Dial M for Magic

Thoroughly enjoyable read. backed with pleasure.
Abel kane
The Alchemists' Cookbook

ARISE, AUTHONOMY GHOST!

Ease those weary, withered limbs from your coffin. Push away the stone from the mouth of the tomb.

You have one last task to perform. One last, sacred shelf to confer.

Whether you were plugger, spammer, gusher or troll, whether you flirted or fought in the forum or beavered away in the shadows, now is the time for your resurrection.

One last time. Marshall your strength, muster the last vestiges of your power and carry out your final Authonomy act:

Back my book, MIRROR IN THE SKY.

Then, only then, you may rest easy in your Authonomy grave.

Nick Poole2 (formerly known as NickP)

Hi Bill, I've read the first few chapters of Dial M for Magic and think it has a lot of potential. I think perhaps you need to add a few more scene-setting hints early in the book. Your set-up (England as a province of Spain; thaum as the main way of getting anything done; science illegal) is fascinating and has the potential to provide a rich background to your story. As I read I found myself assuming that this was a medieval-ish alternative world, but I notice that in one of your comments below you've said it's alternative present day. I'm not sure how I as the reader can distinguish the two. Perhaps it doesn't matter that much, but if it does then perhaps you need to show more clearly where the differences lie. I think this begins to come out more strongly as you go further into the book (the thaumic theatre is a nice idea), but by then the reader may already have oriented him or herself along medieval lines.

Anyway, I think this deserves a place on someone's bookshelf, so I'll put it on mine.

Hi Jak
That is extremely helpful - as you say prologues can be so irritating. But revealing key facts at the point the reader wants to know is hard, and clearly there are a few places I've been late in revealing stuff. I think Sam's age is certainly one of those important facts.

Thaum is proving tricky to get right - from various comments it seems to depend on chance whether folks have come across the etymology before. Some have, some haven't; I don't want to bore those who have, while leaving just enough clues for those who haven't, so that they're neither baffled nor patronised. As you worked it out (and are hopefully pleased with yourself for doing so), I'm inclined to leave it much as it is.
As you've been so thoughtful with your comments, I'll try and return the favour and read a few chapters of your work.
Cheers. Bill

Hi Bill,
What have you done to me? Normally i'm the most annoyingly opinionated reader in this or any parallel or tangential universe. But my annoying opinionated response to this is- Don't know.
I've read six chapters now and there's so much to like- Meric is a glorious character; the dialogue is wonderful and the narrative is developing really well. No irritating prologue- no wearing chunks of exposition in the first chapter- everything is right about this- my objective response is that it's tremendous and publishable.
But the 'Don't know' still lingers. partially its because your ms set of resonances for me with The new Policeman by Kate Thompson - which was unfair because her wonderful book isn't really in the same genre. Then it was also a bit Diana Wynne Jones in the setting- and no-one wants to be up against that genius.
Then it occured to me that I was trying to find hooks outside the text to help me with my reading because I wasn't being given the steer I need by you. For example I didn't find out that Sam was fifteen until the fifth chapter- I needed to know this and 'Thaum' -I worked it out but an authorial nudge in the right direction would have helped. (Lord, the hypocrisy of me- i invented a large portion of a new language for mine)
So- I think that a couple of nudges in the first chapter and this ms would be well on course to do really well.
Hope this was helpful. Jak

I started reading on a whim, and have found myself engrossed. My only comment to you is that your sentence fluency could use some scrutinizing. To quote from chapter 2- "Somehow he negotiated the door, dumped the lad on his bed. Found a jug of water that his landlady set out for him, and drained it, then collapsed into fitful sleep, upon a jumbled heap of clothes, until the daylight came again." My suggestion would be to change it around and tighten up the details- something like "Somehow he negotiated the door, finally dumping the lad on his bed. He found a jug of water his landlady had set out, and, draining it, he collapsed into fitful sleep upon a heap of clothes until the daylight came again."

Sorry if I messed with your style, I know how annoying it is. But it's a great book so far, so good luck!

Really like the pitch, Bill, and will definitely read some when I get some time.
I was going to watchlist this, but because England is a province of Spain (where I live) and I've got a space on my shelf, on it goes!
cheers, and good luck
Simon

Funny and nicely-paced. Really nice way of using magic as a practical, every-day technology and the bits where you explore how magic has effected the make-up of the modern world is what I enjoyed the most (I've written a similar novel here myself and so I'm always interested in that sort of thing). Britain as a Spanish colony is a brilliant setting for an Adams/Pratchett type adventure. Looking forward to more.
K.

This is a great idea for a book. I'm adding it to my watch list so i can read it later.

Merry Meet, Bill;

I like the way you draw the reader into this world and look forward to following the tale . . . and using 'thaum' is a perfectly appropriate word; if thaumaturgy was good enough for the ancient Greeks it should be good enough for any of us.

I would post this next part of my response on my page, though I'm not clear yet on if and how it would forward to your attention.

I would also like to thank you for you kind words and thoughtful critique of 'A Delivered Sign' . Your observations gave me pause to consider the animus of the sign, as it is a key character in the story. For me, the sign is sort of a reflective Pooka, one that reflects the energy and intent of the observer. As for Pastor Huddleson, he was a tortured soul, and very possibly wound tightly enough that psychosis may have claimed him. As with any of us, he was a flawed human with certain bright and brilliant facets to which due respect was given. I will look at his overall flesh tone, though, and see if there are additional shadings that might benefit him I believe that there were other forces at work in his downfall, though they chose not to define themselves to me clearly enough to document them through the story.

I look forward to reading 'Dial 'M' For Magic'.

Blessings,

Steffan

Hi Bill! You need to put in some tags, I only found your book by accident! But I'm going to look at it later, as it sounds really interesting.

Hi Digger, RobertB
I guess I'd better upload a few more chapters (the novel is complete, but I was testing the water), because the answers to your questions are revealed in later chapters.
"thaum" - I wanted a word that meant magic, but didn't have the connotations of witchcraft (because of course when the Spanish discovered thaum, the Catholic Church was all powerful, and the inquisition would not tolerate anything like that - remember "thou shalt not suffer a witch to live". So "thaum" is "magic", but something physical, that can be made to do specific tasks.
The time is the present, but a present in which the availability of thaum has made scientific advance unnecessary. So there's a mediaeval tinge to life.

I like the way it starts, but I'm not at all clear what the time period is.

I detect shades of Terry Pratchett. What is "thaum"? You've used the word an awful lot but I don't really understand what it is.