Blog Posts

Book Review: Applied Ballardianism: Memoir from a Parallel Universe, by Simon Sellars

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“In another life, I might have joined a radical church, a star cult. In this one, I attempted a PhD.” To engage thoughtfully with the work and life of science fiction*-and-literary-and-postmodernist author J.G. Ballard is, perhaps, to risk transforming oneself into a J.G. Ballard protagonist who must struggle through a J.G. Ballard world without the benefit of J.G. Ballard constructing the plot of his or her trajectory. Such is the lesson of Applied Ballardism: Memoir from a Parallel Universe, Simon Sellars’ much-anticipated exploration of how a greatly admired author can colonize a person’s imagination to an extent that borders on the dangerous.

Blog Posts

Guest Post: Finding the Dark by Rachel Caine

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Today on Skiffy and Fanty, Rachel Caine, part of the Dead Air team, a podcast/serial story collaboration she is doing with Gwenda Bond and Carrie Ryan, tells us about finding the darknes in thrillers and what her new project has to offer. I started reading my dad’s books when I was, well, old enough to figure out where he kept them, which was way too young. Some of them were what would be euphemistically called “men’s adventure” today; James Bond-type books, only with more sex and violence. Some were horror. But I most remember the opening of one of Ed McBain’s 87th Precinct novels … a book about a murderer backing a woman into a corner in her apartment, and relentlessly slashing back and forth at her like a sideways pendulum. It haunted me. I couldn’t get it out of my head, no matter how much fun space exploration science fiction I read, or high fantasy, or historical novels (all of which I loved).

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Short Fiction Review: July 2018 – Dinosaurs!

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Rejoice! It is a summer for dinosaurs! In July, Uncanny Magazine published Issue 23, a special shared-universe dinosaur issue! The stories revolve around abandoned islands, portals, dinosaurs, and the mysterious Owen Corporation. Yes, there’s a certain Jurassic Park-like flair to this prompt, and that’s totally fine by me. I especially enjoyed “Red Lizard Brigade” by Sam J. Miller, an enjoyable yet heart-breaking tale of betrayal, loyalty, love, and (of course) dinosaurs. And I’m absolutely enamored with K.M. Szpara’s “You Can Make a Dinosaur, but You Can’t Help Me,” a challenging but rewarding story about family and found family. And if that’s not enough dinosaurs for you, A. Merc Rustad is currently editing an anthology of original flash fiction stories about robot dinosaurs. I’d also be remiss not to mention that the folks behind Uncanny are currently Kickstarting Uncanny Magazine Year Five, so be sure to check that out as well.

Blog Posts

Book Review: A Demon in Silver by R. S. Ford

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A Demon in Silver by R. S. Ford starts off the War of Archon series. The novel chronicles the return of magic to a medieval world where, a century ago, both the Gods and their magic disappeared, suddenly, without warning. Locking away the Gods, and Magic, for a century has not done the world that many favors. Things have progressed on, petty nobles squabble, raiders raid, violent sects in the desert fight against each other. The world has not truly changed in their absence, not at the fundamental level.

The Skiffy and Fanty Show Podcasts

Signal Boost #40 — Claire O’Dell, Daniel Hansen, and Ilana C. Myer

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https://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFSignalBoost40ODellHansenMyer/Sandf–SignalBoost40–OdellHansenMyer.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSAfter a long break, we’re back with not two but THREE WHOLE INTERVIEWS! Because you deserve it (and also we need to catch up). In today’s episode of Signal Boost, Paul talks to Claire O’Dell (the pen name of Beth Bernobich) about the first book in her new science fiction mystery series inspired by Sherlock Homes, A Study in Honor. They discuss why Claire chose both the specific new voices for Watson and Sherlock, how the setting came about, the intersections of race, class, and power that she explores, and more! Then Becca is joined by Daniel Hansen, author of The Trickster’s War Series, the short story collection, This Coyote’s Life as Told by an Old NDN, and so much more. They discuss the influence that the stories of his childhood have had on his work, why his work might be identified as magical realism, the differences between writing novels and short stories, and, as always, more! Last, but certainly not least, Paul is joined by Ilana C. Myer about the sequel to Last Song Before Night, Fire Dance! They discuss how Fire Dance builds upon the first book but still remains accessible to new readers, the real world models that influenced the world-building, the consequences of bringing magic into a world that hadn’t had any, and the power of Ursula K. LeGuin. We hope you enjoy the episode!

SF in Translation, The Skiffy and Fanty Show Podcasts

Speculative Fiction in Translation #7: Croatia, Quebec, and Condomnauts

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https://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SFiTEpisode7CroatiaQuebecAndCondomnauts/Sfit-Episode7-CroatiaQuebecAndCondomnauts.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSJuly brought us speculative stories, books, and collections translated from the Chinese, Spanish, Croatian, French, Finnish, Portuguese, and Swedish. So much great stuff! From post-apocalyptic science fiction to Swedish horror to magical realism from Quebec, you’ll have no problem finding excellent reading material. Plus, you can check out reviews of these and other stories around the internet. I also tell you about my current reading and translation work (still working on that Italian surrealist noir!) With new stories and books coming to our attention each week, make sure to check the SFT website for updates. Enjoy, and keep reading! A bientôt! Show notes:

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