Kevin Andrew Murphy August 14th, 2006
Just read Scott Lynch’s Eleven things I will serve my best never to put in a fantasy novel unless I am trying to undermine them, and in fact could do without entirely from now on, thanks. It’s a great list and I agree with all the items on it. But there are some I’d like to add, at least for myself:
1. Monsters that don’t eat children.
I’m sorry, but I have to ask–what’s not to like about children? They’re small, tender, slow-moving, and are easily lured into gingerbread houses–how hard can it be? Yes, fate, in the form of the author, may conspire against you, but that’s no excuse for not offing at least one child, even off stage in the past. This goes double for horribly evil dark wizards who lead reigns of terror across the countryside only to have it all blow up in their face when they try to kill even one baby. (Yes, this means you, Lord Voldymort, and tell the so-called “Wicked Witch” I said “Hi”).
Same problem, different day, with ancient evils, devils and demons who seem to be fans of The Godfather, starting out on their reigns of terror by killing family pets, then boring family retainers or dull recluses who no one would miss much anyway, then working up to the adults and still never quite getting around to the kids. Hello, you’re supposed to be the Forces of Hell, not uptight Italian Catholics still vaguely concerned with getting into Heaven.
When the average nursery bogey has a higher bodycount than you, how do you expect anyone to take you seriously?
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David Louis Edelman August 4th, 2006
Since my post on The Five Elements Common to All Stories, I’ve been thinking about the obvious follow-up: what are the common elements of science fiction stories?
We can argue all day about what constitutes a science fiction story and what doesn’t. (And, heck, if you’re reading this blog, chances are nothing would make you happier.) But for the purposes of this post, I’m going to include both the genres commonly known as science fiction and fantasy, as well as their numerous branches and offshoots. Alternate history, cyberpunk, steampunk, epic fantasy, doorstopper fantasy, et cetera ad nauseum. Basically, if you would find it in the Science Fiction section of your local Barnes & Noble, today I’m calling it science fiction.
So what principles encompass all of these varieties of the genre? Is there any blanket that could possible cover the whole kit-and-caboodle? These characteristics have to be out there, because, as with Justice Potter Stewart’s famous dictum about pornography, we generally know science fiction when we see it.
Obviously we can include the previous five principles outlined in my earlier post. (And I think we can also probably include Point, which Sherwood Smith brought up in the comments.)
But the baseline elements common to all science fiction stories? I could only think of two.
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Kate Elliott July 13th, 2006
Constance writes, of Steve Barnes: For one thing, he’s one of the very few SF male writers with the ability to write romance-sex scenes without turning ludicrous!
Her comment got me to wondering:
Can male sff writers write good romance sex scenes? If so, why? If not, why not? Be persuasive.
Katharine Kerr June 25th, 2006
Science fiction writers are always laying down the law to fantasy writers. They tell us in great length what’s wrong, corrupt, lazy, stupid, embarassing, and so on and so forth about genre fantasy.  But readers keep on buying it and loving it despite the word from On High. In fact, they buy more fantasy than SF, these days, which may be one reason why some (not all, some) SF writers get so angry
I love fantasy myself. I write it, of course, so that’s one reason to love it.  (I do write SF, too, but obviously I don’t buy the anti-fantasy line.) What I’m interested in learning is why other people love it, especially readers.  Anyone have opinions on the matter?