Author Garth Nix talks about his first adult science fiction novel, Massif, with Natasha Pulley at Blackwell's Bookshop.
Garth Nix is at Blackwells Bookshop on Thursday 22 October, talking about his new book Massif with Natasha Pulley. It's a conversation between two authors, and for Nix, it marks a bit of a shift in direction.
If you know Nix, you probably know him as a bestselling YA writer, but Massif is his first foray into adult science fiction. It's a military sci-fi novel blended with cosmic horror, set aboard the United Earth Government Navy ship Sassafras. The story follows crew member Parnell Shi-Sawahla, whose deputy, Kaz, is stranded on an enemy planet and needs the help of a sentient mountain range — a massif — to be rescued. It's a far cry from the YA work he's known for, so it should be an interesting one to hear him talk through.
Nix himself has had a rather unusual path to writing. Born in Melbourne and raised in Canberra, he studied at the University of Canberra from 1984 to 1986, served as a soldier in the Australian Army Reserve, worked as a bookseller, and spent time as a literary agent before finally becoming a full-time writer in 2002. Since then, his books have been translated into 36 languages, so he's well-travelled in the publishing world, even if this particular book takes him into new territory.
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Joining him is Natasha Pulley, an international bestseller whose The Watchmaker of Filigree Street won a Betty Trask Award and The Bedlam Stacks was longlisted for the Walter Scott Award. The session runs from 5:30pm to 6:30pm at Blackwell's on Broad Street, and tickets are £6.
