Cover of the Elsewhere Anthology
Last year I visited Canberra for the first time. The only person I knew here was Les Peterson, who did the fabulous covers for my books. He arranged a get-together with people from the Canberra Speculative Fiction Guild.
I knew the Canberra Speculative Fiction Guild had put together an anthology called Nor of Human so I dutifully bought it before leaving. Soon I discovered that these people were not just an amazingly friendlylot, but also a talented bunch of writers.
And I wasn't the only one to think so, as three of the stories and the entire anthology were nominated for Aurealis Awards, including my personal favourite: "Tales from the True Desert" by Matthew Farrer.
The next year the Canberra Speculative Fiction Guild produced another anthology, Machinations.
Now they've put together a third, and I'm rather chuffed to have the honour of introducing it to you.
Meet Elsewhere.
So what is this rather sexy looking collection like?
Well, Elsewhere is a collection of 26 speculative fiction stories by
Australians, edited by Michael Barry, with wonderful illustrations by Les Petersen. But it's more than that.
I'm happy to report that Elsewhere is also good for your health.
You see, I joined a gym a few months ago. For the first time. I'd never liked the
look of them. A lot of walking on the spot went on, usually before a television showing local soapies. It looked really boring.
But physiotherapist has been badgering me to join one for years, so when the local gym offered really cheap memberships I joined up.
I soon discovered that my first impressions were right. Walking on the spot IS incredibly boring. I found myself reading everything on the community noticeboard. I became interested in the scores of the local soccer team, started to believe I could earn $1000 a week working from home and wondered if I needed to lose 30 kg in six weeks. Clearly if I didn't bring something to read, I was going to go completely bonkers.
The next week the stories for Elsewhere arrived. Perfect!
During the following gym visit I climbed onto the exercise bike while clutching the first of the stories. I began cycling. I began reading. I finished a story and started another. After a while I checked my progress. To my complete astonishment, not only had I cycled over time, but my rpm was way up! I'd been so caught up in the stories, I'd hadn't noticed the effort I was putting in.
The community notice board, sports drink ads and Elsewhere began to mix in my mind. I started to envision an ad campaign for Elsewhere. I could just see the slogans. "Elsewhere: guaranteed to boost your performance" "Read Elsewhere - lose 30 kg in three weeks!" and I could just see the television ad. A jogger reading the anthology while running on a lonely mountain road with the caption "Where do you go to? Elsewhere."
But seriously...
The Elsewheres in these stories will enthrall, uplift and disturb.
There are:
- Elsewheres of the future and Elsewheres of the past
- Elsewheres of memory and Elsewheres of dreams
- Elsewheres of faith and Elsewheres of the soul
- Elsewheres of other planets and other cultures
- Elsewheres of death and second chances
- An Elsewhere where only women survive and an Elsewhere where only men exist
And I should add a note of warning for anyone with a fear of spiders and carnivorous plants: proceed with caution.
Five Elsewheres stood out for me:
In "The Surge" Cory Daniels conveys the bridges and chasms between the generations as a great great grandmother struggles to guide her people in a world that is drowning at a rate that only she can perceive. As land grows scarce, traditions must change or the society will collapse in on itself.
The monks in "The Devil in the Text", by Richard Harland, face a more sinister attack on their world as the text in their books begins to disappear. Richard conveys their secular world well, and the source of the disturbance provides a humourous counterpoint.
In both of these stories a seemingly unstoppable crisis spurs the characters to make changes for the better. But in "The Recipe", by Ben Peek, the protagonist activelyseeks to change the world himself by following a mysterious recipe.
- 1 hero with limited mental capacity
- 1 magical sword
- 2 horses
- 1 prophecy of vague but epic proclamations
- 1 easily manipulated but long lost king
- 17 bards of propaganda
- 1 villain of limited potential
- 47 minor henchmen
As with any recipe, timing, the quality of the ingredients and the adaptability of the chef are important for success.
From the darker side of Elsewhere comes "State of Oblivion" by Kaaron Warren. I always feel mixed glee and trepidation when I come upon a Kaaron Warren story. This is a writer who not only explores intriguing and dare I say it ? original ideas, but is utterly uncompromising in her treatment of them. They disturb, they force open your eyes and make you think, and they usually leave behind a permanent disquiet.
Lastly, my personal favourite of this collection is David Walker's "Heritage Planet". This is a story I expect to be telling someone about in twenty years time. It begins with a disappointed tourist on a terrible holiday. While he was in the toilet the cranky tour bus driver has driven off, leaving him stranded in the middle of a forest. There's a sign telling him it's 10 km to town, but he can hear the slurp slurp of the carnivorous forest and he's wondering about those stories of careless tourists disappearing.
Two other stories I enjoyed immensely are: "The Mind of the Almighty", by Anna Key, I never thought I'd ever be on the side of this protagonist And "Widdershins", by Stuart Barrow which should come with a warning: do not try this at home.
And the very competently written "The Hero and the Swordsmith" by Tessa Kum...
I could continue heaping praise upon this anthology all afternoon, but I think instead I'll spend it herding you all towards the man with the cash box. Trust me, it's worth every dollar. And remember, combined with exercise, Elsewhere is good for you.
And so, I officially declare Elsewhere launched!