK, it would be about 12.1 trillion euros. This makes it approximately five times larger than the economy of the UK -- *if* you're counting in Scotland as part of the UK, of course. That means (by the logic above), in negotiations, the UK, will have to give five times more to the EU than vice versa."

So, our first bit of maths for the day is:

1st > 5th

Pretty mind-blowing, isn't it? I'm amazed nobody has thought of that. I mean, if any of the Tories had worked it out, they'd have run away from having to deal with it. Am I right, Boris? David?

But wait! It gets worse!

The pound has dropped drastically against the euro. Because of this, the UK is now only the 6th biggest economy. France is the new number 5. Hurray for France! The EU doesn't even need to negotiate. Why not just send France? After all, if it's the 5th biggest economy in the world by itself, then, by the logic above, the UK will have to give it what it wants.

This brings us to our next formula:

5th > 6th

And if Scotland votes for independence, why, Italy might then be a larger economy than the rUK. Why not just send Italy? Because...

6th > 7th

Wow! Who knew maths could be so simple?

THE 8%

Another version of the "fifth biggest economy" argument is the "8%" argument. This is where the Brexiteers say that Angela Merkel will go easy on the UK because, by itself (if we include Scotland), the UK represents 8% of German exports, and "they wouldn't want to risk that!"

The same counter-argument applies. If Germany can't bear to lose 8%, how on earth -- and I'm banging my head on the table as I write this (ouch!) -- can the UK afford to lose the 45% of their exports that go to the rEU?

I mean, seriously, doesn't anybodgy know that 45 is somewhat bigger than 8? Or, as we Math speakers say:

45 > 8

Of course, Germany, with a population of around 80 million, has more than a few mathematicians of its own. It will have worked out by now, that going too easy on the UK might protect that 8% of trade, but that the possible resulting breakup of the EU will put another 50% of its economy at risk and send, not just the UK, but the whole continent into recession.

After all, as maths would have it:

50 > 8

NO BLAME

I can't blame the Brexiteers for doing something so momumentally stupid. After all, I'm the one sitting here with my arm in a sling while autocorrect plays havoc with a blog post written for no other reason than rage and frustration.

We've both taken a bit of a tumble recently, but I hope to have recovered from mine in six weeks or so, while they have a future to look forward to that includes a starring role in something like the Chilcot Enquiry. Worse, they'll spend years driving over pot-holed roads, through the poverty-stricken neighbourhoods of their own proud creation, while screaming at anybody using simple maths to "talk down" the economy.

Good luck with that. Actually, no, bad cess to you instead, because you've probably dragged us into recession too.

Thoughts on SF Conventions and Brexit

2016-06-27T13:24:32Z

"Brilliant!" I thought -- this was three and a half years ago, you understand. These days I'm more likely to use the word "awesome". But I digress...

I had received an invite to a Science Fiction convention in Luxembourg. I was expecting a relaxing weekend, sitting in an empty room. You see, everybody knows Luxembourg is tiny, and since they never had a convention before this, the organisers were doomed to struggle for numbers. They might get twenty people, I thought. Thirty tops...

I've never been so wrong in my life. The place was swarming with people. In fact, it was the largest Con I had ever attended outside North America. But where the hell did they all come from?

Europe, of course.

My mistake was to think of Luxembourg as a country. Well, it is, but that's not what's important here. What's important, is that it no longer possesses any borders. People arrived from Paris and Brussels by trains that never even slowed down when they passed from one state to another. They drove by car from Germany and only realised they had crossed over from their own country when they started spotting road signs in French.

Then, they reached the Con -- thousands of them, overwhelmingly young, buying wonderful Belgian frites with the same currency they already had in their pockets.

I sat in the sunshine speaking to people, sometimes in French, but mostly in an English that many of them had honed by spending time studying or working in the UK. I admired their incredibly creative costumes, and more than one person sported a t-shirt with a Union Jack on it, because in the heart of our continent, among the youth, Britain was seen as cool; as forward looking; as open.

This was Europe as it was always meant to be. Friendly, vibrant, thriving. Made possible, not in spite of, but because of decades of regulations and the harmonisation of national laws. It's what the young see when they travel. It's their country now, the one they would "want back" if ever they were to lose it.

I get to experience a little of that here in Ireland too.

I remember the bad old days, growing up in Donegal, and having to pass over the border. I remember soldiers scarcely older than myself, armed with big guns, passing down the aisle of the bus while everybody stared at the back of the seat in front of them.

Yet now, when I attend my favourite convention -- TitanCon in Belfast -- I just hop into my car, and keep driving until I reach the hotel. Nobody says "boo" to me. I don't have to wait in a line of traffic while every fourth car is searched for contraband or terrorists. It's all so... frictionless. Sure, the road signs are in miles, rather than kilometres, but that's actually charming. The only thing I miss, really, is the Euro.

I'm heart-broken over the UK's vote to leave us. I'm terrified that the lovely European dream I experienced in Luxembourg might soon be at an end and I'm working hard to stave off bitterness and resentment. I want the future to be "brilliant" again, the way I thought it was, or at least, the way it might have been.

Reading, Watching, Playing

2016-06-21T13:42:14Z

PLAYING

I rarely do videogames any more. But for some reason yesterday I started playing This War of Mine from 11 bit Studios. It's a simulation where you control a group of refugees trapped in a war torn city. They are constantly hungry and tired. They get injured and sick. Your job is simply to keep them alive and there's never a comfortable moment. Standing on guard every night. Scavenging for scraps and so on. At one point, a young boy knocks on the door of my group's shelter. His mother is sick, dying maybe. Do we have any medicine to share? We did. But my characters were sick too and I needed to keep it, so I clicked on "No". It was a moment of such genuine horror, I had to stop playing.

READING

Well, some interesting reads came my way and I'd be a fool not to indulge...

First up, was Peter Newman's The Vagrant. You all know I'm a demon -- not literally -- for worldbuilding, and this world is pretty darn cool. It takes "grim" and "dark" to whole new depths that I didn't think were even possible. The main character too, doesn't speak, which is a pleasant change...

Then, from my friend Jeremy de Quidt, I got an ARC of The Wrong Train, his collection of YA ghost stories. I've only read the first story so far, but, by golly, if it's not the best ghost story I've read for YEARS. Both creepy and pitiful...

WATCHING

Tonight! Oh, tonight! I will start watching the new series of Orange is the New Black. I love that show. The characters are among the best I've ever seen.

I've also had my snout in the trough of The People Vs. OJ Simpson. I... really like it so far. Great drama, great acting and a whole palette of moods inside each episode. Can't wait for more.

And finally... Yes, episode 9 of GoT was mega. I hated one particular moment, maybe two... But overall, it had the most exciting battle scene I've witnessed for quite some time. Roll on the finale.