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17 posts tagged science fiction
Why Science-Fiction Isn’t About Aliens (And It Shouldn’t Matter Even If It Is!)
Wattpad brings you a guest post from Nick Uskoski:
As I write Sigma/Star, my science-fiction story, I have come across one big problem people seem to have: its genre. I can’t tell you how many times someone has commented or looked at my work and said it looks so good and they find it really entertaining and enjoyed it but…it isn’t their type of thing. And by that they mean science-fiction. There is a general assumption made by just about everybody that science-fiction involves space, aliens, and the future (and I used to make that too!). The problem with all of this is that it is…well wrong.
As an easy example of how off quite a few people are on the concept of science-fiction, I have encountered numerous readers of the popular Hunger Games series who have no idea it would be classified under science-fiction. A story set in a dystopian future environment? The way to tell that it is science-fiction is simple: it creates a timeline that could exist, but does not, while featuring a special something called cognitive estrangement.
A fancy-sounding term, n’est-ce pas? The easier way to put it is that science-fiction presents some sort of situation or uses science and explanations to make you believe in the world. Once you have decided to put aside your disbelief that, for example, there really is a world in which young kids are rounded up and thrown into a televised gladiator event, then the actual magic begins. For you see, science-fiction is all a lie. In fact, good and proper science-fiction is usually more real than a detective novel or a romance. The secret behind these pretty images and fancy flying machines is actually commentary on the true world. Can The Hunger Games actually being making a statement about modern society or the oppression of the government or perhaps on society’s lust for reality television? What about A Canticle For Leibowitz, which expresses the fears of a generation past when dealing with the atomic bomb? Or how about Planet of the Apes, exploring the ideas of animal testing, what it means to be human, genetic manipulation, and evolution? Did you even know these books were about all these things or did that cognitive estrangement have you passing over it without realizing?
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Last day to enter Bill Gourgey’s Glide contest!
Win a black 2GB USB Bracelet imprinted with the Glide logo and filled with Glide goodies including the Glide eBook, invention imagery, and interviews with the author. Click Here for Full Contest Details!
Friday Find: “Singularity”
Every Friday, we bring you an undiscovered gem to read on Wattpad. This week, our secret Wattpad Talent Hunters recommend Singularity, a thrilling sci-fi:
A time when man has the potential to become immortal, where nanotechnology allows for people to manipulate the world and their surroundings at their whim, when a virtual reality, can become one’s true reality, and when anyone can travel the universe as gods.
But the line between humanity, and something potentially much greater has become blurred, and those unwilling to take that final step, to evolve, find themselves left behind in a world technologically far beyond the point where they can live out a normal, human life.
For better or for worse, this is the end of humanity as we have known it, a result of a single event… The Singularity.
Bill Gourgey’s Glide USB Bracelet & eBook Giveaway!
FromBillGourgey
Share some of your amazing Wattpad comments and reviews for Glide on Amazon and you’ll have a chance to win a black 2GB USB Bracelet imprinted with the Glide logo and filled with Glide goodies including the Glide eBook, invention imagery, and interviews with me, the author, talking about Glide. I’ll be giving away THREE bracelets.
Click Here for Full Contest Details! This contest will run from February 22 to March 21, 2012.
Thank You Wattpadders!!!
Glide on!
Green Science (and Fiction) 101
Anti-gravity? Efficient wind farms and solar energy? It’s not as far-fetched as you think. Check out this guest post from Glide author Bill Gourgey:
The other day I was talking to my neighbor, a high level TV executive at the Discovery Channel, about Green Science. We were at a party and the topic came up because he asked me what I was up to, so I began to describe my new novel, Glide, and how one of its themes is Green Sci Fi. Well, I might as well have announced that I was writing about something as whimsical as Oz. He wrote me off with a wave of his hand. Green doesn’t sell, he said matter-of-factly. Really, I said, that surprises me. The opinion polls I’ve seen and the research I’ve done suggests that people love the concept of Green. That’s just it, he replied, they love the concept, but as soon as it comes down to the reality—to changing lifestyles to be Green—they avoid it. Trust me, he added, I know. We keep trying out Green programs on the network and they just don’t get traction.
Of course, there must be some truth to my neighbor’s advice. After all, he has the numbers to prove it. That got me a bit worried. If people don’t enjoy watching Green shows on TV, what would compel them to read Green fiction? But the more I thought about it and continued to research Green Science and Green Science Fiction, the more I realized that Green is simply too broad a term to throw around without qualifying it. For example, most people probably don’t want to be told that they should be making the extra effort to compost their organic garbage and recycle the rest. It’s a lot of work. Who has time…or money? And those are the kinds of Green How-To shows you tend to find on TV, narrated by some svelte intellectual who leaves you feeling guilty for not making more of an effort. BUT! What if there was an invention that allowed you to throw out your garbage the way you always do? Underneath the counter, this little machine would sort your trash for you and compact it so that all you would have to do is take two little biodegradable bags out to the curb each week? One labeled “Organics” the other “Recyclables.” Sounds a bit like something the Cat in the Hat might come up with, I know, but that invention, if it existed, would be Green Science. Since it doesn’t yet exist (to my knowledge) it would be Green Sci Fi. For the record, you can buy indoor compost stations (they look like fish tanks) and multi-bin trash compactors, but nothing that automatically sorts through a continuous flow of household trash. At least, not on the residential level. Commercially, lots of companies are tackling the waste-sorting problem with a fair amount of success. Hence, the lines between Science and Fiction have already begun to blur when it comes to Green Waste Management. Still with me?
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Book Review: The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
Wattpad brings you a guest post originally published in Teen Ink:
Hitchhiker’s Guide
By Nathan J., Upper Jay, NY
Reading the series The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams is like having one long strange dream, except it doesn’t make as much sense. As the series begins, you become enveloped. It seems like you are hitchhiking across the galaxy with Arthur Dent and Ford Prefect with your own copy of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and a towel (read the book!). The book is complete with interesting and unexpected twists that take you to a variety of planets, and let you meet a variety of beings, including two-headed Zaphod Beeblebrox and the depressed robot Marvin. You are kept guessing what will happen next until the end of each book (and sometimes you are still guessing as the book ends). This, however, isn’t a problem because you will want to read the rest of the series after finishing the first.
Wattpad Vlog: Science Fiction “Future Developments
Today, we review “Future Developments” by Ben Carey on Wattpad. Check out this really well-written, intriguing science fiction about a mysterious, magical camera.
Don’t forget to vote in the Watty Awards! The contest ends on Jan. 31st.
A Crash Course on Steampunk
Wattpad brings you a guest post from Featured Story writer Darrell Pitt:
What if spaceships ran on steam power?
What if cars and trucks and ships and trains were all steam operated? What if we built towers that stretched into orbit so that people could catch a lift into space? What if airships dominated the skies, carrying passengers across the world?
What sort of world would that be?
That would be the world of steampunk.
It’s a sub-genre of science fiction and one of the most popular up and coming genres of today. Think of Victorian England and Sherlock Holmes and War of the Worlds and you’ll begin to have an idea of what steampunk is all about.
It’s books like The Steampunk Detective (by yours truly), Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld, Boneshaker by Cherie Priest and Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare. It’s movies like The League of Extraordinary Gentleman, The Golden Compass, The Prestige and The City of Lost Children.
But it’s more than this. Steampunk has become a fashion statement too. It’s famous for brass and leather and corsets for women and coats and tails and top hats for men.
Accessories abound too – brass rimmed aviator goggles, parasols and canes, hats and gloves. The list goes on. Steampunk conventions are held in many countries. The internet abounds with steampunk related websites. Steampunkers happily parade the streets in full steampunk outfits.
In many ways it’s more than a genre. It’s an art movement. It’s a lifestyle.
So what’s the allure to steam? Why do people like steampunk?
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Friday Find: “Space Command and the Planet of the Bejeweled Concubines”
“Smart and funny, with a rowdy cast of rambunctious characters to boot. If sarcasm is your poison, fall in love with Prime Commander Ledder and his ”full-size, inarguably masculine and flagrantly authoritative beard” as he laments looking like an analyst’s lackey while asserting his authority on Blouder Base’s officers.”
Every Friday, we bring you an undiscovered gem to read on Wattpad. This week, our secret Wattpad Talent Hunters recommend Space Command and the Planet of the Bejeweled Concubines, a comedy science fiction.
Space Command and the Planet of the Bejeweled Concubines by abstractplane
A novel-length adventure with the officers of Space Command! When a courtesans’ guild is threatened, Space Command must dispatch a mismatched team of officers who survive bizarre misadventures while en route to protect the concubines form the reptilian Slin-tokine.
Watt Inspired Glide’s Trailer
A guest post from writer Bill Gourgey:
As I was writing my novel, Glide, it occurred to me (during the process) that the material would be perfect for a variety of media formats. Of course, most writers would be thrilled to see their book turned into a film or TV series (that is, after achieving best seller status!), but it’s only recently that writers sit down to write considering the full transmedia possibilities of their story. Transmedia is another hifalutin term not to be confused with multimedia. Where multimedia involves presenting content using media combinations (audio and imagery, text and video, etc.), transmedia involves presenting content on different media platforms altogether (eBook, film, app, game, connected TV, etc.). Anyway, as I was writing Glide, creating its future worlds (both the apocalyptic and the post- ), defining the “green” inventions that populate its landscape, I realized that the story had great transmedia potential.
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Book Trailer: Glide, a Sci-Fi Novel
A LOOK BETWEEN THE PAGES:
Glide, The Novel
DR. MAGIGATE…
…also known as “The Captain,” is a legendary inventor and recluse; equal parts Albert Einstein and Don Quixóte. In GLIDE, the doctor must confront his own shadowy destiny when two adventurous teens disrupt the status quo of his covert lab on Isla de Tiempo Muerto.
Magigate’s nemesis is The Prophet, who once held an iron grip over much of the world’s commerce. When The Prophet escapes her island prison and takes one of the teens hostage, Dr. Magigate must face not only his long-time foe and erstwhile lover, but also the ethically ambiguous legacy of his inventions.
GLIDE is a dark and cautionary tale of what happens when we turn to invention and technology to compensate for the shortcomings of heart and soul.
New Beginnings, New Settings
The new year is almost here! Celebrate the start of 2012 by reading these stories featuring new settings - finalists in the Watty Awards 2011! Remember to vote for your favorites before the contest ends Jan. 31st!
A New Reality
New World: Cinderella versus Prince Charming (Fantasy - On the Rise)
New Life (My Life With The Walter Boys - Most Popular Story)
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Guest Post: Maree Anderson’s Top Five Sci-Fi Characters
Today we bring you a guest post from Maree Anderson, our newest featured writer on Wattpad:
I’m a romance author, and I looove chocolate—yeah, I’m pretty much a cliché ;-) Plus, I’m always getting told off for sneaking my kids’ library books before they get a chance to read them. I’m also a Kiwi—a New Zealander—and I live in Auckland, with a long-suffering husband and two teenagers who put up with me camping out in my office and forgetting to cook them dinner. I also have two strange goldfish, and one slightly neurotic cat who’s 1) obsessed with food, and 2) famous. (She’s had a book written about her, and she featured on the cover.) While I’m waiting to become as famous as my cat, I write stories about teenage cyborgs, cursed crystal warriors, aliens who ride lightning, demons, and blind seers… among other things.
To get to know Maree better, Wattpad asked her to present us with a list of her top five favourite sci-fi characters:
1. Katniss from The Hunger Games trilogy: I love how gutsy Katniss is, how she’s determined to protect her mom and her little sister, even if it means sacrificing herself. She refuses to give up, even when it seems way-the-heck-more than just a bit hopeless. Plus, she’s an awesome hunter and never lets the fact she’s “just” a girl hold her back.
2. Trella from Inside Out by Maria Snyder: OMG, I love this story! I met Maria Snyder when she came to our Romance Writers of NZ conference, and I have a personally autographed copy of Inside Out… SQUEEE! *excuse me while I have a fan-girl moment* Anyway, Trella’s a stubborn and rude and incredibly brave loner—my kinda girl.
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Wattpad Vlog: Sci-Fi Short Story “W.U.M.E.”
We review the dystopian W.U.M.E. by Marc Poliquin.
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