Ashley in South Africa (isn’t the internet an amazing thing?) responded to my query on whether there should be more comic fantasy in the bookshops:

“My answer is a definite YES. The whole reason why I was reading your blog in the first place was because I was looking for names of comic fantasy authors. I've run out of Terry Pratchetts, can't get hold of the latest Jasper Fforde and am finding Tom Holts in short supply as well. It's nice to know that I'm not the only one.”

Luke asked me about some epic fantasy to recommend. I did put a top 5 together, then looked them over and realised none are strictly speaking epic fantasy. I love Feist & Wurtz’ Empire series, Jennifer Fallon’s Second Sons trilogy, Anne Bishop’s Black Jewels Trilogy and The Queen’s Necklace by Teresa Edgerton simply because they are epic in scale, but more concerned with politics and intrigue than quests. The last series in my ‘epic’ list, Glen Cook’s Black Company series, is sort of epic but more properly defined as military fantasy, so that lets that out too.

In other words, the only epic fantasy I love (save the brilliance of Tolkien himself) is actually not epic fantasy at all, unless you start defining sub-genres very loosely, in which case what’s the point of having sub-genres?

That said, I do have a bit of a soft spot for David Eddings, since his was the first proper fantasy I read (long before I read Tolkien!), but this is a nostalgic thing rather than a matter of taste.

Zine and Heard is a Blank and Free event at the Bond Store, Hobart (Tasmanian Museum) from 2pm-4pm Saturday 27th September, looking at comics, zines & small press. Should be interesting. I’ve been asked to do a 10 minute talk on the significance of SF & fantasy in comics, plus plug & sell Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine.

Speaking of ASIM, issue 8 is out as we speak. It has some good stories in it (especially one by Stephen Dedman) and an interview I did with Richard Harland. Check out the www.andromedaspaceways.com site for stockists (Hobart stockists are Ellison Hawker Bookshop & West End Newsagency).

Issue 9 (edited by my good self) is due out end of October. It features fiction by Edwina Harvey, Stephen Dedman, Robert Hood, Dirk Flinthart, Robert Cox, Sarah Prineas, Howard Andrew Jones, George Scott Huggins, William I Lengeman III, Jaleigh Johnson and first-timer Renee Dillon as well as an interview with the most prominent female SF writers in Australia: Maxine McArthur (Time Past, Time Future), Michelle Marquardt (Blue Silence) and Marianne de Pierres, whose fantastic Parrish Plessis series will be launched by Orbit next year.