New Anthology: ROBOT UPRISINGS

From Publishers Marketplace:

Roboticist and NYT bestselling author Daniel H. Wilson and acclaimed anthologist John Joseph Adams, eds.’s ROBOT UPRISINGS, an anthology of stories, to executive editor Jason Kaufman at Doubleday (acquired for Vintage), by Laurie Fox at Linda Chester Literary Agency and Joe Monti at Barry Goldblatt Literary (World English). Translation: Whitney Lee of The Fielding Agency.

I'm super excited to announce that I'm all teamed up with John Joseph Adams (of Lightspeed magazine) to edit my first book of science fiction short stories. I will be contributing my own novella (mostly written already, and pretty badass if I do say) and we've got a great list of contributors with their own stories that revolve around those darned pesky robots.

More news further down the line...

Make Your Own Robopocalypse Trailer -- Win Cold Hard Cash.

In anticipation of all-out ROBOPOCALYPSE, Doubleday is planning to welcome our shiny new metal overlords with an appeasing short video -- and they're willing to pay you to create it.

That's right, it's a Video Contest!

Grand Prize: $750
First Prize: $500
Second Prize: $250

The best part is that Doubleday has made some previously in-house materials available to the public, including:

1) High resolution images of the robot that is on the cover of the book.
2) A top-secret audio interview between me and my editor Jason Kaufman (who also edits Dan Brown, no less).
3) A full two chapter excerpt from the book.
4) The font used on the cover of the book.

Full details (and "Contest Assets") are on the video contest page at Facebook.

Show me what you got, humans!

Tulsa World

The Tulsa World newspaper (in my hometown) printed a great breakdown of what I've been up to (and will be up to this year), as well as a summary of A BOY AND HIS BOT. Nice!

The day before Wilson sold "Robopocalypse" to his publisher, his manager called from Los Angeles and said, much to Wilson's surprise, "Hey Daniel, we have an offer from Dreamworks for this book."

Click here to read the article.

A BOY AND HIS BOT

...is released today!

Written for ages nine to twelve, my first middle reader novel explores the fate of a boy who stumbles upon an experimental world built and abandoned by an ancient human civilization. Traveling with a speck sized robot named Peep and a ten-foot-tall atomic slaughterbot named Gary, young Code Lightfall must find a way out of Mekhos, and a way to save the lives of his friends.

The first review is in, over at the Michael Belfiore Blog.

"Drawing from his background as a CMU-trained robotics expert, Wilson creates a world every bit as amazing as Harry Potter’s. Actually, even more amazing, as it doesn’t depend on magic; it all could, conceivably, come true, and therein lies the real magic."

Please check it out!

Amazon Barnes & Noble Borders Powell's

Nice Little Review of Bro-Jitsu

A fun review of Bro-Jitsu: The Martial Art of Sibling Rivalry has gone up over at Collateral Bloggage. (Plus bonus interview!)

No, this isn't a how-to manual; it's a nostalgia piece, reminding us of what we endured and perpetrated as kids. Particularly funny to me were the tactics for succeeding at sibling irritation while also avoiding detection by Parental Referees, and even better, getting the victim into trouble for something you actually started. Awesome.

SH: In the book, you warn about the dangers involved in trying Bro-Jitsu moves on Only Children. What advice can you give the father who wants to train his Only Child in the ways of Bro-Jitsu?

DW: Sadly, the sacred bond of brother or sisterhood cannot be replicated in an only child. But there is an easy and fun solution: Make another baby immediately. (Agreed.)

AMP sells to Summit and Director Alex Proyas

After long and difficult negotiations, I have decided to sell film rights to my upcoming novel AMP to Summit Entertainment. Alex Proyas (The Crow, Dark City, I,Robot, Knowing) is attached to produce and likely direct. Couldn't be more excited about the potential for this project!

Click here to read the scoop at Deadline Hollywood!

Doubleday is getting "AMP"ED!

I'm very happy to report that I've sold my next novel to Doubleday. The novel is called AMP. I'll be working with editor Jason Kaufman once again, and I should be busy for the next 12 to 18 months!

Read the full announcement at Publisher's Weekly.

"Agent Laurie Fox at Linda Chester closed the deal. Wilson wrote the forthcoming Robopocalypse, which Doubleday is publishing in June and which picked up a significant amount of press after it was announced that Steven Spielberg will be adapting the novel for Dreamworks in a planned 2011 feature. Amp is a techno-thriller that, as Fox explained, "explores and expands the definition of what it means to be human." Justin Manask is handling the film rights for the book."

A Boy and His Bot -- Pre-Review

My next book, a young adult novel called A BOY AND HIS BOT, will be released in January 2011. And let me say, I loved writing this book. So many crazy ideas that couldn't fit into my other "adult" books made it into this one, from feral robots lost in the woods to "infinite" robots that never stop being built. It's a few months until it hits shelves, but for now I'm very excited by this positive-sounding (and accurate, in my opinion) description of the book from Publisher's Weekly:

"Wilson brings the expertise of his adult titles How to Survive a Robot Uprising and How to Build a Robot Army (and a Ph.D. in robotics) to his first middle-grade novel, a campy down-the-robot-hole adventure. Shy sixth-grader Code Lightfall is not a boy of action, but on a field trip, he falls down a hole in Mek Mound, an ancient Oklahoman pyramid where his grandfather disappeared a year earlier. Code finds himself lost in Mekhos, a metallic land of robots ("Mekhos makes no sense!" he complains. "You robots are impossible. Everything is either too small to see or too big to figure out"). When Code discovers that his grandfather is being controlled by the evil Immortalis, who is holding captive the sacred Robonomicon, he teams up with friends Peep, a robot bug, and Gary, a crazed "atomic slaughterbot," and travels through treacherous territory to the Celestial City to prevent the destruction of the robot and human worlds. With a goofy sense of humor and plenty of action, Wilson presents a coming-of-age journey with shades of Alice in Wonderland and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. " --PW

Savants Fous!

The Mad Scientist Hall of Fame (which I co-authored with psychologist Anna C. Long) has been translated into French. This is very fitting, considering that several of the best mad scientists ever hail from France -- including Marie Curie and August Piccard. (And Dr. Moreau definitely sounds French!)

Check out the awesomely redesigned cover in this image:

The Father Life

The Father Life (the men's magazine for dads -- so you better keep out, ladies!) has reviewed Bro-Jitsu. They liked it and you can click here to read the full text.

But one thing stood out to me about the review. Bathrooms. Here are a couple quotes:

"I enjoyed this text as a very entertaining bathroom read and highly recommend it..."

"I also appreciate the brevity of the text. This helped make it an excellent bathroom reader."

Leading me to ask myself, "How do I feel about the fact that people are dropping the kids off at the pool while reading my book?" Hmm...

I definitely didn't have this reading state in mind while I was writing. There are no special scatalogical references beyond those natural to youth. That said, I do understand the sentiment. Bro-Jitsu is easy to read because it is written in small chunks that are easy to digest and just plop into your head. (Sorry, that was gross.)

Now that I think about it, I'm sort of flattered that people are reading my work while in this very vulnerable state. Also, imagining people giggling while sitting on the toilet kind of cracks me up. And last, the review was written on a web site for fathers. That's what we do as fathers. We're gross. We're honest. We poop.

So, the moral of the story is that if you ever sit on the toilet, you should consider buying Bro-Jitsu.

Forget Zombies, Fear Robots!

I could never have guessed that Perez Hilton of all people had strong opinions about robots and zombies. Then again, I guess all of his opinions are strong! Yesterday, he weighed in on the possibility of Steven Spielberg directing the movie based on my book, Robopocalypse.

Perez Hilton

ROBOPOCALYPSE

Although I have finished writing ROBOPOCALYPSE (Doubleday releases it in June 2011), the movie is still in the works. There are a lot of unknowns, however. Like... who is directing?

Vulture is wondering!

full body defensive fish wiggle

The Tulsa World is running an expose on my bro-jitsu childhood. You can read it by clicking here.

I think the writer (Matt Gleason) did a great job of capturing the true essence of brotherly love that goes behind every beating, while also mentioning a move that could knock your brother's tooth loose. As brothers and sisters we must walk a fine line, my friend. A very fine line.

My New Book is Out! BRO-JITSU!

My newest book is released today!

You can find it at Amazon.

Or buy online from my favorite neighborhood bookstore: Powell's.

Watch an awesome video by clicking here.

Inspired by growing up with my little brother -- and the physical and mental torture we inflicted on each other -- the book is called BRO-JITSU: The Martial Art of Sibling Smackdown. It categorizes all the mental and physical attacks that siblings use -- offensive, defensive, and psychological -- under a single martial art called Bro-Jitsu. Yes, this includes all the stuff you remember (fondly?) from your own childhood, such as pink bellies, dogpiles, dead arms, bloody knuckles, purple nurples (aka tune in to Tokyo), and the dreaded hanging spit fake.

I've even got the proper technique for chasing your sister with dog poop on the end of a stick. I'm nothing if not thorough, people.

And of course, don't forget the Sacred Vow of Bro-Jitsu -- never in the face.

So if you get the chance, please pick up a copy from Amazon or Barnes & Noble or your favorite book store. And share this message on to any childhood friends, brothers, sisters, or cousins who you think might be interested!


*** Oh, and just in case you aren't convinced that this is the pinnacle of my writing career, check out this sample text.

OFFENSIVE MOVE (in every sense of the word)

"Pull My Finger "

Extend your index finger and say with a straight face, “Pull my finger.” If by some cruel trick of fate your sister actually pulls your finger, immediately deliver a fart with the intensity of a sub-tropical storm. She should recoil in terror, unsure of whether you just filled your pants. If you aren’t sure either, then congratulations – you pulled this move off perfectly.

Countermove:

Back Away Slowly

When someone announces “Pull my finger,” it should be obvious that you are standing next to a trouser bomb that’s on a hair-trigger and set to explode. Raise your arms, palms out, and back away slowly. If the bomb isn’t triggered, you just might get out of this alive.

incredibly cool t-shirts

I've got a quick blog post up at a really awesome online t-shirt company called CUPPA T-SHIRTS. The post is introducing a new HOVERBOARD t-shirt and it involves Michael J. Fox making me cry.

Anyway, based on this moon property shirt (pictured), it should be kind of obvious that these are the coolest body-coverings ever, short of a silver spandex unitard.

(And is that Ronald Reagan in the picture?! He's living on the moon with angels, now.)

Seriously, Where's My Jetpack?

Hello everybody,

CNN.com has an interesting article about jetpacks and the retro-future up today. The writer, John Blake, was nice enough to interview me about the subject, giving me the opportunity to describe the future of drunk jetpacking. Thank goodness I was allowed to share. :)

If you're interested, "Where's My Jetpack" is available at Amazon!

And you can find links to my other books to the left.
<--------

Thanks for reading,

Daniel

robot uprising t-shirts, only $9 bucks

If pop culture has taught us anything, it is that someday mankind must face and destroy the growing robot menace.

Help ensure the survival of humanity by clicking here to pick out your new "HOW TO SURVIVE A ROBOT UPRISING" t-shirt!

Do it for the babies and kitties. ;)

Flying Cars For Everyone!

Want to know exactly WHY we don't have flying cars? I spilled the beans in an interview recently. It appeared in the New York Times today. Hint: It has to do with answering the "Yeah, but could my grandma fly it?" question.

Click here to read the article.

To learn more about flying cars, check out my book on the subject: Where's My Jetpack?: A Guide to the Amazing Science Fiction Future that Never Arrived

It's... It's... LiveWire!

I'm appearing on the LiveWire radio show this Saturday, April 11th! I'll be interviewing the esteemed Dr. Michio Kaku, co-founder of string field theory and author of the book, Physics of the Impossible. Will I shake him by the lapels and demand my jetpack? Maybe, it depends on how full my flask is when I come on. And don't forget that the last time I was on LiveWire, I totally blanked out on my lines and had a little "wore my underwear to school" moment which culminated in a whiskey binge at The Lamp bar next door. Think I might do it again? You'll have to come and see!

The Future is Finally Stylish

I got a brief quote in a really interesting New York Times article. Apparently, the catwalks are teeming with space-inspired fashion. 

Read the article!