(1) SCIENCE FICTION WRITERS WHO WERE NEVER DRUNK ON ST. PATRICK’S DAY. Here are a few of the genre’s known teetotalers – doubtless there are others…
- H.P. Lovecraft
- Harlan Ellison
- J. Michael Straczynski
- John C. Wright (see comment #14)
- Isaac Asimov is another famous nondrinker, but one can’t be sure never applies here:
Asimov was a teetotaler in later life, mainly because in all of his experiences with drinking alcoholic beverages, just one or two drinks were sufficient to get him drunk. On the day he passed the oral examination for his Ph.D., he drank five Manhattans in celebration, and his friends had to carry him back to school and try to sober him up. His wife told him that he spent that entire night in bed giggling every once in a while and saying “Doctor Asimov”.
(2) OB IRISH. For a more substantial tribute to St. Patrick’s Day, we recommend James H. Burns’ tribute to Disney’s Darby O’Gill movie — “And A Moonbeam To Charm You”.
(3) FANHISTORY OF GREATER IRELAND. David Langford (coincidentally) chose St. Patrick’s Day to trumpet the forthcoming update of Rob Hansen’s history of UK fandom.
Wearing my Ansible Editions hat, I’ve been copyediting the final sections of Rob Hansen’s expanded (though not, as he says, extended), corrected and source-noted THEN: A HISTORY OF UK FANDOM 1930-1980. The final word count is around 211,000, about 20% more than the original. Our planned trade paperback is up to 410 pages, which will grow a bit more when the awaited 1970s fan mugshots go in (dread chore). To be published … Summer 2016?
(4) RECOMMENDED GREEN READING. At the B&N Sci-Fi and Fantasy Blog, “5 Fantasy Novels That Go Full Emerald Isle” not only gives you Ireland but the magic number 5!
Ireland isn’t just a country, it’s a repository of myth and legend that has been mined by genre writers for decades. Even today, Ireland seems to be bursting with magical energies that other countries couldn’t hope to match—I mean, who would imagine an epic fantasy set in the wilds of New Jersey? Naturally, that means that not only have some of the best works of fantasy ever written taken inspiration from Irish history, but several are explicitly in Ireland. In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, here are a five fantasy novels exploring the Emerald Isle.
The Book of Kells, by R.A. MacAvoy As with all of MacAvoy’s novels, The Book of Kells is difficult to pin down. Time travel, ancient Ireland, Viking invasions, and a saint or goddess meddling in mortal affairs? You’ll find all of it here, as an accidental confluence of ancient music and the tracing of an ages-old pattern by a modern-day artist transports first a screaming young woman from the past into the artist’s bedroom, then the woman, the artist, and a companion back in time a thousand years, into a medieval Ireland grounded in historical fact—which doesn’t lessen the fantastical nature of the ensuing adventures. It might lack wizards and dragons, but that doesn’t make it any less fun, and part of that is down to exploring a raw, roiling Ireland of old, populated by characters who act intelligently, considering (one even nips back to the modern day in order to convert all his cash into material that would be valuable in the tenth century)…
(5) MOVIE MAKING TECHNOLOGY. Lucid Dreams of Time is a short from Disney’s Zurich research division (and yes, Disney has an alliance with the Gnomes of Zurich) which is a time travel story but also a way of showcasing new Disney technologies.
The film portrays a moment of transition, from life to afterlife, with the story being told from three different perspectives – a mother, her son, and the messenger who can alter time. Simona and her son Gabriel travel through three realms – a present moment, supernatural world and a lucid dream – to discover purpose after a series of events change their lives forever. Through an afterlife mirror, Simona views the last few minutes of life with her son. Later, as Gabriel falls asleep, Simona receives a small gift from the Messenger – to talk to her son for exactly one minute. As the sands of time quickly run out, she appears to Gabriel in his dream to deliver a message that he will never forget.
(6) YESTERDAY’S BIRTHDAY BOY.
- Born March 16, 1926 – Jerry Lewis. Click to read a tribute by James H. Burns.
(7) SILICON VALLEY COMIC CON. Steve Wozniak has brought a Comi Con to Silicon Valley reports smofnews. The Los Angeles Times previews his plans in “Silicon Valley Comic Con comes with an extra dose of tech”.
Kicking off Friday at the San Jose Convention Center, the inaugural Silicon Valley Comic Con will bring the internationally recognized comic, science fiction, fantasy and video gaming convention to the Bay Area.
Although the event will be smaller than the flagship San Diego Comic-Con, which last year drew nearly 170,000 attendees (the three-day Silicon Valley event is expected to draw 30,000 per day, with many attendees attending multiple days), Steve Wozniak, the event’s host and pioneer of the personal computer, said it would be for the same audience.
“It’s for people who are local who haven’t been able to get to the San Diego one,” said Wozniak, who co-founded Apple with Steve Jobs. “It’ll be a full Comic Con in terms of the sorts and booths, presentations and celebrities that we have.”
The key difference? There will be more technology — the kind that “carries over into pop culture,” Wozniak said — and a greater focus on science fiction.
The convention will have a dedicated virtual reality zone where attendees will be able to play with the latest VR gadgets, and there will also be science-driven panels, such as one about whether artificial intelligence or “super babies” will be the greatest threat to humankind.
But Wozniak made clear that Silicon Valley Comic Con is “not just a tech conference.”
The event will also feature a “Back to the Future” cast reunion, a presentation by actor William Shatner, appearances by “Mythbusters” co-host Adam Savage and science fiction authors and artists.
“I wanted to be a part of Silicon Valley Comic Con because for me this show highlights what the Valley has meant to science, technology and innovation and encapsulates what ‘Back to the Future’ is about,” said Christopher Lloyd, one of the film’s stars.
(8) ERIN ON HUGOS. If you want to know what Alexandra Erin’s thinking about Hugo nominating season, check out Blue Author Is About To Write.
I haven’t been talking about the Sad and Rabid Puppies much this year because the Hugo Awards are going to happen every year and I don’t want that to be my life, but I understand they’re still at it, still spinning the same narratives, still spreading the same propaganda, still appealing to the biases and suspicions of the biased and the suspicious. I don’t know how much impact they’ll have.
For nominations, there are three possibilities: they’ll have another walk in the park, their machinations will be shut out entirely, or they’ll have some impact but not be able to seize as total control as they did last year. I think if everybody who was mobilized to get involved and vote on conscience and merits rather than politics stays involved, their ability to unduly influence the process will be nullified, but that depends on a big if.
My name has come up in a few circles as a possible nominee. By that I mean, I know that some people have nominated me, but that’s not the same as making it onto the ballot, even without any puppies piddling in the box. In truth, it is an honor just to be nominated, even if I don’t make the short list. It is an honor to have my name being mentioned in conjunction with some of the giants of the field…..
(9) THE EARLY RETURNS. Here are some reactions to the Sad Puppies 4 list, which was posted today.
The G at Nerds of a Feather
Given last year’s caustic battle over the Hugo Awards, as well as the generally caustic nature of U.S. politics in 2016, you might be forgiven for assuming that the 2016 Hugo Awards would be yet another battleground in the never-ending (and endlessly tiresome) culture wars. Only it isn’t looking that way, in part because the Sad Puppies have followed up last year’s politically partisan and highly divisive slate with a longlist of recommendations that…isn’t partisan or divisive at all.
Rachael Acks
https://twitter.com/katsudonburi/status/710556932344385537
Eric Franklin
https://twitter.com/gamethyme/status/710595443219046400
Brian Niemeier
https://twitter.com/BrianNiemeier/status/710579138919174144
It may have been a mistake to post a recommended reading list with probably over a million words of content two weeks before nominations close. Unless it was a clever trick to say “aha! Sad Puppies was about the discussion, not the final list!” in which case, well played. That means that those who came over from places like File770 to leave comments and votes are now Sad Puppies.
Without the synergy between Sads & Rabids this year, I think we’ll see less of a direct impact this time around, but I think that it gives a pretty good look at how the Hugo noms would’ve shaken out with or without the Puppies. Plus, it may give the statisticians out there a better look at just how much pull Vox has. There was a lot of talk last year that there were actually only a handful of Sad Puppies and the 500 or so Vile Faceless Minions were the deciding factor.
And where the list was posted, Mad Genius Club commenters have been submitting a large number of copyedits and arithmetic corrections.
[Thanks to John King Tarpinian, Martin Morse Wooster, and James H. Burns for some of these stories. Title credit goes to File 770 contributing editor of the day IanP.]
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First!
snowcrash: You were quick on the button!
Fi..ird?
St. Patrick’s Day has been consigned to our yesterday, and some are nursing sore heads today. #timezones
Argh, forgot to.. :ticky::
Thereby leaving the spot for
the next posterBravo Lima Poppa to claim…Bravo Bravo Lima Poppa!
Maybe 5th.
I am the serene, mature Fifth that isn’t anxiously rushing about.
Jim Henley: Have a nice cup of redbush tea.
Smurdley!
Fifth first!
@Mike Glyer: Thank you, sir! Back when Borders was still a thing I used to get a “red and black” iced-tea blend of Rooibos and Pekoe at the coffee counter. It was great.
Crushed I didn’t make the top five teatotalers list despite being a lifetime abstainer, though. Who the hell are those other guys?
Jim Henley: Heck they probably don’t drink tea, either! What phonies!
I am a pixel on the wind, watch how I scroll.
1) Yow, WHY did I bother reading any link about JCW? What a maroon!
1a) I must admit, I had much more booze than Dr. Asimov when I finished my own dissertation defense, and there was no giggling, just blissful oblivion.
4) “who would imagine an epic fantasy set in the wilds of New Jersey? ”
I totally would, particularly if you got Seanan McGuire or our own Scarlet Marsupial to write it! That could really be epic!
Soon Lee: I am a pixel on the wind, watch how I scroll.
Too soon, dude, too soon.
Yep. Now I need a drink…
The quote from the LA Times article sounds like the reporter thinks that the Silicon Valley event is affiliated in some way with Comicon International (San Diego), which as far as I know it is not. This is the sort of thing that gets the San Diego folks unhappy in an intellectual property sense, and I can sympathize with them.
Just stopping in to say hi.
Definitely too soon, Soon Lee. (hee! leaving it.)
1. JCW writes all that (polysyllabic hateful) shit stone-cold sober? Wow.
7. SVCC has no relation to SDCC. It’s entirely new, to replace the con the area used to have before SD
stolebought and moved it. I think it incorporates a previous event as well. Looking forward to the tech stuff, as well as pondering whether to get in line now for Nathan Fillion. Ironically, their schedule app SUCKS.Why is it that when an agenda-driven writer describes how very calm he is (and devil-may-care in making an oh-so-casual small gesture with the corner of the tip of one eyebrow to show just how laughably little he cares, tra la) I find myself thinking he’s just about to pop a vein in his forehead?
Epic fantasy set in the wilds of New Jersey? How about a steampunk novel starring Thomas Edison?
Daniel Pinkwater has set a number of stories in New Jersey, including The Hoboken Chicken Emergency. (A lot of Pinkwater’s works are children’s and YA; an overlapping large group can reasonably be described as surrealist.)
(I think part of Michael Swanwick’s In the Drift is set in New Jersey.)
Aside from an occasional vacation cocktail or victory champagne, I gave up drinking years ago. Alcohol messes with my stomach, especially since I lack a gall bladder, plus sometimes it triggers horrible headaches. Plus I don’t really like the sensation, too emotional and sloppy.
Sometimes I get judged by drinkers, as if they suspect either I’m in recovery and/or possibly a secret religious fanatic. Or maybe it’s just a case of “you’ve got an Irish name, what do you mean, you don’t drink?!?”
It’s funny. I used to get judged by drinkers a lot back in the 80s, but it seems to hardly ever happen any more. I don’t know if it’s because the times have changed, or if being 50-something means the people I am most likely to socialize are too old to care, and know that I’m too old to give a shit whether they approve.
Plus, I would’ve had to give it up after 2014 anyway. The binder I got at the start of chemorad treatment listed it among the things I could no longer do (all of which I had never done in the first place).
The Puppies put Ann Leckie’s third Ancillary novel on their this-is-not-a-slate?
That’s pretty funny, given Puppy rantings about her first Ancillary novel.
I see they’ve put Scalzi on their list, too. That’s hilarious, given Puppy rantings about Scalzi and RED SHIRTS last year.
I’m disappointed they didn’t nominate something by Rachel Swirsky, too. That would have made this not-a-slate a hat trick! Darn the luck.
You know, the entire Sad Puppies 4 campaign seems to me to be…anemic at best. We’ll see when the final noms are announced. Although sadly, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if John C Wright sneaks on for Somewhither.
(Huh, the File 770 time machine must have switched on again–my timestamp says 4:26 PM, half an hour ahead of Snowcrash)
I used to get judged by drinkers a lot back in the 80s, but it seems to hardly ever happen any more.
They probably kept drinking. I hear that impairs judgment.
@Kip W.: Nice.
I used to wish I could find an alcoholic drink I actually could tolerate the taste of. Now I’ve embraced my destiny as the Permanent Reliable Designated Driver.
@Charon D
I was looking forward to drinking again after the gallbladder removal. I glass or two of wine occasionally. More frequently when spending time with family. The Xanax only does so much. It doesn’t have the comfort of taking a sip to help hold my tongue and spread warmth through my body when I want to shout or kill someone. Or have an excuse to get up from the table for a refill so I don’t do or say something to cause a family war. Please, I’m begging you, tell me I can still do this. 😉
Note to self: research post gallbladder removal diet.
Pixels keep on glowin’,
Filers just keep on scrollin’,
Scrollin’ (scrollin’), scrollin’ (scrollin’),
Scrollin’ with Mike Glyer (scrollin’ with Mike Glyer).
I followed the link to the Darby O’Gill story, only to be crushed that comments were closed already. I saw Darby O’Gill in the same small theater in Marlborough Mass that I’d seen Old Yeller, and both both scarred me in different ways. I’ve seen Darby O’Gill again at a Midwestcon a lifetime ago, and I was amazed at how well it stood up (the banshees will scare the crap out of you).
Having said that, I’m an old man now, and I will never submit myself to how I felt as a 5 and a half years old when I saw Old Yeller. Hell, it was bad enough seeing my daughter react to the movie 8 Below, where a sled dog is ‘left behind’ by the other 7 dogs to die.
In fairness, SP4 was announced as taking recommendations from anyone and some posters who are decidedly “not Puppies” put forth their recommendations in a gesture of participation. So fair play to SP4 who collated the recommendations as they came in.
@Tasha
I don’t have a gallbladder, and I don’t have any problems with alcohol. Except, you know, occasionally drinking too much.
/lurks
I am alarmed to find my name on this list. Weren’t they supposed to consult us this time? This is some obvious manipulation–pretty sure File 770 folks predicted this as a possibility last year. Paging Admiral Akbar…
But seriously. What the crap.
@Cat Valente
Just make an announcement on your blog that you are against all slates of any kind.
You were probably put forth by well meaning non-puppies.
Someone is keeping a list of those whom don’t agree to be on slates but I’m drawing a total blank at this time. I’m sure some other filer will show up with info. Possibly it’s being tracked on the spreadsheet of doom.
::tickbox::
Weren’t they supposed to consult us this time?
If I recall correctly, SP4 announced at its inception that they would not be asking for permission to put people on their slate.
AFAIK, they said that they wouldn’t ask any kind of permissions from the people they put on the list.
@Tasha
I drank moderately for a few years after the removal, and the stomach issues that resulted were comparatively mild compared to, say, extremely fatty things like heavy cream and prime rib and macadamia nuts. About a two compared to the stomach pain when I had a gallbladder, which went up to eleven. Moderate drinking probably wouldn’t be too bad but I’d have a difficult time becoming a lush. Also, I’m not anything even resembling a doctor, and your mileage may vary.
Mainly for me it’s the headaches, which are probably totally unrelated to the gallbladder. Unfortunately alcohol tends to set off severe headaches about 15-20% of the time, which is even less fun when combined with the stomach stuff.
That must be some kind of a record — people usually report the File 770 time machine throws them thousands of years out of synch.
Cat Valente, we know. Obviously you only need to say something on your blog and any other social media. Some of us already voted for you honestly. 🙂 Maybe someone could add a note to the Spreadsheet O’Doom.
Maybe if they’d actually contacted people (like they didn’t before and haven’t again), they would have missed the deadline entirely?
Tasha: Everyone I know who’s lost their gallbladder can still have a couple of drinks now and then.
OGH: I noticed yesterday that the timestamp is an hour or so off sometimes, not our usual centuries.
Vicki Rosenzweig: Part of Buckaroo Banzai Across The Eighth Dimension takes place in New Jersey, too, as I recall.
Not to mention — don’t the Martians land there in the Mercury Theatre production of War of the Worlds? Grovers Mill…
There’s also the X-Files episode “The Jersey Devil”.
But are any of the works we’ve mentioned “epic fantasies”?
Mike Glyer
Aw, you edited before I could jump in with that!
Ms Marvel is obviously set in New Jersey, but otherwise NJ seems to be a bit of a target in the MU – I remember a few heavyweight fights (Thor/ Hulk, She Hulk, Hercules etc) where someone gets punched and lands there. There was one hilarious one where Hercules? complained that he had “…landed in a place forsaken by the gods: New Jersey!”.
Have we had By the Pixel of Grayscroll yet?
@lurkertype – I would argue that JCW writes his screeds knurd (could be why he hates Sir Pterry). Your man there might need a belt or two in him just to seem human.
I have posted a very long rant about Planetfall, which I thought was a classic “idiot plot” depending on a lot of stupidity by a lot of parties. I talked about the book from beginning to end, no regard for spoilers; if you want to reply, you should probably do so in the comments over there.
I also put together a compilation of previous File 770 discussions of Planetfall, with all the rot-13 changed into spoiler-tags.
Kip W: I should know better that to do that. Every fanzine editor is taught by experience that if he answers all the questions nobody feels the need to comment.
Quite all right, but I apparently felt the need to say that I knew that too!
I’ve never really understood the appeal of alcohol. Some of it is the appalling taste of alcohol present in every one of the small number of alcoholic beverages I’ve tasted, on the false assurance of supposed friends that this one was realio trulio different.
But a lot of it was growing up with an alcoholic (later recovering alcoholic) father and two alcoholic uncles. And my dad taking me to some AA meetings so I could here the essential sameness of the stories from very different people.
My mother’s family is Sicilian, Grandpa made wine, and they all treated alcoholic beverages as just beverages. It was all so sane. But I knew pretty young that wasn’t the side of the family I took after.
So I was never motivated to put the effort into acquiring that particular acquired taste.
And I’m afraid of beer drinkers. I have to be desensitized to it for every single new acquaintance who drinks beer.
And I am rambling. Sorry!
(4) RECOMMENDED GREEN READING.
I was a bit surprised to see Jo Walton’s Sulien books on the list. The Sulien books proper (The King’s Peace and The King’s Name) are Arthuriana and very firmly set in post-Roman Britain. (I almost wrote “England”, but that would actually be incorrect.)
The related book The Prize in the Game is set in that world’s Ireland, and is very Irish indeed, being strongly inspired by the Irish epic Táin Bó Cúailnge. So that one should have gone on the list by itself. But the Barnes and Noble writer seems to think that all three books are in Ireland, which is somewhere between silly and strange.