MF GALAXY

I'm proud to announce that my 2007 political satire From the Notebooks of Doctor Brain has been awarded the Carl Brandon Society Kindred Award . My congratulations go out also to Ss. Nnedi Okorafor who won the Carl Brandon Society Parallax Award for her novel The Shadow Speaker . THE AUTHORS SAY: ROBERT SAWYER, Hugo Award-winning author of Hominids “Minister Faust does it again: an outlandish, outrageous tour de force by the most innovative prose stylist in the field, bar none.” COREY REDEKOP, author of Shelf Monkey “Faust’s novel stands equal to such classics [as Watchmen and Dark Knight].” CHARLES SAUNDERS, author of Imaro “Pure satire... laugh-out-loud comedy. Superhero parodies have been done before. So have dysfunctional super-beings, ranging from Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four to the Watchmen. But nobody has done it as well as the Minister. If Richard Pryor had ever written science fiction, he might have come up with something like Doctor Brain.... Minister Faust is sh...

Please nominate my novel From the Notebooks of Doctor Brain for the Carl Brandon Awards. For information about my book, please check the sidelinks with interviews and more! But what are the Carl Brandon Awards , you ask? Read on, gentle ones: The Carl Brandon Parallax Award is given to works of speculative fiction created by a person of color. Nominees must provide a brief statement self-identifying as a person of color; creators unwilling to do so will not be considered for this award. This Award includes a $1000 cash prize. The Carl Brandon Kindred Award is given to any work of speculative fiction dealing with issues of race and ethnicity; nominees may be of any racial or ethnic group. This Award includes a $1000 cash prize. We are now accepting nominations for the 2008 awards for books published in 2007 . The nominations period runs through July 2008.

Last fall, I spoke at a session arranged by Professor Janice Williamson and author/professor Thomas Wharton ( Icefields) at the University of Alberta. I read from From the Notebooks of Doctor Brain (which, incidentally, received the Special Citation of the 2007 Philip K. Dick Award ). I also answered questions afterward. Here's the audio . Enjoy.

SCI FI Wire writes: "SF author Minister Faust, whose novel From the Notebooks of Doctor Brain is a finalist for this year's Philip K. Dick Award, told SCI FI Wire that he wrote the book to satirize self-help books, psychoanalysis and the Bush administration . "'Maybe because each of those sources is either telling u s how to live or forcing us to live a certain way,' Faust said in an interview. 'Am I satirizing superheroes? Sure, but they were just col lateral damage for the larger satire.' "On the surface, From the Notebooks of Doctor Brain is presented as if it is actually a self-help book for superheroes, Faust said. 'It's o ne analyst's take on the world's mightiest super-team, the F*O*O*J, after they've defeated all their enemies,' he said. 'Without external enemies, the federally funded F*O*O*Jsters turn on themselves, inadvertently revealing all their kinks , issues and aggression. Ordered [to enter] group therapy ...

Many thanks to Jef Catapang for this fine profile in Urbanology Magazine.

I'm grateful to announce that my second novel, From the Notebooks of Doctor Brain , has been shortlisted for the 2008 Philip K. Dick Award . My first novel, The Coyote Kings of the Space-Age Bachelor Pad , was also a finalist, in 2004.

Check out these two new audio interviews with me about From the Notebooks of Doctor Brain . The first is from those crazy cats at The Dragon Page . The second is from the delightful Mur Lafferty at I Should Be Writing . In both cases, the interview with me is a ways into the podcast, so don't worry, you did link to the correct place. For The Dragon Page , it's at least eleven minutes in. And for the sake of print, the solid dogs over at Urbanology Magazine have done a nice profile on the book, too. The ish isn't on their website, but it's on the stands (right up top above the title of the mag, you'll see the name "Minister Faust").

SFSITE.COM : “A whirlwind of jokes, satire, obscure pop references, devastating cultural analysis and prose poetry that never lets up from beginning to end .... "A darker story lurking underneath all the comic book violence and plot twists... exposes the darker trends of a society that both values honesty and courage and indulges in racism and hate.... “Minister Faust is following no one's lead but his own. Coyote Kings and Dr. Brain are wholly original in their style and use of the traditions of SF and pop culture.... Dr. Brain uses humor and insight to expose an underlying horror, the horror all the worse for the comparison. The jokes and commentary are fast, funny, and furious. This is political and cultural satire of the highest sort, and Faust is earning a place among the masters of the craft. ” See more stunning reviews here .

I'll be at the Chapters on Whyte Ave and 105th Street today between noon and 3 pm. Come on by to chat, get a book or bring the book you already own to get it signed. In fact, I'll even sign books I didn't write. President Chavez is rumoured to make an appearance, but we're still waiting for confirmation.

If you'd like to buy a copy of From the Notebooks of Doctor Brain, please go to your local independent bookstore. If they don't have it, ask them to get it. If they can't, click here. BLOG T.O. SUNDAY BOOK REVIEW : “...a major accomplishment that is laugh out loud funny... This is the most revolutionary work of SF since William Gibson’s Neuromancer . Faust has invented a whole new genre of writing and rendered it in some of best prose in any genre. He’s basically given birth to the future . And it’s one good looking baby.... Although it’s only February, I’m confident in saying that the best SF book of the 2007 - maybe the best book of the year-- has already been published.” SUNQIST BLOG: “ The best book of the year , which has been out for something like four days at this point, is From the Notebooks of Doctor Brain , by Minister Faust ... [whose] first book, The Coyote Kings of the Space-Age Bachelor Pad... was also excellent. This is an amazing book.... It works o...

After two a nd a half years, I finally have a new novel out! It's called From the Notebooks of Doctor Brain , and it’s a self-help book for superheroes. Well, okay, not really, it’s a satire a bout psychology and office politics. Well, okay, not really... it’s actually about the Bush administration. Check out below to find out what critics and writers are saying . When: Friday, Feb. 2, 7:30 pm at Audrey's Books, 10702 Jasper Avenue , Edmonton , (780) 423-3487 PUBLISHERS WEEKLY (STARRED REVIEW): “[S]harp s atire of caped crusaders hides a deeper critique of individual treatment versus social injustice.... Faust's well-aimed jabs spare no super sacred cows nor many pop idols a nd psychobabbling media stars. Underneath the humor, careful readers will find uncomfortable parallels to real-world urban tragedies in the novel's 'July 16 Attacks,' where Faust gives a double meaning to the 'Crisis of Infinite Dearths.'" BOOKLIST: ”[An] excellent superh...

UPDATE: FOR WHATEVER REASON, the link to the review works sometimes and doesn't others--thanks to those of you who let me know. So I'm including the review at the end of this post. And thank you in advance to President Chavez for talking up the book at the UN. The book will make an excellent Christmas gift, of course, even though it won't be available until the end of January. Still, you can pre-order it... I believe there's a discount for orders of one thousand or more. F rom Publishers Weekly: Starred Review. "Masquerading as a self-help book for superheroes, this sharp satire of caped crusaders hides a deeper critique of individual treatment versus social injustice. Faust ( The Coyote Kings of the Space-Age Bachelor Pad ) provides funny and knowing caricatures of the famous figures of American comic books via an extended therapy session by Dr. Eva Brain-Silverman. Analyzing their various mental hangups, Dr. Brain attempts to help heroes like irascible b...