EDWARD GAUVIN

I am proud to debut a new author in English: Laurent Queyssi! His story “Sense of Wonder 2.0” has now been presented for your reading delectation in Issue #2 of that smashing bi-monthly British anthology, The New Accelerator. Bringing cutting-edge science fiction to a global audience, The New Accelerator (named after H.G. Wells’ famous short story) is available exclusively through Apple’s Newsstand app and the Google Play store for easy access on all mobile devices.

Set in a future suburb, “Sense of Wonder 2.0” weaves potshots at commercialism into a seemingly shaggy-dog mall quest to score a new recreational drug. Sudden violence slices into jaded anomie. But as its title indicates, the story packs a meta-punch: a powerful contemplation, both critique and fan lament, about the imperial reach and broken promise of Anglophone science fiction on SFnal cultures across the globe. Weltschmerz-punk, if you will.

Born in the southwest of France, Queyssi is a lover of genre in all its forms, especially fantasy, science fiction, and thrillers. He is the author of four novels, a biographical essay about James Bond, and a critically acclaimed collection of SF stories, Comme un automate dément reprogrammé à la mi-temps [Like a Demented Robot Reprogrammed at Halftime], from which “Sense of Wonder 2.0” is taken. His latest graphic novel, Section infini [Infinity Bureau], in collaboration with Brazilian artist Greg Tocchini, was recently published by Lombard. He is currently working on a YA series and a comics biography of Philip K. Dick.

Laurent reached out to me last year about the possibility of translations, and I fell in love with his work. Here I am, smoking a cigar courtesy the author, over a discussion about how Hannibal said “I love it when a plan comes together” in the old French A-Team broadcasts.

Laurent showed me a great time in Bordeaux last summer, organizing a little soirée with local writers, comics artists, and translators, all with a toe or more in the SF world.

Here’s hoping we see more of Laurent in English soon!