SF/F Link: End of August Catchup!
No need for introductions, except this one. It’s time to dive right in: The Independent lists the 100 favorite fictional characters, as chosen by literary luminaries. It’s an interesting list, if not a little flawed. Imagination Investigation gives us the Reader Contract. Ignore the bit at the end about God and what not, but the rest of it is really interesting. These are really what readers expect. Polenth talks about names in a multicultural world. Some interesting points and observations made there. Here’s a list of the 500 greatest books for teens. Huge list. I’ve read a few on it, but…it’s a huge list. And how about this? 50 resources that will improve your writing. Might be useful, right? There’s also a similar list for resources that will revolutionize your note-taking (or anything close to note-taking, at least). If you’re a Thomas Pynchon nut, like me (though I can’t explain why), then you might find this list of articles by, about, and of interest to him rather, well, interesting! According to the USA Today, one in four people read zero books last year. That’s not as bad as it could be. That’s technically an improvement! Dear Author lists ten online promotional don’ts for writers. Good stuff! Damsels in Regress talks about time travel. Informative and somewhat different than normal talks on this subject. Natania Barron has a few requests from the fantasy genre. Good requests too. Futurismic mentioned a long time ago that stem-cell contacts can restore eyesight. That’s right. Stem-cell research works. We should all dance now. And there we go! Enjoy!
Interview w/ Kage Baker
Kage Baker is the author of The House of the Stag and many other books. You can find my review of The House of the Stag here. Special thanks to Ms. Baker for agreeing to do this interview. Here goes: Thank you for agreeing to this interview. First, can you tell us briefly about yourself? What led you down the path of authorhood and why fantasy and science fiction? You’re welcome. About myself… I’m a middle-aged spinster aunt living in Pismo Beach, California, with my parrot Harry. I was frequently ill as a child and my mother saw to it that I had plenty of books to read, early and often. She also wanted me to become a writer, which for many years I resolutely refused to do– publicly, anyway. Privately I filled several volumes with stuff, mostly set in a fantasy world I’d invented. What I did publicly was join the Living History Center, who put on the original Renaissance Faire, which was nothing like the plastic models now in circulation. It was an educational extravaganza, painfully authentic and absolutely magical. I taught Elizabethan English as a Second Language for them for close to thirty years, and worked as an actress, stage manager and occasional dramaturge as well. This gave me a lot of what you could call unique life experience, so by the time I finally gave in and began to sell what I wrote, I had a lot of material with which to work. Why fantasy and science fiction? Fantasy because I was inclined that way, and science fiction as an offering to my mother’s ghost. She loved science fiction. Who have been some of your influences, whether in writing or some other hobby or profession? What are some of your favorite books? Oh, gosh… Shakespeare, especially A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and it’s affected me in so many ways: wanting to escape to the Wood Near Athens as a child, watching the filmed versions, reading it and savoring the words, watching it being staged Elizabethan-style on a crude wooden stage in an oak forest… All the works of Robert Louis Stevenson, but most especially Treasure Island. C.S. Lewis and Edward Eager and Elizabeth Enright. L. Frank Baum. All their books. Patrick O’Brian’s Aubrey-Maturin series takes my breath away. I’ll read anything Terry Pratchett writes, and his books for kids are even better than his books for adults. The Asterix the Gaul comics. The Flashman novels. Thorne Smith’s supernatural comedies. Peter S. Beagle! Way too many others to mention. The House of the Stag is the second book set in this particular world. What drew you to return to this world? And what about the fantasy genre made you want to return? Actually, The House of the Stag is drawn directly from the huge fantasy world about which I’d been writing from the age of nine or so. Gard’s story is the oldest part. When I was trying to earn money at my craft as an adult, I adapted a minor incident concerning one of Gard’s sons into a short story and sent it out to test the waters, as it were. The story was favorably received, so I went ahead and wrote the first part of the triptych that became The Anvil of the World, my first published fantasy book. Tor was interested in a second fantasy novel, so I went back to my original source material and revised it, and rewrote it (because you may think you know everything when you’re fourteen, but by the time you’re fifty-three your perspective has changed somewhat). Et voila! The House of the Stag. One of the powerful features of this book is how it takes an otherwise cliché plot and twists it on its head. Your novel seems keenly aware of the past of its genre (fantasy), including delving into aspects of myth and fairytale. What do you see as the connection between modern (contemporary) fantasy and the stories of our past? Do you see The House of the Stag as a novel that breaks convention (in a good way)? I hope it breaks convention in a good way, certainly… Here’s the other disadvantage of writing from a fourteen-year-old’s perspective, especially at a time when Tolkien was God and trilogies set in immense detailed universes were what every aspiring young writer set out to create: you don’t realize you’re not being terribly original. But by the time you’re older and you’ve read your Joseph Campbell and you’ve seen all the really cheesy Tolkien knockoffs that make millions at the cost of their muses, and you’ve read a bit of the sort of things Tolkien’s contemporaries were writing, you see the field in a new light. My story involved a foundling coming of age and discovering who he was and what his heritage entailed, which is one o’ them there Universal Themes, and it helps that he discovers that his destiny is to be the world’s Bad Guy, but even so– it seemed to me it was wiser to pare it down to its essential myth, and tell it not as an Oxford don would tell it, but as people would tell it. And just incidentally using that incident in which Gard becomes an actor to comment on the larger Epic Fantasy tradition… sort of getting a dig in. The House of the Stag also deals with issues of identity, slavery, and colonialism, in particularly powerful ways. Can you talk about what drew you to these themes and any other thoughts you might have in how they played a role in your novel? Well, they were in the original version, begun in my childhood, and I suppose that came from the fact that my father was of Native American descent. We grew up keenly aware that there was another side entirely to the story of how Pioneers Conquered America Because God Gave it to Them. When my dad was in school he frequently had to fight to defend himself.
Interview w/ Nicole Kimberling
Nicole is the author of Turnskin, an interesting tale that I reviewed not too long ago. Additional thanks goes to her for taking the time out of her day to do this interview. Thanks for doing this interview. First, can you tell us a bit about yourself? What drew you into authorhood and why fantasy? I started writing stories to impress this girl I was into. It worked a little too well since once I got the girl I had to continue to produce more and better stories. As for fantasy, I’ve just always liked it. I was one of those kids who had a lightsaber and a first edition box of Dungeons & Dragons. What have been some of your influences as a writer? What are some of your favorite books, whether fantasy or otherwise? When I like a piece of fiction I read it compulsively, the same book over and over again for about six months. So, in order of appearance, here are a few books and novellas I’ve read like that: The Borrowers by Mary NortonDragonsinger by Anne McCaffreyVampirella #4: Blood Wedding by Ron GoulartDirk Gently’s Hollistic Detective Agency by Douglas AdamsComfort and Joy by Jim GrimsleySnowball in Hell by Josh Lanyon I also love art and comics so I’ll add a few comic titles: As for Western comics, I was a fan of Red Sonja and Wonder Woman when I was a kid. Then when I was about 29 years old manga started to be translated into English. I really like manga a lot. A few of my favorites: Black and White (Tekkonkinkreet) by Taiyo MatsumotoKusatta Kyoushi no Houteshiki by Kodaka KazumaIchigenme by Fumi Yoshinaga (I can’t wait for Kinou Nani Tabeta? to be translated into English. I’m reading Ooku: the Inner Chambers right now. It’s an AU story that presupposes a gender inversion in medieval Japan that would have put women in charge of society.)Future Lovers by Saika Kunieda Turnskin is a curious love story that crosses multiple forbidden boundaries: non-human/human, Romeo/Juliet, etc. What do you think is so captivating for readers when it comes to forbidden love stories? Beats me. Really I never thought of Turnskin as a forbidden love story so much as a coming of age story. Because the love of Tom & Cloud isn’t really forbidden so much as it’s a bad idea for both of them. I think that’s different than being something like a societal taboo. Where did you come up with the idea for the shifters? Will we find out anything more about Tom’s genetic past, or is this the last we will hear from him and the other characters? I came up with the shifters during a conversation with Ginn Hale. It’s actually impossible for a writer to have a conversation with her for more than five minutes without coming up with an idea. She’s like a force for creativity and it rubs off if you stand close to her for very long. I have no plans to revisit Tom’s world at present. It was invented specifically to tell this story so I don’t really know what else I would write about it. Is Turnskin set anywhere we might know (as in an alternate version of a place that might be familiar to readers) or is this a completely separate world? It’s a completely separate world, based directly on nowhere. Lesbian and gay speculative fiction seem to be taking off in the last few years, and while Turnskin turns the lesbian/gay theme on its head using “alien” figures, it is still, ultimately, a story about people struggling with their identities. Where do you see LGBT speculative fiction going in the relatively near future? I don’t really know if lesbian spec fic could be described as “taking off” but gay spec fic sales have definitely increased, fueled by the rise of the m/m romance reader. As for the future of the whole genre, there is really no way to know. What are some advantages, in your opinion, of being published with a small press? Personal care and attention from the editor and from the publisher. What other projects do you have coming up and can you tell us a little about them? Samhain has just released a short novel of mine called Ghost Star Night. I think I just have to give the blurb, because it’s really hard to sum up. “Thomas Myrdin has been used and betrayed by his king. But his heartbreak troubles him less than the apocalyptic visions that have begun to haunt him; the world burns in ruins and at the center of the destruction is the king’s newborn daughter. As vengeance and visions waken a power deep within him, not even Thomas knows if he’s becoming the kingdom’s salvation or its destruction. Lord Adam Wexley harbors a secret longing for Thomas, but his duty is to protect the newborn princess. When a sudden threat arises Adam must procure the services of the Magician, Edwin Drake, even if it means sacrificing his own body and soul. Drake had seen the worst of kings and courtiers; as a child he witnessed his father’s soul stripped away to leave behind a stumbling slave. Now, Drake protects himself with powerful sorcery and the adamant refusal to affiliate with any of the Four Courts. But the Grand Magician isn’t without weaknesses and Adam may be the one enticement that can draw him to ruin.” Ghost Star Night is a lot more action-packed than Turnskin. It’s the piece I wrote directly after. I think I wanted to write something with more doing and less feeling. And, of course, I am part of the Hell Cop anthology series with Astrid Amara and Ginn Hale. Hell Cop is set in the shared world of Parmas City and it’s kind of an urban fantasy. Hell Cop 2 was released by Loose Id in June. In December I’ll release another, longer book with Samhain called Happy Snak. This is not an LGBT
Reader Question: Future Definitions
Bowie of Young Writers Online was on a role when he was asking questions. Here goes: Realistically speaking, would we consider a “holo-vid” a television or would we somehow adapt to calling it a “holo-vid”? Most likely we would call it a hol0-vid, or whatever term was created to describe that new technology. New advances in technology produce new devices that may provide the same services as something before it, but in new and unique ways. Historically speaking, we tend to refer to these new technologies by their new names. We don’t call PDAs by anything other than PDA or handheld device, despite it being a miniature computer w/o a keyboard. An iPod is not a Walkman and even a laptop/notebook computer is often referred to as a laptop/notebook computer rather than as a portable computer or just a computer. While we may acknowledge that new technologies are “genetically” linked to older ones, we still take liberties with naming and stick with what is new, going back to old terminology only when we need to explain something in greater detail or for some other purpose. Right now, I’m writing on a laptop or notebook computer, whichever name best suits you. When the future rolls on through, it will bring with it a lot of new gadgets that will have different names and terminology. Unless those items are quite clearly derivations of something before (i.e. a 2nd generation iPod is still just an iPod, even though it’s technically more advanced and more functional than the previous generation), we tend to rename them. Human beings are remarkable at adopting new language. As an example, we can look at slang. When I was in high school, all those years ago, I remember the word “sick” coming into play (for those that don’t know, “sick” is sort of like saying “cool,” but in a more “cool” way). Within a couple weeks it was across the entire campus, and by the time I had finished my school year, that word had traveled to my previous home in Washington (across two states) and had been readily adopted. That’s the fascinating thing about language. It always changes with us human beings. Always. The same is true for technology, and as we progress we will see the language change. Ten years ago we didn’t have an iPod. Everything was by CD and mp3s were still becoming the dominant form over .wav and other formats. Now? If you don’t know what an mp3 is, you’re perceived as an idiot who has been living in the jungle, or really old, and if you don’t know what an iPod is, well, you’ll end up getting some looks until you can explain why. That’s the nature of language. Always changing, always adjusting, and always progressing. What about you, the readers? Do you think we will call holo-vids by what they are, or will we simply refer to them as TVs? ————————————————- If you have a question about science fiction, fantasy, writing, or anything related you’d like answered here, whether silly or serious, feel free to send it via email to arconna[at]yahoo[dot]com, tweet it via Twitter to @shaunduke, or leave it in the comments here. Questions are always welcome! If you liked this post, consider stumbling, digging, or linking to it!
GFTW’s SF/F/H Book Reviewer Meme, 2nd Edition
John Ottinger of Grasping For the Wind has posted an updated version of his famous SF/F/H book reviewer meme. And now I’m posting it here so you all can check some of these great reviewers out. You’ll have to click the read more in order to see the list, because the darn thing is too long for me to post on my homepage. Anywho, here goes:A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y ZRomanian French Chinese Danish Portuguese German A 7 Foot Shelves The Accidental Bard A Boy Goes on a Journey A Dribble Of Ink Adventures in Reading A Fantasy Reader The Agony Column A Hoyden’s Look at Literature A Journey of Books All Booked Up Alexia’s Books and Such… Andromeda Spaceways The Antick Musings of G.B.H. Hornswoggler, Gent. Ask Daphne ask nicola Audiobook DJ aurealisXpress Australia Specfic In Focus Author 2 Author AzureScape B Barbara Martin Babbling about Books Bees (and Books) on the Knob Best SF Bewildering Stories Bibliophile Stalker Bibliosnark Big Dumb Object BillWardWriter.com The Billion Light-Year Bookshelf Bitten by Books The Black Library Blog Blog, Jvstin Style Blood of the Muse The Book Bind Bookgeeks Bookrastination Booksies Blog Bookslut The Book Smugglers Bookspotcentral The Book Swede Book View Cafe [Authors Group Blog] Breeni Books C Cheaper Ironies [pro columnist] Charlotte’s Library Circlet 2.0 Cheryl’s Musings Club Jade Cranking Plot Critical Mass The Crotchety Old Fan D Daily Dose – Fantasy and Romance Damien G. Walter Danger Gal It’s Dark in the Dark Dark Parables Dark Wolf Fantasy Reviews Darque Reviews Dave Brendon’s Fantasy and Sci-Fi Weblog Dead Book Darling Dear Author The Deckled Edge The Doctor is In… Dragons, Heroes and Wizards Drey’s Library The Discriminating Fangirl Dusk Before the Dawn E Enter the Octopus Erotic Horizon Errant Dreams Reviews Eve’s Alexandria F Falcata Times Fan News Denmark [in English] Fantastic Reviews Fantastic Reviews Blog Fantasy Book Banner Fantasy Book Critic Fantasy Book Reviews and News Fantasy By the Tale Fantasy Cafe Fantasy Debut Fantasy Dreamer’s Ramblings Fantasy Literature.com Fantasy Magazine Fantasy and Sci-fi Lovin’ News and Reviews Feminist SF – The Blog! Feybound Fiction is so Overrated The Fix The Foghorn Review Follow that Raven Forbidden Planet Frances Writes Free SF Reader From a Sci-Fi Standpoint From the Heart of Europe Fruitless Recursion Fundamentally Alien The Future Fire G The Galaxy Express Galleycat Game Couch The Gamer Rat Garbled Signals Genre Reviews Genreville Got Schephs Graeme’s Fantasy Book Review Grasping for the Wind a GREAT read The Green Man Review Gripping Books H Hasenpfeffer Hero Complex Highlander’s Book Reviews Horrorscope The Hub Magazine Hyperpat’s Hyper Day I I Hope I Didn’t Just Give Away The Ending Ink and Keys Ink and Paper The Internet Review of Science Fiction io9 J Janicu’s Book Blog Jenn’s Bookshelf Jumpdrives and Cantrips K Kat Bryan’s Corner Keeping the Door King of the Nerds L Lair of the Undead Rat Largehearted Boy Layers of Thought League of Reluctant Adults The Lensman’s Children Library Dad Libri Touches Literary Escapism Literaturely Speaking ludis inventio Lundblog: Beautiful Letters M Mad Hatter’s Bookshelf and Book Review Mari’s Midnight Garden Mark Freeman’s Journal Mark Lord’s Writing Blog Marooned: Science Fiction Books on Mars Martin’s Booklog MentatJack Michele Lee’s Book Love Missions Unknown [Author and Artist Blog Devoted to SF/F/H in San Antonio] The Mistress of Ancient Revelry MIT Science Fiction Society Monster Librarian More Words, Deeper Hole Mostly Harmless Books Multi-Genre Fan Musings from the Weirdside My Favourite Books My Overstuffed Bookshelf N Neth Space The New Book Review NextRead Not Free SF Reader Nuketown O OF Blog of the Fallen The Old Bat’s Belfry ommadawn.dk Only The Best SciFi/Fantasy The Ostentatious Ogre Outside of a Dog P Paranormality Pat’s Fantasy Hotlist Patricia’s Vampire Notes The Persistence of Vision Piaw’s Blog Pizza’s Book Discussion Poisoned Rationality Popin’s Lair pornokitsch Post-Weird Thoughts Publisher’s Weekly Pussreboots: A Book Review a Day Q R Ramblings of a Raconteur Random Acts of Mediocrity Ray Gun Revival Realms of Speculative Fiction Reading the Leaves Review From Here Reviewer X Revolution SF Rhiannon Hart The Road Not Taken Rob’s Blog o’ Stuff Robots and Vamps S Sandstorm Reviews Satisfying the Need to Read Science Fiction and Fantasy Ethics Science Fiction Times ScifiChick Sci-Fi Blog SciFiGuy Sci-Fi Fan Letter The Sci-Fi Gene Sci-Fi Songs [Musical Reviews] SciFi Squad Scifi UK Reviews Sci Fi Wire Self-Publishing Review The Sequential Rat Severian’s Fantastic Worlds SF Diplomat SFFaudio SFFMedia SF Gospel SFReader.com SF Reviews.net SF Revu SF Safari SFScope SF Signal SF Site SFF World’s Book Reviews Silver Reviews Simply Vamptastic Slice of SciFi Smart Bitches, Trashy Books Solar Flare Speculative Fiction Speculative Fiction Junkie Speculative Horizons The Specusphere Spinebreakers Spiral Galaxy Reviews Spontaneous Derivation Sporadic Book Reviews Stainless Steel Droppings Starting Fresh Stella Matutina Stuff as Dreams are Made on… The Sudden Curve The Sword Review T Tangent Online Tehani Wessely Temple Library Reviews Tez Says things mean a lot Tor.com [also a publisher] True Science Fiction U Ubiquitous Absence Un:Bound undeadbydawn Urban Fantasy Land V Vast and Cool and Unsympathetic Variety SF Veritas Omnia Vincula W Walker of Worlds Wands and Worlds Wanderings Wendy Palmer: Reading and Writing Genre Books and ebooks The Weirdside The Wertzone With Intent to Commit Horror The Wizard of Duke Street WJ Fantasy Reviews The Word Nest Wordsville The World in a Satin Bag WriteBlack The Written World X Y Young Adult Science Fiction Z Romanian Cititor SF [with English Translation] French Elbakin.net Mythologica Chinese Foundation of Krantas The SF Commonwealth Office in Taiwan [with some English essays] Yenchin’s Lair Danish Interstellar Ommadawn.dk Scifisiden Portuguese Aguarras Fernando Trevisan Human 2.0 Life and Times of a Talkative Bookworm Ponto De Convergencia pós-estranho Skavis German Fantasy Seiten Fantasy Buch Fantasy/SciFi Blog Literaturschock Welt der fantasy Bibliotheka Phantastika SF Basar Phantastick News X-zine Buchwum Phantastick Couch Wetterspitze Fantasy News Fantasy Faszination Fantasy Guide Zwergen Reich Fiction Fantasy A B C D E
Reader Question: Lingual Formalities, Schmalities
If memory serves me, this question comes from Bowie of Young Writers Online: In most science fiction and fantasy stories, people speak in a more formal way. Why is that? Is it to reinforce the idea that it’s a different world than we know? Firstly, it’s not true that most SF/F resorts to formal modes of communication. A great deal of classic SF/F does, but modern derivations of the two genres have seen a remarkable, and much appreciated, shift from the trappings established by Tolkien all those years ago. And this is where we get into the unfortunate side effect of Tolkien’s brilliance. Despite writing what most consider to be the greatest fantasy trilogy of all times, Tolkien hammered into new and past writers several unfortunate habits. You see, Tolkien was trying to recreate something in The Lord of the Rings, a certain feel, if you will. He was successful on all counts, not only in fabricating a detailed, elaborate fantasy world, but also in trying to fashion an imagined, realistic history of an England that might have been (though the fact that, as far as I can tell, Middle Earth looks nothing like England could make for a good counter argument). In doing so, Tolkien fixed into the minds of fantasy lovers everywhere what were the defining characteristics of the genre, despite his setting out to create an effective, mythologized, and complex historical novel. The language, thus, is exceptionally dated, even for his time, and the clichés were snatched up by fans without hesitation. It has taken the fantasy genre a long time to work out of the habit of writing in absurd formal dialogue. But it has happened, and it has, in almost every instance, been to emulate Tolkien rather than to produce something truly original. There is nothing wrong with emulation, insofar as such emulation is still trying to impress upon readers an experience, despite its biased leanings. What is problematic, as is true of all tropes, clichés, etc. in fantasy, is that these sorts of staples effectively damage the genre when done poorly. Of course, to call a lot of published works “poor recreations” is somewhat unfair, particularly because readers have varying expectations, and what I want or expect in fantasy literature will almost always be at least slightly different from what other readers want. Readers do like Tolkien-esque fantasies, a lot–and that’s really an understatement. Sometimes there are reasons (they have read a lot and prefer that style) and other times it is due to ignorance (some might say that most Twilight and Eragon fans like those works because they have no read “good” fantasy yet). Invariably, it is hard to argue with how things actually are in this instance: derivations exist and will continue to do so, provided that readers are still interested in such things in the future. There is also the healthy obsession with medieval literature that most fantasy writers have, whether they are willing to admit it or not. That contributors to the persistence of this form of dialogue. Now the question is, are these sorts of formal dialogue stylings good or bad, in your opinion? I view them as either/or, because, in some cases, it works. But that’s me, and I want to see your opinion. Leave me a comment with your thoughts! ————————————————- If you have a question about science fiction, fantasy, writing, or anything related you’d like answered here, whether silly or serious, feel free to send it via email to arconna[at]yahoo[dot]com, tweet it via Twitter to @shaunduke, or leave it in the comments here. Questions are always welcome! If you liked this post, consider stumbling, digging, or linking to it!