Notes from Yellowknife

Posted on March 16, 2016 by Rati Mehrotra

aurora_yk (2)I’ve learned a lot in my visit to Yellowknife, capital of the Northwest Territories and home to two-thirds of its people. For instance, I’ve learned that the the Aurora Borealis, or the Northern Lights, are a result of solar wind disturbing the Earth’s magnetosphere. Charged particles are precipitated into the earth’s upper atmosphere where they collide with atoms and molecules, giving off energy, which we see in the form of light – often as a green glow. Continue reading →

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Two-book deal with Harper Voyager – Markswoman will see the light!

Posted on February 25, 2016 by Rati Mehrotra

The subject line says it all. I am so delighted to announce my two-book deal with Harper Voyager! All thanks to my lovely agent Mary C. Moore.

From the Publishers Marketplace:
“Rati Mehrotra’s MARKSWOMAN, a duology about a female order of magical-knife-wielding assassins who bring both peace and chaos to Asiana, a post-apocalyptic version of Asia, to Rebecca Lucash at Voyager, in a nice deal, for publication in January 2018, by Mary C. Moore at Kimberley Cameron & Associates (World English).” Continue reading →

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After the Apocalypse: Science Fiction Reads and Reviews

Posted on February 10, 2016 by Rati Mehrotra

I’ve read some fascinating books in the last few weeks – you could call them classics of the science fiction genre – and I wanted to share them here. They are all set in various post-apocalyptic worlds – what happens when war and climate change tip the balance for the human race? How do we survive as a species and as individuals?

latheofheavenLathe of Heaven by Ursula Le Guin, 1971
Winner of both the Hugo and Nebula awards, this absorbing book is about a man in an impoverished, violent world who has the power to change reality through his dreams, and what happens when a psychiatrist tries to manipulate reality by hypnotising him. The title is taken from the words of a Chinese philosopher: To let understanding stop at what cannot be understood is a high attainment. Those who cannot do it will be destroyed on the lathe of heaven. Wise words, indeed, and a remarkable book. Continue reading →

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Looking back, and looking forward

Posted on January 13, 2016 by Rati Mehrotra

A very Happy New Year 2016 to everyone! Yes, I’m late to the party, but don’t blame me. Took THREE days to get from Delhi to Toronto and I’m still a bit zoned-out. Thick fog in Delhi meant that I spent 10 hours waiting for the plane to take off, and missed my connection in London. Where I ended up spending the night. And where did dear old Air India send me the next day? Not to Toronto, oh no, that would have been too simple. I went to St John’s. The one in Newfoundland. One of my favorite cities! I got to walk up Signal Hill and gaze into the foggy distance and admire the heaving Atlantic. Spent the day there, got a late flight to Toronto, arrived feeling a bit shattered, but happy to be home. Of course, I’d have been happier if it wasn’t a freaking -16 C outside. Continue reading →

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All My Life Like Glass

Posted on December 22, 2015 by Rati Mehrotra

shattered prismDecember is turning out to be a great month for me, publication-wise. Very pleased to announce my third publication of the month, All My Life Like Glass, in the first issue of SHATTERED PRISM edited by Carmelo Rafala and Amir Naaman. The stories are currently free to read online – check out Dragons for Dummies by Sarina Dorie, Like Bogart by Lavie Tidhar, Kuszib by Hassan Abdulrazzak and The War? by T.L. Huchu. Continue reading →

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The Smart Thing to Do

Posted on December 11, 2015 by Rati Mehrotra

EGM-logo-lrStory Day! Very pleased to announce that my story The Smart Thing to Do is now live at EGM Shorts. It’s a flash fiction piece about the evil future of dieting. You can imagine what I was thinking about when I was writing it. Not about running the marathon, that’s for sure…

EGM stands for Evil Girlfriend Media, which I think is a very entertaining name. Drop in and take a look. Lots of great authors and short fiction on their site.

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Ancillary Mercy wraps it all up (or not quite..)

Posted on December 4, 2015 by Rati Mehrotra

Ancillary-mercyI just finished reading Ancillary Mercy, Ann Leckie’s stellar conclusion to her Imperial Radch trilogy. It’s not as powerful and gripping as the first book, but definitely better than the second, and all in all an enjoyable read, so I’ll forgive the plot holes and the gaping questions left at the end. Which open up the possibility, however remote, of a fourth book in the future. I’ll also forgive. Too many. Sentence fragments. Which got tiring. After a while. Sighs. Continue reading →

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SFContario: Toronto’s Science Fiction Convention

Posted on November 17, 2015 by Rati Mehrotra

It’s that time of the year: crisp autumn days, falling leaves, the prospect of bitter cold, and Toronto’s SFContario – the convention I always attend, no matter how much I grumble about it. This year, SFContario is host to Canvention, the Canadian national science fiction convention. Canvention Guest of Honour is Peter Watts (yay!) and Author Guest of Honour is Saladin Ahmed (yay!).

The schedule is up and I’m on it. I’ll be reading on Saturday morning at 10 am in the Gardenview. I’m also on a couple of panels: Continue reading →

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Books and Writing

Posted on November 2, 2015 by Rati Mehrotra

Wow, has it been almost a month since I last blogged? October got away from me. I have been writing – just not on my blog. I’ve been revising my novel…again. I cannot tell you how many reincarnations this manuscript has gone through. Hopefully, one of them will actually see the light of day. I’m not complaining – writing this novel is how I actually taught myself to write. It was initially 130 k words long with 13 POVs. I am not kidding. One day, I’ll write a post about how I wrestled that monster into a slimmer, more palatable book. Or series of books. Continue reading →

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Who Fears Death?

Posted on October 5, 2015 by Rati Mehrotra

WhoFearsDeathbookThis is the title of a fantastic book I just read – a meld of magical realism and post-apocalyptic African science fiction that reminded me of why I love speculative fiction so much. It can be an escape, a transport into another universe, and, at its best, a mirror we hold up to ourselves and the flawed world we live in. Who Fears Death by Nnedi Okorafor, a Naijamerican writer, definitely comes in the latter category. It won the 2011 World Fantasy Award for Best Novel. It’s not hard to see why. Continue reading →

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