The novelist whose work was named by the 'Sunday Times' as 'Eng Lit for the age of www' has fallen 'victim' of video games, as he himself is quoted as saying by the 'Independent'. The British writer will not be able to meet the deadline for his next novel because he started playing 'Civilization', lost track of time and wrote absolutely nothing.

Iain Banks had signed a deal that his latest Fiction/Science Fiction novel, 'Matter', will be ready for publishing by Christmas this year and was now forced to admit to the publishing house that he won't be able to meet the terms stipulated in the contract.

This is how the writer explains himself: 'It's all because I became a serial addict of the computer game 'Civilization'. I played it for three months and then realized I hadn't done any work. In the end, I had to delete all the saved files and smash the CD. It is very unprofessional of me. I had to ask for an extension for the first time, which made me feel just like I was a student again'.

And this was Iain's first extension, indeed. Until now, he used to brag that he could write a book in just a couple of months and then spend the rest of the time until deadline cruising Scotland in his Ferrari. But this time it will be different, as he has to make up for the lost time and finish the book until the date set for earlier next year.

Iain Banks' novels include 'The Wasp Factory', 'The Crow Road', 'Dead Air' and 'The Player of Games'. In 1993, he was named one of the Best of Young British Writers and, later on, 'the most imaginative British novelist of his generation'.