Wednesday, May 28, 2014

Book Review - Gravity Box and Other Spaces by: Mark Tiedemann

Gravity Box Cover



I have found in my short history of writing reviews, it seems to me that one person’s absolute favorite plate of finely-crafted sushi can be another person’s stomach-turning, “I can’t believe you’d eat raw fish!” dish. Most of liking something is subjective. However, even within this area of subjectivity--both in food and in writing--there are certain standards that most critics can hold up as markers of quality.

Mark Tiedmann’s Gravity Box and Other Spaces published by Walrus Publishing, Inc., definitely contains the marks of quality from beginning to end. The dishes he serves are varied, nicely spiced, and will satisfy a variety of fantastical palates.

In some pieces--for example “By Other Names,” “Private Words,” and “The King’s Arrows”--like a quality chef, he blends in only a hint of mystical twists and lets the reader fill in the gaps. In others the magic or technology takes on a bolder flavor such as in “Preservation,” “The Disinterred,” and “Gravity Box.”

Additionally, Tiedmann’s clever descriptions helps create unique characters for each story. In “The Playground Door” he describes the son Jonathan as having “...a precocious mask of seriousness.” A passage from “Along the Grain” describes the two antagonists when they first appear, running, “...with the gangly abandon of kids in summertime, arms flailing, faces stretched in manic grins.”

As with most speculative fiction, his themes run along the lines of finding one’s true self, the exploration of the human condition against the foil of shiny technology, and the joys and sorrows of relationships in a variety of forms. Yes, for those of you who want to know, this does include passages of adult content both sexual and violent, but they are related to the story, not just thrown in for shock value.

For all my literary friends, the specific genres of his stories include folktales/mythologies, erotic fantasy, magical realism, new age fantasy, supernatural/paranormal, traditional fantasy, sci/fi, and near future sci/fi. IMHO. Mark may disagree. Do you? I’d love to hear from you. ;-)

AND as a side note, I’m highly jealous that Mark has attended one of the Clarion workshops, (the Holy Grail of Sci/Fi and Fantasy writer workshops). One day, my friends. One day….

So, in conclusion, if you’d like an interesting mix of bold tastes, subtle fragrances, and stories that make you wonder, make Gravity Box part of your speculative fiction reading list this summer. And maybe try some sushi.

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Next week’s main course on Revision is a Dish Best Served Cold: 
Hello. I'm Janet Cannon and I'm An Adverbaholic.

On the menu for the future: an interview with Margot Dill (Editor 911) about her new book 
Caught Between Two Curses 
and Why is Revising so hard?

Also look for my articles on Walrus Publishing’s website. 


Like Ghost Stories? I’m published in Rocking Horse Publishing’s Spirits of St. Louis: Missouri Ghost Stories. Check it out!

Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Cool Steampunk Article!

I receive a daily email from a website called Daily Writing Tips. It gives me all sorts of cool information, and lo and behold a couple of days after my discussion on speculative fiction genres, this comes out. Yeee ha!
http://www.dailywritingtips.com/steampunk/

Don't forget to check out Revision is a Dish Best Served Cold mid-week to see my review of Mark Tiedman's Gravity Box published by Walrus Publishing, Inc.

Wednesday, May 21, 2014

Typecast: The Difference Between Subgenres of Speculative Fiction and Why You Should Care

When I was a wee little bit, my sisters handed me these astounding constructions of paper and glue with printed words on them. My sisters insisted, "Read these," and I did. These magical items transported me to worlds I'd never visited, introduced me to people and creatures I'd never met, and taught me to think in ways I'd never thunk before. And then I'd sit...and think some more.

I didn't care that I was reading a fantasy or a hard or soft sci/fi novel. It didn't matter to me if it was a fairy tale, a folk tale, or a myth. I simply enjoyed reading them.

So why in the world do I care what genre I read and why would I want *you* the reader to care what genre you read?

Hold on to that question as we're interrupted by this brief and informative commercial break:

According to the 1999 edition of The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction written by John Clute and Peter Nicholls, "speculative fiction" has become an umbrella term covering works from science fiction to fantasy and everything remotely related. Critics don't like the term, but critics like to pigeon-hole books into specific genres whereas writers sometimes prefer the freedom that the term "speculative fiction" gives them (pp. 1144-1145).

Back to our regularly scheduled blog, it would seem from the summary of this passage here that if you're not a critic, you wouldn't really care what genre you're reading. I mean, come on! There are so many out there and to try to define them clearly is almost impossible. Just a sampling:

  • Fantasy types: epic/high fantasy, urban fantasy, folklore, mythology, heroic, sword and sorcery, paranormal, superhero...
  • Sci/fi: hard sci/fi, soft sci/fi, time travel, robot fiction, space opera, recursive, space western...
  • Punk series: cyber-, bio-, nano-, steam-...
  • Either/or: historical, military, horror, literary, alternate history, Gothic, aliens, zombies, dystopian, apocalyptic...
  • Mixed: technofantasy, science fantasy, new weird/slipstream, magic realism...
Yet, I argue there are some very good reasons to know what you're reading and here they are:
  1. So you can find other books of that genre and read more of what you like. Reading is good. Reading more is better. Find something you like to read and read MORE MORE MORE!
  2. So you can find other books NOT of that genre to find OTHER books that you like. If you're anything like most voracious readers I know, you get bored of the same old same old. Plots, characters, and settings of a particular genre tend (I said *tend*) to fall into a rut and breaking that pattern to find new and interesting books is a great way to find even MORE cool books to read.
  3. If you're ever on Jeopardy or participate in a game like QuizUp, you might need to know a thing or two about genres. Trust me, QuizUp asks you things you would NEVER expect to have to know.
  4. If you ever want to have an intellectual conversation with someone about books and be understood, you need to make sure you're speaking the same language. Knowing the difference between a space opera and a space western could mean the difference between a job interview or a polite invitation to see your way out the door.
  5. For those of you who are as yet unmarried and wish to become so one day, being a literary geek is a turn-on to some folks. Yeah. Seriously!
  6. If you ever want to submit a story to a publisher or editor, you'd BETTER know what genre they want and how to write it!
  7. AND THE #1 reason: Human nature has the propensity to try to define our world by putting it into categories. We might as well give in and let our inner organizer do what it was designed to do and sort our books into semi-neat little piles. There aren't any racial consequences or gender stereotypes to worry about with classifying books. Just the pleasant realization that you can place Piers Anthony's Xanth series firmly in the humorous fantasy category and Anne McCaffrey's Dragonriders books in the science fantasy stack. And what if you'd like a little debate with your friends about where to put William Gibson's Neuromancer?
Ideas? Thoughts? Discussion? Disagreement? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

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Next week’s main course on Revision is a Dish Best Served Cold: My review of Gravity Box and Other Spaces by Mark Tiedermann. Don't worry. No spoilers! Coming in June to an outlet near you!


On the menu for the future: an interview with Margot Dill (Editor 911) about her new book Caught Between Two Curses http://www.rockinghorsepublishing.com/caught-between-two-curses.html ,


Also look for my articles on Walrus Publishing’s website.

Like Ghost Stories? I’m published in Rocking Horse Publishing’s Spirits of St. Louis: Missouri Ghost Stories. Check it out!






Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Book Review: The Circle by Dave Eggers


Talk to anyone who thinks logically and most will agree, pooling resources is a great way to improve your chances of success in any venture. With research, the more information you gather, the more accurate your final results. With the Internet, the more computers networked, the faster the processing and the more information available. With HDTV, the more pixels, the more detailed the image. You get the picture. (See what I did there? Twice?)


Apply that logic a step further:
  • connected systems of digital healthcare records so whichever doctor you go to, they can access your records without having to subject you to a lengthy and expensive copying/faxing/mailing process.
  • traffic cameras connected throughout towns to help track car chase criminals.
  • tracking devices in pets so if they are lost or stolen, they are easily found.


I personally have no issues with these applications. Do you? Want to take the next step? Come on, you know you want to! Let’s go:
  • Sharing ALL medical records of ALL people in a digital cloud eliminating the need for expensive medical trials. Make them public domain so anyone anywhere can have access to them so experts across the globe can run computer trials and solve medical mysteries that individual doctors--even large corporations--can’t. This reduces the power of the big drug companies, reduces the need for dangerous medical trials, and gives us more cures faster!
  • Placing cameras in EVERY public location so any illegal activity will be tracked and recorded. People will know they are being watched, so they will act better. This will reduce crime. Crimes that do occur will be recorded from a number of different angles, reducing the need for inaccurate eyewitness accounts. Reduction in crime almost overnight!
  • Inserting tracking devices into children so NO child is EVER stolen or lost EVER again. Have it also track the medical stats of the people around them and the injuries incurred in the child so if the child is being abused in the home, the tracker will be able to tell the authorities who and when.


What kind of world do we have NOW my friends? UTOPIA I tell you! Perfection! An idyllic world of sharing information, perfect behaviors, and protected children! Everyone wants medical miracles. Everyone wants a reduction in crime. Everyone wants children to be safe. Are you willing to pay the price to get them? This is what The Circle preaches.


Are the characters in the book mind-blowingly awesome? No, but they are engaging. Is the plot twisty and unpredictable? No, it’s straightforward. I guessed it from the beginning, but I’m a suspicious reader. Is the book well-written? Yes, but I wouldn’t rate it the best book I’ve ever read. However, I do recommend reading the book to open your eyes to what is happen right under our noses.


Are you willing to pay the price for what you want?


You might revise your answer after reading The Circle.

What do YOU think? I’d love to hear from those who’ve read the book.


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Next week’s main course on Revision is a Dish Best Served Cold: Typecast: The Difference Between Subgenres of Speculative Fiction and Why You Should Care


On the menu for the future: an interview with Margot Dill (Editor 911) about her new book Caught Between Two Curses http://www.rockinghorsepublishing.com/caught-between-two-curses.html , a review of Gravity Box and Other Spaces by Mark Tiedemann,


Also look for my articles on Walrus Publishing’s website.

Like Ghost Stories? I’m published in Rocking Horse Publishing’s Spirits of St. Louis: Missouri Ghost Stories. Check it out!


Wednesday, May 7, 2014

Why Do Adults Like Young Adult Speculative Fiction?

When the media blows open a scandal of a much older man dating a much younger woman or vice versa, we’re curious, right? We ask ourselves, “What’s the draw?”

When you see marines singing “Let it Go!” (at 2:20 they REALLY go crazy!) at the top of their lungs as if their drill sergeant is pointing a gun at their heads, you wonder, “Have these men gone insane?”

When you look at the sales of Harry Potter, Divergent, Hunger Games, The Giver, or Dune, (some of those listed in NPR’s top 100 Best Young Adult Novels), many of those buying the books and buying the tickets to the movies are ADULTS. Why? What’s the draw? Have these people gone insane? Why are these people so obsessed with a product specifically written and marketed for YOUNG people?

Here are my speculations:

1. (Most) Best-selling YA books are well-written. Anything that is written well is a draw to voracious readers. If you are a fan of speculative fiction and have read great YA, you know the language isn’t dumbed down for younger readers. The main difference is that the perspective of the book is from the young people, not the adults.

2. Another reason adults like YA is that they are written from a different perspective than traditional fiction. Most speculative fiction is written with an adult protagonist and after so many repetitions of the same theme, you can get bored. Reading the story from a fresh perspective can give an old story a new twist, a new point of view.

3. That new point of view also gives adults an insight into today’s teens. There’s a cultural divide between the techno-savvy digital natives and their technidiot, Luddite parents and grandparents. (From THEIR perspective at least. ;-) ) Understanding YA speculative fiction can help bridge that gap. It gives adults something to discuss with their kids. An opening. A common ground. And anything we can use to build those relationships these days is golden.

4. Let’s face it: adults want to recapture or relive our youth and this is a vicarious way to do it. Reading about teen adventures and watching teen adventures on screen is exciting. Yeah, if I were a teen again, I would SO want to attend Hogwarts or be pursued by a bare-chested young man with super powers! (No, not really. But you see my point?)

5. Then there are the books that are best-sellers but AREN’T well-written. I won’t list the ones I’m biased against, but it happens. (grumble grumble) Why do THEY sell well? Fads. Trends. Power of the mob mentality. As a writer who has yet to hit it big this angers me: bad writers can make it big while great writers languish in anonymity. It’s reality. I know it. But that doesn’t deter me. It fuels me to try harder. But yo! Stop buying poorly written books just because everyone else does, okay?!

So in my eyes, there’s no scandal in an adult reading a YA book. Or even picking up a middle grade or a picture book. And if marines want to get excited about “Let it Go!” let them have their joy! The world is a better place for it. The scandal is in NOT connecting with others. The crime is NOT reading the books. The terrible fact is we’re losing so much of our culture and so many of our children to “reality TV” that is nowhere near reality and drives a political agenda of hate, selfishness, and greed.

READ GOOD BOOKS! Let good authors share their vision of the world with you and re-envision the world with them. Together, we can make the world a better place.

Revision. It’s not just for adults.

What do you think? Let me know. Do you have another reason adults buy YA books?

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Next week’s main course on Revision is a Dish Best Served Cold: My review of The Circle by Dave Eggers (Bwahaha! Fun stuff. Read it if you have the time!)

On the menu for the future: an interview with Margot Dill (Editor 911) about her new book Caught Between Two Curses http://www.rockinghorsepublishing.com/caught-between-two-curses.html , a review of Gravity Box and Other Spaces by Mark Tiedemann,

Also look for my articles on Walrus Publishing’s website.

Like Ghost Stories? I’m published in Rocking Horse Publishing’s Spirits of St. Louis: Missouri Ghost Stories. Check it out!

Saturday, May 3, 2014

Just too cool not to share!

Not my content, not my ideas, but these are just too cool not to share!

www.worthytoshare.net/23-awesome-things-didnt-learn-school-youll-glad-know/

Which were your favorites? The statue with its eyes covered was a little freaky - kinda like it was being lead to its doom!

Just a little appetizer to whet your taste buds until next week.


Thursday, May 1, 2014

Why Speculative Fiction is the BEST Genre. Ever.


A fundamentalist Christian, a black gay man, an Islamic terrorist, and a Japanese kamikaze pilot walk into--

Wait. This is the real world, Cannon:


1. None of these people would EVER agree to be in the same room.


2. Any story that starts this way is either the beginning of a disaster movie or a joke intended to offend a whole lotta people.


3. Many businesses would concoct some excuse (legal or not) to ban at least one of these people or something they’re carrying causing a ruckus even before they got inside.




Therefore, this story is unrealistic. None of them would work together. None of them would agree. No good would come of their association. You’re just asking for hate mail.


Really? Are you sure?


Let’s start over, then.


These four people fall into an alternate dimension:


1. A priest who believes his God and the magic of his world can exist in harmony,
2. An exiled vampire who is now employed by and is a protector of humans,
3. An alien sworn to a secret terrorist cell who willingly works beside her people’s oppressors,
4. A child who is trained in a virtual reality simulator and exterminates an entire population.


Through their harrowing adventures they learn to respect each others’ beliefs and 
forge deep friendships that transcend the barriers of race, religion, and politics.


The Happy Ending


More acceptable? Why? Why is it when we slap a latex prosthetic on someone’s face and throw them into space that suddenly discussing one’s religious beliefs is okay? Why is it that if someone literally has fairy wings that political banter is more comfortable? When magic and technology are involved, somehow we create a no-holds barred, guilt-free zone to delve deeply into philosophical depths we can’t abide in real life.


And that is why, my friends, speculative fiction is the BEST genre. Ever. 

What is speculative fiction? It’s a broad term inclusive of everything we consider traditional fantasy, traditional science fiction, plus everything in between and outside the box.


Why does it work? Speculative fiction provides metaphor buffer that protects us from feeling the personal impact of the political or religious debate. We can see the arguments. We can see both sides without it becoming personal. At the end of the book or the episode or the movie we can draw our own conclusions, of course. But the point of using speculative fiction as a platform to discuss sensitive issues is to share in another human’s point of view. You don’t have to agree. You don’t have to like it. You’re even allowed to scream in protest. But at least you have a better understanding of why people think or do what they think or do.


There are many people I count as my friends that I disagree with, but I respect their views. I respect them as human beings. I try hard to listen to what they say and see their lives from their point of view and not mine. Often, I don’t get the same treatment, but life isn’t fair. Accept that and living is a lot less stressful. I attribute part of my respect of others’ views to the fact I was raised on a healthy diet of speculative fiction. If more people would read and watch what I did as a kid, what a wonderful world we could have!


So CAN a fundamentalist Christian, a black gay man, an Islamic terrorist, and a Japanese kamikaze pilot walk into a bar and together save the universe?


You tell me. The forum is open. Comment below. Or, if you can’t make comments here, comment on my Facebook page and I’ll paste the comments in with your name attached.


Revision. It’s up to you.


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Next week’s main course on Revision is a Dish Best Served Cold: Why Do Adults Read Young Adult Speculative Fiction? (I mean, come on, it’s for kids, right?)

On the menu for the future: weekly articles, book reviews, guest blogs, interviews, and more.


Also look for my articles on Walrus Publishing’s website


Like Ghost Stories? I’m published in Rocking Horse Publishing’s Spirits of St. Louis: Missouri Ghost Stories. Check it out!

And watch for the occasional appetizer on the weekends if I catch something cool I think you might find interesting. Like these amazing mashups of Star Wars Stormtroopers invading Thomas Kincade landscapes.