The heatwave of the past few days is in the process of giving way to cooler air, to pretty much everybody’s relief. Unfortunately, hot and cool air colliding means thunderstorms and rather a lot of them. We’ve already had three thunderstorms today and I think the one that just passed us by wasn’t the last one either. I’m recharging the laptop in the breaks between the thunderstorms to get a bit more juice out of it.
So here are some quick links of interest:
As a sort of addendum to the recent discussion about all of those women ruining the SFF genre with their romance plots, SF Signal‘s latest Mind Meld discusses the appeal of love stories set in apocalyptic, post-apocalyptic, dystopian or otherwise extreme settings. Is it coincidence that this time around, all participants are women? Especially since I have read some very good “love under pressure” stories written by men.
For those looking for something to read beyond the usual white, straight, US/UK world, Carrie Cuinn has compiled a list of 94 Asian writers of speculative fiction and even included some links to free fiction.
The winners of the Cover Café‘s annual cover contest have been announced. I’m quoted several times in the detailed results breakdown.
US thriller author Vince Flynn died of cancer aged only 47. Vince Flynn was one of those bestselling writers whose names are familiar, yet whose books I have never read, because shoot-em-up thrillers with a rightwing bent are so not my genre.
More death: Actor James Gandolfini, best known for his starring role in The Sopranos, died of a heart attack aged only 51. Again, James Gandolfini is someone whose name I recognize, but whose work I’m not really familiar with (can’t stand mafia stories and The Sopranos threw psychoanalysis in the mix as well), though I think I have seen him in a supporting part somewhere.
sending...