Here’s wishing you a fantastic 2010…

Thanks for reading SF Signal.

From their website:

Seattle, WA, 12/30/2009 – After six years of publication the Internet

Review of Science Fiction (irosf.com) will cease operations after the

February, 2010 issue. Publisher L Blunt “Bluejack” Jackson and Editor

Stacey Janssen expressed their gratitude to all the subscribers, con-

tributors, authors, and especially the volunteers who made IROSF such

a success since its first issue in January, 2004.

Continuous financial shortfalls added to the challenges of publishing

IROSF, and Jackson has expressed his intent to turn to new challenges

related to the economy and logistics of Internet publishing. “What we

learned with IROSF and AEon Speculative Fiction was that neither tra-

ditional nor community-driven economic models met our needs, and that

the complexity of managing a distributed volunteer pool burned people

out, despite a steady increase in revenue and readership. Our plan is

to use this knowledge, and the ready availability of new distribution

channels, to create the kind of environment that would have empowered

the editors to achieve the success that IROSF’s superb content always

deserved.”

Editor Gardner Dozois has released the table of contents for The Year’s Best Science Fiction: Twenty-Seventh Annual Collection, slated for a July 2010 release:

1. “Utriusque Cosmi” by Robert Charles Wilson (New Space Opera 2)
2. “A Story, With Beans” by Steven Gould (Analog)
3. “Under The Shouting Sky” by Karl Bunker (Cosmos)
4. “Events Preceding the Helvetican Revolution” by John Kessel (New Space Opera 2)
5. “Useless Things” by Maureen F. McHugh (Eclipse Three)
6. “Black Swan” by Bruce Sterling (Interzone)
7. “Crimes and Glory” by Paul McAuley (Subterranean)
8. “Seventh Fall” by Alexander Irvine (Subterranean)
9. “Butterfly Bomb” by Dominic Green (Interzone)
10. “Infinites” by Vandana Singh (The Woman Who Thought She Was a Planet)
11. “Things Undone” by John Barnes (Jim Baen’s Universe)
12. “On The Human Plan” by Jay Lake (Lone Star Stories)
13. “The Island” by Peter Watts (New Space Opera 2)
14. “The Integrity of the Chain” by Lavie Tidhar (Fantasy)
15. “Lion Walk” by Mary Rosenblum (Asimov’s)
16. “Escape to Other Worlds with Science Fiction” by Jo Walton (Tor.com)
17. “Three Leaves of Aloe” by Rand B. Lee (F&SF)
18. “Mongoose” by Elizabeth Bear & Sarah Monette (Lovecraft Unbound)
19. “Paradiso Lost” by Albert E.Cowdrey (F&SF)
20. “It Takes Two” by Nicola Griffith (Eclipse Three)
21. “Blocked” by Geoff Ryman (F&SF)
22. “Solace” by James Van Pelt (Analog)
23. “Act One” by Nancy Kress (Asimov’s)
24. “Twilight of the Gods” by John C. Wright (Federations)
25. “Blood Dauber” by Ted Kosmatka & Michael Poore (Asimov’s)
26. “This Wind Blowing, And This Tide” by Damien Broderick (Asimov’s)
27. “Hair” by Adam Roberts (When It Changed)
28. “Before My Last Breath” by Robert Reed (Asimov’s)
29. “One of Our Bastards Is Missing” by Paul Cornell (Solaris Book of New Science Fiction, Vol. Three)
30. “Edison’s Frankenstein” by Chris Roberson (Postscripts 20/21)
31. “Erosion” by Ian Creasey (Asimov’s)
32. “Vishnu at the Cat Circus” by Ian McDonald (Cyberabad Days)

[via Jason Sanford]

Interviews/Profiles

• Innsmouth Free Press interviews John Coulthart.
• The Agony Column interviews Jeremy Lassen (podcast).
• The Dragon Page interviews Lou Anders (podcast).

News

• The 2010 Jim Baen Memorial Writing Contest.
• The Thackery T. Lambshead Cabinet of Curiosities.
• John Scalzi’s The God Engines is now available. Read the first chapter now.

Articles

• Paul Collins on In 2010, We Will Live on the Moon.
• Brainz on The 10 Greatest Fantasy Series Of All Time.
• Publishing Perspectives on Best of ’09: Analysing the Global Ranking of Publishers.
• Rich Horton’s Summary: Subterranean, 2009.
• Dan Read on Janet Fox and Marcelo Martinez: A Tribute.
• The World SF News Blog on Looking Back on 2009.
• Suvudu on Top 10 Fantasy/Sci-Fi Books of 2009.
• Janet Reid on The Fifteen Things You Need to Know B’twixt “The End” and “Send”.
• 680+ examples of John Berkey art.
• Lawrence Person on As Maureen Dowd Sees Science Fiction.
• Orson Scott Card on Sarah Palin’s Book.

“Best of the Year” lists start appearing as early as November, so we are perhaps a little late in asking folks around the community:

[Also added was this note: They don't have to have been released in 2009. Feel free to choose any combination of genres (science fiction/fantasy/horror) and media (books/movies/shows) you wish to include.]

Read on to see their picks (and also check out Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4)…

For television, my favorite genre-related show continues to be Supernatural. I was a little late to the party, having resisted the handsome heroes for as long as possible, but finally fell hard. This year I’ve been watching in awe as Dean and Sam Winchester follow separate hero’s journeys that nevertheless always bring them back to each other. We’re currently in season 5 (no spoilers here) and let’s just say the showrunners have taken that journey to places I never anticipated, with awesome interior and exterior obstacles to hurdle, and I’m looking forward with great anticipation (and not a little fear) to the season (or series) finale coming next spring.

I’ve also read a lot of Supernatural community writing this year, and deeply appreciate the legions of writers out there weaving tales of the apocalypse, rewriting canon in inventive ways, and spinning the characters into hilarious, tragic, and complex alternate universes (sometimes all three at once). Some stories are short romps, some are novel-length adventures, and more than a few are written by traditionally published authors. If you’re on twitter you can follow Henry Jenkins at USC and his informative links about transmedia, participatory culture and digital storytelling. Or email me for story recs – I’ve got dozens. Maybe hundreds.

On the book-related front, I’ve been catching up on Rachel Caine’s excellent Weather Warden series, enjoying Linnea Sinclair’s romantic military sf (the Dock Five series, including Hope’s Folly), and reading more than a few YA adventures, from science fiction (Pete Hautman’s Hole in the Sky) to Victorian fantasy (Libba Bray’s A Great and Terrible Beauty). All highly recommended. Break down the barriers of genre and I think many writers would get a kick out of Steve Hely’s How I Became a Famous Novelist. For the craft of writing itself I’m very much enjoying Pat Schneider’s Writing Alone and With Others.

Movies? Who has time to go to the movies? Okay, I confess to sneaking away to the cineplex once in awhile, but nothing genre-related had me reaching for the popcorn in 2009. Here’s to 2010!

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Help me decide if this is genius or just very, very sad.

[via TV Squad]

Interviews/Profiles

• Best of New Orleans interviews Poppy Z. Brite.
• Locus Magazine interviews Michael Dirda.
• John Scalzi profiles Jasper Fforde.
• Pat’s Fantasy Hotlist interviews Steven Erikson.
• Fantasy Literature interviews Nancy Holzner.
• Bibliophile Stalker interviews Amal El-Mohtar.
• Joseph Mallozzi’s readers ask actor Peter Kelamis questions.
• Jeffrey A. Carver talks about Story Structure at the Odyssey SF/F Writing Workshop podcast.
• Graham Sleight’s latest Yesterday’s Tomorrows column features Brian

  Aldiss

News

• Jaime Lee Moyer to be 2010 Rhysling Editor.
• Apex Publications is proud to announce the release of Descended from Darkness: Apex Magazine, Vol I.

Articles

• CNET on The secret behind the Kindle’s best-selling e-books: They’re not for sale. (via Matt Staggs)
• Rich Horton’s Summary: New Genre 2009.
• Kurt Newton on The Wizard of Odd. (via Paul Tremblay)
• N.K. Jemisin on Power and Privilege in Fantasy.
• FJM on Open letter to fans, authors and critics of the male sex.
• Liz Williams on My Struggle.
• Reina Hardy on I’m Glad I Waited, by a Sacrificial Virgin.
• Damon Cap on Will Ebooks Make Reviewing Easier?
• TA Pratt on New Forces for a Better Tomorrow.
• Rachelle Gardner on Everyone Gets Rejected.
• Nicola Morgan on How Smart are Your Writing Resolutions?
• The Book Deal on Ask the editor: Help with transitions and bridges.
• Big Dumb Object on The Dumbies 2009 – Short Fiction.
• Kevin Maher’s Best Film’s of the Decade.
• Brainz lists The 10 Greatest Fantasy Series Of All Time.
• John Scalzi’s “War” with the Big Three.

REVIEW SUMMARY: Successfully adds to the novella on which it is based.

MY RATING:

BRIEF SYNOPSIS: A pair of time travelers, Shel and Dave, travel to past eras looking for Shel’s father.

MY REVIEW:

PROS: Skillful storytelling; engaging story; showcases cool uses of a time travel device.

CONS: The tendency of the characters to show advanced technology in past centuries undermines the respect they’re supposed to have for the Golden Rule of Time Travel (which conveniently avoids paradoxes).

BOTTOM LINE: Every bit as enjoyable as the shorter version on which it is based.

Read the rest of this entry

I’d buy that for a dollar.

[via Poe TV]

Interviews/Profiles

• The Agony Column interviews Jeffrey Ford (podcast).
• The World SF News Blog interviews Richard Calder.

News

• Katee “Starbuck” Sackhoff to write her own comic book.
• The Church Re-Releases Shriek: An Afterword CD, based on Jeff VanderMeer’s book.
• New release: Sky Whales and Other Wonders edited by Vera Nazarian.
• Big Dumb Object begins announcing the winners of the 2009 Dumbies with The Books.

Articles

• Rachel Caine on The sky is always falling. Or not.
• Matt Staggs on A Grim Future for America’s Bookstore Chains?
• Matt Forbeck on Finding an Agent.
• SciFi Scanner on The Best SciFi Scanner Interviews of 2009.
• Jeff VanderMeer on Paying It Forward, Paying it Back, Using Your Leverage.
• Brenda Clough on Ways to Trash Your Writing Career: An Intermittent Series.
• Editorial Ass on Author Question: What Does It Mean That I’m in My Second Printing?
• Justine Larbalestier on I’m Not Your Target Audience (Yes, You Are).
• Lynn Viehl on Ten Submission Opportunities for Writers.
• Janice Hardy on Keep Your Day Job, Right?
• Damien G. Walter on Science Fiction is not about science.
• Damien also has a thoughtful Ebook Reader Review.
• N.K. Jemisin on Power and Privilege in Fantasy.
• Farah Mendlesohn’s open letter to fans, authors and critics of the male sex.

Your Mission (should you choose to accept it): Tell us which cover you like best and why.

Books shown here:

• Black Ships by Jo Graham (Artist: John Jude Palencar)
• The Age of Zeus by James Lovegrove (Artist: Marek Okon)
• Empire in Black and Gold by Adrian Tchaikovsky (Artist: Jon Sullivan, Designer: Jacqueline Cooke)

NOTE: Bigger, better cover art images are available by clicking the images or title links…

REVIEW SUMMARY: Outstanding visual effects and a compelling set of characters help this rather simple sci-fi story deliver a very entertaining experience.

MY RATING:

BRIEF SYNOPSIS: An evil corporation wants to mine underneath the

sacred village of the indigenous population and will stop at nothing to achieve their goals. In an attempt to negotiate a peaceful resolution, a group of scientists don Avatars, clones of the aliens grafted together with genetic material from the human pilots. The humans pilot these bodies remotely and befriend the natives but are unable to convince them to leave causing the corporation to use military force instead.

MY REVIEW:

PROS: Best visuals in a motion picture, advancing film special effects, reminds many of Star Wars

CONS: Incredibly predictable plot, some dialog is really lame

BOTTOM LINE: This is a must-see film – in 3D – if you’re at all interested in seeing how the future of film (and science fiction in film) will be.

Read the rest of this entry

• @Tor.com: 3 more stories from Year’s Best Fantasy 9: “Araminta, or, The Wreck of the Amphidrake” by Naomi Novik; “If Angels Fight” by Richard Bowes; and “Queen of the Sunlit Shore” by Liz Williams.
• Murky Depths issue no.6 (in CBR format). [via Damien G. Walter]
• @brain harvest: “How Duane Came to Be In the Bathroom“
• @Scattered Worlds: “The Santamas Story” by Don Sakers.
• @DayBreak Magazine: “Fembot” by Carlos Hernandez.
• @Project Gutenberg: Ham Sandwich by James H. Schmitz.
• @Shadow Unit: “On Faith” by Sarah Monette.
• @ManyBooks.net: “The Last Straw” by William J. Smith (1963)
• @FeedBooks:
  • “Where There’s Hope” by Jerome Bixby (1953)
  • “Combat” by Mack Reynolds (1960)
  • “Mr. Chipfellow’s Jackpot” by Dick Purcell (1956)
  • “Last Resort” by Stephen Bartholomew (1963)
• Audio:
  • Batman meets Man Bat. (I actully owned this one as a kid.)
  • @Tor.com: “Overtime” by Charles Stross
  • @Podcastle: “The Petrified Girl” by Katherine Sparrow, read by Marguerite Croft.
  • @StarShipSofa: “A Lovely Little Christmas Fire” by Jeff Carlson
  • @Escape Pod:
    • “Candy Art” by James Patrick Kelly, read by Kathryn Baker.
    • “Solitary as an Oyster” by Mur Lafferty, read by Alasdair Stuart.
  • “Martian Chronicles” Part 06, by Cory Doctorow
• Serialized:
  • Timeslingers: Episode 16-3: “A New Bounty“
  • @Tor.com: Cory Doctorow’s Makers: Part 73, Part 74, Part 75

In the interest of full disclosure, here are the books and stuff we received this past week, this last week of 2009.

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Interviews/Profiles

• Michael A. Ventrella interviews James Enge.
• Fantasy Magazine interviews Claire Humphrey.

News

• Reminder: Starship Sofa Benefit for Jeanne and Spider Robsinson.
• Vonda N. McIntyre’s The Starfarers Quartet is back in print, at Book View Cafe.

Articles

• Rich Horton’s 2009 Summaries of Flurb, Farrago’s Wainscot, and Shimmer.
• Suvudu on Top Ten Movies You Don’t Realize are Sci-Fi or Fantasy.
• Diana Rowland on xzcxvcxbvxxxxx and other brilliant words.
• Patrick Lee on Don’t Panic.
• S.M. Duke on A New SF Manifesto of Bologna: Jetse de Vries and the Literature of Change (Part Two).
• Neal Asher on The Death of Science Fiction (Again).

Synopsis: Radioactive mud-like creature terrorizes a Scottish village during the 1950′s.

Need I say more?

• Mur Lafferty interviews Gail Carriger (Soulless).
• SFX interviews Dougray Scott, star of the new BBC’s new adaptation of John Wyndham’s Day of the Triffids.
• More reactions to Jetse de Vries’ post “Should SF Die?” from World in a Satin Bag and The Crotchety Old Fan.
• Damien G. Walter is Living the Booklife.
• Jo Walton reviews Molly Gloss’s The Dazzle of Day.
• Why Indie Directors Are Releasing Movies Online — For Free…films like the Star Trek parody Star Wreck.
• Some off choices make Suvudiu’s list of Top Ten Movies You Don’t Realize are Sci-Fi or Fantasy.

Here are my quick takes on the genre-related films I’ve watched in the last several weeks…

1. The Happening (2009) – Suspenseful for about the first 30 minutes, but when it became Plans vs. Humanity it devolved into nonsense.
2. Space Chimps (2008) – If you squint a little, you can find a decent time-passing film about smarter-than-human chimps that overthrow an alien overlord.
3. Resident Evil (2002) – While there’s nothing really new here, it does nicely mix a rogue AI with zombies and mutants, which is always nice.
4. Shorts (2009) – A fun-but-silly movie about a magical rock that grants wishes, and the kids (and adults) that misuse it.
5. Dead Like Me: Life After Death (2009) – Offers some (but not all) much-needed closure to the storylines of the season, but the absence of Mandy Patinkin’s Rube character in this black comedy is a serious blow.
6. 

   A Clockwork Orange (1971) – What starts as a horrific glorification of violence in Act I turns to a thoughtful dissertation on crime and rehabilitation in Act II. The inevitable act III, however, felt more drawn out than it needed to be.

• Coming Soon: The Kosher Guide to Imaginary Animals edited by Ann and Jeff VanderMeer.
• Charles Stross is not a fan of the new Doctor Who.
• Jetse de Vries asks: “Should SF Die?” Jason Sanford responds.
• Cthulhu Month at Tor.com continues:
  • 12 Days of Cthulhumas: Day 1
  • Cthulhu Wallpaper: Marc Simonetti’s R’lyeh.
• Screen Rant on Humans vs. CGI Characters.
• Innsmouth Free Press interviews illustrator and author Stephen Hickman (Part 2).
• Will you be participating in Stainless Steel Droppings’ Sci Fi Experience 2010?
• @Suvudu: The Top 10 Horror Movies of 2009.
• Mary Robinette Kowal lists 6 Fantastic Candidates for the Next Santa Claus.

Fresh from the mega-hit that was the original Star Wars (no Episode IV, no New Hope), George Lucas decided to extend the Star Wars brand in ways no one had seen before. No, not collectible glasses from Burger King, but with a Star Wars themed ‘Holiday’ special.

Little did we know that this was just a taste of the awfulness that resides deep in Lucas’ heart, which would bring us Ewoks, Jar Jar, Anakin’s dialog and pretty much the entire prequel series. But all that was mercifully in the future when CBS shocked the viewing public with two hours of singing, dancing and Bea Arthur. Long unavailable in any form, the Star Wars Holiday Special can be found around the web on various video sites so it’s horribleness will no longer go unremembered.

And we’re bringing it to you, our fine SF Signal readers. We hope you ‘enjoy’ this trip into the past of Star Wars and we hope you have a truly wonderful and merry Christmas!

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[via Geeks are Sexy]

News

• SFWA has more about Ursula K. Le Guin resigning from Authors Guild.

Articles

• Mark Charan Newton on What Makes A Good Book Blogger? (From A Writer’s Point Of View).
• Shine Anthology on Should SF Die?
• Nancy Kress on Being Positive.
• Nick Mamatas on Couting Coup with a Pig-Sticker.
• Paul Tremblay on I be highbrow horror, it’s true.
• Jeff VanderMeer on Air Fish Anthology: 1993 Genre “Core Sample”.
• John Picacio on The 13th Reality.
• Shawn Speakman on Writing a Short Story.
• Angry Robot Books on Robot fun for the holidays.
• Jesse Bullington, Matthew Dyer, Felix Gilman and Matt Staggs on Notes From an Emergency Meeting of the Institute for the Study of Cephalopod Progress.
• Kristine Kathryn Rusch on The Freelancer’s Survival Guide: Negotiation Part Four.
• Janice Hardy on Marky Marketing.
• Frederik Pohl on Stanislaw Lem’s Opera.

Lists

• SciFi Scanner on The Most Memorable SciFi Movies of the Year.
• BSC Review on Favorite Holiday Specials! – Synergy at BSCKids.
• Missions Unknown on More Memorable SF/F Album Covers.
• Suvudu on Top Five Most Memorable Sci Fi and/or Fantasy Pop Culture Santas.
• Fear.net Top 9 of ’09: Books.

[SF Signal welcomes the return of guest reviewer Jason Sanford!]

REVIEW SUMMARY: The most uplifting Christmas movie of the last decade—either animated or live action.

MY RATING:

BRIEF SYNOPSIS: In modern-day Tokyo, three homeless people find an abandoned baby at Christmas and set out to locate the little girl’s parents.

MY REVIEW:

PROS: The film mixes comedy, melodrama, action, and the higher callings of humanity in ways Frank Capra could only dream of doing.

CONS: Satoshi Kon’s deliberate play off stereotypes, along with the harsh reality of being homeless, may make some viewers uncomfortable.

BOTTOM LINE: I watch this film ever year. My Christmas wouldn’t be complete without it, and neither should yours.

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Welcome to the final serialized installment of J.C. Hutchins’ human cloning thriller 7th Son: Descent. If this is your first exposure to our free serialization of 7th Son, you can easily catch up by experiencing the story via links found at J.C.’s About 7th Son page. You can also dive in right away, right here…

THE STORY SO FAR: The battle concluded at Folie a Duex, with devastating results. Hugh Sheridan revealed a final secret to Father Thomas. In this final episode, the Beta clones’ mission concludes … or does it

Check out this week’s installment below (and listen for the special SF Signal bumper!)…

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