Speculative Fiction Links of the Week for April 1, 2016

Here is our weekly round-up of interesting links about speculative fiction from around the web, this week with comments on Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice and April and the Extraordinary World, lots of awards news and con reports as well as the usual mix of writing advice, interviews, reviews, con reports and crowdfunding projects as well as free online fiction. 

Speculative fiction in general:

• The participants of the SF Signal Mind Meld talk about their recent favourites on the lighter side of the genre.
• Jeffe Kennedy explains romance tropes to SFF writers and readers.
• Galactic Journey remembers some female science fiction writers of the 1950s and 1960s.
• Greg Afinogenov takes a look at Soviet science fiction. 
• Deborah Biancotti discusses the appeal of remote icy research stations in science fiction.
• Andrew Liptak profiles publisher Jim Baen. 
• Doug Ellis shares Otto Binder's impressions of John W. Campbell.
• Matt Ruff and Victor LaValle discuss H.P. Lovecraft. 
• Scott A. Cupp shares his appreciation for The Drawing of the Dark by Tim Powers.
• Rachel Cordasco shares eight reasons why she is loving Stephen King's Dark Tower series.
• Will McIntosh shares his appreciation for Watership Down by Richard Adams. 
• Vishwas R. Gaitonde views Narnia through a Hindu lens.
• Haralambi Markov praises the short fiction of Shveta Thakrar.
• Sharanya Sharma discusses when it's possible to read books in a series out of order.
• Danny Bowes shares his appreciation for 2010: The Year We Make Contact.
• Rebecca Fisher shares her appreciation for the movie The Dark Crystal.  
• Emily Asher-Perrin discusses the military evolution of the Star Wars universe. 
• Amy McKeever shares her impressions of visiting a decaying Flintstones themepark in Arizona.
• Kieran Shiach is troubled by the moral issues of indefinite detention without trial in superhero stories. 
• Tasha Robinson explains why we love watching superheroes fight each other.
• Rhymer Rigby declares that no self-respecting adult should read superhero comics or watch superhero movies. Self-respecting adults opt to ignore Rhymer Rigby and think he's something of a prat.

Comments on Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice:

• Derek Austin Johnson calls Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice bloated and boring.
• Christopher Orr calls Batman vs. Superman an inconsistent and comically grim mess.
• Robbie Collins calls Batman vs. Superman the most incoherent blockbuster in years. 
• A.O. Scott thinks Batman vs. Superman is about as entertaining as having porcelain sink broken over your head.
• Michael Phillips retitles Batman vs. Superman as "Yawn of Justice". 
• Oli Davis explains why he hated Batman vs. Superman. 
• Rachael Acks explains that Alfred and Wonder Woman were the only things about Batman vs. Superman she did like.
• Richard Trenholm declares that Batman vs. Superman is not the superhero movie anybody's children deserve.
• Meredith Placko points out that Batman vs. Superman was made neither for comic book fans nor for movie critics, both of whom dislike it.
• Noah Berlatsky calls Batman vs. Superman the latest exercise in corporate fan fiction.
• Gavia Baker Whitelaw calls Batman vs. Superman one of Hollywood's most fascinating failures.
• David Betancourt calls Batman vs. Superman flawed but fearless.
• Jim Vejvoda views Batman vs. Superman as closer in spirit to Watchmen than to The Avengers. 
• Reed Tucker thinks that Batman vs. Superman is so bad that it could nip DC's plans for a movie universe in the bud.  
• Dave Taylor actually enjoyed Batman vs. Superman.
• Michelle Smith reports how the cast and crew of Batman vs. Superman react to the negative reviews.
• Batman vs. Superman director Zack Snyder explain why he turned Batman into a killer in Batman vs. Superman and why he did not cast Grant Gustin as the Flash, even though Gustin plays the role in the eponymous TV show.
• Gary Westfahl declares that Zach Snyder is the most dangerous and destructive opponent Superman has faced to date. 
• Warner Bros decides to ignore the negative reviews of Batman vs. Superman and declares that there is a disconnect between critics and moviegoers.
• Bruce Campbell has a (not quite serious) solution to improve Batman vs. Superman.
• Chuck Wendig gives people permission not to watch Batman vs. Superman. 
• Emily Asher-Perrin believes that it is okay to give Batman vs. Superman a chance.
• Mark Evanier remembers the other times Batman and Superman met and/or clashed. 
• Mike Cecchini wonders whether the Batman vs. Superman movie that was never made in the early 2000s might have turned out better than the one that was made.
• Ivan Pereira sees the soul of New York reflected in Batman and Superman. 
• Ryan Lambie explains why the world needs Batman, the detective, and not just Batman, the vigilante.
• Devin Faraci discusses the damage done to the character of Superman by the two Zack Snyder films starring him.

Comments on April and the Extraordinary World:

•  Noel Murray calls April and the Extraordinary World an animated Steampunk wonder.
• Tasha Robinson shares her thought on the animated movie April and the Extraordinary World.
  

Awards:

• The winners of the 2015 BSFA Awards have been announced.
• The winner of the 2016 Philip K. Dick Award has been announced.
• The winners of the 2015 Aurealis Awards have been announced. 
• The winners of the 2016 Ditmar Awards have been announced.
• The finalists for the 2016 Rita and Golden Heart Awards have been announced.
• The shortlist for the 2016 Seiun Awards has been announced.
• David Barnett profiles double BSFA award winner Aliette de Bodard.
• Jason Sanford has some ideas how to fix the Retro Hugo Awards.
  

Writing, publishing and promotion:

• Jessica Rydill shares her experience as an indie fantasy writer. 
• David Ben Ami discusses the missing piece that most antagonists lack.
• James Scott Bell shares seven things that will doom your novel and how to avoid them. 
• Geoff Willmetts talks about the importance of deadlines.
• Jason Sanford shares the secret to getting short stories published in science fiction magazines.
• David Neth discusses the anatomy of a book. 
• Anne R. Allen implores writers to ignore dogmatic marketing advice. 
• Steve Vernon attempts to answer the question: "Should I write full time?"

Interviews:

• Derek Kunsken interviews Ken Liu.
• Raymond Bolton interviews Jim C. Hines. 
• Carl Slaughter interviews Laura Resnick.
• Carl Slaughter interviews Mike Resnick. 
• Carl Slaughter also interviews Dave Creek.
• Carl Slaughter also interviews Tom Greene.
• Byron Brewer interviews Corinna Bechko. 
• Lisa Haselton interviews David N. Alderman.
• Kyra Halland interviews C.M. Boers.
• David Neth interviews C.L. Roman.
  

Reviews:

• Joe Sherry reviews The Drowning Eyes by Emily Foster. 
• Shana DuBois reviews Borderline by Mishell Baker.
• Tyran Grillo reviews This Census-Taker by China Miéville. 
• Tyran Grillo also reviews Skinner Luce by Patricia Ward. 
• Lis Carey reviews Albatross by R.A. MacAvoy and Nancy Palmer.
• The Expendable Mudge reviews The Burning Dark by Adam Christopher.
• Paul di Filippo reviews Transgalatic by James Gunn.
• Shelf Inflicted reviews Ink and Shadows by Rhys Ford.
• Kayti Burt reviews the first two episodes of the TV series Wynonna Earp.
• Samm Deighan reviews the Blu-ray edition of Frau im Mond (Woman in the Moon) by Fritz Lang. 

Crowdfunding:

• Aurum, an anthology of original speculative novellas by Australian authors, is looking for funding.
• Shadows at the Door, an illustrated horror anthology edited by Mark Nixon, is looking for funding.
• Beyond Watson: A Collection of New Sherlock Holmes Stories edited by Derrick Belanger is looked for funding.
• The Canals of Earth, a science fiction comic written from a Martian POV, is looking for funding.
• The Writer's Block Tarot, a tarot deck designed to help writers deal with writer's block, is looking for funding. 

Con reports:

• Ellen Datlow shares some photos of the International Conference for the Fantastic in the Arts in Orlando, Florida. 
• Joyce Chng reports about her experiences at the International Conference for the Fantastic in the Arts.
• Angie Fiedler Sutton reports about a screening and Q&A session for the new TV show Houdini and Doyle at WonderCon in Los Angeles. 
• Nicholas Graff discusses the Con Man panel at WonderCon.
• Heidi Macdonald shares five quick takeaways from WonderCon.
• Steve Weintraub shares photos of WonderCon.
• Silas Lesnick shares cosplay photos from WonderCon.
• Amy Ratcliffe shares photos of cosplayers dressed as Rey from The Force Awakens at WonderCon.
• Galactic Journey also shares some photos of WonderCon, viewed through the lens of a time traveller from 1961.
• Sheena McFarlane talks about Buzz Aldrin opening the Salt Lake City Comic Con Fan Xperience in Salt Lake City, Utah. 
• Michael McFall reports about various Doctor Who stars appearing at Salt Lake City Comic Con Fan Xperience.
• Michael McFall also discusses his heartpounding journey through the Walking Dead Experience at Salt Lake City Comic Con Fan Xperience.
• Heather Taatgen shares her experiences at the Dutch Comic Con in Utrecht in the Netherlands.
• Michael Swanwick discusses his experiences at Roscon in Rublevka and Moscow, Russia.

Science and technology:

• Neil deGrasse Tyson points out that SpaceX is delusional about Mars.
• The trigger for the Milky Way's youngest supernova has been identified.
  

Free online fiction:

• "Discards" by David D. Levine at Tor.com.
• "Death Flowers of a Never-Forgotten Love" by Jason Sanford in Apex Magazine.
• "Traffic Circles of Old Connecticut" by Susan Jane Bigelow in Lunar Station Quarterly.
• "Revenge of the Peeps" by Camille LaGuire. 
• "The Corruption" by Floyd Looney.
• "Funeral for a Redshirt" by Floyd Looney.
• "Robby Burgers Rebellion" by T.S. Paul.  
• Chapter 4 of "Day of Recovery", part 93 of The Descendants by Landon Porter.

Odds and ends: 

• Watch a trailer for Houdini & Doyle. 
• Watch a trailer for Alice Through the Looking Glass.
• Watch a trailer for Electra Woman and Dyna Girl.
• Watch a trailer for Voltron: Legendary Defender.
• Watch the title sequence for a hypothetic 1980s anime version of Pacific Rim (though the credits omitted Burn Gorman).
• Watch a trailer for The Lego Batman Movie (yes, this is a thing, apparently).
• Watch Batman versus Superman as you've never seen them before, performing a duel of their respective theme songs with bagpipes and ukulele.