Top 10 Posts for October 2015
The internet was enraged over a supposed boycott of Star Wars VII for having a black protagonist, which blew over when people claimed it was a 4chan stunt. Elsewhere, Amazon filed suit against some people selling fake reviews. That and … Continue reading →
Poland to Host Euroconference 2016
During 2016 the Polish city of Wroc?aw is going to be a designated cultural center of Europe, filled with festivals, concerts, conferences and other artistic and cultural events. One of those events will be the science fiction convention Polcon (April … Continue reading →
Pixel Scroll 10/31 Standlee’s Instant Summons
(1) The title of Jeb Kinnison’s review encapsulates his opinion — “’Tomorrowland’: Tragic Misfire”. Having seen mixed reviews, I waited until Tomorrowland came out on cheaper streaming services. Directed and mostly written by Brad Bird, auteur of brilliant work like … Continue reading →
A Halloween Visit with Ray Bradbury
(1) John King Tarpinian paid his annual Halloween visit to the grave of Ray Bradbury. “The pumpkin was left by one of Ray’s actors, Robert Kerr. The figurine is from me — H.G. Wells and the Invisible Man.” (2) Many celebrities … Continue reading →
A Halloween Game – Matching Candy with Books
Will R. is undoubtedly right that Filers can expand on the choices in this Bibliocrunch infographic from a wider variety of sf/f books. Everyone’s TBR and To-Be-Eaten piles will tower higher than ever. … Continue reading →
A Groot Suit
Tim Walters shot these photos of cosplayer Cary Estes in character as Groot at the Wizard World Comic Con in Tulsa, Oklahoma on Saturday October 24, 2015. Thanks, Tim, for allowing me to share them! … Continue reading →
Boston Bidding for Smofcon
Massachusetts Convention Fandom Inc. has voted to support a bid for a Smofcon in Boston in 2017 with Jim Mann as the chair. Details will be presented at Smofcon 33 in Fort Worth in December. … Continue reading →
Pixel Scroll 10/30 The Stainless Steel Hedgehog Has A Harsh Mistress, Not That There’s Anything Wrong With That
(1) Larry Smith is out of the hospital reports Marcia Kelly Illingworth on Facebook. Please forgive the lack of recent updates. As they say, no news is good news. Larry is back out of the hospital, and appears to be … Continue reading →
First Annual Canopus Award Winners Announced
100 Year Starship (100YSS) has announced the winners of the inaugural 2015 Canopus Award honoring excellence in interstellar writing. Previously Published Long-Form Fiction InterstellarNet: Enigma, Edward M. Lerner (Published by FoxAcre) Previously Published Short-Form Fiction “The Waves,” Ken Liu (Originally … Continue reading →
South Pasadena Screening of Ray Bradbury’s Halloween Tree
By John King Tarpinian: The South Pasadena Library was one of many libraries that loved Ray, and Ray felt the same way. Their meeting room is an original Carnegie Library, with the new library built onto it, unlike most that … Continue reading →
Peter S. Beagle eBooks from Conlan Press
The big news is – Peter S. Beagle’s ouerve is finally available in digital form. The Last Unicorn — the only fantasy classic that has never been commercially available in eBook format – has been released in two electronic editions. … Continue reading →
SXSW Starts Fresh Controversy with Announcement of Online Harassment Summit
SXSW has announced the addition of a day-long Online Harassment Summit to SXSW 2016. The event was created to allay the outrage over their decision early this week to cancel a pair of gaming panels — one essentially about Gamergate, the other about anti-harassment efforts … Continue reading →
A Small, Angry Planet On Sale
Harper Voyager recently acquired The Long Way To A Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers, the “rollicking space adventure” praised by several File 770 commenters. To get everybody psyched up about this book, the publisher today is running a one-day offer — a Nook … Continue reading →
Pixel Scroll 10/29 – Scrolls and the Art of Blog Maintenance
(1) Rob Cottingham’s “Ancillary Stapler” at Medium.com is highly recommended. I am lost in thought when Coffeemaker speaks to me, timidly, to say she is almost empty. Not the emptiness of a depleted urn; it is still half full. No, … Continue reading →
Noory Boots Brom From Coast To Coast
Brom, artist and author of Krampus the Yule Lord, told his Facebook followers that he was kicked off George Noory’s radio show last night. Well, now that’s a feather in my cap. Seems I weirded out George Noory on Coast … Continue reading →
San Jose in 2018 Taking GoH Suggestions
The San Jose in 2018 Worldcon bid invites the sf community to suggest potential guests of honor, thus “ensuring worthy candidates are not overlooked.” Or as the committee phrased it in the press release, their bid is “crowdsourcing guest candidates” in the event they win … Continue reading →
41 by Mike Glyer / 2d
Cursed Child Leads To Cursing Ticket Buyers
The first round of tickets for the stage play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child rapidly sold out, generating complaints about delays and technical difficulties the way these internet “land rush” events often do. There were some technical difficulties with … Continue reading →
Lucas Museum Approved By Chicago City Council
The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art is another step closer to beginning construction. The Chicago City Council voted to approve zoning for the project on October 28, after the Bears football team and the museum organization agreed on rules governing … Continue reading →
Pixel Scroll 10/28 Trolling Down the Moon
(1) The Galactic Journey blog is written as the day-to-day experiences of an sf fan living 55 years ago. Last week The Traveler covered the final Nixon-Kennedy debate and the first episode of The Twilight Zone’s second season. Today’s post is … Continue reading →
Introduction to National Novel Writing Month
By Greg Hullender: Every November, NaNoWriMo challenges would-be writers to produce an entire 50,000-word novel from scratch in 30 days. It sounds almost impossible, but it can be done, it can be lots of fun, and you can learn a … Continue reading →
Sasquan Gives Smofcon Scholarships
Sasquan, the 2015 Worldcon, has awarded two SMOFcon Scholarships to outstanding first-time Worldcon volunteers, Beck Prigot and Cherise Kelley. The scholarships will help them attend SMOFcon 33 in Dallas/Fort Worth TX, December 4-6, 2015. … Continue reading →
2015 Green Slime Awards
The “winners” of the 2015 Green Slime Awards were announced at Bubonicon 48 in Albuquerque on August 28 by Jessica L. Coyle (with assistance from the Slime Players). The Green Slime Awards were created in 1976 by the late Roy Tackett … Continue reading →
SXSW May Host Antiharassment Programming
SXWS management is reconsidering its decision to cancel two gaming panels — one essentially about Gamergate, the other about anti-harassment efforts in gaming — due to the strongly negative reaction from key SXSW participants BuzzFeed and Vox Media, and the internet … Continue reading →
WFC 2015 To Revise Antiharassment Policy
WFC board member Joseph T. Berlant has announced on the World Fantasy Convention’s public Facebook page plans to adopt a version of last year’s WFC antiharassment policy in response to complaints about the 2015 event’s policy originally posted the other day: … Continue reading →
Pixel Scroll 10/27 Return To Hedgehogwarts
(1) Bad science in sf I’m used to. On the other hand, this expose of Monty Python by medievalist Kathleen E. Kennedy is shocking! Her post for The Mary Sue, “Coconuts in Medieval England Weren’t as Rare as Monty Python … Continue reading →
The Bandersnatch Trailer
Bandersnatch, Diana Pavlac Glyer’s new book about the Inklings writing group and its creative processes, arrives November 30. C. S. Lewis, J. R. R. Tolkien, and the Inklings met each week to read and discuss each other’s work-in-progress, offering both encouragement … Continue reading →
Uncanny Magazine Issue 7 Launches 11/3
The seventh issue of Uncanny Magazine will be available on November 3. (Ursula Vernon has a story in the issue — “Wooden Feathers.”) The entire contents can be purchased in the eBook version on the day of release. Uncanny’s free online content will be … Continue reading →
Adams, Machado, McGuire at NYRSF Readings 11/10
John Joseph Adams presents writers from The Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy, Carmen Maria Machado and Seanan McGuire, at the New York Review of Science Fiction Readings on November 10. Carmen Maria Machado is a Nebula-nominated fiction writer, critic, … Continue reading →
BuzzFeed Threatens To Withdraw From SXSW Over Canceled Panels
BuzzFeed has protested SXSW’s cancellation of two gaming panels – one essentially about Gamergate, the other about anti-harassment efforts in gaming – and announced it will withdraw from SXSW unless the items are reinstated. Here is the text of BuzzFeed’s message BuzzFeed … Continue reading →
Threats Cause SXSW 2016 To Cancel Two Gaming Panels
SXSW Interactive, citing “numerous threats of on-site violence related to this programming,” has canceled a pair of sessions about gaming planned for its March 2016 event in Austin. “SavePoint: A Discussion on the Gaming Community” was to have included several … Continue reading →
Pixel Scroll 10/26 Racket Online
(1) Arthur C. Clarke’s papers came to the Smithsonian Institution earlier this year. Patti Williams, acquisition archivist for the National Air and Space Museum, blogged about the steps in bringing the materials from Sri Lanka to the U.S. I have been the Museum’s … Continue reading →
2016 Climate Fiction Short Story Contest
Arizona State University’s Imagination and Climate Futures Initiative is hosting its first-ever Climate Fiction Short Story Contest, challenging people to imagine futures for Earth and humanity shaped by climate change and other forms of environmental transformation. First prize is $1,000. … Continue reading →
Whispers Silenced
Poor ratings doomed The Whispers, the now-cancelled ABC TV series based on Ray Bradbury’s short story “Zero Hour.” Unfortunately, the fans of the summer series were left with a cliffhanger ending. Phil Nichols comments on Bradburymedia — As it turns out, … Continue reading →
Monster Mask-Making and Effects at Don-Con
Don-Con will feature guests from the mask-making, special effects and monster community at a two-day event in Burbank, CA on November 7-8. Don Post, Jr., Academy Award-winner Robert Short, and author of The Illustrated History of Don Post Studios Lee … Continue reading →
2015 Anthropomorphic Recommended List Update
The Anthropomorphic Literature and Arts Association’s 2015 Anthropomorphic Recommended List has been updated with submissions made from August through October 15. This includes all of the anthropomorphic works published or released during 2015 that have been submitted by someone as … Continue reading →
Pixel Scroll 10/25 The Shapeshifting Starship Captain Who Shouted “Fromage!” At The Heart Of The World
(1) Watch out for bi-Klingual train conductors! A Trek-referencing TV commercial is nominated for a national award in Austria reports Nina Horvath at Europa SF. What is it all about? Two men dressed up as Klingons go by underground railway (yes, it is … Continue reading →
Nancy Nutt Passes Away
KCMO fan Nancy Nutt passed away October 22. She had seen a doctor recently, who “detected some heart issues” according to Tom Meserole. Her friends testify to her creativity and sense of humor. Just one example is her Cthulhu Ski-Mask … Continue reading →
2015 Deutscher Phantastik Preis
The 2015 winners of the Deutscher Phantastik Preis for speculative fiction in the German language were announced at BuchmesseCon in Dreieich on October 17. (Via Nina Horvath at Europa SF, who provided the English translations.) Best Novel in German language … Continue reading →
2015 British Fantasy Awards
The winners of the 2015 British Fantasy Awards were announced October 25 at FantasyCon. Best anthology Lightspeed: Women Destroy Science Fiction Special Issue, ed. Christie Yant (Lightspeed Magazine) Best artist Karla Ortiz Best collection Nick Nightmare Investigates, Adrian Cole (The … Continue reading →
Pixel Scroll 10/24 The Pixels that Fall on You from Nowhere
(1) Quirk Books has compiled an array of “Bookish Tights and Leggings” now on the market. For example: ColineDesign Printed Tights Jane Austen quotes. Emily Dickinson poems. ColineDesign on Etsy also allows you to personalize your tights with any text … Continue reading →
2015 Pegasus Awards
The winners of the 2015 Pegasus Awards for Excellence in Filk were announced at the Ohio Valley Filk Festival on October 24. Best Time-Related Song “Precious Moments,” Phil Allcock Best Adapted Song “Grabthar’s Silver Hammer,” Steve Macdonald Best Writer/Composer Cat … Continue reading →
