Any SF writers out there?

San Francisco poet,
right here.

Poetry's fucking died.
Magazines took over.
But ya know,
I'll keep doin' what I love doing
'cause due to determinism
this was Always going to happen.

 

Would you mind remaining slightly on topic please stalk?

 

I think he thought 'SF' meant San Francisco
he seems to be quite a confused individual, for he also thinks what he wrote should be called a poem

 

I can't really comment on his poem myself, because I'm probably the worst poet in the solar system. Only Vogon poetry is slightly worse than mine.

However, I do believe that Hipforums supplies a very active and friendly poetry forum, where people can post their verse (or attempts at verse), and get some feedback from members specializing in that artform.

I can see what Duck means now that there may have been a confusion over the initial letters SF. To clarify: this is a thread about Science Fiction writing.

I thought that if there are other fans out there, we could discuss some ideas, recommend some notable authors, particular books, help with any problems anyone may be facing in writing a SF story, characterizations, futuritic concepts, and maybe even a bit of support for each other.

I know there are a lot of talented people out there with great imagination, so don't be shy to join if you have anything to discuss about science fiction. In fact I was hoping we could focus a bit on the positive and negative aspects of SF writing, which was the way the thread was going, so we could narrow down what actually makes a good SF book.

 

People who are really serious about Science Fiction as serious literature tend to call it "SF" and leave the media term "sci-fi" to a less serious context, as in "Last Saturday night they had this really crazy sci-fi movie on about giant scorpions from Venus with frickin laser beams on their heads!"

Regarding Bradbury's longer pieces... I think I remember trying to read one of his full books and finding it quickly boring. But mostly I've just read the short stories. His work, to me, is beautiful in the way that poetry is beautiful- it paints a vivid image, even if it's sometimes ridiculous. Once the image is conveyed, stop painting, please!

And someone asked more on Kim Stanley Robinson's portrayal of "underground movements" in his books. I've only read a few of his novels, but in what I've read, the "underground" is a subset of what's already a subset of the larger culture- scientists working in the field, whether on Mars or in Antactica or wherever. For instance, scientists who fall in love with Mars as a dead desert and do not want "terraforming" to proceed, and those who even urge revolution and a cutting of ties with their corporate-manged political controllers on Earth.

 

ohh ok, much different then what I was thinking, thanks ya

 

This is a good point that I often wondered about, too. Does anyone think that sometimes a SF writer can over-describe a scene, at the sacrifice of pace? Is the writer catering to ardent fans, rather than addressing a wider audience by doing so?

On the other hand, an author might be dedicated to their own individual style of writing, but this is exactly what I was hoping to learn from this thread... I believe that a writer can learn more about writing by listening to other people who enjoy the genre. After all, writing is a form of communication.

This is definitely an author that I have to look up. Thanks for the post SunLion. What appeals to me about his writing, as you've described, is not just the gimmicks and gadgetry of the future, but an exploration of the human psychology and how it effects individuals and groups.

Does anyone else think that SF writing would benefit from trying to retain a level of realism, or should it just be a fantasy adventure set in the future/space etc?

 

I can't write "serious" sci-fi (quantum physics is beyond me, and the space opera thing has been done to death anyway).... but i do enjoy writing short sci-fi stories when an idea grabs me

here's one i wrote last night.....

BLINK



A man built a spaceship. He built it strong and he built it fast, so fast, he could travel to any star he could see in the blink of an eye, but only if his eye could see it.

He filled his ship with his favourite foods and settled into the comfortable pilot's chair. Held a star in his gaze until the itching of his eyes overcame his fear and he blinked.

And blinked again, as his eyelids reacted to protect his eyes from the pure blue light from Ursa Minor.

He blinked in fear at stars so big, even at the minimum safe distace he felt their power must surely burn the entire universe.

He blinked in denial as he almost felt his soul were being dragged into the pitiless core of a black hole.

He blinked away tears as he took in the glory of a star being born. And couldn't sleep for weeks after the red light from a dying star felt as though it had stained his heart.

He blinked in puzzlement at his reflection, as his skin and aged and his hair whitened.

His happy eyes flashed and blinked as he picked out shapes from a blanket of stars before him, stars only he knew and only he could read the secrets of their constellations.

He blinked and yawned as the speckled blackness once more rushed forward to meet him. He had searched for all the Universe could show. And it had revealed itself openly to him.

He stared out and the Universe stared back.

He found the star's unblinking gaze oppressive and strove to escape. Travelling farther, blinking faster but always they were there, waiting for him to reach them.

The jailer waits patiently behind the door, as you slowly pick the lock.

He cursed as time passed, the spaces between the flickering of his eyelids grew. Cursed, as his body started to fail, growing old and weak, keeping him from the well worn pilot's chair. Slowing his run from the star's cruel maze.

And the Universe tricked him. It flickered its stars to catch his eye and laid a trial of wonders through it's maze, until the man in the spaceship lay at it's center. The stars looked inwards in wonder at their plaything.

And the man knew this. Deep inside he could feel the Universe staring at him and reminding him. Reminding him that from the universe he came, and with the Universe he will remain.

He held their gaze. Slowly his fierce expression of defiance folded. A wry smile crossed his lips.

"You think you can keep me because you made me?" he asked of the unanswering stars.

He paused, the weakness of his aged voice startling him.

"I have seen all you have, and know that all you have, is all you ever will be. And i know i have more than you ever will be" he breathed deep, his voice regaining much of it's former timbre "Tell me, my keepers, my jailers... Can you see all of me?"

Slowly the man eased back into his chair. His eyelids fell and remained closed.

As the Universe reclaimed the atoms he had stolen in life, the man dreamed. He dreamed of the smell of his mothers hair, the laughter of the children he had abondoned for the stars so long ago. And as the stars finally pulled him back into their embrace, he dreamed of a puzzled universe, a billion stars blinking in shock as they reclaim his body..... only to find that he himself has finally escaped them.

 

you REALLY need to work on your introduction skills
other than that, it's pretty good

 

I'm a David Sherman fan, myself.

 

lol thanks for reading it man.... it was only ever intended to be a silly 2-minuter, no real thought into it really...

 

big sci fi fan. I've read most of the masters--around 300 books the past 3 yrs.
I made a list of 30 books for a friend at :
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/tampa-bay-florida-science-fiction-group/

 

well, if anyone's posting on this thread anymore that idea of favorite or best writers is interesting as there's a group of writers and books that are supposed to be the best.

 

Philip K Dick is the best
period.

 

He is considered so.

Did you see my short list? Phillip K. Dick's Minority Report and the Short Happy Life of the Brown Oxford are on there.

What's your fav's?

 

Dr. Bloodmoney and The Crack in Space so far
but Dr. Bloodmoney more so
I wanna see/read A Scanner Darkly real bad

 

your library probably has it. Let me think, I remember reading it several times in anthologies, I don't think it's it's own book. It was good as was Bloodmoney; I never knew if I was going to like one of those little books, some were so so and others I was very impressed.
The world jones made
our friends from frolix 8
well I remember a couple. Did you find the high castle book particularly good?

 

I think I actually have that on hold at my library =P

 

Hello all, well I'm enbracing myself for a rather fantastical book project, at the moment, which I'm not sure will pan out altogether, but as a believer of hope and determination, perhaps I'll get some ideas and tips together from people on the forum!

 

A lot of people want to own every book but the library is great! Our county has a huge selection. I was able to go thru the short story anthologies which are actually under non-fiction, it true; then once I knew which writers/novels i wanted to read I moved into the (not as good) fiction section with the novels. I was able to find 300 really good sci fi books to read; the last being Bruce Sterling's Distraction.
Now, I'm being encouraged to write, and I've got copious notes from all the critical guides and how to writes that were tossed in with the non-fiction sci fi, but it's so much work. I majored in English in college and it takes forever to edit a story down to a readable form until you've really got it down and the people who write are usually very smart. I'm like, how could they come up with such an original and clever story? But, who knows, perhaps we can help each other out.
Just a note, I was an english major w' an emphasis on elem' edu', when I took writing classes I'd meet these losers who never read books, have had no life experience and think thay are going to be writers but there's just no way!