As the year draws to a close, my attention turns to the list of books I have read this year. I’ve been keeping track for the last three years, and I’m surprised at how much pleasure this small habit gives me. I only write down the books I have finished, which eliminates many books every [...]
Archive for the ‘Science fiction and fantasy’ Category
My Top 10 Reads of 2011
Posted in Science fiction and fantasy, tagged Among Others, Amy Sundberg, Anna and the French Kiss, book love, books, Kingdom of the Gods, Red Glove, The Broken Kingdoms, The GIrl of Fire and Thorns, The Lions of al-Rassan, The Map of Time, Under Heaven, Where She Went, Zoo City on December 13, 2011 | 9 Comments »
Science Fiction: Have We Gotten Too Depressing?
Posted in Science fiction and fantasy, Writing, tagged ambiguity, Ender's Game, nihilism, optimisim, positivity, sad endings, science fiction, Song of Ice and Fire on November 15, 2011 | 11 Comments »
I’ve recently stumbled over a conversation in SF circles about the dearth of positive written science fiction, in spite of the demand for such stories from readers. Not that this is a brand new conversation in the genre; while attending my first Worldcon in Montreal back in 2009, I met Jetse de Vries, who was [...]
Where are my New Comfort Books?
Posted in Science fiction and fantasy, Writing, tagged A Civil Campaign, Agatha Christie, Amy Sundberg, Anne of Green Gables, book love, character-driven novel, comfort books, Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice, reading, To Say Nothing of the Dog on October 27, 2011 | 7 Comments »
Some of my favorite novels are ones in which nothing much happens. That’s not to say that nothing at all happens, or that the stakes aren’t sometimes raised, but the story unfolds in a leisurely, unrushed sort of way, allowing me to feel like I’m really getting to know the characters and being allowed to [...]
To Infinity and Beyond
Posted in Science fiction and fantasy, tagged Amy Sundberg, optimism, science fiction, space, space opera, space race, space travel on September 6, 2011 | 11 Comments »
Sometime in the last few months, I read someone’s Tweet about space travel. I don’t remember who it was, but they said something to the effect of how science fiction set in space felt irrelevant or dated to them. Like it was nostalgia and nothing more. Of course, this was right around NASA’s final space [...]
Forever Sixteen: Perpetual Adolescence
Posted in Arts, Science fiction and fantasy, Writing, tagged aging, Amy Sundberg, change, Daily Science Fiction, Forever Sixteen, sale on August 2, 2011 | 18 Comments »
I have the pleasure of announcing that my story “Forever Sixteen” is now up on Daily Science Fiction’s website. I’ve been very excited ever since I sold the story back in March, and I’m thrilled that it’s now available for everyone to read. The main character is a girl whose aging and development has [...]
A Note from the People-Pleasing Feminist Who Doesn’t Hate Men
Posted in Life, Science fiction and fantasy, Writing, tagged Amy Sundberg, Backbone Project, feminism, people pleaser, stereotypes on June 14, 2011 | 45 Comments »
I read two essays relating to feminism last week, and I can’t get them out of my mind. They offer very different perspectives on living in the U.S. as a woman, and how to navigate the sometimes tricky waters that this entails.The first one was an explanation by Zoe Winters of why she doesn’t call [...]
Where is my Geek Cred?
Posted in Life, Science fiction and fantasy, tagged agricola, american gods, anime, Backbone Project, Buffy, d&d, doctor who, geek culture, Lord of the Rings, Star Wars on May 31, 2011 | 112 Comments »
I really thought I would generate more disagreement from last week’s post on critiques, which goes to show that I have no idea whatsoever about such things. In any case, it made me realize that the backbone project is really more about me putting myself and my opinions out there, regardless of whether doing so [...]
YA is different than MG.
Posted in Arts, Science fiction and fantasy, Writing, tagged Amy Sundberg, book love, children's books, MG, Middle grade, writing, YA, Young Adult on March 3, 2011 | 8 Comments »
I have noticed a lot of confusion in the speculative community about the difference between Young Adult (YA) fiction and Middle Grade (MG) fiction. Indeed, some people seem unaware that there is a difference, a problem with which I sympathize, since I had no idea about this myself until a few years ago. So I [...]
Run from your Relatives: Family Dysfunction in Fairy Tales
Posted in Life, Science fiction and fantasy, tagged Amy Sundberg, Cinderella, coming of age, dysfunctional family, fairy tales, myths, Snow White on January 27, 2011 | 11 Comments »
I have recently been struck by the preponderance of family dysfunction in Western fairy tales and myths. It seems that everywhere I turn, I find another evil mother or unkind sibling. Here are only a sampling of stories involving family strife and betrayal: In Cinderella, she has an unkind stepmother (who I read was the [...]
Hugo Nominations: Consider Lightspeed and John Joseph Adams
Posted in Science fiction and fantasy, Writing, tagged editor, Hugos, John Joseph Adams, Lightspeed, science fiction, semiprozine on January 21, 2011 | 2 Comments »
As we descend into award season for the speculative fiction community, I would like to bring to your attention the wonderful new science fiction magazine Lightspeed and its editor, John Joseph Adams.1 Lightspeed began its publication last June and released seven issues in 2010. Every issue features two original stories and two reprints, as well [...]
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