Over the past year or so, I have had the great thrill of being able to purchase and read debut novels published by several members of my writing group, SuperNOVA. I can’t express how exciting it is to live vicariously through their experiences. Even though each of these novels was completed prior to its author joining our group, I still feel a tremendous connection with each of them. These are my friends’ dreams being realised!
Solace & Grief, by Foz Meadows (Ford St)
This young-adult tale about a coming-of-age vampire and other creatures was launched in February 2010, with its sequel, The Key to Starveldt, due out later this year.
Madigan Mine, by Kirstyn McDermott (Picador)
Launched last August, this horror tale about a man who may or may not be haunted by his dead ex-girlfriend is garnering fine reviews and as of today is on the shortlist for the 2010 Aurealis Awards.
The Darkness Within, by Jason Nahrung (Hachette)
Published in 2007, this is unfortunately a little hard to find these days, but I’m nagging Jason to make it available as an e-book. It’s a dark romantic tale about family, vampires and a magical inheritance.
Paragon, by Natalie Potts (self-published)
Set in a sealed biosphere 200 years after global catastrophe, this is a young-adult tale about a society that starts to buck its ‘big brother’ style regime and look beyond the dome. It’s available now from Smashwords in all e-book formats, or direct from Amazon for the Kindle.
I should mention that we have acquired a few established authors into our group as well, which provides fabulous insight for those of us still trying to break into the industry. And I believe one or two others in the group may have forthcoming debut novels as well. It’s certainly a vibrant and dynamic group to be a part of, and it is my mission to keep reading the works of my friends as they are published.
E V Gregory 