Press Release

Al Ewing takes a Philip K Dick look at LA in new SF title for Solaris

One of the freshest and most innovative writers in genre is to pen his first novel for Solaris.

The Fictional Man by Al Ewing, best known for his work on Judge Dredd for 2000 AD and Abaddon Books’ Pax Britannia series, will be published in May 2013.

A talent of terrific energy and wit, Ewing is one of the most distinctive writers working today. The Fictional Man channels the spirit of Philip K Dick but mixed with Ewing’s own brand of SF weird. In his first novel for the imprint, he proves himself to be a master of the genre.

“Al Ewing is one of those writers who never fails to surprise me, both in the quality of his prose and the depth of his imagination,” said Jonathan Oliver, editor-in-chief of Solaris. “Having worked with Al extensively on the Abaddon range of books, it’s a real thrill to bring him to Solaris and let him loose on a creation entirely of his own making. This promises to be a hugely exciting and unusual SF novel.”

Niles Golan is writing a remake of a camp-classic spy movie. The studio has plans for a franchise, so rather than hiring an actor, the protagonist will be 'translated' into a cloned human body.

It's common practice - Niles' therapist is a Fictional. So is his best friend. So (maybe) is the woman in the bar he can't stop staring at. Fictionals are a part of daily life now, especially in LA.

In fact, it's getting hard to tell who's a Fictional and who's not...

Ewing’s books for Abaddon Books’ Pax Britannia and The Afterblight Chronicles series revealed a writer whose complexity is not limited by genre, but who throws his readers into a story with wild abandon. Already breaking new ground in seminal comic book 2000 AD, Ewing’s SF visions are set to be revelatory.

“A poet of pulp.” - The Steampunk Scholar on El Sombra

“One of the best superhero pastiches I’ve ever read.” - Pornokitsch on Gods of Manhattan