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rant
The Singularity Backlash
Are you sick of the shiny, high-tech future where humans evolve into superbeings? Join the club. The latest trend is for anti-singularity futures, where tomorrow looks like yesterday. More » -
quote of the day
Were The Middle Ages Better Than Today?
Futurist and media maven Douglas Rushkoff has just published Life, Inc., a book about how corporations control and permeate our lives. In a recent interview, Rushkoff says the middle ages were better than our corporate-controlled future. More » -
little brother
Cory Doctorow's Little Brother Is The Best Libertarian SF Book Of 2009
Cory Doctorow's Little Brother showed the dangers of a police state run amuck, and showed how public-spirited techies fight back. Now the Libertarian Futurist Society has given Little Brother the 2009 Prometheus Award for libertarian SF. Image by Richard Wilkinson. -
strange experiments
Alternate Histories Of Objects For Sale On eBay
Would you pay more money for items on eBay if they had interesting stories behind them? A group of writers has determined to find out, by selling objects on eBay that come with fictional alternate histories. More » -
book review
Rudy Rucker's Hylozoic: Even Weirder Than His Last Book
Rudy Rucker pushed the boundaries of how much weirdness you could fit into one science-fiction novel, with last year's Postsingular. But the sequel, Hylozoic, goes much further into the realms of the twisted, the disturbing and the post-everything. Warning: spoilers! More » -
awards
Judges "Didn't Know They Were Science Fiction Fans" Until They Gave A Prize To SF Book
Congratulations to Chris Beckett, whose story collection The Turing Test has won the prestigious Edge Hill Prize, plus £5,000 and a specially commissioned painting by artist Pete Clarke. The win is especially notable since Beckett's book came out on a small press, which has since gone out of business, and he was up against books from Faber, Cape and other bigger publishers. Said one of the judges, James Walton: More » -
book covers
Can You Come Up With A Science Fiction Book Cover Worse Than These?
Orbit Books is trying to create the worst science fiction book cover of all time — but they're up against stiff competition. Details, and a gallery of some of our fave bad covers, are below. More » -
publishing
The Best Way To Break Into Science Fiction Writing Is Online Publishing
The only way forward for new writers is digital publishing, says game and novel writer Michael Stackpole. If you want to write for a living, learn to love this post-paper age. More » -
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alternate history
What If July 4th Was Just Another Day?
As the United States celebrates its Independence Day, it's worth considering just how easily it could have never happened at all. Here now is a rundown of alternate history stories and essays where the American Revolution turned out very differently.
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book review
"Bar None" Cracks Open A Beer At The End Of The World
Bar None by Tim Lebbon (Night Shade Press, 2009) is a dark post-apocalyptic fantasy with a creepy numinous beauty and really good beer. End of the world, everybody, last orders if you please.
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io9 calendar
The io9 Guide To July Science Fiction
Of course you're interested in the future, for that is where you will be buying books, going to movies, and watching TV shows. As the summer movie season winds down, the convention season heats up in our July calendar!
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book deals
Bloggers Save The World From A Zombie Uprising
When the living dead rise up and start consuming the rest of us, the mainstream media totally misses the story — but the bloggers don't, in Seanan McGuire's Feed. Her zombies-and-blogger-drama trilogy just sold to Orbit Books in an auction. More » -
book review
io9's Hivemind Reviews The Terminator 4 Novelization
Terminator Salvation felt more like a weak music video than a movie, with a story that was hard to piece together. So it's a good thing the novelization is written by super-prolific author Alan Dean Foster, right? Spoilers ahead...
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Haikasoru
Killer Dead Frogs And Time-Traveling Missions Of Unity Invade U.S. Bookstores
Prolific manga publisher Viz Media is putting out its first two prose science fiction novels, translated from Japanese. And they sound trippy enough to give you weird visions, even without any drawings. Japanese science-fiction spoilers ahead... More » -
doctor who
Retro Doctor Who Books Hit The Target
As Doctor Who writer Mark Gatiss remembers the Who novelizations of his youth, we give you a chance to relive your own nostalgia - or maybe discover new books to give your nerd life more meaning. More » -
genre pioneers
Science Fiction Books That Launched Their Own Genres
Science fiction is all about discovery and invention, but only a few books have actually created whole new genres. Here are 10 books that pioneered a new type of science-fictional story. Do you have what it takes to join them?
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hot bookshelf injection
Steampunk Brothel Spies And Million-Year Quests, In June Books
Whether you want a fun beach read or a sweeping philosophical epic, June's books have you covered. You can encounter witches in Toronto and killer courtesans, or you can delve into America's dismal future, or Alastair Reynolds' eon-spanning colonization saga.
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Radix
Who Understands The Secrets Of Carl Jung's Mystical Power? Only The Shadow Knows
First-time author Brett King scored a two-book deal in the mid-five figures for his "reality-based thriller" about a world-changing technology. So what's King's background, and what's the hook that made The Radix a must-buy? We asked his agent. More » -
book review
World's Most Annoying Poet Foils Evil Genetic Engineering Project
Britain's Martin Millar has carved out a niche with a slew of fanciful urban fantasy books , like the recent Lonely Werewolf Girl. And now his maniacal early work, Lux The Poet, is out in the U.S. at last. Spoilers ahead.
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read this instead
"Tooth And Claw" Proves That Dragons Trump Zombies
Everybody thinks that Pride And Prejudice And Zombies is a nifty new mash-up invention. But the the original monster mash-up book was Jo Walton's Tooth and Claw, a 19th century novel of manners, with dragon protagonists. More » -
future publishing
The Tip Jar: Science Fiction's New Revenue Source?
Traditional publishing's decline, and the severe hardship of our ongoing econom-ick, are forcing writers to do what they do best: get creative. Urban fantasy author Tim Pratt has joined Catherynne M. Valente in publishing serialized fiction online, relying on donations. More » -
publishing
Has The Print Magazine Circulation Crash Started To Level Off?
Here's what passes for good news in the world of print science-fiction magazines: the "big three" magazines only saw circulation declines in the low single digits in 2008, compared with double-digit declines in recent years. More » -
interview
Robert Charles Wilson Talks About Movies And Limits To The Singularity
In Robert Charles Wilson's new novel Julian Comstock, an energy-depleted 22nd Century looks very much like the 19th. We interviewed Wilson about his non-singularity future, and the silent movies that inspire him. More » -
writers
We Missed National Science Fiction Writers Day!
Did you know that yesterday was Science Fiction And Fantasy Writers Day? Neither did we. But apparently there's a new movement to celebrate SF authors on June 23. Just next year, give us a heads-up? More » -
Doris Egan
House Producer Doris Egan's Long Lost Science Fiction Novel
Did you know one of the main writers for House had written a science fiction novel? And it sounds quite good. Doris Egan, writer of several episodes including the most recent season finale, also wrote the novel City Of Diamond. More » -
books
How Much Damage Can A Maniac And His Army Of Sock Puppets Do On Amazon.Com?
Science fiction and fantasy authors, including Pat Rothfuss and David Louis Edelman, have started noticing a rash of one-star reviews of their books on Amazon.com, all at once, The reviews seem to come from newly created profiles, and often say the same thing in slightly different words over and over. And now, observers think they've fingered the culprit: frustrated fantasy author Robert Stanek. In the past, Stanek has had the habit of posting tons of "anonymous" one-star reviews of people's books which all said, "This guy is rubbish, if you want to read real fantasy, go read Robert Jordan, George R.R. Martin and Robert Stanek!" The new batch of reviews don't mention Stanek by name, but do suggest that the authors should try serving in the armed forces to build character (a Stanek bugaboo.) And if you look at their profiles, the anonymous accounts have all tagged Stanek as a favorite author. All of this raises the question: How much damage can one anonymous maniac with an army of sock puppets really do to an established author on Amazon? [SFF World] -
larry niven
Larry Niven Helped Usher In Our Weird World
Ringworld author Larry Niven didn't just pioneer the "cool massive object in space" genre — he also helped predict today's world, including flashmobs, cochlear implants and planets orbiting Epsilon Eridani. NASA even found a possible ringworld, in 2004. [USA Today] -
alastair reynolds
Alastair Reynolds Gets £1 Million To Write Some More Space Operas
Don't let anybody tell you there's no money in writing science fiction. Revelation Space and Pushing Ice author Alastair Reynolds just got a £1 million book deal (about $1.65 million) from his publisher, Gollancz. More » -
exclusive
Samuel Delany Answers Your Science Fiction Questions!
Samuel R. Delany has been away from science fiction for over twenty years — and now he's coming back to it, sort of. His new novel Through The Valley Of The Nest Of Spiders is an introspective future history.
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quote of the day
Michael Moorcock Can't Read "Transhumanist" Fiction Because It's Not About People
Interviewed by BoingBoing's readers, New Wave legend Michael Moorcock says he's disconnected from science fiction that gets too abstract: "I'm not entirely sure about transhumanist fiction. It holds no attractions for me. Assuming I really know what it is. I've only really ever been interested in 'humanist' fiction. That is, fiction about people. As I've said, I don't read sf for pleasure and very little of it for review, so I'm no expert. I think I'm probably sympathetic to the writers you mention, but personally believe political fiction should be set in at least some version of the here and now. [...] This was always my argument about sf — that generally, by abstracting it, putting it in some 'other place', you lost some of the relevance. That said, I haven't been vastly interested in technological advance since I was young. I have every sympathy with Banks, Mcleod et al, but to be honest I've been no more able to read more than a page of their stuff than I have Heinlein's or Asimov's. The moment a spaceship turns up, you've lost me." — BoingBoing via Tachyon via Ken McLeod. -
contests
Achieve Galactic Fame And Fortune With New Science Fiction Publishing Contest
Attention, aspiring novelists! A new competition could get your space epic or Singularity romance published by a major publisher, and bring you the adoration of millions. SciFiNow is sponsoring the War Of The Words contest in collaboration with Play.com and (more promisingly) Tor U.K. — and even though it's a U.K. contest, people can enter from anywhere. To enter, you need a synopsis and three sample chapters, but you can't advance to the finalist stage unless you're able to produce an entire novel. More details here. [SFFChronicles] -
Asian Futurism
When Did Japan Stop Being The Future?
U.S. science fiction used to be fascinated with Japan, from Blade Runner to Neuromancer. Everything Japanese was cooler, sleeker and shinier than our grubby American aesthetic, and Japan was destined to dominate. And then, Japan's futuristic status waned. What happened? More » -
publishing
New Online Bookstore Is "Agnostic," But It'll Be a Religious Experience For You
Tor.com may be the website of one of science fiction's biggest publishers, but their blog has tried to promote good books regardless of the publisher. And now they're extending this "agnostic" approach to their new online store, with fascinating results. More » -
alternate history
The Coolest Alternate Histories Are For Young Adults
Has the young-adult science fiction genre finally moved past future dystopias? A panel of three leading YA authors at BEA suggests the new frontier for YA fiction is alternate histories, including Darwin's genetic engineering and the Prohibition era targeting magic. More » -
little brother
It's Like The Outsiders, Only With xBoxes And Culture-Jamming
Cory Doctorow's Hugo-nominated story of teen hackers thwarting a paranoid surveillance state, Little Brother, has been optioned by producer Don Murphy (Natural Born Killers, From Hell.) Assuming it actually happens, which teen actor would you want to play Marcus? -
book review
A Druid Saves The World In Jacqueline Carey's Latest
Jacqueline Carey returns to the world of Kushiel's Dart in new novel Naamah's Kiss, and she has managed to rekindle the excitement of the series too. Set over a century after the last book, it's an auspicious new beginning.
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future cities
The Most Fantastical Cities On Earth, As Chosen By Ursula K. Le Guin And Michael Moorcock
Their books take you to strange cities from other planets, alternate histories and mythical realms. But what real-life cities inspire Ursula K. Le Guin, Michael Moorcock, Nalo Hopkinson and China Miéville? The SharedWorlds project found out, with fascinating results. More » -
book review
"Palimpsest" Explores A Sexually-Transmitted City
If you want a hot, brooding novel for the sticky summer months, then you need Catherynne M. Valente's Palimpsest. It's the story of a lovely, haunting city you only visit by having sex with people who have visited it.
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book review
A Working-Class Monster Hunter Saves The World
A working stiff who collects cryptobiological specimens and keeps them from menacing the hapless citizenry encounters a mundane woman who weird stuff constantly happens to. A. Lee Martinez's Monster feels like a sillier version of Joss Whedon's Angel.
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world war z
World War Z Stalled From Meeting Its Bloody Zombie Quota
Before long, Quantum of Solace director Marc Foster may be moving his shaky camera off of Max Brook's brilliantly bloody zombie war novel World War Z, and onto another project. Migros Magazin said the project is "still far from realization"... Sooo does this mean we can get another director? [Dark Horizons]

































