New Releases: 2/26/2013

See upcoming releases.

New Releases: 2/14/2012

See upcoming releases.

Goodreads First Reads: Steel by Richard Matheson

Enter for a chance to win a copy on Goodreads!

About Steel: Imagine a future in which the sport of boxing has gone high-tech.  Human boxers have been replaced by massive humanoid robots.   And former champions of flesh-and-blood are obsolete . . . .

Richard Matheson’s classic short story is now the basis for Real Steel, a gritty, white-knuckle film starring Hugh Jackman.  But “Steel,” which was previously filmed as a powerful episode of the original Twilight Zone television series, is just one of over a dozen unforgettable tales in this outstanding collection, which includes two new stories that have never appeared in any previous Matheson collection.  Also featured is a bizarre satirical fantasy, “The Splendid Source,” that was turned into an episode of The Family Guy.

Richard Matheson was recently inducted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame.  Steel demonstrates once again the full range of his legendary imagination.

Enter for a chance to win here!

(Ends October 19)

Watch the trailer for Real Steel – in theaters October 7:

More giveaways:

• The Alloy of Law by Brandon Sanderson (Ends 10/7)
• The Dark at the End by F. Paul Wilson (Ends 10/12)
• Cold Gory by B. Kent Anderson (Ends 10/12)
• Down the Mysterly River by Bill Willingham (Ends 10/14)
• Repairman Jack Sweepstakes (Ends 10/16)

Richard Matheson’s Other Kingdoms

By Greg Cox, Consulting Editor

Richard Matheson recently celebrated his 85th birthday. For an author whose first novel (Someone is Bleeding) was published nearly sixty years ago, Matheson has more going on today than many authors half his age. His story, “Steel,” which was previously filmed as a classic episode of the original Twilight Zone television series (you know, the one with Lee Marvin fighting the robot boxer), is now being made into a major motion picture, Real Steel, due out in October. Matheson is currently working with a composer to turn his World Fantasy Award-winning novel Somewhere in Time (memorably filmed with Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour) into a Broadway musical, which I’m hoping will be the next Wicked. A new short story just appeared in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, where Matheson’s career began way back in 1950. Matheson has been the subject of such recent books as He Is Legend, The Richard Matheson Companion, and Richard Matheson on Screen, and has also been inducted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame.  He’s even inspired an episode of The Family Guy. And, last but not least, there is Other Kingdoms, his first major novel since 2002.

I only hope I’m that productive at eighty-five!

Matheson seldom repeats himself and Other Kingdoms is very different from his last book, Hunted Past Reason. That novel was a brutal, contemporary thriller with no fantasy elements, but Other Kingdoms, as its title suggests, is much more otherworldly, set in bygone realms both mortal and otherwise. While closer to Somewhere in Time or What Dreams May Come than, say, I Am Legend or Hell House, it’s arguably Matheson’s most fantastical novel, complete with witchcraft, faeries, magic and myth. There’s even a gryphon.

It’s also probably his sexiest book since Earthbound.

Set in 1918, Other Kingdoms is the story of a young American soldier, wounded in the Great War, who winds up in a remote English village, where he falls under the spell of a beautiful local widow, who is also reputed to be a witch. Alex soon discovers that Magda Variel’s occult gifts are more than just village gossip, but that’s not all. The nearby woods lie on the border of a magical kingdom that is home to capricious, possibly dangerous, spirits. Magda warns Alex to stay clear of the forest, but he can’t resist the call of an enchanting faery princess–and finds himself in the middle of a very tricky (and supernatural) romantic triangle!

Talk about a dangerous decision. Who do you choose: the witch or the faery? And do you really want to make either of them angry?

Richard plays his cards close to his vest sometimes, so I didn’t even know he was working on a new novel until it landed on my desk. But once I read it, I knew Other Kingdoms was a great new addition to his legendary body of work. I couldn’t wait to publish it.

And I can’t help casting the inevitable movie version in my head, although I still haven’t decided who should play Alex, Magda, or the faery yet!

Maybe Susan Sarandon as the witch?

…………………………

From the Tor/Forge March newsletter. Sign up to receive our newsletter via email.

…………………………

More from our March newsletter:

• Hellhole: There’s No Place Like Home by Kevin J. Anderson
• Into the Home Stretch by Dom Testa
• The Iroquoian Influence on our Democracy by Kathleen O’Neal Gear and W. Michael Gear
• Two by Pike by Susan Chang

New Releases: 3/1

See what titles are releasing over the next 3 months.

Chapter Previews of some of our upcoming March releases

And listen to an audio excerpt of David Weber’s A Mighty Fortress.

Register at Tor.com today to read an excerpt from Hellhole by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson.

New Releases: 9/14

See what titles are releasing over the next 3 months.

What Is An Editor, Anyway?

by Christopher Conlon

When He Is Legend won the Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement in an Anthology some months ago, my friends were obviously happy for me—almost as happy as I was myself, and I was pretty darned happy. But I was surprised at how often those same friends of mine said things like, “Hey, congratulations, Chris, that’s great. But what does an anthology editor do, anyway?”

Few people, I’ve found, really understand what goes into the editing and creation of original anthologies. There’s a vague notion that the editor is just the person who chooses the stories and sends them off to a publisher to print as a book. Sounds pretty easy, right?

That’s not quite how it works.

He Is Legend sprang from the simplest of seeds—I’ve loved Richard Matheson’s writing all my life, and it occurred to me one day that I’d like to let him know that. We’d encountered each other briefly, by mail, on a couple of earlier projects, but at no point had I ever tried to express my gratitude to the author of The Incredible Shrinking Man, Somewhere in Time, I Am Legend, and so many more classics.

I didn’t want to write a fan letter. Matheson has received thousands of those. Instead I decided to show my appreciation through a tribute anthology, a form that has become increasingly popular in recent years (see Tor’s own Frederik Pohl tribute, Gateways). I got Mr. Matheson’s permission to do the volume. I approached a small press, Gauntlet, which quickly agreed to publish the book. Then I contacted writers—lots of writers. The biggest and best in the fields of horror, fantasy, science fiction. Almost everyone said yes, and I was on my way!

Of course, luck plays a role in an editor’s life. Naturally Stephen King was first on my list of invitees, but for a long time I had no luck in contacting him—it was only after his son, Joe Hill, came on board that King took an interest, ultimately collaborating with Joe (for the first time ever!) on a gripping tale, “Throttle,” inspired by Matheson’s unforgettable story and film Duel.

More luck: I just happened to invite Mick Garris, creator of the TV series Masters of Horror and Fear Itself, at exactly the time the Hollywood writers’ strike began, an event which left Mick with a little more time on his hands than usual—time he used to craft for me a fine, chilling prequel to I Am Legend called “I Am Legend, Too.”

And who knew when I suggested to Whitley Strieber that he contribute “a little something” to the book that he would become so impassioned that he’d knock out “Cloud Rider,” a superb novella inspired not just by one Matheson story, but by all of them?

Not to mention the fact that once He Is Legend appeared in its limited edition from Gauntlet Press, the fine folks at Tor took one look at it and decided that they wanted to bring the book to a wider audience—a much wider audience….

Yes, luck plays a role in an editor’s life!

So what do anthology editors do? They generate the ideas, negotiate with publishers, deal with contracts, work with writers on revisions (and sometimes more revisions), pay the contributors, organize the final manuscript, proofread it; they do everything, really, but write the stories. And even then, their behind-the-scenes influence on some tales may be strong indeed.

So an original anthology is as much an editor’s work as a novel is the work of a novelist—if in a somewhat different way.  But, like novelists, editors put their hearts and souls into their books. I know I did. I hope that Matheson fans will agree that the results shine through in He Is Legend.

He Is Legend (0-7653-2614-0 tpb) is available from Tor in trade paperback in September.

…………………………

From the Tor/Forge September newsletter. Sign up to receive our newsletter via email.

…………………………

More from our September newsletter:

• The Way of Kings: An Introduction by Brandon Sanderson
• Life as Luc Sees It: Writing from the Perspective of a Demon by Lisa Desrochers
• Translating the Vampire: Six Questions for Russian author Lena Meydan
• Everyday Magic: Lady Lazarus and the Book of Raziel by Michele Lang

Richard Matheson inducted into Science Fiction Hall of Fame

The legendary Richard Matheson has been named as one of the 2010 inductees into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame!

The Science Fiction Museum writes:

“EMP|SFM is proud to announce the 2010 Hall of Fame inductees: Octavia E. Butler, Richard Matheson, Douglas Trumbull and Roger Zelazny.

The induction ceremony will be held Saturday, June 26, 2010 at EMP|SFM as part of the Science Fiction Awards Weekend, June 25-27, 2010, in conjunction with the Locus Awards and NW Media Arts writing workshops with Connie Willis and Gregory Frost. Further information and tickets to the Science Fiction Awards Weekend are available on the Locus website.”

And SciFi Wire mentions some of his biggest books:

“Richard Matheson‘s novels, short stories and screenplays have chilled on both page and screen. Many of his novels have been adapted into movies, including I Am Legend, What Dreams May Come and Somewhere in Time. He also wrote many Twilight Zone episodes, including the famous “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet.”

Congratulations to Richard Matheson!

Richard Matheson’s Somewhere in Time coming to Broadway

The Broadway musical adaptation of Richard Matheson’s Somewhere in Time has been announced!

From Variety:

“The developing tuner version of “Somewhere in Time” has set its creative team, with original novelist-screenwriter Richard Matheson co-writing the book and Leslie Arden on board to pen songs.

Producer Ken Davenport will co-write the book with Matheson. Stafford Arima, who helmed the Off Broadway longrunner “Altar Boyz” (of which Davenport also is a producer), directs.

It’ll be the first tuner for Matheson, whose books have yielded a slew of movie titles including “I Am Legend,” “Duel,” “Hell House,” “Stir of Echoes” and 1975 novel “Bid Time Return,” the time-traveling romance filmed in 1980 under the title “Somewhere in Time” (for which Matheson wrote the screenplay). His TV credits include several well-known episodes of the original run of “The Twilight Zone.””

Look for updates at: somewhereintimethemusical.com

Related links:

• Broadway Buzz: Musical Adaptation of Somewhere in Time in the Works
• BroadwayWorld.com: Arden, Arima & Matheson Announced as Creative Team for SOMEWHERE IN TIME Musical
• Playbill News: Arima Will Direct Stage Musical of Somewhere in Time, With Songs by Arden
• Theater Mania: Leslie Arden, Stafford Arima, Ken Davenport, Richard Matheson Set for Broadway-Bound Musical Somewhere in Time