I’m a happy man! While I wasn’t looking, two more readers posted their thoughts on my first novel on Amazon. And they were quite nice! Both were 5 stars and they offered some highly encouraging words to boot. Here is the latest:
“I didn’t realize how deeply I was drawn into this book until I was about halfway through it! It has a distinctive style, with a multileveled story, and a main character I connected with quite easily. Reminiscent of “The Expanse” – the TV show, since I have not yet read any of the books by S.A. Corey – but that same mix of future/cyberpunk/mystery that grabs my attention. Well done! Yes, I’m heading for the next in the series.”
Once again, someone has compared my work to the Expanse. While I initially didn’t like this comparison (funny story, tell you later), it’s one that my publisher certainly likes! And I’ve come to embrace it. If people think my work is reminiscent of a highly successful (and kick-ass) series of novels and mini-series, who am I to argue?
That review came shortly after this one, which was perhaps the most glowing review I’ve received to date:
“I just finished The Cronian Incident by Matthew Williams. My first impression was that this was a rock solid piece of literature. The writing was mature and well thought out. The vocabulary was respectable and different terms where well explained. I admit I was a bit hesitant at first as detective type novels have never ranked high on my personal preference however as I got into the book I found that it was hard to put down. Often I read by author and I will not miss out on reading the next book in this series. I would expect this author to go far with such talent. Writing of this quality is hard work and he certainly put the effort into it. The only downfall that I can see would be with people with poor reading comprehension, however avid sci fi will not have any difficulties. This has been one of the most well put together books I have read this past year.”
Seriously, that may be the nicest review I ever got. I mean they even said that the only downfall is that some people might not be able to get it. I seriously thought they were gearing up to say something about the pacing, spelling, or content – something they didn’t like, you know? Again, who am I to argue?
Thanks to the reviewers and I hope the second book (and fingers crossed, the third) will also
Hello fellow writers and readers! I come to you today with both a request and an offer. I’m looking for people who would be interested in receiving Advanced Reader Copies (ARCs) of my two (soon to be three) novels. They are part of a hard science fiction series set in the not-too-distant future that incorporates elements of conspiracy, intrigue, criminal investigations, colonization and terraforming.
As part of the deal, you’d get free electronic copies of each novel, and all that is asked in return is that you give an honest review on Amazon and Goodreads. They are published by Castrum Press and have received some rave reviews from readers. Here is what some people had to say (I used their initials to protect their anonymity):
“Compelling read in an immersive world!”- RU
“.. an exciting tale in this story. It was a very enjoyable read and I’m looking forward to seeing more..” – JJC
“A phenomenal debut novel. I really enjoyed reading this book.“- BTK
“It’s good sci-fi, and left me itching to read the third book in the series, after I read the second, of course.” – CW
“..one of the best science fiction novels I’ve read in some time.”- CWG
“I didn’t realize how deeply I was drawn into this book until I was about halfway through it!” – mzbeastle
“This has been one of the most well put together books I have read this past year.” – TV
These reviews, however, are ones I am happy to attribute. The first is from Heather Archuletta, a writer, science advocate and self-described “pillownaut” who worked for the NASA Johnson Space Center and took part in their Lunar and Mars research programs. Here’s what she said:
“The Cronian Incident, which I recommended to my audience as my top Sci-Fi read of the year, is a treasure of planetary science.“
And then there’s these two that come courtesy of Professor Abraham Loeb, the Frank B. Baird Jr. Professor of Science and the Chair of the Astronomy Department at Harvard University. He’s also the founder of the Institute for Theoretical Computation and the Chairman of Breakthrough Starshot‘s advisory committee – an initiative to build an interstellar spacecraft that could make it to Alpha Centauri in just 20 years.
Here’s what he had to say about my first two books, respectively:
“An exciting science fiction adventure into the technological future. An exhilarating read for scientists and fiction lovers alike.”
“Exciting plot with a good foundation in science. This is not surprising given the author’s expertise as an excellent science writer for Universe Today. Inspiring ending. Highly recommended!”
Here are the links to the first two books if anyone’s interested in learning more about them:
Hey all! It seems there’s a new tag making the rounds, and it honors new authors. And thanks to a friend of mine (a fellow author), I’ve been nominated! Wow, a chance to join other authors and talk about my writing. That plays to my strengths rather nicely…
Okay, so here are the tag rules:
Thank the person who tagged you.
Answer the questions they came up with.
Nominate four people to do the tag (no tagging the person who tagged you originally).
Come up with 10 new questions for the people you nominated.
The first one is easy enough. A special thanks to Rami Ungar for nominating me and keeping this site of mine active. Ever since I began writing for a living, my time here has predictably suffered. But I try to make the time to post updates and thoughts when it’s important. Here are my answers to the questions:
Tell us about what you’re working on or recently released.
The second book in my Formist Series, titled The Jovian Manifesto, was recently released by Castrum Press. Since that time, I’ve been working on the third and final installment, The Frost Line Fracture.
Where in the process of writing are you?
I just recently finished the tenth chapter, which brought me to about 24,000 words. Soon enough, I will be polishing off Part I of the novel and getting into Part II.
What is the most difficult part of writing the story at this point?
For me, the third installment in a three book series is always the toughest one to write. Not only do you need to come up with a compelling story that will live up to (or surpass) the first two, you also have to keep track of everything you’ve established so far to keep things consistent.
What about your main character do you like the most?
Well, the series has kind of shifted MCs. But for the second and third book, there’s a central protagonist. She’s tough, independent, and not afraid to be occasionally vulnerable.
What is your writing process/routine, if you have one?
Not much to say, I pretty much write when I feel inspired. I prefer to do it at home, but at times, the feeling strikes me when I’m out and about (usually at a cafe with my laptop).
Do you pants your way through a story, or do you plot it out?
I plot it out, always. I’ve never been a seat-of-the-pants person when it comes to writing. Before I start writing, I prefer to create a framework that addresses how it will all unfold. I don’t work out all the details in advance, just the bare bones of the plot. That leaves me enough room to improvise and add things along the way.
What are your characters’ musical interests?
Hmm, I haven’t really thought about it that much. But I imagine she would be into jazz and music that melds Latin and African influences. That’s her background and she’s big into poetry and travel.
What’s next for you in terms of writing?
Well, I’m working on the third installment in a trilogy. Once that’s done, I plan to start a new series (another trilogy) that will be set in the same universe, but takes place later, and with higher stakes!
If you could pick a narrator for your story’s audio book, who would you pick?
Tough call! I feel like I should say Morgan Freeman, but my gut says Idris Elba. Natural gravitas in either case, but Elba is freaking cool!
Share an excerpt or snippet, if you’re comfortable.
The place smelt like a Cronian pleasure dome on a Sunday morning. A crush of bodily odors, sweat, bad breath, hot food, and recycled air. It made Adler want to instruct his implants to shut down his olfactory receptors. Given the choice, he might even want to instruct them to shut down all his senses, make him forget where he currently was.
But that would deprive him of the lovely view, which he was taking from a upper tier overlooking the settlement’s main bazaar. Everywhere he looked there was the same signs of decay and turpitude. The same mix of people living in a transitional area between traditionalism and transhumanism.
Hygeia. The name was practically a pejorative, as far as Adler was concerned.
During the Great Acceleration, Hygeia was one of many rocks in the Main Belt that was established as a stopover and refueling station for missions headed towards the Outer Worlds. Like Ceres, Vesta and Pallas, the first waves of workers and engineers had done a bang-up job establishing the necessary infrastructure, which included the docking facilities that serviced haulers and freighters.
However, the plan soon changed and a second wave of moved in, seeking to turn the asteroid into a self-sustaining colony. These people were responsible for hollowing out most of Hygeia’s rock and ice to make room for living quarters and speeding up its rotation to provide artificial gravity – roughly 0.8 of Earth normal. They also created the biome that ensured a steady supply of recycled air and water.
But as time went on and the Great Migration occurred, the asteroid gradually changed into a place for black-marketeers and people looking for sanctuary. Retros, Extros, and people who were somewhere in between all found themselves drawn to Hygeia because its unique combination of accessibility and nobody giving a shit.
Those qualities, which had always given Adler an aversion to the place in the past, were precisely why he found himself in Hygeia right now. When someone needed to hide, or to travel discreetly across the Frost Line, this was where they came.
The following is an article that I recently published with Universe Today. And since it concerns my recently-published novels, I felt absolutely obliged to share it here. Enjoy!
Hello all. I hope our readers don’t mind that I’m taking a bit of a diversion here today to engage in a little shameless self-promotion. Basically, I wanted to talk about my recently-published novel – The Jovian Manifesto. This book is the sequel to The Cronian Incident, which was published last year (and was a little shamelessly promoted at the time).
However, I also wanted to take this opportunity to talk about hard science fiction and how writing for a science publication helped me grow as a writer. By definition, hard sci-fi refers to stories where scientific accuracy is emphasized. This essentially means that the technology in the story conforms to established science and/or what is believed to be feasible in the future.
So when I set out to write The Cronian Incident, I wanted it to be as realistic as possible, both in terms of technology and setting. Many of the ideas I came up with, and much of the material I drew from, was inspired from my work here at Universe Today. Since I joined the team in 2010 and became a regular member in 2014, I’ve had the chance to write about space-related news, as well as exciting research and scientific breakthroughs.
MESSENGER image of Mercury from its third flyby. Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington
From the beginning, I felt that what I was writing about was inspiring me in my other major pursuit, which was to become a sci-fi author (something I had been pursuing for years). In fact, it was an article that I had just finished writing for our Guide to Space (The Planet Mercury) that inspired the entire series. After writing it, I began talking to a friend about how humans could make a go of life on Mercury, provided they had the right technology and followed proper precautions.
Basically, I said, Mercury is very metal-rich and close to the Sun, which would make it an abundant source of minerals and energy for our future selves. The only problem is that miners would have to remain on the dark side of the planet to avoid being incinerated. But since Mercury has a spin-orbit resonance of 3:2 – where it completes three rotations on its axis for every two orbits around the Sun – a single solar day works out to about 176 Earth days.
That means that as long as they stayed well-ahead of the terminator (the line between the day-side and the night-side) miners would have lots of time to pull ore out of Mercury without being cooked in their space suits! Meanwhile, I argued, permanent bases could be built in Mercury’s cratered polar regions, which are permanently shaded and have abundant supplies of water ice in them.
View of Mercury’s north pole. based on MESSENGER probe data, showing polar deposits of water ice. Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington/National Astronomy and Ionosphere Center, Arecibo Observatory.
Inside some of the larger craters – such as Prokofiev, Kandinsky, Tolkien and Trggvadottir – bases could be built where miners would stay between work shifts. Water and building materials could be harvested in-situ, and solar arrays placed around the edges of the craters could gather all the electricity they needed. With the right technology, some of this could even be beamed off-planet to Venus, Earth and Mars.
My friend then indicated that it would be very hard to get people to want to live and work on Mercury, to which I suggested that perhaps only convict laborers would ever be sent there. That set off the light in my head, and before long, a much larger idea began to take shape. I didn’t just want to talk about Mercury and miners, but how we might go about colonizing the Moon, Mars, Venus, and beyond.
I also wanted to do a story that explored the reasons for why humanity became a multi-planetary species. This is an increasingly relevant issue, thanks in no small part to many high-profile individuals who want to see a permanent human presence established on the Moon and/or Mars in this century. These include Elon Musk, Buzz Aldrin, Robert Zubrin, James Lovelock, and the late and great Stephen Hawking.
Artist’s concept for a possible colony on Mars. Credit: Ville Ericsson
Here too, I have had the privilege of reporting on what these plans are and how they have taken shape over the past years. I’ve also learned a great deal about the history of proposals to colonize the Moon, Mars, and other bodies in the Solar System. While various works of fiction helped me learn how authors have addressed these proposals in the past (such as Ray Bradbury, Arthur C. Clarke, Kim Stanley Robinson, et al.) there was also the theoretical work of scientists like Carl Sagan, James Lovelock, Freeman Dyson, Geoffrey A. Landis and others to draw upon.
Looking at this from a contemporary angle, I went with the idea that the main drivers behind off-world settlement will be Climate Change and the accelerating pace of change brought about by the Technological Singularity (both of which are expected to culminate around the middle of this century). I also wanted to explore the long-term idea of terraforming, which was inspired by the Complete Guide to Terraforming series I was writing at the time.
This is where the hard part of hard science fiction came into play. In writing about colonies on Mercury, Venus, the Moon, Mars, and the moons of Jupiter and Saturn (the Jovians and Cronians), I did my best to describe the settings based on what is actually known about these bodies. As for how people would live on them, that too needed to be dictated by what we know about their environments and surface conditions.
Artist’s impression of SpaceX’s proposed Mars Base Alpha. Credit: SpaceX
It was a fortunate coincidence that my day job happens to include writing about these very things. That way, when it came time to describe what it was like walking around on the surface of Mercury or Titan, or describing how Martian settlers lived on the planet over time, I had something solid to draw upon.
In short, The Cronian Incident owes its existence to my work here. It also owes its existence to Castrum Press, who published the book after the 18 months it took for me to write it (in the summer of 2017). It’s sequel, The Jovian Manifesto, was published a few months ago, and I plan to finish the series off with a third installment titled The Frost Line Fracture (which should be completed sometime in 2019).
Artist’s impression of a possible lunar base. Credit: NASA/Pat Rawlings
Various reviewers who posted on Amazon have also had encouraging things to say:
“This was one of the best science fiction novels I’ve read in some time. Its universe is vast in scope, its plot full of intrigue, its characters delightfully well rounded with just the right mix of flaws and strengths.“
“This story was a good read that sucked me in and kept me wondering. I particularly enjoyed the world building aspects, and the overarching storyline which is clearly going to continue in the next book.”
“I really like how the action is taking place on various planets/moons of the solar system, and am eagerly waiting for further installments of the story.”
“Mr. Williams delivers an exciting tale in this story. It was a very enjoyable read and I’m looking forward to seeing more from him.”
“The Cronian Incident (The Formist Series) (Volume 1) by Matthew Williams is a slow-paced, contemplative science fiction story that fans of The Expanse will really enjoy.”
The sequel, The Jovian Manifesto, has also been well-reviewed:
“I don’t think I’ve been so involved in a science fiction series since I read the Honor Harrington books by David Weber. I snapped up a copy of The Jovian Manifesto as soon as possible, having immensely enjoyed The Cronian Incident when it first came out.”
“It’s much faster paced than its predecessor and features some pretty awesome action scenes interspersed into a story involving a conspiracy and a plot to counter the conspiracy. There were also some great twists along the way, which I won’t give away here, and I really enjoyed the characters, who were diverse and well-developed.”
The Cronian Incident by Matt Williams. Credit: Castrum Press
So far, the settings have included a penal colony on Mercury, the floating cities of Venus, domed cities on Mars, a Martian space elevator, circular enclosures on Callisto, honeycombed settlements on Ganymede, settlements within the ice of Europa, and spartan domes on Titan. But before the series is complete, I hope to include descriptions of what life is like on Earth, the Moon, and in the Asteroid Belt in the future.
Beyond that, I also want to get into writing about interstellar travel, since that will give me a chance to explore the concepts and ideas we covered in our article, “How Long Would it Take to Get to the Nearest Star?” And, if all goes well, I would like to write about the greatest science fiction draw of all. You know what I’m talking about – Aliens! No spoilers, but that story arc could involve an idea introduced to me by Professor Abraham Loeb himself – hypervelocity stars that can carry their planets along for the ride!
But that’s all stuff for another day and another discussion. In the meantime, I hope people here will check out this series and enjoy what I wrote. If not, well that’s fine too. In addition to keeping up with the latest in space exploration and scientific research, honest feedback is the only way I will continue to grow as a writer.
My second review has come in! And this one comes from my friend and colleague Rami Ungar. While we are friends and fellow-writers, I can always count on him to be honest. I tell you, I owe this guy several reads and reviews at this point! In any case, here’s what he had to say (like I said, honest!):
A deep and action-packed follow-up
I received an eARC from the publisher and was eager to read this book. I really liked the first book in the Formist series, so I wanted to see how the sequel held up.
Turns out, it holds up pretty well. It’s much faster paced than its predecessor and features some pretty awesome action scenes interspersed into a story involving a conspiracy and a plot to counter the conspiracy. There were also some great twists along the way, which I won’t give away here, and I really enjoyed the characters, who were diverse and well-developed. I do hope they show up in the sequel.
If there were any issues, it’s that my copy had some typos in it. Just a letter or word missing here, some bad punctuation there. Nothing really glaring or book-ruining, but they were there. But that might’ve just been because I got an eARC and the actual book is free of these issues.
Anyway, if you liked The Cronian Incident, you’ll enjoy The Jovian Manifesto, so don’t hesitate to check it out and take a look.
Okay, I admit it. I’ve been completely derelict when it comes to this challenge. But I hope to amend that by finishing it things up and acknowledging all the books that have inspired me in the past.
Okay, so as usual, here are the rules of this challenge:
Thank whoever nominated you with big, bold print. If they have a blog, link to the post where you got tagged there.
Explain the rules.
Post the cover of a book that was influential on you or that you love dearly.
Explain why it was so influential to you.
Tag someone else to do the challenge, and let them know they’ve been tagged.
Thanks once again to RAMI UNGAR for the nomination, and you can find him at ramiungarthewriter.com. And for this latest entry, I would like to select the Singularity-themed sci-fi classic Accelerando, by Charles Stross.
Have you ever read a book that felt it came along at exactly the right time? Or one that spoke to you and your particular interests at the time? Well, this was one such book for me. Rather than being a single story, this book is actually a collection of shorts that Stross wrote during the early 2000s, but which were all connected by a common theme. Essentially, the six shorts tell the story of three generations of the Macx family, and take place before, during and after the Technological Singularity.
What I loved about this book is how it takes a look at the near-future and how the accelerated pace of technological innovation will make life very interesting (and complicated). It also speaks about several key innovations that are expected, ranging from AI, additive manufacturing (3-D printing), nanotechnology, neural uploads, and commercial space travel.
Looking at the more distant future, it shows how these trends will lead to a breakneck pace of change that will leave most of humanity struggling to remain human. It also throws is some truly interesting and entertaining bits about extra-terrestrial intelligence, a possible answer to the Fermi Paradox, and humanity’s long-term destiny among the stars.
Basically, this book covered all the bases that I was voraciously trying to learn about at the time for the sake of my own writing. It made predictions, both realistic and fantastical, that just spoke to me. And what especially impressed was the way that Stross, writing these stories at a least decade prior to me reading them, predicted so many trends that were slowly coming true. As such, I consider this book to be both inspirational and quintessential to my more recent education as a science fiction writer.
And I’m back with another entry in the Ten Day Book Challenge. I’ve been very bad at keeping up with these, but I am determined to share my choices for the top ten most influential books I’ve ever read. So what I lack in punctuality, I hope to make up in sincerity and selection :).
Okay, so as usual, here are the rules of this challenge:
Thank whoever nominated you with big, bold print. If they have a blog, link to the post where you got tagged there.
Explain the rules.
Post the cover of a book that was influential on you or that you love dearly.
Explain why it was so influential to you.
Tag someone else to do the challenge, and let them know they’ve been tagged.
Thanks once again to RAMI UNGAR for the nomination, and you can find him at ramiungarthewriter.com. And here’s my third selection for the challenge, the post-cyberpunk classic The Diamond Age!
This book takes place in the 21st century after the world has been fundamentally changed by the introduction of nanotechnology. If Eric K. Drexler’s book The Engine of Creation was the authoritative treatise on how nanotechnology would change our lives, The Diamond Age was definitely the fictional counterpart. In this novel, Stephenson treated fans to his usual mix of weirdness, genius, historical and social commentary, education and growth.
For me, this book remains immensely influential, not because it introduced me to the concept of nanotechnology, but because it did so in a way that had such depth. Anyone who reads this is sure to feel that this book came along at exactly the right time to offer commentary on a concept that was slowly moving from the realm of science-fiction to science fact. And as this concept becomes more and more realized, I feel that this book will become required reading for people looking to understand the evolution of nanotechnology.
But, as I said, this book went beyond mere technological commentary, and contained some very interesting thoughts on social change, historical patterns, and the role of culture in development. While I didn’t agree with everything he asserted, it was interesting to see Stephenson detail how specific cultures may go about embracing technology differently, and how the pendulum of history can swing back and forth depending on the time and place and what means are available to people.
If nothing else, it got me thinking in a very serious way, like most of his works. And it was also delightfully fun to read and inspired me as a science fiction writer to take more risks and tackle issues I felt were previously inaccessible to me. Again, I highly recommend this book.
Okay, now for my nomination. This time around, I nominate the Tousled Apostle herself and a long-time friend and colleague of mine, Jamie A. Hughes!
