Your host will be on the road for a couple days attending Nic Farey’s wedding to Jennifer AlLee on February 29. I have prepared a couple of Scrolls in advance.
(1) A RINGING ENDORSEMENT. Tor.com has the story – “Star Trek’s Best Writer/Director EVER Has Joined the Crew of CBS’ New Star Trek TV Show”.
Star Trek fans of every shade just received the best news: writer/director Nicholas Meyer is joining CBS’ new Star Trek television show, which is set to debut in 2017 with Bryan Fuller producing.
Not sure who Nicholas Meyer is? He’s the guy who saved Star Trek from obscurity and made it smarter than you ever realized. Here’s why this is possibly the best geek-related news of the past 20 years.
(2) AUTUN PURSER. See Autun Purser Illustration, the online gallery, portfolio and shop for a gifted part-time illustrator and full-time deep sea ecologist.
I am a lifelong science fiction fan and I have enjoyed some success with my series of travel posters, advertising travel to destinations from unusual fiction — the ‘Fantastic Travel Destinations’. The majority of these are available for print purchase direct, or from various bookshops and conventions.
Click to see the artist’s fantastic travel posters – first up, Arrakis. Purser also did the cover and some of the interiors for the 24th issue of the Hugo-winning Journey Planet, plus artwork for Gollancz covers, and numerous other works.
(3) DELANY. Here’s a one-hour interview with Samuel R. Delany at the University of Pennsylvania on February 16.
(4) ELIZABETH EISENSTEIN OBIT. Elizabeth Eisenstein died January 31 at the age of 92 reports the New York Times.
A retired faculty member of the University of Michigan, Professor Eisenstein was renowned for “The Printing Press as an Agent of Change: Communications and Cultural Transformations in Early Modern Europe,” first published in 1979. Spanning two volumes and nearly 800 pages, the work has been translated into many languages and remains in print…..
“It’s quite unusual for an academic book to achieve its 25th anniversary and still be vital to the discourse in the field,” Professor Baron, a historian at the University of Maryland, said. “Her book continues to be reviewed as if it just came out.”
In “The Printing Press as an Agent of Change,” Professor Eisenstein argued that the development of movable type by Johannes Gutenberg in the mid-15th century helped inaugurate a set of sweeping social changes thanks to the authoritative, widely tangible dissemination of information it allowed.
“What printing did was to standardize texts,” Professor Baron explained. “So you would have numerous people all over Europe reading exactly the same thing. Information had a much greater reach, a much wider audience, a much greater impact.”
(5) TERRI WINDLING’S QUIET MORNING. Artist Terri Windling, in “A Quiet Morning in the Studio”, uses a compelling 1974 essay by Ursula K. Le Guin as the frame for some fine dragon and unicorn pencil drawings, and a couple of dog photographs.
(6) NEXT COMPANION. Screen Rant speculates about 12 actors whose selection as the next companion would be a Doctor Who dream cast. Number 6 —
Eleanor Tomlinson is known for a variety of roles, most recently that of Georgiana Darcy in the BBC Miniseries Death Comes to Pemberley and currently as Demelza Poldark in Poldark. Still relatively young and establishing her place in the British acting world, a companion role on Doctor Who would serve not only to bring awareness to her talent, but also help guide her in refining her skills.
Tomlinson’s sweet, young and endearing nature would allow audiences to relate to her and set her up to become a fan favorite. But much like Rose Tyler (Billie Piper), youth would give younger Whovians a reason to connect with her and be impressed by the talent she brings to the role. Tomlinson would play off Capaldi’s Doctor extremely well.
(7) NOT ENTIRELY ALTERNATE HISTORY. Destination Planet Negro by Kevin Wilmott (co-writer of Spike Lee’s Chiraq). Release date May 20, 2016.
“Three brave explorers in search of a better place… instead found Kansas City…”
I’m not making this up! But the trailer has a review quote from Ray Bradbury, so somebody’s making it up…
(8) MAYBE THERE’S STILL SOME LUCK IN IT. During Heritage Auction’s Rare Books Signature Auction on April 6 the public will have a chance to bid on assorted Harry Potter items – including the very chair used by J.K. Rowling as she wrote the first two books of the Harry potter series.
In 2002, she decorated one of the chairs from her welfare days—taking care to paint “I wrote Harry Potter while sitting in this chair” on the seat’s apron—and donated it to a private charity auction for the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. Her philanthropy inspired her fans as well who used their own communities to bring awareness to social causes, including the non-profit organization The Harry Potter Alliance.
(9) CTHULHU BREW. Narragansett has introduced I Am Providence Imperial Red Ale.
Taste & Enjoy: I Am Providence pours a mysterious dark red with a complex amalgam of flavors. The blend of malts lead to flavors of biscuits and sweet caramel, and the Warrior and Citra hops bring aromas of pine and citrus that meld on the palate to create an intriguing balance.
The History: The latest chapter in the Lovecraft Series pays tribute to Lovecraft’s adoration for his hometown by heralding his famous words – “I Am Providence.” Later inscribed on his gravestone in 1977, this resonant phrase lives on as a tribute to Lovecraft and anyone who has ever called Providence home.
(10) ANOTHER TOLKIEN. Simon Tolkien, grandson of J. R. R. Tolkien, and the eldest child of Christopher Tolkien, is keeping up a family tradition. From Publisher’s Lunch:
Simon Tolkien’s NO MAN’S LAND, the story of a boy who grows up between the turbulent years of 1909 to 1919, starting life as an impoverished child in London who moves to a hard-living coal mining community and is subsequently adopted by the wealthy owner of an Edwardian country house, where he and the owner’s younger son become fierce rivals for the same girl, a rivalry that leads them to develop a murderous hatred for one another which affects all the characters around them, in a novel of faith, class, and war including the horrors of the Battle of the Somme which has profound effects on them all, [sold] to Nan Talese at Nan A. Talese, in a pre-empt, by [agent] Marly Rusoff at Marly Rusoff & Associates (NA).
[Thanks to John King Tarpinian, Andrew Porter, Will R., and JJ for some of these stories. Title credit goes to File 770 contributing editor of the day Will R.]
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Cat:
There is a sane candidate in the other primary? News to me.
I’m in NJ, which has a June primary — 2008 was the only time my presidential primary vote ever meant anything.
@msb: I’m hoping to have my response done in the next day or so, but no promises – I’m both taking care with it, and it’s taking me quite a while to piece together, but also not letting it distract me from Real Life, which keeps me plenty busy.
Maybe if I manage to post it while Mike’s away, nobody will notice for a few days, and we’ll have a nice quiet discussion 😛
Some US book sales I noticed on Amazon kindle.
Sunshine by Robin McKinley – a great vampire book for people who don’t like vampires
Snake Agent by Liz Wiiliams – a fun police procedural that imagines a San Francisco where the Chinese Underworld / Heaven exists
Cards of Grief by Janet Yolen – a tale of first contact with a society that has no laughter
<best cockney accent> I want to call an ‘alto these ‘ere puns… </best cockney accent> (which isn’t very good)
(But I am an alto)(also not very good…)
@Standback
I read the comments on the first post already, it’s a morass I am sorry to say. I suggested in an old thread that it might be helpful if following points are raised in new blog posts. At least then, one can follow the main thread in a series of blog posts without having to wade through the comments.
See the following of an example where a contentious subject was developed in point/rebuttal posts.
::Figures if he can’t make a tritone substitution pun he’s not going to bother. Can’t make a tritone substitution pun. Doesn’t bother.::
@Jim Henley
Don’t give up! All you need is a good pitch…
Apologies if this is a repeat, but it’s big news: per Ted Gioia, the entire run of Worlds of IF is now available for free at archive.org. Which is down for maintenance right now so it won’t do you any good yet. But soon!
For today’s Lucky 10,000, Worlds of IF was Galaxy’s little-sister mag, and for many years also edited by Frederick Pohl. It published several of Larry Niven’s early stories, among many others.
@snowcrash: Thanks. Your encouragement has struck a chord with me.
Shambles:
IIRC the superb Snake Agent Is set in Singapore, not San Francisco. The series is one of the best uses of mythology in a series ever. And the cover art for the volumes released by Nightshade are simply amazing.
Jim Henley:
Tritone, eh? You devil!
Even more art to gaze at from the Spectrum Award finalists.
(For some reason I’m tickled that sculptures go in the “Dimensional” category; a name both descriptive and SFnal)
Yes, and all those 3-D pieces, going for four or five figures, can only be nominated as Fan Artist because of the definitions in the Hugo categories.
@Vasha
I didn’t care for Gypsy, largely because I found it kept destroying my suspension of disbelief. Standback and I already discussed that a little in the comments on my review of Gypsy on RSR.
Without spoiling it, my problems with the story are almost entirely with the flashbacks. The main story is quite strong, but the flashbacks aren’t “if this goes on” so much as “what if all the conspiracy theories about evil government and evil corporations are really true?” Unfortunately the flashbacks account for about 50% of the text.
@cat @shambles Singapore 3, to be precise. It’s a franchise of Singapore…
And I love the badger-kettle. Best spirit appliance ever.
(Re the vocal fanorities) If you feel that’s fowl play, that’s a base canard.
I was thrown out of choir. I have an annoying tone. Hmm that might not be a surprise to filers.
@Cora Buhlert: The good folks of MidAmeriCon finally located my Mom on their list, so now we’ve both get Hugo PINs.
Congrats. Yay to nominating, making a difference, being part of the solution!
@Rev Bob
Thanks for being entertaining while providing a public service announcement.
@Cat Also–gulp–bought membership and reserved hotel room for MidAmeriCon2. First WorldCon, here I come!
Congrats. May you enjoy it. Lots of cool people attending.
@Shambles
Thanks for the ebook deals
I went over and read the a few of the comments on that thread. I think if Standback was going to have any chance it would have gone better if it had been just him and Stephanie. By letting others comment the entire thread devolved into the usual mess.
@Kip W: Heh. No lie: the first time I wrote a song with a tritone substitution I felt very grown up. Later, PNH was playing along on guitar to a recording of it without ever having heard it before, cause he’s a wizard basically, but as we approached the tritone sub I warned him, “You’re about to get [messed up],” and sure enough, that happened.
NEWBIES ASSEMBLE!
Ok, I think I have found the obvious place for a pre-meet the evening before WorldCon. I give you…
FLYING SAUCER DRAUGHT EMPORIUM!
4-500 meters from the convention center, 200 meters from Hotel Phillips.
I, for one, am not afraid to meet up with first-time worldconners. (The fact that they are also Filers has mitigated any latent apprehension)
I’ll be at BigMacII; please find me and say: “…and another thing! That comment you posted on #8 on the Scroll – I think was July 17th….”
As I march to the beat of my own drum, I’d just like to note that the leads for the Dark Tower movie has been cast.
I am intrigued.
I’ll be at BigMacII; please find me and say: “…and another thing! That comment you posted on #8 on the Scroll – I think was July 17th….”
I’ll start making a list now… 😉
The casting for The Dark Tower is great, but I loved those books and don’t see how a movie can do justice to even one of the small narrative arcs.
@Kendall
I had a much different reaction to a Crown for Cold Silver The story wasn’t the interesting part.
As for A Darker Shade of Magic, I loved that book. I actually saw V.E. Schwab in Arlington last thursday. The store was packed. It took me a few days to devour A Gathering of Shadows but it’s damn amazing. My review of that comes out on Thursday.
This WorldCon won’t be my first time, but my last one was BucConeer in Baltimore back in ’98. I enjoyed the snot out of it. Very much looking forward to returning.
In other news… I bought a house. Wheeee.
wow. I just read the comment thread over at Stephanies (@Standback).
1. first impression. You won’t be allowed to have a “meaningful” discussion – it will get drowned out by the also-sayers. Why? Because “discussion” is a form of acknowledging that the other side might have an argument (which is the first step on the slippery slope towards admitting something) and because letting outsiders in to talk threatens to poke a hole in the bubble
2. Stephanie claims to have been an unspoken puppy participant for quite some time. If her presentation of the puppy arguments bears any resemblance to the way the majority think about these issues – there can be no meeting of the minds. It’s not just a “he says po tay toe, I say po tah toe” thing; it’s “I say po tay toe and they say something that might be sanskrit transliterated into etruscan (and no one knows for sure how etruscan was pronounced).
3. I see strains/arguments/talking points from GG, MR and something that I personally refer to as “the civil war ended 151 years ago. you lost. shut up already”
4. one summary conclusion (after four years of this BS): a small group of people who think they’ve been marginalized (because: conspiracy) continue to fail to understand that the reason the whole rest of the world seems to be against them is because they are WRONG. Three possible paths to go down from there: 1. accept that the “everyone else” may have a point, understand it, accept it, admit/apologize where you have to and get on with your life. 2. privately acknowledge your mistakes and move past the whole thing. 3. pull the blanket over your head, turn on the flashlight and relax: you can’t see the monsters, and that means that they can’t get you.
Re: “Dimensional” art. I’m thinking we should divide it up like so:
Pro Artist: Dimensional art selling for more than $99.99 (or equiv) each handmade item.
Fan Artist: handmade items less than $99.99 each.
What I don’t know is how to class mass-produced items. Are there any likely to be nominated?
@Hampus
The Flying Saucer looks like a cool place, but one of the newbies coming with me is 20 years old. The legal drinking age in the US (I think country wide, but someone can set me straight if not) is 21. So I’ll try and contact the establishment and see if my friend can come in or not. (A bar can be shut down or fined if it’s caught allowing people under 21 inside–not *drinking* just *inside*. When I was 20 I was really into folk music and a lot of the venues were just flat out closed to me.)
But maybe they mostly count as a restaurant or maybe the laws in that state are more lenient; I will try to contact them and find out.
@Kenall – congrats. I missed BuConeer, but I was at Constellation….
Because “preciseness” of language seems to be mandatory these days (ghu forbid that something be read in context and it’s intent be taken into consideration) I want to assure everyone here that
EVEN IF BIGMACII IS NOT YOUR FIRST WORLDCON, I WILL STILL BE HAPPY TO MEET WITH YOU.
(Except the guy[?][s] who are threatening to conceal carry against policy – you don’t want to meet me either cause I’ll rat you out in a heartbeat. Oh, and also not anyone who thinks its ‘cool’ to be a ‘puppy’. I understand if you’re using it as in some misguided attempt to up your readership or increase sales or even if you’ve gotten addicted to the egoboo. But it it “makes you happy”…no.
Rev. Bob: That’s what I call a “when sentences collide” error.
But I second your sentiment, for reasons similar to issues which have been heavily discussed here. The more people who vote in the primaries (equivalent to nominating), the more honest and less susceptible to manipulation the process is. I just got back from voting.
@Dr Science: Thanks for checking that out! Nice Pluto poster, indeed.
The others make books I haven’t read look enticing. She has a great fondness for New Wave, which I don’t. Not many recent books, that’s fine.
I am looking forward to meeting my fellow denizens of the hive of scum and villainy. I also don’t mind meeting puppies, or Puppies either, as long as they’re pleasant in person and aren’t packing heat at the time.
The “gulp” note wasn’t about Puppies (in case that gave the wrong impression) it’s just that this is a big expenditure and a long drive for me and I’ve never been to a WorldCon and I’m hoping that it will be suitably fun for such a big outlay of my year’s discretionary cash.
@alexdvl
Congratulations! May home ownership be a joy and not a trial, and may your new house give you many years of faithful service.
Cat:
Ah, thank you. Sweden has legal drinking age of 18, so I missed that. Trying to check out the laws now and they seem a bit more lenient for Missouri:
Will try to check out alternative restaurants around the convention center anyhow. No idea if someone else wants to bring their kid or something.
You’re allowed to go to a bar if you’re under 21, you’re just not allowed to drink. I went to plenty of shows in bars before I ever turned 21.
alexvdl:
Thank you for that! Well, we have a few months to finalize any decisions. I was thinking of having a meet, say 19 – 23 (guaranteed that someone will be there to greet people) day before WorldCon. Then we can see who stays at what hotel and if people want to join up for breakfast or something.
I don’t know Missouri laws, but in Illinois (as I understand it) you are allowed to be a (non-drinking!) minor in a bar until (I think) 10pm; after 10pm, no patrons under 21 years old are allowed unless the bar is classified as a restaurant.
The 21 legal age for drinking is nationwide for the entire USA. Many states do have exceptions where a parent or guardian is allowed to give under-21-year-olds a limited amount of alcohol, as Hampus posted up-thread.
Also:
Weird museums.
@Steve Davidson:
1. Is happy to see people and talk to complete strangers.
2. Willing to have over 1 hour discussions on topics if he doesn’t have to be somewhere and believes you are wrong. Good news is he is willing to end the discussion anytime you are. Our problem was we were equally stubborn on convincing the other we were right. We aren’t just like this on the internet. 😉
I won’t be at Worldcon this year due to health. I’m still hoping to make it to Helsinki next year. Depends on various surgeries I need and how well I recover (gallbladder, ear, cervix, none scheduled yet). My husband should make it to Helsinki even if I don’t. He’s the quieter, healthier, more knowledgeable, been in Fandom longer, one of us.
@Greg: You have something of a point. But I think that in a larger sense, Scholz’s concerns don’t so much center on the particular callous actions of corporations and governments (although these are part of the particular failure scenario he depicts) as on the vulnerability introduced by the global interconnection of economies and ecosystems. We see that now, with for example the use of ethanol for fuel in developed nations raising the price of food in other countries. It does not take conspiracies to have that sort of effect. Most of all the problem proposed is that the ever-accelerating rate of change outpaces understanding and the ability of existing socioeconomic and ecological structures to support it. It’s a counter-view to Singularitarianism as it were. Unknown new problems now propagate to every corner of the globe. Build big, fail big. I think Scholz argues this point better by paralleling the spaceship and the planet than he would by depicting global collapse alone.
@Shambles: I recommend Snake Agent by Liz Williams; it was very good! 🙂
@Cat Eldridge: These covers are some of the reasons I don’t understand why Jon Foster gets overlooked for Best Artist. I loved his covers for this series! He’s a fantastic artist! (Hoping I’m remembering the artist correctly; no time to check right now.)
@alexdvl, congratulations on home ownership.
Noting that Autun Purser is male, not that it matters, and glad his work is getting some love, because it’s amazing.
In other news, after multiple tries, I have both a PIN and a membership number and have been happily filling in my ballot. Except in Novel, Novella and Short Story, where I have too many options and no particular method for choosing what I think is the best of the bunch.
LOL!
😀
@Tasha: it’s ok: my opponents always win because five minutes later I’ve forgotten what we were discussing
But it is true: if someone is WRONG, they must be informed of this fact – even if it isn’t on the internet. And – lucky you (everyone, not Tasha) – I’ll be more than happy to help out! 🙂
It really makes me sad to think about all of those poor people wandering around in the world with wrong ideas in their heads….
@alexdvl
I think this depends on the state. I was certainly tossed out of a couple of bars when I wasn’t trying to drink (nor was I being disruptive or anything); I just wanted to listen to the music. Being basically barred from the group (because none of the others cared enough that I couldn’t come to try to work something else out) over a thing like that really stung at the time so I am trying not to do it to others.
Now, this was admittedly thirty plus years ago and things may have changed in the meanwhile, or may be different in Kansas City Missouri. I sent in a question using their form; if I don’t hear back in a few days I’ll call their manager’s phone.
(The “parents may provide” makes no difference in this case; I am not this person’s parent. But it’s nice to know about anyway–thanks Hampus.)
@Tasha I am sorry your health precludes coming and hope you are feeling much better by Helsinki!
Thanks for the tip on Jon Foster. His illustrations have a narrative quality which, beyond the “oh, pretty!” reaction that some art gets, make me say “I want to read that story.” I’m not art-savvy enough to be able to tell what exactly about the pictures creates that story-hook.
Don’t City of Lies (2011) and Sea of the Dead (2009) look irresistible?
@Brian Z – LOL!
Yup. Once I’ve determined I really love something, knowing why I love it doesn’t really help in ranking it hierarchically. 😉
I don’t think the question is, “Can this person imbibe alcohol” but rather “Can this person be with the group in a place that serves alcohol?” And in this particular place, if it is a restaurant, the answer should be, “Sure they can be with us, they just can’t be served alcohol.”
Jon Foster now goes on my Pro Artist list. Can anyone give me a tip on how to get a list of his 2015 works, besides ISFDB, which is incomplete?
Thanks, Cheryl S. It’s a scasry idea, but I’m excited. I just have to be patient. House delivery in September and Hamilton tickets for January. It’ll be a long year.
@Kendall
Isn’t Harrison Squared fun? Have you played the little Choose Your Own Adventure game Daryl Gregory write to go with it? It is here: http://darylgregory.com/books/harrison-squared/game/