I think I could get by living in Rivendell. At least until they decided to pack up and move out at the end of the age!

Posted by Kevin on Wednesday September 07, 2005 at 10:47 AM at 10:47 AM

My own preferences incline me toward science fiction worlds rather than fantasy worlds: unless Galadrial were to preserve me with her magic ring, I am afraid the lack of modern surgical medicine would have condemned my wife to a messy death during childbirth, the lack of optics would mean I was groping, and the lack of flush toilets and septic systems would mean that I stank. So, no Middle-Earth for me.

The Star Trek universe is remarkably free of crime, disease, and race-riot, and apparently all goods are distributed free of charge hot from the replicator and beamed into your house. If I commited a crime, I could always claim I had been brain-controlled by an evil alien energy-force or a twin from a parallel universe, which happens frequently enough that I am sure the courts of law make an exception for it. For married men, the world seems ideal place to raise kids, and for bachellors, the worlds are swarming with young and comely aliens in scimpy costumes. Provided you are not attacked by Romulans, Klingons, or Borg, or super space whales, and your reality is not edited by Q, Metrones, Organians, the Squire of Gothos or Time-Paradox, it is a safe and comfortable place to grow old in.

I am a little wary of bringing my family into the worlds of my favorite authors:

In a Robert Heinlein world, my son would run off with the first naked space-empress he met, and either end up in a duel, in a war with the Bugs of Klathandu, or as a member of a kooky cult started by a Martian named Smith. No incest or line marriages for me, thank you.

Isaac Asimov worlds seem to have a high crime rate, although cunning robots usually can solve them rapidly, but I would not like the Psychohistorians determining my future for me.

Ray Bradbury worlds might be OK for raising kids, if they did not mind that their Mom had been replaced by a robot or something, but running into Martians always seems to end badly, and you end up getting shot by a bee-gun after visiting your chidlhood memorizes or accidently forcing a dying martian to turn into Jesus Christ or something.

Doc E.E. Smith? War. Worlds hit by negaspheres, suns exploded by dirigible planets shunted through hypertubes, galaxies of Chlorine breathers anihilated by fourth-dimensional transposition. Avoid.

Star Wars? War. Death Star. Sith. Avoid.

Arthur Clarke's worlds are certainly more safe, but I am not sure if I would like life in the hopeless eternity of Diaspar or under the benevolent rule of the Overlords.

A.E. van Vogt worlds? Even superhumans have it lousy here: the tyrant who rules your world with an iron fist always turns out to be the father of your murdered-but-resserected girlfriend, or the man in charge of murdering and resserecting you turns out to be the version of you that killed the other version of you. While it is true you can buy a defensive mind-reading energy pistol that can only be used in legitimate self-defense in a van Vogt world, chances are that your form of government is being ruled by a cruel-but-beautiful space-empress secretly controled by a secret cabal of time travelers or immortals or something.

Jack Vance? Erudite villains are always killing your family and selling you into slavery or something, while you are being confused and affonted by the peculiar and baroque customs of the Red Impetuous Jannisaries or some such. If you complain, the Dirdir will end up throwing you in the Glass Box, or the Welfare Agency of Ambroy will expel you into the first two inches of the neighboring nation.

Posted by John C. Wright on Wednesday September 07, 2005 at 12:58 PM at 12:58 PM

The community of deaf-blind Touch communicators in John Varley's "Persistence of Vision." As I grow older, I find that emotional intelligence and awareness leads to a happiness that intellect does not fully provide.

Posted by Jeff Carroll on Wednesday September 07, 2005 at 1:08 PM at 1:08 PM

I'm not a sci-fi writer, but anyone who knows me can easily attest to the fact that i already live in my own little fantasy world only populated with sci-fi blog-reading supermodels, while I, a silly little software engineer, go around ranting and raving about just about everything...

sorry for the non sequitur... and back to our regularly scheduled programming...

If I had to pick, I wanna live here (its created by comic book guy, does that count?) with its psychotic, neurotic, chauvinistic talking animals and beautiful babes...

...and one nerdy vet -- you take the good with the bad...

UPDATE: Ooops, forgot to mention, that site, while outwardly innocuous does have a posted warning of NSFW -- in case you miss it...

Posted by Peter on Wednesday September 07, 2005 at 1:45 PM at 1:45 PM

Forgoing the obvious problems of this time which include things like childbirth/sanitation/etc, (all of which are convienently ignored in most fantasy literature beyond the simple fact that babies are born and waste is kept elsewhere) I would probably choose to live in The Shire. When I read it in the Hobbit and Fellowship of the Ring and then saw it in the first movie - I knew it was where I would want to live. JP will make snide comments about hobbits and hairy feet, but there was something about that image that sticks with me. Maybe its the simplicity and peaceful demeanor of the environment, but that place seemed to be where I wanted to be. I guess it represents where I am currently in my life and a desire for a simpler existence.

Posted by Tim on Wednesday September 07, 2005 at 2:43 PM at 2:43 PM

Michael Moorcock's world from The Dancers At The End of Time seems like a good choice... no death, everyone is rich and can change themselves and their environment at will, basically utopia. The only challenge is to keep from getting bored, and the only things most people do are create art and engage in social intrigues. Some people might find the lack of challenges and danger overly boring though...

Posted by Dan on Wednesday September 07, 2005 at 3:23 PM at 3:23 PM

I wouldn't mind wandering around Ringworld for a spell.
With weekend trips to any of the bar-riddled worlds from Santiago.
But I'd have to go with either the pattern-storage world at the end of Clarke/Baxter's Light of Other Days, or Mr. Wright's Oecumene, which has many long parties and a lot of adventure. Either one has effective immortality and plenty of cheap input/entertainment to keep one occupied.

Posted by Jeff on Wednesday September 07, 2005 at 9:00 PM at 9:00 PM

If I had to pick between a science fiction or fantasy world, sf easily wins my vote. Forget fantasy worlds, people, for all the excellent reasons already posted here. The future is the wave of the...future.

Most sf worlds are cool; that's why we like sf! However, all the stories set in those worlds, by necessity of fiction, must have contention and other nefarious down sides. Thus, my choice would be to live in a world that I can instantly block out. Yep ? it's a virtual life for me.

But not any virtual world will do. All Cyberpunk worlds are out ? too much violence. What, I don't have enough to do? Now I got to stick it to the Corporate Man? Bah!

No, I would have to go with sheltered life of the aforementioned Oecumene or the inscape lands of Lady of Mazes. There, I can summon whatever reality I wish (or close to it within acceptable boundaries). More importantly, I can tune out the undesirable elements whenever it tickles my fancy. And who doesn't like having their fancy tickled?

Posted by John on Thursday September 08, 2005 at 1:15 AM at 1:15 AM

The Culture for me.
Live it up nice and easy, then when you get bored go and build a spaceship or intefere in some low tech planet.

Posted by James on Thursday September 08, 2005 at 5:58 AM at 5:58 AM

Count another vote for the Culture. Sure machines run everything, but the people get to do whatever they want and are, effectively, immortal as well. Or, for more virtual fun, the Golden Oecumene sounds cool too, especially if I get to wear the nano-armor (not that I'm a sycophantic JCW fanboy.....much).

I tried to think of some fantasy setting that would be cool to live in but, aside from urban fantasy, the lack of proper sewage and/or medical care just doesn't appeal to me. Sure you have magic to help out, but you can count me out when you have to sacrifice people to gain their life essence so you can continue to breathe. Come to think of it, I think I understand why Tim would want to live in a fantasy world (well, a different one from the one in his head).

Posted by jp on Thursday September 08, 2005 at 8:42 AM at 8:42 AM

While I agree there are issues with the whole concept of sewage and medical care, I will point out the number of times technology has gone awry in SF. I just finished reading Building Harlequin's Moon and in that book humans were attempting to leave a world where AI, nano-tech and other technical capabilities were causing havoc throughout our galaxy. I just prefer a simpler existence than one usually found in most SF...

Posted by Tim on Thursday September 08, 2005 at 10:57 AM at 10:57 AM