Author Archives: Cora

Retro Review: “Gambler’s Asteroid” by Manly Wade Wellman

Posted on August 18, 2020 by Cora

“Gambler’s Asteroid” is a space opera short story by Manly Wade Wellman, that was published in the Spring 1944 issue of Thrilling Wonder Stories and would have been eligible for the 1945 Retro Hugo Award. The story may be read … Continue reading →

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Cora’s Adventures at CoNZealand, the Virtual 2020 Worldcon, and Some Thoughts on Virtual Conventions in General

Posted on August 16, 2020 by Cora

So far, I’ve talked a lot about the Hugo ceremony at CoNZealand, the virtual 2020 Worldcon, but little about the con itself, which is a pity, because CoNZealand was actually pretty good, all things considered. Normally, this would be a … Continue reading →

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Retro Review: “Unsung Hero” by Ruth Washburn

Posted on August 14, 2020 by Cora

“Unsung Hero” is a humorous science fiction short story by Ruth Washburn, that was published in the Spring 1944 issue of Thrilling Wonder Stories and would have been eligible for the 1945 Retro Hugo Award. The story may be read … Continue reading →

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Reactions to the 2020 Dragon Awards Finalists or the Sound of Puppies Crying

Posted on August 13, 2020 by Cora

Considering that this year’s Dragon Awards ballot looks pretty good, I guess reactions from certain quarters of the genre community, who used to consider the Dragons their territory, were inevitable. And indeed, Mike Glyer has put up a round-up of … Continue reading →

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The 2020 Dragon Award Finalists Go Full Tilt Towards Mainstream Respectability

Posted on August 12, 2020 by Cora

I’ve been following the saga of the Dragon Awards, an SFF award handed out at Dragon Con in Atlanta, Georgia, since their inception in 2016. During these five years, the Dragon Awards went from puppy award that was conceived as … Continue reading →

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Some Comments on the 2020 Hugo Award Winners

Posted on August 5, 2020 by Cora

Now that I’ve finally got the discussion about the neverending Hugo ceremony from hell out of the way (see here and here), let’s talk about a much more pleasant topic. For while the 2020 Hugo ceremony may have been an … Continue reading →

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First Monday Free Fiction: Picnic at Seashell Beach

Posted on August 3, 2020 by Cora

Welcome to the August 2020 edition of First Monday Free Fiction. To recap, inspired by Kristine Kathryn Rusch who posts a free short story every week on her blog, I’ll post a free story on every first Monday of the … Continue reading →

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More Reactions to the 2020 Hugo Ceremony and a bit about the Retro Hugos

Posted on August 3, 2020 by Cora

I’d hoped to get my comments on the generally excellent winners of the 2020 Hugo Awards up today (ETA: It’s here). However, this was not to be, for two days later we’re still talking about the neverending Hugo ceremony from … Continue reading →

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Some Reflections on the 2020 Hugo Ceremony a.k.a. Reminiscing with George

Posted on August 2, 2020 by Cora

This was not the post I wanted to write today. The post that I hoped to write was, “Hey, I won a Hugo. Go me!” However, Bogi Takács won and a most deserving winner they are, too. And in fact, … Continue reading →

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Indie Speculative Fiction of the Month for July 2020

Posted on July 31, 2020 by Cora

It’s that time of the month again, time for “Indie Speculative Fiction of the Month”. So what is “Indie Speculative Fiction of the Month”? It’s a round-up of speculative fiction by indie authors newly published this month, though some June … Continue reading →

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