SF Signal: November 2005 Archives

Wednesday November 30, 2005

The Science of Aliens

Check out this ForteanTimes article The Science of Aliens. (Register or use BugmeNot.) It's based on an exhibit from London's Science Museum and talks about the cool stuff that's scientifically possible with some hat tips to aliens from our own culture.

BTW, check out the exhibit's game page where you can see What Type of Alien You Are. (My results: "You're a hyper-intelligent alien. You would sooner gnaw off your own arm than miss an opportunity to swing your vast intellect around. Immense, sarcastic and fluent in Klingon, you're a big hit with the opposite sex...but only on-line.")

SF Tidbits Part XLI

Out of the Crooked Timber hosted a seminar with Susanna Clarke, author of the Hugo Award winning Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. Read a PDF transcript. [via Locus Online]

Here's a Fortean Times piece on H.G. Wells written by sf author and critic David Langford.

Octavia Butler is interviewed by San Francisco bay Guardian.

AsIf is a new website that reviews Australian sf.

Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith is up for a People's Choice Award. [via Club Jade]

Wanna see what's in Serenity's kitchen? How about the menu of the Firefly restaurant?

Gardner Dozois' Future Projects

SF author and editor Gardner Dozois is not resting on his laurels since stepping down as editor of Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine. As SciFiWire reports, in addition to writing some more of his own fiction, he will be editing several upcoming anthologies in addition to his annual Year's Best Science Fiction anthology series.

The upcoming titles include:

One Million A.D. - a Science Fiction Book Club exclusive showcasing original far-future stories. (Perhaps a companion to his Furthest Horizon anthology of already-published fiction?)

Escape From Earth - Another SFBC exclusive, this co-edited with longtime collaborator Jack Dann and collecting young adult science fiction.

Wizards - co-editing with Dann again, this one focuses on original young adult fantasy.

The New Space Opera - co-edited with Jonathan Strahan and showcasing space opera sf.

Changing Worlds and Dangerous Games - Two more fantasy anthologies with co-editor Jack Dann (via Dann's website...Beware of flying JavaScript! )

It's nice to see a little emphasis on young adult science fiction to even out the weight placed on the shoulders of YA fantasy. From the SciFiWire article:

"I think it's extremely important to generate good new YA SF," Dozois said. "The fantasy genre has maintained a tradition of good YA fantasy throughout the last few decades (just think Harry Potter), and I think it's hurt science fiction as a field that we've neglected it. It means that new readers don't have a place to start, but must jump instead directly into reading adult SF, and I think that it may be too difficult a jump for some of them."

Tuesday November 29, 2005

New Ways of Selling TV and Books?

There's a well-written New York Magazine piece on how the face of network television is changing which has this to say about Firefly:

All of which leads to an enticing possibility: Let’s say that Joss Whedon, creator of Firefly, wanted to bring the series back to air. (Though “back to air” is a TV phrase now as anachronistically quaint as “switching the dial.”) Let’s say he found a million Firefly fans online—and, trust me, they’re not hiding—who were willing to pay, say, $39.99 each for a sixteen-episode season of Firefly. (Not an unreasonable price, given how many people pay about that amount for full seasons on DVD.) Suddenly, Joss Whedon’s got roughly $40 million to play with—and he doesn’t need a network. Or a time slot. Or advertisers. He can beam the damn shows right to your computer if he wants to. There’s even a mini-precedent for this: The online phenomenon of “ransom games,” in which a board-game developer sets a price (usually something minuscule, like $1,000), then, once he’s received that amount in pledges from strangers, creates the game and releases it for free.

I'm not sure how realistic this is, but as a Firefly fan I'd love to see it return.

Bill Adams at Idler Yet sees another revolution on the horizon: the death of the book publishers.

Realistic? I don't know but his point is taken: if selling directly, authors need sell much fewer books to reap a huge profit. Author Tobias S. Buckell's post Alternate Income Streams does some quick math regarding Bruce Holland Rogers' short story subscription service in which he appears to making twice the dollar-per-word average. Not a bad system.

Lewis Opposed Live-Action Narnia

Did you know C.S. Lewis opposed a live action version of Narnia?

In a newly published letter written in 1959 to BBC producer Lance Sieveking, Lewis says:

"Anthropomorphic animals, when taken out of narrative into actual visibility, always turn into buffoonery or nightmare -- at least with photography. Cartoons (if only Disney did not combine so much vulgarity with his genius!) wld. be another matter. A human, pantomime, Aslan wld. be to me blasphemy."

I find it interesting that an author would reject a film adaptation of his work; certainly uncommon by today's standards, I think. Authors would love to sell their books to Hollywood. The money Hollywood has to spend is far greater than the money publishers have. And after all, writers hope to make a living with their written work. Artistic integrity might be an issue for some, but a million buck is a million bucks.

It almost sounds like Lewis doubted the capability of the technology which, in 1959, was way,way less than what could be done today. I wonder how he'd feel if he had seen Lord of the Rings and had witnessed what could be done. Would he change his tune?

Friday November 25, 2005

One Reason Why Film Adaptations of Books Can Be Good

Many people are quick to whine about the poor quality of film adaptations of books; oftentimes before they see even one frame of film. SF/F fans are a fickle and hard to please bunch and, true, many adaptations are not true to the original work for reasons Michael Cassutt explains quite nicely. But I'm coming to realize there's at least one benefit of movie adaptations: promoting reading in children.

Over the last year or so, there have been several movie adaptations that my daughter has seen and liked enough to spark interest in the source material. (While her reading level isn't quite up to the book, her old man is more than happy to spend the time and read it to her - yet another positive effect.) It started with The Iron Giant and continued with Kiki's Delivery Service and Holes. Both the films and the books for these stories were fantastic. We enjoyed both versions very much.

It would be nice, of course, if the love of the book could come first. Last week was the first step in that direction. We read The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Needless to say, she's excited about the release of the movie in two weeks. We just finished watching the 10 minute trailer that Tivo caught for us. (We love you, Tivo!)

SF Tidbits Part XXXIX

Novelhead has a brief history on the naming of the science fiction genre. (And also a creepy story called "So a Woman Walks into a Bar...")
Joshua Newman at Ldopa.net has posted an early playtest version an RPG game Shock: Social Science Fiction.
Another victim of the network Axe: Threshold. (Also, Alias expires May 2006).
Here's a gallery of book bindings made by hand.
SciFiBrain is running a series of Top 10 SciFi Moments Through the Decades. So far: The 50s, 60s and 70s.

Thursday November 24, 2005

REVIEW: King Kong is Back edited by David Brin

REVIEW SUMMARY: A fun book for fans, both casual and diehard.

MY RATING:

BRIEF SYNOPSIS: 20 essays exploring the mythology of King Kong.

MY REVIEW:
PROS: Often humorous; almost always entertaining.
CONS: Some material valuable only to diehard fans.
BOTTOM LINE: Fun, thoughtful, educational and humorous looks at Hollywood's most famous ape.

A book like King Kong is Back, a media tie-in whose release understandably coincides with that of the big-budget 2005 Peter Jackson remake, is targeted towards fans of King Kong. I thus had to consider: am I fan?

The answer is yes and the exact reason is stated in the very first essay "Over the River and a World Away," by Nick Mamatas. Between 1976 and 1985, WOR-TV in New York used to air the original 1933 King Kong every Thanksgiving day. (It was, in fact, a two-day reason for sitting indoors and watching movies that also included Son of Kong, Mighty Joe Young, various Godzilla movies [some with singing, twelve-inch tall Oriental twins!] and March of the Wooden Soldiers starring Laurel and Hardy.) Watching King Kong on Thanksgiving became as much a tradition as turkey during my formative years. It was, in fact, watching King Kong that occupied my time while waiting for turkey. Soon, Thanksgiving simply meant King Kong and turkey, even when we celebrated the holiday elsewhere.

If it sounds like I slipped into nostalgia mode, blame Mamatas' wonderful essay. And, while you're at it, blame the other four essays grouped into the "nostalgia/technology" section of King Kong is Back. SF author Paul Levinson's "The Big Ape on the Small Screen" also reminisces about childhood memories - some of which comes dangerously close to sounding like recycled memories if only because of unfortunate story ordering. Steven Rubio's "Not the Movie: King Kong '76" explores the problems people have with the Dino DeLaurentis remake starring Jessica Lange and, since it's not as nostalgic, comes off a better read. In "King Kong 2005," sf author Bruce Bethke explains why Peter Jackson's 2005 remake must be set in the same era as the original, a theory he attempts to prove with a mock Kong script enacted by...sock puppets. Strangely, this humorous piece works well. The final piece in this section, the interesting and emotional "Three Acts of the Beast," by Don DeBrandt applies the beauty-killed-the-beast theme to world events, from WWII to the events of 9/11.

Seven more essays are grouped together in a "science/art" section. Rick Klaw is a devout fan of King Kong, as evidenced by his previous Geeks with Books columns, so it is fitting to include him in this collection with his essay "Thirty-Three". Although his passion is commendable, his biography of the film's creators leading up to the making of the film is of interest only to true diehard fans. SF author James Gunn's "King Kong and 1930s Science Fiction" is much more suited to my personal sf-loving tastes. As Director of the Center for the Study of Science Fiction, Gunn uses his knowledge and experience to put King Kong in its proper literary and celluloid place. "The Making of King Kong" by artist Bob Eggleton (who also contributes some sadly uninspired pencil sketches to the book) discusses, of course, the artistic aspects of the film with a focus on the special effects. It's like a written version of a DVD bonus extra. The author of the educational "Improbable Antics" is Dario Maestripieri, holder of a doctorate in psychobiology and someone who specializes in primate behavior. From a purely realistic scientific view, it turns out the gorilla is a poor choice for a monster; better would be the more violent chimpanzee. Also, file under "You Learn Something New Every Day": Orangutans and bonobos would be better suited for a triple-X rated version of King Kong. Another educational piece, "Darwin, Freud and King Kong" by Joseph P. Miller, PhD., filters King Kong, The Son of Kong and Mighty Joe Young through the triple spectacles of Freudian psychology, neuroscience and evolutionary biology. Early on, Miller's dry but fascinating essay makes an absorbing and sturdy analogy between Freudian psychology and Skull Island and implies (to me, anyway) that King Kong succeeds on a psychological level. Robert A. Metzger's tongue-in-cheek conspiracy theory piece, "Dragon's Teeth and Hobbits," posits the existence some real life creatures of legend to decent effect. Funnier is David Gerrold's faux on-the-set diary "King Kong Behind the Scenes" in which we see Mr. Kong, actor, rattling the nerves of the producers with his penchant for eating the acting extras. There's even a "scene" where Kong makes funny faces at Fay Wray to make her laugh. ("He used to try to break me up during shots," says Wray.)

If the previous essays provide entertainment from the metaphorical living room couch, most of the final eight essays in the book's "philosophical" section are to be read from the Thinking Chair. "Of Gorillas and Gods" by Charlie W. Starr rigorously examines religious themes in the movie. The title of Adam Roberts' "Why Does My Daughter Love King Kong So Much?" delivers on its promise to show why King Kong might appeal to the young 'uns - it's all that delicious food! "'Twas Stupidity Killed the Beast" by Keith R. A. DeCandido unmasks the film's famous last line as hogwash. In "Ann, Abandoned," Adam Troy Castro takes humorous but thorough look - thorough to the point of tastefully twisted - at what might have happened if heroes Denham and Driscoll went back to New York instead of setting out to rescue Ann Darrow after Kong abducts her. James Lowder's "Scream for your Life" looks at Kong as horror movie and shows us why the movie succeeds on that level as well. In "Divided Kingdom," horror writer Robert Hood confesses that his loyalty is equally divided between King Kong and Godzilla. (This is the closest the book comes to containing an essay by someone who does not gush over Kong.) "Queer Eye for the Ape Guy?" by Natasha Giardina, lecturer of children's literature. States that, in modern times, Kong wouldn't be able to get a date. The essay explains why by exploring how masculinity in our culture has changed over the intervening years. In "'Twas Beauty Killed the Beast," sf author John C. Wright, in his usual inimitable style, examines why we don't cheer upon Kong's demise and provides several entertaining and logical reasons to prove his point. (Sample insight: In referring to the outdated special effects and wooden acting of the 1933 film, as well as Star Wars, he writes: "A myth has power because of its basic idea, not because of the elegance of the telling.")

In summary, editor David Brin has collected an entertaining collection of essays, as well as providing one of his own by means of his introduction. While some of the material is only of marginal value to casual fans, even they cannot help but enjoy the fun, thoughtful, educational and humorous looks at Hollywood's most famous ape.

One final note: Although the annual Thanksgiving King Kong viewings of my youth have been replaced by Planes, Trains and Automobiles ("Those aren't pillows!"), this reading of King Kong is Back so close to the holiday in which I discovered it is a nice walk down memory lane...with apes!

Wednesday November 23, 2005

Locus Magazine Subscriptions: Get One!

I'm not sure of a simpler way to say this: if you like reading science fiction or fantasy, you will like Locus Magazine.

I've been a subscriber for a little over a year and I recently renewed for two more. It truly is a "sf/f newspaper" - they have interesting news; thoughtful, detailed reviews; and (my favorite part) interviews with the big names in science fiction and fantasy. Well, not interviews, exactly. There's no Q&A, per se. It's more like an autobiographical essay by each article subject. And two in every issue! (See samples.) Whatever you call them, they are always excellent reads and are alone worth the cover price ($52 USD will get you 12 issues. But hurry! Their rates are going up at the beginning of the new year!)

Suggestion: if you do subscribe, Google for special offers to get an extra back issue with an author you like. Some authors are offering links to get a free back issue with their own "interview" piece. (I grabbed the Alastair Reynolds issue.)

SF Tidbits Part XXXVIII

John C. Wright is working on Null-A Continuum, a sequel to A.E. van Vogt's The Players of Null-A.
Jonathan Strahan wonders if the future of short fiction begins with Bruce Holland Rogers' offerings of short-short fiction.
Boston Globe Article: Back to Utopia, mentions works by Edward Bellamy, Samuel Delany, Ursula K. LeGuin, Philip K. Dick and John Brunner.
Altered Carbon author Richard K. Morgan just signed a five-book deal with Del Rey, which will include a sword-and-sorcery trilogy.
Attention Firefly fans with at least $1500: Own Mal's browncoat! [via TV Squad]

Amazon Offering Wiki Functionality

Amazon now offers the ability of customers to add content about the purchased product. A new ProductWiki link appears on each product page allowing customers to collaborate on product-related information. And yes, there's even one for the $220 frying pan.

As sf author Tobias Buckell points out, this is pretty cool, even in its early stages. For books, this could be the "bonus material" culled by hordes of ravaging fans, espousing the behind-the-scenes look at the making of the book. Even better if authors contributed. Of course, to do so, the authors would have to purchase their own book. Heh.

Monday November 21, 2005

And the 2006 Science Fiction Grand Master is...

The SFWA has announced that the 2006 Science Fiction Grand Master will be Harlan Ellison. The award will be presented at the Nebula Awards weekend.

See a list of all SFWA Grand Masters.

[Link via Michael A. Burstein]

15 Most Frequently Quoted Authors in Gary Westfahl's Science Fiction Quotations Book

Gary Westfahl has posted an interesting behind-the-scenes look at the creation of his latest book Science Fiction Quotations: From the Inner Mind to the Outer Limits, a collection of quotations on the genre. He compiled various statistics about the quotations, incuding a list of the 15 Most Frequently Quoted Authors:

1 Robert A. Heinlein (171)
2. Ursula K. Le Guin (164)
3. Philip K. Dick (126)
4. Terry Pratchett (88)
5. William Gibson (79)
6. Douglas Adams (78)
7. Arthur C. Clarke (52)
8. H.G. Wells (49)
9. Kim Stanley Robinson (40)
10. Ray Bradbury (39)
11. Frank Herbert (34, tie)
11. George Turner (34, tie)
11. Yevgeny Zamiatin (34, tie)
12. Stanislaw Lem (32, tie)
12. Walter M. Miller Jr. (32, tie)

SF Tidbits Part XXXVI

Lost goes mobile!
Christopher Priest's 1996 novel, The Prestige, is being made into a movie starring Batman, Wolverine and David Bowie.
"Just Like the Ones We Used to Know," the Hugo Awards winning novella by Connie Willis was made into a TV movie called Snow Wonder, which aired last night on CBS.
Bernie at Pop Politics sees sees Battlestar Galactica and Serenity as present-day political documents.
Amy Wolford thinks Science fiction deserves respect in literary world.

Personalized Library Services or Big Brother Buffet?

At least one library (at North Carolina State University) is taking its cue from Internet services like Amazon and NetFlix. They aim to keep customer information in an effort to suggest new books and periodicals that are related to previous borrowings.

This is just like Amazon's suggestions feature which, admittedly, has gotten better over the years but used to have a tendency to offer hardcore frying pans. I imagine the library's suggestions will have a similar period of maturation to go through.

As usual, privacy issues are raised. Under the Patriot Act, the U.S. government may obtain this information from libraries. (Activate Colonel Klink voice: "I zee you haf checked out Mein Kempf last Hanukkah. Very interestink!") Yet, proponents say the use of such technology can increase the customer experience. Personally, I'd rather not have the library offering half-assed suggestions for me because I checked out If You Give a Mouse a Cookie for my daughter, but that's just me. (Humor me and assume that I actually go to the library instead of dipping into one of my boxes of obsessive-compulsively purchased books. )

POLL RESULTS: Proposed TV Shows

Here are the results of the latest SF Signal poll.

QUESTION
Which of the following proposed TV shows sounds the most promising?

RESULTS

(45 total votes)

In a landslide, the tv-scifi viewing population has generally lost faith in the network's ability to come up with ideas for a decent television show.

Will the super-dweeb who voted for Aquaman please identify himself (or herself) so we have a visible target for our continued ridicule?

Sunday November 20, 2005

REVIEW: The Earthborn by Paul Collins

REVIEW SUMMARY: It's like a cool, post-apocalyptic version of Lord of the Flies.

MY RATING:

BRIEF SYNOPSIS: Young Skyborn Welkin Quinn joins an Earthborn clan after being rejected by the elders of a failed colonization mission.

MY REVIEW:
PROS: Fast-paced; lots of action; cool story and backdrop.
CONS: Some parts too contrived.
BOTTOM LINE: A worthwhile read.

One hundred fifty years after the generation ship Colony set out from a decaying Earth to colonize a planet in the Tau Ceti system, the colonists were surprised to learn that the most suitable planet to support human life wasn't suitable at all. (A time dubbed "The Great Disappointment"). As if that weren't enough, disease spread throughout the ship's population killing most of the adults, save for a few immune "elders". The elders made the decision to return to Earth but those who disagreed rebelled and were eventually exiled to the lower decks of the ship. Cut to 150 years later still (the start of the story) and the Colony arrives at Earth only to crash land on an almost unrecognizable Earth. Throughout the voyage, the genetically engineered children of the Colony were taught that Earth's atmosphere was poisonous and that the remaining Earthborn were all savages and must be eradicated. This is only partly true; since most of the adult Earthborn population has also perished, all that remains are scattered bands of youths, some of them scavengers and cannibals.

Welkin Quinn, born and raised on the Colony (a Skyborn), is fourteen years old and, through association with a rebellious friend, is thrown down in the lower levels just before the Colony crashes on Earth. To restore his status, Welkin agrees to help eradicate the Earth of the vermin Earthborn, but he quickly learns that the portrait painted by the elders was not quite the truth. Welkin the Skyborn escapes his captivity and bands together with a group of Earthborn, led by the eighteen-year-old Sarah, to save his sister from the Colony and hopefully unite the scattered groups on Earth and start a new age for mankind. But the going won't be easy; he must contend with several enemy factions - Skyborn and Earthborn alike.

If all this sounds like exciting backdrop and plot, well, that's because it is. By starting the story 300 years after departure, with their arrival on Earth, the story begins where the action starts. Those parts that aren't action sequences are focused on showing Welkin's growth as a character. His attitude morphs from brainwashed kid onboard the Colony, to confused outcast, to adventurous explorer discovering the wonders of a new planet and, ultimately, to hero.

That's quite a range of worldview change for a single character in one story. And it mostly comes off well as a fast-paced story but there were a few problems in its hurriedness. Some of the plot elements seemed a bit too contrived. For example, while this book is targeted at young adults, was it really necessary to kill off most of the older adults on both the spaceship and on Earth? It seemed like too much of a coincidence. On the other hand, it did made the book come off like a cool, post-apocalyptic version of Lord of the Flies. Also, although I liked the element of the space-operatic wool being pulled over the eyes of the children, the comparison with Nazi Germany came off a little heavy-handed. On the bright side, Welkin's eventual realization that the world doesn't always appear as it seems is a good message for younger readers.

Once Welkin hits ground, his adventures are essentially portrayed in a bunch of ever-increasing, action-packed sorties to gather, rescue or pillage. In these passages Welkin encounters several different factions of both Earthborn (besides his home "family", there are cannibalistic "ferals" and the slightly-less-violent "jabbers") and Skyborn (the "genetically inferior" people of the lower decks, the righteous military and the renegade colonists). The more far-seeing and cerebral parts of the book were interesting in that Sarah's vision was to essentially rebuild mankind through a peaceful union of all the disparate groups of Earthborn; not a bad vision for an eighteen-year-old - but then again, she's the oldest of the pack. Along the way are a few plot twists (some predictable, some not) and lot's of entertainment.

The Earthborn is a worthwhile read.