SF Canada member Craig Russell was recently interviewed by Forrest Brown on the podcast Stories For Earth. They discuss Craig’s cli-fi novel Fragment and what motivated him to write the story.
When avalanching glaciers thrust a massive Antarctic ice sheet into the open ocean, the captain of an atomic submarine must risk his vessel to rescue the survivors of a smashed polar research station; in Washington the President’s top advisor scrambles to spin the disaster to suit his master’s political aims; and meanwhile two intrepid newsmen sail south into the storm-lashed Drake Passage to discover the truth. Onboard the submarine, as the colossal ice sheet begins its drift toward South America and the world begins to take notice, scientists uncover a secret that will threaten the future of America’s military power and change the fate of humanity. And beneath the human chaos one brave Blue Whale fights for the survival of his species.
Craig Russell’s YA fantasy novel, Black Bottle Man won a Moonbeam gold medal and was an Aurora Award finalist. His SF novel, Fragment was selected for the Yale University Climate Connections reading list and was shortlisted for the Michael Van Rooy Award. Craig grew up on a prairie farm with nine siblings and is now a retired lawyer living in Winnipeg, MB.
For an extended version of this interview and more information about Stories for Earth, visit storiesforearth.com.
SF Canada member Lisa Timpf has just published her first novella with JMS Books LLC. To Push Back the Darkness is a f/f romance/police procedural with science fiction elements.
When the trail goes cold on a string of robberies, Detective Janet Vertran is forced to call on her ex Fiona for help. When Fiona broke things off between them two years earlier, Janet swore she’d keep her distance. But she also knows from past experience how helpful Fiona’s creation, an android named Pat, can be in ferreting out the little details that make all the difference when solving tough crimes.
Though the robberies appear to have been conducted by separate individuals, Pat finds an unexpected connection between them. But as Janet, Fiona, and Pat get closer to unearthing the truth, it becomes clear the case is taking an emotional toll on Fiona.
As she works with her ex once again, Janet is reminded of old times and familiar feelings begin to stir. Is it possible they’ll get a second chance to make their relationship work? And will Janet find the courage to do what it takes to find out?
Lisa Timpf is a retired human resources and communications professional who lives in Simcoe, Ontario. Her writing has appeared in a number of venues, including Chicken Soup for the Soul: My Very Good, Very Bad Dog, New Myths, Third Flatiron, and Scifaikuest.
A graduate of McMaster University’s Physical Education program, Ms. Timpf also completed course work toward an MSc in Sport History at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. When not writing, Lisa enjoys cycling and bird-watching.
SF Canada member Christine Hart just released a new YA novel, The Electric Girl. The story features a dual POV narrative, a rural BC setting circa 1988, and plenty of retro pop culture.
Polly Michaels is trying to forget that her mom has cancer. She keeps busy at school and plods through a normal social life. Until a freak electrical storm and a unicorn appear in the orchard next to her house.
Sy’kai wakes on an orchard floor to the smell of rotting cherries and wet earth. She doesn’t know where she is-or what she is-but she knows something is hunting her.
Polly recruits her friends to find the mysterious creature she saw from her window while Sy’kai, a confused shape-shifting endling from another dimension tries to piece her mind back together. Once the human girls find Sy’kai (whom they nickname Psyche) the mystery unravels and the danger facing all of them comes into focus.
A gritty struggle ranges throughout the girls’ rural hometown and in the wild terrain around it. All while two questions hang over their heads. Can an alien deliver a miracle for a human mother? Can a group of teens defeat an interdimensional demon?
Christine Hart writes from her suburban home on BC’s beautiful West Coast. She specializes in speculative fiction for young readers. Her stories feature detailed real-world landscapes as a backdrop for the surreal. Her backlist includes YA, NA, and MG titles, including The Variant Conspiracy trilogy and Watching July.
Christine works as a content and communications specialist for a technology studio in Vancouver. And when not writing, she melts metal under the guise of her Etsy alter-ego Sleepless Storyteller.
SF Canada member M.L.D. Curelas has a story in a new anthology Clockwork, Curses, & Coal: Steampunk and Gaslamp Fairy Tales.
“The Coach Girl” is a take on “The Goose Girl” by the Brothers Grimm. Clockwork, Curses, & Coal was published by World Weaver Press and edited by Rhonda Parrish.
Fairies threaten the world of artifice and technology, forcing the royal family to solve a riddle to stop their world from irrevocable change; a dishonest merchant uses automatons as vessels for his secrets and lies; a woman discovers the secret of three princesses whose shoes get scuffed while they sleep. These and so many other steampunk and gaslamp fairy tales await within the pages of Clockwork, Curses and Coal.
Retellings of Hansel and Gretel, The Princess and the Pea, Pinocchio, The Twelve Dancing Princesses and more are all showcased alongside some original fairy tale-like stories. Featuring stories by Melissa Bobe, Adam Brekenridge, Beth Cato, MLD Curelas, Joseph Halden, Reese Hogan, Diana Hurlburt, Christina Johnson, Alethea Kontis, Lex T. Lindsay, Wendy Nikel, Brian Trent, Laura VanArendonk Baugh and Sarah Van Goethem.
M.L.D. Curelas is the publisher of Tyche Books, a Canadian small-press specializing in science-fiction and fantasy anthologies, novels, and non-fiction. She enjoys Victorian fiction, a Proper Tea, and stalking authors at conventions. She is disappointed that the “no capes” rule applies to publishing.
Today we have a new SF Canada member interview. Marie Powell recently spoke with Sci Fi Saturday Night about about her new series Last Of The Gifted and the first book in this saga, Spirit Sight.
“Those familiar with most of her past work as a children’s author will be quite delighted at the beauty, maturity and difference in this work. While some have referred to this as YA, I will vociferously disagree. This is the beginning of a wonderfully well written series of novels. Take the time to listen to her, get to know her, read the book and do what we did.”
Marie Powell’s adventures in castle-hopping and exploring her family roots resulted in her historical fantasy novels, Spirit Sight and Water Sight (Last of the Gifted). These are just two of Marie’s 40-plus children’s and young adult books with such traditional publishers as Amicus Publishing, Scholastic Education, Lerner/Lightning Bolt, Crabtree and more. Her short fiction and poetry can be found in subTerrain, Room, Transition, and other literary magazines. She is also a professional writer, editor, journalist, and photographer with work published in a variety of formats.
Marie’s children’s books include early readers, middle-grade nonfiction, and science books for young readers. Her young adult novels include fantasy and historical fantasy books. Her articles appear in newspapers, magazines, online and international markets. Her poetry and short fiction have appeared in a variety of literary magazines and anthologies. As well, she provides research and editing services, and loves to do readings and workshops for all ages.
Robert spoke with Todd Sullivan and read his latest short story, “Inuksuk” from Issue #15 of Polar Borealis.
Watch (or listen) to the full interview here:
Lorina was interviewed by Gordon Gibb for his radio feature, The Bookshelf, on Kawartha Oldies. They chatted about her latest novel, The Rose Guardian, a story of grief and the power of forgiveness.
There is a conversation that should have happened between Vi Cotter and her mother. Now it’s too late.
But sometimes the dead speak through the legacy they leave, and in this case Vi’s mother bequeaths her, among other things, her journals. Do we sometimes seek absolution from the grave? Do we seek reconciliation between the child, the woman, the crone?
In a story of unspoken truths and hidden fears, The Rose Guardian explores the cages we make when we fail to unlock our secrets.
Dr. Robert Runté is Senior Editor with EssentialEdits.ca, a retired professor (University of Lethbridge), and former Senior Editor for Five Rivers Publishing. As an academic, editor, reviewer, and organizer, Robert has been actively promoting Canadian SF for over forty years. He was a founding Director of NonCon, Context89, and SF Canada; and has served on the Boards of the Edmonton Science Fiction and Comic Arts Society, On Spec Magazine, Tesseract Books, and The Writers Guild of Alberta. In addition to dozens of conference papers, journal articles, book chapters, and a half dozen entries in the Encyclopedia of Literature in Canada , Robert has edited over 150 issues of various SF newsletters.
Lorina Stephens has worked all sides of the publishing desk: writer, editor, publisher. From freelance journalist for regional and national periodicals, to editor of a regional lifestyle magazine and then her own publishing house, she has been in the industry since 1980. Lorina has witnessed publishing evolve into the dynamic form of self-expression which exists today. For 12 years she operated Five Rivers Publishing as a house which would give voice to Canadian authors. Her short fiction has appeared in literary and genre publications, novels under her own house, Five Rivers Publishing, non-fiction under Boston Mills Press and an anthology co-edited with Susan MacGregor, Tesseracts 22: Alchemy and Artifacts.
When avalanching glaciers thrust a massive Antarctic ice sheet into the open ocean, the captain of an atomic submarine must risk his vessel to rescue the survivors of a smashed polar research station; in Washington the President’s top advisor scrambles to spin the disaster to suit his master’s political aims; and meanwhile two intrepid newsmen sail south into the storm-lashed Drake Passage to discover the truth. Onboard the submarine, as the colossal ice sheet begins its drift toward South America and the world begins to take notice, scientists uncover a secret that will threaten the future of America’s military power and change the fate of humanity. And beneath the human chaos one brave Blue Whale fights for the survival of his species.
