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Milkweed Triptych
"A major talent... I can't wait to see more."
—George R. R. Martin
"Mad English warlocks battling twisted Nazi psychics? Yes please, thank you. Tregillis's debut has a white-knuckle plot, beautiful descriptions, and complex characters-- an unstoppable Vickers of a novel."
—Cory Doctorow on Bitter Seeds
"Ian Tregillis triumphantly concludes his astonishing, brilliant, pulse-pounding debut trilogy, The Milkweed Triptych."
—Cory Doctorow on Necessary Evil
"Tregillis' conclusion of the Milkweed Triptych is the pièce de résistance of the series. Necessary Evil is a perfect marriage of science fiction, fantasy and alternate history."
—RT Book Reviews (4.5 stars, Top Pick) on Necessary Evil
"Darkly fascinating…A thoroughly fascinating conclusion to an imaginative tour de force."
—Kirkus on Necessary Evil
"A cross between the devious, character-driven spy fiction of early John le Carré and the mad science fantasy of the X-Men... Despite the jaw-dropping backdrop and oblique plotting, the narrative is driven by character and personal circumstance...
Grim indeed, yet eloquent and utterly compelling."
—Kirkus on The Coldest War
"The characters come alive via [Tregillis's] imaginative dialogue and his storyline will keep readers spellbound and on the edge of their seats with an intense sci-fi/alternate history thriller plot."
—RT Book Reviews (4.5 stars, Top Pick) on The Coldest War
"Well-drawn characters and a feel for time and place make this an excellent journey into an alternate Britain."
—Library Journal on Bitter Seeds
"Engrossing... Tregillis ably mixes cold war paranoia with his mythology."
—Publishers Weekly on The Coldest War
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On My Christmas Wish List: A Mechanical Robot That Devises Story Plots
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The End: NECESSARY EVIL Is Out! - 5/1/2013, 10:29 AM Because I Haven't Posted About tDCS In A While - 4/8/2013, 04:07 PM Announcing the NECESSARY EVIL Signing Tour - 4/5/2013, 05:15 PM Nuclear Deterrence in a Blood Magic World - 2/22/2013, 09:41 AM Guest Post #2 at Charlie Stross's Blog - 2/17/2013, 04:41 PM Guest Post at Charlie Stross's Blog - 2/15/2013, 09:17 PM A Conversation with Charlie Stross - 2/8/2013, 11:06 AM NOW OUT in the UK: THE COLDEST WAR - 2/7/2013, 12:22 AM Clarion Is Accepting Applications for the Class of 2013 - 1/27/2013, 06:38 PM Holy Smokes! Cover Art for Something More Than Night - 1/23/2013, 09:44 PM

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Monday, December 6 2010, 04:31 PM

For me, plotting is the slowest and most difficult part of the writing process.  How many times have I wished there were an easier way to develop the plot for a novel, story, or "scenario"?  Too many to count!

If only, goes my constant lament, somebody would build a mechanical tool for devising plots automatically.  Preferably out of wood and Bakelite, and possibly powered by coal.

Little did I know my prayers were answered over 40 years before I was born.  Feast your eyes on this wonderment of modern scenario development: the Plot Robot.

The principles of its operation are far, far too complex to try to dissect them here.  Suffice it to say this marvel distills the infinite variety of the creative process into the readouts from eight analog dials.  SCIENCE!

This article makes me realize, too, that I've been mismanaging my writing efforts.  Why have I been laboring over novels and short fiction when I could become a Scenario Writer?  That sounds like just the thing for a guy like me.  Short stories and novels are difficult.  But scenarios?  Hell, I could do that in my sleep (and sometimes do)

Here's a scenario right off the top of my head:  Great White Sharks + Great Pyramid of Cheops + Time Machine.

Bam.

Now if I wanted to turn that into a novel, I'd have to devise characters and a plot (well, not any longer, thanks to science) and then actually write the novel.  Same with a short story.  But as a scenario writer, my work is already done!

(Found this via io9.)

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Comments (3)
Plot generators! - Richard, Monday, December 6 2010, 05:49 PM
I just found this one:
http://www.archetypewriting.com/muse/generators/plot.htm

and this one:
http://nielsenhayden.com/overlord/

I like the second one better. Advice for the evil overlord!

Separate the men from the machines - Susan, Tuesday, December 7 2010, 07:35 AM
Wowza... That's... Well, I feel like a complete failure. Plot Robot can probably generate better ideas than me.

I thought I was better than a machine because of my creativity!

::waves fist at sky::

In all honesty, I am super intrigued. I'd love to see this thing in action...

Killer Scenarios - E J Frost, Sunday, December 12 2010, 03:56 PM
Sharks. It would be sharks. :P

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Interviews
Interview with SFX Magazine
Unwalkers interview [English | French ]
Interview with Speculate! Podcast Interview with Adventures in SciFi Publishing
Ian Tregillis on the Sword and Laser Podcast
Ian Tregillis on John Scalzi's The Big Idea
Interview with Pat's Fantasy Hotlist
Interview with SFRevu
Interview with Mad Hatter Book Review
Interview with Apex Books

Interview at Literary Musings Interview with Pat's Fantasy Hotlist
An interview with the authors of Busted Flush at Pat's Fantasy Hotlist
Interview with Travis Heermann at The Write Line
9-way interview with the contributors to the Wild Cards novel Inside Straight at Pat's Fantasy Hotlist
Interview in the February, 2008 newsletter of the Online Writing Workshop for Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror
An extended interview with Ian Tregillis by Ty Franck, on www.wildcardsbooks.com.