Monday 27 February 2012

Blog Tour - 'Arctic Rising' (Tobias Buckell)

I don't normally go in for these things but when I was asked if I'd like to be part of Tobias' blog tour I had to say yes, having enjoyed the books of his that I've read in the last few years. The reading pile is teetering once again but I'm planning on reading 'Arctic Rising' sooner rather than later.
Here's what Tobias has to say for himself today...

So I have a new book out after a roughly three year gap. And it's been a weird three years. Most people might remember me from the far future space opera steampunk type mashup books I did with dreadlocked Caribbean cyborgs putting the smack down on colonialist masters. So now Tobias is doing a near future novel? Something he calls an eco-thriller? What gives?

I think in Silicon Valley it's called the art of the 'pivot.'

I really fell head over heels for the cyberpunk writers back in the mid 90s thanks to a chance discovery. It was Bruce Sterling's Islands in The Net that hit me upside the head. The first third of it was set in a near future Grenada. I grew up in Grenada. It was the first moment where I thought that maybe I could fuse my Caribbean background and experiences with my favorite genre, SF, and make a career of it.

I loved writing those first few big action books, but I've secretly always wanted to do a tech-oriented, near future piece. I've always wanted to play with what's just over the horizon, like the master authors I wanted to follow in the footsteps of while in high school.

Arctic Rising was a chance to head in a new direction and explore a near future that may be around the corner. Explore some interesting social technologies and hacks. Through the eyes of someone we don't normally see in SF adventures. Welcome to the ice-free Arctic.

I am an awful blog tour host, having no idea what the schedule is or where Tobias will appear next! I'm guessing that you should be able to get the information here... ;o)

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