High Wired On - Dave Russell
Dave Russell or David Russell as prefers to be known in his guise as an author was born in 1940. Resident in UK. Writer of poetry, criticism, speculative fiction and romance. Poetry Collection Prickling Counterpoints (1998). Several poems published in Forward Press anthologies, and in International Times. Editor of Poetry Express Newsletter. Speculative fiction works High Wired On and Rock Bottom. Romance publications Self's Blossom, Explorations, Further Explorations, Therapy Rapture and Darlene. I am also a guitarist/singer-songwriter. My main CD albums are Bacteria Shrapnel and Kaleidoscope Concentrate; I have several tracks on YouTube.
"My curiosity about this highly unusual novel was initially aroused by the cryptic blurb: ' When you read this story, we hope that you will become aware of the perils of mass human vivisection'. The narrative teeters on the thin 'trapeze-wire' between fantasy and reality and it is often impossible to discern whether the bizarre experiences of the protagonist, Billy, are dreams, delusions or true apocalyptic horrors. The story is a strange and fascinating amalgamation of science fiction, conspiracy theory, detective story and faithful account of schizoid hallucination. The writing itself is so 'sparky' and apparently electrified that the reader begins to wonder whether the author is 'wired or 'on' something, but he assures that 'If you find some of this implausible, please take consolation - so do I'. The reader must decide where actuality ends and the imagination begins, which is no mean feat. Though events are sometimes difficult to follow, Dave Russell's images are often inspired: 'silhouetting your anxieties and suspicions on ceilings' and his lively prose conjures fantastic landscapes full of erupting volcanoes, spawning monsters and ancient cavernous civilisations. This book is likely to leave only a single certainty in the reader's mind: that there surely is nothing else like it."
Karen Smith
Who I Am by David Russell May 1, 2013 By The Long and Short Of It 3 Comments I would like to consider myself to be something of an all-rounder. As well as romance, my writings include literary journalism, speculative fiction and poetry. My chief work of Speculative Fiction is called High Wired On. In the online edition of International Times there is more of my speculative prose, The Musician’s Testament, dealing with the instabilities of pop musicians, and verse – Power Kernels, Speakfeel andEver River.
In the romantic direction, I was strongly influenced by The Girl Beneath the Lion by André Pieyre de Mandiargues. This gave me a permanent taste for beach seduction scenes. Another stimulus was some lovely romantic writing by a close friend of mine. As well as beach scenes, I love the aesthetics of dressing up and undressing. I have written an article called Undressing for Love published online by Happily Ever After Authors.
My romances have often been categorised by reviewers as ‘soft vanilla’ I was very much rooted in the ‘old school’, where there were major taboos against explicit description. I always found that there was more excitement and suspense when some things were alluded to poetically, and much was left to the imagination. My characters are all independent; within the scope of the story, they have no hankering after marriage and settled domesticity. I also like to think of sensuality as benign. I am highly sensitive to such issues as abuse and rape, and support groups combating these evils. But I cannot effectively bring these elements into my fiction writing. My work has been described as poetic, and as nearer to literary than to genre fiction.
I would like to think that it could bear comparison with some of the works of Anais Nin, particularly that lovely Delta of Venus collection. My time reference is from the present to the future. Although I read a lot of history and can enjoy reading historical fiction, I cannot get into writing the latter.
My short story Therapy Rapture, originally published by Rose Dog Books, is to be reissued by Extasy on April 15th. This will shortly be followed by two new stories, Darlene and Fools’ Paradise.
51 EmbraceMy efforts as a singer-songwriter can be heard on YouTube – such as Microscope, Bone Idol and Symbiotic Suffocation. I also do some visual artwork. Self’s Blossom by David Russell 51 SB CoverThis is about a young woman’s self-discovery. Selene is a ‘success story’, having become a top journalist, while retaining her dazzling looks. However, in the past she has had unhappy relationships, and feels she has missed out on hedonistic fun. This she obtains, firstly with a young stranger on a beach, and finally with enigmatic Hudson: tryst is preceded by cultural tourism, and careful sizing up of minds. Afterwards Selene returns to her ‘I stand on my own’ attitude.
While she is on holiday, her mind is free to ramble, often into Selene’s chequered past. Flashback blurs into the present, past-rooted interior monologue into direct observation. The dialogue is sparse. Selene is a cautious, premeditative type, in whom thought, reflection and analysis outweigh direct action.
Selene’s subtle, monitoring mind coolly observes and controls all the events. Maybe she is super-confident, or perhaps has a deep, underlying insecurity. She is many things to many readers.