Speculative fiction in general:
- Joel Cunningham shares 96 exciting SFF books coming out in 2017.
- Andrew Liptak shares 33 SFF books people will be talking about in 2017.
- Alvaro Zinos-Amaro shares Isaac Asimov's reading list.
- Jim C. Hines comments on a reviewer at SF Crowsnest who really dislikes Uncanny Magazine.
- Ardi Alspach shares his appreciation for the Copper Cat series by Jen Williams.
- Alan Brown shares his appreciation for The Forlorn Hope by David Drake.
- T.W. O'Brien shares his appreciation for Cards of Grief by Jane Yolen.
- Robin Anne Reid shares her appreciation for Sherri S. Tepper.
- Theodore Krulik takes a look at Mary Shelley's writing career after Frankenstein.
- Simon Tolkien, grandson of J.R.R. Tolkien, explains how WWI inspired The Lord of the Rings.
- Miranda Johnson, granddaughter of Richard Adams, remembers how Watership Down was written.
- Brenda Clough shares her appreciation for Richard Adams.
- Tyrus Wong, artist and animator who worked on Walt Disney's Bambi among others, died aged 106.
- Sidney Fussell reports that director John Carpenter has gotten into a fight with Neo-Nazis about his 1988 movie They Live.
- Alasdair Stuart shares a tribute to George Michael and finds a connection to the DC universe.
- Germain Lussier declares that the film adaptation of A Monster Calls manages the delicate balancing act between fantasy and tragedy.
Best of 2016:
- Barnes & Noble's SFF bloggers share their favourite books of 2016.
- The Book Smugglers share their favourite reads of 2016.
- Aliette de Bodard shares her favourite SFF works of 2016.
- Abigail Nussbaum shares her favourite reads of 2016.
- Kay Kenyon shares her favourite reads of 2016.
- Joe Sherry shares his top nine books of 2016.
- Adam Lipkin shares twelve books he really liked in 2016.
- Ginger Nuts of Horror share their top 20 horror books of 2016.
- Book Scrolling aggregates the best science fiction and fantasy books of 2016.
- Rachel David shares the best emerging fantasy authors of 2016 and received some pushback, because several of the authors on the list are well established.
- Kelly Quinn shares the ten best animes of 2016.
Comments on Star Wars and Rogue One:
- Kelly Kanayama declares that Rogue One is the rare movie about a revolution that actually tries to be revolutionary.
- Nancy Jane Moore has some issues with Rogue One.
- Doris V. Sutherland enjoyed Rogue One, but finds it the least space opera-like of all Star Wars films.
- Ben Child views Rogue One and its creation as a symptom of Hollywood's lack of imagination.
- Carole Cadwalladr interviews Riz Ahmed, who plays pilot Bodhi Rook in Rogue One.
- Germain Lussier shares some more information about what the Rogue One reshoots changed.
- The Astromech Journal looks at the inspirations for the design of Jedha in Rogue One.
- Germain Lussier shares the intriguing backstory of Darth Vader's castle in Rogue One.
- Flora Drury wonders where Princess Leia's iconic hairstyle came from.
- Sarah Jeong argues that inadequate women's reproductive healthcare helped to doom the Old Republic in the Star Wars prequels.
Tributes to Carrie Fisher:
- Mark Hamill shares his memories of Carrie Fisher.
- Peter Sciretta remembers Carrie Fisher's largely unknown and uncredited work as a script doctor on many blockbuster movies of the 1990s.
- John Scalzi also remembers Carrie Fisher, the writer.
- Greta van der Rol shares her tribute to Carrie Fisher.
- Readers of the New York Times share photos and tributes to Carrie Fisher and Princess Leia.
- Adam Holmes reports that Disney and Lucasfilm may collect an insurance payment of fifty million for the death of Carrie Fisher.
- There is a petition to make Leia an official Disney princess.
Comments on season 4 of Sherlock:
- Emily Asher-Perrin shares a spoilerish review of "The Six Thatchers", first episode of season 4 of Sherlock.
- Sam Wolfson shares a recap of "The Six Thatchers".
- Mark Lawson calls "The Six Thatchers" the most explosive episode of Sherlock yet.
- Ralph Jones worries that Sherlock might be morphing into James Bond and is not happy about that.
- Sherlock co-writer Mark Gatiss reponds to Ralph Jones with a poem.
- Leo Barraclough reports that Benedict Cumberbatch himself believes that Sherlock is softening.
Comments on Passengers:
- Lena Wilson wonders what went wrong with Passengers.
- Doris V. Sutherland explains why she empathised with the robot bartender in Passengers.
- Elizabeth Howell wonders how realistic the interstellar ship from Passengers really is.
Awards:
- Voting is open for the 2016 This is Horror Awards.
- The finalists for the 2016 Cybil Awards have been announced.
- The finalists for the first ever Sputnik Award have been announced.
- The longlist for the 2016 Jhalak Prize for book of the year by a writer of colour has been announced.
- The nominees for the 2017 Writers Guild Awards have been announced.
- Submissions for the 2017 Baen Fantasy Adventure Award open on January 15.
Writing, publishing and promotion:
- Chuck Wendig offers a writerly resolution for 2017.
- Damien Walter explains why creativity will eventually win the day.
- Scott Marmorstein offers his eight top reasons to go ahead and write a book.
- The editors of Reedsy share their tips on how to start a story.
- John Yeoman shares five insider secrets of top fiction writers.
- Lauren Sapala offers some encouragement for authors whose books don't fit neatly into established genres and categories.
- Dean Wesley Smith explains why failure must be an option for writers.
- Michael Anderle talks about his success as a self-published author.
- Diana Pharaoh Francis discusses the perils of self-editing.
Comments on the closure of OmniLit/AllRomance e-books:
- Victoria Strauss discusses the sudden closing of OmniLit/AllRomance e-books.
- The Passive Voice weighs in on the AllRomance issue.
- Kristine Kathryn Rusch weighs in on the AllRomance closing.
- Danuta Kean also reports on the AllRomance closing.
- Celina Summers has more background information on the collapse of AllRomance e-books.
- Does ARe owe you money? Fill out this survey.
Interviews:
Reviews:
- Camestros Felapton reviews Fellside by M.R. Carey.
- Camestros Felapton also reviews Hammers on Bone by Cassandra Khaw.
- Jessica Wagar also reviews Hammers on Bone by Cassandra Khaw.
- Liz Bourke reviews Of Fire and Stars by Audrey Coulthurst.
- Michael Patrick Hicks reviews Little Heaven by Nick Cutter.
- The Geekiary reviews Wayfarer by Alexandra Bracken.
- The Qwillery reviews Everything You Want Me to Be by Mindy Mejia.
- Bill Capossere reviews A Crucible of Souls by Mitchell Hogan.
- Aidan Moher reviews The Heart of What Was Lost by Tad Williams.
- nerds of a feather review In Calabria by Peter S. Beagle.
- Tobias Carroll reviews When the World Wounds by Kiini Ibura Salaam.
- Paul Levinson reviews The Perversity of Things: Hugo Gernsback on Media, Tinkering and Scientifiction, edited by Grant Wythoff.
Crowdfunding:
Con reports:
- Dan Berry reports that volunteers at Phoenix Comicon in Phoenix, Arizona, will have to hold a paid membership in a specific fan club from now on.
- Rich Johnston has more on the Phoenix Comicon controversy.
- Mike Glyer reports about massive problems at Marvelous Nerd Years Eve in Dallas, Texas.
- Heidi MacDonald has more on the Marvelous Nerd Years Eve issue.
- David Gerrold shares his negative experiences at Marvelous Nerd Years Eve in Dallas, Texas.
- Nola Taylor Redd reports about a panel on space colonisation at Dragon Con in Atlanta, Georgia.
Science and technology:
- Astronomers have discovered that our closest interstellar neighbour, Proxima Centauri, forms a triple star system with Alpha and Beta Centauri.
- Astronomers are hoping to catch a glimpse of the supposed ninth (tenth, if you include Pluto) planet of our solar system.
- The most detailed view of black holes in the universe.
- Mysterious cosmic radio signals have been traced to a distant dwarf galaxy.
Free online fiction:
- "A Lumberjack's Guide to Dryad Spotting" by Charles Payseur in Flash Fiction Online.
- "Twilight Travels with the Grape-Paper Man" by Sara Saab in The Dark.
- "Loser" by Matthew Hughes in Archonate.
- "A Human Stain" by Kelly Robson at Tor.com.
- "Bodies Stacked Like Firewood" by Sam J. Miller in Uncanny Magazine.
- "Monster Girls Don't Cry" by A. Merc Rustad in Uncanny Magazine.
- "The Monkey King Sleeps" by Su-Yee Lin in Strange Horizons.
Odds and ends:
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