Writing update with shiny sales and shiny trophies!

Yet again I have been very bad with keeping up to date on my blog. But, I do have lots of exciting stuff to talk about!

Firstly, I have started a new job! I am working for the same organisation, but I have been seconded to our Editorial Department and am now responsible for a fortnightly magazine. It’s been a steep learning curve, but I am loving it. So, I guess now I am a professional writer/editor. The last issue was the first I did completely alone and having survived that I think I am going to be all right – but it was a long fortnight. The downside is that I have been so consumed by learning the ropes that I have let some stuff slide and let some people down with other things.

I am also very excited to announce the sale of my story, “Her face like lightning”, to Fablecroft’s “Insert Title Here”. You can find out more details here.

I am currently working on two major projects that I hope to be able to announce in a month or so, but they are taking up most of my writing time. If they work out, they will be a big deal but until contracts are signed I will be keeping it quiet.

In June I went along to Continuum X and had an amazing time. I am a bit biased, being on the committee and all, but it seemed to be a smashing success. I spent a fair bit of time running around trying to help with organisational matters, but I also managed to catch up with heaps of friends, and make some new ones. My panels went reasonably well, and I even managed to organise a reprint of one of my stories. Well done to everyone who contributed to making it an awesome convention!

And, in a very surprising turn of events, we won both our categories in the Ditmars! I honestly didn’t expect it, given the other nominees, so it was a wonderful surprise. In the Atheling, New Who Reviews tied with Galactic Suburbia. As Galactic Suburbia was the first Aussie podcast I started listening to, and has had a huge influence on my perception of the genre, this was a huge honour. It’s been a great deal of fun working with Tansy and Tehani, so a big thank you to them for all their hard work and letting me be part of it (and a shout out to our guests over the years – Lynne Thomas, Jo Anderton and Kathleen Jennings).

Then, in the Best Fan Publication, Galactic Chat won! Again, I have been fortunate to get to work with an incredible group of people, and Sean has worked extremely hard in his role as our fearless leader. We were very excited to see him win Best Fan Writer, as well – a very deserved result.

But, looking at the rest of the nominees in all the categories, it was an extremely strong list – and congratulations to all the winners, and nominees, for the wonderful work you are doing! You can see the full list here.

So, it has been an exciting few months! How is your year going?

Finally, all three of the New Who Review team together at a Con!

A lovely work of art by Kathleen Jennings

Lunch on the last day – photo by Alan Baxter

with Alan Baxter and Alex Pierce – photo by Cat Sparks

Reprint deal with Clan Destine Press

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Observant followers of the scene may have noticed that Clan Destine Press have launched a new website, and have been signing some new authors – including fellow SuperNOVArians Jason Nahrung and Pete Aldin.

I am delighted to announce that Clan Destine have asked to reprint my story “Cold comfort” (originally published by Fablecroft in the anthology, “Epilogue”). Details are yet to be completely hammered out, but it looks it will be part of their new fiction imprint and it is likely that it will be paired with another of my shorts.

Clan Destine have a great catalogue of writers, and have produced some wonderful books, so I am very excited to have a chance to work with them.

More details to follow!

Story sale to Fablecroft: Insert Title Here

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I am thrilled to announce I will be appearing in Fablecroft’s next anthology, “Insert Title Here”. Looking at the ToC I am delighted to find myself in the company of so many amazing writers. Fablecroft is one of my favourite publishers, and Tehani one of my favourite people, so this is a wonderful sale!

This story is a bit of a different style than I usually write. It’s got angels, steampunk and heresy, and a bit nastier than my usual sort of thing.

You can find out stats and details at the Fablecroft website.

Kathleen Jennings The Last Case of Detective Charlemagne
Joanne Anderton 2B
DK Mok Almost Days
Matthew Morrison Sins of meals past
Tom Dullemond The Last Voyage of Saint Brendan
Dirk Flinthart Collateral Damage
Dan Simpson The Winter Stream
Darren Goossens Circle
Alan Baxter Beyond the Borders of All He Had Been Taught
Thoraiya Dyer The Falcon Races
Robert Hood Footprints in Venom
Caitlene Cooke Circa
Tamlyn Dreaver Reflections
David McDonald Her face like lightning
Marianne de Pierres Salvatrix
Dan Rabarts Oil and bone
Ian Creasey Ministry of Karma
Stephanie Burgis The art of deception
Marissa Lingen & Alec Austin Empty Monuments
Sara Larner Living in the Light
Alexis A. Hunter Always Another Point

A Conversational Journey through New Who – S06E01/02 – The Impossible Astronaut/Day of the Moon

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We are incredibly honoured to have tied for the William Atheling Jr Award, alongside Galactic Suburbia. Thank you to everyone who voted for us, and to all our readers for your support and for spreading the word. We also want to thank Lynne Thomas, Jo Anderton and Kathleen Jennings for their guest contributions. Congratulations to not only Galactic Suburbia on their well deserved win, but all the amazing nominees – you are producing some wonderful writing! We are looking forward to writing many more reviews about the show we love, and hopefully catching up with the new season soon.

David is coming to New Who for the first time, having loved Classic Who as a kid. Tehani is a recent convert, and ploughed through Seasons 1 to 6 (so far) in just a few weeks after becoming addicted thanks to Matt Smith – she’s rewatching to keep up with David! Tansy is the expert in the team, with a history in Doctor Who fandom that goes WAY back, and a passion for Doctor Who that inspires us all.

We are working our way through New Who, using season openers and closers, and Hugo shortlisted episodes, and sometimes a couple of extra episodes we love as our blogging points. Just for fun!

“The Impossible Astronaut/Day of the Moon”
Season six, episodes one and two
The Doctor – Matt Smith
Amy Pond – Karen Gillan
Rory Williams – Arthur Darvill
River Song – Alex Kingston
Canton Everett Delaware III – Mark Sheppard
President Richard Nixon – Stuart Milligan

DAVID:
Well, what a great setup for for an episode, and what a great start to the season! Obviously we know that the Doctor can’t really die (especially from my viewpoint of knowing there is a Season 7), but we are immediately presented with a whole heap of questions and a massive time gap to fill. I may be a little obsessed here after watching all five seasons in a few weeks, but it reminded more than a little of Breaking Bad where you would see the aftermath of some catastrophe in the intros and then be left wondering how exactly you were going to get there. It’s certainly left me very excited about this season.

TEHANI:
So that early scene, when the Doctor started regenerating, was AWFUL. I’m glad I already knew Matt Smith was the Doctor for the whole season to come, else I would have been devastated! But yes, it’s very good

TANSY:
This is a really excellent season opener – the first time we’ve had a two parter to start a season, which seems odd because it works so well. It also marks the first time they really made inroads into promoting the show substantially in the US – I really like that they chose to do a historical story using all that beautiful desert cinematography, and the 1960’s stuff around it.

This story has major knock on effects in the whole season but I really like it as a self contained piece of Doctor Who.

DAVID:
Earth must get very cluttered with all the aliens behind the scenes pulling the strings, the basic premise is hardly new even to Doctor Who, let alone science fiction.

TEHANI:
Heh. The Doctor says it: Safe? No, of course you’re not safe. There’s about a billion other things out there just waiting to burn your whole world. But if you want to pretend you’re safe just so you can sleep at night, okay. You’re safe. But you’re not really.

DAVID:
But, there aren’t many completely new ideas, it’s all about how you execute them, and I thought that this was executed wonderfully. It had a great storyline, an excellent supporting cast and a very disturbing set of monsters. I was fascinated to discover the father-son sharing of one of the roles, and I thought Richard Nixon was portrayed really well. I can imagine there was a temptation to have him as a complete villain, but instead we saw a great performance. I did enjoy the little digs, though, like the reference to Frost, and the perfectly reasonable explanation for his obsession with recording all the conversations that took place in the Oval Office! But, the real stars for me were Gillan and Darvill, however I will expand on that further a bit later on.

TANSY:
I think the Silence are officially the scariest New Who villains now – Raeli has got over her fear of Sontarans but she can’t even cope with looking at these guys. The premise behind them is so chilling, the idea of taking away memories.

I do love all the Nixon stuff (if Abigail and Kazran are companions, so is he!) and that he came across as likeable but problematic. River and the Doctor debating his legacy (“Hippy!” “Archaeologist!”) was quite charming. Stuart Milligan, who played him, is perhaps best known as the kooky magician Adam Klaus in Jonathan Creek, and he also plays an amazing Big Finish comedy villain. It’s funny the way that the Doctor reacts to having a President in his pocket by employing him a bit like a sonic screwdriver, to open doors and unlock new areas.

TEHANI:
And I like that Nixon isn’t portrayed as a monster, either, even though we know (historically) his flaws. It’s very, hrm, human?

DAVID:
The Silence could have been been a bit ridiculous if they hadn’t been handled right, but I found them very creepy. You’d think that after the Angels, a creature that you had to keep your eyes on would be a bit old hat, but the twist was more than enough to differentiate them completely. For some reason the idea that you forgot them every time you looked away made me really uncomfortable, it made the characters seem so vulnerable and manipulated. No matter how vigilant they were, seeing the Silence was not enough. The scenes in the children’s home were particularly creepy, especially when Amy is all of a sudden covered in pen marks (which was a brilliant idea). At least with the Angels you knew they were coming for you, the Silence didn’t even give you that.

TEHANI:
That awful, “As long as there’s been something in the corner of your eye, or creaking in your house or breathing under your bed or voices through a wall…” line *shudder* – I think that’s what makes them so darn scary. Also, this:

TANSY:
The horror concept of not being able to remember the monster is terribly clever and creepy. The haunted asylum is genuinely disturbing.

When I remember this story though it’s less for the effective horror stuff and more for the crunchy character material. I adore Canton as an addition to the TARDIS team, and all of the River Song stuff is great. She’s definitely on the team now, with friendship ties to both Rory and Amy as well as the Doctor.

And oh, TIME GAP. The Doctor who summons them all to witness his death is about two hundred years older than our usual model, and how interesting that Amy and Rory have been home since the Christmas Special, balancing domesticity with adventure. There are so many delicious implications to this story, not least that the Eleventh Doctor’s timeline is complicated, more complicated than we could ever understand, and that he’s going to be around for a good long time.

DAVID:
Excellent point. Certainly leaves lots of room for lots of adventures.

TEHANI:
Yay!

DAVID:
I was interested to discover that this isn’t the first major time gap in the Doctor’s chronology. The First Doctor claims to be 450 years old at one point, but that jumps up around 300 years by the time Four is travelling with Romana. Then, when we get to Six he is around the 900s! While we need to take the Doctor’s claims regarding his age with a pinch of salt, that does leave lots of room for “missing” adventures. It does make sense that a time traveller’s chronology is going to be complicated, of course!

TANSY:
Moffat has actually done a great job at leaving deliberate gaps in the chronology, for the associated media to play in whether it’s now or in 25 years time. He has said that he does it on purpose. Unlike RTD, who gave us that distressingly closed-in Series 1, so the only non-Rose adventures we can insert happen somewhere in the middle of “Rose”.

He has been thinking too much about continuity..

TEHANI:
The first time I watched this season I got all sorts of terribly confused. I’m still not sure I completely understand the timeline. Where’s that River Song chronology again?

TANSY:
It bears multiple rewatching! And I believe there’s a bit of retooling we need to do after the fact with later revelations in the show…

David, let’s talk about Amy and Rory! What was it you loved so much about Gillan and Darvill’s performances?

DAVID:
There are a number of scenes where they shine (like Amy in the children’s home *shivers*) but, for me, the real emotional core of this story is Rory trying hard not to be jealous as he fights against his insecurities, and Amy’s feelings for him and the Doctor. Who wouldn’t struggle with feelings of inadequacy if they felt they were competing with the Doctor? I think it is a really pivotal moment when Amy clarifies things properly, and certainly left me feeling much better about things (“Poor Rory!” punctuates most of my notes that I make while watching these episodes!).

It would be quite obvious to anyone reading this review series that I had some real issues with the Nine-Rose-Mickey dynamic, but I find the Eleven-Amy-Rory one a lot easier to deal with. Nine was quite obviously competing with Mickey for Rose, and often rather nasty about it, and I often found it hard to watch. It was such an unbalanced competition and I constantly felt sorry for Mickey, and disdain for the Doctor’s bullying of him – because that’s what it was. There is a lot more friendship and genuine affection between the current (well, current as of this episode – I am SO far behind!) trio, and the Doctor has shown much more integrity in how he deals with Rory and Amy, and is far more mindful of boundaries. Plus, I do love the banter!

TEHANI:
Plus Matt Smith’s Doctor is a less “sexual” being than Tennant’s anyway, I think. He’s far more the goof (mingled nicely with the dark weight of everything he has seen) than Tennant ever was – this shows in his interactions with River Song, even as he grows into their relationship, I think.

TANSY:
I enjoy the odd, awkward balances and imbalances that come out between this trio and I agree that the Doctor’s role in it makes him a lot more likeable than when Nine was doing something similar – most of the Doctor messing up their relationship is a blunder rather than a deliberate jibe. I think it also shows that there are different kinds of friendship and jealousy and conflict doesn’t have to be romantic. Rory is brilliant in this story, it feels like he is coming into his own. I think my favourite bit is where he gets to explain everything to Canton, and that means Rory himself isn’t the new boy any more.

This team, running around solving mysteries in an invaded Earth in the 1960s. I could watch this team forever. I could have watched a whole season that was just this. Except, of course, that’s not how Doctor Who works…

Previous Episodes
“Rose”, S01E01
“Dalek”, S01E06
“Father’s Day”, S01E08
“The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances”, S01E09/10
“Bad Wolf/The Parting of the Ways”, S01E12/13
Season One Report Card – David, Tansy, Tehani
“The Christmas Invasion”, 2005 Christmas Special
“New Earth”, S02E01
“School Reunion”, S02E03
“The Girl in the Fireplace”, S02E04
“Rise of the Cybermen/Age of Steel”, S02E05/06
“Army of Ghosts/Doomsday”, S02E12/13
Season Two Report Card – David, Tansy, Tehani
“Smith and Jones”, S03E01
“The Shakespeare Code/Gridlock”, S03E02/03″
“Human Nature/Family of Blood”. S03E08/09″
“Blink”. S03E10″
“Utopia/The Sound of Drums/Last of the Timelords”, S03E12/13/14
Classic Who Conversation podcast – Spearhead from Space (1970)
Season Three Report Card – David, Tansy, Tehani
Classic Who Conversation podcast – Genesis of the Daleks (1975)
“Partners in Crime”, S04E01
“The Sontaran Stratagem/The Poison Sky, S04E0708”
“Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead, S04E0910”
Turn Left, S0411
The Stolen Earth/Journey’s End,S04E1213
Season Four Report Card – David, Tansy, Tehani
The Next Doctor / Planet of the Dead / The Waters of Mars
End of Time
The Eleventh Hour. S0501
The Beast Below/Victory of the Daleks,S050203
The Time of Angels/Flesh and Stone,S05E0405
The Vampires of Venice/Amy’s Choice,S050607
The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood,S050809
Vincent and the Doctor/The Lodger,S05E10/11
The Pandorica Opens/The Big Bang,S05E12/13
2010 Christmas Special – A Christmas Carol
Season Five Report Card – David, Tansy, Tehani

My Continuum X Schedule

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It’s hard to believe, but tomorrow Continuun X starts! I am on commitee (my excuse for being very absent here of late) so it feels like there has been a mad rush to get everything ready, but the time for preparation is over and the fun begins soon.

What is ContinuumX? From the website:

Continuum is an annual Melbourne speculative fiction and pop culture fan convention celebrating creativity across genre and media. From hard-edge science fiction to high-flown fantasy, comic books to film noir, high culture to sub-culture… we sink our teeth into it all! Continuum is run on a not-for-profit basis and all revenue goes towards venue and equipment hire, transport and accommodation for our guests, and other convention specific expenses. The Continuum Foundation supports Continuum conventions and we are grateful for their support.

Continuum 10 will take place on the Queen’s Birthday Weekend, June 6 — 9, 2014. Our guests of honour this year are Jim C. Hines and Ambelin Kwaymullina. Supporting them will be a wide range of other speakers and panellists in a fabulous line up of panels, presentations and special events.

Continuum 10 is also proud to be host convention for the 53^rd Australian National Science Fiction Convention for 2014.

I may be biased, but I think we have an awesome program, with something for everyone. You can check it out here.

My schedule is below, but you will also find me at most of the book launches, running around doing errands…or in the bar. Come and say hello!

Friday, 6 June

Continuum 101
The Haunted House, 6pm – 6:30pm
Hespa, David McDonald, Fran la Fontaine
Everything you wanted to know about fan conventions and con-going – an ideal starting point for anyone relatively new to conventions. Learn the secrets from those who have been around long enough to know better.

Continuum 101 – Getting To Know You
The Haunted House, 6:30pm – 7pm
Hespa, David McDonald, Fran la Fontaine
A quick round of ice-breaker games to introduce you to your fellow newbies and your Continuum 101 hosts.

Spicks & Speckulations
The Haunted House/The Big Top/The Hall of Mirrors 8pm
George Ivanoff, Jim C. Hines, Narrelle Harris, Kirstyn McDermott, Ambelin Kwaymullina, Danny Oz, David McDonald
Inspired by the ABC music game show, our two teams of “experts” go head-to-head as their spec fic and music knowledge is tested to its (possibly quite limited) limits. Who will prevail? How silly will this get? We suspect quite silly.

Saturday, 7 June

Continuum 101
The Hall of Mirrors, 11am – 11:30am
Hespa, David McDonald, Fran la Fontaine
Everything you wanted to know about fan conventions and con-going – an ideal starting point for anyone relatively new to conventions. Learn the secrets from those who have been around long enough to know better.

Monday, 9 June

In Conversation: DUFF Delegate Juanita Coulson
The Hall of Mirrors, 11am – 11:30am
David McDonald, Juanita Coulson
Juanita Coulson joins us all the way from America to talk about being a writer, the changing face of American fandom since the 1950s, and filking.

Feedback Panel
The Haunted House 3pm
Julia Svaganovic,, Liz Barr, Amanda Elliott, David McDonald, PRK
The con’s nearly over! What did you like? What did you hate? This is your chance to chat directly with the CX and C11 committee and help make the next Continuum even better.

Fake Geek Pride
The Big Top 4pm
Jim C. Hines, Alex Matti, David McDonald, Kirsty Sculler
Many fans see fandom as a welcoming home to all, but sagas like the “fake geek girl” furore are starkly at odds with this rosy picture. Where does the idea of non-judgemental fandom come from and how much truth is in it really?

2014 Ditmar Award ballot released

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Well, the past few weeks have been intense, so much so that I forgot all about this (after the first bit of squeeing), but the 2014 Ditmar Award ballot has been released, and I feature twice (highlighted in bold below)!!!

I have been very fortunate in how many wonderful people I have met since I first entered the scene, not only are most of the names on the ballot good friends, I have also had the chance to work with some amazingly talented people. Both Galactic Chat and the New Who reviewing stuff are so much fun to do, and that comes down to the great company in which I find myself.

Given that in both categories I am up against Hugo nominated works I don’t expect to win, but that’s more than okay. I am just proud to see my name up alongside so many people I respect and admire. Thank you to all those who nominated Galactic Chat and Reviewing New Who!

Whether you vote for me or not, please do make sure you do vote if you are eligible to do so. The more people who do, the more respectability the Ditmars have as the representation of the opinions of the entire Aussie spec fic community.

Good luck to all the nominees!

Voting has now opened, and will remain open until one minute before midnight AEST (ie. 11.59pm, GMT+11),
Wednesday, 28th of May, 2014.

You can vote online here, or visit here for more information.

Best Novel

Ink Black Magic, Tansy Rayner Roberts (FableCroft Publishing)
Fragments of a Broken Land: Valarl Undead, Robert Hood (Wildside Press)
The Beckoning, Paul Collins (Damnation Books)
Trucksong, Andrew Macrae (Twelfth Planet Press)
The Only Game in the Galaxy (The Maximus Black Files 3), Paul Collins (Ford Street Publishing)

Best Novella or Novelette

“Prickle Moon”, Juliet Marillier, in Prickle Moon (Ticonderoga Publications)
“The Year of Ancient Ghosts”, Kim Wilkins, in The Year of Ancient Ghosts (Ticonderoga Publications)
“By Bone-Light”, Juliet Marillier, in Prickle Moon (Ticonderoga Publications)
“The Home for Broken Dolls”, Kirstyn McDermott, in Caution: Contains Small Parts (Twelfth Planet Press)
“What Amanda Wants”, Kirstyn McDermott, in Caution: Contains Small Parts (Twelfth Planet Press)

Best Short Story

“Mah Song”, Joanne Anderton, in The Bone Chime Song and Other Stories (FableCroft Publishing)
“Air, Water and the Grove”, Kaaron Warren, in The Lowest Heaven (Jurassic London)
“Seven Days in Paris”, Thoraiya Dyer, in Asymmetry (Twelfth Planet Press)
“Scarp”, Cat Sparks, in The Bride Price (Ticonderoga Publications)
“Not the Worst of Sins”, Alan Baxter, in Beneath Ceaseless Skies 133 (Firkin Press)
“Cold White Daughter”, Tansy Rayner Roberts, in One Small Step (FableCroft Publishing)

Best Collected Work

The Back of the Back of Beyond, Edwina Harvey, edited by Simon Petrie (Peggy Bright Books)
Asymmetry, Thoraiya Dyer, edited by Alisa Krasnostein (Twelfth Planet Press)
Caution: Contains Small Parts, Kirstyn McDermott, edited by Alisa Krasnostein (Twelfth Planet Press)
The Bone Chime Song and Other Stories, Joanne Anderton, edited by Tehani Wesseley (FableCroft Publishing)
The Bride Price, Cat Sparks, edited by Russell B. Farr (Ticonderoga Publications)

Best Artwork

Cover art, Eleanor Clarke, for The Back of the Back of Beyond by Edwina Harvey (Peggy Bright Books)
Illustrations, Kathleen Jennings, for Eclipse Online (Nightshade Books)
Cover art, Shauna O’Meara, for Next edited by Simon Petrie and Rob Porteous (CSFG Publishing)
Cover art, Cat Sparks, for The Bride Price by Cat Sparks (Ticonderoga Publications)
Rules of Summer, Shaun Tan (Hachette Australia)
Cover art, Pia Ravenari, for Prickle Moon by Juliet Marillier (Ticonderoga Publications)

Best Fan Writer

Tsana Dolichva, for body of work, including reviews and interviews in Tsana’s Reads and Reviews
Sean Wright, for body of work, including reviews in Adventures of a Bookonaut
Grant Watson, for body of work, including reviews in The Angriest
Foz Meadows, for body of work, including reviews in Shattersnipe: Malcontent & Rainbows
Alexandra Pierce, for body of work, including reviews in Randomly Yours, Alex
Tansy Rayner Roberts, for body of work, including essays and reviews at www.tansyrr.com

Best Fan Artist

Nalini Haynes, for body of work, including “Defender of the Faith”, “The Suck Fairy”, “Doctor Who vampire” and “The Last Cyberman” in Dark Matter
Kathleen Jennings, for body of work, including “Illustration Friday”
Dick Jenssen, for body of work, including cover art for Interstellar Ramjet Scoop and SF Commentary

Best Fan Publication in Any Medium

Dark Matter Zine, Nalini Haynes
SF Commentary, Bruce Gillespie
The Writer and the Critic, Kirstyn McDermott and Ian Mond
Galactic Chat Podcast, Sean Wright, Alex Pierce, Helen Stubbs, David McDonald, and Mark Webb
The Coode Street Podcast, Gary K. Wolfe and Jonathan Strahan
Galactic Suburbia, Alisa Krasnostein, Alex Pierce, and Tansy Rayner Roberts

Best New Talent

Michelle Goldsmith
Zena Shapter
Faith Mudge
Jo Spurrier
Stacey Larner

William Atheling Jr Award for Criticism or Review

Reviews in Randomly Yours, Alex, Alexandra Pierce
“Things Invisible: Human and Ab-Human in Two of Hodgson’s Carnacki stories”, Leigh Blackmore, in Sargasso: The Journal of William Hope Hodgson Studies #1 edited by Sam Gafford (Ulthar Press)
Galactic Suburbia Episode 87: Saga Spoilerific Book Club, Alisa Krasnostein, Alex Pierce, and Tansy Rayner Roberts
The Reviewing New Who series, David McDonald, Tansy Rayner Roberts, and Tehani Wessely
“A Puppet’s Parody of Joy: Dolls, Puppets and Mannikins as Diabolical Other”, Leigh Blackmore, in Ramsey Campbell: Critical Essays on the Master of Modern Horror edited by Gary William Crawford (Scarecrow Press)
“That was then, this is now: how my perceptions have changed”, George Ivanoff, in Doctor Who and Race edited by Lindy Orthia (Intellect Books)

A Conversational Journey through New Who – Season Five Report Card

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We would like to thank everyone who nominated our “New Who in Conversation” series for the William Atheling Jr Award again this year – it’s a great honour to be on the ballot! Voting for the annual Ditmar Awards (which the Atheling is included in) is open to all members of Continuum X (2014 Natcon – Melbourne) and Conflux 9 (2013 Natcon – Canberra), and can be done online.

We are working our way through New Who, using season openers and closers, and Hugo shortlisted episodes, and sometimes a couple of extra episodes we love as our blogging points. Just for fun!

See Tehani’s S5 Report Card and Tansy’s S5 Report Card by following the links! (See our Season One Report Cards here, our Season Two Report Cards here, our Season Three Report Cards here, and our Season Four Report Cards here.

SEASON FIVE REPORT CARD – David

The Doctor: Matt Smith

I am not ashamed to admit it, I was wrong about Matt Smith as the Doctor. Wrong, wrong, wrong. Perhaps it was the fact that I really didn’t feel ready for an actor younger than me playing the Doctor, or maybe it was the glimpses I had caught of him during my long absence from Doctor Who had left me cold. But, he was brilliant! He managed to capture the many facets of the Doctor I remembered. One one hand there was that air of childlike innocence, the insatiable curiosity and the sense of the ridiculous. On the other, a true sense of the alien standing apart from everyone else, and the ability to summon a true sense of menace and power.

Most of all, this is the season where I felt the Doctor truly rediscovered his moral centre, and starting make the right decisions more often.

From the first time he mixed fish fingers and custard I knew that I was going to enjoy Eleven, and I was never disappointed. Smith took about ten seconds to make this role truly his own, and ran with it from strength to strength.

The Companions:

Amy Pond: Karen Gillan

Young Amelia Pond was wonderful, but Amy Pond was even better! Gillan did an incredible job of portraying one the most three dimensional companions of New Who. Scottish and red haired and wild tempered, yet deeply sensitive and compassionate, Pond really does grow as the season progresses. She is fundamentally flawed (with good reason!), but aren’t we all? The way she stumbles and make mistakes is something we can identify with and, above all, she just seems like she would be so fun to hang out with! If I had to sum her up in one word it would be “real”.

Gillan has a real talent for making us feel the same emotions as Amy is, from wide eyed wonder to wrenching sadness. Amazing.

Rory Williams: Arthur Darvill

Hands down my favourite companion since Harry Sullivan, and for many of the same reasons. The “Nice Guy” is a trope that gets done to death in pop culture, but Rory showed that nice doesn’t mean weak, devotion doesn’t mean subservience, and selflessness doesn’t mean losing your sense of self. I found Rory and Amy’s relationship one of *the* great love stories of speculative fiction. In particular, the revelation of Rory’s long vigil was truly moving and his refusal to give up in the face of being forgotten a mark of his true strength

Of course, it was certainly not always plain sailing, and there were so many times I would think “Poor Rory!”, but I thought that the up and downs of their relationship had a genuineness often lacking in on screen romances. I also loved the inversion of some of the traditional dynamics we normally see, and how Rory took on what many might call “feminine” roles without ever acting like it made him less of a man or that it somehow diminished him. And, Rory was perfect for Amy, keeping her grounded when it was needed, but never trying to clip her wings and stop her from flying high. Because, her free spirit was what he loved about her, and why would he try and change that?

Darvill is wonderful actor, too, combining a real gift for comedy with the ability to switch on true emotion when needed. The perfect straight man when needed, but never boring.

Recurring Characters:

River Song: Alex Kingston

Inter Galactic Secret Agent River is awesome! I am still not sold on the whole Doctor getting married thing, but if it has to be anyone I can live with it being her.

What is your favourite episode of this season?

That’s a tough one! The strength of this season was that there were so many to choose from. I enjoyed the Angel duology a great deal, as well as Victory of the Daleks, and the Christmas Special (if it counts) was perhaps the best of its type. But, if poked with a sharp stick until I named one, I would have to go with The Lodger. The episode was so much fun, but it had real heart, and a lot of tension! I was genuinely scared for some of the characters and desperately wishing for a happy ending.

Least favourite episode?

I didn’t think there were any “terrible” episodes as such, but the weakest link was definitely Cold Blood. Aside from some deeply problematic elements, it missed a real chance to link back to Classic Who. The redesign of the Silurians seemed unnecessary to me, and some of the parallels to the first Silurian story were woefully under utilised. A missed opportunity.

Favourite guest performance?

Another tough one. Iain Glen brought dignity and gravitas to Father Octavian, Ian McNeice was a wonderful cigar chomping Churchill, but I thought James Corden shone as Craig Owens. He more than held his own against Matt Smith (no easy feat!), and made us want him to find his happy ending.

Describe this season in one word!

Triumphant!

Grade: A

Galactic Chat – Kaaron Warren

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In my latest interview for Galactic Chat, I interview one of Australia’s finest writers – Kaaron Warren. We talk about everything from ghost hunting to baby teeth, and you will get to hear me rendered speechless, a very rare thing indeed!

You can listen to the interview here. For more information about Kaaron’s work her blog can be found here, and you can read a free online story here.

‘Tis the Season – for Award Nominations!

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Right now, nominations are open for two of the Australian awards in speculative fiction, the Chronos Awards and the Ditmar Awards.

Ditmar Nominations Open

Nominations for the 2014 Australian SF (“Ditmar”) awards are now open and will remain open until one minute before midnight Melbourne time on Sunday, 20th of March, 2014 (ie. 11.59pm, GMT+10). Likewise, postal nominations must be postmarked no later than Sumday, 20th March, 2014.

The current rules, including Award categories can be found at:

http://wiki.sf.org.au/Ditmar_rules

You must include your name with any nomination. Nominations will be accepted only from natural persons active in fandom, or from full or supporting members of Continuum 10, the 2014 Australian National SF Convention. Where a nominator may not be known to the Ditmar subcommittee, the nominator should provide the name of someone known to the subcommittee who can vouch for the nominator’s eligibility.

While online nominations are preferred, nominations can be made in a number of ways:

1. online, via this form:

http://ditmars.sf.org.au/2014/nominations.html

2. via email to ditmars@sf.org.au; or

3. by post to:

Ditmars
6 Florence Road
NEDLANDS WA 6009
AUSTRALIA

So, basically if you are someone who is active in the Aussie spec fic community, you are eligible to nominate. And, you should! Why? Because, even more so than with the international awards, the more people involved in the awards process, from nomination to voting, the greater the legitimacy they possess. I have only been around a few years, but even in that short time I have seen the Ditmars cop what I consider unfair criticism. The more people who participate in the process the less ammunition there is for critics.

A very comprehensive (but by no means exhaustive) list of eligible works can be found here

Also open are the Chronos Awards – the Victorian version of the Ditmars.

The Chronos Awards celebrate excellence in Victorian Science Fiction, and will be presented this year at Continuum 9. Nominations will be accepted now in all categories – just email your nominations to awards@continuum.org.au. For more information about the awards (including categories and key dates) please see the website, or email awards@continuum.org.au with any queries. Nominations close Sunday, 16th of March.

Another very comprehensive (but by no means exhaustive) list of eligible works can be found here and, again, if you are eligible to nominate or vote, please do so! It really does make a difference.

Obviously I have eligible works in both sets of awards, but I don’t expect anyone to nominate, or vote for, me. If you do that’s wonderful, of course! But, you can stop reading here and just take away the core message of this post -nominate and vote the works you believe deserve it! The reason I say this is because the more people who nominate and vote, the more credibility these awards have, which can only be good for the Australian speculative fiction scene as a whole.

However, if you are interested in seeing what I have in the mix then read on:

DITMAR AWARDS

Best Novella or Novelette

“Set Your Face Towards the Darkness”, David McDonald, in Tales of Australia: Great Southern Land, Satalyte Publishing

Best Short Story

“Homecoming”, David McDonald, in ReDeus: Native Lands, Crazy 8 Press.
“In Foreign Fields”, David McDonald, in ReDeus: Beyond Borders, Crazy 8 Press.
“Shadows from the East”, David McDonald in The Shadow of Judex, Black Coat Press.
“The Lesser of Two Evils”, David McDonald in Tales of the Shadowmen 10: Esprit De Corps, Black Coat Press.

Best Fan Publication in any Medium

Galactic Chat Podcast, Sean Wright, Alex Pierce, Helen Stubbs, David McDonald, Mark Webb and Sarah Parker

William Atheling Jr Award for Criticism or Review

David McDonald, Tansy Rayner Roberts and Tehani Wessely for the Reviewing New Who series.

CHRONOS AWARDS

Short Stories

“Homecoming”, David McDonald, in ReDeus: Native Lands, Crazy 8 Press.
“In Foreign Fields”, David McDonald, in ReDeus: Beyond Borders, Crazy 8 Press.
“The Lesser of Two Evils”, David McDonald in Tales of the Shadowmen 10: Esprit De Corps, Black Coat Press.
“Shadows from the East”, David McDonald in The Shadow of Judex, Black Coat Press.
“Set Your Face Towards the Darkness”, David McDonald, in Tales of Australia: Great Southern Land, Satalyte Publishing

2013 Aurealis Awards Finalists Announced

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The finalists for this year’s Aurealis Awards have been announced and the quality of the entries is a testament to the strength of the Australian spec fic scene.

Being a judge for two of the categories has given me a whole new appreciation for how difficult a task it can be, and for the sheer amount of amazing work being produced by Australians.

I can’t wait for the ceremony itself, it’s going to be a great night – almost like a minicon. Hope to see you there.

Good luck to all the finalists!

BEST ILLUSTRATED BOOK OR GRAPHIC NOVEL
Savage Bitch by Steve Carter and Antoinette Rydyr (Scar Studios)
Mr Unpronounceable Adventures by Tim Molloy (Milk Shadow Books)
Burger Force by Jackie Ryan (self-published)
Peaceful Tomorrows Volume Two by Shane W Smith (Zetabella Publishing)
The Deep Vol. 2: The Vanishing Island by Tom Taylor and James Brouwer (Gestalt Publishing)

BEST CHILDREN’S BOOK
Kingdom of the Lost, book 2: Cloud Road by Isobelle Carmody (Penguin Group Australia)
Refuge by Jackie French (Harper Collins)
Song for a scarlet runner by Julie Hunt (Allen & Unwin)
The four seasons of Lucy McKenzie by Kirsty Murray (Allen & Unwin)
Rules of Summer by Shaun Tan (Hachette Australia)
Ice Breaker: The Hidden 1 by Lian Tanner (Allen & Unwin)

BEST YOUNG ADULT SHORT FICTION
“Mah Song” by Joanne Anderton (The Bone Chime Song and Other Stories, FableCroft Publishing)
“By Bone-light” by Juliet Marillier (Prickle Moon, Ticonderoga Publications)
“Morning Star” by D.K. Mok (One Small Step, an anthology of discoveries, FableCroft Publishing)
“The Year of Ancient Ghosts” by Kim Wilkins (The Year of Ancient Ghosts, Ticonderoga Publications)

BEST YOUNG ADULT NOVEL
The Big Dry by Tony Davies (Harper Collins)
Hunting by Andrea Host (self-published)
These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner (Allen & Unwin)
Fairytales for Wilde Girls by Allyse Near (Random House Australia)
The Sky So Heavy by Claire Zorn (University of Queensland Press)

BEST HORROR SHORT FICTION
“Fencelines” by Joanne Anderton (The Bone Chime Song and Other Stories, FableCroft Publishing)
“The Sleepover” by Terry Dowling (Exotic Gothic 5, PS Publishing)
“The Home for Broken Dolls” by Kirstyn McDermott (Caution: Contains Small Parts, Twelfth Planet Press)
“The Human Moth” by Kaaron Warren (The Grimscribe’s Puppets, Miskatonic Press)
“The Year of Ancient Ghosts” by Kim Wilkins (The Year of Ancient Ghosts, Ticonderoga Publications)

BEST HORROR NOVEL
The Marching Dead by Lee Battersby (Angry Robot Books)
The First Bird by Greig Beck (Momentum)
Path of Night by Dirk Flinthart (FableCroft Publishing)
Fairytales for Wilde Girls by Allyse Near (Random House Australia)

BEST FANTASY SHORT FICTION
“The Last Stormdancer” by Jay Kristoff (Thomas Dunne Books)
“The Touch of the Taniwha” by Tracie McBride (Fish, Dagan Books)
“Cold, Cold War” by Ian McHugh (Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Scott H Andrews)
“Short Circuit” by Kirstie Olley (Oomph: a little super goes a long way, Crossed Genres)
“The Year of Ancient Ghosts” by Kim Wilkins (The Year of Ancient Ghosts, Ticonderoga Publications)

BEST FANTASY NOVEL
Lexicon by Max Barry (Hachette Australia)
A Crucible of Souls by Mitchell Hogan (self-published)
These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner (Allen & Unwin)
Newt’s Emerald by Garth Nix (Jill Grinberg Literary Management)
Ink Black Magic by Tansy Rayner Roberts (FableCroft Publishing)

BEST SCIENCE FICTION SHORT FICTION
“The Last Tiger” by Joanne Anderton (Daily Science Fiction)
“Mah Song” by Joanne Anderton (The Bone Chime Song and Other Stories, FableCroft Publishing)
“Seven Days in Paris” by Thoraiya Dyer (Asymmetry, Twelfth Planet Press)
“Version 4.3.0.1” by Lucy Stone (Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine #57)
“Air, Water and the Grove” by Kaaron Warren (The Lowest Heaven, Pandemonium Press)

BEST SCIENCE FICTION NOVEL
Lexicon by Max Barry (Hachette)
Trucksong by Andrew Macrae (Twelfth Planet Press)
A Wrong Turn At The Office Of Unmade Lists by Jane Rawson (Transit Lounge)
True Path by Graham Storrs (Momentum)
Rupetta by Nike Sulway (Tartarus Press)

BEST ANTHOLOGY
The Year’s Best Australian Fantasy and Horror 2012 by Liz Grzyb and Talie Helene (Eds), (Ticonderoga Publications)
One Small Step, An Anthology Of Discoveries by Tehani Wessely (Ed) (FableCroft Publishing)
Dreaming Of Djinn by Liz Grzyb (Ed) (Ticonderoga Publications)
The Best Science Fiction And Fantasy Of The Year: Volume Seven by Jonathan Strahan (Ed) (Night Shade Books)
Focus 2012: Highlights Of Australian Short Fiction by Tehani Wessely (Ed) (FableCroft Publishing)

BEST COLLECTION
The Bone Chime Song and Other Stories by Joanne Anderton (FableCroft Publishing)
Asymmetry by Thoraiya Dyer (Twelfth Planet Press)
Caution: Contains Small Parts by Kirstyn McDermott (Twelfth Planet Press)
The Bride Price by Cat Sparks (Ticonderoga Publications)
The Year of Ancient Ghosts by Kim Wilkins (Ticonderoga Publications)

The full press release and details about the awards ceremony can be found here.