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Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 22h

Clearly a great pitch all round.

Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 23h

Blurbs in the wild (2/2): . . . the first paragraph of the blurb explains why maps are important. Many readers don't read the whole blurb, so for this to work the reader needs to engage fully with the blurb. It requires commitment.

But 'keep up!' it says, delights are to be found within.

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Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 23h

Blurbs in the wild (1/2): The didn't-know-you-were-interested-in-this blurb. Sometimes you have start from scratch. Before you can pitch the book to your reader you've got to pitch the subject. For @wildfirebooks.bsky.social and @jonnelledge.bsky.social A History of the World in 47 Borders . . .

A History of the World in 47 Borders by Jonn Elledge

Blurb: People have been drawing lines on maps for as long as there have been maps to draw on. Sometimes rooted in physical geography, sometimes entirely arbitrary, these lines might often have looked very different if a war or treaty or the decisions of a handful of tired Europeans had gone a different way. By telling the stories of these borders, we can learn a lot about how political identities are shaped, why the world looks the way it does - and about the scale of human folly. From the Roman attempts to define the boundaries of civilisation, to the secret British-French agreement to carve up the Ottoman Empire during the First World War, to the reason why landlocked Bolivia still maintains a navy, this is a fascinating, witty and surprising look at the history of the world told through its borders.

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Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 1d

Life in dead greenhouses.
www.thisiscolossal.com/2025/10/roma...

Untamed Flora Subsumes Abandoned Greenhouses in Romain Veillon's 'Secret Gardens'

In Romain Veillon's most recent body of work, "Secret Gardens," the enigmatic allure or abandoned greenhouses takes center stage.

www.thisiscolossal.com

Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 2d

Blurbs in the wild: When you've got it, flaunt it. @oneworldbooks.bsky.social & Sam Leith's The Haunted Wood pitches its accolades: 1st: its 12 Book of the Year mentions. 2nd: 12 short quotes saying why it is good. 3rd: a long quote makes the reader a promise: if you like stories, you'll like this.

Back cover: A BOOK OF THE YEAR 2024 Sunday Times, Irish Times, Financial Times, Independent, New Statesman, Tablet and Waterstones Daily Mail, TLS, Economist, Prospect, Evening Standard, 'A delight' Julia Donaldson 'Gorgeous, loving, learned’ Hadley Freeman 'Moving and wistful' The Times 'Written with such love' Lucy Mangan 'Magisterial' New Statesman "A feast of a book’ Independent "Witty and warmhearted' Guardian ‘Marvellously charming' Literary Review ‘A joy’ Michael Rosen 'Gloriously entertaining' Tom Holland 'Fair-minded, terrific' Evening Standard 'Irrepressibly funny' Rowan Williams "This history of childhood reading is brilliantly constructed, well-researched and beautifully written - a wonderful book for anyone who believes in the magic of stories. The Haunted Wood reminds us that the books we read as children shaped us and shaped our societies." Elif Shafak

Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 2d

Thank you, Book Boys (and Thomas Mann) for the yeah yeah yeahs for my novel Exo in your review in September's podcast. Apologies for the mathematics, hope that murder made up for it. The review starts at 1 hr 19 min 30 sec. Exo as tonic after Dr Faustus?
open.spotify.com/episode/2a1Z...

Episode 60: What We Read In September

open.spotify.com

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Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 5d

Fascinating essay on money=energy in science fiction. Lovely idea until you run into the problem of dealing with the economics of scarcity.
vector-bsfa.com/2025/10/03/e...

Energy Economies in Science Fiction

By Jo Lindsay Walton ‘Embers’: Stranded Assets Wole Talabi’s short story ‘Embers’ (2024) explores the potential consequences of energy transition for a rural community in Nigeria,…

vector-bsfa.com

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Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 5d

Blurbs in the wild (5/5): Three: It tells you what you're going to get, explaining how the book works. This isn't your bog-standard royal biography.

A book about the Queen, it seems to be arguing, is also a book about us. Maybe, this IS for everyone (British)?

Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 5d

Blurbs in the wild (4/5): Two: It deploys numerous inversions: optimist/pessimist; radiant/humdrum; public/private; amplifying the tensions we all feel when considering the subject. It reminds us that whoever you are, you had some feelings for the subject (if you're British, obvs).

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Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 5d

Blurbs in the wild (3/5): Second, we have the blurb, which is a masterwork. It does three things brilliantly.

One: It tells you why the subject matters, and why it will matter to the reader, whoever you are (if your British).

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Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 5d

Blurbs in the wild (2/5): This is despite the fact that royal books have a very Marmite audience: you either love 'em, or wouldn't touch one with a silver sceptre.
First, we have it's Book o/t Year recommendations, spread right across the other 4th estate's political affiliations. Everyone loves it.

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Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 5d

Blurbs in the wild (1/5): It is a publishing cliche that 'this book is for everyone.' When an editor makes such a claim the comms team groans: they hear 'a book for no one.' But @4thestatebooks.bsky.social & Craig Brown's A Voyage Round the Queen is determined to fly the 'for everyone' flag . . .

Blurb: Queen Elizabeth II was famous for longer than anyone who has ever lived. When people spoke of her, they spoke of themselves; when they dreamed of her, they dreamed of themselves. To the optimist, she seemed an optimist; to the pessimist, a pessimist; to the awestruck, radiant; and to the cynical, humdrum. Though by nature reserved and unassuming, her presence could fill presidents and rock stars with terror. For close to a century, she inhabited the psyche of a nation. Combining memoir, essays, cultural history, travels, dream diaries and parody, A Voyage Around the Queen presents a kaleidoscopic portrait of this most public yet private of sovereigns.

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Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 6d

We need more colour.
www.thisiscolossal.com/2025/10/crai...

Craig & Karl's 'Mateys' Bring Vibrancy and Joy to Bridges in Brisbane and Beyond

Craig & Karl are known for their vivid participatory projects, which range from mini-golf courses to playgrounds to murals.

www.thisiscolossal.com

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Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 6d

But what are you replacing your Colins with? Asking for a friend.

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Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 7d

Blurbs in the wild (2/2): . . . reframing. Everything else that follows deepens the mystery and raises the stakes. What's the crucial moment of change in your story?

Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 7d

Blurbs in the wild (1/2):
'Which they were. But now they are not.'

These two short, plain sentences early in the blurb for @headofzeus.bsky.social and @kellylink.bsky.social The Book of Love provide the hinge for this pitch. Three dead teenagers are no longer dead – why? A subtle, surprising . . .

Blurb: Laura, Daniel and Mo disappeared without trace a year ago. They have long been presumed dead. Which they were. But now they are not. And it is up to the resurrected teenagers to discover what happened to them.Revived by Mr Anabin - the man they knew as their high school music teacher - they are offered a chance to return to the mortal realm and solve the mystery of their death. But only two of them may stay. What they do not realise is their return has upset a delicate balance that has held - just - for centuries.

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Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 9d

Lovely piece by Nina Allan on what the Booker judges this year don't know. Also, a great argument for persistence as a reader. You might fall out of love with a writer's work but perhaps you, they or both of you will find your way back to one another. www.ninaallan.co.uk?p=7171

Nina Allan on Ian McEwan's What We Can Know

Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 9d

Blurbs in the wild 2/2: . . . is to pitch the setting and the journey. A Wizard of Earthsea (book one) gets a whole paragraph: introducing our hero and set up. Paragraph two maps out the broader story, the themes and stakes, or why you'll keep reading.

Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 9d

Blurbs in the wild 1/2: A goatherd sets out to become a magician, but true magic is on the wane. That's the pitch for @ursulakleguin.com Earthsea quartet. Four books. Four stories. One @penguinrandomhouse.bsky.social omnibus. The trick here, because you don't want to spoil any of the stories . . .

Blurb: A Wizard of Earthsea * The Tombs of Atuan * The Farthest Shore * Tehanu Ged is but a goatherd on the island of Gont when he comes by his strange powers over nature. Sent to the School of Wizards on Roke, he learns the true way of magic and proves himself a powerful magician. And it is as the Archmage Sparrowhawk that he helps the High Priestess Tenar escape the labyrinth of darkness. But over the years, Ged witnesses true magic and the ancient ways submit to the forces of evil and death. Will he too succumb, or can he hold them back?

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Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 12d

Whoop! Whoop! as they say. Exo is @libraryjournal.bsky.social SFF Debut of the Month. 'Recalls KSR!' I am not worthy. Thank you @diversionbooks.bsky.social @zenoagency.bsky.social @awfulagent.bsky.social
www.libraryjournal.com/story/exo-by...

'Exo' by Colin Brush| SFF Debut of the Month

Dual timelines, a shockingly hyperdimensional setting, and flawed characters make this a must-read that recalls the work of Kim Stanley Robinson.

www.libraryjournal.com

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Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 12d

Second, in 3 sentences, it pitches what the story is (a ship AI hive mind is stuck in a human body & wants answers) & how it works: treachery, quest, revenge. Now you know why this book & trilogy are important, what it is all about & how the story is told. A reader couldn't ask for anything more.

Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 12d

Blurbs in the wild: Sell one, sell the them all. The blurb for @orbitbooksuk.bsky.social and @annleckie.com @clarkeaward.bsky.social winner Ancillary Justice is a two-parter. First, it tells you why should read this landmark trilogy (many prizes, a masterpiece, contemporary societal concerns).

Blurb: Ann Leckie's New York Times bestselling Imperial Radch trilogy is a modern masterpiece of science fiction, capturing readers with its powerful exploration of gender, identity and artificial intelligence. Ancillary Justice is the first novel in the trilogy, and the only novel ever to win the Hugo, Nebula and Arthur C. Clarke Awards. On a remote, icy planet, the soldier known as Breq is drawing closer to completing her quest. Once, she was Justice of Toren a colossal starship with an artificial intelligence linking thousands of soldiers in the service of the Radch, the empire that conquered the galaxy. Now an act of treachery has ripped it all away, leaving her with one fragile human body, many unanswered questions and a burning desire for vengeance.

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Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 13d

Bell jar homes.
www.thisiscolossal.com/2025/09/mich...

Vernacular Architecture and Mossy Trees Fill Michael Davydov's Tiny Worlds

In the miniature world of Michael Davydov, tiny houses, moons, and trees balance precariously in clusters and stacks.

www.thisiscolossal.com

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Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 13d

In which I briefly discuss the science fiction murder mystery genre, offer up 5 books that I think provide some of its pleasures and thus hint at why I wrote a SFMM myself with Exo. Thanks, @shepherdbooks.bsky.social @zenoagency.bsky.social @diversionbooks.bsky.social
shepherd.com/best-books/s...

The best science fiction murder mysteries

Colin Brush shares the 5 best books on science fiction murder mysteries. Have you read Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency?

shepherd.com

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Colin the Copywriter @colinthecopywriter.bsky.social · 15d

Blurbs in the wild: SF often takes an idea/metaphor & makes it real, concretising the abstract. In this @gollancz.bsky.social blurb for The Dispossessed, the SF is stripped out to pitch the big ideas: a story of walls & being between 2 worlds, 2 ideologies. A story of the personal & the political.

'There was a wall. It did not look important even a child could climb it. But the idea was real. Like all walls it was ambiguous, two-faced. What was inside it and what was outside it depended upon which side of it you were on.' Shevek is attempting to find a new theory of time but there are those who are jealous of his work, and will do anything to block him. So he leaves his homeland, hoping to find a place of more liberty and tolerance. Initially feted, Shevek soon finds himself being used as a pawn in a deadly political game. 'With powerful themes of freedom and society The Dispossessed is a true classic of the 20th century to be read again and again' The Times

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