literature
Science fiction's most popular literary writers from Isaac Asimov to Stephen King and Frank Herbert, and the rising stars of today.
Dystopian Science Fiction Authors You Must Read
In it's traditional definition, a dystopia illustrates a reality much worse than our own. Dystopian science fiction generally features an oppressive and totalitarian society where political, corporate, technological or religious forces reign supreme while everyone lives under the guise that everything is damn near perfect. But in a very messed-up kind of way, a lot of the ideas mentioned in dystopian fiction are actually pretty decent propositions (like the abandonment of religion and the redistribution of national borders). So as you read through this compilation of some of the best dystopian science fiction authors, take in all the negativity with a grain of salt and think about how some of these ideas can actually be implemented without the treacherous apocalyptic consequences.
By James Lizowski9 years ago in Futurism
Breakout Science Fiction Books of 2016
One of the wonderful things about science fiction is that with every new breakout novel we don't just get a new story; we get the author's latest imagined reality rife with its own technology, history, species, aliens, and many (many) problems. 2016 was a great year for the genre; newly-minted authors and veteran ones alike delivered breakout science fiction books that made me equal parts intrigued and downright frightened by the twisted future that humanity—and a universe of other species—may be heading towards.
By Rachel G. David9 years ago in Futurism
Best Emerging Fantasy Authors of 2016
What once was pure science fiction is looking more and more like science fact. While I have no intention of abandoning my space travel and AI fiction, I have a soft spot for fantasy simply for its disconnect from the changing world: Star Wars is a glimpse into the future, but alternate universes filled with fairies and monsters are still the ultimate escapist paradise. I spent the bulk of my free time in 2016 catching up on my pleasure reading and stumbled upon some amazing emerging fantasy authors and some of the great books they published in 2016.
By Rachel G. David9 years ago in Futurism
The Hot War: Bombs Away
Harry Turtledove doesn’t identify as an alternate history writer, but rather as “a historian who writes science fiction.” Bombs Away isn’t quite what most readers would think of as science fiction, but this alternate history novel does deal a lot with the science of nuclear weapons, fallout, and contamination. Turtledove delivers another masterfully crafted novel that provides a frighteningly plausible picture of World War III, or when the Cold War turned Hot.
By Zach Foster9 years ago in Futurism
Excerpt from 'Somewhere in the Skies: A Human Approach to an Alien Phenomenon' by Ryan Sprague
Ordinary people are seeing extraordinary things in our skies. And while reports of UFOs and their possible occupants are littered with dates, times, and descriptions, they rarely focus on those who've actually experienced them. How have these dramatic and often traumatic events affected those involved? Could both the positive and negative implications, whether subtle or revelatory, further our knowledge of what exactly these phenomena represent?
By Ryan Sprague9 years ago in Futurism
Antimatter: X-mas Files Edition
Sure. Sure. The Christmas season is full of crass commercialism. Materialist dogma -- of all varieties -- are on display everywhere. But the season has traditionally been regarded as a time of supernatural activity and high strangeness, as this edition of Antimatter shows.
By Matt Swayne9 years ago in Futurism
Interview with Mike Resnick
At 74 years old, Mike Resnick is only hitting his stride. Just last week he handed in the eighth book he wrote this year, and he has clocked in 13 short stories and just sold a fantasy trilogy to DAW Publishing. He has mentored countless authors, including Nebula award nominee Martin Shoemaker and is the recipient of five Hugos (from a record 37 nominations) and is first on the Locus list of all-time award winners, living or dead, for short fiction, and is fourth on the list of Science Fiction's all-time top award winners in all fiction categories. Resnick is also the editor of Galaxy's Edge, one of the field's leading magazines.
By Joshua Sky9 years ago in Futurism
The Legacy of Hard Science Fiction
Hard science fiction embodies the essence of the genre, though science fiction does not always adhere to its principles. They do not call it science fiction for nothing, though sometimes it might seem that way. The mushy physics, galaxy-hopping adventures, and even outright mysticism of Star Wars and Star Trek may hark back to the pulp science fiction of E. E. "Doc" Smith and Edmond Hamilton, but they do not say a lot for the average level of science education among Hollywood producers. Nevertheless, there is a long and healthy tradition of more scientifically faithful science fiction, running from Jules Verne and H. G. Wells through writers of the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s (think of Arthur C. Clarke and Hal Clement) and on into the 1960s and 1970s in the hands of Larry Niven, Gordon R. Dickson, and others. Hard science fiction stands for some readers as the true heart and soul of the genre, and it continues vigorously today, as is evidenced by a look at publications since the Golden Age of science fiction.
By John Foley9 years ago in Futurism
Can Science Fiction Predict the Future?
"Well, you know, William Gibson was writing about that in 1984." It's become a running joke among my friends that I say something like this every few months, usually when discussion turns to the increasingly science fictional resonances of our everyday world. Science fiction writers can be a prescient lot, by trade. But William Gibson, in particular, has a remarkable track record for what seems like genuine prophecy, starting with his very first short stories, published in—surprise—OMNI magazine.
By Glenn McDonald9 years ago in Futurism
Irving Wallace Predictions of That Came True
Irving Wallace is a name from the past. If you are a Gen-X kid, you may have grown up in a world where every bathroom featured The Book of Lists, Wallace’s book (with kids Amy Wallace and David Wallechinsky—he had to take the old man’s Ellis Island name, huh?) that updated to The Guinness Book of World Records in the hip 70s. Why, just yesterday, before I wrote this article, I posted for friends Irving Wallace’s mind-blowing 1972 movie The Man, in which a fateful plane accident causes president pro tempore of the Senate James Earl Jones to become the President. A black President?! 1972 America’s collective mind is blown. Halfway between the Dr. Strangelove airplane and Darth Vader, JEJ is, of course, a magnificent voice and a majestic avatar of human dignity. Burgess Meredith—you know, Rocky’s trainer—plays the evil sculduggerous Southern teabagger who plots President Vader’s ruin.
By Matthew Wilder9 years ago in Futurism
