Morphosis

‘Could a rule be given from without, poetry would cease to be poetry, and sink into a mechanical art. It would be μóρφωσις, not ποίησις. The rules of the IMAGINATION are themselves the very powers of growth and production. The words to which they are reducible, present only the outlines and external appearance of the fruit. A deceptive counterfeit of the superficial form and colours may be elaborated; but the marble peach feels cold and heavy, and children only put it to their mouths.’ [Coleridge, Biographia ch. 18]

‘ποίησις’ (poiēsis) means ‘a making, a creation, a production’ and is used of poetry in Aristotle and Plato. ‘μóρφωσις’ (morphōsis) in essence means the same thing: ‘a shaping, a bringing into shape.’ But Coleridge has in mind the New Testament use of the word as ‘semblance’ or ‘outward appearance’, which the KJV translates as ‘form’: ‘An instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, which hast the form [μóρφωσις] of knowledge and of the truth in the law’ [Romans 2:20]; ‘Having a form [μóρφωσις] of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away’ [2 Timothy 3:5]. I trust that's clear.

There is much more on Coleridge at my other, Coleridgean blog.

Thursday, 4 January 2024

Coming Soon

Coming soon, from NeoText.

Wednesday, 15 November 2023

Malprelate: Out Now

Now published! On Amazon: £3.99 on Kindle, Audiobook £2.99 and in a most handsomely-produced paperback edition, a mere £9.19 (also available direct from the publisher). Get em while they're hot, as hot as the hellfire to which the wicked soul of Sir Martin Malprelate has, surely, been consigned, following his death, smashed to atoms by a huge spectral ghost-locomotive passing through the streets of Camden!

Friday, 13 October 2023

Some Writers

Friends and colleagues. From left to right: Matt Thorne (edge of frame), Redell Olsen, Professor Finn Fordham, Ben Markovits and yours truly.

Monday, 10 July 2023

Coming Soon

Click to embiggen. Click here to pre-order.

Saturday, 18 March 2023

“The This” on 2023 BSFA Best Novel Shortlist

I'm delighted to say that The This has been shortlisted for the 2023 BSFA Award for best novel. It's a great honour, especially considering the high calibre of the other shortlisted titles. The winner will be announced at this year’s Eastercon, Conversation, (at the Birmingham Metropole, 7th–10th April 2023) and BSFA members can vote here. I'll be at the ceremony: maybe see you there.

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[Update 8th April] Didn't win! Ah well.

Friday, 18 November 2022

“Stealing For The Sky”: Now Published

This has been in the offing for a while, but now, it seems, it's out of the offing, and into the, er, inning. So: it's a very-near near-future-set thriller, written in Donald E Westlake/Richard Stark mode, about a man who steals spaceships for a living. Publisher: NeoText. Presently it's e-book only (not sure what may come, format-wise, in the future). On the upside, at the moment it's only 99c in the States, or 87p if you live in the United Kingdom. What have you got to lose?

Wednesday, 2 November 2022

THE THIS: Mass-Market Paperback. Out Now!

The paperback edition of The This is set for release in a few days (10th November in fact) (10th Nov Update: 10th November is today! Now available to buy!). To mark that, here's the review the latest edition of SFX carries about the book: click to embiggen and clarify the image. 5 stars! Pick of the paperbacks! A little frustrating at the start! Will change your entire worldview if you make it to the end!