The Martian is a 2011 science fiction novel. It was the second novel by American author Andy Weir and the first published under his own name. The son of a particle physicist and with a background in computer science, he began writing the book in 2009, researching related material so that it would be as realistic as possible and based on existing technology.
Having been rebuffed by literary agents when trying to get prior books published, Weir decided to put the book online in serial format one chapter at a time for free at his website. At the request of fans, he made an Amazon Kindle version available at 99 cents (the minimum he could set the price). The Kindle edition rose to the top of Amazon's list of best-selling science-fiction titles, where it sold 35,000 copies in three months, more than had been previously downloaded free. This garnered the attention of publishers: Podium Publishing, an audiobook publisher, signed for the audiobook rights in January 2013. Weir sold the print rights to Crown in March 2013 for over US$100,000 and the hardcopy book came out soon afterwards, debuting on the New York Times Best Seller list on March 2, 2014 in the hardcover fiction category at twelfth position. The Martian, a film adaptation directed by Ridley Scott and starring Matt Damon, was released in October 2015.
Is't that amazing. It just goes to show that there is sometimes a golden ending to a self-publishing scenario!
The story follows an American astronaut, Mark Watney who becomes stranded alone on Mars and must improvise in order to survive. The book was hugely big on facts and detail but, being a bit that way inclined myself, I loved it. I also loved the quirky sense of humour of the astronaut as he coped with the ongoing challenges, all life threatening. I can see how the author was able to publish it in serial format initially - the number of cliff hanging scenarios make for great chapter endings - wait for next week to see if he overcomes this latest test!
The science is superbly spelt out and I am amazed at the depth of detail throughout the book. The excitement builds in the last few pages as yet another issues arises which may prevent success at the last moment.
I must now see the movie.
See Andy Weir read the first chapter of the book and then answer questions.
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