My Superpower: Ken Liu (Grace of Kings)
My Superpower is a regular guest column on the Skiffy and Fanty blog where authors and creators tell us about one weird skill, neat trick, highly specialized cybernetic upgrade, or other superpower they have, and how it helped (or hindered!) their creative process as they built their project. Today we welcome Ken Liu to talk about how the power of tax enthusiasm relates to Grace of Kings. My superpower is the ability to get readers excited about taxes. Taxes are critical in my silkpunk epic fantasy, The Grace of Kings. This is the story of two unlikely friends, a duke and a bandit, who join together to overthrow tyranny only to find themselves on opposite sides of a deadly rivalry over how to create a more just society. There are all sorts of cool things in it: soaring battle kites and airships based on Chinese prototypes from antiquity; unyielding heroes, kennings, and litotes in the mode of Anglo-Saxon epics; magical books that read minds; jealous gods who are concerned with the value of Pi; a street urchin who becomes the greatest battlefield tactician of her generation and teaches women to fight in the skies; ladies and princesses who plot and fight alongside lords and princes; and giant water beasts who bring storms and tempests to human affairs.
Around the Podosphere #8: Podcasts of Note for 3/30/2015
Here are some of the exciting things we’ve been listening to in the past few weeks: On Awards Paul Weimer joins the new crew at Adventures in Sci Fi Publishing to discuss the Sad Puppies and the Hugos. Justin Landon, henceforth known as The Guy Who Talked About Hugos, brings in Renay and TheG to discuss, well, the Hugos. The fine folks at Galactic Suburbia host a special Galactic Suburbia Award episode! Take a listen! On Science StarTalk Radio brings on Elon Musk to talk about the future of space travel and humanity!
262. Brenda Cooper (a.k.a. The Space Farmer) — Edge of Dark (An Interview)
http://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFEpisode262BrendaCooper/SandF%20–%20Episode%20262%20–%20Brenda%20Cooper.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSGiant space rings, transhumanists, and space cows, oh my! Brenda Cooper joins Shaun and Paul to discuss her latest novel, Edge of Dark. We tackle Brenda’s love of science fiction, the transhumanist themes in her work, character development, and the wonders of space. Plus much more! We hope you enjoy the episode! Note: If you have iTunes and like this show, please give us a review on our iTunes page, or feel free to email us with your thoughts about the show! Here’s the episode (show notes are below): Episode 262 — Download (MP3) Show Notes: Brenda Cooper’s Website Brenda’s Twitter Brenda’s Books Edge of Dark (Pyr) Our new intro music is “Time Flux” by Revolution Void (CC BY 3.0). That’s all, folks! Thanks for listening. See you next week.
261. Carrie Patel (a.k.a. Mayor of Mole City) — The Buried Life (An Interview)
http://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFEpisode261CarriePatel/SandF%20–%20Episode%20261%20–%20Carrie%20Patel.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSUnderground cities, murder-y murders, and snarky detectives, oh my! Carrie Patel joins us to discuss her new novel, The Buried Life. We discuss worldbuilding, writing detectives, the nature of power and class, gaming, and much more! We hope you enjoy the episode! Note: If you have iTunes and like this show, please give us a review on our iTunes page, or feel free to email us with your thoughts about the show! Here’s the episode (show notes are below): Episode 261 — Download (MP3) Show Notes: Carrie Patel’s Website Carrie’s Twitter The Buried Life (Angry Robot Books) Pillars of Earth (Obsidian Entertainment) Our new intro music is “Time Flux” by Revolution Void (CC BY 3.0). That’s all, folks! Thanks for listening. See you next week.
260. Silvia Moreno-Garcia (a.k.a. The Music Wizard) — Signal to Noise (An Interview)
http://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFEpisode260SilviaMorenoGarcia/SandF%20–%20Episode%20260%20–%20Silvia%20Moreno-Garcia.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSMusic magic, sinking cities, and covens, oh my! Silvia Moreno-Garcia joins Shaun and Julia to talk about her latest novel, Signal to Noise. We discuss the novel’s obsession with music, Mexico City’s sinking problem, the “magical realism” label, and much more! We hope you enjoy the episode! Note: If you have iTunes and like this show, please give us a review on our iTunes page, or feel free to email us with your thoughts about the show! Here’s the episode (show notes are below): Episode 260 — Download (MP3) Show Notes: Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s Website Silvia’s Twitter Signal to Noise (Solaris) The Signal to Noise Playlist Our new intro music is “Time Flux” by Revolution Void (CC BY 3.0). That’s all, folks! Thanks for listening. See you next week.
Book Review: The Land Across by Gene Wolfe
Those even slightly familiar with Gene Wolfe’s prolific work may recognize its persistence in theme and style. Critics, colleagues, and readers in general praise his unique voice, which is often challenging to penetrate with its unconventionality, but usually end up making his stories hugely rewarding experiences. Despite the now conventional expectation of idiosyncrasy in Wolfe’s prose and plots, he somehow manages to keep stories inventively unpredictable and engrossing. Recently released in trade paperback format by Tor Books, Wolfe’s 2013 novel, The Land Across, is typical Wolfe: a young, possibly unreliable narrator, evocative descriptions, shifting plots that play with expectations, sophisticated incorporation of the political and religious, and beneath it all a perpetual sense of foreboding.
