How to Write Science Fiction and Fantasy [52 Books #10]

1987 was how many lifetimes ago? Card's writing guide for speculative fiction still has much good information on what works, what doesn't, and where the traps are for young writers. There's probably as good sources of information on the internet but most writing guides say 'buy this book'. And so I did, and while it was a page-turning drama it did keep my interest.

The chapters on technique are timeless; styles change, but a writer must understand what his audience expects before breaking new grounds. Simply, you need to know the rules before you break them. Managing exposition, finding the right viewpoint, finding the main character, all these lessons matter. I'd recommend the book for these chapters for people interested in writing or looking to critically analyze writing.

The latter chapters on getting published are hurt by the massive cultural shifts the publishing landscape has undergone. Card's advice to start with short stories published in magazines feels outdated. These days, I wonder if a young author could make a start using just Facebook and self-promotion.

The last two chapters dealing with conventions and writer's groups aren't quite so dated. Conventions are good for networking and meeting fans; bad if you make your career about attending conventions and your writing suffers. The pros and cons of writer's meetings, the Clarion workshops, and other circles are discussed, along with all the common problems leading you to quit them.

It's a solid book on writing SF&F. The techniques are always useful; the advice for dealing with other writers and fans is often helpful. The marketing world is different these days but the recommendations are a starting point for the unknowing.

Lamb, or the Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal [52 Books #9]

Well... Let's assume no one in the world will be offended by this. 'Kay?

It's pretty damn funny. Lamb is the story of Biff, who first met Jesus when they were six. Shortly thereafter Jesus punches him for offering to make Mary his concubine. That about sets their relationship up for the rest of the book. Biff is Jesus's close friend, watching his back, facepalming when Jesus tells too much of the truth, and tagging along to keep him out of trouble as they set out from their town to cross the world. In short, he's the rascal who keeps the story grounded and funny. The world is researched well. Moore impressed me with a authentic feel, even though we have so little authentic tales of day-to-day life in that era.

The early book is the childhood trio, Jesus, Biff and Maggie (Mary Madelene, recently moved to town) . It's good comedy, Biff fawning over Maggie, Maggie fawning over Jesus, and Jesus really wants the messenger angel to go back and get some clarification on this 'not know the touch of a woman' thing. There's the roman soldier Justus, who shakes his head at the boys and just knows they'll be trouble when they get older. It all comes apart when Maggie s betrothed to the son of a pharisee and Biff and Jesus decide they can't stand to see her married. Jesus sets off to find the three magi who came to him at the manger and Biff follows to make sure nobody conks his friend and robs him.

Their travels tack them to Persia, to China, to the Himalayas and to India. Jesus meets his three teachers, learning compassion and wisdom; Biff learns explosives and kung-fu. Well, Jesus learns kung-fu as well, but he refuses to strike out at anyone, leading to the worst pun of the book.

The humor breaks down near the end. I dare anyone outside Monty Python to make the crucification funny. Still, it's a good book, trading comedy for drama at the end and I'd consider reading more of Moore's work.

The New Topping Book [52 Books #8]

I'm a roleplayer. I'm on the internet. Naturally, sex comes up now and then. One thing I learned from the New Topping Book is that the games people play in real life are nothing like the fantasies spun in a torrid corner of your favorite MMORPG.

The New Topping Book is a brief, carefully written guide on how to be a top, a dominant, a master or mistress in real life without hurting yourself or others. The two authors show experience and love of the dominant/submissive lifestyle in their writing, which is surprisingly tender. There's chapters on why anyone would want to be a dominant and have control over someone and inflict pain, with good answers ranging from surfing the bottom's emotional high to just wanting to 'do it right' after seeing tops not fulfill your wishes, to caring and wanting to act out your lovers dreams. Chapters detail how to be responsible, how the need for open communication and negotiation is so critical. How to start your life as a dominant, how to find others, how performance anxiety can drive you mad, and so much other advice.

Perhaps the best advice is this: you and your partner are doing what the two of you want to do. Don't get caught up in 'who's the best top' and 'if you're not 24/7 you're an amateur' situations. Live the lifestyle you and your partner wish and if others in the community don't respect that, it's not the community for you. Be happy together, explore your limits together, and don't let anyone denigrate or demand you exceed those boundaries.

The Lies of Locke Lamorra [52 Books #7]

I'd heard good things about The Lies of Locke Lamorra. Coming off of Blackfoot Physics, which I had several issues with, this book was a joy. I was caught up in the first chapter and blew through the book in a weekend. Not every bit was great, but it was a solid, unique fantasy novel.

Locke Lamorra is so not a fantasy hero – he's not even a fantasy villain. He's the scum your D&D party trips over in a random encounter. Young Locke is an orphan after a plague. With other orphans he's shuffled off and bought by the, for lack of a better term, thieves training guild. Locke steals, mugs, pickpockets, and quickly becomes too much for his master, ending with the great line only a few pages in the book as this master tries to sell him off to a beggar guild, “Either you buy him or I have to cut his throat tonight.”

We quickly move to an older Locke, now a con man and involved in deep schemes to defraud the rich. His plans are timed, tricky, and always within a breath of disaster – and they don't always work, so there's no sense of him being invulnerable. Locke and his companions, The Gentleman Bastards, are all drawn wonderfully with loves and depth. Locke is clever, smart, ready with a disarming word, but useless in a fight. The twins are like his older brothers, backing him up. Bug is the youngest, newest member of the troupe and is eager to prove himself to his betters, taking risks at every turn. Finally, Jean is the studious one, running the numbers for the gang and also the only decent brawler among them.

As the story progresses the con games become involved in an underworld war for control of crime in the city and things spiral far beyond Locke's control. His Capa faces threats to his leadership from a strange rival, the city's spymaster gets a lead on Locke's latest con game, and the new would-be crime lord picks Locke out to help him overthrow the city, like it or not. Locke dances as fast as he can between all of them. He almost keeps up.

I'd recommend it to any fantasy lover, any who like mafia movies, or anyone who likes the Grifters. My two disappointments are Lynch will draw wonderful characters and then kill them off; I can understand why he does it, but I miss them. The other is that I've heard the sequel is notably weaker, and from reading the preview chapter at the end of this book my interest in continuing this series faded.

Blackfoot Physics [52 Books #6]

Blackfoot Physics was written by a quantum physicist. I expected this book to be more like The Dancing Wu Li Masters, which integrated thoughts on quantum mechanics with eastern principles. Peat instead views the world through the eyes of native american beliefs and attempts to show us the shortcomings in our culture. I felt misled.

Peat raises many valid points about western society's loss of touch with nature; even when we go to 'touch nature' it often by going on a day-long hike or a camping trip, or a walk in a field. A whole books about such thoughts is a worthwhile read. But Peat tries to prove the west's need for a return to nature by invoking the similarity between western science and indigenous sciences of the Blackfoot, Iroquois, Lakota, and other native tribes, painting, well, interesting contrasts of their use of the scientific method. In short, western scientists conduct an experiment to ask nature questions and the data from the experiment is the answer. Indigenous science sit down and speak to nature directly, waiting for the answer to be spoken to them. Peat also decries the conflict-driven, adversarial ways western science reaches a consensus, using the infamous cold fusion announcement as an example. The flaw in his reasoning is he never explains why conflict is bad – we are left to assume that hundreds of scientists arguing over a new theory is by nature less correct than the same people sitting down and discussing it long into the night.

I don't have any objecton to reading about alternative views of the world, from the magic of Casteneda to the beliefs of religious doctrine to self-help meditation guides. What David Peat did annoyed me. He tries to correspond two different belief systems, calling both equally valid science, to demonstrate the inherent superiority of native american lifestyles. I wish he'd simply wrote a book showing how peaceful, empathic and grounded the lifestyle can be. That book would rise on its own merits. He doesn't need to attempt scientific justification of native values.

The Blade Itself [52 Books #5]

Love the simple painting of the characters in The Blade Itself. There's not too many, enough to keep the story going, and each is given depth where necessary, and no more. There's some nice sketching by the author to fill in these people and it feels just right. We first meet a warrior losing a fight and barely surviving, then a interrogator, then a infantry leader, then the warrior's companions. And that's all the viewpoint characters, leaving less than a dozen other significants. Abercrombie paints a whole fantasy world with just these few lines, and I'd like to see more of it.

The overall plot, summarized, is so typical it's a joke. Old empire if faced with an uppity neighbor while some ancient evil is lurking in the background. Like Orson Scott Card said in his SF&F guide, it doesn't matter if the story's been used before, it's your writing and it's what you do with it that counts. Abercrombie does good work in this initial novel of this trilogy. The world is there, the cultures are there, the characters rarely bore, and although it takes a while to start cranking, it gets the motor purring by the end.

I've already ordered the sequel, Before They Are Hanged, and unless I'm quite dssapointed I'll be picking up the finale sometime this year.

The Tough Guide to Fantasyland [52 Books #4]

Now this is a fun travel guide. It's arranged more like an encyclopedia of the common fantasy terms. It's damn funny. Some entries are wonderfully snarky, and the book slashes, not pokes, fun at all the tired fantasy cliches. Every bar exists to have fights and give employment to nubile young barmaids, every ancient castle has a dungeon full of monsters except the ones the doddering old king and the big bad evil guy live in. It's also a great tool to look inside and ask yourself, “Am I writing these cliches?”