Author and former comics writer Alan Moore will be talking to comedian Stewart Lee about his first ever short story collection, Illuminations, for a Guardian Live online event on Monday 3rd October 2022.
Described by fellow fantasy writer Neil Gaiman as “both mind-expanding and cosmic while utterly rooted in our urban reality,” Illuminations, to be published 11th October, is an epic tour-de-force that combines madness with urbane magic.
Through nine stories, Moore will take readers into the folds of his wondrous and strange universe, introducing us to a cast of memorable characters, from the four horsemen of the apocalypse and paranormal study groups, to people plagued with nostalgia.
The project was first announced in May 2021, Moore signing a six-figure deal with Bloomsbury for this “momentous” collection of short stories, and a “groundbreaking” five-volume fantasy series, titled Long London, which will launch in 2024.
Widely regarded as one of the best comic book writers in the English language, Moore’s works include The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, From Hell and V for Vendetta. He stopped writing comics in 2019.
Moore has published two novels, Voice of the Fire and Jerusalem. The forthcoming Long London is described as a fantasy quintet that will move from the “shell-shocked and unravelled” capital of 1949 to a version “just beyond our knowledge”.
Alan will be in conversation with stand-up comedian and writer Stewart Lee, and answering questions in this livestreamed event.
• Alan Moore in conversation with Stewart Lee Monday 3rd October 2022 8.00pm – 9.00pm BST | 9.00pm CEST | 12.00pm PDT | 3.00pm EDT | For more information and to book tickets, priced £7, visit The Guardian web site
If you live in the United Kingdom, you can pre-order a copy of Illuminations with your ticket at checkout for a special combined price of £23 (RRP £20). Books will be dispatched in the week following the event, on publication date, 11th October.
This event will be hosted on a third-party live streaming platform Zoom, please refer to their privacy policy and terms and conditions before purchasing a ticket to the event. After registering, please refer to your confirmation email for access to the event. Closed captions will be available for this event.
See this time zone converter to check your local live streaming time. If you are unable to join at the time of streaming, this event will be available to watch on demand in the days following. A link to the recording will be sent to all ticket holders.
In his first-ever short story collection, which spans forty years of work and features many never-before-published pieces, international bestselling author and legendary creator of From Hell, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen and other modern classics, Alan Moore, presents nine stories full of wonder and strangeness, each taking us deeper into the fantastical underside of reality.
In A Hypothetical Lizard, two concubines in a brothel for fantastical specialists fall in love, with tragic ramifications. In Not Even Legend, a paranormal study group is infiltrated by one of the otherworldly beings they seek to investigate. In Illuminations, a nostalgic older man decides to visit a seaside resort from his youth and finds the past all too close at hand. And in the monumental novella What We Can Know About Thunderman, which charts the surreal and Kafkaesque history of the comics industry over the last seventy-five years through several sometimes-naive and sometimes-maniacal people rising and falling on its career ladders, Moore reveals the dark, beating heart of the superhero business.
From ghosts and otherworldly creatures to theoretical Boltzmann brains fashioning the universe at the big bang, Illuminations is exactly that – a series of bright, startling tales from a contemporary legend that reveal the full power of imagination and magic.
The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.
Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.
He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.
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