News Archive 2015
December 2015
NOVACON 45
Novacon (13th-15th November), at which my wife Anne Nicholls and myself were joint guests of honour, was a very enjoyable, well-run event.
Here are some photos.
The above photos were taken by Al Johnston, and are used with his permission.
With Ian Whates (Newcon Press) at the Novacon launch of Orcs: Tales of Maras-Dantia.
Anne at the Novacon launch of Music From The Fifth Planet (Alchemy Press).
These two photos were taken by Peter Coleborn, and are used with his permission.
The Amazon UK listing for the paperback of Music From The Fifth Planet is here, and the Kindle edition here.
The Amazon UK listing for the paperback edition of Orcs: Tales of Maras-Dantia is here, and the Kindle edition here. (Paperback published 1st December; the ebook has been available for download since 27th November.)
There is also a signed, numbered hardback of the Orcs book limited to just 100 copies, published 1st December, of which I understand something like half have been sold at time of writing. Please note that this edition is available only from Newcon Press directly, while stocks last.
Pleasingly, the guest of honour for Novacon 46 ( 14th-16th November 2016; Park Inn Hotel, Nottingham) is Juliet McKenna. The Novacon 46 website is here.
INTERVIEW
There’s an interview with me about Orcs: Tales of Maras-Dantia and all things orcish on the excellent Scififantasy network here.
WHERE WE’LL BE NEXT MARCH
I’m pleased to announce that Anne and I will be among the guests in the “Author Zone” of 2016’s Sci-Fi Weekender (17th-20th March; Hafan Y Mor Holiday Park, Pwllheli, Gwynedd, North Wales LL53 6HJ). The website is here. More details as known. Meanwhile, here’s a poster for the event. We’ll be in good company!
IT’S THAT TIME OF YEAR AGAIN
November 2015
NOVACON CHAPBOOK
It’s a tradition for Novacon guests of honour to write an original piece of fiction to be presented to attendees in the form of a chapbook. As my wife Anne Nicholls and myself have the pleasure of being this year’s joint Guests of Honour at Novacon, we’ve each written a story specially for the convention. Here’s the cover of the chapbook, by David A. Hardy, who’s caught the essence of our stories perfectly.
BOOK LAUNCHES AT NOVACON
We each have new books launching at Novacon, too.
Both are collections. Music From The Fifth Planet, which has an introduction by Justina Robson and cover art by David A Hardy, is published by Alchemy Press. Orcs: Tales of Maras-Dantia, a prequel to my Orcs trilogies, has a cover by Chris (Fangorn) Baker and is published by Newcon Press. Both books will be available in paper and ebook editions.
Novacon 45 takes place 13th-15th November at the Park Inn Hotel, Nottingham. Details on the website.
POPULAR IN THE NETHERLANDS
It's a great honour to be included in this list, published by the FantasyWereld site on 26th October, of most popular fantasy fiction as determined by readers in the Netherlands. And I'm in excellent company.
October 2015
BOOK LAUNCHES AT NOVACON
Novacon is the UK’s longest running regional science fiction convention, and this year my wife Anne Nicholls and myself are pleased to be the joint guests of honour.
We’ve both written stories specially for a souvenir chapbook to be issued to all attendees, and I’ll have details about that next month. We also have two new books launching at the convention.
Mine is:
The cover is by Chris (Fangorn) Baker and the publisher is Newcon Press.
Here’s the table of contents -
-
Introduction
-
The Taking
-
Fit For Purpose
-
Paid In Blood
-
A Night On The Tiles
-
Bonus #1 : Weapons of Magical Destruction Alternate Opening
-
Bonus #2: David Gemmell Interviews Stan Nicholls
About The Author
And the promotional blurb -
“In Orcs: Tales Of Maras-Dantia, Stan Nicholls delivers an action-packed prequel to his international best-selling Orcs series. Join Stryke, Haskeer, Coilla and the rest of the Wolverines – the toughest, meanest mercenary band around – as they face their most dangerous missions yet in three brand new tales, a novella and two novelettes, along with the award-shortlisted story “The Taken”.
“The volume is completed by an excised opening chapter from the novel Weapons of Magical Destruction, which shows our hard-bitten heroes in a new light, and an Orcish interview with the author conducted by the late David Gemmell. Both are published here for the first time.
“Stan has no plans to revisit his Orcs after this volume, so it seems likely these stories represent the Wolverines’ final hurrah. If so, they bow out in style.”
* * *
Anne’s book is a short story collection entitled Music From The Fifth Planet, and it has an introduction by Justina Robson. The publisher is Alchemy Press. Here’s the splendid David A. Hardy cover:
Both books will be available in print and ebook editions.
Novacon 45 takes place on 13th-15th November at the Park Inn Hotel, Nottingham. The website is here.
Anne has a Facebook page displaying her own art, which can be found here.
DERBY WRITER'S DAY
I mentioned this last month, and now I have more details. Derby Writers’ Day takes place on Saturday 17th October between 10am and 4pm.
Venue is the Quad, Market Place, Cathedral Quarter, Derby DE1 3AS. Admission is £35, which includes a goodie bag.
The organisers describe the event this way:
“Derby Writers' Day presents the perfect day out for any aspiring author, gathering together top professionals from across the world of writing and publishing for a day of panels, interviews and much more. Designed to give you all the tools you need to take your writing career forward, expect plenty of advice, inspiration and guidance from a cast of speakers who have been there and done it!”
The confirmed participants are Tom Ashton (Boo Books), Emma Bamford, Tracy Bloom, Stephen Booth, Ross Bradshaw (Five Leaves), Mark Chadbourn, James Wilde, Elizabeth Chadwick, Alex Davis (Boo Books), Steven Dunne, Clare Harvey, Jim Hinks (Comma Press), Sian Hoyle, Kim Lakin-Smith, Jane Linfoot, Eve Makis, Alison McQueen, Alison Moore, Nicola Monaghan, Niki Valentine, Sue Moorcroft, Julia Murday (Penguin/Random House), Stan Nicholls.
Derby Writers’ Day is sponsored by Writing East Midlands and Writing magazine. The event’s website is here.
Or email event organiser Alex Davis at alexdavisevents@hotmail.co.uk
September 2015
2015 GEMMELL AWARDS WINNERS
The presentation of 2015’s David Gemmell Awards For Fantasy took place on Saturday 8th August as part of Nine Worlds Geekfest. A record 36,759 votes were cast this year - 17,059 in the first round (longlists) and 19,700 in the second (shortlists).
The winners were:
RAVENHEART AWARD
(Best cover art)
Sam Green for Words of Radiance by Brandon Sanderson (Gollancz)
MORNINGSTAR AWARD
(Best debut)
The Emperor's Blades by Brian Staveley (Pan Macmillan/Tor UK)
LEGEND AWARD
(Best novel)
Words of Radiance by Brandon Sanderson (Gollancz)
This is the second time Brandon Sanderson has won the Legend Award - he took it in 2011 for The Way of Kings.
Presenters Stan Nicholls, Anne Nicholls and Juliet McKenna
L to r: Gaie Sebold presents the Ravenheart Award; Adrian Tchaikovsky presents the Morningstar; Richard Edwards, editor of SFX magazine, presents the Legend.
L to r: Tor UK’s Bella Pagan accepts the Morningstar Award on behalf of Brian Staveley; Gollancz’s Simon Spanton accepts the Ravenheart and Legend Awards on behalf of Sam Green and Brandon Sanderson; Ian Whates introduces the Legends II anthology, which launched straight after the ceremony.
As in the previous two years, Nine Worlds Geekfest was held at the Radisson Blu Edwardian hotel, Heathrow. But the organisers have announced that they’ll be using a different London venue next year (12th-14th August 2016). I’ll pass on news of the location when known.
Programme books from the first seven years of the Gemmell Awards
STORY BEHIND THE BOOK, VOLUME 5
I’m proud to be part of this collection of essays, all proceeds from which are donated to UK registered charity Epilepsy Action. Many genre authors have contributed, including David Drake, Jaine Fenn, Simon Ings, Charlaine Harris, Paul Kane, Sarah Pinborough, Ian McDonald, Kim Lakin-Smith and Freda Warrington.
WRITERS’ DAY
I’ve just agreed to be one of the participants in a writers’ day to be held at the Quad, Derby on Saturday 17th October. The event is described as offering “ ... information, advice and guidance on various aspects of writing.” I’ll be part of the science fiction/fantasy panel. More details next month.
August 2015
COVER REVEAL
Here’s the finished cover for Orcs: Tales of Maras-Dantia, published by Newcon Press in November and launching at Novacon 45. Art by Chris Baker. Alongside is an ad for the book. Despite what it says, the book contains only one reprinted story, and that’s been revised. Tales of Maras-Dantia will be available in both print and ebook editions.
NEW FRENCH OMNIBUS OF SECOND ORCS TRILOGY
This is part of Bragelonne’s “ten books for 10 euros” promotion – all three volumes of Orcs: Bad Blood, nearly 800 pages, for a bargain price. But the print-run is limited and once out of print, it’s gone. See the entry on Amazon France here.
GEMMELL AWARDS: NEW MORNINGSTAR TROPHY
This is the new trophy for the Morningstar Award (best debut novel) to be presented for the first time at this year’s Gemmell Awards ceremony. The trophy was created by Lee Blair, the artist who also made the trophy for the Ravenheart Award (best fantasy book cover art) first presented at last year’s ceremony. The third trophy, for the Legend Award (best novel) is fashioned by Simon Fearnhamm of Raven Armoury.
This year’s David Gemmell Awards For Fantasy takes place at 8pm (doors open 7.30) on Saturday 8th August at Nine Worlds Geekfest, Heathrow.
New Worlds is a great convention, and I urge everyone to register. But for anyone who can only attend the Gemmell Awards ceremony admission is FREE. If you don’t have a Nine Worlds badge you’ll be issued with a Gemmell Awards wristband (shown below), good for admission to the awards ceremony alone - it won’t grant access to the rest of the convention’s programme. Nine World’s full schedule, including the Gemmell Awards, is here.
Nine Worlds will also see the launch of Legends 2, the anthology of all original fantasy stories that helps support the Gemmell Awards. The launch takes place immediately after the awards presentation, and entry is again FREE.
NOVACON 45: A REMINDER
Orcs: Tales of Maras-Dantia and Anne’s short story collection Music From The Fifth Planet (Alchemy Press) launch at Novacon, along with a chapbook containing original fiction specially written by both of us.
ONE FOR YOUR 2016 DIARY
The Andromeda convention returns after a hiatus of a couple of years. Confirmed guests of honour are author Sam Stone and artist David A Hardy, with Jasper Bark as MC. Other speakers so far lined-up include Raven Dane, David J Howe, Steve Lockley, Ben Jeapes, Anne and myself. More details when available. Andromeda 2 has a Facebook page here.
July 2015
STILL TIME TO VOTE ON GEMMELL AWARDS SHORTLISTS
As I mentioned last month, voting on 2015’s David Gemmell Awards For Fantasy’s shortlists opened on 1st June. As I posted that item before the shortlists were officially announced, I didn’t list them here. You’ll find them below. Voting on the shortlists closes at midnight on Friday 17th July. Vote at the awards website here. The winners will be announced during a ceremony at 8pm on Saturday 8th August at Nine Worlds Geekfest. Admission to the ceremony is free, but doesn’t grant entry to the rest of Nine Worlds. To enjoy the entire weekend you have to register. Which I highly recommend - it’s a great convention.
The Shortlists
Legend Award (Best novel)
Half a King by Joe Abercrombie (HarperCollins)
Valour by John Gwynne (Pan Macmillan/Tor UK)
Prince of Fools by Mark Lawrence (HarperCollins)
Words of Radiance by Brandon Sanderson (Gollancz)
The Broken Eye by Brent Weeks (Orbit)
Morningstar Award (Best debut)
Traitor's Blade by Sebastien de Castell (Jo Fletcher Books)
The Mirror Empire by Kameron Hurley (Angry Robot)
The Godless by Ben Peek (Pan Macmillan/Tor UK)
The Emperor's Blades by Brian Stavely (Pan Macmillan/Tor UK)
Age of Iron by Angus Watson (Orbit)
Ravenheart Award (Best cover art)
Mike Bryan for Half a King by Joe Abercrombie (HarperCollins)
Laura Brett for The Slow Regard for Silent Things by Patrick Rothfuss (Gollancz)
Jason Chan for Prince of Fools by Mark Lawrence (HarperCollins)
Sam Green for Words of Radiance by Brandon Sanderson (Gollancz)
Jackie Morris for The Fool's Assassin by Robin Hobb (HarperCollins)
BOOKS, BOOKS, BOOKS
Here’s a brief round-up of some forthcoming titles that might be of interest.
Last month I posted the table of content for the forthcoming anthology Legends 2, for which I wrote the introduction. Along with the first volume, Legends 2 will help financially support the Gemmell Awards. The Kindle edition of the book, published by Newcon Press in August, can now be pre-ordered here. Legends 2 will be launched during this year’s awards ceremony, and details of how to order the paperback and signed, limited hardback editions will be announced soon.
My wife Anne Nicholls and myself are guests of honour at this year’s Novacon, to be held in Nottingham13th-15th November, and the event will see the publication of a chapbook containing specially written stories by both of us. We’ll have more on that nearer the event.
Novacon will also feature the launch of new books by us. Both are short story collections. Anne’s is entitled Music From The Fifth Planet, published by
Alchemy Press. It’s too early to have a cover for that; I’ll post it here when available. Mine, which I’ve mentioned before, is Orcs: Tales of Maras-Dantia, from Newcon Press. Here’s the cover artwork, by Chris (Fangorn) Baker, sans over-print:
Apart from a writer of science fiction and fantasy, Anne is a practising psychotherapist, and an author and journalist in that field. On 16th July her publisher, Piatkus, is issuing two of her books as Kindle editions:
June 2015
VOTING ON GEMMELL AWARDS SHORTLISTS OPEN FROM 1st JUNE
Photo courtesy of Freda Warrington
Voting on the longlists for this year’s David Gemmell Awards For Fantasy closed on 15th May. A record 17,059 votes were cast.
Voting on the shortlists – for the Legend Award (best novel, Morningstar Award (best debut) and Ravenheart Award (best cover art) – opens at one minute past midnight on Monday 1st June. Voting closes at midnight on Friday 17th July.
Voting is free at the awards website here.
The winners will be revealed during the ceremony at 8pm on Saturday 8th August at Nine Worlds Geekfest.
LEGENDS 2 FINAL LINE-UP
The Legends series of all new fantasy anthologies, published by Newcon Press, helps support the Gemmell Awards. Legends 2 will be launched during this year’s awards ceremony on 8th August. The book will be available as a limited hardback edition, signed by all contributors, a paperback edition and an e-book version.
Table of content:
1. Introduction – Stan Nicholls
2. The Blessed and the Cursed – Gav Thorpe
3. A Rescue – Mark Lawrence
4. The Lowest Place – Edward Cox
5. The Giant’s Lady – Rowena Cory Daniels
6. An Oath Given – John Gwynne
7. The Singer – Stella Gemmell
8. Sandrunners – Anthony Ryan
9. Smokestack Lightning – Gavin Smith
10. Oak – Lou Morgan
11. An Owl in Moonlight – Freda Warrington
12. Heaven of Animals – John Hornor Jacobs
13. The Iron Wolves: Retribution – Andy Remic
14. About the Authors
The first volume, published in November 2013, is still going strong and is available here.
REMINDER: NOVACON 45
The UK’s most popular regional science fiction convention, Novacon, takes place 13th-15th November, and my wife Anne Nicholls and myself are proud to be this year’s joint guests of honour.
The venue is the Park Inn Hotel, Nottingham.
Novacon’s website is here. Also Tumblr, Facebook and Twitter@novacon45.
May 2015
VOTING ON GEMMELL AWARDS
LONGLISTS NOW OPEN
Voting on the longlists for 2015’s David Gemmell Awards For Fantasy opened on 10th April and will close at midnight on Friday 15th May.
There are three categories -
the Legend Award (best novel)
the Morningstar Award (best debut)
the Ravenheart Award (best cover art)
Voting on the shortlists opens on Monday 1st June and closes at midnight on Friday 17th July.
The presentation takes place at 8pm on Saturday 8th August at Nine Worlds Geekfest.
Voting is open and free, and you can participate at the awards’ brand new website here.
LEGENDS 2 FINISHED COVER
Here’s the finished cover of Legends 2 that I promised last month.
This second volume of all new fantasy stories, published by Newcon Press, helps support the Gemmell Awards, and will be launched during this year’s ceremony on 8th August. There’s going to be a limited hardback edition, signed by all contributors, a paperback edition and an e-book version. The complete list of writers included is being finalised at time of writing - it’s longer than the provisional t.o.c. I gave last month - and I’ll have all the details next time. The cover art is by Dominic Harman.
NOVACON 45
My wife Anne Nicholls and myself are proud to be joint guests of honour at this year’s Novacon (Park Inn Hotel, Nottingham; 13-15 November).
The organisers thought it’d be a good idea to have Anne write about me and for me to write about Anne, for the con’s progress reports.
This link goes to Novacon’s Progress Report 1, where Anne writes about me. (I write about her in the forthcoming PR 2.)
April 2015
LEGENDS 2 LINE-UP REVEALED
Well, most of it. Following the great success of the first Legends anthology (published in November 2013) which helps to financially support The David Gemmell Awards For Fantasy, Newcon Press has announced volume two. Again edited by Ian Whates, and scheduled for publication in August, the second volume will contain original stories by Edward Cox, Rowena Cory Daniels, Stella Gemmell, John Gwynne, Mark Lawrence, Andy Remic, Anthony Ryan, Gavin Smith, Gav Thorpe, Freda Warrington and several other authors to be announced. As with the first volume, I’ll be supplying an introduction. And the cover will again be by Dominic Harman (artwork without over-print above).
There will be a paperback edition, an e-book version, and a limited edition hardback, signed by all the authors. Pre-orders are being taken now at the spacewitch website.
The first Legends is still available in paperback and as an e-book - the limited edition hardback is long out of print - and here’s a reminder of its content:
Legends 2 will be launched as part of this year’s Gemmell Awards ceremony, which takes place on the evening of Saturday 8th August as part of the splendid Nine Worlds Geekfest at the Radisson Hotel, Heathrow. You can read about the Gemmells/Nine Worlds team-up here.
I should have Legends 2’s full table of contents for the May update, and hopefully a finished jacket. The brand new Gemmell Awards website is due to go live this month.
March 2015
Now in its forty-fifth year, Novacon is the longest-running, most popular regional, literature based science fiction convention in the UK. So I’m delighted that my wife, Anne Nicholls, and myself are joint guests of honour this year.
Guests of Honour
Anne and Stan Nicholls
It’s a tradition with Novacon that the GoH’s are asked to produce original pieces of work, fiction or non-fiction, to be published in a special, limited edition presented exclusively to the convention’s attendees. So we’ll be writing at least two stories for the event, and possibly more. In addition to that, we’ll both have new books launched at Novacon. More news on those a little later in the year.
Where: The Park Inn Hotel, 296 Mansfield Road, Nottingham. NG5 2BT.
When: 13-15 November 2015. Novacon’s website is here.
2015 GEMMELL AWARDS VENUE ANNOUNCED
Here in its entirety is a press release we put out a couple of weeks ago -
PRESTIGIOUS GEMMELL AWARDS CEREMONY TO TAKE PLACE AT NINE WORLDS GEEKFEST
The David Gemmell Awards for Fantasy enters its seventh year in 2015, once again recognising and rewarding the very best in fantasy fiction and artwork each year. With a host of acclaimed winners in the roll of honour, the Awards are again expected to be much-coveted this year.
The Awards ceremony is now confirmed to take place at Nine Worlds Geekfest, one of the UK's largest genre conventions and a highly anticipated event for readers, writers and fans of fantasy and science-fiction. The Gemmell Awards ceremony is a superb addition to an always lively and interesting programme, and will be taking place at 8pm on Saturday 8th August.
The ceremony will see the three 2015 awards presented, with the Legend Award for Best Fantasy Novel, Morningstar Award for Best Fantasy Debut and Ravenheart Award for Best Fantasy Cover Art. Attracting a wide host of writers and publishing professionals, the glitzy ceremony is always a highlight of the fantasy fiction calendar.
Nine Worlds Geekfest (https://nineworlds.co.uk/) runs from the 7th-9th August, at Heathrow, and presents a wide range of multimedia genre activities, including the active reading and writing thread of which the Gemmell Awards Ceremony will be an integral part. There are also threads each year for geek culture, film, roleplay and storytelling, video gaming, signings, and much more. Established in 2013, the event has cemented itself as a must-attend for fans of science-fiction, fantasy and more. With weekend tickets currently available for £85, Nine Worlds Geekfest offers incredible value.
Stan Nicholls, Chair for the Gemmell Awards, said: 'I couldn't think of a better event for us to partner with than Nine Worlds, and we look forward to bringing another superb awards ceremony not only to our regular attendees but a whole new audience on 8th August.'
‘Nine Worlds is immensely proud to be hosting the 2015 Gemmell Awards,’ says Erich Schultz, co-founder of Nine Worlds Geekfest. ‘The Gemmells play a terrific and important role in the fantasy literary scene, and the Nine Worlds team and attendees are hugely excited to be a part of this wonderful institution.’
The Gemmell Awards ceremony takes place at 8pm on Saturday 8th August as part of the Nine Worlds Geekfest event. Members of the public wishing to attend the ceremony will be able to do so for free, but will not have access to any of the other exciting events over the weekend.
ENDS
NOTES TO THE EDITOR
The David Gemmell Awards for Fantasy began in 2009, with the aim of celebrating the best in fantasy fiction and commemorating one of its most legendary authors. Since its inaugural year, the awards have been won by authors including Andrezj Sapowski, Graham McNeill, Brandon Sanderson, Pierre Pevel, Patrick Rothfuss, Helen Lowe, Brent Weeks, John Gwynne, Brian McLellan and Mark Lawrence. The Awards continue to pursue their three aims – to raise public awareness of the fantasy genre, to celebrate the history and cultural importance of fantasy literature and to appreciate and reward excellence in the field.
Stan Nicholls is an author of fantasy fiction with more than thirty books to his credit. He has also been a journalist and specialist bookshop proprietor. His Orcs: First Blood trilogy is a world-wide bestseller, with over a million copies sold, and he was the recipient of a lifetime achievement award presented at Belgium’s Trolls & Legendes festival in 2007.
The Gemmell Awards Publicity Officer, Alex Davis, can be contacted via gemmellspr@hotmail.com
The next update will carry word of the awards’ brand new website.
February 2015
MORE GEMMELL AWARDS NEWS
A press release from awards public relations officer Alex Davis -
DAVID GEMMELL AWARDS FOR FANTASY WELCOMES THREE NEW COMMITTEE MEMBERS FOR 2015
The David Gemmell Awards for Fantasy will be returning in 2015 to honour the very best in fantasy fiction and artwork. Now entering its seventh year, the awards will be welcoming three new committee members to play a key role in the delivery and administration of these significant prizes.
Acclaimed fantasy author Juliet E McKenna joins the committee for 2015. Juliet is the author of a host of fantasy series, including most recently the Hadrumal Crisis, The Chronicles of the Lescari Revolution and The Aldabreshin Compass. She also regularly writes reviews and genre non-fiction, and her knowledge and passion for fantasy will be a key part of the Awards committee.
Sky Campbell also joins the Awards team for 2015. Sky lives in the USA and works in the field of endangered language preservation. A long time David Gemmell fan, he was the creator of the popular fan site www.legendreaders.com and will be bringing that same online expertise and energy to the awards team, and will play a vital role in developing the new Awards website.
Luke Arthur is the final addition to the committee. Luke discovered both fantasy and David’s work whilst reading Morningstar. He has a solid background in marketing, PR and event management, working for large organisations on an international scale. His enthusiasm and dedication is a welcome addition to the Awards in 2015.
Stan Nicholls, Chair for the David Gemmell Awards for Fantasy, said: 'It's important for any organisation to ensure fresh energy and input, and as such I'm delighted to welcome Juliet, Sky and Luke to the committee for 2015. I look forward to all the fantastic ideas and dynamism that can bring to the team.'
The David Gemmell Awards for Fantasy will be taking place in August 2015, with publisher nominations opening in January and public voting to follow in March.
The David Gemmell Awards for Fantasy began in 2009, with the aim of celebrating the best in fantasy fiction and commemorating one of its most legendary authors. Since its inaugural year, the awards have been won by authors including Andrezj Sapowski, Graham McNeill, Brandon Sanderson, Pierre Pevel, Patrick Rothfuss, Helen Lowe, Brent Weeks, John Gwynne, Brian McLellan and Mark Lawrence. The Awards continue to pursue their three aims – to raise public awareness of the Fantasy genre, to celebrate the history and cultural importance of Fantasy literature and to appreciate and reward excellence in the field.
Stan Nicholls is an author of fantasy fiction with more than thirty books to his credit. He has also been a journalist and specialist bookshop proprietor. His Orcs: First Blood trilogy is a world-wide bestseller, with over a million copies sold, and he was the recipient of a lifetime achievement award presented at Belgium’s Trolls & Legendes festival in 2007.
The David Gemmell Awards For Fantasy will have a new venue for this year’s presentation, and a new website. There’ll be more on this in the next news update.
HEAR THE ORCS
In response to enquiries from readers who like the idea of an audio version of my first orcs trilogy, here’s a reminder that such a thing exists; all 25 hours of it in an unabridged reading by John Lee for Audible.
German readers might be interested in this version, read by Erik Schaeffler and published by Der Hörverlag.
January 2015
THE GEMMELL AWARDS ARE EVOLVING
The David Gemmell Awards For Fantasy (of which I’m proud to be Chair) are set to undergo some changes this year. The 2015 ceremony is going to be in August rather than the usual June, at an exciting new venue; a brand new website’s about to be launched, and we’re welcoming a bunch of new committee members. (Yes, “new” is the buzzword for this year’s awards.) Details of these changes, and more, will be revealed throughout this month via social media, and I’ll be rounding everything up in the February update here.
Meanwhile, here’s our first press release of the New Year:
DAVID GEMMELL AWARDS FOR FANTASY TO RETURN WITH FRESH LOOK IN 2015
Since 2009, the David Gemmell Awards for Fantasy have been honouring the very finest in fantasy fiction and artwork each year. With the awards about to enter their seventh year, there are exciting changes upcoming in 2015, whilst still maintaining the prestige and quality that the awards have become renowned for.
The forthcoming David Gemmell Awards ceremony will be taking place in August 2015, once again presenting three individual prizes – the Legend Award for best fantasy novel, the Morningstar Award for best fantasy debut and the Ravenheart Award for best cover art. With a roll of honour including modern fantasy greats such as John Gwynne, Mark Lawrence, Helen Lowe, Brian McClellan, Graham McNeill, Patrick Rothfuss, Brandon Sanderson and Brent Weeks, voting is once again expected to be hugely competitive. A new venue for the ceremony will also be confirmed shortly.
Publisher nominations for the awards will be open in January, with the public invited to vote on the longlists in March. It's one of few awards in the field decided by genre readers and fans, and will again be giving the fantasy audience their say on the finest works of the year.
A new website for the awards will also be live soon, with a host of exciting new features and content.
Stan Nicholls, Chair of the Gemmell Awards for Fantasy, said: 'We're delighted to be further strengthening the Gemmell Awards with these changes, which will give more people the chance to engage with the voting process and the ceremony itself. 2015 is shaping up to be fantastic for us, and we have much more exciting news to announce in the New Year, so watch this space!'
The David Gemmell Awards for Fantasy began in 2009, with the aim of celebrating the best in fantasy fiction and commemorating one of its most legendary authors. Since its inaugural year, the awards have been won by authors including Andrezj Sapowski, Graham McNeill, Brandon Sanderson, Pierre Pevel, Patrick Rothfuss, Helen Lowe, Brent Weeks, John Gwynne, Brian McLellan and Mark Lawrence. The Awards continue to pursue their three aims – to raise public awareness of the Fantasy genre, to celebrate the history and cultural importance of Fantasy literature and to appreciate and reward excellence in the field.
Stan Nicholls is an author of fantasy fiction with more than thirty books to his credit. He has also been a journalist and specialist bookshop proprietor. His Orcs: First Blood trilogy is a world-wide bestseller, with over a million copies sold, and he was the recipient of a lifetime achievement award presented at Belgium’s Trolls & Legendes festival in 2007.
Our PR officer is Alex Davis, and please note that we now have a new email address if you need to contact him: gemmellspr@hotmail.com
THE LEGENDS ANTHOLOGY
This seems a good time to remind you about Legends, the anthology published by Newcon Press in support of the awards, which continues to sell strongly - not surprising, perhaps, when you look at the list of contributors. Legends is available in paperback and ebook editions (the limited, signed hardback is out of print and a collectors’ item).
2015 will see the publication of Legends 2, and I’ll post details here as soon as they’re available.
© Stan Nicholls
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