[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":11},["ShallowReactive",2],{"blog-post-foyles-evening-of-magic":3},{"_type":4,"body":5,"bodyHtml":6,"excerpt":5,"featuredImage":5,"publishedAt":7,"slug":8,"tags":9,"title":10},"blogPost",null,"Here's a little doodle from Wednesday evening's event at the Charing Cross Road \u003Ca href=\"http://www.foyles.co.uk/bookstore-charing-cross\">Foyles\u003C/a> bookshop: \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/foyles_magic_panel-7c165d8ca6.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nThe event coincided with the launch of a new anthology, published by Oxford-based \u003Ca href=\"http://www.solarisbooks.com/titles/title_details/magic:_an_anthology_of_the_esoteric_and_arcane\">Solaris Books\u003C/a>, this time on the theme of \u003Cb>Magic\u003C/b>, however the writers wished to interpret that in short story form. The cover illustrations are by the amazingly gifted, Paris-based \u003Ca href=\"http://blog.nicolasdelort.com/\">Nicolas Delort\u003C/a>, whom I've just discovered and bookmarked (also on Tumblr \u003Ca href=\"http://thesmallgods.tumblr.com/\">here\u003C/a>). Speakers were \u003Ca href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_Abnett\">Dan Abnett\u003C/a> (who looked a bit familiar from comic conventions - ah, he's made comics for Marvel, DC and writes Warhammer books) and \u003Ca href=\"http://www.audreyniffenegger.com/\">Audrey Niffenegger\u003C/a> (I'm a fan of her novels and illustrated books, including \u003Ci>Her Fearful Symmetry, The Time Traveler's Wife\u003C/i> and \u003Ci>The Three Incestuous Sisters\u003C/i>) Our book club read one of \u003Ca href=\"http://sophiamcdougall.com/\">Sophia McDougall\u003C/a>'s books, \u003Ci>Romanitas\u003C/i>, set in a modern-day still-Roman empire, and \u003Ca href=\"http://www.solarisbooks.com/staff\">Jonathan Oliver\u003C/a> edited the anthology, and has more themed short-story anthologies in the works. (Find out more about the \u003Ca href=\"http://www.solarisbooks.com/titles/title_details/magic:_an_anthology_of_the_esoteric_and_arcane\">\u003Ci>Magic\u003C/i> anthology here\u003C/a>.) \\r\n\\r\n\u003Ca href=\"http://jabberworks.livejournal.com/517586.html\">\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/magic_solaris-d7b63e7a8a.jpg\">\u003C/a>\\r\n\\r\nAudrey passed around a fascinating book by the father of the creator of Sherlock Holmes, \u003Ca href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Altamont_Doyle\">Charles Altamont Doyle\u003C/a>. The guy suffered terrible depression and alcoholism, and kept a beautiful diary with weird and wonderful illustrations, sketches and paintings in it. Audrey used the diary as her inspiration for the story about Doyle in the asylum, \u003Ci>The Wrong Fairy\u003C/i>, and I can see how it's also influenced her visual work. Really remarkable stuff, I've ordered my own copy to have a proper browse. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/doyle_diary-1ecad80d17.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n(That's \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/LizUK\">@LizUK\u003C/a> reviewer Liz de Jager's hand, holding the book steady.) You can follow Jonathan on Twitter - \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/JonOlivereditor\">@JonOlivereditor\u003C/a>, as well as the publisher Ben Smith - \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/Mr_BenSmith\">@Mr_BenSmith\u003C/a> / \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/SolarisBooks\">@SolarisBooks\u003C/a> - who came along for the evening. (He also publishes 2000 AD comics.) Sophia's on Twitter - \u003Ca href=\"@McDougallSophia\">@McDougallSophia\u003C/a>, as is Dan: \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/VincentAbnett\">@VincentAbnett\u003C/a>. Thanks for hosting, Foyles! And a big thanks to Foyles' fabulous \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/devilslibrary\">Neil Jackson\u003C/a> for hanging on to the copy of \u003Ci>The Phanton Tollbooth\u003C/i> which Norton Juster signed for me at the last event! (Read about that evening \u003Ca href=\"http://jabberworks.livejournal.com/473585.html\">here\u003C/a>.) \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/neil_phantom_tollbooth-c83e0d8c91.jpg\">","2012-10-26T10:22:00.000Z","foyles-evening-of-magic",[],"foyles evening of magic",1776628724364]