AustLit

'In this special companion volume to The Complete Rynosseros, author Terry Dowling discusses the origins and development of every story in the classic saga of the Blue Captain.

'There are fascinating insights into the parts played by boyhood movies, picture books, comics and SF magazines, by the work of the Surrealists and Scheherazade’s tales from the Thousand and One Nights, everything from Jacobean song lyrics, modern-day movie soundtracks and a child’s drawing of a robot to the fiction of Cordwainer Smith, Ray Bradbury and J.G. Ballard, as well as that of his long-time writer friends Jack Vance and Harlan Ellison.

'Whether through the support and wise counsel of editors like Peter McNamara and Philip Gore, the artwork and design input of friend and colleague Nick Stathopoulos, or the titles, questions and suggestions offered by many interested companions along the way, Songs from the Inland Sea focuses, too, on learning the craft. It highlights the role of hard work, improvisation and—in true Surrealist fashion— serendipity, the part played by chance so prized by Max Ernst and other luminaries in the movement.

'For the completist, the die-hard fan or curious newcomer, Songs from the Inland Sea provides an intriguing, heartfelt look at how one writer went about pursuing the dream, and not only added a truly unforgettable character to the canon of modern fantastic literature, but, as often happens in any creative life, came to discover himself in the process.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.