It's time for the weekly round-up of interesting links about speculative fiction from around the web, this week with the new series of Doctor Who, Captain Marvel, Outlander, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Nightflyers, Mortal Engines, Anna and the Apocalypse, the cancellation of Daredevil, Tumblr's adult content ban, accusations against Neil deGrasse Tyson as well as the usual mix of awards news, writing advice, interviews, reviews, con reports, crowdfunding campaigns, science articles, free online fiction and much more.
Speculative fiction in general:
- Emily Wenstrom shares ten Christmas and holiday themed speculative fiction books.
- Laura E. Weymouth shares five SFF books that can inspire hope in tough times.
- Alex Brown shares ten great parents from young adult SFF.
- Ross Johnson shares seven recent feminist dystopias.
- Tom Cassauwers explains what science fiction says about the cultures that create it.
- James Davis Nicoll talks about science fiction novels that get special relativity all wrong.
- Sam J. Miller explains why stories about HIV/AIDS still matter.
- David Hayden talks about the women writers who influenced him and also discusses why so many men still read exclusively male writers.
- Tammy Oler profiles N.K. Jemisin.
- Lanre Bakare talks about the new age of Afrofuturism and Afrosurrealism.
- Brian Merchant explains why companies like Boeing and Nike are paying science fiction writers to predict the future for them.
- Nilah Magruder shares her appreciation for children's science fiction and fantasy art.
- Meghan Scott Molin talks about Batman and other crime-fighting comic book heroes.
- Tomilayo Adeiye reports about an uproar between Nora Roberts and Tomi Adeyemi involving two similarly titled books.
- Jim C. Hines reports about the latest harrassment attempts by Jon del Arroz.
- Camestros Felapton finds a couple of familiar names on a list of people and companies to whom alt-right provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos is in debt.
- Check out the sexual violence in speculative fiction database.
Best of 2018 lists:
- Barnes & Noble share their favourite science fiction and fantasy books of 2018.
- The Guardian critics share their favourite books of 2018, including Adam Roberts' favourite science fiction and fantasy novels.
- David Walter shares his most anticipated SFF novels and novellas of 2019.
- Book Riot shares the best book covers of 2018, including several genre covers.
Film and TV:
- Emma Grey Ellis explains why so many diversified reboots of older films and TV shows fail and that the diverse casts are not the problem, but the lack of new ideas is.
- Peter Bradshaw calls Sorry to Bother You a wacky wake-up call for white privilege.
- Cath Clarke calls Await Further Instructions a sweatily intense Christmas horror film.
- James Davis Nicoll revisits the 1962 post-apocalyptic movie Panic in the Year Zero!
- Graeme Virtue ranks all movie Santa Clauses.
- Cameron Kunzelman argues that Frosty the Snowman, hero of the famous song and children's cartoon, is probably a lich.
- A. Cydney Hayes reports that Guillermo del Toro had to fight for seven years to get Ron Perlman cast in Hellboy.
- Maria Lewis explains how the ultra-violent comic book movie Punisher: War Zone became a cult classic.
- Nick McGrath interviews Rupert Grint, who played Ron Weasley in the Harry Potter movies.
- Kerensa Cadenas reports that Neil deGrasse Tyson, host of the popular science program Cosmos, is under investigation for serious allegations of sexual misconduct.
- David Gee has interviewed one of the women who accused Neil deGrasse Tyson.
- Prachi Gupta reports that a fourth woman has accused Neil deGrasse Tyson of sexual misconduct.
- Dominic Patten reports that Black Lightning showrunner Salim Akil has been sued for domestic abuse and copyright infringement by his ex-partner Amber Dixon Brenner.
- Actor Ken Berry who had guest parts on several genre TV shows has died aged 85.
Comments on series 11 of Doctor Who:
- Emily Asher-Perrin shares her thoughts on "It Takes You Away", the latest episode of Doctor Who.
- Camestros Felapton shares his thoughts on "It Takes You Away".
- Dan Martin calls "It Takes You Away" Doctor Who does Nordic noir.
- Caroline Siede calls "It Takes You Away" wonderfully weird and beautifully poignant.
- James Whitbrook was very baffled by "It Takes You Away".
- Ryan Britt discusses how "It Takes You Away" handles the Doctor's famous catchphrase "Reverse the polarity".
- Emily Asher-Perrin finds some parallels between the Thirteenth Doctor and the Fifth Doctor.
- Mattha Busby reports that Mandip Gill and Tosin Cole, who play companions Yaz and Ryan in series 11 of Doctor Who, call claims that Doctor Who has become too politically correct bizarre.
- Lucy Jones declares that the debate about the supposedly too politically correct Doctor Who shows why the term "politically correct" should be retired.
- Meanwhile, Jessica Holmes revisits "An Unearthly Child", the very first episode of Doctor Who ever.
- James Whitbrook remembers Doctor Who's very first Christmas episode, "The Feast of Steven", which aired in 1965.
- Joanne Baker remembers electronic music pioneers Daphne Oram and Delia Derbyshire, who created the iconic Doctor Who theme.
- Victoria Lucas also profiles Delia Derbyshire.
Comments on Captain Marvel:
- Ben Child traces how the portrayal of Carol Danvers a.k.a. Captain Marvel in the upcoming film will differ from the comics.
- John Boone interviews Brie Larson, star of the upcoming Captain Marvel movie.
- Watch a trailer for Captain Marvel.
Comments on Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse:
- Germain Lussier reports that the team behind Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse thrives on lowered audience expectations.
- Nate Nickolai interviews the cast and crew of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.
- Watch a clip from Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.
Comments on Outlander:
- Paul Levinson shares his thoughts on the latest episode of Outlander.
- Kayla Kumari Upadhyaya shares her thoughts on the latest episode of Outlander.
- Andrea Reiher shares her thoughts on the latest episode of Outlander.
- Andrea Reiher also talks about the surprising return of a former Outlander regular (spoilers).
Comments on Nightflyers:
- Natalie Zutter shares everything you need to know about the novella Nightflyers by George R.R. Martin and its TV adaptation.
- Beckett Mufson calls Nightflyers an imaginative and brutal gorefest.
- Alex McLevy explains why Nightflyers is closer to Event Horizon than to Game of Thrones.
- Matt Zoller Zeitz calls Nightflyers a space plodyssey.
- Jeff Buhler, showrunner of Nightflyers, explains why George R.R. Martin's expansive worlds are ideal for television.
Comments on Mortal Engines:
- Beth Elderkin calls Mortal Engines a by the numbers dystopian drama that comes several years too late.
- Peter Bradshaw calls Mortal Engines a tiringly frenetic and derivative Steampunk adventure.
- Todd McCarthy calls Mortal Engines underheated Steampunk science fiction.
Comments on Anna and the Apocalypse:
- April Wolfe calls Anna and the Apocalypse a holiday horror cocktail of singing, maiming and clichés.
- Scott Tobias calls Anna and the Apocalypse a Shaun of the Dead fan film with added musical numbers.
Comments on the cancellation of Daredevil:
- Renaldo Matadeen declares that Netflix made a huge mistake when it cancelled Daredevil.
- Andy Welch asks what went wrong in the relationship between Marvel and Netflix.
- Sam Stone reports that Daredevil was actually one of Netflix's most popular shows.
- Shirley Li shares the reaction of Charlie Cox, who plays Matt Murdoch in Daredevil, to the show's cancellation.
- Noah Dominguez reports that Marvel has promised more filmic Daredevil adventures.
- Renaldo Matadeen declares that Daredevil, Luke Cage and Iron Fist are not headed to Disney's new streaming service, however.
- Sam Stone reports that the entire fourth season of Daredevil had already been laid out, when the show was cancelled.
- Beth Elderkin interviews Daredevil writer Tamara Becher-Wilkinson about the surprise cancellation.
Comments on Tumblr's adult content policies:
- Gavia Baker-Whitelaw reports that new adult content guidelines have enraged Tumblr users.
- Shannon Liao reports that Tumblr will ban all adult content beginning December 17, 2018.
- Alex Cranz reports that Tumblr has falsely flagged all sorts of harmless images as adult.
Awards:
- The winners of the 2018 Goodreads Choice Awards have been announced and Mike Glyer compiles the winners of genre interest.
- The nominees for the 2018 Golden Globes have been announced and Mike Glyer lists the nominees of genre interest.
- The winners of the 2018 Bad Sex Award has been announced.
- Sian Cain declares that the Bad Sex Award and its illustrious winners are not just bad fiction, but an illustration of the privilege enjoyed by white male writers.
Writing, publishing and promotion:
- Ayodeji Awosika explains how to keep writing day after day, even if you don't feel like it.
- Ayodeji Awosika also shares the difference between good and bad writers.
- Lauren Sapala explains what it's like to be a writer with anxiety.
- Steve Johnson explains why writing books is more than typing and processing words.
- Piotr Gaczkowski shares his reasons for writing.
- Harry J. Stead discusses the purpose of writing and art according to George Orwell.
- Melissa Chu shares J.R.R. Tolkien's process for creating a work that lasts.
- Michael Skapinker offers a defense of the passive voice.
- Carol Potenza talks about researching the science necessary for your story.
- John Scalzi shares some observations on bestseller lists.
- Mike Glyer reports that the SFWA has delisted the Writers of the Future anthology as a qualifying market following complaints about the contest.
Interviews:
- Abigail Bereola interviews N.K. Jemisin.
- Carl Slaughter interviews Nancy Kress.
- Paul Weimer interviews Catherine Lundoff.
- Jane Chiabattari interviews Jonathan Lethem.
- Alison Flood interviews Richard Morgan.
- The Geek's Guide to the Galaxy interviews Andy Duncan.
- Megan Labrise interviews Dhonielle Clayton.
- Summer H. Paulus interviews Elizabeth Haydon.
- Paul Weimer interviews Andrea Johnson.
- Susanna Hutcheson interview book cover designer Chip Kidd.
Reviews:
- Jacob Olsen reviews A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine.
- Adri Joy reviews A Bad Deal for the Whole Galaxy by Alex White.
- Adrienne Martini reviews Before Mars by Emma Newman.
- Paul Di Filippo reviews Lost Mars: Stories from the Golden Age of the Red Planet, edited by Mike Ashley.
- James Davis Nicoll reviews Babylon's Ashes by James S.A. Corey.
- Camestros Felapton reviews Swordheart by T. Kingfisher.
- The Little Red Reviewer reviews The Monster Baru Cormorant by Seth Dickinson.
- The Fantasy Inn reviews In the House of Aryaman, a Lonely Signal Burns by Elizabeth Bear.
- Tadiana Jones and Jana Nyman review Bright Ruin by Vic James.
- Paula Guran reviews All the Faulous Beasts by Priya Sharma.
- Rob Bedford reviews The Shattered Sun by Rachel Dunne.
- Liz Bourke reviews Daughter of the Sun by Effie Calvin and Icefall by Stephanie Gunn.
- Amy Goldschlager reviews The Dragon's Path and The King's Blood by Daniel Abraham.
- Stephanie Johnston reviews The Dark Days Deceit by Alison Goodman.
- Marion Deeds and Terry Weyna review A Conspiracy of Truths by Alexandra Rowland.
- Mark Yon reviews Skyward by Brandon Sanderson.
- Taya Okerlund reviews Legendary by Stephanie Garber.
- Michael Patrick Hicks reviews Coyote Songs by Gabino Iglesias.
- Jared Shurin reviews AfroSFv3, edited by Ivor W. Hartmann.
- Ian Mond reviews The Emissary a.k.a. The Last Children of Tokyo by Yoko Tawada, translated by Margaret Mitsutani.
- Karen Haber reviews Line of Beauty: The Art of Wendy Pini.
- Joe Sherry reviews The Future is Female: 25 Classic Science Fiction Stories by Women, from Pulp Pioneers to Ursula K. Le Guin, edited by Lisa Yaszek.
Classics reviews:
- Alan Brown revisits Edmond Hamilton's classic 1940 space opera adventure Captain Future and the Space Emperor as well as Allen Steele's 2017 updated Captain Future adventure Avengers of the Moon.
- Sandy Ferber revisits the 1940 horror thriller Fear by L. Ron Hubbard.
- Steven H. Silver revisits the 1957 sword and sorcery story The Valor of Cappen Varra by Poul Anderson.
- Jay Rothermel revisits the 1957 horror thriller The Prisoner in the Mask by Dennis Wheatley.
- Toby Frost revisits the 1984 fantasy novel Dragons of Autumn Twilight by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman.
- Vance Kotrla revisits the 1990 science fiction collection Her Smoke Rose Up Forever by James Tiptree Jr.
- Joe Kenney revisits Lewis Shiner's 1995 fantasy novel Glimpses.
- Nisi Shawl revisits the 1997 epic The River Where Blood Is Born by Sandra Jackson-Opoku.
- Jesse Hudson and Rachael McKenzie revisit Margaret Atwood's 2005 mythology retelling The Penelopiad.
Crowdfunding:
- Volume 3 of Moonshot: The Indigenous Comics Collection, edited by Dr. Elizbaeth LaPensee and Michael Sheyahshe, is looking for funding.
- The Paper Tigers, an indie kung fu film by Bao Tran, is looking for funding.
Con and event reports:
- Locus shares a reports about the 2018 World Fantasy Convention in Baltimore, Maryland.
- Isabel Schechter shares her statement regarding the events at LosCon 45 in Los Angeles, California.
- Kameron Hurley explains what makes for great conventions and conferences.
- David Gerrold shares a document about how to treat guests of honour at conventions.
- Michael Paulson reports about a theatre feud in San Francisco, California, which almost threatened the premiere of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.
Science and technology:
- Rob Lea asks what comes next for NASA's InSight Mars lander.
- Jonathan Amos reports that the NASA probe Osiris-rex has reached the asteroid Bennu.
- Loren Grush reports that China is embarking on a mission to land on the far side of the moon.
- Jeff Hecht explains how laser weapons stopped being science fiction.
- Jonathan Amos reports that the gravitational waves of a massive black hole merger have been detected.
- Marko Kovic explains why we urgently need a legal framework for space colonisation.
- John Pickrell reports that Australian opal miners have found some fossils which belong to a previously unknown species of dinosaurs.
- Kristin Houser reports that He Jiankui, the scientist responsible for the controversial gene-editing of twin babies, has gone missing.
Free online fiction:
- "The Thing About Ghost Stories" by Naomi Kritzer in Uncanny Magazine.
- "Monologue by an unnamed mage, recorded at the brink of the end" by Cassandra Khaw in Uncanny Magazine.
- "A Love Story Written on Water" by Ashok K. Banker in Lightspeed.
- "Hell Rode With Her" by David Mack at Tor.com.
- "The Witch in the Woods Fell in Love a Third Time" by Kate Lechler in Shimmer.
- "The Dead Girl's Wedding March" by Cat Rambo in Fantasy Magazine.
- "The Persistence of Blood" by Juliette Wade in Clarkesworld.
- "The Testimony of Dragon's Teeth" by Sarah Monette in Uncanny Magazine.
- "Streuobstwiese" by Steve Toase in Shimmer.
- "Frozen Meadow, Shining Sun" by Emily McCosh in Beneath Ceaseless Skies.
- "Forest Spirits" by Michael J. DeLuca in Beneath Ceaseless Skies.
Odds and ends:
