Every year, in the spring, there is a ritual. The coming WorldCon announces the Hugo nominees. The ritual is not the announcement, but the reaction.
Read MoreWhat It Is We Miss When We Don’t Read FanzinesIt’s not just me, right? The Gothic novel is ripe for a comeback. This particular sub-genre has been creeping into my subconscious for some time, and not just because I accidentally went to a lecture the other month on the Female Gothic in Film, which quoted Joanna Russ and made me squee like the fan girl I am.
Read MoreGirl Meets House: Kitchen Sinks, Joanna Russ and the Female GothicBecause of the particular nature of my upbringing, I probably have more college credits in Biblical Study than you have in your major, and my major was not Biblical Study. That’s simply the way I grew up, the environment I grew up in, and the choices I made when I was younger.
Read MoreFaith in the FantasticFor some, the fact that you are reading this on a screen is amazing. For me, however, what’s impressive is that you could be from any part of the world: London, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Seoul, Perth, Cape Town, etc, and you’re reading this now, not several months—or years—later.
Read MoreWorld SF: Our Possible FutureHere’s a cool thing about speculative-fiction readers: we’ve always been interested in exploring all the possible variations of human existence. From Samuel R. Delany to Ursula K. Le Guin to Caitlín R. Kiernan to Geoff Ryman, we’ve covered some serious ground in our examinations of gender and sexuality.
Read MoreReaching into the QUILTBAG: The Evolving World of Queer Speculative FictionSomeone clever once said, apropos of the Justice League, that the only thing sillier than an adult dressing up in colorful tights to fight crime, was a whole roomful of such folk. That’s a good analogy for films, TV shows and books that posit elaborate secret societies of vampires, werewolves and other supernatural creatures that operate just below the radar of human awareness.
Read MoreNo Mortals Allowed
So you’ve decided to add a rape scene to your story. After all, you’re writing a horror story, and what’s more horrific than rape?
Read MoreWriting About RapeWho doesn’t enjoy snuggling up with loved ones around the holidays and enjoying a good scifi/fantasy/horror movie? No hands up? Good, then I’m in the right magazine.
Read MoreJingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Genre All the WayAustralians. They’re generally happy people, right? Beer, sunshine and prawns. Happy people in shorts, sunnies and thongs (it’s a kind of footwear, honestly!) Nothing sinister about that.
Read MoreThe Australian Dark Weird