Mike French was the owner and senior editor of the prestigious literary magazine, The View From Here during its life from 2007 to 2014. Mike’s debut novel, The Ascent of Isaac Steward, the first book of the Dandelion Trilogy, was published in 2011 and nominated for a Galaxy National Book Award which, presumably due to an unfortunate clerical error, was awarded to Dawn French. Elsewhen Press published the second book in the trilogy, the satirical Blue Friday, in 2012, and the third, Convergence, in 2013, along with a new edition of the first book.
Born in Cornwall in 1967, Mike spent his childhood flipping between England and Scotland with a few years in between in Singapore. Splitting his time between his own writing, editing the magazine, running author workshops and working with atp media in Luton, Mike is married with three children and a growing number of pets. He currently lives in Luton in the UK and when not working watches Formula 1, eats Ben & Jerry’s Phish Food and listens to Noah and the Whale.
Mike’s novel, The Ascent of Isaac Steward, book 1 in the Dandelion trilogy, was published by Elsewhen Press in a new revised edition on 19 April 2013.
Mike’s novel, Blue Friday, book 2 in the Dandelion trilogy, was published by Elsewhen Press on 1 September 2012.
Mike’s novel, Convergence, book 3 in the Dandelion trilogy, was published by Elsewhen Press in October 2013.
An Android Awakes, a new way to combine art and prose in storytelling, written by Mike and illustrated by Karl Brown, was published by Elsewhen Press in November 2015.
Fictional Alignment, the sequel to An Android Awakes, was published by Elsewhen Press in February 2018.
Parables, by Sapphira Olson, the third book in the An Android Awakes universe, was published by Elsewhen Press in February 2019.
Reviews:
- “impossible to become bored” – review of Fictional Alignment on Comic Book News UK
- Fictional Alignment is An Android Awakes dialled up to eleven – Shelf Abuse review
- “consistently imaginative and always entertaining” – review of Fictional Alignment in Alternative Magazine Online
- “mind-bending” and “emotionally expressive” – Win Wiacek review of Fictional Alignment
- “A must read sci-fi neo-noir” – review of An Android Awakes on Super Robot Mayhem
- “amazing imagery” – review of An Android Awakes on SFcrowsnest
- “one of the most pleasant surprises of the year” – review of An Android Awakes on Upcoming4me
- “delightfully peculiar” – review of An Android Awakes on Exeposé
- “I bloody loved it” – review of An Android Awakes on Shelf Abuse
- “entertaining, sexy, terrifying, and beautiful” – review of An Android Awakes on The Compulsive Reader
- “Emotionally intelligent, engaging and literate” – review of An Android Awakes on Murder Mayhem & More
- “a thoughtful creation” – Allen Stroud reviews An Android Awakes on SFBook Reviews
- “one of the coolest and most fascinating reads out there” – review of An Android Awakes on Starburst
- “fresh…never boring” – review of An Android Awakes on Skuds’ Sister’s Brother
- Deliciously irresistible, amazing and cool pageturner – review of An Android Awakes on Risingshadow
- “Intricate, fiery and original” – 10/10 review of An Android Awakes on The Weekly Spoon
- “something that is to be admired” – review on Comic Book News of An Android Awakes
- “Smart, challenging and well worth any jaded fantasist’s rapt attention” – Win Wiacek reviews An Android Awakes on Now Read This!
- Five reasons you should read An Android Awakes – review by Megan Noblett
- “extremely imaginative and compelling” – review of Convergence on Liz Loves Books
- “It may well tax your brain just a tad” – review of Convergence on Cheryl M-M’s Book Blog
- “a dizzying dystopia” – review of Convergence on Murder Mayhem & More
- “Excellent and imaginative science fiction” – review of Convergence on Risingshadow
- “a masterpiece of surreal fiction” – Review of The Ascent of Isaac Steward on Risingshadow
- “witty with the wry humour that only satire can impart” – review of Blue Friday on SFcrowsnest
- “one of those books that stays with you for a while” – review of Blue Friday on Booklore
- “a slick, smooth read” – review of Blue Friday on Juxtabook
- “clever, shocking and darkly humorous” – review of Blue Friday on Risingshadow
- “takes the ‘work-life balance’… to the extreme” – Review of Blue Friday at Writer’s Little Helper
- “clever, beautifully written story” – Review of Blue Friday on The Compulsive Reader
News:
- Allegories from Sapphira Olson link future and past with imagination reaching out beyond the horizon January 18, 2019
- Oddball, enjoyable and original – an interview with Mike French at the Alternative Magazine Online February 12, 2018
- Fictional Alignment is a satire by Mike French exploring a future in which androids control culture January 12, 2018
- Mike French interviewed on Alternative Magazine Online January 28, 2016
- Mike French interviewed for Exeposé December 1, 2015
- The making of… An Android Awakes by Mike French and Karl Brown October 20, 2015
- REVEALED: The cover art for An Android Awakes May 19, 2015
- Dysprosium – Eastercon 2015 February 25, 2015
- The making of… Convergence by Mike French February 18, 2014
- Mike French on Launching a Book February 7, 2014
- Mike French warns of authors’ hunting tactics February 6, 2014
- Convergence launch party crashed by Convergence Clones January 18, 2014
- Convergence now available in paperback December 30, 2013
- Convergence by Mike French out now October 26, 2013
- Mr Brittle and Mr Stone consider running a bookshop… November 28, 2012
- Interview of Mike French by Jonathan Pinnock November 19, 2012
- Blue Friday by Mike French now in print November 14, 2012
- In National Work-Life Week, a new book warns of the dangers of going too far in enforcing the work-life balance September 24, 2012
- Mike French signing Blue Friday at Waterstones in Bedford September 22, 2012
- Mike French signing Blue Friday at Waterstones in Bishop’s Stortford September 22, 2012
- Mike French signing Blue Friday at Waterstones in Milton Keynes September 22, 2012
- Blue Friday by Mike French published today September 1, 2012
- Elsewhen Press signs editor of literary magazine for science fiction novel May 10, 2012
Forthcoming Events:
Recent posts:
Mike can be contacted via Elsewhen Press using mike.french (at) elsewhen.co.uk