A lovely write-up regarding my new book can be found over at the Writers of the Future website.
Check it out here: http://www.writersofthefuture.com/writingcontestnews/2012/12/16/australian-winner-jason-fischers-first-novel-hits-print/969
And of course, copies of “Quiver” can be found, previewed and purchased here: http://www.tamsynwebb.com/
A nice reader review just landed on Goodreads for a collection I’m very proud to be in – Keith Stevenson’s tome-tastic “Anywhere But Earth”. Reader Dave Versace had this to say about my story:
“Of the rest, I am hard pressed to pick a favourite, but I will mention that “Eating Gnashdal”, Jason Fischer’s horrific vision of a post-human culture, is inventively funny and creepy.”
Thanks Dave! We aim to please 🙂 the rest of his review can be read here:
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/443682008
The book itself is available from Couer De Lion and is worth every penny. Get onto it!
http://www.coeurdelion.com.au/
Ooh, lookie, it’s now on the Kindle. Considering it’s a HUGE slab of book, this is also a good option for the discerning reader. Value for money either way.
Scaryminds has just released a review for After the World issue #4 (Black House Comics). The stories get quite a bit of positive ink, and of my novella Corpus Christi the reviewer says:
“Hold onto your knickers kids, Jason Fischer delivers his long awaited sequel to After the World: Gravesend…Fischer once again knocks one out of the ball park and for sure I’m now sweating on another chapter in this series.”
The rest of the review can be read here: http://www.scaryminds.com/reviews/2012/magazine19.php
As for the next instalment in Tamsyn’s tale, there’s some exciting news in that regard…will spill the beans when things are all official-like 🙂
If you’d like a copy of the zombie-tastic After the World, issue #4 should be in a newsagent near you. Issues #1-#4 can be ordered online here: http://www.blackboox.net/categories/Pulp-Fiction/After-the-World/
Haven’t done an updatey type post for a while, but here’s some writing-related stuff worth whacking on the ole blog:
Anywhere But Earth
First up, the complete Table of Contents for the Anywhere but Earth anthology has been released here: http://keithstevenson.com/CDLblog/2011/04/06/anywhere-but-earth-official-line-up/
It looks AWESOME. Several of my local writing idols have rated a spot in the book, and I’m totally chuffed that one of my Clarion stories “Eating Gnashdal” is also in the mix. Can’t wait to get my grotty hands on a copy (I especially love that retro-looking cover).
Shared Universe Shenanigans
A project I’ve been involved in with some of my Writers of the Future colleagues looks like it’s about to go live. It involves a single character in a shared universe, and it’s been both interesting and challenging to work for. Will say more when I can, but the editor has a great track record, the other authors seem to be top-notch writers or prolific young turks, and rather than a e-zine it seems more like an interactive community with some great possibilities. Again, more when I can say, will pop the link here when it all goes live. I maintain that writing is the single coolest job I’ve ever had 🙂
Review – An Eclectic Slice of Life
A review of Eclecticism’s first anthology An Eclectic Slice of Life has just gone live over at Horrorscope. Reviewer Matthew Tait has this to say about my contributions to the volume:
“Both Houndkin and The Ward of Hours take on mythological creatures set against eccentric backdrops – one in a hospital ward that lies at the nexus of time. The prose is mature and effortless … and it’s easy to see the argument for his success”
Full review can be read here: http://www.horrorscope.com.au/2011/04/review-eclectic-slice-of-life.html
That’s lovely, made my day that 🙂 I really get a kick when someone enjoys my Raoul stories, the same protagonist as from my WOTF-winning story House of Nameless – oh look, here’s a link where you can read it for free! http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/43525 Oh hey, here’s the Ditmar ballot where it’s up for Best Short Story, if you’re so inclined http://wiki.sf.org.au/images/d/d4/2011_Ditmar_ballot.pdf 🙂
Midnight Echo #6
Just on the tail-end of it all now, doing the usual jiggery-pokery with contracts, bios, edits, and putting together an editorial for our themed issue. Was great fun, but will definitely be a relief to hand everything over once we’re finished.
RIP Livejournal
I’ve decided I’m more or less done with the infamous Russian Spam Factory, and will migrate most of my f-list and feeds into Google Reader. I just can’t do it anymore, everytime I fire it up it’s just depressing. I’ll still export this website via an LJ x-post, but apart from that I probably won’t be on there much from now on.
And the teaser…
There’s another cool bit of news that landed in my inbox this week, but it is unfortunately embargoed information. It’s killing me but the rules are the rules, I’ll post a mini update when it’s announced and all official-like. I LOVE BEING A WRITER! 🙂
The fifth issue of Midnight Echo has just been reviewed at Scaryminds, and of my two stories the reviewer says:
“Included are of course Jason Fischer’s award winning flash piece Goggy, I can’t praise this piece enough, it’s quintessential flash while get a real chill happening.”
“Jason Fischer has been kicking some goals on the short story front just recently, and Hunting Rufus continues a recent sub-genre trend of the killer kangaroo yarn. Absolutely loved this story with it’s almost apocalyptic nod at the conclusion.”
The rest of the review can be read here: http://www.scaryminds.com/reviews/2011/magazine11.php
Over at the SF Site, prolific short-fiction reviewer Rich Horton has looked at the fiction offerings from Aurealis #44. Of my story “gunning for a tinkerman”, he says:
“Jason Fischer offers another piece in the same milieu as his story from #42, “for want of a jesusman.” “gunning for a tinkerman” features a former “jesusman,” Lanyard Everett, looking for another despised character, a “tinkerman,” who keeps mechanical things going but is blamed for the state of their strange world. His journey on a cranky “skiff” (a sort of landboat) brings him against a monstrous snake, sinister witches, and a town of “crooked men.” It’s a dark and cynical tale of multiple betrayals.”
The rest of the review can be read here: http://www.sfsite.com/03b/au340.htm
This story is in the same setting as the emergent Project Lucy, the full name being “Papa Lucy and the Boneman”. Yep, a jesusman novel is in the works 🙂
Over at Diabolical Plots, reviewer Frank Dutkiewicz has picked up Writers of the Future Vol XXVI, and undertook the mammoth task of reviewing each individual story and grading it. I get the impression that he does this every year? That’s a top job.
http://www.diabolicalplots.com/?p=2026
Of my story “The House of Nameless”, Frank says:
“Raoul the Minotaur lives a full life within a new reality and away from One-Way-World. Then a mysterious and blurry man bypasses all of Raoul’s safeguards and invades his home to inform him his world will be undone. The other gods have no idea who this powerful foe may be. Only Nameless has the answers in his head, answers that may undo everything.
Jason Fischer managed what I considered impossible; crack the contest with a work of humor. Much of “The House of Nameless” is a tongue-in-cheek work of fantasy. The myth heavy tale follows the formidable Raoul as he seeks answers on how anyone, or anything, could penetrate his fortress home. He first tries Nameless’ house then sets foot on the deck of a ship of debauchery, where he rescues a loved one he abandoned. Events lead to a show down, and answers of the blurry ones identity.
“The House of Nameless” is sharply written. I found the tale quick and the protagonist likeable but the plot was much like the antagonist, blurry. Following along on Raoul’s adventure was like making sense of a dream after eating a spicy meal of Mexican food. Too many weird things were going on. The comedy went way over on the ridiculous for it to be funny for me. Nice effort though.
Grade B”
That’s awesome – another t-shirt worthy quote 🙂
If you too would like to check out this tale, “The House of Nameless” is still available for free, both on Smashwords and Goodreads. Here are the relevant links:
http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/43525
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10565073-the-house-of-nameless
The good folk at Scary Minds have just reviewed issue #2 of Jason Paulos’ comic “EEEK!”. My story “The Harvest” appears in this issue, of which the reviewer says:
“Our first story kicks off a duo of Science Fiction orientated nasties that will have most readers nodding their heads in approval. Jason Fischer provides a typically morbid tale in The Harvest that gets progressively nastier till a final twist worthy of Jason Franks nails the opening gambit and ensures the reader receives value for money right from the kick off. Highly recommended tale and one of the best yet to grace the pages of Eeek.”
the rest of the review can be found here:
http://www.scaryminds.com/reviews/2011/comic034.php
A review of Aurealis Magazine #44 has just been posted over at Suz’s Space, covering the issue which contains my 2nd jesusman story, “gunning for a tinkerman”. She says:
“All of these stories were top quality. There were a couple that stood out and screamed “write a sequel, write lots of sequels” as the worlds were just so good and while the characters might not have been likeable I certainly wanted to know more of them. Jason Fisher and KJ Taylor, I’m talking about you. I’m not saying the other stories weren’t as good, but they stand on their own and don’t seem to need anything else around them, they are complete by themselves. But Fisher and Taylor have written stories that not only stand on their own two feet but would also go well in an anthology of stories about their particular worlds.
gunning for a tinkerman by Jason Fisher is a wonderful little post-apocalyptic story where tinkermen have run the gamut of being wanted for their skills to being a dying breed who are both wanted and reviled in the same breath. I would like to know more about this world and more about the people in the world. It’d just be extra cool to have a story from someone else’s point of view so we can see how the tinkermen and their roles have changed.”
(the rest is here http://www.suzs-space.com/blog/2011/01/07/aurealis-issue-44/)
Well, that’s just lovely, thanks Suz 🙂 I’ll see what I can do about that for you!
Wow, these things are rolling out in quick succession! I truly appreciate when folks take the time to give reviews to short fiction, it’s a bugger of a job and a proper review takes quite some time to prepare. In a previous life I did a lot of fiction reviewing for places like Tangent Online, Specusphere, ASIM, and Last Short Story. I have emerged from those places with total respect for those who would wield the critic’s pen (and the affirmed desire to never again wield the same myself – done my time etc.). I sincerely believe that every writer should have a go at reviewing, it’s great to exercise your own critical faculties, as well as a chance to pay it forward to discerning readers and review-gathering authors like moi. Over time it’s helpful to get an oversight of your preferred genre, learn from the mistakes of others and such.
Anyhow, onto the reviews. Firstly, reviewer David Conyers over at Albedo One had this to say about my ASIM #46 story The School Bus:
“Mark Farrugia’s issue 46 of Andromeda Spaceways standout stories were those of the horror genre. Jason Fischer’s “The School Bus” was the best with a post-apocalyptic Australia complete with zombified kangaroos. Told from the point of view of a child, it built its horror slowly so that when the final revelation hit hard, it was the human parents who were the scariest characters to be found anywhere in this dark and disturbing world that Fischer created.”
http://www.albedo1.com/reviews/andromeda_spaceways_46_on_spec_77.html
And once more from Horrorscope, my Aurealis #44 story gunning for a tinkerman gets a look-in. Reviewer Mark Smith-Briggs says:
“Jason Fischer’s Gunning for a Tinkerman uses a blend of character and action in the highly entertaining outback tale of a former preacher hunting a man through a world of giant snakes and witchcraft. An apocalyptic style fantasy, there is a lot of fun to be had with Fischer’s free flowing prose and warped sense of humour.”
http://www.horrorscope.com.au/2010/11/review-aurealis-44.html
It was also nice to see some fellow ink-siblings get recognition for their efforts in ASIM #46, especially Chris Green and Felicity Dowker (and in Chris’s case also for his oztastic “Jumbuck” in Aurealis #44). Andromeda Spaceways got me into short genre fiction, will always hold a special place in my heart, and I’m glad to see that recent issues are getting such positive feedback. Despite its mad pulp-retro beginnings, I really believe ASIM has matured and represents Aussie writers very well indeed.