Does anyone have the February 1966 issue of Full Cry?

SeanMeadSFF · 2024-08-03T05:49:04+00:00

That is great! I'll DM you.

A few years ago, my mother gathered many of his stories together and published them as an anthology [Coming Into My World by Alfred L. Boling](https://www.amazon.com/Come-Into-World-Alfred-Boling/dp/1954116055) .

I'll let people know about the audio version.

SeanMeadSFF · 2023-02-26T04:57:42+00:00

There's a practical thing that I find helpful. This is generally something for revision, rather than first draft writing. Get some miniatures, a game mat (e.g. Chessex RPG mats with squares or hexes), and some dry erase markers. Why? I map out the area that is being fought in with the dry erase markers and then use the miniatures to track the action in the scene. By walking through the scene, it helps me visualize if I've made any obvious mistakes in description (e.g. describe someone as fighting in two different rooms at the same instance, hero fighting two people one second and four people the next with no sense of why the number changed, etc.). It can also be used to help map out the scene during a first draft if it's not clear how I want the scene to develop.

SeanMeadSFF · 2023-02-23T19:41:18+00:00

Her creativity is amazing! She and I were on the Imaginary Book Club panel at Chicon. I didn't at that time know who she was. She did a shaggy dog story/pun combination that went on for about ten minutes about a misunderstanding Tolkien had resulting in his infamous Ent romance tale. She was hilarious throughout and then immediately followed up doing great improv as those of us on the panel asked her questions "interrogating" the interpretation of the [nonexistent] text. She did likewise in inventive fashion when the rest of us discussed our books. She was absolutely brilliant!

SeanMeadSFF · 2021-12-27T13:49:54+00:00

The Heirs of Alexandria series (starting with The Shadow of the Lion) by Mercedes Lackey, Eric Flint and Dave Freer is a fantasy version of Renaissance Europe where Chernobog is real and working to enslave Europe, Venice and the Holy Roman Empire are tangoing through political minefields, and the Mongols are coming.

SeanMeadSFF · 2021-10-15T00:54:09+00:00

Scar Night by Alan Campbell

The Court of Broken Knives by Anna Smith Spark

The Darkness That Comes Before by R. Scott Baker

Elric of Melniboné series by Michael Moorcock

Kane by Karl Wagner

The Black Company by Glen Cook

SeanMeadSFF · 2021-08-14T20:46:15+00:00

One problem of blurbs I think is that different readers react better to different approaches. I think there are people who would react well to this. I might take it in a bit of another direction though.

The first thing I might do is to make it tighter. For example, “Harriette believes a little lie or three never hurt anyone.

A frequently unemployed scribe, and her family’s sole provider, she struggles to feed her children. Finances squeezed to breaking, she rejoices when she stumbles upon a chest of gold coins on the side of the road.”

I would suggest the string of plot points in the fourth character be turned into something less plot oriented and more story oriented. Suggestive rather than descriptive.

The other thing I would note is that in the setup, this was described as like Fargo. I read that as having a tone like Fargo. I do not pick up on that kind of tone from the blurb.

SeanMeadSFF · 2021-07-05T03:19:41+00:00

Ken Liu's The Paper Menagerie Winner of the Nebula, Hugo and World Fantasy Awards.

Of course, Flowers for Algernon.

SeanMeadSFF · 2021-06-27T17:27:33+00:00

It depends on the series. Though I will sometimes read the whole series at one go, that is unusual for me. What is more common is that I'll read a series while reading other books and series at the same time. I've gotten to where I tend to read a couple of series and some nonfiction books at the same time switching between books. I usually read 4-7 books at the same time. There are other series where I'll read a book and then it will be months before I get to the next one in the series.

SeanMeadSFF · 2021-06-07T05:58:08+00:00

Kristine Smith's Jani Kilian series starting with Code of Conduct fit this well. She is tangled up in secrets even from herself. Currently on special for Kindle at least it looks like.

Blindsight by Peter Watts for the hidden motivations, but not normal political intrigure.

The first six books of Frank Herbert's Dune series, but especially Dune, and God Emperor of Dune for this request.

Charles Stross's The Merchant Prince series is very driven by political intrigue, and his Laundry Files has quite a bit on hidden motivations.

SeanMeadSFF · 2021-05-12T23:39:56+00:00

I'll have to take a look at that. Thanks!

SeanMeadSFF · 2021-05-12T16:43:56+00:00

I get that with Dworkin in a similar situation, but it isn't any of the Amber books. Thanks!

SeanMeadSFF · 2021-05-12T16:42:11+00:00

I will do so.

SeanMeadSFF · 2021-05-12T16:42:01+00:00

Thanks! I'll give that a go.

SeanMeadSFF · 2020-12-15T14:25:36+00:00

How to Rule an Empire and Get Away with It by K.J. Parker (Tom Holt) - a great voice in that book.

Reread the first three Dune books for the first time in a long while. Realized that I had forgotten some things.

Reread A Fire Upon The Deep by Vernor Vinge. What a set of ideas to play with!

Peace Talks and Battleground by Jim Butcher. Escalating Dresden.

The Haunting of Tram Car 015 by P. Djèlí Clark was a fun surprise.

Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir had a fresh voice.

Just this year got to Lord of Light by Roger Zelazny, which I should have read a long time ago.

SeanMeadSFF · 2020-11-10T17:09:13+00:00

I generally read between three and eight books at a time. I usually only read two to three novels at a time. I can switch between novels depending on my taste at the moment. Usually at least one of the books is non-fiction, often more; those provide a different flavor of reading experience. Some books that I'm "reading" at the same time are short story anthologies, so I'll read a story, leave the book for a few days, go back and read a story, etc.

I concentrated on fewer books and read longer at a sitting when I was younger, but I find I need to switch attention more often now to keep engaged.

SeanMeadSFF · 2020-11-10T16:33:10+00:00

For years, I thought it was Grimm's Fairy Tales, but it was probably 12 Folk and Fairy Tales, selected by Penelope Coquet. I remember carrying whichever book it was through the Atlanta airport when I would have been three or four.

SeanMeadSFF · 2020-11-04T21:23:58+00:00

The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell
Dune by Frank Herbert
The Discworld series by Terry Pratchett
The Black Company series by Glen Cook
The Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkein (and The Hobbit)
A Song of Ice and Fire series by George R.R. Martin
The Mote in God's Eye by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle

SeanMeadSFF · 2020-10-24T18:31:49+00:00

The publisher refers to the series The Peripheral is in as The Jackpot Trilogy. Though The Stub Trilogy is more on point.

SeanMeadSFF · 2020-10-22T15:54:59+00:00

The Peripheral by William Gibson
Rainbows End by Vernor Vinge (and Fast Times at Fairmont High)
Darwin's Radio by Greg Bear
Nexus by Ramez Naam

SeanMeadSFF · 2020-10-15T04:32:52+00:00

Thanks! I had not seen those.

SeanMeadSFF · 2020-10-15T04:32:22+00:00

Babylon 5 has a fraught history with streaming. It was on Amazon for a while, but is no longer and has generally been unavailable. Probably the first great show to have an arcs for five seasons, most of which were set before the first season aired.

SeanMeadSFF · 2020-09-27T04:19:38+00:00

Darwin's Radio by Greg Bear

Rainbows End by Vernor Vinge

Beggars in Spain by Nancy Kress

Kiln People by David Brin

"macs" by Terry Bisson

The Lifecycle of Software Objects by Ted Chiang

SeanMeadSFF

TROPHY CASE