R J Dent says: ‘I was inspired to write The Pink Floyd Story Considered as a NASA Space Flight Report after reading J G Ballard’s The Assassination of John Fitzgerald Kennedy Considered as a Downhill Motor Race and Princess Margaret’s Facelift, both from Ballard’s classic, The Atrocity Exhibition.’
One of the great films/movies of 1999 is David Cronenberg’s eXistenZ ™, starring Jude Law, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Willem Dafoe, Christopher Eccleston, Ian Holm, and Sarah Polley.
Here’s a plot summary: Allegra Geller (Jennifer Jason Leigh) is the designer of eXistenZ ™, a new game system so advanced it uses biology to transport players into gaming experiences beyond virtual reality. Allegra is a star – worshipped, cosseted and constantly under threat from fanatics and rival game companies alike. It is up to Ted Pikul (Jude Law) to protect her.
When a terrorist attack disrupts the first ever demonstration of eXistenZ ™, Geller and Pikul find themselves on the run in a strange and dangerous world where reality and fantasy merge and in which Geller and Pikul discover they can trust no one – perhaps least of all each other… for who can really tell where real life ends and the gamebegins?
Frighteningly vivid and tense, David Cronenberg’s eXistenZ ™ is a terrifying journey through betrayal, death, and the seductive world of game playing. It tackles notions of identity, art, creativity, the dangers of fiction, the reality/cyberspace dichotomy, and Martin Heidegger’s notion of ‘being’.
There is, of course, a soundtrack album for David Cronenberg’s eXistenZ ™. The film/movie is scored by long-time Cronenberg collaborator, Howard Shore. The album is worth owning, as it is very rich, melodic and atmospheric. Here’s a sound-bite:
David Cronenberg’s eXistenZ ™ has been turned into a fast-paced and very well-written novel by Christopher Priest (writing as John Luther Novak).
Priest follows Croneberg’s plot precisely, but has added extra detail to round out the characters and the situations.
There is also a graphic novel, David Cronenberg’s eXistenZ ™, with illustrations by Sean Schoffield.
The 110 page graphic novel, published by Key Porter Books, contains set of a cast pictures, a glossary of technical terms, the graphic novel itself, and an interview with David Conenberg talking about the pre-production, the filming and the aftermath of eXistenZ ™.
Each of the different versions of eXistenZ ™ is worth a look. Watch the film/movie, read the novel, listen to the music, or enjoy the graphic novel – they’re all worth spending time on. David Cronenberg’s eXistenZ ™ is a razor-sharp science fiction thriller – with an intriguing plot and some great acting from Law and Leigh.
The Quantum Physicist’s Revenge is a humorous short story written in February 2009.
It is about a quantum physicist who ‘discovers’ proof that God is dead. This annoys one particular deity very much – and He decides to do something about it. The story was first published in Writer’s Muse.
If you’d like to read The Quantum Physicist’s Revenge, then please click on the link below:
Is There One Particular Subconscious Memory You Wish To Have Made Conscious? is a short story first published in Writer’s Muse. I wrote it at the beginning of 2009. It is about a man who confronts his harrowing childhood memories in an attempt to reduce their impact on his adult life.
Is There One Particular Subconscious Memory You Wish To Have Made Conscious?
Despite my seriousness of intention and the sombre tone of the story, I had a lot of fun writing it. If you click on the link below, you can read Is There One Particular Subconscious Memory You Wish To Have Made Conscious?
Elric of Melnibonéis a fictional character created by Michael Moorcock.
Elric is the antihero of a series of high fantasy books centring in the world of Melniboné. The proper name and title of the character is Elric VIII, 428th Emperor of Melniboné.
Elric first appeared in print in 1961 in Michael Moorcock’s novella, ‘The Dreaming City’ (Science Fantasy #47 June 1961); subsequent novellas were reformatted as the novel Stormbringer (1965), but his first appearance in an original novel wasn’t until 1973 in Elric of Melniboné.
While not the first antihero to feature in literature, Moorcock’s albino character is one of the best-known in fantasy literature. The novels have been continuously in print since the 1970s.
‘It is the color of a bleached skull, his flesh; and the long hair which flows below his shoulders is milk-white. From the tapering, beautiful head stare two slanting eyes, crimson and moody, and from the loose sleeves of his yellow gown emerge two slender hands, also the color of bone.’
”
This is the description of Elric by author Michael Moorcock in the first book, Elric of Melniboné. Elric was the last emperor of the decaying island civilization of Melniboné. Physically weak and frail, the albino Elric must take special herbs in order to maintain his health. In addition to herb lore, his character is an accomplished sorcerer able to summon powerful, supernatural allies by dint of his royal Melnibonéan bloodline.
Unlike most others of his race, who are described as being psychologically similar to cats, Elric possesses something of a conscience; he sees the decadence of his culture, and worries about the rise of the Young Kingdoms, populated by humans (Melniboneans do not consider themselves human) and the threat they pose to his empire. Because of his introspective self-loathing and his hatred of Melnibonéan traditions, his subjects find him odd and unfathomable, and his cousin Yrkoon (next in the line of succession, as Elric has no heirs) interprets his behaviour as weakness and plots Elric’s death.
Elric’s sentient sword Stormbringer serves as both his greatest asset and greatest disadvantage. Forged in the distant past, the sword confers upon Elric strength, health and fighting prowess, but does so by feeding on the souls of those struck with the black blade. Most of the Moorcock’s stories about Elric feature his relationship with Stormbringer, and how it – despite Elric’s best intentions – brings doom to everything the Melnibonéan holds dear.
Here are the titles of the Elric series – in chronological order:
Elric of Melniboné
The Fortress of the Pearl
The Sailor on the Seas of Fate
Elric at the End of Time
Weird of the White Wolf
The Vanishing Tower(The Sleeping Sorceress)
The Revenge of the Rose
The Bane of the Black Sword
Stormbringer
The Dreamthief’s Daughter
The Skrayling Tree
The White Wolf’s Son
Elric in the Dream Realms
Michael Moorcock’s Elric: Tales of the White Wolf
Pawns of Chaos: Tales of the Eternal Champion
Michael Moorcock
Along with Jerry Cornelius, Elric of Melniboné is one of Michael Moorcock’s greatest creations.
From the late 1980s (1988) to the early 90s (1991) Newsfield Publications Ltd published a truly great magazine of horror, fantasy and science fiction named Fear.
Edited by John Gilbert, with cover art usually by Oliver Frey, Fear provided up-to-the-minute coverage of what was going on in the world of horror, fantasy and science fiction.
Fear (issue 7)
The magazine focused on horror/fantasy/science fiction films, books and art, but it also included interviews with genre authors, film directors and producers, actors, artists, and special effects experts, as well as anyone associated with the specific genres of its remit.
Fear (issue 8)
Clive Barker featured in Fear a lot, as did Shaun Hutson. James Herbert, Ramsey Campbell, John Carpenter, Sam Raimi, Ray Bradbury and other such horror/fantasy/science fiction luminaries also put in appearances.
Fear (issue 9)
The editorial staff didn’t always get it right – possibly the most disturbingly mistake they made was the time Fear published a reader’s letter that told of how the English writer of the letter (name withheld) had flown to Maine, hung around for hours outside Stephen King’s house, and called out to ‘the big man’ as he entered his house, after which he’d ‘knocked up’ a story and left it at King’s office, where he again hung around until asked to leave. He had then flown back to the UK and written of his adventure in a letter. It was bizarre and unsettling reading – in short, it was a casual description of obsessive behaviour (masquerading as fandom) that was almost chillingly stalker-ish in its intensity.
Fear (issue 10)
Despite the odd lapse in judgement, Fear genuinely seemed to be trying to provide its readers with interesting and entertaining genre information. For a while it was more than just a very good magazine – it was the best of its kind. Then the quality declined: the ubiquitous Clive Barker in nearly every issue; the obvious lack of awareness of/interest in Fear by Stephen King; the reliance on more and more substandard fiction from Fear readers; poorer quality paper on which the magazine was printed – and then, ultimately, perhaps inevitably, it was over – Fear folded.
Fear 24
Here’s the Wikipedia entry for Fear in its Newsfield Publications entry:
‘Fear began life as a full-colour newsstand magazine edited by former deputy editor of Sinclair User John Gilbert. Newsfield, keen to find publishing ventures outside the volatile computer game market, agreed to publish Fear with Gilbert as managing editor. The first issue of the magazine, which would be dedicated to horror book/film reviews and original horror, fantasy and science fiction, was published in June 1988. Despite relatively low sales it managed to survive for the duration of Newsfield’s business operations, seeing off rivals such as Skeleton Crew and Phantasmagoria, which entered the market midway through its run. Fear achieved recognition from many international writers, and is still quoted today on back-cover blurbs by novelists whose work it first championed.’
Although it was very much a product of its time, I enjoyed reading Fear immensely. I found the book and film reviews useful and insightful. I liked the author interviews, as they sometimes contained very useful hints for writers.
Fear (Issue 32)
For a while, John Gilbert (and Newsfield Publications) provided horror, fantasy and science fiction aficionados with a good quality magazine.
So thank you Roger Kean, Franco Frey, Oliver Frey and John Gilbert – for a while you burned so very brightly.
Note (November 2012):
And now Fear is back after a 21 year hiatus. Details can be found here:
Apart from Elric, Jerry Cornelius is one of Michael Moorcock’s greatest creations.
Jerry Cornelius, an enigmatic anti-hero, physicist, rock star, assassin, time traveller, failure, society host, secret agent, and spirit of the age (false?) messiah first appeared in The Final Programme in 1969 and stayed around until 1984 – then vanished. He recently reappeared in a number of uncollected short stories. At present, his whereabouts are unknown.
Here is a list of the books (novels and short story collections) that Jerry Cornelius appears in:
The Cornelius Quartet:
The Final Programme (1969)
A Cure for Cancer (1971)
The English Assassin (1972)
The Condition of Muzak (1977)
The Lives and Times of Jerry Cornelius (1976)
and in:
A Cornelius Calendar:
The Adventures of Una Persson and Catherine Cornelius in the Twentieth Century (1976)
The Entropy Tango (1981)
Gold Diggers of 1977 (1980)
The Alchemist’s Question (1984)
There are also a number of uncollected Short Stories:
Firing the Cathedral
The Murderer’s Song
The Gangrene Collection
The Romanian Question
The Entropy Circuit
All the Way Round Again
The Spencer Inheritance
The Camus Connection
Cheering for the Rockets
Modem Times
Jerry Cornelius’s adventures are almost essential reading. Michael Moorcock is a master story teller and his writing addresses issues that are in dire need of debate and resolution. The stories are also very entertaining and well-written.
One book that I read many years ago, and which has stayed in my mind and for some reason become indelibly stamped into my psyche, is F. Paul Wilson’s 1979 novel, Healer.
Here’s the 1974 edition, with the Hamlyn cover:
If I have to categorise Healer, then it’s a science fiction novel with a libertarian agenda, along the same lines as Anthem by Ayn Rand, although Healer is very different in plot and style to Anthem.
Here’s a quick plot summary (WARNING – only read the following four paragraphs if you want to know what’s going to happen in the novel):
It’s a routine planetary survey, and Steven Dalt is lucky not to have died in that cave on the planet Kwashi. After all, as the natives say, of a thousand people attacked by the cave-dwelling alaret, nine-hundred-and-ninety-nine will die. Dalt survives, but not without personal cost: he has picked up a passenger: an alien intelligence that transfers itself from the alaret to take up residence in his brain. Steven Dalt will never be alone again. But Pard, as Dalt names the alien who now shares his life, is no parasite. He pays his rent by using cellular-level consciousness to maintain Dalt’s body in perfect health – no disease, no aging.
As a result, Dalt quickly finds that he has enhanced perception, reflexes, and mental abilities, abilities received in a bizarre meld with the alien cave creature, a meld that would normally have killed a sentient life form. In Dalt’s case, his and Pard’s merging has made him/it/them superhuman. And now Dalt appreciates the full and true meaning of the Kwashi natives’ saying: Of a thousand struck down by an alaret, nine-hundred-and-ninety-nine will die – for he now realises that the thousandth will not die… ever.
At the age of two hundred and eighteen years, Steven Dalt migrates to Tolive, the notorious world of the neo-anarchists. From there he emerges with an altered perspective on life and a new identity as the enigmatic Healer – mankind’s only weapon against a psychological plague sweeping across the inhabited planets.
Spanning twelve hundred years, F. Paul Wilson’s Healer follows Dalt and Pard through the centuries as he/it/they become known as The Healer, an enigmatic figure with the power to cure diseases of the mind. And when a wave of interstellar slaughter threatens the civilizations of the LaNague Federation, only The Healer has the resources to face the oncoming danger.
Obviously I won’t give away the denouement – that really would spoil the novel for any potential readers.
There are several things that are interesting about this novel. The first is that it is based on a novella entitled Pard, which F. Paul Wilson wrote and published in the December 1972 issue of Analog. Expanded into Healer, it became F. Paul Wilson’s first published novel – and the first in his LaNague series.
Here’s the 2005 edition with the Infrapress cover:
It’s a good story very well told – and for a first novel, it’s exceptional. I recommend this book to everyone. Try and find a copy – there are one or two on amazon:
One of Philip K Dick’s best novels is A Scanner Darkly.
The story is set in a not-too-distant future, and it involves an undercover cop named Bob Arctor, who becomes involved with a dangerous new drug and begins to lose his own identity as a result.
It has recently been made into a brilliant film by Richard Linklater.
The film stars Keanu Reeves, Robert Downey Jr., Woody Harrelson and Winona Ryder.
Here’s a scene from the film, to give you an idea of its tone and style.
If you get a chance, read Philip K Dick’s A Scanner Darkly and watch Richard Linklater’s film version of it. They’re both very good – the novel’s worth reading for its insights into surveillance and its attendant paranoia, and the film’s worth watching for its visual style and its script – and for the superb quality of the acting.
As a writer, Ray Bradbury showed me how it was done. As a young boy, I loved his short stories – The Pedestrian, Dark They Were, and Golden-Eyed, The Fog Horn, The Lake, and The Sound of Thunder in particular. As a teenager I loved his collections that masqueraded as novels, such as The Illustrated Man and The Martian Chronicles. As a man I love his novels: Fahrenheit 451, Dandelion Wine, Something Wicked This Way Comes, Death is a Lonely Business, A Graveyard For Lunatics, and most recently, Farewell Summer.
However, I admire Ray Bradbury for more than just his writing talent. I admire him for having the courage to live as a writer, to spend his time writing, writing, writing – and not really bothering about anything else. I also admire him because he abandoned formal education and educated himself in the library – and then became a very successful writer.
As a writer he was prolific – novels, short stories, essays, poems, plays, film scripts and teleplays. He has written many of each. As a person, he was a living legend.
Ray Bradbury was born in 1920, He died today (5/6/12) aged 91. Until today, he was still writing and still enjoying his life. He said in a recent interview that it was his love of writing that kept him young.
Here is a bibliography:
Novels:
(1950) The Martian Chronicles
(1953) Fahrenheit 451
(1957) Dandelion Wine
(1962) Something Wicked This Way Comes
(1972) The Halloween Tree
(1985) Death Is a Lonely Business
(1990) A Graveyard for Lunatics
(1992) Green Shadows, White Whale
(2001) From the Dust Returned
(2004) Let’s All Kill Constance
(2006) Farewell Summer
Short Story Collections:
(1947) Dark Carnival
(1951) The Illustrated Man
(1953) The Golden Apples of the Sun
(1955) The October Country
(1959) A Medicine for Melancholy
(1959) The Day It Rained Forever
(1962) The Small Assassin
(1964) The Machineries of Joy
(1969) I Sing The Body Electric
(1976) Long After Midnight
(1980) One Timeless Spring
(1983) Dinosaur Tales
(1984) A Memory of Murder
(1988) The Toynbee Convector
(1996) Quicker Than The Eye
(1997) Driving Blind
(2002) One More for the Road
(2004) The Cat’s Pyjamas
(2007) Now and Forever: Somewhere a Band is Playing & Leviathan ’99
(2007) Summer Morning, Summer Night
(2009) We’ll Always Have Paris
Through each new book, I grew up with Ray Bradbury. He has a place in my heart and in my mind that no other writer has. He is the most important person to me in terms of literary influence; possibly more important than J.G. Ballard, Angela Carter, William S. Burroughs, Anna Kavan, or even Ayn Rand, who was so important to me that I dedicated my first novel, Myth, to her.
There is a wonderful piece of film in which Ray Bradbury talks to university students about writing. It is witty and informative – and at times very profound. It is worth watching for Bradbury’s insights into writing. Here it is:
