The Next Big Thing

The next big thing is a series of tag team blog posts by writers about their next novel, whether about to be published or in development. I was tagged by the ever gracious Keith Stevenson, the former editor of Aurealis magazine back when Sara was the Associate Editor.

Since everyone knows I'm a sucker for chain mail, I'm in. Wait - that's the wrong kind of chainmail... oh well.

1) What is the [working] title of your next book?

The working title was Prudence Falling, but both my agent and editor rolled their eyes until I changed it. So now it's The Kassa Gambit.

2) Where did the idea come from for the book?

Firefly + the Iraq war.

3) What genre does your book fall under?

I thought of it as space opera, in a style I call Vance-light. Apparently it has defied easy categorization, however, as various reviewers have called it political thriller, mystery, who-dun-it, or even romance.

4) What actors would you choose to play the part of your characters in a movie rendition?

The hero - David Boreanaz
The heroine - Kate Beckinsale

5) What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

Aliens attack! Followed by much heroic brooding (hence the David Boreanaz angle) .

6) Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

It's published by TOR, due out on January 8th.

7) How long did it take you to write the first draft of the manuscript?

Three months.

8) What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

Song of Scarabaeus, by Sara Creasy, which was a perhaps-not-surprisingly large influence. Jack Vance's Demon Princes series, and Dave Duncan's Hero, though not without suitable admonishments of unworthiness.

9) Who or what inspired you to write this book?

My wife doesn't like fantasy. So I wrote her a sci-fi story where everything was exploding on the first page.

10) What else about the book might pique the reader's interest?

"Earth" is used as a curse word.