It's time for the latest weekly round-up of interesting links about speculative fiction from around the web, this week with the best SFF books of 2022, the debate surrounding the rise of AI writing and art bots, questions regarding the 2023 Worldcon in Chengdu, China, the discussion about edits to Roald Dahl's books, an uproar about the terms of service of the social media site Spoutible, Star Trek Picard and Star Trek in general, Star Wars in general, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and the Marvel Cinematic Universe in general, The Last of Us, Poker Face, Hello Tomorrow!, Cocaine Bear, The Survival of Kindness, tributes to Richard Belzer and much more.
Speculative fiction in general:
- K.W. Colyard shares thirty must-read SFF books by black authors.
- Rachel Brittain shares twenty genre-defying science fiction books that broke the mold.
- James Davis Nicoll shares five Cold War era science fiction tales to feature fallout shelters.
- James Davis Nicoll shares five science fiction books about failed terraforming.
- Cole Rush shares five of the coolest and occasionally terrifying SFF jobs.
- Intisar Khanani shares five YA fantasies for people who love libraries.
- Anastasia Klimchynskaya shares ten classic tales of swashbuckling historical intrigue.
- Erin Kelly shares classic literary puzzles and treasure hunts.
- Judith Tarr discusses the many ways shapeshifters have been depicted in myth and fiction.
- Emily Temple shares some of the best stories from 100 years of Weird Tales.
- Jeff Goad explains where to start with reading the works listed in Appendix N of the original Dungeons & Dragons Dungeon Master's Guide.
- Michael Curtis profiles Margaret St. Clair.
- Jim Wampler profiles Andre Norton.
- Rich Lynch remembers science fiction writer and fan Harry Warner Jr.
- Sarah Shaffi reports that BookTrust writer in residence S.F. Said has said that children (and adults) should be allowed to read for pleasure.
- Molly Templeton discusses what we talk about when we talk about our favourite books.
- Margaret Atwood responds to a library in Madison Country, Virginia, banning her 1985 dystopian novel The Handmaid's Tale.
- Zhang Rui reports that China's science fiction industry generated 82.96 billion yuan, that is approx. 12 billion US-dollars, in 2021.
- SFF writer Cai Emmons has died aged 71.
- Science fiction writer Marjorie Nelson Perisho has died aged 82.
Comments on the edits to Roald Dahl's works:
- Hayden Vernon reports that many of Roald Dahl's classic children's books have been rewritten to remove language now deemed offensive.
- The Guardian reports about the backlash against the Roald Dahl alterations.
- Jennifer Hassan reports that Salman Rushdie has spoken out against the edits of Roald Dahl's work.
- The Guardian reports about YA author Philip Pullman and British prime minister Rishi Sunak's reactions to the alteration of the Roald Dahl books.
- Lincoln Michel points out that corporate profits are the only motivation behind the Roald Dahl edits.
Best of 2022:
- Colleen Mondor shares her favourite science fiction and fantasy books of 2022.
- Russell Letson shares his favourite science fiction and fantasy books of 2022.
- Tim Pratt shares his favourite science fiction and fantasy books of 2022.
- Ian Mond shares his favourite science fiction adn fantasy books of 2022.
Comics and Art:
- D.D. Degg reports that The Life and Times by Scrooge McDuck by Don Rosa is having two chapters for potentially offensive portrayals of black characters.
- Mike Parker reviews Harker – The Black Hound – Part Two by Roger Gibson, Vincent Danks and Andrew Richmond
- Helene Stapinski and Bonnie Siegler profile Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, creators of Superman.
- James Davis Nicoll takes a look at the Legion of Substitute Heroes from DC's Legion of Superheroes comics.
- Dad-at-Arms interviews Masters of the Universe comics and packaging artist Nate Baertsch.
- Rob Salkowitz reflects on the legacy of Frank Frazetta.
- Unquiet Things profiles Ed Emshwiller.
- Bill Ward takes a look at the many covers that the Fafhrd and Gray Mouser stories by Fritz Leiber have had over the years.
- Bill Ward takes a look at the many covers Andre Norton's books have had over the years.
- Benjamin Marra shares a cover gallery of the 1970s Spanish space opera comic Legionarios del Espacio.
Film and TV:
- Gavia Baker-Whitelaw calls Attachment a witty take on supernatural possession.
- Phil Hoad calls The Long Dark Trail a modern day fairy tale that is also a chilling family horror.
- Alasdair Stuart shares his thoughts on Knock at the Cabin.
- Leslie Felperin calls The Fearway a Groundhog Day style road horror movie.
- Paul Levinson shares his thoughts on the latest episode of The Ark.
- Cheryl Eddy shares her thoughts on the post-apocalyptic horror film Friend of the World.
- Peter Bradshaw calls the anime Suzume a charming modern Alice in Wonderland.
- Germain Lussier attempts to explain why Lightyear was a failure.
- Elizabeth Vincentelli shares five science fiction movies to stream right now.
- Stuart Heritage ranks his twenty favourite time travel movies.
- Cheryl Eddy lists ten incompetent movie ghosts.
- Tasha Robinson points out that The Nevers was never given a chance, not even now that remaining unaired episodes are streaming for free.
- For Eternia reports that the CGI animated series He-Man and the Masters of the Universe has not been renewed for a fourth season by Netflix.
- Ben Child wonders why Hollywood is so keen on live action remakes of animated movies.
- Dan Persons discusses the physics of the Road Runner cartoons.
- Jessica Holmes revisits the 1968 Doctor Who serial "The Web of Fear".
- Camestros Felapton compares the 1992 cartoons Batman: The Animated Series and X-Men: The Animated Series.
- Peter Nemiroff interviews Rhys Frake-Waterfield, director of Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey.
- Kate Connolly interviews John Malkovich about the disappearance of his friend Julian Sands.
- Lois Beckett reports that producer Harvey Weinstein has been sentenced to an additional sixteen years in prison for rape and assault committed in Los Angeles, California.
- Actor Jansen Panettiere, who appeared in The Walking Dead, Major Crimes, The Forger and many others, has died aged only 28.
- Actress Barbara Bosson, star of Hill Street Blues, The Last Starfighter, Hooperman, Murder One and many others, has died aged 83.
Tributes to Richard Belzer:
- Actor and comedian Richard Belzer, who is best known for playing Detective Munch in Homicide: Life on the Streets and Law and Order: SVU and also appeared in The X-Files, The Flash, Superman: The Adventures of Lois and Clark, Third Rock From the Sun and many others, has died aged 78.
- Harrison Smith and Meryl Kornfield share an obituary for Richard Belzer.
- Alex Traub remembers Richard Belzer.
- Chris Koseluk remembers Richard Belzer.
Comments on Star Trek Picard and Star Trek in general:
- Keith R.A. DeCandido shares his thoughts on "The Next Generation", the first episode of season 3 of Star Trek Picard.
- James Whitbrook shares his thoughts on "The Next Generation".
- Paul Levinson shares his thoughts on "The Next Generation".
- Charlie Jane Anders shares seven hot takes about Star Trek.
- Galactic Journey revisits the 1968 Star Trek episode "Patterns of Force".
- Keith R.A. DeCandido revisits the Star Trek Enterprise episode "Impulse".
- Joey Nolfi reports how actor Michael Dorn, who plays Worf in Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek Picard, once trolled some Star Trek haters in a hotel elevator.
Comments on The Last of Us:
- Paul Levinson shares his thoughts on "Kin", the latest episode of The Last of Us.
- Gavia Baker-Whitelaw shares her thoughts on "Kin".
- Keith Phipps shares his thoughts on "Kin".
- David Cote shares his thoughts on "Kin".
- Germain Lussier shares his thoughts on "Kin".
- Andy Welch shares his thoughts on "Kin".
- Gavia Baker-Whitelaw discusses a potential cameo in "Kin".
- Kathryn VanArendonk praises the appearance of a menstrual cup in "Kin".
Comments on Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and the Marvel Cinematic Universe in general (spoilers):
- Bilge Ebiri calls Ant-Man and the Wasp atrocious in the way Marvel movies rarely are.
- Justin Carter declares that Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania became a victim of Marvel's saga obsession and is more about setting up the Multiverse saga than about its titular characters.
- Cindy White explains what you need to remember before watching Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.
- Germain Lussier shares all the questions he has after Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.
- Gavia Baker-Whitelaw is not impressed by villain Kang the Conqueror in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania spite of a strong performance by Jonathan Majors.
- Rob Bricken shares Kang's background in the comics.
- Josh Horowitz interviews Evangeline Lilly who plays Hope van Dyne a.k.a. The Wasp in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.
- Clay Skipper interviews Evangeline Lilly.
- Kevin Polowy interviews Michelle Pfeiffer who plays Janet Van Dyne a.k.a. the original Wasp in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.
- Sabina Graves discusses the connections between Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and Loki.
- The AV-Club ranks the 29 best Marvel villains.
- Ethan Alter interviews Mark Steven Johnson, director of the 2003 Daredevil and the 2007 Ghost Rider film.
- Cindy White wonders what's the matter with Marvel and why Marvel movies are floundering of late.
- Aaron Couch and Borys Kit report that Disney is rethinking its output of Marvel and Star Wars related TV series.
Comments on Star Wars in general:
Comments on Hello, Tomorrow!:
Comments on Cocaine Bear:
Comments on The Survival of Kindness:
- Peter Bradshaw calls The Survival of Kindness an elegant reverie about violence and stoicism.
- Cath Clarke interviews Mwajemi Hussein, star of The Survival of Kindness.
Awards:
- The finalists for the 2021 Endeavour Awards have been announced.
- The finalists for the 2023 L.A. Times Book Prizes have been announced.
- The longlists for the 2023 Rhysling Awards have been announced.
- The winner of the 2023 Jack Gaughan Award has been announced.
- The winner of the 2023 Kevin O'Donnell Jr. Service to SFWA Award has been announced.
- The finalists for the 2023 Zsoldos Péter Awards have been announced.
- The finalists for the 2023 PEN America Literary Awards have been announced.
- The winners of the 2023 Bafta Awards have been announced with lots of love for crappy literature adaptations and little love of genre films.
- The winners of the 2023 DGA Awards have been announced with some love for genre film and TV.
Writing, publishing and promotion:
- Lucy Snyder talks about descriptions and creating mood and atmosphere.
- Patricia Raybon explains what art can teach us about writing villains.
- Alex Gray shares her approach to researching her fiction.
- Alex Hern reports that Clarkesworld is closed to submissions after being flooded with AI-generated spam submissions.
- Michael Levinson reports that Clarkesworld, Asimov's and The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction have all been inundated with AI-generated spam submissions.
- Adrian Collins announces that Grimdark Magazine is closed to submissions due to AI spam until further notice, too.
- Mike Glyer reports that the social media start-up Spoutible has come under fire for its extremely restrictive sexual content policy, which affects a lot of romance writers.
- Anna Marble discusses the Spoutible uproar.
- Lisa Tolin shares the most banned picture books in the US.
- Rusty Blazenhoff reports that the Sistah Scifi bookstore in Oakland, California, has launched vending machines featuring SFF books by black and indigenous authors.
- Victoria Strauss reports that scammers are impersonating the Strand Bookstore in New York City.
Interviews:
Reviews:
- Jenny Hamilton reviews The Red Scholar's Wake by Aliette de Bodard.
- C.T. Phipps reviews The Last Stand of Rachel Good Crow by Rachel Aaron.
- Robin Marx reviews Conan: Blood of the Serpent by S.M. Stirling.
- Fabienne Schwizer reviews The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty
- Chris Kluwe reviews The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty
- James Dabis Nicoll reviews The Thousand Eyes by A.K. Larkwood.
- James Davis Nicoll reviews The Silence of Bones by June Hur.
- Joe Sherry reviews Backpacking Through Bedlam by Seanan McGuire.
- Marlene Harris reviews Junkyard War by Faith Hunter.
- Colleen Mondor reviews Even Though I Knew the End by C.L. Polk
- Durand Welch reviews Ordinary Monsters by J.M. Miro.
- Bill Capossere reviews Arch-Conspirator by Veronica Roth.
- Runalong the Shelves reviews The Apple-Tree Throne by Premee Mohamed.
- Runalong the Shelves reviews The Stone Knife by Anna Stephens.
- Lis Carey reviews The Scarlet Circus by Jane Yolen.
- Blue Book Balloon reviews Love Will Tear Us Apart by C.K. McDonnell.
- Maya C. James reviews The Ones We Burn by Rebecca Mix
- Alex Brown reviews Wildblood by Lauren Blackwood.
- Steven Poole reviews The Mountain in the Sea by Ray Nayler.
- Gary K. Wolfe reviews The Terraformers by Annalee Newitz
- Marlene Harris reviews World Running Down by Al Hess.
- Paul Weimer reviews Finna by Nino Cipri.
- Paul Weimer reviews Civilizations by Laurent Binet, translated by Sam Taylor.
- Arturo Serrano reviews The Mimicking of Known Successes by Malka Older
- Fabienne Schwizer reviews Clytemnestra by Constanza Casati.
- Fabienne Schwizer reviews Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett.
- Colleen Mondor reviews The Collectors by Philip Pullman
- Caren Gussoff Sumption reviews Lonely Castle in the Mirror by Mizuki Tsujimura, translated by Philip Gabriel.
- Gabino Iglesias reviews The Witch in the Well by Camilla Bruce
- Wole Talabi reviews Flight from the Ages and Other Stories by Derek Künsken
- Nicholas Diak reviews Issue 0 of New Edge Sword and Sorcery Magazine.
Classics reviews:
- James Davis Nicoll revisits the 1894 science fiction novel A Journey in Other Worlds by John Jacob Astor.
- Paperback Warrior revisits the 1912 Tarzan adventure novel Return of Tarzan by Edgar Rice Burroughs.
- James Wallace Harris revisits the 1929 science fiction story "Into the Subconscious" by Ray Avery Myers.
- The Cromcast revisits the 1933 Conan sword and sorcery novelette "The Scarlet Citadel" by Robert E. Howard.
- James Wallace Harris revisits the 1944 science fiction story "Though Dreamers Die" by Lester Del Rey.
- Crossexamining Crime revisits the 1958 mystery The Death Dealers a.k.a. A Whiff of Death by Isaac Asimov.
- Gideon Marcus revisits the March 1968 issue of The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction.
- James Davis Nicoll revisits the 1970 Arthurian fantasy novel The Crystal Cave by Mary Stewart.
- Alan Brown revisits the 1973 science fiction collection The Halfling and Other Stories by Leigh Brackett.
- Ruthanna Emrys and Anne M. Pillsworth revisit the 1982 cosmic horror story "Jerobeam Henley's Debt" by Charles R- Saunders.
- James Maliszewski revisits the May 1985 issue of White Dwarf.
- Alissa Burger revisits the 1992 YA horror novel The Dead Game by A. Bates, the 1994 YA horror novel Truth or Die by Diane Hoh and the 1995 YA horror novel Hide and Seek by Jane McFann.
- Emmet Asher-Perrin revisits the 2001 Discworld fantasy novel The Thief of Time by Terry Pratchett.
- Runalong the Shelves revisits the 2002 science fiction collection Stories of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang.
Con and event reports:
- Chris M. Barkley addresses the many issues with the 2023 Worldcon in Chengdu, China.
- The 2023 Worldcon in Chengdu, China, has issued its first progress report.
- Camestros Felapton reports about the controversy surrounding Chengdu guest of honour Sergey Lukyanenko and other controversial Worldcon guests.
- Morgan Cormack reports about the 2023 Gallifrey One convention in Los Angeles, California.
- The Baltimore Science Fiction Society in Baltimore, Maryland, has updated its code of conduct.
- Olivia Rutigliano revisits the defunct steampunky ride Space Mountain: From the Earth to the Moon at Disneyland Paris in Coupvray, France.
- Mee-Lai Stone shares cosplay photos.
- Harriet Sherwood reports that the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, UK, has acquired a trove of David Bowie memorabilia.
- Arifa Akbar calls the play Women, Beware the Devil by Lulu Raczka, which is currently being performed in London, UK, a bizarre horror comedy that's like Bridgerton on acid.
Crowdfunding:
- Rogues of Merth: The Adventures of Dareon and Blue, a two volume sword and sorcery series by Robert Zoltan, is looking for funding.
- Polite Society, an RPG zine for thieves, rogues and scoundrels by Mark Finn, is looking for funding.
- Dungeon Denizens, an expansion set of 500 new monsters for the Dungeoan Crawl Classics RPG, is looking for funding.
Gaming:
- Kevin Purdy calls the videogame Atomic Heart shockingly good.
- Joe DelFranco shares his thoughts on the videogame Overwatch 2.
- Caroline Petit declares that the videogame Hogwarts Legacy has a magical surface and a rotten core.
- Jennifer Maas reports that in spite of the controversy, Hogwarts Legacy has sold more than twelve million units and earned 850 million US-dollars in two weeks.
- Gregory Schmidt explains how Magic the Gathering became a billion dollar brand for Hasbro.
- Luke Plunkett reports that the city builder game Workers & Resources: Soviet Republic has been taken off Steam because of a copyright claim.
Science and technology:
- Richard Lusconbe reports that the unknown flying object shot down by the US military was likely a balloon launched by a group of hobbyists worth twelve US-dollars.
- Victor Tangermann shares some photos of the private Axiom Space Station under construction.
- NASA reports that a mountain on the Moon will be named after pioneering NASA mathematician Melba Roy Mouton.
- Lincoln Michel points out that ChatGPT doesn't need to be good to clog up submissions and harm writers.
- Bret Devereaux shares his thoughts on ChatGPT.
- Kevin Roose reports about an unsettling conversation with Bing's AI chatbot.
- Kashmir Hill reports about a tool that can protect artists from AI programs stealing their work.
- Jo Callaghan wonders if robots and artificial intelligences should take over crime fighting.
- Mack DeGuerin reports that REAIM, an international summit about the AI enabled weapons, was a flop with regards to human rights.
- Robin McKie reports that the discovery of extrachromosomal DNA could revolutionise cancer treatment.
Free online fiction:
- "Subject: More Monsters Will Not Make Us Safer" by Paul Crenshaw in Lightspeed.
- "His Guns Could Not Protect Him" by Sam J. Miller in Lightspeed.
- "Your Great Mother Across the Salt Sea" by Kelsey Hutton in Beneath Ceaseless Skies.
- "Our Grandmother's Words" by M.H. Ayinde in Beneath Ceaseless Skies.
- "Fire and Ice" by Anya Markov in Strange Horizons.
- "Every Day, Something Tries to Kill Me" by Todd Honeycutt in Heroic Fantasy Quarterly.
- "Silo, Sweet Silo" by James Castles in Clarkesworld.
- "Going Time" by Amal Singh in Clarkesworld.
- "A Girl Defines Herself" by Ruth Joffre in Nightmare Magazine.
- "Amma's Kitchen" by Rati Mehrotra in The Deadlands.
- "The Memory Eater" by H. Pueyo in The Dark.
- "Walking the Deep Down" by Michelle Denham in Apex Magazine.
- "Miz Boudreaux’s Last Ride" by Christopher Caldwell in Uncanny Magazine.
- "Secondhand" by S.L. Harris in Fantasy Magazine.
- "The Wee Folk" by Keira Reynolds in Luna Station Quarterly.
Trailers and videos:
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