Scarborough author Robert Simpson launches his alien epic at Sci-fi Scarborough event at the Spa this weekend

To coincide with the event, Woodend-based local publisher Phantasm Press is publishing the first part of Robert’s three-volume science fiction epic Marca.

“We specialize in sci-fi, horror and the supernatural,” said Daniel Wilkins, co-founder of Phantasm Press, “and this is a brilliant piece of writing, so it’s right up our street. Robert’s trilogy is a great addition to our list.”

For Robert, publication is a dream come true. Marca was originally conceived while he was still at school in the late 1960s, but it was not until 1993 that the first draft was completed.

At that time, however, the demands of work and family commitments meant that he had no chance to bring the work into a publishable form. Since then he has refined and developed the story, and the pandemic lockdowns finally gave him time to complete the project.

A big challenge was bringing the 28-year-old first draft into the 21st century.

It had been composed on a 1980s word processor and saved on tape in a long-obsolete format. With the electronic version irretrievable, Robert had to scan all 3,400 pages of the typescript and use optical character recognition software to convert the images into editable text.

“It was a long job,” Robert, who lives in Scarborough said, “and the image conversion was far from perfect so there was a lot of correction involved, but it was a true labour of love.

"It is wonderful finally to be able to get the books into print.”

Marca is set entirely in an alien environment with no human charactersl. “The alien environment was incredibly liberating,” Robert said.

“I could explore a whole range of themes, such as identity, love, desire and survival, all in ways that would scarcely have been possible if I had been confined to the human world.

"I wanted to show how a very different civilization could develop and flourish without being shackled by human cultural or societal constraints, while still creating characters with whom the reader can readily identify. I think and hope that the result is an accessible, entertaining and intriguing read that will appeal to a wide range of science fiction fans.”

“We’re proud and excited to be launching Marca at Sci-fi Scarborough,” said. “It’s the perfect place for a groundbreaking work that we believe is all set to become a classic.”

Robert will be signing copies of his books at the Phantasm Press stand over the whole weekend.

“We’re very lucky to have such a phenomenal event as Sci-fi Scarborough,” he said. “I’m looking forward to introducing Marca to many potential readers.”

Phantasm Press has also published Robert’s science fiction novel The Orb, currently available on Amazon in both paperback and Kindle formats.

Sci-fi Scarborough is at Scarborough Spa on Saturday April 9 and Sunday April 10.