Who is he?

Iain Banks is a Scottish writer, born in Dumfermline in 1954. An only child, he read English at Stirling University. After leaving university in 1975 he had several jobs before moving to London in 1979 in search of work. Whilst in London he had The Wasp Factory accepted and published and became a professional writer. He now lives in Edinburgh.

Here is a brief autobiography.

What does he look like?

© Håkon T Sønderland

What does the M stand for?

The M stands for Menzies, pronounced ming-iss.

What has he written?

The Wasp Factory (1984)
Walking on Glass (1985)
The Bridge (1986) FAQ
Consider Phlebas (1987)
Espedair Street (1987)
The Player of Games (1988)
Canal Dreams (1989)
Use of Weapons (1990) FAQ
The State of the Art (1991) collection
The Crow Road (1992)
Against a Dark Background (1993)
Complicity (1993)
Feersum Endjinn (1994) FAQ
Whit (1995)
Excession (1996) FAQ
A Song of Stone (1997)
Inversions (1998 ) FAQ
The Business (1999)
Look to Windward (2000)
Dead Air (2002)
Raw Spirit (2003)
The Algebraist (2004)

What stories are in The State of the Art?

A Gift From The Culture (1987)
Cleaning Up (1987)
Odd Attachment (1987)
Scratch (1987)
Road Of Skulls (1988)
Piece (1989)
The State Of The Art (1989)
Descendant (1991)

Does IMB have an entry in The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction (ed. Clute & Nicholls)?

Yes, click here.

Does John Clute have anything else to say about IMB?

Yes, click here.

Have any of IMB's works been filmed?

Yes. The Crow Road was made into a TV series in 1996 by the BBC and shown on BBC2. It is available on video,

The IMDB entry for The Crow Road is here.

Complicity was made into a film in 2000. It is available on video and DVD.

The IMDB entry for Complicity is here.

Both were attapted from IMB's novels by Bryan Elsley.

PoG, ES and tB are all in preproduction of one stage or another. Of these Espedair Street is the only one that looks likely to be made in the near future.

What is Personal Effects?

A CD of IMB's favourite songs released as part of the EMI Songbook Series. The tracklisting is:

1. Don't Bang The Drum - The Waterboys
2. Heroes - David Bowie
3. Little Britain - Dreadzone
4. Factory - Warren Zevon
5. Man child - Neneh Cherry
6. Get Up Stand Up - Peter Tosh
7. Satisfaction - Devo
8. Pretty Vacant - The Sex Pistols
9. Karma Police - Radiohead
10. For Michael Collins - Jethro Tull
11. Walking Down Madison - Kirsty MacColl
12. Shot By Both Sides - Magazine
13. Careful - Horse
14. Echo Beach - Martha & The Muffins
15. Babylon's Burning - The Ruts
16. Unexpected Join - Ivor Cutler
17. Sleeping Satellite - Tasmin Archer
18. 1952 Vincent Black Lightning - Richard Thompson
19. Dark Moon High Tide - Afro Celt Sound System
20. Love Anyway - Mike Scott

What are IMB's favourite sf novels?

This is IMB's top ten sf novels as published in Arena (UK):

1. The Moon is a Harsh Mistress - Robert Heinlen
2. Tiger! Tiger! - Alfred Bester
3. Hyperion - Dan Simmons
4. Fire Upon The Deep - Vernor Vinge
5. Neuromancer - William Gibson
6. The Dispossessed - Ursula K Le Guin
7. The Muller-Fokker Efect - John Sladek
8. The Pastel City - M John Harrison
9. Stand on Zanzibar - John Brummer
10. Babel-17 - Samuel R Delany

Where can I speak to people about IMB online?

There is a newsgroup. (Also available through Google Groups.)