I just made a very interesting personal discovery, gleaned from the data on my reading of the Hugo and Nebula winning books. Of the 110 novels that have won either award, I have now read all but 16 of them, which is enough data to get some reprentative results. One of the best predictors that… Continue reading An interesting personal discovery
Tag: C. J. Cherryh
Reading Resolution Update: April
My 2022 reading resolution: Read or DNF every novel that has won a Hugo or a Nebula award, and acquire all the good ones. In 2007, when I was a sophomore in college, I went up to Salt Lake City with some friends and was browsing the awesome (and fairly run down, even at the… Continue reading Reading Resolution Update: April
Reading Resolution Update: Before 2022
My 2022 Reading Resolution: Read or DNF every novel that has won a Hugo or a Nebula award, and acquire all the good ones. I was going to keep track of my reading resolution this year by mentioning each book and what I liked or didn’t like about it, why I DNFed it if I… Continue reading Reading Resolution Update: Before 2022
Y is for Yesteryear
They say that the golden age of science fiction is about twelve years old. That’s definitely true for me. My first exposure to the genre was Star Wars: A New Hope. I saw it when I was seven, right around the height of my dinosaur phase. Everything about the movie completely blew me away, from… Continue reading Y is for Yesteryear
S is for Space Station
Planets are not the only setting for science fiction stories–space stations are common as well. From the Death Star (“that’s no moon…”) to Downbelow Station, the Venus Equilateral to ISPV 7 to the Battle School in Ender’s Game, space stations are a major staple of any space-centered science fiction. The reasons for this should be fairly… Continue reading S is for Space Station
M is for Merchanter
If space is an ocean and interstellar colonization is happening on a grand scale, then it should come as no surprise that so many starship captains are intrepid merchants, traveling the galaxy in pursuit of a good business deal. Whether they’re doing it legally as entrepreneurs or illegally as smugglers, you can find these guys… Continue reading M is for Merchanter
The interior designer’s approach to story
I recently read a fascinating post on John Brown’s blog with an interesting exercise for analyzing the kinds of stories you most like to read. By finding out what really turns you on in a story, you can have a much better idea what to write, and how to make your own stories better. He… Continue reading The interior designer’s approach to story
NPR’s Top 100 Science Fiction & Fantasy
In case you didn’t know, NPR just put together a list of the Top 100 Science Fiction and Fantasy novels of all time. The list had a panel of judges who vetted nominations, but the voting was public and turnout–over 60,000–was pretty high. I usually don’t like top 100 lists, but this one did a… Continue reading NPR’s Top 100 Science Fiction & Fantasy
Blurb for Bringing Stella Home and thoughts on Borders
One of the essential elements for a successful in epublishing is a killer book description, and I think I’ve got a pretty decent one for Bringing Stella Home. However, I could use some feedback, so if you could read it and tell me what you think, that would be great. Here it is: It is a… Continue reading Blurb for Bringing Stella Home and thoughts on Borders
Merchanter’s Luck by C. J. Cherryh
He was a down and out merchanter, the captain, crew, and sole proprietor of a run-down bucket of bolts spacecraft. She was a daughter of one of the finest starfaring clans, with seven hundred cousins standing between her and the one thing she wanted more than anything else: command of a starship. They met at… Continue reading Merchanter’s Luck by C. J. Cherryh