Mieville Thread!

[LD]

Mieville wrote the introduction for this book by Hugh Cook: http://paizo.com/paizo/messageboards/paizoPublishing/planetStories/general/v5748dyo5lawh

[Steerpike]

Looks like an awesome author.

In other vaguely related news, I'm going to be presenting a paper on Mieville (specifically on Iron Council) at a science fiction conference in a few months... my first academic conference!

[LD]

Having a chance to deliver an academic paper is always exciting! Do they have a website, and will it be streamed online?

[Steerpike]

Here's the site.  No idea about whether there's going to be any kind of streaming...

[LD]

The upcoming special issues of their journals seem interesting:

"REMAKES, REVISIONS, REBOOTS: Why is the 21st century fascinated by returning to previous sf franchises? Is this nostalgia? Archive fever? Retrofuturism? What economic and cultural forces inform this recent fascination with return and renewal?

BIOPOLITICS: How do biopolitial theories of theorists such as Foucault, Hardt and Negri, Esposito and Agamben inform readings of sf? What can sf contribute to ongoing discussions of biopolitial governance? What can sf visions of posthumanism tell us about life under biopolitical capitalism?

http://www.sfra.org/

Good luck at the symposium. It does not seem as though there will be streaming.

Good luck if you're competing for this as well: http://www.sfra.org/node/54. (The student award).

[Superfluous Crow]

Seems there are already some teasers out on the book that is to follow Kraken. Embassytown is its name, and what I could find is the following quote from Miéville:
'[it is about] science fiction, aliens and spaceships, but I don't want to give too much away'  
So sci-fi from Miéville! Interesting.
A quick google search gave me this:
http://booktionary.blogspot.com/2010/05/news-china-mieville-has-released-kraken.html
which is the link where I found the quote.

[LD]

Anyone read Kraken yet? I heard it was quite good.
-
Re; Embassytown... seems like Steerpike got the jump on Mieville with his Monomolecular Swordcanes setting :). ... Is there any genre Mieville won't conquer? Is his next book going to be a paranormal romance, just to show that he can do it in literary style?

[Kindling]

I'm about a third of the way into Kraken at the moment, and it's GREAT! Feels like a slight return to the grounds of King Rat, but somewhat more mature, and certainly not as any kind of sequel.

[Superfluous Crow]

As some of you might remember there were some rumors about a Bas-Lag RPG in the works. I have been following this keenly, with the main issue being that there hasn't been a word about "Tales of New Crobuzon" for a while anywhere on the internet.
Being curious and slightly scared that the project had been scrapped as it was originally scheduled for fall 2009, I sent a mail to Adamant Entertainment to ask whether we could still hope to see a Bas-Lag RPG.
I got a reply a bit later and, rejoice, they are still working on it! It's taking a bit longer because China Miéville himself is involved in every step of the creative process, from art over rules to setting, and he is, not surprisingly perhaps, a busy, busy man.
Just thought you'd like to know that.

(I haven't copied the mail onto the Greater Internet Area as it was a personal reply and all that, but PM me if you want to see it)

[Steerpike]

Excellent news!!  I'm a bit pessemistic he'll return to Bas-Lag anytime soon, and this could be so excellent if done properly...

[LD]

Embassytown is coming out in a few weeks.

But also: http://www.theliteraryplatform.com/2011/03/return-to-bas-lag-an-interview-with-china-mieville/

[LD]

And a new short story: http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/apr/22/china-mieville-covehithe-short-story

[LD]

Hm. Apparently China Mieville wrote the intro to this book in 2004. http://monkeybrainbooks.com/Wizardry_and_Wild_Romance.html

[LD]

And a new upcoming novel in 2012?
http://www.amazon.com/Railsea-China-Mieville/dp/0345524527/

Railsea?

[Superfluous Crow]

A new book! I think this is the closest I will ever get to being a fan of something; just hearing the title makes me a little excited for it. Trains? Seas? I'm in.
EDIT: Mieville co-authored a Pathfinder Golarion supplement?!'
EDIT2: Also, what the hell is up with Adamant Entertainment and Tales of New Crobuzon! They swore they were still working on it.