Philip K. Dick Award Feature on Omnivoracious

terminal

emissaries

I just posted a PKD Award feature on Omnivoracious, Amazon’s book blog.

David Walton: Nerve-wracking at first, and then euphoric! I could barely eat anything, and of course they design the ceremony to drag out the suspense. I was chatting with Gordon Van Gelder before the ceremony started, and naturally he knew that Terminal Mind had won, but he didn’t give me so much as a clue.

I’ll post an interview with the other winner, Adam-Troy Castro later in the week.

Meanwhile, here are some answers from Jackie Gamber at Meadowhawk, which published Walton’s novel, that I couldn’t include in the Amazon piece.

How did you come to publish Terminal Mind?
Dan and I were working on our breast cancer awareness fund-raiser anthology, “Touched by Wonder”, when we first received a short story submission by David entitled “Mattie’s Cougar” (included in the anthology). I was so captivated by his writing, I immediately hoped he had a novel-length work ready. He did! After he sent me his first three chapters of “Terminal Mind”, and I reached the end of the submission, I was eager to receive the rest so I could find out what happened next. I knew at that point Meadowhawk Press was very likely going to publish it.

What is it that you personally love about the novel?
I adore the idea of David using a character from the Amish community as a contrast to the high-tech, futuristic culture of the city. She’s a reminder that not all corners of the U.S. are caught up in the sweep of constant change and advancement. The Amish are a society just as likely to be a part of our future as any other, and will certainly have their own role to play.

What was the experience of being at the ceremony like?
Friendly! William Sadorus greeted David and me on sight and ushered us in, Gordon Van Gelder welcomed us, and there was a lot of amiable chatting with Jeff Carlson, another finalist, and NWSFS members. And of course it was an utter thrill to receive the announcement of David’s book as one of the winners; how exciting to have his talent recognized by such an honor.

What’s next for Meadowhawk?
Our current project is a new edition of the Green Lion Trilogy by Teresa Edgerton. This year marks the 20th anniversary of the original publication, and we’re so pleased to be making them available again.