Speculative Fiction Links of the Week for January 27, 2017

Here is our weekly round-up of interesting links about speculative fiction from around the web, this week with lots of awards shortlists and nominations, presidential reading, Martians Abroad, Dreadnought and Passing Strange as well as the usual mix of awards news, writing advice, interviews, reviews, awards news, con reports, crowdfunding projects, science articles and free online fiction. 

Speculative fiction in general:

• Natalie Zutter lists five SFF stories about space stations at the edge of time.  
• Jeff Somers shares ten SFF books featuring Norse mythology.
• Leah Schnelbach shares ten SFF stories set in San Francisco.
• Andrew Robinson profiles Arthur C. Clarke.
• Ana Grilo and Thea James discuss Old Man's War by John Scalzi. 
• Seanan McGuire and several other authors and artists remember Richard Adams and Watership Down. 
• Ruth Kinane lists every books Barack Obama ever recommended or praised during his presidency, including quite a few speculative ones. 
• Bryan Mengus reports that sales of George Orwell's dystopian classic Nineteen Eighty-Four have skyrocketed following the inauguration of Donald Trump. 
• Joel Cunningham shares twelve SFF books for the post-truth era.
• Gail Z. Martin points out that science fiction and fantasy have a long history of subversion.
• Jamie Righetti wonders why the horror genre loves twist endings so much. 
• Tansy Rayner Roberts criticises the fact that many superhero teams consist of a whole lot of men and only one woman.
• Ciara Wardlow hopes that the success of Hidden Figures will pave the way for more movies about real world science. 
• Sam Adams shares his thoughts on the movie The Discovery.
• Jake Orthwein discusses Westworld and the meaning of life.
• Glen Weldon declares that the latest adaptation of A Series of Unfortunate Events is all about the villain Count Olaf.
• Katharine Trendacosta calls the TV series Riverdale addictive. 
• Alasdair Stuart wonders whether James Cameron can save the Terminator saga by ending it. 
• Rob Leane reports that Whoopi Goldberg really wants a role in Doctor Who.
• Jerome Stueart wonders what the character of Jake Sisko from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine can teach us.
• Mike Glyer reports that the Axanar lawsuit about a planned Star Trek fan film has been settled.
• Lisa Granshaw shares eleven composers who have created the music for various SFF films and TV shows.
• Lisa Fernandez reports that a councilman in San José, California, has taken his oath of office, while carrying Captain America's shield. 
• Actor Miguel Ferrer died aged 61.
• Actress Mary Tyler Moore died aged 80. 
• Writer Emma Tennant died aged 79.
• Bookseller Larry Smith, who sold books at SFF conventions around the US, has died aged 71. 
• John Scalzi remembers Larry Smith.

Awards:

• The shortlist for the 2017 Philip K. Dick Awards has been announced. 
• The preliminary ballot for the 2016 Bram Stoker Awards has been announced.
• The nominees for the 2017 Edgar Awards have been announced.
• The nominees for the 2016 RT Awards have been announced.
• The winners of the American Library Association's 2017 Youth Media Awards have been announced.
• Peggy Rae Sapienza has been named the 2017 winner of the Kate Wilhelm Solstice Award.
• The winner of the 2017 Dell Magazine Award has been announced. 
• The nominations for the 89th Academy Awards have been announced.
• The nominations for the 37th Razzie Awards have been announced.
• The winners of the first New York SF Film Festival have been announced.
• Shaun Duke and Aaron Beveridge share a survey of international SFF fans about the Hugo Awards and the recent controversies.
• Jameson Quinn and Bruce Schneier publish a paper on the E Pluribus Hugo nomination algorithm.
  

Writing, publishing and promotion:

• Charles Chu explains how Isaac Asimov managed to write almost 500 books in his lifetime. 
• Kameron Hurley talks about writing and disappointment.
• Kristine Kathryn Rusch discusses the state of the publishing business in late 2016/early 2017.
• Matthew Kressel shares some tips regarding how to run a successful readings series.
  

Interviews:

• Ellen Cheeseman-Meyer interviews Lois McMaster Bujold.
• JJ interviews Genevieve Cogman.
• Joel Cunningham interviews Myke Cole. 
• Rob Bedford interviews April Daniels.
• Peter Sagal interviews Daniel Handler a.k.a. Lemony Snicket.
• David Barr Kirtley interviews Kij Johnson. 
• Carl Slaughter interviews the contributors to the anthology From Here To Infinity, edited by Jonathan Strahan.
• Sam Riedel interviews Lilah Sturges. 

Reviews:

• Liz Bourke reviews Martians Abroad by Carrie Vaughn. 
• Jason Heller also reviews Martians Abroad by Carrie Vaughn. 
• James Davis Nicoll also reviews Martians Abroad by Carrie Vaughn. 
• Liz Bourke reviews Dreadnought by April Daniels. 
• Kirkus also reviews Dreadnought by April Daniels.
• Brit Mandelo reviews Passing Strange by Ellen Klages.
• Ross Johnson also reviews Passing Strange by Ellen Klages.
• Liz Bourke also reviews Passing Strange by Ellen Klages.
• Camestros Felapton reviews A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers. 
• Kirkus reviews The Collapsing Empire by John Scalzi. 
• Paul Weimer reviews Galactic Empires, edited by Neil Clarke.
• Catalina Rembuyan reviews Wolf at the Door by J. Damask.
• Ceridwen Christensen reviews Heartstone by Elle Katharine White.
• Heather Rose Jones reviews Congress of Secrets by Stephanie Burgis.
• Sam Reader reviews The Skill of Our Hands by Steven Brust and Skyler White.
• Rich Rosell reviews The Last Sacrifice by James A. Moore.
• Angela and Selene review The Empathic Detective by Jaxon Reed. 
• Michael Patrick Hicks reviews Something Violent by Kristopher Rufty.

Con reports:

• John Scalzi shares some photos of ConFusion in Detroit, Michigan.
• Watch a video of John Scalzi and Joe Hill getting into a pillow fight at ConFusion in Detroit, Michigan.
• WorldCon 75 in Helsinki, Finland, has shared its third progress report. 

Science and technology:

• Why have no moons orbiting exo-planets been detected?  
• Two babies have been cured of leukaemia via a new gene therapy.
• What the US can learn from Canada's battle with an anti-science government.
  

Free online fiction:

• "Nine Tenth of the Law" by Molly Tanzer in Lightspeed. 
• "Nine" by Kima Jones in Lightspeed.
• "Daddy Long Legs of the Evening" by Jeffrey Ford in Lightspeed.
• "The Virtual Swallows of Hog Island" by Julianna Baggott at Tor.com.
• "It Couldn't Be Done" by Kip W. 

Odds and ends: 

• Watch a video of a Star Trek "Captain's Summit", hosted by Whoopie Goldberg and featuring William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Sir Patrick Stewart and Jonathan Frakes. 
• Watch a Japanese trailer for Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. II.  
• Watch a trailer for King Arthur.
• Watch a featurette about the Lego Batman Movie.