The sky above the port was the color of television, tuned to a rad channel...
(With apologies to William Gibson.)
Honored samurai, ruthless ronin, wayward vagabonds, shadowy ninja and helpless villagers... welcome.
Opening Volley
Thanks for being so patient while I worked hard on my latest short story, a #SamuraiPunk #SamuraiScifi piece (finally) titled "Dark Hour". While not set in the same universe as "The RuiNin" or Cymurai, it did help me work out a lot of ideas for that universe. DH is a 9K-word short for an anthology. I certainly could have written it in the Cymurai universe, I wanted to free myself from constraint. I wasn't sure exactly what I wanted to write, so by creating a whole new universe, I could just let my imagination run wild. And run it did. Quite a few of the ideas, monsters and worldbuilding ideas will be retconned into the Cymurai universe. There's some good stuff. Of course, even if this piece doesn't get picked up by the publisher for their anthology, I'll still publish it. I'm proud of it, and I think it makes for a fun read. Either way this story goes, it's win-win for everyone.
Image: Grandfailure / Possible cover for Cymurai
Main Event
Truth be told, DH wasn't the only reason I was away for a while. I began reading not one, but TWO, samuraipunk novels over the last two months. I tell you, I'm completely and utterly (adverbs!) flabbergasted. What are the chances really? I certainly didn't go out looking for them, but rather, they came to me.
The first is The Gray Ronin by Matthew S. Cox, whom I met on Twitter over an indie author boost. As I haven't gotten too far into it yet, I'm not going to discuss this novel just yet, as I would like to do a short interview with him about it after I’ve read it. Suffice to say it’s set “in 2418 (after) Japan has reinvented itself as an anachronism of feudalism and high technology.” (From Amazon.)
The second is Automatic Eve by Rokuro Inui and translated by Matt Treyvaud for the Haikasoru imprint. Originally a Japanese novel published in 2017, there are two sequels which are currently only in Japanese. Frankly, I'm quite beside myself over AE. I literally could not put the novel down. Every chance I had, I had my phone open to it. It's a relatively quick and easy read (it doesn't try to be overly fancy or literary in its worldbuilding) but is deeply fascinating none the less. Revolving around the titular Eve, it is a novel of five interlocking short stories that weave a tale of an alternate universe Japan of the late 1800s wherein automatons are real. This has to be my favorite novel of the year (and I’m including everything to come). I’ve already bought the two sequels and can’t wait to dive in. This novel has tons of twists, likeable characters (even if they aren’t saints), and an excellent grounding in technology and history topped with a very careful dollop of mysticism.
Image: Covers for the original (L) and translation (R)
What may surprise you is that Japan's otaku street cred goes back a thousand years (according to this article) with regard to its love for "karakuri" or "windup" robots. Most famous among them is the tea-serving robot. If you ever wondered why Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence hacker disguised himself as one -- well, now you know. That fascination with "windups" runs deep and you will see them from time to time in TV shows or other media. They aren't just gimmicks, they're a part of the cultural consciousness. (Well, maybe that's pushing it just a little. But the fact that I picked one up from the De Agostini Japan a few years back when they advertised it on TV goes to show just how much a part of the history they are.)
Image: Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence
Mr. Inui's novel is rich and vastly imaginative. Set in a Japan with a female empress lineage and during a time of secret revolutionary plots, there are various vying factions, thugs, ladies of the evening, spies and a varied cast of characters who don't always come out on the bright side of things. While others might call it steampunk or clockpunk, I think it fits the samuraipunk milieu like a glove. That said, I think it will please a variety of genre readers from history to scifi to fantasy and the other aforementioned genres as well. Available on Amazon.
We never meet without parting
Next issue... I keep promising more free fiction, and I do have both my own and that of others (with permission, of course) to share, and I will. My apologies. All in due time.
Until then!
Made in DNA
Free fiction and a little bit of craziness: http://vocal.media/authors/made-in