[Rob B]

We are trying something a little new here at SFFWorld in our articles section of the Web site. Aidan Moher has contributed the first of a two-part overview of the hot new fantasy writers in what he is calling A Changing of the Guard (http://www.sffworld.com/mul/234p0.html). The first part is posted here (http://www.sffworld.com/mul/234p0.html).

Next week, the second part will be posted. Any thoughts?

[FitzChivalry]

How is the guard being changed? i see new authors coming in, but i don't really see old authors going away...
Sure every once in a while an old author passes away, but they seem to keep writing to their last days and they aren't really stepping down.

[Eventine]

I like the idea of the articles, but wonder at the value of the content of this one. Pitching a list of "new" authors at a forum with page upon page hyping them is a bit redundant. I'd have been more interested in it if it touched on why these were the authors making waves here - which seems to be to be more about them being available online in blog/livejournal form, participating in forums like this (hi Joe), publishing interviews with various sites and the introduction of book competitions via popular blogs.

I also agree with Fitz's point about changing of the guard - most of the, let us say, "more established" authors referenced are either long dead or actively publishing.

I know that sounds like a pretty negative post, so let me re-iterate that I like the idea of articles. Can anyone submit Rob?

[FitzChivalry]

Is that the reason we hear so much about those authors? because of their involvement with the online community?
If so, i would be more interested in an article about the new promising authors we don't hear about as much.

As for the value of the article, it might be wasted on the people of this forum, as they already know those authors, but it is published on the main site, i'm sure many people visit it that don't really read the forums.

[Mithfânion]

I like the idea of the articles and this one for instance could be a good source of recommendations to people, even though those who post or lurk here will already know of the acclaim of those authors.

With regards to changing of the guard, I think it is correct to say that not many of the old guard are leaving, but at the same time you have to conclude that there are a lot of good new authors coming out in the last two or three years, to my mind more so than in the years before. Presumably part 2 will go into other authors more.

It is a very crowded field. But when I look at the number of new books I'm buying in 2007, especially of realtively new authors, than that number is higher than usual, and the same was true last year.

[Hobbit]

Thanks for all your comments guys: we're basically just wanting to try out another angle at SFFWorld, and where we'll go with this very much depends on what you think.

If the response is positive then there may be more developments in this vein. This might include articles with an eye to those who know more about the genre: I think this one's a nice summary of some of the things going on at the moment. It can be very easy to lose track of some of these, and as Fitz has said if it brings more people into the SFFWorld Forums that can only be a good thing.

To try and add in my rambling thoughts further: as for the 'why' these authors appear, online targeting/connection seems to be a way forward, not only as a promotional tool (to my mind the less palatable end of the scale) but also to somewhere where writers genuinely wish to interact with similarly interested parties about things they have of interest together. If I remember right, Mith, weren't you complemented for doing so by Scott Bakker a while back? Word of mouth is a wonderful thing, I've often been told.

As a general point, things do seem to be better at the moment in that there may be more genre stuff around (certainly in the UK) but perhaps more importantly to my mind the quality is generally very good (with some exceptions, which stand out more as bad because the competition is so good.)

I would also add that I think that in particular SF seems to be picking up momentum after being the runner-up to Fantasy for a few years. (Perhaps that's another article there!) Erm, Charlie Stross, John Scialzi, Paul McAuley immediately spring to mind with an online presence.

And as for 'the changing of the guard' - yes, you're right. Those pesky authors keep on writing until they're old, don't they? Perhaps what is meant by this is perhaps a change of emphasis: from older more established writers (Jordan, Martin, Brooks, etc) to new young hip writers such as Lynch and Abercrombie. Bit like the New Wave of the 1960's?

Hobbit

[al'Kael]

Hey Everyone,

As the author of the article, I just wanted to drop by and address some concerns some of you seem to have with the article.

First off, I'm glad to see some of your have enjoyed the article! I had fun putting it together and I hope somewhere down the road it might lead someone to an author they may have otherwise never tried!

To those of you with some concerns about the article, I'll shine a little light on how the articles came about and my purpose behind writing them.

Despite how it may seem (especially with a title like "A Changing of the Guard") I didn't set out to make a statement about the industry with these articles, I don't intend them to be an intense look at the direction that the SFF genre is taking or any sort of evolution that is being made. Rather, I realized that a lot of my favourite authors/the big name authors from times past (Terry Brooks, Terry Goodkind, George RR Martin, Robert Jordan, etc...) are either getting old (Terry Brooks), ill (Robert Jordan), dead (Mervyn Peake) or only slowly writing novels (Stephen Donaldson) and that a much larger majority of my reading time these days has been devoted to authors who are pretty new to the writing world.

So, I set out to gather together a collection of some of the hip, new authors in the field at the moment, most of which I've read, some of which I haven't. One big resource I drew on for the article was here at SFFWorld and that's one of the reason why so many names in the articles are so familiar to you forumers. Which brings me to another point, this article isn't meant for the hardcore Fantasy readers: of course you all know who Joe Abercrombie, Brian Ruckley and Pat Rothfuss are! (Especially considering a lot of them post here on the forum!) Instead, I originally wrote these articles for my blog as an attempt to reach some of the more casual fantasy readers, looking for something to read once Sword of Truth, Wheel of Time, and Harry Potter are over. Within the context of my blog, and the front page of SFFWorld, the article makes sense and hold worth (in my opinion) when targeting the proper audience, which may not necessarily be the folks on this forum who were some of the first to introduce me to many of the authors on the list! Hopefully this answers some questions about the article and addresses some of the complaints I saw!

Finally, I'd just like to thank you folk for turning me on to some of the great authors entering the field at the moment!

As for authors with a presence on the Internet, that's a topic I'd love to cover and/or love to see covered by someone. As someone else mentioned, the Internet (and forums like this) are an immensely powerful tool that is only just now being discovered by the publishing houses of the world, and it would be interesting to see how this affects the reader/author relationship.

[Leiali]

I recently undertook a sf/fantasy creative writing course, and I realised how much I missed the intellectual discussions regarding the influence literature has on the world, and detailed readings of novels written by literary giants. My degree was a long time ago and the closest I have to a taste of that now is sffworld and the wealth of information as well as passion people here have for this particular genre.
I think the article written was a great overview of the genre, but I for one would appreciate more depth. There is so much knowledge and discussion on these sites. I would be interested in sff world contributors picking out some of the discussions (anything with KatG posting would be a good start) and writing news articles about them, or just taking the sites pulse every once in a while: These would be valuable oversights and resources for anyone interested in the genre, whether they be authors, readers, or publishing houses..

[Gary Wassner]

I get new readers every day from the internet and particularly from this site. My books aren't viewed as cutting edge, so I don't benefit from all the 'cool new' author lists, though I'd disagree with many who assume they know what to expect from my series. Nevertheless, the internet has been an amazing source of publicity for me. My publisher doesn't advertise extensively so this is a venue that's particularly important.

I'd love to read an article about authors who have internet presences. And I'd love to read what people think the myspace phenomenon will ultimately lead to.

In the meanwhile, I do believe that advance copies supplied by publishers to 250 strategic reviewers and readers, along with a PW review gives any author a big leg up. It's hard to make significant sales if your books aren't eventually purchased by the brick and mortar stores, and that's how it happens. I'm not sure that word of mouth here reaches the computers of the buyers at B & N, though I could be wrong. Usually their buys are program buys via the publisher's distrubutors.

Some authors who have great reps on the web, like my friend Matt Stover, are hard to find on the shelves, sad as that may be. He writes amazing, action packed, intelligent books, and how many here have read him? And he's a name you didn't even mention Al'Kael. (along with me, of course)

[Gwendelyn]

Hey, al'Kael,

If your intention was to introduce people who are less familiar with recent Fantasy to the newest notable authors, you hit one of your targets. ;) I've been primarily a non-fiction/mystery reader for almost a decade (I've been a serious RPG gamer all along, and I love fantasy, but I had some bad experiences with finding decent Fantasy novels after Tad Williams). It's been 10 years since I read anything Fantasy beyond Discworld and Harry Potter (and a bit of WoT, but I found it more of a marathon than a good reading experience, so I gave up). My reason for joining this forum was to learn more about novels published since then that are worth reading.

I've spent a good deal of time this week lurking, working my way through a number of the sticked recommendation threads, but I found the amount of books and authors discussed overwhelming. A distillation treatment of the latest notable authors is much appreciated. Although I realize that some read-worthy authors will inevitably go without mention in a short article, I hope that I will eventually get around to sampling their work later as I have the time.

Your article poked my interest in The Lies of Locke Lamora. I read a synopsis of the book on Amazon, but thought it wouldn't be to my taste. After I read your article, however, I browsed the active thread about the book, and I find my interest growing. I currently have it on my reading wish list (and will probably pick up a copy once I finish what I'm currently reading).

Of course, I would love to read any articles discussing the authors or the current state of Fantasy in more depth. As I was browsing the recommendation threads, I found a couple of interesting discussions about the pyschology of book covers in marketing and a rough history of publishing the genre, and those were very interesting.

Looking forward to part 2.