Australian Speculative Fiction Blog Carnival

The Carnival was up in perfect time this month, chez Phill, and Phill did the vast bulk of the work himself, because I have been in that slightly-warmer-than-Canberra place, Sydney. Things you should know about my trip include:

. Six Sydney writers can now spot fairies with the best of them.
. I brought home a farming implement.
. The Triffitts are amazing and wonderful.
. Felicity Pulman's new book has some lovely plot twists but it won't be out till next year.

That's the important stuff.

I recreated madly in Sydney in between teaching and resting and consulting historically. I had dinner with my kind hosts (twice) and I had dinner with my cousin, I had lunch with Flick (which was work, really, because we were spot-checking stuff for a book, but it didn't feel like work) and I watched TV and I played Settlers and I met some board games I find I want to get to know a bit better (can one have a relationship with board games?). I read the Catherine Jinks book but it ran out on me, so I read two McKillips and Alice in Sunderland. I started a David Brin but got home before it finished. It was a lovely weekend, but I'm very, very tired, so reports on anything else can wait.

Oh. Except the Carnival.

You can find it here. Thanks, Phill!

Christine Norris - Return to Zandria

I have a special second blog post tonight (if I had caught an earlier bus back, it would have been today instead of tonight - I just know this information rocks your world). The interview was supposed to be illustrated, but my mind can't encompass the code, so you'll have to follow the links for all the pretty pictures. Blame the bus trip. Blame a very heavy schedule. Blame my brain being in Medieval mode. Don't blame me too loudly though, because I am now the proud owner of something that may be a scythe or may be a sickle but definitely has a sharp edge: I am dangerous to be round.

The occasion of the special post is a book launch. Christine has decided that a blogtour would be fun and I entirely approve of blogtours (how to find out about new books without leaving your favourite internet zone - bargain!), so I asked if I could interview her as my part of this illustrious occasion. The interview is below. Enjoy!

1. Tell us about your virtual book tour - please include places and dates!

Wow, that's a big order. Basically I'll be doing interviews like this, and you'll see reviews and excerpts of the book popping up all over the blogosphere over the course of about a month. I have around fifteen different places scheduled. It's like I'm going on tour, but I don't have to leave my living room, and I can hang out in my pj's! I posted the complete tour itinerary, including links, on my website and at my blogs - and AND at the blog on my MySpace page.

2. Tell us about your book, including where we can buy it online.

RETURN TO ZANDRIA picks up three years after TALISMAN OF ZANDRIA. Ivy Peterson, who is the heroine, is now fourteen years old, and really kind of consumed by her teenage life. She's pretty much forgotten all about her adventure in Zandria, which is a magical Empire that exists just on the other side of the 'real world'. Zandria is in crisis, and they need her to come back and help them. I won't give too much more away, and the cover blurb probably says it better than I just did. You can get the book at Amazon.com, B&N.com and of course from the publisher, LBF Books. The e-book version is available now at the publisher's site, and from Fictionwise if it's not there yet it will be, and the print version will be released in late July. Check the sites for pre-order status.

3. Can you share with us one special moment from the writing of the book?

Hmmm....let's see. There are a lot of special moments, but I think when Ivy first comes back to the palace in Zandria, and she sees all her old friends. She's very happy, of course, at being back, but also a little guilty because she had forgotten them, but they remembered her. Oh, and when she flies over Zandria on the back of a winged horse, and really sees the place again for the first time.
Again, I don't want to give too much away - it's full of great moments, some exciting, some sad, some scary.

4. Please tell us about Zandria. What three things should travellers pack if they are visiting?

What a great question! I'd say, good walking shoes, a canteen and toilet paper. LOL Zandria is a place stuck in time, and they don't even have indoor plumbing. It's big, and unless you have a horse, you're getting places under your own leg power. You only need the empty canteen, because the water there is so clean, the stuff we have here tastes terrible next to it. You don't need food, because you can get some magical Fairy Bread, which always tastes freshly baked and replenishes itself overnight.Yum!


5. What do you most love about writing for children and about writing fantasy for children in particular?

I love writing for children because I think children are just more appreciative of a good, fun adventure story. They don't need to have every last detail explained to them, which can sometimes just take away the magic of the story. They have no trouble believing that Dragons are real, or there's a hidden world in the woods behind their house. Adults are a far more difficult audience. And fantasy is my personal favorite - I grew up on fairy tales of all types. Then I read The Hobbit when I was ten, I think it was, and I was hooked. I was always reading - A Wrinkle in Time, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Chronicles of Narnia, those were some of my favorite books. They say writers should write what they know, so...


6. Tell us about the relationship between your blog-writing self and your fiction-writing self.

They get along quite well :). I think a lot of my blog-writing self, which is pretty much just me, seeps into my fiction. Some people have said I have a unique voice, and I don't know how true that is, but I think you can see how my blog voice and my fiction voice coincide. Easy to read, nothing fancy, just get the message across and do it in the simplest way possible. I'm not one for big, flowery words and long phrases you need to read three times to figure out what they're saying. Reading's supposed to be fun, right?

This has been fun! Thanks for letting me 'invade your space', Gillian, and having me on your blog today. I hope this stop on the tour has introduced your blog to lots of new people who'll keep coming back!

Make every day magical!

Christine