Finding an Audience: Robert Charles Wilson’s Julian Comstock
Oddly, the letter/press release accompanying Julian Comstock by Robert Charles Wilson seems more like a plea than a pitch:
The decline of general reviewing has sadly left little space for a book like Julian Comstock–that is, a book so original and vibrant with personality, it’s hard to know where it fits and what to do with it. Parts throwback adventure, post-apocalyptic sci-fi, dashing western, prophetic religious text and gloriously subversive political manifesto, [the novel] is that unique creature–an exuberant and imaginative literary creation that forces the reader to reevaluate the best books on their shelf.
The cover letter goes on to note that the novel’s only gotten one full review thus far–on Boing Boing–and the press release notes “This July [June?] Wilson returns with the type of novel nobody expected him to write.”
Amazon isn’t carrying the customary advance Publishers Weekly review, but that doesn’t necessarily mean one isn’t forthcoming. Still, the tone of Tor’s approach strikes me as seeming worried about finding an audience for this book–and being somewhat plain-spoken about that concern.
On Wilson’s home page, he’s got links to a three-part interview he did with Brian Francis Slattery about the book. This is somewhat coincidental in the sense that the cover of Wilson’s book is somewhat lazily reminiscent of the cover of Liberation by Slattery.
This is also the second time I’ve received a copy of the novel. The first time I told the publicist it just didn’t look like my kind of thing. And it still doesn’t, which is no knock on the book. It’s just that it appears to be North America in the 2200s by way of the 1800s–and 1800s North American settings tend to bore me to tears. And I just have a hard time shaking that impression in reading parts of the book. We all have our quirks.
Does this book have an audience? Yes. The problem is, it’s probably not the audience Tor is used to finding for its authors. They may even have thought since Wilson has won the Hugo that it’d be an easy sell. But sometimes when you switch tone, direction, and genre this quickly, it’s hard for people to adjust.
Wilson is and always has been an interesting humanist writer whose best books manage to avoid the sentimental streak that crops up in his worst. This one might well be one of his best, but I’m snowblind to it. If you don’t have a copy and you think this sounds like the kind of thing you’d love and you want one, you can have mine so it doesn’t go to waste. Email me at vanderworld at hotmail.com. I’ll send it to you and when you post your review–if you don’t post one, the hell-dogs of a thousand underworlds will forever pursue you–I’ll link to it. (This isn’t first come first serve–it’s best pitch, basically. Why you should get it.)
June 1, 2009 at 9:23 am
Actually, I liked the hell out of that book. As if Mark Twain had written Cormac McCarthy’s THE ROAD.
June 1, 2009 at 9:24 am
Well, see–there you go. Mark Twain rewriting McCarthy’s The Road holds no interest for me. My blind spot, not Wilson’s defect.
June 1, 2009 at 10:41 am
Tor’s Press Release: That is truly weird, man. And not in a good way.
June 1, 2009 at 10:44 am
Maybe, maybe not. If the press release didn’t adopt that tone, I wouldn’t be talking about it so frankly here. And, again, maybe there’s no problem here. Regardless, sometimes it’s useful to be upfront about things. So much of publishing is a shell game combined with smoke and mirrors. And if Tor is having trouble figuring out how to position this book, that’s still no reflection on the book. In fact, it’s probably a point in the novel’s favor.
June 1, 2009 at 12:32 pm
That book sounds much more interesting to me than it does to you, Jeff, but that cover . . . I think “lazy” understates it. It looks like they’re trying to fool people into thinking the book is a sequel to Slattery’s. Not to comment on the quality of the cover qua cover, in case you think I’m on another of my rants. It’s just that the packaging, even more than the press release, suggests that Tor doesn’t know what to make of its own book.
June 1, 2009 at 12:32 pm
I subscribe to your last comment — if Tor has trouble in positioning this book, I see it as a point in Wilson’s favor. Can’t wait to read it.
June 1, 2009 at 12:36 pm
James–I was trying to be polite. :)
Jeff
June 1, 2009 at 5:49 pm
I received my copy yesterday and I too noticed that, but was going to withhold commenting on it until I had at least sampled the book (my prior experience with Wilson being his Chronliths book from 6-7 years ago and that one left me lukewarm). Will consider it, but that press release was a bit…odd, to say the least.
June 2, 2009 at 2:50 am
There was a small discussion in the comments on the first part of the interview on Tor about the similarity of covers. Apparently the same person did both. That could be a coincidence but I’d wager it’s not.
June 2, 2009 at 5:44 am
I had an opportunity to read an advance copy a few months back. It’s quite brilliant, and unlike anything I’ve ever read–I think Jay nails it with his description.
June 2, 2009 at 10:42 am
I don’t know if it is this book is *too* much of a departure for Wilson. Darwinia had the mixed Century Mash-up feel to it, too.
You’re right though, the press release letter did its job. (I’ve got a copy too).
June 2, 2009 at 9:37 pm
It looks like they’re trying to fool people into thinking the book is a sequel to Slattery’s.
Is every book that features a woman and a city scape under dark clouds an attempt to fool people into thinking that all the paranormal romance/urban fantasies are sequels of one another?
June 3, 2009 at 6:35 am
Are you sure they aren’t all sequels of one another?
June 3, 2009 at 10:11 am
“And if Tor is having trouble figuring out how to position this book, that’s still no reflection on the book. In fact, it’s probably a point in the novel’s favor.”
Agreed. I may be biased (disclosure, I run Tor.com—which is not Tor Books, so I have no idea as to the thinking behind the press release, but still), but I really enjoyed the hell out of this book, although it’s a departure from RCW’s previous work, which I also like.
As for the cover, yeah, same artist. It’s a shame that both books came out so close to each other—that doesn’t take away from the fact that the choice of artist is, in my (Irene-Gallo-and-letterpress-loving) opinion, spot-on for both cases.
June 3, 2009 at 11:11 am
Pablo–hey, that’s great. I hope no one thinks because I have a blind spot here that I’m saying the book isn’t good, or that it isn’t good just because of it being difficult to market. I figure this post still builds positive word of mouth for the book while acknowledging a reality of the book selling business.
JeffV
June 4, 2009 at 12:36 pm
For what it’s worth, PW did give it an awesome review (don’t know it’s not on Amazon?)…here’s the linksy:
http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6653753.html?q=julian+comstock
Hugo-winner Wilson (Axis) perpetrates a kind of skewed steampunk novel set in a postcollapse, imperial United States returned to 19th-century technology and mores. Julian Comstock, the disgraced nephew of the tyrannical American president, grows up in a small town in what was formerly northern Canada. Adam Hazzard, Julian’s working-class friend, and Sam Godwin, a bluff old retainer and secret Jew, struggle to keep Julian alive despite his uncle’s hatred and Julian’s proclivity for annoying the repressive Dominion Church. When Julian is drafted to fight the invading Dutch in Labrador, exaggerated tales of his heroism, written by would-be novelist Adam, catapult the young aristocrat to unwanted fame. Written with the eloquence and elegance of a Victorian novel, this thoughtful tale combines complex characters, rousing military adventure and a beautifully realized, unnerving future. (June)
June 4, 2009 at 3:00 pm
Oh, good! Then I’m beginning to get even more perplexed about the press release.
June 5, 2009 at 10:01 am
That’s odd, because the PW review was from late April–it should be up on Amazon long since. Weird crossed wires somewhere at Tor; it would do the book a lot more favors to get the starred PW review up on Amazon than to send out put-upon “the world doesn’t understand genius!!1!!” press releases.
June 7, 2009 at 6:02 pm
I tend to latch onto authors whose work I like and obsessively collect anything I missed as well as anything they publish later on. With RCW, I read his first books long ago and thought they were great, and (after the great no-money-means-no-books phase I had a few years back) am still reading his new stuff and have filled in most of the books I missed. And I ordered _Julian Comstock_ a week or so ago.
I have to admit, I haven’t picked up Jeff’s Alien/Predator book, but that’s more my bias against the whole Alien/Predator thing than anything else. I fully expect that it has most everything that I like about Jeff’s writing.
June 7, 2009 at 6:49 pm
I never expect anyone to pick up everything I write, although it’s a kind thought. I wouldn’t pick up a Terminator novel even if Nabokov wrote it, so… LOL.