AUB Writing Lecturer Launches Sci-Fi Novel Black Box
Dr Kevan Manwaring of Arts University Bournemouth takes his award-winning sci-fi novel Black Box on a Dorset bookshop tour in November.
By Academic Writing Club Newsroom
Bookshops across Dorset, England, are hosting launch events in November for Black Box, an award-winning science fiction novel by Dr Kevan Manwaring, Program Leader for the online MA Creative Writing and Senior Lecturer on the BA (Hons) Creative Writing at Arts University Bournemouth (AUB). The tour opens at Waterstones Bridport on Friday, November 6, and moves to Westbourne Bookshop on Monday, November 9. Both events are open to all and form part of a wider run of author talks and readings across the South West of England through November.
Black Box cover art by Steve Hambidge
A Mission Beneath The Ice Of Europa
Black Box is set on Europa, the frozen moon of Jupiter. It follows the crew of the Ultima Thule, a Galileo class submersible commanded by Captain Lake, as an international team of scientists explores the lightless oceans beneath the ice in search of the solar system's most precious resource, and finds far more than they bargained for.
The novel won the national Gollancz/Literature Works "One Giant Write" science fiction manuscript competition. It has already been made into a full audio drama by Alternative Stories & Fake Realities, which is available on Spotify.
Research Behind The Story
Manwaring drew on research across several fields so that the novel's future world would feel grounded in real science. He spoke with mathematicians and space scientists, visited the Eden Project in Cornwall and wrote early chapters in a remote croft in the Scottish Highlands.
Dr Kevan Manwaring said:
"To build a grounded scientific framework for the story, I wanted to dive deep into the real-world science behind the fiction. I spoke about Artificial Intelligence with Jeremy Levesley, Professor of Mathematics at the University of Leicester, and explored space exploration with Professor Jonathan Nichols of the National Space Centre including his work on the European Space Agency's JUICE Mission.
"Visiting the Eden Project in Cornwall helped shape the feel of artificial biomes, while drafting early chapters in a remote croft in Wester Ross in the Scottish Highlands gave me the isolation and focus needed to bring Europa's lightless subterranean world to life."
Launch Dates And Book Details
- Bridport launch: Friday, November 6, 6:30 p.m., Waterstones Bridport
- Westbourne launch: Monday, November 9, 6 p.m., Westbourne Bookshop
- Publication date: November 9, 2026
- Publisher: Goldendark
- Format: paperback (248 pages) and audio drama
- Price: £12.99
- ISBN: 978-1066954407
The paperback is available to pre-order now.
