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198 ratings | 22 reviews | avg rating:4.32

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Toby Downton

Goodreads Author

Born

in Maidstone, The United Kingdom

Website

http://solarversia.com/

Twitter

tobydownton

Genre

Science Fiction, Young Adult

Influences

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show...
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Member Since

July 2014

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/tobydownton

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Toby's first novel, Solarversia, about a year-long game played in a virtual world, will be self-published through Amazon on the 31st August 2015.

The book was created by Toby to showcase the world of Solarversia, a game he plans to launch in the real world in the year 2020.

If you like sci-fi, think of yourself as a gamer, and are interested in the coming virtual reality revolution, this is a book you can't afford to miss! ...more

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Ask the Author

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Popular Answered Questions

What’s the best thing about being a writer?

Toby Downton Bringing my thoughts "to life". Creation follows a trajectory:

Thoughts > Words > Actions

Solarversia contained at least 10 years worth of random though…moreBringing my thoughts "to life". Creation follows a trajectory:

Thoughts > Words > Actions

Solarversia contained at least 10 years worth of random thoughts in it. Writing the book forced me to present them in a coherent manner, using the mechanism of fiction. During the process I realised that many thoughts I've had weren't so interesting after all, it's like you have to put them through a filter to extract the wheat from the chaff.

Part of bringing thoughts "to life" is hearing feedback from other people (I've only just started on that part of the journey). Were my thoughts interesting after all? Will they be interesting enough that people recommend the book to others, and it go on to become a best seller? And if so, will it become successful enough that I go on to get the investment I need to make The Game for real?

I can't think of anything I'd rather be working on right now. It's the most challenging thing I've ever done by far, but also the most rewarding.

Here's to attempting to make your dreams come true :-)(less)

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3 likes · like
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How do you deal with writer’s block?

Toby Downton I've never had it. I bought a fantastic book early on (Structuring Your Novel: Essential Keys for Writing an Outstanding Story) that helped me get cle…moreI've never had it. I bought a fantastic book early on (Structuring Your Novel: Essential Keys for Writing an Outstanding Story) that helped me get clear on the plot and the scenes that were involved at each stage of the story.

When I come to write a scene, I do a bit of planning first by asking a series of questions:
Whose POV is it?
Where and when does the scene take place?
Which other characters are in it?
How does it move the plot forward?
What makes the scene interesting from a reader's perspective?
What important information do I need to include?
How do I best "show" the elements of the scene, rather than "tell" them?
Is the scene best shown in this manner, or would it be more interesting if I showed it from a different perspective, or maybe didn't include it at all?

The answers to questions like these help to form the outline of the scene, which I then convert to prose ... or they helped me see that I was on the wrong track and needed to take a different approach.(less)

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See all 7 answers from Toby Downton…

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Toby Downton’s books

Average rating: 3.59 · 264 ratings · 72 reviews · 1 distinct work

Solarversia

3.59 avg rating — 264 ratings — published 2015 — 6 editions

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18 posts
Toby Downton's Blog

Do you BeneKway?

I've written a new six-part story which I'm publishing on Medium. It's related to Solarversia in a roundabout way, but also completey different.

Check it out, you might just like it!

https://medium.com/@BeneKway/do-you-b...

2 likes · Like • 0 comments • flag

Published on February 22, 2016 07:53 • Tags: linguistics, meta, shoreditch

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Toby is Currently Reading

Toby Downton is currently reading

Doughnut Economics: Seven Ways to Think Like a 21st-Century Economist

by Kate Raworth

bookshelves: currently-reading

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Feb 10, 2021 07:20PM

Toby Downton is currently reading

Shouting Zeros and Ones: Digital Technology, Ethics and Policy in New Zealand (BWB Texts Book 83)

by Andrew Chen

bookshelves: currently-reading

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Aug 18, 2020 02:58PM

Toby Downton is currently reading

The Fourth Turning: What the Cycles of History Tell Us About America's Next Rendezvous with Destiny

by William Strauss

bookshelves: currently-reading

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Apr 25, 2020 03:19PM

Quotes by Toby Downton (?)

“I have not one, but two presents for you.”
― Toby Downton, Solarversia: The Year Long Game

2 likes

“The world is a book and those who do not travel read only a page.”
― Toby Downton, Solarversia: The Year Long Game

0 likes

“the man who beats the same drum with the same stick hears the same tune.”
― Toby Downton, Solarversia: The Year Long Game

0 likes

See all Toby Downton's quotes »

Polls

What book would you like to read for May's Group Read?

Nukekubi by Stephen B. Pearl

3 votes, 50.0%

Neuromancer by William Gibson

2 votes, 33.3%

The Queen's Viper by Lesley Donaldson

1 vote, 16.7%

Solarversia by Toby Downton

0 votes, 0.0%

The Skystone by Jack Whyte

0 votes, 0.0%

6 total votes

comments and details

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Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
Ad Astra Society: * May Book Selection	10	5	May 01, 2016 06:16AM

Toby’s Quotes

“I love deadlines. I love the whooshing noise they make as they go by.”
― Douglas Adams, The Salmon of Doubt: Hitchhiking the Galaxy One Last Time

tags: deadlines, humor, humour, work, writing

32202 likes

“There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed.”
― Ernest Hemingway

tags: good, writing

19451 likes

“There is something delicious about writing the first words of a story. You never quite know where they'll take you.”
― Beatrix Potter

tags: writing

3127 likes

“People who live in glass houses should shut the fuck up.”
― Ernest Cline, Ready Player One

933 likes

“I have not one, but two presents for you.”
― Toby Downton, Solarversia: The Year Long Game

2 likes

More of Toby’s quotes…

recent posts
Toby’s Groups

Sci-Fi, fantasy and speculative Indie Authors Review — 1923 members — last activity Sep 06, 2026 11:40AM
Are you an Indie Author? Self-published or published by an Indie publisher? Do you enjoy discovering new books and new authors? Or are you just mad ab ...more

Goodreads Authors/Readers — 57557 members — last activity 3 hours, 29 min ago
This group is dedicated to connecting readers with Goodreads authors. It is divided by genres, and includes folders for writing resources, book websit ...more

Creative Reviews — 3876 members — last activity Sep 04, 2026 03:22PM
This group is a way to gather together people who like to write book reviews as well as advertise their book review blogs. With enough people we will ...more

Free Books, .99, Giveaways & Reviews - Check Them Out! — 10175 members — last activity 14 hours, 24 min ago
This group is for authors, publishers and bloggers to post giveaways and freebies for readers.

Iain Banks / Iain M. Banks fans — 228 members — last activity Nov 28, 2023 08:58AM
I can't believe there's no group on here for the wonderful Scottish mainstream/sci-fi writer, Iain Banks, so I thought I'd create one. This group is f ...more

How to Promote YOUR book on Amazon — 8825 members — last activity Sep 09, 2026 05:50AM
Are YOU an author? If so I am sure you are aware of how hard it can be to market your book successfully. There is so much you can do on Amazon.com to ...more

Beta Reader Group — 29788 members — last activity 8 hours, 13 min ago
A place to connect writers with beta readers. A cliche is just one of the things to look out for while writing. They can slip in unnoticed and ruin a ...more

Steampunk, New Weird, Bizarro, Scifi, Fantasy Book Group — 1912 members — last activity Oct 02, 2022 08:34PM
This Group is for a wide range of readers. Those who are already into Fantasy, Scifi, Steampunk, New Weird and Bizzaro. Or those that are just branchi ...more

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