Tag Archives: genre vs. literary

Ian McEwan is Clueless about Science Fiction

I have to admit that I never liked Ian McEwan. He always struck me as the sort of white middle class dude novelist who believes that his white middle class dude stories are somehow of universal human relevance. I disliked … Continue reading

Posted in Books, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

Nobel Honours for SFF Writers and More on the Latest Round of Romance Bashing

First of all, the 2017 Nobel Prize for Literature has been awarded to Kazuo Ishiguro. This is not a name I was hoping for (my personal Nobel Prize wishlist is topped by Ursula K. Le Guin, Margaret Atwood and Thomas … Continue reading

Posted in Books | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Romance Bashing: The New York Times Edition

The New York Times now has a review round-up column for new romance novels, just as it already has one for crime fiction and one for science fiction and fantasy. This is a good thing. However, while the SFF column … Continue reading

Posted in Books | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Of She-Hulk, Romance and Soylent Green – The Latest on Gender and Genre

While I was away (photos coming soon), the controversies about gender and genre didn’t dry up. I already blogged about the all women Nebula winner slate and how the usual suspects are pissed off about that. If you can stand … Continue reading

Posted in Books, Comics, Film, Links | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

New Entries into Old Conversations

The science fiction and fantasy genres have the tendency to have the same conversations over and over again, often for decades on end. There is the classic genre versus literary fiction debate, which never goes out of style, the evergreen … Continue reading

Posted in Books, Writing | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Pentecost Monday Links with Bonus Maikäfer

This year’s Nebula Awards have been handed out and my reactions are mixed. IMO the weakest book by far won in the best novel category – a pity because there were so many interesting nominees. But then Kim Stanley Robinson … Continue reading

Posted in Books, Links, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Controversy, Romance, Translation and Sex – It’s a Valentine’s Day Linkdump

Controversy (or not): The New York Times has an interview with Jodi Picoult, which apparently caused some stir in certain circles. Honestly, I went into the interview thinking I was about to read something incredibly controversial and offensive, but the … Continue reading

Posted in Books, Links | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Art versus Commerce or Selling Out

Apparently, the hot topic du jour in the online SFF sphere these days is selling out. As far as I can tell, the whole discussion was kicked off by Paolo Bacigalupi and a bunch of other SFF writers on Twitter. … Continue reading

Posted in Books, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Christopher Priest does it again

After making waves earlier this year by finding the Clarke Award shortlist inadequate (I posted about that controversy here, here and here), Christopher Priest – the SFF genre’s resident old curmudgeon – is at it again. This time around, however, … Continue reading

Posted in Books | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

An Interview with Cora, a German cinema scandal, vintage German pulp fiction, writing tips and more

First of all, I’ve been interviewed once again and answer 5 questions for authors and talk a bit about Murder in the Family at Randomize Me. You can also find links to other interviews I have done around the web … Continue reading

Posted in Books, Film, Links | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments