San Francisco, 9:58 PM
Fri Dec 4
24 posts in the last 24 hours
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@crashedpc : ゴキブリ and 蟑螂 division: Aw, give the guy a break. His career is based off of drugs he took and book he wrote decades ago. He's the Ozzy Osbourne of science-fantasy novels.
Just like most of us have a BS detector that we use routinely in real life (and for which Bernie Madoff's clients wished they had a more sensitive one), most of us SF readers have a "suspension of disbelief" detector that goes off when our personal comfort level of "distance from reality" is exceeded. My comfort level is fairly close to reality, which is why I generally don't read fantasy. Mrs. Overclock (a.k.a. Dr. Overclock, Medicine Woman) is more liberal in this respect. However, I do generally find the stuff of Iain Banks etc. acceptable.
Of course, there are (weird) exceptions: I loved JONATHAN STRANGE AND MR. NORRELL, but Mrs. Overclock (etc.) did not share my enthusiasm. But it also tickled the historical fiction receptors in my brain.
@Chip Overclock: For, me a story has to set up, for lack of better words, "realism parameters." If the author does not set some parameter for realism for something in the beginning, I assume it functions as it does in the real world. For example, if some story uses telepathy from the beginning as a plot device, I'm fine with it. If telepathy suddenly appears half-way through the story in an otherwise realistic universe, my BS detector goes off and I have a hard time enjoying the rest of story. Every author creates their own world when they write a story, but they need to stick to the rules of the world they created in order for me to suspend my disbelief.
I've actually found the need for realism actually gets in the way... for awhile I was a member of a SF club and there'd be endless arguments over power systems, hull alloys, no you can't do that, etc.
it got so damn annoying... the endless rules etc and you'd end up getting bogged down in the details instead of the story.
ok not saying 'the engine works by....' maybe 'handwavium' but when it comes down to it.. whats more important the story or the tech details?
It really just comes down to what you want to write about. You can't complain about Philip K. Dick's works Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, or the Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch because it's the year 2009 and we still don't have colonies on mars, human evolution clinics, food induced VR simulations, androids, or laser pistols. Though I prefer social critiques in my sci-fi the author should have free reign to write whatever he or she wants and if faster than light travel helps move the story along than so be it. All I know is, is that if I need a biology or physics degree to write science fiction than I'll most certainly have to give up the one thing I'm good at.
Hmmm. I think I really like this Banks fellow, must read some of his stuff one day.
If I ever write fiction (and cop to it, unlike my Kaylee/Buffy fanfic) I'm going to have oodles of alien races and FTL. My SF shall be soft and spongy.
06/20/09
I dig Banks and Co.- but he does have a point.
06/19/09
"The moment a spaceship turns up, you've lost me."
But put an evil sentient sword in an albino's hand on a completely made up continent, I can completely relate!
06/19/09
06/19/09
And to think I've actually wasted time reading some of his CRAP.
06/20/09
06/19/09
06/19/09
06/19/09
04/13/09
Also, Mike White, thanks for listing the other nominees.
04/13/09
03/20/09
Of course, there are (weird) exceptions: I loved JONATHAN STRANGE AND MR. NORRELL, but Mrs. Overclock (etc.) did not share my enthusiasm. But it also tickled the historical fiction receptors in my brain.
03/20/09
03/20/09
it got so damn annoying... the endless rules etc and you'd end up getting bogged down in the details instead of the story.
ok not saying 'the engine works by....' maybe 'handwavium' but when it comes down to it.. whats more important the story or the tech details?
03/20/09
03/20/09
03/20/09
03/20/09
03/20/09
Damn this futuristic dystopia!
03/20/09
If I ever write fiction (and cop to it, unlike my Kaylee/Buffy fanfic) I'm going to have oodles of alien races and FTL. My SF shall be soft and spongy.
03/20/09
03/20/09
03/20/09
03/20/09
03/20/09
03/20/09
03/20/09
03/20/09