• Reviewing The Starless Sea

    19 December 2019 /

    Tonight I will be on the arts/culture show Arena on RTÉ Radio 1, presented by Sean Rocks, reviewing The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern.

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  • Worldcon 75

    20 July 2017 /

    I’ll be attending the 75th World Science Fiction Convention in Helsinki, Finland from 9-13 August 2017, which is the first time a WorldCon has taken place in a Nordic country. It looks like it’s going to be a terrific event with a huge array of programming items. It will be my first time visiting Finland, and in a bonus coincidence, a new Moomin Museum has opened in Tampere. Here is my schedule for the event: Wednesday, 9 Aug, 2017 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM | Messukeskus, 206 ‘Coffee, Pie and Murder: 25 Years Later’ The cult television show Twin Peaks makes its return in 2017. Is this a good idea,…

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  • Shamrokon schedule

    21 August 2014 /

    Tomorrow marks the start of Shamrokon in Dublin, the European science fiction convention (Eurocon) which is held in a different country each year. After all the fun and frolics at Worldcon in London last weekend, I’m approaching this event with anticipation, tempered with a little fatigue. Here’s my schedule: Made In Ireland: Fantasy Classics By Irish Authors: Friday 15:00 – 16:00, D. Ulster Le Fanu Track: Vampire Lovers – Le Fanu and the Silver Screen: Saturday 15:00 – 16:00, C. Munster Le Fanu Track: Dracula vs. Carmilla: Saturday 16:00 – 17:00, C. Munster Women of 2000AD: Sunday 12:00 – 13:00, C. Munster Golden Blasters: Sunday 14:00 – 16:00, B. Lansdowne…

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  • Bone Mother optioned

    8 May 2014 /

    I’m delighted to announce that my short story ‘Bone Mother’ has been optioned by the National Film Board of Canada’s Animation Studio with the view to make a short stop-motion animated film, which will be adapted and directed by Sylvie Trouvé and Dale Hayward, and produced for the NFB by Jelena Popovic. I’m going to cut and paste what I wrote back in 2009 when ‘Bone Mother’ was podcast on Pseudopod. I wrote the first draft at Clarion West in 2006, and it was a pivotal story in my progress during the six-week workshop. I’d written a mediocre story the week before, and I felt extreme pressure (from myself) to produce…

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  • Octocon 2013 schedule

    7 October 2013 /

    It’s that time of the year again, which means I’ll be in The Camden Court Hotel in Dublin this weekend (12-13 October) attending one of my favourite conventions: Octocon. There are two terrific guests of honour that I’m very excited about meeting: comic book writer Gail Simone, and author Richard K Morgan. Both of them have created work I both enjoy and admire, so it will be a privilege to hear them talk about their interests. Here’s my schedule: Saturday 13:00 – Masterclass in Contemporary Fantasy (Pavilion) with Peadar Ó Guilín and Liz Bourke 15:00 – I Don’t Believe It, But It’s True (Abbey) with Ruth Frances Long, Leann Hamilton,…

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  • a whole new world…

    10 July 2013 /

    I’m not new to the concept of Cosplay and multi-media conventions. Last year I attended MCM Expo in London, along with Rob Curley and Stephen Downey, because our comic Jennifer Wilde was nominated for an Eagle Award. It’s one of the biggest cons of this type in the UK, and they got about 60,000+ people through the door. I thoroughly enjoyed the event, even if it was overwhelming at times due to the sheer volume of people attending. And at 2D Comic Book Festival in Derry there’s been an increasing Cosplay presence over the past three years. ArcadeCon is the first convention of this type I’ve attended in the Republic…

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  • British Fantasy Awards 2012 – nominees

    7 May 2012 /
    BFS

    The short-lists have been announced for the 2012 British Fantasy Awards: Novel 11.22.63 by Stephen King (Scribner) Among Others by Jo Walton (Tor Books) Cyber Circus by Kim Lakin-Smith (NewCon Press) A Dance with Dragons by George R R Martin (Bantam) The Heroes by Joe Abercrombie (Gollancz) The Ritual by Adam Nevill (Pan) There will be two awards in the best Novel category: The August Derleth Award for best horror novel and The Robert Holdstock Award for best fantasy novel. Novella ‘Alice through the plastic sheet’ by Robert Shearman (A Book of Horrors, Jo Fletcher Books) ‘Ghosts with Teeth’ by Peter Crowther (A Book of Horrors, Jo Fletcher Books) ‘Gorel…

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