One of my favorite parts of writing Zeroboxer was envisioning and depicting the sport of zeroboxing. How would a combat sport work in the absence of gravity? Check out what these martial artists and fighters have to say about it.
Getting as excited as those guys?
That’s not all. To celebrate my birthday today, and the fact that Zeroboxer hits shelves in less than a month, I’m offering up a pack of science fiction and fantasy books from my publisher, Flux.
It includes an advance reader copy of Zeroboxer, as well as The Oathbreaker’s Shadow by Amy McCulloch, Wordless by AdriAnne Strickland, Insomnia by J.R. Johansson, The Culling by Steven dos Santos and Backward Glass by David Lomax.
Just enter the raffle below for a chance to win.
Giveaway runs through March 17. Limited to the US and Canada.
The launch party for ZEROBOXER will be on April 10, 2015 at 7pm at Powell’s Cedar Hills Crossing location. There will be books! There will be food! There will be much talk of sci-fi and zero-g prizefighting! I will sign the shit out of anything!
Join me and Susan Adrian, author of the YA thriller Tunnel Vision, along with Cat Winters (In the Shadow of Blackbirds and The Cure For Dreaming) on April 30, 2015, 7pm, at the Barnes & Noble Clackamas location in Portland. We’ll be talking all kinds of YA sci-fi thriller awesome.
In a future world, gene modification to eliminate imperfections is considered standard. Even so, Terrans disparage the more radical genetic changes Mars colonists have made in order to survive. Martians have become essentially another race resulting in simmering unrest between the two worlds. Seventeen-year-old Carr Luka is aware of these issues but his single-minded focus is on becoming a zeroboxer champion. When Risha, a half-Martian, is assigned to be his personal brandhelm, Carr becomes the face of Terran zeroboxing. Carr falls hard for Risha, an older (by three years) woman. The relationship is serious enough that Carr considers marriage. All Carr’s dreams seem to be coming true until he learns a devastating secret that has potentially catastrophic ramifications.
Lee’s debut novel is an intense, smart, and action-packed read. The future world is well thought out in its everyday details. Grounded in the personal, Carr’s navigation of career and romance over the course of two years is impacted by social issues that are just as relevant today—genetic modification, race relations, and sports performance enhancement. Carr comes to learn that his life does not occur in a vacuum. The secret he holds compromises his personal ethics, but the ripples also affect his relationships, fans, and world events. Not just sports fans will be enthralled by the drama of the zeroboxing matches. They focus as much on strategy and emotion as on the inherent violence. Older teens, especially boys, will enjoy some food for thought along with an exciting story.
Last October I had the pleasure of attending the Viable Paradise Writer’s Workshop on Martha’s Vineyard. All of us students were tasked with writing a short story in two days, based on an assigned genre and a random object out of a paper bag (mine was fake coins). What we managed to write in two days wasn’t pretty, but it proved you can lay the bones of a good story in a short time when you’re forced to. Afterward, we had to swear to revise our stories until they were good, then send it out on submission for publication.
A few months later, my short story from that workshop, “Universal Print” was picked up by Crossed Genres magazine for their February 2015 issue, themed “Betrayal.” You can read it here.
Fantastic time speaking on panels and signing advance copies of ZEROBOXER at ALA Midwinter in Chicago. Losing my voice and being snowed in by a blizzard the next day made it that much more memorable. Left to right: the Dark Fantasy and Science Fiction panel with Auden Johnson, Ken Liu, and Sabaa Tahir; signing advance reader copies at the Flux booth; the We Need Diverse Books panel with Danielle Paige, Sona Charaipotra, IW Gregorio, Miranda Paul, Adam Silvera, Nicola Yoon, Francesca Zappia.
ZEROBOXER was named a 2015 selection by the Junior Library Guild. This is awesome because the JLG picks only a few titles each season to recommend and promote to libraries around the country. Needless to say, I’m very happy and honored.
I’m particularly stoked by the way the JLG describes the book. Couldn’t have said it better myself.
Genetically modified superhumans. High-stakes zero-gravity fighting championships. Earth/Mars political strife. Carr Luka, seventeen, trapped in the middle.
