Adam Roberts is one of the most consistently inventive voices working in modern science fiction. His work ranges from playful parodies released under a pseudonym to books that take the basic principles of science fiction and do something genuinely surprising with them.
For example, Yellow Blue Tibia is the story of a Russian alien invasion, devised during the Cold War, and what happens when it starts to actually take place, while upcoming novel Twenty Trillion Leagues Under The Sea is a sequel to 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea set in 1955. The French navy build a replica of the Nautilus from Nemo’s blueprints and launch it in complete secrecy. However, when an accident sends it plummeting towards the seabed, the crew frantically try to make repairs. Until they realise that somehow the pressure is equalising… Twenty Trillion Leagues Under The Sea is scheduled for release later in the year, and Adam Robots – an anthology of the short stories he wrote as part of a challenge to produce a tale set in every sub-genre and premise science fiction has made famous – is out now. Adam’s having a very good year, especially as he’s about to be the subject of his first academic conference.
New Genre Army: An International Conference On The Writing Of Adam Roberts will take place on Friday the 5 April in Lincoln. Keynote Speakers include Prof Farah Mendlesohn from Anglia Ruskin University and Dr Andrew M Butler from Canterbury Christ Church. Conference organisers Christos Callow Jr and Dr Caroline Edwards, both from the University of Lincoln, have arranged sponsorship by both the University and Glyphi: Arts and Humanities Publisher as part of the Glyphi Contemporary Writers series.
However, this isn’t just a conference for academics. The aim is to bring fans, scholars, writers and critics together for the first time, to discuss the literature and ideas that Adam works with in his novels. This, ladies and gentlemen, is a chance to geek out about Adam’s work in new company, as well as a chance to get a different perspective on one of your favourite authors. The call for papers is also open to anyone, not just academics, so if you’re interested, get in contact at the details below and they’ll let you know how to submit.
Alasdair Stuart
• Contact the conference on: newgenrearmy@gmail.com
• Details of how to submit an abstract: http://www.h-net.org/announce/show.cgi?ID=198687
