Anno Frankenstein wallpapers

It's the last day of the month and Abaddon Books have chosen to celebrate by releasing these fantastic free Anno Frankenstein wallpapers. They've been put together by Pye Parr, who created the Vitruvian Frankenstein to appear inside the book.

As David Moore of Abaddon's editorial team says, "Do you know what the problem is with the current desktop on your PC? It's not an Abaddon Books PAX BRITANNIA: ANNO FRANKENSTEIN "Vitruvian Frankenstein" Parchment Wallpaper desktop, that's what! So sort it out!"

And you can do just that here!

Coming soon...

Genre for Japan update

Just to remind you that charity auction Genre for Japan is running until midnight BST (GMT +1) on Sunday 3rd April.

The four Pax Britannia lots have already raised £375.00 but it's not too late if you want a piece of the action. Simply click this link and you'll be taken to the Genre for Japan website where you'll be able to bid on all of them (should you so wish).

And don't forget the Abaddon editorial team - Jon, David and Jenni - are also offering their services to hopeful writers here, and their combined total currently stands at £420.00!

So good luck!

Kong is coming...

And you will be unprepared...

Coming soon...

Coming soon...

Coming soon...

Genre for Japan

Just to remind you that charity auction Genre for Japan goes live at 9.00am BST (GMT+1) tomorrow, Monday 28 March 2011.

The two items I've donated are a walk-on part in my next Pax Britannia novel Time's Arrow and a signed poster promoting Anno Frankenstein.

You can peruse an index of all 137 items* donated here. All you need to do now (well, from 9.00am tomorrow, at least) is start bidding!

*137!!!!

Pax Britannia Lego: The Copernicus

You've got four days remaining in which to get your hands on an exclusive Pax Britannia Lego kit that is only available to buy here.

The lunar rover Copernicus from Dark Side.

BY EIGHT A.M., Greenwich Mean Time, Ulysses and his companions had relocated to what appeared to be a scrap yard and were staring up at the bulbous cockpit of a decrepit Lunar Exploration Vehicle. The LEV’s name was still just about visible, etched onto a brass plate, green with verdigris, secured to its hull.

Copernicus

The rover looked like a Pullman carriage with a giant goldfish bowl bolted onto one end and six giant rubber-tyred wheels, each as tall as a man.

Click here to buy your Lego lunar rover Copernicus now!

Pax Britannia Lego: The Sphere

You've got four days remaining in which to get your hands on an exclusive Pax Britannia Lego kit that is only available to buy here.

Oddfellow's Sphere from Dark Side.

And yet, impossible as it might seem, here it sat, squatting upon its claw-footed stand, as tall as a man and half that again, the esoteric machinery limned in a corposant of its own making. But where the device Ulysses had last seen vanish from the bowels of Alexander Oddfellow’s house had been gleaming polished metal, the strange artefact in front of him now appeared much older, its surface crazed with a patina of age, the brass pitted and stained with verdigris.

Click here to buy your Lego Oddfellow's Sphere now!

Pax Britannia Lego: The Phantom

You've got four days remaining in which to get your hands on an exclusive Pax Britannia Lego kit that is only available to buy here.

First up is the Mark IV Rolls Royce Silver Phantom from Unnatural History.

With a screech of tyres the Silver Phantom hared away along Prince Albert Road leaving a cloud of burnt rubber smoke in its wake, as Ulysses sprinted across the road – men, women and children running screaming in disarray all around him – towards the Overground pillar, and after Jago Kane.

Click here to buy your Lego Silver Phantom now!

Genre for Japan update

After offering a walk-on part in my next novel Time's Arrow, fellow Pax Britannia author Al Ewing has upped the anti by offering the chance for two of you to appear in his next El Sombra novel Pax Omega. As Al puts it in his own words:

On the block, taking my cue from Jon Green, I’m getting competitive by offering not one but TWO chances to appear in my next Pax Britannia novel, Pax Omega. Snapping one of these up will guarantee a speaking part – you could be fighting alongside El Sombra or Doc Thunder, or against them, or something even more outlandish, but whatever you end
up doing you’re guaranteed at least one line.

You can view Al's items in the Genre for Japan auction here.

So, in response to Al's challenge I too have offered another exclusive item for auction - a poster promoting Anno Frankenstein and featuring the Vetruvian Steamfrank designed by Pye Parr. And to top it all, Pye and I will sign it for you too.

The highest bidder will receive a special promotional poster for the forthcoming “Pax Britannia” novel, ANNO FRANKENSTEIN, signed by both author Jonathan Green & the artist and designer, Simon Parr.

You can view this item here. In the mean time, here a picture of me all merched up, holding the aforementioned poster. Did I mention that there's only ten of these in existence? This really is another money-can't-buy-prize!

And if you're wondering how you go about bidding for these fantastic Pax Britannia prizes, you can find out more here. Don't forget, bidding goes live 09:00 BST (GMT+1) on Monday 28 March!

Vlog 6 - Genre for Japan

Win a walk-on part in Pax Britannia: Time's Arrow and help the people of Japan

That's right - YOU could win a walk-on part in the eighth Ulysses Quicksilver Pax Britannia adventure Time's Arrow, due to be published in 2012 by Abaddon Books.

All you need to do is visit the Genre for Japan blog and follow the instructions there to bid for Item 56 in their forthcoming auction that's being held to raise money for the work being carried out by the Red Cross in Japan at this time.

Find out more by following this link.

Genre for Japan

We’ve all heard the news and seen the horrific pictures coming from Japan in the aftermath of the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami – and no doubt we’ve all wondered how to help.

Well the guys and gals* behind Genre for Japan have come up with a way, uniting the comics, science fiction, fantasy and horror communities, to show their generosity to those who need it right now.

They're going to run auctions for genre-themed prizes donated by those in the industry. Some of the prizes already donated include a year’s supply of books from Tor, signed artwork from Solaris Books and editing/critiques from professional authors and editors. And I've made my own small contribution too.

Deadline for prize donations is 25th March with the auction set to begin on 28th March. I'll post more on this in the lead up to the auction but for now, check out Genre for Japan's blog and if you're in a position to donate a prize email them at genreforjapan@gmail.com.

* Including Amanda Rutter of Floor to Ceiling Books and Jenni Hill, ace Abaddon Books editor.

The reason why texting never caught on with the Victorians

Check this out.

Pax Britannia Lego - available again for a limited time

Yes, the Pax Britannia Lego kits are back and available to buy via eBay.

First up there's Oddfellow's Sphere from the climactic scene of Pax Britannia: Dark Side (which, I have to say, has been going down a storm). This kit includes an incredible 8 minifigures (4 goodies and 4 baddies), including the Lego incarnation of PB competition winner Jared Shurin.

Next up there's the lunar rover Copernicus, again from Pax Britannia: Dark Side. This set contains 6 minifigures - Ulysses Quicksilver and Nimrod, in both their normal attire and environment suits, and two alien Selenites.

And then there's the Rolls Royce Mark 4 Silver Phantom, that made its first appearance in the very first PB novel Pax Britannia: Unnatural History. This set has two minifigures - the dashing dandy detective, and Hero of the Empire, Ulysses Quicksilver, and his indefatigable manservant Nimrod.

As with all good Lego kits, you can make a plethora of different models from each of the kits - or why not combine them all in one incredible Pax Britannia-gasm of steampunk-y goodness?

So don't delay and visit eBay today!

Exciting news from Abaddon Books

The guys (and gal) from Abaddon Books have been in touch with me about plans they have to tease fans of the Pax Britannia series before the seventh Ulysses Quicksilver adventure Anno Frankenstein is published in May.

I can't reveal any more just yet, but the flurry of emails going back and forth yesterday afternoon left me feeling rather pleased and excited. Hopefully you will be too - when I can tell you more... ;-)

Anno Frankenstein - the movie?

Before you get too excited, no it's not. What it is, in fact, is the new animated short film 'The Trenches' that gives us an insight into part of the forthcoming Sucker Punch movie. But seeing this - especially the bit where the dead soldiers are brought back to life - I could almost believe I was watching the Prologue to Pax Britannia: Anno Frankenstein.

Pax Britannia the movie? We can but dream...

Anno Frankenstein goodies

Look what came in the post today!

That's right - lots of Anno Frankenstein goodies featuring the fantastic Vetruvian SteamFrank as designed by the inestimable Pye Parr. What you've got there is a promotional postcard, notebook and poster, along with a few Pax Britannia fridge magnets (also designed by Pye).

What's even better is that those people who won my recent forum competition will be receiving a couple of these choice items in the post along with their books.

Here's me excitedly showing off the goodies whilst wearing my brand new Anno Frankenstein* T-shirt.

And here's me holding my copy of Dissolution which Magemanda of Floor to Ceiling Books kindly sent me in her capacity as a book giver for World Book Night.

* You can pre-order your copy of Pax Britannia: Anno Frankenstein here!

Steampunk Lego

Having had a go at creating some of my own steampunk Lego, I have to say I'm loving these mini vehicles of Her Majesty's Imperial Expeditionary Force. They look like they wouldn't be out of place in the forthcoming Pax Britannia: Anno Frankenstein.

What's even better is that you can buy the set here.

Pax Britannia: Anno Frankenstein

There's only a couple of months to go now until the release of Pax Britannia: Anno Frankenstein and, just to whet your appetites for the title still further, I have a little treat for you today - the blurb from the back cover of the book.

BORN OF SCIENCE... BORN OF MADNESS!

Ulysses Quicksilver, agent of the crown, jumps into a time vortex pursuing Daniel Dashwood, a madman bent on sharing modern technology with Hitler's forces and changing history to suit his evil ends. Rewind several decades, to the time of the Second Great War, to Darmstadt. The Nazis are battling the steampunk empire of Magna Britannia, cooking up necrotic super-soldiers in the gothic towers of Castle Frankenstein.

In the forests outside the castle, other forces are gathering. Ulysses' father is there, proving that dashing good looks and a talent for swashbuckling adventures run in the family, and wondering why his British masters have partnered him with weakling scientist Dr. Jekyll. The ladies of the Monstrous Regiment are also there to help, but there may be other gothic monsters in the hills...

Anno Frankenstein is released on 12 May in the UK and May 17 in the US.

Gods of Manhattan giveaway

Graeme Flory is giving away copies of Al Ewings's Gods of Manhattan over at Graeme's Fantasy Book Review.

If you'd like to chance your luck by entering the competition, click here. To read Graeme's review of Gods of Manhattan, click here.

We have another winner!

As many of you are no doubt aware, a while ago now I ran a competition on my forum to win nearly a kilo's worth of books, signed by myself.

Well, I finally managed to get in touch with the initial winner who was someone I used to work with, and who, as it turns out, is a fan of my Pax Britannia stuff. They very kindly said I could draw another name out of the hat if I liked. So, I came up with a compromise.

Winner 1 will receive some Pax Britannia books and goodies (when they're back from the printers) and Winner 2 (who was selected at random and contacted this morning) will receive the original four book prize. Now you can't say fairer than that, can you?

Meanwhile, the Anno Frankenstein mini-competition is still open and will be until the end of the week, so get your mottos in for the Frankenstein Corps now!

The Ulysses Quicksilver Omnibus (Vol.1) - a new review

Tim Cundle of Mass Movement Magazine has let me know that a new review of The Ulysses Quicksilver Ominbus (Vol.1) is now up on his site.

There are a few inaccuracies in the review (e.g. Queen Victoria is not 160 years old and the Curious Case of the Whitby Mermaid is resolved) but on the whole it's very positive - although implying plagiarism in a review is always going to be contentious.

Anyway, you can read the review here, and you can buy The Ulysses Quicksilver Ominbus (Vol.1) here, and pre-order the seventh Ulysses Quicksilver adventure Pax Britannia: Anno Frankenstein here.

International Women's Day 2011

Today people all over the world are celebrating the 100th anniversary of International Women's Day. And it's got me thinking about my portrayal of women in the Pax Britannia books. One of my editors (who is of the female persuasion herself) once pointed out that I go into great detail when describing the women in my books but by comparison gloss over the appearance of the men much more.

In my stories I have consciously tried to make the female characters more than just damsels in distress for Ulysses Quicksilver to rescue but have I succeeded? What do you think of characters like Kitty Hawke, Jenny Haniver, Eliza, Katarina Kharkova and Emilia Oddfellow? I'm plotting UQ8 at the moment and am trying very hard to make sure that the main female protagonist isn't a cliche. Only time, and the publication of my as yet untitled eighth Pax Britannia novel in 2012, will tell...

We have a winner! - update

It's been almost a fortnight since I announced a winner had been randomly selected to receive nearly a kilo's worth of books, signed by myself, just for joining my forum.

The winner was duly notified by email but I am still haven't heard back from them, nearly two weeks later. I'm going to give the original winner until Monday 7 March to get back to me and if they don't, then I'll be picking a new winner.

So, all you forum members, watch this space...

Vlog 5 - Ask Me Anything

To celebrate World Book Day (it is still World Book Day, just about) I've recorded my fifth Vlog in which I answer all your questions about my books, writing in general, and even which dessert toppings I prefer. Well I did say you could ask me anything!

In the end, the finished Vlog was about 26 minutes long, which was too long for YouTube, so I've broken it down into three parts, which you'll find below.

The Birth of Steampunk

Did you know that K W Jeter coined the term 'steampunk' back in 1987? Yes, I suspect you probably did.

But over at Letters of Note, you can read the original exchange of letters between Jeter and Arthur C Clarke on the subject.

Anno Frankenstein - feeling the love

It seems it's not only me who's getting excited about the forthcoming release of Pax Britannia: Anno Frankenstein - the guys over at Abaddon Books are too.

Follow this link to read their latest post on the subject and check out what they've got planned for the launch...

Never judge a book by its cover - unless it happens to be a Pax Britannia novel

Jamie Fry (of Fighting Fantasy Collector fame) contacted me via my forum yesterday to let me know that Pax Britannia: Dark Side is featured in the latest issue of SciFiNow magazine.

I duly wandered down to my local branch of WHSmith this morning, picked up a copy, turned to the Library section and discovered this...

A full page about Dark Side and the impact its cover makes! Full credit must go to Mark Harrison (cover artist) and Simon Parr (designer), for the point of the piece is how the fantastic cover (a gruesome homage to Georges Méliès A Trip to the Moon) made Senior Staff Writer Jodie Tyley pick up the book in the first place and discover the whole Pax Britannia series.

From personal experience I know that this particular cover has created no like controversy. Mr Harrison's wife hated it (and my wife's not too keen), whereas plenty of people at the SFX Weekender loved it (as does my son), so much so that the book sold out during the course of the weekend.

Anyway, at the end of the article, you are invited to discuss your feelings about the Pax Britannia series over at the SciFiNow forum, which you can find here.

The Dark Side cover is certainly my favourite to date out of all the Pax Britannia covers. The challenge now is to come up with something equally inspiring for the cover artist of the next book in the series.

What about a steampunk King Kong...?